AV: KARINE ØSTTVEIT  Aftenposten

Det finnes private aktører som henter bortførte barn hjem til Norge. Noen ganger med bruk av våpen.

14 UENDELIG LANGE måneder er gått siden Anne sist så sønnen sin. Denne septemberdagen får hun ham overlevert på en travel flyplass. Den lille toåringen er blek og tynn, men likevel stor i forhold til babyen hun husker. Han har lært å gå, og det som før bare var babling, er blitt til ord på et fremmed språk. Men da moren tar ham i armene, gråter han redd. Hun er blitt en fremmed. I noen øyeblikk blir moren stående, fortvilet. Så forsøker hun det eneste hun kommer på: Holder den lille kroppen tett inntil venstre side av brystet, og håper at lyden av mammas hjerteslag er noe som aldri helt blir glemt.Hvert år blir mellom 35 og 50 barn bortført fra Norge, tilsammen nesten 300 barn de siste åtte årene. Disse barna blir ikke lokket inn i en bil, ingen av dem er blitt plukket opp av en fremmed. De er rett og slett blitt bortført til utlandet av en som står dem nær – nesten alltid en mor eller far. Det er ingen tvil om at slike barnebortføringer er ulovlige. Likevel møter den av foreldrene som står tilbake, ofte en mur av vanskeligheter. I flere tilfeller vil ikke engang det norske politiet ta imot en anmeldelse. Og fra foreldrenes desperasjon har det vokst frem en helt ny bransje: Private, profesjonelle aktører med erfaring fra krig og etterretning som mot betaling henter barna deres hjem igjen – iblant gjennom velregisserte, nærmest militære aksjoner.

Mange oppdrag.

– Bransjen er i ferd med å eksplodere. Jeg fant et barn i København i forrige uke, over helgen må jeg kanskje til Algerie og lete. Det er utrolig travelt for tiden.Martin Waage snakker uten fakter. Han er en av lederne i sikkerhetsselskapet ABP World Group, som blant annet tar oppdrag som går ut på å hente hjem bortførte barn. Opprinnelig jobbet firmaet med livvakttjenester, med etterretning i forbindelse med utpresningssaker og en og annen skygging av en utro ektefelle. Og så, for to år siden, kom den første henvendelsen fra en fortvilt mor. Kort tid senere kom enda en, og så en til. Alle sto med kjennelsen fra en norsk rettssal i hånden, oppgitt over at myndighetene ikke hjalp dem med å hente hjem barn som alle rettsinstanser var enige om var blitt ulovlig bortført til utlandet. Siden den gang har Waage vært involvert i mer enn 15 barnebortføringssaker. Han har vært i land som Brasil, Ukraina, Libya, Iran, Taiwan og Algerie for å hente hjem norske og svenske barn. Operasjonene kan innebære alt fra måneder med spaning, gjennomgåelse av alle slags elektroniske spor, diplomati, forskjellige former for overtalelse – og altså væpnede aksjoner. Prislappen for et barn ligger på mellom noen hundre tusen og opp til over en million.– Vi prøver alltid med diplomati først. Vi vil helst løse det på den måten. Men du kan jo prøve å dra ned til Algerie eller Libya og løse en konflikt med diplomati. Det hender at vi må gå til aksjon. Jeg ønsker ikke å gå så veldig mye inn på det.– Hvorfor ikke?– Når du gjør et sånt overtramp i et fremmed land, er det ikke noe å sitte og skryte av i etterkant. Men i noen tilfeller utfører vi nærmest kirurgiske operasjoner der spesial-operatører går inn og henter ut barnet. Vi bruker folk som tidligere har hatt som jobb å utføre antiterroraksjoner og antikidnappingsaksjoner. Dette er folk som har bakgrunn fra spesialstyrker verden over.– Så i praksis blir det litt som når vi ser SWAT-team på TV?– Ja, det kan du godt si.– Bevæpnet?Martin Waage blir stille i fem sekunder. Ti sekunder. Femten sekunder.– Vi er i utgangspunktet ikke bevæpnet. Det skaper mye ekstra problemer for oss hvis vi blir tatt med våpen.– Men dere utfører vel ikke slike aksjoner ubevæpnet i land der det finnes våpen i hvert hus?– Vi har våpen i unntakstilfellene, i de ekstra vanskelige situasjonene i kompliserte land. Dessverre er disse landene overrepresentert.

Begynte med kjærlighet.

