PROJECT NAME:

Enhancing the efforts on shedding light on the fate of missing persons in Kosovo 2023/452-776

SECTOR:

Rule of Law

PROJECT VALUE:

Total cost of the project: € 205,263.16 EU contribution € 195,000

DURATION:

36 months Start Date: 15 January 2024 End Date: 15 January 2027

IMPLEMENTING PARTNER:

Humanitarian Law Center Kosovo (HLC Kosovo)

DIRECT BENEFICIARY:

Beneficiaries a. Families of missing persons continue to live in pain for their missing family members. Additionally, families of missing persons raise concerns on the lack of updates on the process and lack of their inclusion in public consultations related to the matter of missing persons. Moreover, young generations from the families of missing persons are somehow completely left out from the process. Through this action, families of missing persons will be introduced to updated information on the process of missing persons, current legal framework and what is the role of Declaration on Missing Persons and what can they wait from such a document. On the other hand, they will have the chance to meet and discuss their concerns with the most responsible persons/institutions on implementing the obligations that arise from the current legal frame work, policies and the abovementioned declaration on missing persons. Under this action, efforts will be given to make young generations of the families of missing persons as part of the process. Additionally, through public art, this action will contribute on recognizing their pain of waiting and on the other hand will enhance the empathy of the general society towards them. b. Society at large, as a post-conflict society, in everyday basis is dealing with the consequences of the 1998-1999 armed conflict. Additionally, the Kosovar society is a victim of different narratives about the DwP processes, including the ones related to shedding light to missing persons. Through this action, the Kosovar society will be exposed to impartial, inclusive and tolerance-triggering information, which will increase the general welfare. Additionally, the public artwork will raise their empathy toward all families of missing persons from all communities living in Kosovo. This results with stable and tolerant Kosovo in which people are receptive and empathic towards the losses of all categories of victims.

PARTNERS:

Missing Persons Resource Center (MPRC)

COVERAGE/IMPACT:

Kosovo

OVERALL OBJECTIVE:

The overall objective of the project is to support the efforts of relevant stakeholders on shedding light to the fate of missing persons through promoting accountability, bottom-up approach, social dialogue and providing relevant valuable information to the families of missing persons in Kosovo.

PROJECT PURPOSES:

- Supporting the implementation of the legal framework and the obligations that have emerged from the joint Declaration for Missing Persons between Kosovo and Serbia, issued on May 2, 2023. - Bringing the issue of missing persons as part of an internal dialogue between the most relevant stakeholders and groups of interest. - Utilizing public art as though-provoking memorials, advocating for the rights of family members of missing persons and raising awareness about the issue. - Providing information, support and updates to the families of missing persons.

PROJECT STRATEGY:

The proposed project utilizes established methods of shedding light to the fate of missing persons in post-conflict societies, acknowledging the case-specifics of Kosovo and incorporating the progress that has been made in Kosovo in the last 23 years since the end of the conflict into the design of the project. Such an approach demonstrates the consistency in the civic efforts in the process of giving a closure to the whereabouts of missing persons and optimize the prospects of an affluent result delivery. Main methodological approaches embedded in project design are: a. Comprehensive approach in addressing the issue of missing persons This intervention of this project will highlight the shortcomings so far in addressing the issue of missing persons and offers a comprehensive approach in addressing main deficiencies and practices that fuel these shortcomings; including:  incoherent legal frameworks and shortages in institutional responses in the area of missing persons;  lack of continuous consultation with the families of missing persons;  lack of proper cooperation between Kosovo and Serbia in the issue of missing persons;  the politicization of the topic of missing persons. Such a complexity of interrelated factors that contextualize the issue of missing persons in Kosovo renders the need for a strategic and long-term commitment of all actors in Kosovo society shedding light to the fate of the missing persons, including civil society organizations in their role as direct representatives of Kosovo communities. In response to such needs, the action proposed strives to build local civic partnerships and fortify their expertise to address complex and identify the shortcomings in the issue of missing persons. In addition, this project aims to bring the topic of missing persons into a social dialogue and contribute in enhancing the empathy of general society towards the families who are still missing their loved ones. b. People-to-people approach The proposed program is overwhelmingly based on straightforward logic of People-to-People approach (P2P) programming that strives for the creation of opportunities for a series of interactions between relevant stakeholders and groups of interests in order to strengthen their cooperation, discuss the needs and opportunities and discuss further relevant steps that can contribute in the process of shedding light to the fate of missing persons as well as in the dignity of the families of missing persons. Activities are designed to follow the linear logic of P2P programming: understand-appreciate-collaborate, thereby establishing causative relations between beneficiary interests and objectives of the intervention. The best example of this practice is the set of activities that makes together relevant stakeholders and families of missing persons in tackling the shortcomings in the process of missing persons and discuss their engagement in joint efforts on identification of problems and facilitate their cooperation and active engagement in efforts to address these problems. c. Do No Harm approach The complexity of aspired changes and sensitiveness of the issue of missing persons in Kosovo imposes the need for a careful and thoughtful approach to these problems, meticulous targeting and vigilance for the alarming signals of counterproductive engagement. This is the essence of the ‘Do No Harm’ approach. This method is deeply embedded in the design of the intervention and mainstreamed in all project activities. These include: Monitoring and Evaluation component that envisages supplementary efforts of HLC Kosovo and MPRC in monitoring the target groups attitudes and effects of project intervention on stakeholders’ conduct. d. Gender Mainstreaming The proposed program embeds gender equality as a cross-cutting dimension of programing which means that the interests of the women groups and principles of gender equality are embedded in all aspects of the program, from planning to execution. Where presented, quantifiable indicators are specified with gender quota, for example, in meetings with the families of missing persons a gender balance of participants will be used. Gender mainstreaming policy is of special value in peacebuilding efforts due to the differences of gender roles in conflicts, imposed by the disadvantaged position of women in male-dominated power structures. This leads to greater confidence/credibility of women and women groups to engage in DwP processes, respectively in the process of shedding light to the fate of missing persons. e. Building on previous results Formally, the action depicted in this project proposal is not part of some larger programs, but it endows long-lasting efforts of local and international community to shed light in the fate of missing persons in Kosovo and address the needs of their families. In this endeavour, the proposed action utilizes many resources and skills (e.g. policy actions capacities, civic cooperation, active participation, legal framework transformation) generated through numerous EU assistance programs in last decade (IPA, CSO Facility etc). In the meanwhile, this action aims to support the EU facilitated dialogue through the support on implementing the Joint Declaration on Missing Persons between Kosovo and Serbia that has resulted from the EU efforts on dialogue between the two countries. Additionally, the proposed actions entail the recognizable and developed programs and instruments of the both organization, HLC Kosovo and MPRC. The instruments were developed in individual efforts of organizations members to contribute to the process of missing persons in Kosovo and merges them into structural, synergistically amplified intervention.

ACTIVITIES:

First Set of Activities: A1.1. Reviewing existing national strategies and relevant legal framework A.1.2. Preparing the annual report based on activity the review of the national strategies, relevant legal framework and on monitoring of the declaration on missing persons Second Set of Activities: A.2.1. Publication of the open call for artists for public artworks A.2.2. Establishing the expert commission and selecting the best public artwork project A.2.3. Installing the artwork in a public space A.2.4. Organizing a Public Talk on Public Art A.2.5. Preparing and launching a publication on the created public artwork Third Set of Activities: A.3.1. Preparing and organizing one info session for the families of missing persons A.3.2. Preparing and organizing one info session for the families of missing persons with the participation of relevant stakeholders

RESULTS:

Successful implementation of above elaborated activities will produce following results: Result 1: Kosovo government and relevant institutions are more efficient and more inclusive in implementation of legal framework addressing the issue of missing persons in Kosovo. Result 2: General society has more knowledge on the role of relevant stakeholders and on the current legal framework on dealing with the issue of missing persons. Result 3: Families of missing persons and other groups of interest are actively involved in raising their concerns and needs on dealing with the process of shedding light to the fate of missing persons. Result 4: Relevant stakeholders are provided with a first-hand information on the requests of the families of missing persons. Result 5: General society in Kosovo has an increased understanding on the issue of missing persons. Result 6: A considerable number of Kosovar society with a focus on youngsters have an increased understanding on the role of art in dealing with the past (healing, documentation). Result 7: Numerous members of families of missing persons are well-informed on the recent developments on the issue of missing persons.