According to official data, in the last 10 years, the number of students in Serbian schools in Kosovo has decreased by 40 percent, said Miodrag Marinković, director of the Center for Affirmative Social Actions.
According to him, in 2021, 15.500 students attended primary and secondary schools in Kosovo that operate in the system of the Republic of Serbia, while this year 14.600 students attend schools.
The Center for Affirmative Social Actions conducted a study "Interests of Serbs in Kosovo in the process of normalizing relations between Belgrade and Pristina", and the results showed that the main problems of Serbs in Kosovo are the departure of young people, unemployment, corruption, nepotism and discrimination.
"There's a whole bunch of factors at play here - the instability in the north has certainly taken its toll on people's decision to stay or leave." That continuing ethnic conflict was another thing. However, what we found is that the quality of education is one of the things that make people leave here more and more," Marinković said.
One of the authors of the research, assistant professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, Stefan Surlić, states that the results of the research clearly show the demands of the Serbs when it comes to the attitude of Belgrade and Pristina towards them:
"They know what they want, the first is to preserve their identity, the right to use the language, the right to enjoy their cultural heritage and their uniqueness, and the existence of autonomous institutions." The second request is to maintain the connection with Belgrade, especially in the sphere of health, education system and social protection, because they believe that this is a prerequisite for any idea of long-term survival of Serbs in Kosovo. Therefore, these are demands that must be on the table in the dialogue process".
Research shows that the Union of Serbian Municipalities is not a priority for Serbs in Kosovo. This information does not surprise the authors of the research.
"It's not surprising because it's not really known what that ZSO will look like, and when they hear messages from Belgrade and Pristina, as well as experts dealing with the topic, from the idea of some kind of Republika Srpska in Kosovo, to the fact that it's a non-governmental organization, I understand a complete confusion and of course then there is a reserve of what the Community of Serbian Municipalities will really look like in the end", said Surlić.
BG/Voice of America
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