Det er ikke slike statistikker man tenker på når man er forelsket. For Anne (40) begynte historien om en bortført baby som en vanlig kjærlighetshistorie. En hyggelig ferie, en kjekk mann. Vi kan kalle ham Adrian. Hun ble sjarmert av manerene, av komplimentene, av hvordan han fikk henne til å føle seg som den viktigste kvinnen i hele verden. Så Anne dro tilbake, igjen og igjen. Etter et års tid giftet de seg. Adrian ble med tilbake til Vestlandet og Norge.Snart var Anne gravid. Da kom problemene med kulturforskjeller. Hun begynte å snakke om skilsmisse omtrent samtidig med at sønnen Thomas ble født. Men skilsmisse var ikke enkelt. Det var imot Adrians religion, kanskje ville det også gå ut over oppholdstillatelsen hans i Norge. Derfor gikk Anne med på en midlertidig ordning der de skulle bo sammen i noen måneder, alle tre. Hun forklarer at hun, i bytte mot at Adrian signerte separasjonspapirene, gikk med på at han skulle stå oppført i offentlige registre med hovedomsorgen for Thomas.– Jeg skjønte ikke helt hva jeg gikk med på. Jeg tenkte bare at vi jo skulle bo sammen inntil videre, så hvis det gjorde det enklere å få ham til å skrive under på skilsmissepapirene, så kunne jeg godt skrive under på papirene om omsorgen. Men avtalen var at det bare skulle gjelde i en overgangsperiode mens vi bodde sammen alle tre, sier hun i dag.

Prøvde å anmelde.

Men papirene skulle snart få en helt annen betydning. Da Thomas var ti måneder, ville Adrian ta ham med til Balkan for å vise ham frem til familien. Anne var innom tanken på at det kunne bli problemer, men skjøv det fra seg. Adrian hadde jo jobb i Norge, han hadde hus og oppholdstillatelse, og han signaliserte på alle måter at målet hans var å komme seg ut av det krigsherjede området. Hvorfor skulle han da kidnappe sønnen deres? Så hun lot ham dra. Det ble starten på et 14 måneders mareritt.– En kveld ringte han. Han sa at sønnen vår skulle bo der nede. At han ville få det bra der.Anne blir stille, spoler mentalt gjennom minnene. Snart kom Adrian tilbake til Norge, uten sønnen. Thomas ble boende hos Adrians slektninger på Balkan. Anne kontaktet umiddelbart advokat for å få en midlertidig avgjørelse på at sønnen skulle hjem til Norge.– Dagen etter dro jeg på politistasjonen for å anmelde ham. Men de ville ikke snakke med meg.Anne sukker. Mannen bak skranken kalte bortføringen av sønnen hennes «bare en familiesak». Anne gikk gråtende ut igjen. Vel hjemme ringte hun Justisdepartementet, familie, venner. Hun søkte på nettet etter informasjon. Etter noen dager fikk hun bekreftet fra departementet at det eksmannen hadde gjort, var ulovlig. Og at hun tenkte helt riktig; for å sette i gang en prosess trengtes en anmeldelse om barnebortføring på den lokale politistasjonen. Anne tørket tårene og dro tilbake til stasjonen. På nytt ble det bomtur. «Ingenting å anmelde – du vet jo hvor ungen er,» sa mannen bak skranken, en annen denne gang. Da hun kom for tredje gang en uke senere, fikk hun beskjed om å komme tilbake om 14 dager. Det var ingen som hadde kapasitet til å se på saken ennå uansett.– Det gikk mange måneder før jeg fikk anmeldt saken. Det ble stadig mer nedverdigende. Jeg fikk ikke komme forbi skranken engang, jeg sto der og gråt etter barnet mitt mens alle som var inne for å rapportere sykkeltyverier, sto rundt og hørte på.

– En skam.

– Dette rammer de aller fleste som får barna sine bortført. Det er en skam, smeller det fra Kjell Schevig. Han leder nettverket Bortført, der foreldre med bortførte barn får hjelp og støtte i kampen. Ifølge Schevig er det svært mange som ikke lykkes med politianmeldelse av de ulovlige bortføringene. Selv måtte han kjempe i et helt år før bortføringen av datteren Caroline til Tyskland i det hele tatt ble registrert .– Folk flest stoler jo på myndighetene. De gjør som myndighetene sier. De venter, håper og tror at den norske staten skal ordne opp. Ofte tar det flere år før de skjønner at norske myndigheter hverken har vilje eller handlekraft til å få barna deres hjem igjen. Det er forhåpningene som tar knekken på dem. Etter år med skuffelser er de både skakkjørte økonomisk og psykisk utmattet, og har ikke lenger råd til å leie inn profesjonell hjelp som kan hente barna hjem igjen, sier Schevig. Han har denne høsten tatt initiativet til et nytt fond. Bortført-fondet gir økonomisk støtte til foreldre med bortførte barn. Støtten gis for å sette foreldrene som Anne i stand til å leie inn hjelp fra private selskaper som ABP World Group. – Jeg synes det er trist at dette er nødvendig. Disse sakene kunne ha vært løst av myndighetene, mener Schevig.

