Isaline Eury
Local Studies, Global Comparision, march 2008.

The Independence of Kosovo

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Kosovo is a little region of 10 887 km² in the Balkans, bordering Serbia to the North, Montenegro and Albania to the west, and Macedonia to the south. Among its 2 200 000 inhabitants (estimations in 2005), 92% is Albanian, and 5,3% Serb. It has just declared its independence from Serbia on 17th of February 2008 but it is not recognized by the whole international community (Russia, Serbia, China and Spain among others do not accept the independence). What is the history of Kosovo? And the way leading to the independence of Kosovo, and which issues does it creates nowadays? We are going to describe the recent history of Kosovo, trying to explain the evolution leading to its independence. And we will, in a second part, set forth the principal issues Kosovo has now to face and the questions it raises for the global community.

From 1455 to 1912, Kosovo was part of the Ottoman Empire. It was first part of the eyelet of Rumelia (southern Balkan regions of the Ottoman Empire) until 1864 and then it became a separate province as a result of the administrative reform law. It underwent gradual Islamisation during that period, even if not so pronounced in that part of the Empire, particularly in towns, when entire villages passed from orthodoxy to Islam, in order not to pay the djizia . (taxation of non-Muslim)

The Kosovo is considered by Serbs as the birthplace of their nation, in a religious and cultural way. Indeed, in actual Kosovo was established the archevêché of Pec in 1219. More than 1500 churches and monasteries were built after this symbolic date. The Church has claimed since then his historical belonging to that region. Another important fact in favour of Serb roots in Kosovo is the battle of Kosovo of 1389, where the Serbs defeated against the Ottoman Empire. The region became as a result, the symbol of a national tragedy and the symbol of the