EX-KLA THREATENS KOSOVO TALKS TEAM, URGES INDEPENDENCE DECLARATION 28 NOV
BBC Monitoring International Reports - August 12, 2007, Sunday

Text of report by Kosovo Albanian newspaper Express on 11 August

[Report by Jeton Musliu: "'We Declare It Without Asking'"]

Prishtina [Pristina], 10 Aug - One day before the international troika tasked with solving Kosova's [Kosovo] status is due to arrive in Prishtina, the first threats have been sent in to the Unity Team [Kosovo status negotiating team]. In a statement, the Front for the National Unification of Albanians (FBKSh), an umbrella group that includes the Albanian National Army (AKSh), has threatened members of the Unity Team with grave consequences if they continued talking with Serbia.

"If you continue to behave and act the way you have so far, and if you fail to heed this warning, we assure you that you will suffer grave consequences. History will punish you severely - not only you, but also your successors. We advise you to resign urgently and dissolve the so-called Unity Team, which in fact is nothing other than a mafia team," the FBKSh said in its statement.

Some of the FBKSh's points are similar to the demands of the Self-Determination Movement, which for quite some time now has been demanding that negotiations with Serbia stop and has insisted that the people should be allowed to decide their own future. However, Glauk Konjufca, one of the Self-Determination Movement's leaders, has said that his movement did not cooperate with the FBKSh and had no information regarding that group's position.

"Anyone can adopt our ideas and demands. It is important that the people decide their own fate, because so far the politicians have spoken on our behalf without consulting us on anything," Konjufca told Express.

If Prime Minister Agim Ceku had planned to set 28 November this year as the date on which to declare independence unilaterally, but could not do so, then others exist who may fulfil his desire. It may happen that on 28 November, while politicians in the Unity Team are dealing with documents related to the negotiations with Serbia, Kosova's independence will be declared in Prekaz [village in central Kosovo, one of the main strongholds of the former Kosova Liberation Army ([KLA] UCK)].

FBKSh officials have said that they had started talks with political parties and institutions to clarify everything by 1 October. They said that they had been lobbing to ensure that the declaration of independence took place on Flag Day [ 28 November], and that they would do so despite the talks of the Unity Team or international envoys.

"We are talking. We believe that we will declare independence on 28 November. We will not do this on our own, but in cooperation with other entities," said FBKSh spokesman Gafurr Adili.

Adili explained to Express that support for such an initiative existed in Kosova, in the region that the FBKSh has code-named zone number two. He said the bigger parties in Kosova were "political forces of business."

"We are also in touch with the organizations associated with the war and other entities, because we have our members in every institution, in the assembly, the government, and other institutions," Adili said.

Officials from the organizations born from the UCK have said that this had initially been their idea, and that it had been presented to the country's highest officials.

"However, we agree with this. We think that the time has come to unite and declare independence," said Xhavit Jashari, chairman of the association of UCK martyrs' families.

On the other hand, the FBKSh officials declined to say with which parties they had started contacts regarding their campaign to declare independence.

Smajl Latifi, chairman of the National Movement for the Liberation of Kosova (LKCK), said that the platform of his political entity continued to be national unification.

"We stand for the national unification option, and we are not focused on independence. If it had been full and unconditional independence, then perhaps we would have supported it, but not in this manner," Latifi told Express.

Ceku's spokeswoman Ulpiana Lama said that Ceku was in favour of setting a date for declaring independence, but that this would be done by the country's institutions.

"He has stated this publicly. Announcements about declaring independence, as well as about what might happen, are hypothetical," Lama told Express.

In the meantime, the police have been informed about the FBKSh's serious threats to the country's politicians, made via its communique.

"We are analysing the level of the threat in the letter, which was sent in the form of a warning. So far, we have not taken any action, and actions will depend on developments," said ShPK [Kosova Police Service] spokesman Veton Elshani.

Source: Express, Pristina, in Albanian 11 Aug 07

Copyright 2007 Financial Times Information
Copyright 2007 BBC Monitoring Service , Source: The Financial Times Limited