Ikke imot aksjoner.

Hos Justisdepartementet har ikke statssekretær Astri Aas-Hansen noen direkte innvendinger mot at foreldre leier inn hjelp fra private selskaper for å hente hjem barna sine.– Vi er glad for alle saker som løser seg, og det er opp til den enkelte å avgjøre hvem som skal involveres, sier hun. Aas-Hansen understreker imidlertid at norske myndigheter ikke stiller seg bak ulovlige aksjoner i andre land.– Hvorfor kan ikke norske myndigheter løse saker som dette på egen hånd?– Norske myndigheter bruker de offentlige kanaler som er til rådighet i det internasjonale samfunn for å løse disse sakene. I endel saker kan det ta lang tid, og i noen saker ser vi manglende vilje hos andre lands myndigheter til å etterleve konvensjonen og få til løsninger, innrømmer Aas-Hansen. Hun kan ikke kommentere enkeltsaker, men sier generelt at politiet skal motta anmeldelser i bortføringssaker som i andre saker. Politidirektoratet selv sier at de fokuserer sterkt på barnebortføringssaker, og jobber med problemet i forskjellige kanaler. Direktoratet understreker imidlertid at dette ofte er vanskelige saker for politiet, fordi barnet som regel er sammen med en omsorgssperson.Annes historie er likevel en av dem som endte godt. I sommer lokaliserte ABP World Group sønnen i en liten by på Balkan. Gjennom firmaet leide Anne inn to menn til å overvåke sønnen sin. I fire uker ble Adrian og Thomas konstant overvåket, for å sikre at de ikke flyttet. Imens hadde Martin Waage i ABP møter på ambassaden, hos det lokale politiet og hos Justisdepartementet. I september ga en lokal rett Anne foreldreretten til den lille gutten. Fire dager senere hentet hun ham på flyplassen.

Doper ned barn.

Da hadde han altså glemt moren. Det er en av årsakene til at både Bortført-nettverket og Martin Waage understreker at tiden er en viktig faktor i barnebortføringssaker. De færreste kan leve i årevis med diplomatisk tautrekking. Når et barn allerede har bodd et år eller to i utlandet, er det vanskeligere å få lokale myndigheter til å sende det hjem igjen selv om bortføringen var ulovlig i utgangspunktet – for da vil hjemsendelsen være traumatisk for barnet. For også eldre barn glemmer – eller venner seg til sin nye tilværelse. Martin Waage har flere ganger vært i situasjoner der barnet slett ikke ville være med sine redningsmenn.– Du kan tenke deg en syvåring som er påvirket av faren gjennom to år. Etter så lang tid snakker barnet kanskje mer russisk enn norsk. Et sånt barn blir ikke frivillig med oss.– Hva gjør dere da?– Vi må roe ned barnet.– Roe ned? Medisinsk, mener du?– Det er dessverre nødvendig i en del tilfeller.Det var heldigvis ikke nødvendig i Annes tilfelle. Hun har brukt de siste to månedene til å bli kjent med sønnen sin på nytt. Nylig tilkjente tingretten henne eneansvaret for sønnen. Faren har ikke lenger foreldreansvar, bare rett til samvær seks timer hver tredje helg – under profesjonelt tilsyn. Retten la vekt på at hjemføringen kan beskrives som «dramatisk» og at bortføringen hadde gitt Thomas «alvorlige traumer» som fortsatt preger ham i dag.– Men nå går det mye bedre, mener Anne. – Vi har vært sammen hvert eneste minutt i to måneder. Han er fortsatt skeptisk til nye mennesker, men han er trygg på meg. Og så er han så flink! Stemmen blir et øyeblikk tykk av morsstolthet.– Han har lært seg så mange norske ord at du vil ikke tro det! Alle slags husdyr, middag og nese og armer og ben og mye annet!Anne sukker fornøyd. A-magasinet kan ikke si hvor hun bor, ikke beskrive gaten eller huset. Adrian bor fortsatt i Norge, og Anne er livredd for en gjentagelse av de 14 månedene sønnen var borte fra henne. Hun har flyttet til en ny landsdel, mange mil unna eksmannen. Hun og Thomas lever på hemmelig adresse og med hemmelig telefonnummer. Bare de aller nærmeste vet hvor de oppholder seg.– Jeg slipper ham ikke av syne igjen. Jeg tar ikke sjansen, smiler hun. Til tross for lykken kjenner kroppen hennes fortsatt påkjenningene. Anne er ennå ikke klar for å begynne å jobbe igjen etter sykmeldingene.– Og etter hvert må jeg kanskje ta ulønnet permisjon, for jeg tør ikke sende ham i barnehage ennå. Akkurat nå er ingenting viktigere enn at vi er sammen. Han har traumer som skal bearbeides, jeg har en sorg jeg må bli ferdig med. Og så må vi bli ordentlig kjent igjen.

