A digest of the latest refugee news,
as reported by the world's media.

ALBANIA: THOUSANDS FLEE CLASHES 13 May 99 – Several thousand ethnic Albanian refugees crossed into Albania yesterday, fleeing areas of southeastern Kosovo province where the Kosovo Liberation Army has reported renewed clashes with Yugoslav forces, reports AP. OSCE spokesman Andrea Angeli said about 4,000 people had entered Albania through the crossing point at Morini by 10pm. He said the refugees told international monitors they were from the southern Kosovo towns of Suva Reka, Urosevac and Stimlje. On Tuesday, the KLA's news agency, Kosova Press, said Serb forces had cordoned off that area and were stepping up attacks on rebel units. [Thousands of ethnic Albanians cross into Albania; OSCE – www.ap.org]

ALBANIA: PRESIDENT PROMISES OPEN BORDERS 13 May 99 – Albanian President Rexhep Mejdani yesterday vowed his country would keep its borders open to the floods of Kosovo refugees fleeing the troubled province, despite their growing numbers, reports AFP. "Albania's doors will stay open for our Albanian brothers," in Kosovo, the president said following a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana. "At the start I said there would be half a million and I think we will reach this," he said, adding that he believed NATO's operations would stop the Yugoslavian "genocidal machine of ethnic cleansing." Albania, Europe's poorest country, has taken in more than 420,000 Kosovo refugees. [Albania president vows borders will stay open to Kosovo refugees – www.afp.com]

ALBANIA: SOME KOSOVANS AGREE TO MOVE 13 May 1999 – About 2,500 ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo agreed yesterday to be moved from an unsafe border area in northern Albania, aid workers said, reports Reuters. UNHCR said it managed to persuade the group, staying in one of six tented camps in Kukes district, to be relocated tomorrow to camps in southern Albania. "We told them they could take their tractors with them and they seem willing to leave," said UNHCR spokesman Ray Wilkinson. AFP reports that the move is one of the first tangible results of a UN campaign launched Tuesday to convince the tens of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees to move south to safer ground. BBC News adds attempts to persuade large numbers of refugees to move from the potentially dangerous border area have met with little enthusiasm. Refugees give a number of reasons for staying – they include the fact that camps are getting more comfortable and that there is pressure from the Kosovo Liberation Army for them to stay and provide recruits. One refugee said he simply does not believe his tractor could make another long journey. [Some Kosovo refugees agree to leave unsafe border – www.reuters.com; Kosovo refugees, and tractors, to move from unsafe Albanian camps – www.afp.com; UN struggles to move refugees – http://news.bbc.co.uk]

ALBANIA: CAMP GREETS NATO CHIEF 13 May 1999 – NATO Secretary General Javier Solana yesterday received an enthusiastic reception, mingled with curiosity, when he paid a lightning visit to a Kosovan refugee camp in central Albania, reports AFP. Solana arrived at Elbasan camp by US helicopter following a series of talks with top officials in Tirana. The camp is home to some 4,000 people, mainly from southern Kosovo. Dressed in shirtsleeves and looking relaxed and smiling, Solana was met by a loud burst of applause from the refugees, who chanted "NATO, NATO!", "KLA, KLA!" and "USA, USA!" Solana told the refugees around him that NATO was working "24 hours a day" so that they could go home and pledged their return would be "soon." After half an hour, Solana left the camp and headed back to Tirana. Before he left, he said: "It's very difficult to express my sentiments after visiting this camp and seeing so many people suffering. I'm very moved. They will return home as soon as possible, they have my personal commitment." At the edge of the camp, an old man said: "We want to believe him. We have to believe him." [NATO chief gets hero's welcome at refugee camp – www.afp.com]

MACEDONIA: TWO FAMILIES ARRIVE 13 May 1999 – Two families of ethnic Albanians arrived in Macedonia from Kosovo early yesterday after a week in which only a handful of refugees have crossed the border regularly threatened with closure, reports AP at Blace. They said Serbian soldiers had warned them the Macedonian authorities would not let them cross and had ordered a group of would-be refugees off a train in Stagova, southern Kosovo. A man named Ergjan said he escaped from Pristina, with his parents, sister, wife and child after a Serb friend smuggled them to border. He said they decided to leave after Serbs commandeered their house. Ekrem Lluzha, head of the second family who came from Stagova, said Serbs also told them the Macedonians would bar them and stopped some elderly people and children from boarding the train. Lluzha managed to get himself, his wife, two children and a friend on board. They were the only passengers. UNHCR spokeswoman Judith Kumin said a train arrived at Djeneral Jankovic Tuesday with 20 people on board. Only seven were allowed to get off before the train returned into Kosovo. "Each day the trains let off just a few people and then travel back into Kosovo full," said Kumin. Serb soldiers appeared to be blocking refugees' exit. [Kosovo-Refugees – www.ap.org]

