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| Young men playing around a Soviet-made tank
destroyed by DU penetrators. Streets lined
with homes run close by. (Dakovica City) |
Abandoned, contaminated tanks
"This is our favorite playground."
-Residents Ignorant of Danger
No research institution, no countermeasures
After gathering information in Serbia, I
left Nis and headed for the province of Kosovo.
Making detours to get around broken bridges,
struggliing along bad mountain roads, we
arrived at the "state border" in
a little over 2 hours.
As we said goodbye, my interpreter, Bozinovic,
urged me to, "Tell us what's happening
in Kosovo." He was clearly sad about
this separation from his Albanian neighbors.
Then I was in Kosovo, now governed by an
international peacekeeping force led by the
US, UK, Germany, France, and Italy-the five
NATO countries.
Prizren is about 100 kilometers (63 miles)
from the border. I chartered a vehicle that
happened to come along through the good offices
of British soldiers and set off toward my
destination via the capital, Pristina. From
Prizren to Dakovica, finally arriving in
Peya, southwest Kosovo. This area received
concentrated attacks with DU munitions.
During the fighting, nearly all of the Albanians
fled to neighboring Albania or Macedonia.
Many had since returned under the protection
of the international security forces. When
I asked them about DU munitions, not one
of them knew anything about it at all. Even
among those working through NGOs from other
countries to offer medical and other assistance,
I found almost no one who had heard of depleted
uranium.
When I interviewed spokespersons at the US
and British defense departments, I asked,
"Are you taking measures to protect
your soldiers stationed in Kosovo?"
Both departments answered identically. "We
have instructed them not to touch DU munitions
or tanks that were destroyed by DU penetrators.
We are taking adequate protective measures
as required."
However, those warnings have never reached
the residents nor the NGO personnel. "Depleted
uranium penetrator? What sort of weapon is
that? What effect does it have?" After
asking the question, in most cases I ended
up explaining.
Serbian scientists have been engaged in sophisticated
nuclear science at theNuclear Institute of
Vinca in the outskirts of Beograd and elsewhere.
Thus,they began measuring radiation even
during the bombing have responded swiftly.
In the Gulf War and Bosnian Conflict, a few
Serbian tanks were attacked by DU munitions
so they are experienced in studying the effects.
However, such a system is non-existent in
Kosovo.
 200 sheep all killed
Guided by my interpreter Haji Hoti (37),
an Albanian who works with an NGO based in
Prizren, I explored Dakovica and vicinity
by car.
Visiting farmhouses outside of town, we encountered
Asdren Spahia (27), a farmer.
"I've got no energy," he complained
in Albanian. When the bombing started, I
sent the rest of my family out and stayed
here with my father (75) to take care of
my 200 sheep. We were spared the atrocities
of the Serbian soldiers and direct bombing
by NATO, but all our sheep died. I have no
doubt that they died because of the bullets
that fell all around here." Spahia and
his father are still unable to buy a single
sheep.
Very close to downtown Dakovica lie the remains
of a Yugoslavian military base. Residents'
houses line the road across from the base
where tanks and trucks destroyed by DU penetrators
lie abandoned where they were hit. We found
young men playing on one.
"We always hang around here. If we find
something dangerous like a cartridge case
we're supposed to let the foreign soldiers
know. We've told them about some things and
a lot of stuff was cleaned up. We touched
it though." One of the boys, Edmond
Demaj (16), remarked casually.
"This tank is contaminated by radiation.
It's dangerous for you to get up there."
When Hoti told them this they said, "Why?
This is the most interesting place to be."
They climbed down from the tank but seemed
unconvinced.
Not one public report
According to Hoti, there has never been a
single report about DU munitions even in
local newspapers or on the radio.
I wanted to meet the man responsible for
the Italian troops who are charged with keeping
peace in and around Dakovica. I visited the
Italian headquarters. The guards at the entrance
refused even to hear what I wanted. They
simply refused to open the doors. I went
to the headquarters of UNMIK (UN Interim
Administration Mission in Kosovo), which
is charged with governing Kosovo,and again,
they only said, "That's not our job."
It seemed no one was sure where the responsibility
resided.
"We're glad the NATO bombing chased
the Serbs out, but if they left a bunch of
radiation around... We need to get these
international institutions or NGOs to do
a thorough scientific investigation or we'll
never be able to live here with confidence,"
Hoti declared. His face mirrored those of
the Serbian scientists worried about radioactive
contamination in Kosovo.
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