Kilde: Bortført.no / Nyheter

Da Evas sønn ble bortført nektet politiet å motta anmeldelsen. Hun fikk ingen hjelp. Verdifull tid gikk tapt og hun bestemte seg for å leie inn eksperthjelp fra ABP World Group.

Gutten hadde blitt bortført til Mitrovica i Kosovo av barnefar og Eva ønsket hjelp med å lokalisere og bringe ham hjem.

Det ble sendt et 3 manns team ifra ABP til Kosovo. Byrået har kontaktnettverk i de fleste land i verden, og det gjelder også Balkan. De har og taktiske team som ved behov kan hente ut barnet fysisk fra bortførers oppholdssted.

Huset der barnet befant seg ble lokalisert, samt møter med lokale maktpersoner med beslutningsansvar ble avholdt, slik som politisjefer, ministre, Department of Justice i Pristina med flere.

Martin Waage fra ABP hadde via kontakter ordnet seg med en høyerestående polititjenestemann som guide og “døråpner”. Ambassadøren, Sverre Johan Kvaale, og hans medarbeidere forklarte om hva de kunne assistere med og hva som var deres begrensninger, men påpekte at de var mer enn velvillige til å gjøre hva som kunne gjøres fra deres side.

For å gjøre en lang historie kort: Evas sønn ble returnert to måneder etter at Waage hadde fått oppdraget. Saken løste seg med fredlige midler.

Hvert år blir om lag 50 norske barn bortført til utlandet. Myndighetene viser liten vilje og handlekraft til å få returnert norske barn. Norske myndigheter klarer ikke å få til samme resultat som Martin Waage fra ABP – ganske enkelt fordi de ikke prioriterer disse barna.

Vi ser gang på gang at myndighetene gir foreldre urealistiske forventninger om sjansene til å få tilbake barna med rettslige midler. Foreldre henvises til lange, kostbare, og som oftest, håpløse rettsprosser i utlandet. Vi ønsker å gjøre noe aktivt slik at flere bortførte barn returneres til Norge og at det blir mindre attraktivt å bortføre norske barn.

Bortført-fondet skal gjøre foreldre i stand til å kjøpe inn tjenester fra spesialister i sikkerhetsoppdrag, som skal lokalisere og tilbakeføre bortførte barn til Norge.

Vil du hjelpe? Besøk Bortført.no

Kosovo es una anomalía. Un estado estadounidense en Europa. Hasta ahora y aquí, los microestados europeos surgieron como paraísos fiscales o bancos privilegiados con secretos bancarios blindados. El penúltimo surge como una importante base militar norteamericana en los Balcanes. De igual modo que Panamá fué primero un canal y luego un estado desde un territorio amputado a Colombia, Kosovo fue antes una base y después un estado desde un territorio amputado a Serbia. Un país de la Unión Europea sufre en el siglo XXI la misma amputación que sufriera en el siglo XIX un país de America Latina.
La mano que movió la cuna escisionista, tanto ayer como hoy, es el Pentágono. El argumento oficial es el respeto al derecho de autodeterminación. El mismo que negara Lincoln a la Confederación de Estados del Sur, no dudando lo más mínimo en ir a una guerra civil, fué utilizado para reconvertir la geoestratégica base de Pristina, la capital de la autonomía kosovar, en el estado de Kosovo. De la noche a la mañana, conocidos terroristas narcotraficantes kosovares, denunciados por la Interpol, fueron reconocidos como patriotas por Washington y elevados a la categoría de estadistas.
No hubiese sido posible romper la unidad e integridad territorial del estado serbio sin el silencio y la complicidad de otros importantes estados europeos. La ausencia de reacción de la Unión Europea es significativamente sorprendente. Máxime teniendo en cuenta que otras grandes potencias, veáse China, frenan los intentos estadounidenses de aplicarles a sus territorios la misma fraseología democrática del derecho de autodeterminación que niega a los estados que componen los Estados Unidos. Nada describe mejor la impotencia europea.
Es un precedente inquietante. Nadie mejor que los Estados Unidos sabe que ningún estado puede aceptar el derecho de autodeterminación porque aceptarlo sería tanto como reconocer una soberanía ajena a la propia. Es decir, un suicidio estatal. Justo quien lo combatió a sangre y fuego en la Guerra de Secesión no puede ir predicándolo fuera de sus fronteras. Cuando lo hace, la Unión Europea debiera impedirlo como lo impide China. Quienes hoy publicitan en España el estado de Kosovo, a la vista está en los medios de comunicación, debieran tener en cuenta que la amputación de Serbia puede ser mañana la de cualquier otro estado europeo.

