MILAN MARKOVIC ON THE COORDINATION BODY’S ACTIVITIES

4. August 2009.

President of the Coordination Body, Minister for Public Administration and Local Self-Government Milan Markovic, stated that the Coordination Body for South Serbia was currently focused on education, judiciary, integration of the Albanians in institutions, establishment of multi-ethnic governments in Presevo and Bujanovac, as well as on building the infrastructure.

In addition, public competitions for multi-ethnic programs, financial assistance for socially threatened categories of citizens, as well as for scholarships granted to 150 students from the region, are underway, Minister Markovic pointed out. He also said that an agreement on the use of textbooks for Albanian children had been reached. Albanian, Serbian and Roma children shall get books for free, while school equipment shall be distributed to first-grade students from the three municipalities. For the first time in 20 years, Albanian and Serbian children recently watched together a theatre play, the performance of which was organized by the Coordination Body. With rather modest financial resources, the Coordination Body is very present in these municipalities and we are sorry that the response to our work is some sort of rhetoric and policy that should have remained behind us. Regardless of the current developments, we shall, together with legitimate representatives of the citizens from the three southern Serbian municipalities, as well as with MP Riza Halimi, continue working on accomplishing the goals that were set on the occasion of reorganization of the Coordination Body, Mr. Markovic said.