Ethnic Tensions Between Serbs and Kosovar Albanians
- Immediate Causes (1998–1999)
- Rising ethnic tensions between Serbs and Albanians escalated.
- Serbian forces targeted Albanians through mass killings, expulsions, and systemic violence.
- Historical Roots
- Ethnic tensions traced back for centuries.
- Both Serbs and Albanians claim deep historical ties to Kosovo.
- Serbs viewed Kosovo as the heartland of their medieval Orthodox state.
- Albanians, forming the demographic majority, developed nationalist movements in response to 19th-century Serbian expansionism.
- Decline of the Ottoman Empire
- In the late 19th century, Albanian nationalists demanded autonomy through the League of Prizren.
- Their demands clashed with Serbian ambitions to annex Kosovo.
- The 1878 Congress of Berlin ignored Albanian claims, worsening tensions.
Note
Competing Historical and Cultural Claims to Kosovo
- For Serbs, Kosovo
- More than just territory, it holds profound historical and spiritual meaning as the cradle of the medieval Serbian Orthodox state.
- The Battle of Kosovo Polje (1389), where Serbs fought the Ottoman Empire, is central to Serbian national identity and mythology.
- Serbian Orthodox monasteries and churches in Kosovo symbolize this sacred “heartland.”
- This deep connection fuels Serbian claims to Kosovo, reinforcing its place in Serbian national pride and religious tradition.
- For Albanians, Kosovo
- Albanians have been the majority population in Kosovo for centuries.
- They developed distinct cultural, linguistic, and religious identities, primarily Muslim, but also Catholic and Orthodox communities.
- Kosovo’s Albanians have long sought recognition of their national rights, including autonomy or unification with Albania.
- For Albanians, Kosovo represents their homeland, with demographic majority and deep cultural roots.
- This creates a fundamental conflict of national belonging between the Albanian majority and the Serbian minority.
Case study
The League of Prizren
- Formation (1878):
- Created by Albanian leaders in response to the Congress of Berlin, which ignored Albanian demands for autonomy.
- The Congress threatened to divide Albanian-populated lands among Serbia, Montenegro, and Greece.
- Goals:
- Unite Albanians to defend their land, culture, and political rights within the weakening Ottoman Empire.
- Resist partition and foreign control over Albanian territories.
- Evolution:
- Initially enjoyed some support from the Ottoman authorities.
- Later, the League began pushing for Albanian self-determination, directly challenging both Ottoman rule and Balkan expansion.
- Legacy:
- Seen as a key moment in the Albanian national awakening.
- Laid the groundwork for future independence movements.
- Early 20th century
- Kosovo was a contested territory within the decaying Ottoman Empire, populated by a majority of ethnic Albanians and a minority of Serbs.
- After the First Balkan War (1912–1913), Serbia annexed Kosovo despite its Albanian majority.
- This fueled resentment among Albanians, who were denied recognition while Serbia reinforced its hold over the region.
- Albanian independence (1912)
- Albania declared independence from the Ottoman Empire on November 28, 1912.
- At the same time, neighboring countries were fighting to seize Ottoman lands during the Balkan Wars.
- Albanian leaders sought a nation-state to protect their people and territory.
- London Conference (1912–1913)
- The Great Powers of Europe (Britain, Austria-Hungary, Russia, France, Germany, Italy) recognized Albania as an independent principality in 1913.
- However, they gave Kosovo to Serbia, leaving many ethnic Albanians outside the new Albanian state.
- Creation of Yugoslavia (1918)
- Yugoslavia was formed after WWI, uniting Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes under the Serbian monarchy.
- Kosovo remained under Serbian control within Yugoslavia.
- Albanians were politically sidelined and culturally suppressed, deepening ethnic divides despite hopes of unification with Albania.
- WWII and Tito’s Yugoslavia
- After WWII, Kosovo became an autonomous province within Serbia under Tito.
- Tito suppressed nationalism but allowed Albanians limited cultural rights.
- Demographic shifts, with Albanians forming a majority, increased Serb mistrust.
- After Tito’s death (1980)
- Ethnic nationalism resurfaced.
- Serbs saw growing Albanian autonomy as a threat, while Albanians demanded more rights.
- These unresolved tensions exploded into violence in the 1990s, culminating in the Kosovo War.
Case study
Josip Broz Tito
- Post–World War II Yugoslavia
- Tito established the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, made up of six republics and two autonomous provinces, including Kosovo and Vojvodina.
- His leadership emphasized “brotherhood and unity” to suppress nationalism and manage ethnic diversity.
- Kosovo under Tito’s Rule
- Maintained strict political control but gradually gave cultural and educational concessions to Albanians.
- University of Pristina was established in 1969, with Albanian as a language of instruction.
- These reforms aimed to integrate Albanians into Yugoslavia, but also fueled Albanian nationalism, alarming Serbs.
- Demographic Shifts
- Albanian population in Kosovo grew rapidly due to high birth rates and Serb emigration.
- By 1980, Serbs made up only about 25% of Kosovo’s population (down from 50% after WWII).
- Tito’s dismissal of Serbian leader Aleksandar Ranković in 1966 was viewed as a move favoring Albanian autonomy, deepening tensions.
- After Tito’s Death (1980)
- His death removed the strong central authority holding Yugoslavia together.
- Albanian demands for more rights escalated, increasing calls for republic status.
- These tensions laid the groundwork for violent conflict and the eventual breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s.
Theory of Knowledge
What makes a people more "entitled" to a land? Cultural ties or demographic dominance?