Kosovo/Macedonia border crossing, 2009.

This odd little photo is a reminder of my border crossing into Kosovo (Kosovë) on 7 April, 2009. It is a little askew because I took this photo surreptitiously with my iPhone in the buffer zone between the Macedonia border checkpoint and the Kosovo checkpoint. Usually photos are “not encouraged” at border crossings, but I wanted a memento.

I had not prearranged an excursion into Kosovo for this European trip, but had hoped to arrange something while I was in Skopje (Macedonia). I have an interest in this area and its history, and AMPP is beginning to assemble stories of Christian work in Muslim areas (as well as Hindu cultures). Cultures that are unfriendly toward Christianity, I believe, will greatly influence Christian mission work in this century and this cultural/religious interaction needs to be explored.

While in Skopje, I asked my contacts there if they knew people in Kosovo who would be willing to share the story of their work. They put me in contact with some missionaries who were working in Priština. However, I had to go it alone for this excursion. So, early Tuesday morning I was picked up by a taxi at my hotel in Skopje and dropped of 40 minutes later at the border crossing. My contact, whom I had never met, was to pick me up once I made it through the Kosovo border checkpoint and drive me to Priština.

I took the above photo because I knew the history of the thousands of ethnic Albanians who fled from Serbian forces ten years prior to my crossing. 10,000 never made it to safety in Albania or Macedonia. After entering into Kosovo I found that evidence of the war is not so easy to discover with the rebuilding of the homes and infrastructure over the last ten years. It is much easier to find it in the voices of the Albanians who returned to Kosovo after the war.

While standing at the midpoint of the barbed-wire entangled bridge that spans the Ibar River to join the two halves of of Mitrovicë, I asked my driver/guide when he thought that the U.N. peace-keepers would be able to leave. He turned to look me in the eye as he said, “Never. If the U.N. leaves there will be war.” At present there is a great opportunity for mission work in this Muslim country because of the great gratitude the Albanians feel toward the U.S.A. for bringing an end to the atrocities that defined the 1998-1999 war. Will this amity endure? Not likely.

©2009 A Mission Proclaimed Productions

Sultan Fatih mosque (Pristina, Kosovo)

Cargado originalmente por sana banana nana

main mosque of Kosovo

Europe

92% muslim region

Opposite the clock tower, the Fatih or Imperial Mosque was built in 1461 under Turkish Sultan Mehmed II Fatih (‘the conqueror’), as witnessed by the Arabic engraving above the main door. Inside, painted floral decorations and arabesques grace the walls and ceiling. Pristina’s grandest building has a spectacular 15-metre dome resting on support pillars, an architectural feat at the time of construction. The minaret is a reconstruction after the original was damaged during an earthquake in 1955. The mosque was briefly turned into a church during the Austro-Turkish wars from 1690-1698. During Friday payers, the congregation spreads out into the courtyard and even onto the street to pray.