MACEDONIA: NATO CHIEF VISITS CAMP 13 May 1999 – NATO Secretary- General Javier Solana, overwhelmed with emotion, promised thousands of cheering Kosovo refugees yesterday that his forces would bring them home quickly, reports Reuters. "Let me tell you one thing, I am with you," Solana told refugees at Cegrane camp, where more than 30,000 Kosovo Albanians have found refuge. "If you look in that direction," he said, pointing north, "there is Kosovo there, my dear friends. There we will be together." Solana, on a one-day visit to Macedonia, changed his schedule and got out of his car in the middle of a camp which is an overcrowded, desperate temporary home to people who have either fled or were expelled from Kosovo. Solana then came to a podium where he was supposed to give a brief news conference. It turned into a dialogue with refugees. "Thank you, thank you, thank you for what you are suffering and we will guarantee you a future in your country," he said. "What can you do for the people still in Kosovo?" asked one Albanian. "We are doing our best so they will also have food and shelter," the NATO chief answered. "Do you know that people are dying there?" was another question. "I know that, but let me say again that the most important thing is that we are together and will return home together," Solana said. [Solana tells Kosovo refugees they will go home – www.reuters.com]

MACEDONIA: AIRLIFTS PICK UP 13 May 99 – As evacuations of Kosovo refugees from Macedonia moved up another step, relief organisations said yesterday they still need to speed up the operation further, reports AP. For the first time, more than 2,000 people were to be airlifted yesterday from Skopje to other countries, said Jean-Philippe-Chauzy, spokesman for the International Organisation for Migration. IOM is studying the possibility of adding three Boeing 747s, with could carry some 1,400 extra people, to the operation, Chauzy said. "Altogether, there have been offers of around 130,000 places for evacuation from Macedonia," but only 40,000 people have left, said UNHCR spokeswoman Judith Kumin. Chauzy added that there was a "very strong demand" for flights to Germany, which has already taken nearly 10,000 refugees and is preparing to take another 5,000 starting yesterday. Reuters reports German Interior Minister Otto Schily yesterday said he could not rule out that Germany could accept even more refugees than so far mentioned. The Financial Times reports Britain yesterday stepped up its airlift of Kosovan refugees to Britain, following a pledge to take in 1,000 a week. Reuters adds Israel yesterday decided to take in a further 100 refugees from Kosovo, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said. [Aid agencies consider increased evacuations from Macedonia – www.ap.org; Germany says might take even more refugees + Israel to take in another 100 Kosovo refugees – www.reuters.com; Airlift of refugees to Britain increased – www.ft.com]

KOSOVANS: BOMBING UNTIL RETURNS, SAYS NATO CHIEF 13 May 99 – NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana yesterday said the alliance would continue to bomb Yugoslavia until ethnic cleansing in Kosovo had stopped and refugees were allowed to return, reports Reuters. Solana, in Tirana, also said NATO would not forcibly relocate refugees reluctant to leave camps within shelling distance of Serb forces. The Financial Times reports Solana yesterday received a mixed reception during visits to Albania and Macedonia. Speaking after a meeting with Solana in Skopje, Kiro Gligorov, president of Macedonia, criticised western countries for not providing Macedonia with enough support to cope with the effects of the Kosovo crisis. In Tirana, Solana stood by as Rexhep Meidani, the Albanian president, pointedly stressed the importance of Nato leadership for any prospective peacekeeping force for Kosovo. Solana's own message in both countries, however, was one of unequivocal support and commitment to returning the refugees to Kosovo. BBC News reports Gligorov said the aid had been slow to arrive and inadequate. [NATO to bomb Yugoslavia until cleansing ends – www.reuters.com; Nato chief receives mixed reception – www.ft.com; Macedonia criticises refugee relief effort – http://news.bbc.co.uk]

KOSOVANS: RUGOVA PRIORITISES RETURNS 13 May 1999 – Kosovo's ethnic Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova expressed backing yesterday for a proposed peace plan worked out by western powers and Russia to resolve the crisis over Kosovo, adding that the main goal should be the return of refugees, reports AP. Rugova, who was unexpectedly allowed to leave Yugoslavia last week, met with Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer shortly after arriving in Germany from Rome to take up new temporary residence. In a brief statement, he repeated his call for Yugoslavia to withdraw its forces from Kosovo and accept an international force, including NATO troops, to supervise the return of refugees to Kosovo. "I'm very saddened that Kosovo is practically empty," he said, referring to the hundreds of thousands of refugees who have poured out of the southern Serb province to neighboring lands. [Ethnic Albanian leader for Kosovo says he backs G8 peace plan – www.ap.org]

