Do the Germans think that this expulsion
is of little significance to the Roma because, somewhere in our minds,
we still harbour the image of the migrant, illiterate Gypsies in rags?
Do people justify the crimes with the lie that the Roma collaborated
with "the Serbs", and for that reason can only blame themselves for
the "spontaneous" acts of revenge by "the Albanians"? Do we think
that the Kosovo Roma were an isolated community, unwilling to integrate
and so offered themselves to be victimised? Or do we just not want
to see this incredible contradiction: the most powerful military alliance
in the history of humanity marches in to make "ethnic cleansings"
on the doorstep to Central Europe impossible. But then, this superpower
is unable to stop just such expulsions happening in front of their
very eyes! Does one maybe only want to overlook the fact that it is
the declared aim of our new ally to "clean" Kosovo of all non-Albanian
minorities? The UCK (KLA), these "fighters for freedom", as NATO calls
them, only recently were considered a bunch of drug dealers, white
slavers and terrorists by the BKA and CIA and were regarded by high
ranking Albanian politicians as fascists. Or do we want to forget
Kosovo as quickly as possible because a Final Solution was rehearsed
there, that other Eastern states with an unwanted and growing Roma
population may soon be repeating? Or are we simply afraid of having
to raise money for the victims of the pogrom that we were unable to
prevent? For the refugees, for instance, who have fled to our country
and whom we would like to deport as soon as possible? Finally, do
we not want to pay attention to the Kosovo Roma because their economic
and cultural achievements - as documented here - show what "Gypsies"
are capable of, if they are given a chance by society? This document
may help to find answers to some of these questions. Thousands of
Roma were among the people whose demonstrations on 5 October 2000
forced a change towards democracy to start in Yugoslavia. In Kosovo,
they are now being brutally hunted. In Milosevic´s Yugoslavia, they
were mistreated as unwanted refugees. Can the Roma hope that for them
too, a new time may begin? In Kosovo and in Serbia? Or shall we simply
forget about them once again?