Teil 1: Des Präsidenten Leibgarde

Kosovo – dieses kleine Land auf dem südöstlichen Balkan – es vereint 1001 Gegensätze miteinander. Es kann seine Gäste mit unvergleichlichem Charme und Vitalität vereinnahmen und im nächsten Moment mit den hässlichen Narben eines langen Krieges betroffen machen. „Es wäre einfacher für mich, mit Waffen oder Drogen zu handeln als mich mit ehrlicher Arbeit durchzuschlagen“, erzählt unser Taxifahrer. Zwölf Jahre lang hat er einen der gefährlichsten Jobs überhaupt gehabt, war Leibwächter des Präsidenten Ibrahim Rugova. „Im Krieg habe ich zwei Granatsplitter in den Rücken bekommen. Nun bleibt mir nix anderes übrig als Taxi fahren.“ Aber dann schwärmt er auch schon von den Frauen Pristinas, die er (nicht ganz zu Unrecht) als die schönsten der Welt bezeichnet, von Peja, dem besten Bier (der Welt…), und beschreibt uns den Weg zu ein paar Nachtklubs, die wir unbedingt besuchen sollten.
Die Absurdität, das Chaos und Improvisierte, Brutalität und Lebenslust – das alles sind Elemente des täglichen Lebens im Kosovo. Im Februar 2008 erklärte das Kosovo (ehemals jugoslawische und serbische Provinz) seine Unabhängigkeit als vorläufigen Schlusspunkt eines Konfliktes, der 1989 begann, dessen Geschichte aber bis ins Jahr 1389 zurückreicht. Das Kosovo ist damit der jüngste Staat der Welt – mit einem der ältesten Probleme der Welt.
Die Tourismusbranche des Kosovo hat eindeutig noch Wachstumsreserven – dezent ausgedrückt. Dennoch hat das kleine Land seine Reize: die atemberaubende Landschaft, die vor allem im Süden und Westen mit den wildromantischen Gebirgsketten und Flussläufen mehr als sehenswert ist, und das Nachtleben Pristinas. Und auch wenn Korruption und organisierte Kriminalität die größten Wirtschaftsfaktoren im Kosovo sind, fühlt man sich als Tourist nicht unsicher. Das Wohlbefinden der Gäste ist Quell größter Sorge und Bemühungen für die Einheimischen und es ist weitaus wahrscheinlicher auf ein Getränk eingeladen als ausgeraubt zu werden. Diese Herzlichkeit macht so einiges an Desaster wieder wett. Noch ist der Latte-Machiato-Revanchismus nicht ganz im Kosovo angekommen und vieles ist noch wunderbar unverbraucht. Deshalb der Tipp: den Balkan vom Kosovo aus kennenlernen!
Demnächst in Teil 2: „We want the Germans!“ Zu Besuch bei der Bundeswehr in Prizren. Die monatliche Kolumne „Briefe aus Pristina“ erscheint deutschlandweit immer zuerst im port01.

Teil 1: Des Präsidenten Leibgarde

Kosovo – dieses kleine Land auf dem südöstlichen Balkan – es vereint 1001 Gegensätze miteinander. Es kann seine Gäste mit unvergleichlichem Charme und Vitalität vereinnahmen und im nächsten Moment mit den hässlichen Narben eines langen Krieges betroffen machen. „Es wäre einfacher für mich, mit Waffen oder Drogen zu handeln als mich mit ehrlicher Arbeit durchzuschlagen“, erzählt unser Taxifahrer. Zwölf Jahre lang hat er einen der gefährlichsten Jobs überhaupt gehabt, war Leibwächter des Präsidenten Ibrahim Rugova. „Im Krieg habe ich zwei Granatsplitter in den Rücken bekommen. Nun bleibt mir nix anderes übrig als Taxi fahren.“ Aber dann schwärmt er auch schon von den Frauen Pristinas, die er (nicht ganz zu Unrecht) als die schönsten der Welt bezeichnet, von Peja, dem besten Bier (der Welt…), und beschreibt uns den Weg zu ein paar Nachtklubs, die wir unbedingt besuchen sollten.
Die Absurdität, das Chaos und Improvisierte, Brutalität und Lebenslust – das alles sind Elemente des täglichen Lebens im Kosovo. Im Februar 2008 erklärte das Kosovo (ehemals jugoslawische und serbische Provinz) seine Unabhängigkeit als vorläufigen Schlusspunkt eines Konfliktes, der 1989 begann, dessen Geschichte aber bis ins Jahr 1389 zurückreicht. Das Kosovo ist damit der jüngste Staat der Welt – mit einem der ältesten Probleme der Welt.
Die Tourismusbranche des Kosovo hat eindeutig noch Wachstumsreserven – dezent ausgedrückt. Dennoch hat das kleine Land seine Reize: die atemberaubende Landschaft, die vor allem im Süden und Westen mit den wildromantischen Gebirgsketten und Flussläufen mehr als sehenswert ist, und das Nachtleben Pristinas. Und auch wenn Korruption und organisierte Kriminalität die größten Wirtschaftsfaktoren im Kosovo sind, fühlt man sich als Tourist nicht unsicher. Das Wohlbefinden der Gäste ist Quell größter Sorge und Bemühungen für die Einheimischen und es ist weitaus wahrscheinlicher auf ein Getränk eingeladen als ausgeraubt zu werden. Diese Herzlichkeit macht so einiges an Desaster wieder wett. Noch ist der Latte-Machiato-Revanchismus nicht ganz im Kosovo angekommen und vieles ist noch wunderbar unverbraucht. Deshalb der Tipp: den Balkan vom Kosovo aus kennenlernen!
Demnächst in Teil 2: „We want the Germans!“ Zu Besuch bei der Bundeswehr in Prizren. Die monatliche Kolumne „Briefe aus Pristina“ erscheint deutschlandweit immer zuerst im port01.

