The launch of KBI, Part 4; Conflict rages above...but Peace simmers underneath...

There is a city in the north of Kosovo that is essentially divided into a Albanian side and a Serb side.
The Serb residents staunchly defend their desire to see Kosovo returned to Serbia and so this city has become a very tense place. Over the last 15 years there have been a  number of fights, riots, etc at a bridge crossing the river which divides this city.

It's a Kosovar city fully within the borders of Kosovo. But it is in also in the northern portion of this young nation, so it's got a large Serbian population. Like their home country, the Serbs in Mitrovice refuse to recognize the Kosovar government.

Understandably, they desire to remain in their homes. They don't want Albanians anywhere near them. However, they live within the borders of a nation that, though unrecognized by some, isn't gonna suddenly rejoin Serbia.

So there's some tension.

This is probably the most tense European flash point that most people have never heard of. This city divided by a river and a bridge that was built to unite, but is split by barricades. In the 15 years since the end of the war, there been a unassertive peace in Mitrovice, punctuated by moments of tentative violence.

In fact, in the week before we arrived, some moderate Serbs interested in reuniting the city, took it upon themselves to clear the bridge of the various barricades during the early morning hours. So in response, Serbs uninterested in such unification, dumped a bunch of dirt and potted trees on "their side" of the bridge.

Finally, on the weekend when we arrived in Kosovo there was a very interesting clash at the bridge. Albanian protesters erupted angrily to this turn of events. There were rocks thrown and fires started. Fortunately, there is a fairly heavy military and police presence at the bridge, so order was ultimately restored.


One week later we visited with a friend who has been working in Kosovo for 5 or 6 years.

We had coffee near the bridge and then decided to venture on to the "Serb side"of the bridge. We didn't venture to far, but the atmosphere certainly seemed to change on the other side. In any case, some photos;

Pete looking over towards the "Albanian side"

I am told that this essentially says Kosovo is Serbia

Serbian flags and symbols of national pride everywhere

The ironic part of all this is that the Serbians claim to have created a "Park for Peace" with the dirt and potted trees.

with a sign and everything 

looks fairly pleasant, I suppose

a clear line of division

Interesting how everyone wants some sort of peace...but usually blames the lack of peace on the other party. We do this in our personal lives and its quite obviously a problem in global politics.

As we walked back we ventured underneath the bridge and saw this;

On the concrete holding up this bridge there are signs that people want peace. So unfortunate that it must be presented in this "hidden" way. It seems that many want peace...but it is still illusive.

This city struck me as a pretty amazing place. This is where true reconciliation has to happen. This is the flash point where war could still break out, but it is also the heart where peace can blossom.

Hopefully this will be a place where we can work at some point...maybe baseball can play a small role in introducing the real key to peace and reconciliation.

There are some folks already investing heavily in this city. They have found great favor with local leaders and are being allowed to build a school. The municipality has donated land to the project and they are currently waiting on final permission to construct. The awesome news is that the plans for the school already called for construction of a Baseball field! We are exited to work with these folks to say the least.

Please keep this city, and the entire nation of Kosovo (and Serbia), in your prayers. There are centuries worth of pain and anger that needs to be worked through before they will be able to live in peace.

Fortunately we serve a Savior who brings peace.