Study Trip to Kosovo 2013
The Kosovo - International Administration, Self-Government and the Challenges Ahead
Report by
Marc Danneberg
The twelve participating students attended a two-day introductory compact course in April in order to get an in-depth understanding of the current situation in Kosovo. Key issues of the course were the historical roots of the Kosovarian conflict, the establishment of international administrative structures after the NATO intervention in 1999 as well as the incremental transfer of sovereignty to the Kosovarian government. In addition, recent economic and social challenges were discussed. Special attention was paid to the question which lessons could be drawn from the situation in Kosovo to improve future international peace missions.
The field trip took place from 9th to 15th June 2013. In a number of talks with political actors and members of civil society, students had the chance to deepen and critically evaluate their knowledge acquired during the introductory course. It became apparent that international missions, frequently provided with far-reaching authorities and executive rights, might stand in tension with local decision-makers and thus, raise questions about legitimacy. The course participants arrived at the conclusion that an academic toolbox of crisis management procedures might fail due to complex cultural and historical characteristics of each conflict region. This became apparent before the current EU-led talks between Kosovo and Serbia, aiming at the harmonization of relations between the conflicting parties. The complexity of this ongoing process was a key issue during the talks with local representatives and it became clear that there is no such thing as one way to success.
The students had the chance to meet the Minister of the Interior, a high-ranking member of government, the leader of an oppositional party as well as the publisher of an important Kosovarian daily newspaper. Further interview partners included the commander of the NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR), the German Ambassador in Kosovo as well as representatives of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX), the European Commission Liaison Office and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
The talks in Prishtina were complemented by a one-day trip to the divided city of Mitrovica in the North of Kosovo. The group met local employees of the EULEX mission and representatives of the Serbian minority. The last day of the field trip was spent in the city of Prizren in the South of Kosovo. After extensive talks during the week, this one-day trip was organized to visit the historic city centre and some of the impressive cultural monuments in Kosovo.
The excursion was not just aimed at acquiring new insights into international peace-keeping missions, but to get to know strengths and distinct challenges of qualitative field research. Information that was gathered during the field trip will be integrated into the students' seminal research papers and the applied interview techniques may be used in future research projects. Furthermore, the direct exchange with decision-makers of international organizations in Kosovo provided an insight into potential future work fields.