Former US President Bill Clinton has an illegitimate child with a Kosovo woman, whom he visited on Sunday, during his stay in Pristina, Gonzodiac can reveal.

Amid meeting high state representatives, addressing the parliament and unveiling his own statue, Clinton spent 45 minutes with his 10-year-old illegitimate son, who lives with his mother in a village near newest state’s capital.

The former US President landed in Pristina International Airport at noon, while it took him more than two hours to get to the Parliament building, where more than 100 MPs were waiting to hear his speech.

The motorcade provided by the US Embassy in Pristina and the Kosovo Government, had stopped at a village on the way from airport, and the President was gone for somewhat less than an hour, a member of the security services told Gonzodiac.

“We were ordered to stop the motorcade in the village of Vragoli for no particular reason. Then we realised that President Clinton and one of his followers were gone. They got back about 50 minutes later,” said this member who preferred to remain anonymous.

Gonzodiac found out that there is a single family living in the village of Vragoli who had met President Clinton in 1999, while they were residing in a refugee camp in neighbouring Macedonia. According to villagers, Clinton had a one-night stand with Shehrije, a woman who was then in her 20ies, who got pregnant immediately. But the story had remained just a myth among villagers.

“That woman had a bastard and we never knew with whom. Her son is so not Albanian,” a villager said. “He has strange hair and blue eyes, unlike everybody else in his mother’s family,” he continued.

Villagers also mentioned that Shehrije was gone missing in 2003, which corresponds with the time when Clinton was in Kosovo to receive his Doctor Honoris Causa degree from the University of Prishtina.

Xhafer Blyta

The boy was named William Jefferson Blythe IV, but his illiterate mother registered him as Xhafer Blyta, as she couldn’t spell it correctly. Furthermore, Gonzodiac revealed that Shehrije doesn’t speak a word in English language. It remains unclear how Clinton and her got along, and so does the future of Blythe IV.

[Yes. I know. It's not April 1st. So what?]

UPDATE: See Comment from Asdren, below:  “As a young Kosovo-Albanian who has suffered the worst of this war, I consider Mr. Blair as my hero, I believe that I exist today because of him and his key decision he made on stopping the brutality during this war.”

Comment at end

1st November, 2009

Former President Bill Clinton Unveils Statue in Kosovo

Fox News – Sunday, November 01, 2009

PRISTINA, Kosovo —  Thousands of ethnic Albanians braved low temperatures and a cold wind in Kosovo’s capital Pristina to welcome former President Bill Clinton on Sunday as he attended the unveiling of an 11-foot statue of himself on a key boulevard that also bears his name.

I don’t mean in any way to discount the great works Bill Clinton did leading the NATO forces in 1999 – not at all. And I DO know that our then prime minister thanked President Clinton for providing as much as 80% of the resources for this battle in Europe’s backyard.

But, er … didn’t Tony Blair have something to do with this too? Tonibler Dajaku’s family think so

Excerpt, May 2007:

A BIG THANK YOU FROM MY HEART, MR BLAIR

Tonibler Dajaku. Named after ...

Yesterday Tony Blair declared that he will step down as a PM. Meanwhile in the village of Rakitnica, Kosova, his namesake Tonibler Dajaku is enjoying a happy childhood, which would have not been possible without Tony’s determination to human rights and bringing justice to the world. Had Tony – the PM – simply decided to stand aside and watch Milosevic’s criminal government ethnically cleanse Kosova from its native people, little Tonibler today in most likelihood, would be living in the mud and misery of a refugee camp. Like the experience of many Palestinian children grown up in such camps has shown, he would have most likely had a bitter and hateful life, prone to be thrown at the arms of international terrorism. So, for saving little Tonibler alongside a million other Albanians, from the claws of evil, Mr Tony Blair – a big THANK YOU from my heart. So much for the ridiculing from those little-brained, egotistical, western analysts that were mocking the Western intervention in Kosova as “Madeleine’s or Tony’s war” and were questioning the validity of the humanitarian motives for that intervention.

