Vermont Bar Journal, Vol. 40, No. 2 Vermont Bar Journal, Spring 2017, Volume 43, No. 1 | Page 23

by Judge Dean B . Pineles ( ret .)

Life Beyond the Vermont Trial Bench : Tales from Kosovo

Introduction
The wheels touched down at the international airport in Pristina , Kosovo on February 4 , 2011 . I was reporting for duty as an international criminal judge with the European Union Rule of Law Mission ( EULEX ). My remit would include war crimes , organized crime , organ trafficking , corruption and other serious cases .
I retired from the Vermont trial bench in December 2005 after more than 21 years of service . However , even before I retired , I became interested in international rule of law work . I had several short-term assignments in Russia starting in 1996 with the Vermont-Karelia Rule of Law Project which was started in the early 90s by our own Justice John Dooley and others . Many Vermont judges and lawyers have participated in trips to Petrozavodsk and other Russian cities over the years .
I traveled to Kazakhstan as a jury trial expert in December 2006 to give a speech on the American perspective at an international conference to commemorate Kazakhstan ’ s initiation of jury trials . The newly created capital of Astana , rising out of the steppes , was a sight right out of a Disney set . Along the interior walls of the opulent Supreme Court palace were pictures of former Kazakh justices with inscriptions like this : “ Executed in 1937 , rehabilitated in 1996 ” which recalled the atrocities of the Stalin era .
In 2008-09 , my wife Kristina and I ( along with our dog Piper ) worked in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia for a year . I was a pro bono legal advisor with the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative , and worked with the Georgian judiciary and legal establishment to bring about reforms , such as the introduction of jury trials . We were in Georgia when the Russians invaded in August 2008 . As Russian tanks headed towards the capital Tbilisi where we lived , we were evacuated in a hair-raising ride to neighboring Armenia for three weeks until hostilities ended .
My employment with EULEX began in February 2011 . I was assigned first to Prizren , an ancient city with a strong Ottoman and Muslim influence close to the Albanian border ; and then Pristina , the secular capital in the east central part of the country . My one year assignment ended up lasting 28 months until May 2013 .
History
Kosovo is located in the western Balkans in southern Europe , and is a small , mountainous , land locked country , about half the size of Vermont , with a continental climate . It issurrounded by the countries of the former Yugoslavia : Serbia , Macedonia , Montenegro , Croatia , Bosnia and Slovenia ; and also by Albania which was not part of Yugoslavia .
The history of Kosovo , Yugoslavia and the Balkans is extremely complicated and is highly colored by one ’ s ethnicity and religion . My understanding of the key events for present purposes follows . The history is presented as a cursory overview and is not intended to be comprehensive .
Following WWII , the Balkan countries were consolidated within Yugoslavia , a communist federation , ruled by the iron hand of Marshal Tito . He died in 1980 and Yugoslavia began to slowly unravel .
Kosovo was officially part of Serbia , but was populated overwhelmingly by ethnic Albanians , at least 3 to 1 . They were Muslims , spoke Albanian , and used the Latin alphabet . The minority Serbian population was Orthodox Christian , spoke Serbian and used the Cyrillic alphabet .
There was always serious tension between the majority Albanians and minority Serbians , which Slobodan Milosevic , the Serbian leader of Yugoslavia , was able to exploit when he rose to power in the late 1980s . In 1989 , the Serbian minority took control of Kosovo through intimidation and force , including all governmental institutions such as the judiciary , as well as schools , universities , and professions , and the Albanian majority was oppressed and marginalized .
This gave rise to the Kosovo Liberation Army , or the KLA , that formed clandestinely in mid-1990s , which was an ethnic Albanian guerilla and separatist group engaged in terrorist tactics against Serbian officials and police officers in Kosovo . Milosevic responded harshly , and in 1998-99 the world watched in horror as war and ethnic cleansing descended upon Kosovo , killing thousands and causing nearly a million Kosovo Albanian refugees to flee across the borders into Macedonia , Albania and Western Europe . At the time , it was the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II .
On March 24 , 1999 , NATO commenced its bombing campaign to stop the crisis . The campaign succeeded after 78 days , and Kosovo refugees flooded home , only to find widespread destruction and a total upheaval of society . The KLA had become NATO ’ s ally on the ground , and KLA soldiers were seen by many as freedom fighters , liberators and war heroes .
After the war , the UN took control of all institutions in Kosovo . Although rebuilding the judiciary was an immediate priority , the ethnic Albanian judges , prosecutors and lawyers who had been marginalized for most of the 1990s were simply incapable of addressing the crimes that arose out of the war . So the UN implemented a plan to recruit international investigators , prosecutors and judges to deal with war crimes and other serious cases .
The UN applied the law that was in effect in Yugoslavia in 1989 before disintegration , which included provisions dealing with war crimes , and incorporated international treaties like the Geneva Convention . The Yugoslav law is still the basis for war crimes prosecutions today . The UN was “ status neutral ” and did not distinguish between ethnic Albanian KLA fighters and Serbians ; all were subject to prosecution .
In 2008 , the UN ceded much of its responsibility to EULEX . By this time , Kosovo ’ s governmental and civic institutions had been largely rebuilt . EULEX carried forward the international model to investigate , prosecute and adjudicate war crimes and other serious crimes . And just like the UN , EULEX was “ status neutral .”
On February 17 , 2008 , Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia with the support of the U . S . and many other western countries , but with strong opposition from Serbia and Russia . In 2010 , the International Court of Justice upheld the unilateral declaration of independence , finding that it was not contrary to international law .
In April 2013 , under strong pressure from the EU , the two countries , Serbia and Kosovo , were able to reach an historic Stabilization Agreement , despite their longstanding animosity . Both countries were motivated to resolve their differences because they wanted to become members of the EU , but progress has been very slow . There has been no effort to resolve the issue of Kosovo ’ s status in relation to Serbia , and both sides have dug in their heels .
Kosovo Today Kosovo is recognized by 114 countries at www . vtbar . org THE VERMONT BAR JOURNAL • SPRING 2017 23