- Kosovska Mitrovica
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Kosovska Mitrovica
Mitrovica/Mitrovicë— Municipality and city — Kosovska Mitrovica Bridge over the Ibar, which divides the city in two.
SealLocation in Kosovo
Kosovska MitrovicaCoordinates: 42°53′N 20°52′E / 42.883°N 20.867°ECoordinates: 42°53′N 20°52′E / 42.883°N 20.867°E Country Kosovo[a] District District of Kosovska Mitrovica Area - Land 350 km2 (135.1 sq mi) Population (2011) - Municipality and city 71,601 (municipality) - Density 213.0/km2 (551.7/sq mi) - Metro 45,000 City Time zone CET (UTC+1) - Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2) Postal code 40000 Area code(s) +381 28 Car plates 02 Website Municipality of Mitrovica (Albanian) Kosovska Mitrovica (Albanian; Mitrovicë or Mitrovica, Serbian: Косовска Митровица / Kosovska Mitrovica; Turkish: Mitroviça), is a city and municipality in northern Kosovo[a]. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous district.
Since the end of the Kosovo War of 1999 it has been divided between an ethnic-Albanian-majority south and an ethnic-Serb-majority north. Its northern part is the de facto capital of the Serb enclave of North Kosovo.
Contents
Name
The city was named "Civitas Sancti Demetrii" in the 14th century after Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki,[1] a name that later became "Mitrovica", as happened to other locations in the Balkans named after Saint Demetrius.[2][3]
After Tito's death, when each of the constituent parts of Yugoslavia had to have one place named with the word 'Tito' (or 'Tito's') included, the city was also known as Titova Mitrovica (Титова Митровица) in Serbian or Mitrovica e Titos in Albanian.
The city is known as Kosovska Mitrovica (Косовска Митровица) in Serbian
listen (help·info) and Mitrovica or Mitrovicë in Albanian.History
Early history
Kosovska Mitrovica train station in 1894
The city is one of the oldest known settlements in Kosovo, being first mentioned in written documents during the Middle Ages.[citation needed] The name Kosovska Mitrovica comes from the 14th century, from Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki,[citation needed] but there are some other legends on the origin of its name.[citation needed] Near Kosovska Mitrovica is the medieval fortress of Zvečan, which played an important role during the Kingdom of Serbia under Nemanjić rule.
Under Ottoman rule Kosovska Mitrovica was a typical small Oriental city. Rapid development came in the 19th century after lead ore was discovered and mined in the region, providing what has historically been one of Kosovo's largest industries.
It became an industrial town, formerly the economic centre of Kosovo because of the nearby Trepča Mines. It grew in size as a centre of trade and industry with the completion of the railway line to Skopje in 1873-1878, which linked Kosovska Mitrovica to the port of Thessalonika.[4] Another line later linked the town to Belgrade and Western Europe.[4] During World War II, the city was part of Axis-backed Serbia. In 1948, Kosovska Mitrovica had a population of 13,901 and in the early 1990s of about 75,000.[4]
Kosovska Mitrovica during and after the Kosovo War
Old building in Kosovska MitrovicaBoth the town and municipality were badly affected by the 1999 Kosovo War. According to the OSCE, the area had been the scene of guerrilla activity by the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) prior to the war. It came under the command of NATO's French sector; 7,000 French troops were stationed in the western sector with their headquarters in Kosovska Mitrovica. They were reinforced with a contingent of 1,200 troops from the United Arab Emirates, and a small number of Danish troops.
In the aftermath of the war, the town became a symbol of Kosovo's ethnic divisions. The badly damaged southern half of the town was repopulated by an estimated 50,000 Albanians. Their numbers have since grown with the arrival of refugees from destroyed villages in the countryside.[citation needed] Most of the approximately 6,000 Roma fled to Serbia, or were relocated to one of two resettlement camps, Chesmin Lug, or Osterrode, in North Kosovska Mitrovica. In the north, live some 17,000 Kosovo Serbs, with 2,000 Kosovo Albanians and 1,700 Muslim Slavs inhabitting discrete enclaves on the north bank of the Ibar river. Almost all of the Serbs living on the south bank were displaced to North Kosovska Mitrovica after the Kosovo War. In 2011, the city had an estimated total population of 71,601 and the municipality's population is estimated to be some 71,601.
Kosovska Mitrovica became the focus for ethnic clashes between the two communities, exacerbated by the presence of nationalist extremists on both sides. The bridges linking the two sides of the town were guarded by armed groups determined to prevent incursions by the other side. Because of the tense situation in the town, KFOR troops and the UNMIK police were stationed there in large numbers to head off trouble. However, violence and harassment was often directed against members of the "wrong" ethnic community on both sides of the river, necessitating the presence of troops and police checkpoints around individual areas of the city and even in front of individual buildings.
