Michael Karadjis: Is Kosova allowed to declare independence?

"The Kosovar Albanians were an oppressed people in the old Yugoslavia, and much more so in Serbia following the collapse of the Yugoslav federation in 1989-90. Kosova had a per capita income one quarter that of Serbia; Albanians constituted only one per cent of military officers of the Yugoslav army, while Serbs constituted 70 per cent; Albanians made up 70-80 per cent of political prisoners. They are a national group in a long well-defined territory that deserve the right to national self-determination.

"Much mystification surrounds Kosovar independence. It is claimed Kosova is a “mere province” of Serbia that happens to have an Albanian majority, and thus its “secession” is a violation of Serbian “sovereignty”. The alleged difference between Kosova and the other parts of the former Yugoslavia is that the latter were constitutionally fully fledged federal republics, which had the right to independence, whereas Kosova merely had autonomy within the Serbian republic."

To address some of these issues, LeftCast spoke with the writer of the above lines, Michael Karadjis -- author of Bosnia, Kosova and the West, published by Resistance Books in 2000.

9.71 MB, 33:56

LeftCast February 25, 2008

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Read more

• National oppression and the collapse of Yugoslavia
• Kosova declares independence
• NATO's Balkan War and the Kosova Liberation Struggle
• Kosova declares (semi-) independence: Yes to full self-determination for Kosova. No to continuation of colonial-ruled state