Hashim Taqi, the former KLA fuehrer “affectionately” known as Snake, has laid his cards on the table in a screed published (not surprisingly) by the London-based IWPR (a.k.a. Institute for War Propaganda Reporting).
In it, Taqi claims his “Kosova” would be:
“a multi-ethnic society, in which people of different races lived and worked together peacefully with equal rights and with tolerance and respect for different religions.”
Brilliant reading of the script, Hash. And if no one knew you used to be (still are?) in charge of the KLA – something the IWPR emphatically does not mention anywhere – it might even sound plausible.
Having been (being still?) a terrorist, Taqi knows the best defense is a good attack. So he lays it on, thick and sloppy:
“It is difficult to underestimate how frightened the Albanians of Kosova are of being ruled again by Belgrade.” (Why of course; When that happens, many of his buddies will end up in jail for murder, ethnic cleansing and terrorism. That is something to fear.)
He attacks “illegal parallel structures” in Mitrovica, “under the rule of thugs.” But it’s the KLA’s and UNMIK’s structures that are bith illegal and parallel, and Taqi absolutely lacks any moral standing to call anyone a thug.
“UNMIK needs to trust locals more,” he pleads. Well, we’ve all seen how that has turned out, just last week.
He goes on to blame poverty, unemployment, insecurity, lack of electricity and tap water – just about anything, and especially those pesky evil Serbs – for the Albanians’ “protests against violence.”
And as every good terrorist proclamation, Taqi’s ends with a threat:
“We have to confront Belgrade with a clear choice: you either support the integration of local Serbs and be part of the solution or be prepared to be part of the problem and face consequences from the international community.”
It could be that he believes the “international community” is still behind him, and feels confident enough to know what it would and would not do. Or this could all be bluster and bluff, simply posturing to intimidate the Serbs and tell his formerly stalwart foreign backers exactly what they want to hear.
Whatever the case, it is one more proof of Taqi’s true nature – and that of the IWPR.