KOSOVANS: UNHCR PREPARES FOR WINTER 13 May 1999 – UNHCR says it is already gearing up for the onset of winter in Macedonia, Albania and Montenegro, where hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanians are taking refuge from Serb ethnic cleansing, reports BBC News. With refugee numbers still swelling, UNHCR said it would be foolish to think the crisis would be over by Christmas. "Winter is only a few months away and we need to be prepared for that. Refugees cannot stay under flimsy tents when winter comes," said UN High Commissioner Sadako Ogata. In preparation for the snowfall, UN and NATO teams have already begun scouring the countryside for buildings to renovate. The UN is appealing for more host families to offer shelter before winter sets in, when temperatures fall well below freezing. UNHCR is also planning for the refugees' return to Kosovo, in case of a political settlement. The biggest problem is likely to be on arrival, when the refugees find their houses destroyed or damaged. The organisation says ideally it would like to regulate the flow of those returning, but says if people pack their bags to leave, it will be difficult to stop them. [Aid agencies prepare for winter – http://news.bbc.co.uk]

KOSOVANS: UNHCR GETS NEW CASH 13 May 99 – UNHCR says it has received new donations from the United States and Canada to help it cope with the shortage of money which was threatening its relief effort for Kosovo refugees, reports BBC News. UNHCR said it has been given a total of US$10m after an emergency appeal for extra funds Tuesday. And it said the European Commission had been encouraging about a further US$20m. However UNHCR officials said more money was still needed. Prior to the latest donations, UNHCR said it had received only half the US$140m it had requested to cope with the Kosovo crisis for the first six months of this year. Without more money, it would no longer have been able to pay for such basics for the refugees as blankets and tents. Reuters quotes UNHCR spokeswoman Judith Kumin as saying: "We are hopeful that there's light at the end of the tunnel." Michel Gabaudan, UNHCR's head of fundraising, said the US$20m from the European Commission would make a big difference. [Emergency relief for UNHCR – http://news.bbc.co.uk; UNHCR says Kosovo cash crisis eases but not over- www.reuters.com]

KOSOVANS: ECHO 'SURPRISED' AT UNHCR 13 May 1999 – An offended European Commission said yesterday it was surprised at UNHCR remarks that it had not done enough to help in the Kosovo crisis, reports Reuters. Alberto Navarro, director of ECHO, told a news briefing it had worked at record speed to unblock money for the Kosovo region and blamed UNHCR for a lack of leadership in the crisis and for not putting forward proposals for spending the cash. Navarro told the briefing. "We are really very surprised because the UNHCR knows very well that they have a leadership in these operations." UNHCR had singled out the European Commission as a body which could do more to help. Navarro said UNHCR had yet to come up with proposals for using US$3.52m granted to it so far. [Offended EU says surprised at UNHCR criticism – www.reuters.com]

KOSOVANS: EU RELEASES $159m 13 May 1999 – The European Commission said yesterday it has released US$159m in support of humanitarian programmes for ethnic Albanian refugees and to fund their return to Kosovo after the war is over, reports AP. But one European Union official said the aid package is not enough to bring relief to the hundreds of thousands of refugees crammed into camps in Albania and Macedonia. Of the total package, US$106m were earmarked for humanitarian projects. Almost half the funds were set aside for United Nations organisations, including UNICEF and UNHCR, and for the Red Cross, the official said. A further US$52.5m were for an emergency return plan, to help the refugees return to their homes once the war is over, the official said. [EU releases dlrs 159 million for Kosovo refugees – www.ap.org]

KOSOVANS: VATICAN CHALLENGED OVER RAPE VICTIMS 13 May 99 – Family planning organisations caring for Kosovan rape victims are calling for the Vatican's status at the United Nations to be reviewed, reports BBC News. At the heart of the row is the supply of emergency contraception to refugee women who say they have been raped by Serbian troops. The Vatican has said that the issuing of the "morning-after pills" to Kosovan refugee women by international aid agencies is a form of abortion. The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and other family planning organisations have condemned the Vatican's attitude, saying it amounts to indifference to suffering. As a result, they want the Vatican's observer status at the UN looked into. The Guardian in a related piece, reports women's bodies have again become the territory over which war is being waged. [Vatican's UN status questioned – http://news.bbc.co.uk; The secret weapon – www.guardian.co.uk]

KOSOVO NOTES 13 May 99 The Financial Times reports US First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton will visit refugee camps in Macedonia tomorrow, where her official mission will be to convey a message of compassion from her husband and all Americans to the displaced Kosovans. AP reports seven Kosovo Albanian refugees who arrived in Switzerland from camps in Macedonia have been taken to hospital with suspected tuberculosis, the federal office for refugees said yesterday. AFP reports a Kosovo refugee has been accused of sexually assaulting a female volunteer after being flown to safety in Australia. The Daily Telegraph reports the British government yesterday stepped up the propaganda war by saying NATO troops roasted 46,000 chickens to feed Kosovan refugees in two weeks; one of "Fifty Facts about the Conflict in Kosovo." The International Herald Tribune carries remarks made on Monday by British Prime Minister Tony Blair that we should be alert to the dangers of refugee fatigue, and resist the notion that unless something is on film, it's not news.