Instruction when crossing the Kosovska Mitrovica bridgeOn March 17, 2004, the drowning of an Albanian child in the river prompted major ethnic violence in the town and a Serbian teenager was killed. Demonstrations by thousands of angry Albanians and Serbs mobilized to stop them crossing the river degenerated into rioting and gunfire, leaving at least eight Albanians dead and at least 300 injured. The bloodshed sparked off the worst unrest in Kosovo seen since the end of the 1999 war (in which 11 [Serb]]s were killed).
A Bosniak resident of southern Kosovska Mitrovica was murdered after being overheard speaking the Bosnian language.[5]
The local prison was the scene of an international incident on April 18, 2004 when Ahmad Mustafa Ibrahim, a Jordanian policeman working as a UN prison guard, opened fire on a group of UN police officers leaving a class, killing three.[6][7]
Kosovo independence
Tensions rose considerably in the city of Kosovska Mitrovica after the Kosovo declared independence on February 17, 2008. Some 150 Kosovo Serb police officers refused to take orders from the ethnic Albanian authorities and were suspended.
Serb protesters prevented ethnic Albanian court employees from crossing the bridge over the Ibar River. UN police raided and seized the courthouse on March 14 using tear gas against Serbs and leaving some of them wounded.
The explosion of a hand-grenade injured several UN and NATO staff on March 17; UN forces were later withdrawn from the northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica.[8]
The Serbian minority has formed the Community Assembly of Kosovo and Metohija in the city, but it has no police force. Serbs refuse to accept the jurisdiction of Kosovo courts,[9] Republic of Kosovo leaders have expressed concern over the future of the region, stating their commitment to keep Kosovska Mitrovica part of Kosovo and prevent crime or war there.[10]
"To build trust and confidence, Kosovo authorities need to be attentive to culture and religious symbols, such as the Serb Orthodox cemetery in Mitrovica, on the Albanian, south, bank of the Ibar. The main Albanian cemetery is in the North and intact. The Serb cemetery is devastated, hundreds of headstones in shards and the chapel at its centre desecrated and burned. Most of the damage dates to 1999 and March 2004, but also to 2007 and 2008. The site is unguarded and open to sporadic vandalism, some allegedly perpetrated by residents of a neighbouring Ashkali settlement apparently seeking to ingratiate themselves with Albanians by lashing out at Serbs. Northern Serbs often cite the two cemeteries as signs of their tolerance and Albanian hostility. The Kosovo authorities’ failure to repair and secure the graveyard sends a terrible message to Northern Serbs: this is what your future will look like, once you have integrated." [11]
Demographics
Before the 1999 Kosovo War, the municipality had a population estimated by the OSCE to comprise some 116,500 people, 81% of them Kosovo Albanian, 10% Serb and the remainder other ethnicities (notably Roma). Most of the non-Albanians lived in the town of Kosovska Mitrovica, which had a population of 68,000 – 71% Kosovo Albanian, with approximately 9,000 Serbs and 10,141 other nationalities. Kosovo Albanians lived throughout the city, but most Serbs lived in the north side, divided from the predominantly Albanian south side by the Ibar River.
Ethnic Composition, Including IDPs Year/Population Albanians % Serbs % Bosniaks % Roma/Ashkali % Turks % Total 1961 34,481 57.55 21,533 35.94 59,913 1991 82,837 78 10,698 10.2 5,205 4.96 4,851 4.63 431 0.41 1998 95,231 81.74 10,447 8.96 Current figure N/A N/A 2,000 1.76 545 0.48 600 0.53 Source: 1991 census: FRY Institute of Statistics and UNHCR statistics of 1998/OSCE estimates. It is noted that the 1991 census was highly politicised and is thus unreliable.
Ref: OSCE[12]Official Languages
In Kosovska Mitrovica Municipality Albanian, Serbian and Turkish languages are official languages.[13]
Economy
The Trepča Mines are located in Kosovska Mitrovica, though they are currently not operating. With the closure of the Trepča complex, the influx of refugees and IDPs and the lack of investment, unemployment (estimated at approximately 77%) has been prevalent among all communities in the Kosovska Mitrovica municipality.
Culture and education
Serbian faculties of the University of Pristina were relocated from Pristina to Kosovska Mitrovica after the Kosovo War.
