Mitrovica
has a sad reputation and has become the symbol of inter-ethnic hate in
Kosovo. Cut in two by a bridge, the northern section of the town is mostly
Serb and the southern section is mostly Albanian. The mood of the Serb
community oscillates between hate and resentment. Whereas the Albanian
section has an abundance of goods of all kinds, the Serbs in Mitrovica
suffer serious shortages (gas, cigarettes) and even food is difficult to
find.
Alcoholism is rife, particularly among those whom the war has left full of
hate and burning with a desire for revenge. Former militiamen now have an
identify crisis and their nationalistic ideas and general frustration have
spurred some of them to burn the Orthodox cross into their skin, using a lit
cigarette. Serbs here have the impression of being caught in a vice with Milosevic
on one side and the opprobrium of the West on the other, and currently direct
their hate against the US. Anti-American propaganda is omnipresent. Slogans
such as "Fuck the Coca" and satirical representations are commonplace.
There are also less innocuous and macabre signs that Mitrovica residents apparently
respond to. Ideas of national unity, liberation from the yoke of the oppressor,
these concepts seem to trigger a semblance of identity among all, including
women and children. France is regularly targeted and the French KFOR soldiers
are occasionally taunted: France is seen as a country that used to be a friend
and that has betrayed its friendship. Just as before the conflict, nationalists
make sure they keep the fear of Albanians alive in the Serb minority. This
fear transformed through violence into rejection is the phenomenon Milosevic
cashed in on to draw his people into war.