Sports
Three football clubs are situated in Kosovska Mitrovica: FK Partizan, KF Trepça and KF Trepça'89.
Notable people from Kosovska Mitrovica
Main article: List of people from Kosovska Mitrovica- Vahedin Ajeti, footballer
- Rexhep Mitrovica, Former Prime Minister of Albania.
- Milan Biševac - football player
- Miloš Krasić, Serbian international Football player. Won the UEFA Cup in 2005 with CSKA Moscow. Played for Serbia in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
- Enis Alushi, footballer
- Valon Behrami, Swiss international Football player.
- Bekim Bejta, poet and translator
- Nexhip Draga, Member of the Albanian uprising.
- Xhafer Deva, Former Minister of the Interior of Albania.
- Shpëtim Hysenaj, footballer
- Riza Lushta, Former Albanian Superliga Top Scorer, also won the Coppa Italia in 1942 with Juventus.
- Xhevat Prekazi, Former Football player. Notable for playing for Galatasaray.
- Muharrem Qena, actor and singer
- Bajram Rexhepi, politician
- Ali Shukrija, 2nd Communist Prime minister of Kosovo.
- Stevan Stojanović, Former Football player. Won the European Cup in 1991 with Red Star.
- Ymer Xhaferi, footballer
International relations
Twin towns — Sister cities
Kosovska Mitrovica is twinned with:
Kumanovo, Kumanovo Municipality, Macedonia
San Cristóbal, Táchira, Venezuela
Kendari, South East Sulawesi, Indonesia
See also
- North Kosovska Mitrovica
- Kosovo Serb enclaves
- Roma in Kosovska Mitrovica Camps
- New bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica
Notes and references
Notes:
a. ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Serbia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo. The latter declared independence on 17 February 2008, while Serbia claims it as part of its own sovereign territory. Its independence is recognised by 85 UN member states. References:
- ^ Home - Prepare your next vacation to Europe - visiteurope.com
- ^ B92 - Travel - Restoran Moj
- ^ Civitas Sancti Demetrii
- ^ a b c Elsie, Robert. Historical dictionary of Kosova. http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Fnbw1wsacSAC&pg=PA121&dq=Mitrovica&hl=en&ei=enksTaypG4f4vwP67uzwCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Mitrovica&f=false.
- ^ Kosovo Roma Oral History Project: Kosovska Mitrovica
- ^ Wood, Nicholas (2004-04-18). "3 U.N. Police Die in Shootout At Kosovo Jail". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9405E2DC103BF93BA25757C0A9629C8B63. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
- ^ "International press on the UN police shooting incident in Kosovska Mitrovica". ERPKIM Archive. http://www.kosovo.net/news/archive/2004/April_18/5.html. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
- ^ BBC, Peacekeepers hurt in Kosovo blast, 17.03.08
- ^ TransConflict, Kosovo – what to do with the north, ad interim, April 2010
- ^ UNMIK Headlines, March 2, 2009
- ^ (in English) North Kosovo: Dual Sovereignty in Practice. N°21. Crisis Group Europe Report. 14 March 2011. pp. 11. http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/europe/balkans/kosovo/211%20North%20Kosovo%20---%20Dual%20Sovereignty%20in%20Practice.ashx.}}
- ^ "Mitrovicë/Mitrovica" (PDF). http://www.osce.org/kosovo/38678.
- ^ "Implementation of the Law on the Use of Languages by Kosovo Municipalities" (PDF). June 2008. http://www.osce.org/kosovo/32762.
External links
- Photo essay about serbian part of Mitrovica (2011)
- OSCE:Profile of Mitrovicë / Mitrovica
- Municipality of Kosovska Mitrovica in the Republic of Kosovo
- Municipality of Kosovska Mitrovica in the Republic of Serbia
- Jazz & Blues Festival North City
- HCIC, Mitrovica Situation - HCIC, UNHCR, WEU, KFOR (22 Mar 2000)
- Mitrovica Situation - HCIC, UNHCR, WEU, KFOR (24 Feb 2000)
- Mitrovica: North and South of a Divided City Video about displacement and reconstruction in Mitrovica.
- Burning of St. Sava church in south Mitrovica 17 March
- Andrew Purvis (2008-06-04). "Postcard from Mitrovica: Almost Mellow at Kosovo's Front-Line Cafe". TIME Magazine. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1811795,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-17.
- ESI report: People Or Territory? A Proposal For Mitrovica (16 February 2004)
Categories:- Gegëri
- Kosovska Mitrovica
- Populated places in Serbia
- Divided cities
- Municipalities of Serbia
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