Tony Blair departs from Downing Street, June 2007

O n a lighter note, the Dajaku last name is funny – in Albanian it means ‘the beating’. It’s advantageous, for it opens up a bunch of creative opportunities in naming children, the range of which you can easily guess. The child Tonibler was born shortly after the Kosova war, and I can imagine his parents contemplating that he was going to be a celebration of Tony Blair’s beating of Milosevic. I can toast to that: for little Tonibler, to have a long, healthy and prosperous life and Tony senior to have a healthy, respectful and serene retirement. Thank you Tony, the world will miss your reasonable and articulate voice.

You know something, I think Mr Blair will be perfectly happy with those words. He doesn’t need the whistles and bells any more than he needs the money which is drawn magnetically towards him in his post-political life.  Thus, he’d give it all up to get back into active politics and become the EU’s first permanent President.  That’s clear and undeniable.

But  perhaps the Kosovars have a statue ready for Our Man too. In fact, perhaps there will even be a Nobel Peace Prize certificate tucked under the statue’s arm. That’s probably where it’s been all this time, while some of us have been blaming the postal services! After 10 years hard work to settle Northern Ireland’s decades of  ‘Troubles’, Blair completed that task in May 2007, a month before he ceased to be prime minister.

His reward?  It’s in the post.

THE TROUBLE WITH AWARDING NOBEL PRIZES EARLY …

The case of a Nobel peace prize split in 1998 for two Northern Ireland politicians might have some lessons for us all. Considering who DOES get a Nobel prize for doing … well … nothing, am I wrong to conclude that for Tony Blair to receive due thanks for his work for peace he has to leap far higher hurdles than do others?

Such as David Trimble and John Hume, deserved Nobel laureates both no doubt, were part of the process towards the settlement but hardly essential. Their Nobel prizes were issued in 1998, reflecting their support for the Belfast Agreement put together under Blair, Aherne, George Mitchell and others. But within a few years both Trimble’s and Hume’s parties were eclipsed by Ian Paisley’s DUP and Gerry Adams’ Sinn Fein. The DUP’s & Sinn Fein’s  representatives now sit in devolved government in Belfast – the government successfully devolved by Tony Blair with the determined help of Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. Neither of these two leaders have received a Nobel peace prize.

Blair became the first British PM to address the Irish parliament in its 80 years existence.

So many “firsts” for Tony Blair; such scant recognition.

Back to the Clinton statue.

This Nobel award decision/lack of recognition for Blair’s efforts does bother me a lot more than President Clinton’s statue.  I think Mr Clinton too deserves a lot more than he has yet received from international organisations; as does President GW Bush. But since Northern Ireland is generally considered Blair’s greatest success, why no Nobel prize?

More from Fox news report:

‘Clinton is celebrated as a hero by Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian majority for launching NATO’s bombing campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999 that stopped the brutal Serb forces’ crackdown on independence-seeking ethnic Albanians.

This is his first visit to Kosovo since it declared independence from Serbia last year.

Many waved American, Albanian and Kosovo flags and chanted “USA!” as the former president climbed on top of a podium with his poster in the background reading “Kosovo honors a hero.”

Some peeked out of balconies and leaned on window sills to get a better view of Clinton from their apartment blocks.

To thunderous applause Clinton waved to the crowd as the red cover was pulled off from the statue.

The statue is placed on top of a white-tiled base, in the middle of a tiny square, surrounded by communist-era buildings.

“I never expected that anywhere, someone would make such a big statue of me,” Clinton said of the gold-sprayed statue weighing a ton.

He also addressed Kosovo’s 120-seat assembly, encouraging them to forgive and move on from the violence of the past.

The statue portrays Clinton with his left arm raised and holding a portfolio bearing his name and the date when NATO started bombing Yugoslavia, on March 24, 1999.

An estimated 10,000 ethnic Albanians were killed during the Kosovo crackdown and about 800,000 were forced out of their homes. They returned home after NATO-led peacekeepers moved in following 78 days of bombing.

Leta Krasniqi, an ethnic Albanian, said the statue was the best way to express the ethnic Albanians’ gratitude for Clinton’s role in making Kosovo a state.

“This is a big day,” Krasniqi, 25 said. “I live nearby and I’m really excited that I will be able to see the statue of such a big friend of ours every day.”

Clinton last visited Kosovo in 2003 when he received an honorary university degree. His first visit was in 1999 — months after some 6,000 U.S. troops were deployed in the NATO-led peacekeeping mission here.

Some 1,000 American soldiers are still based in Kosovo as part of NATO’s 14,000-strong peacekeeping force.

Police in Kosovo upped security measures ahead of Bill Clinton’s arrival by adding deploying more traffic police and special police.

NATO officials said the peacekeepers were also on alert, although no additional security measures were taken.’

BBC, July 30th 1999: Tony Blair the Only International Leader Whose Standing was Enhanced by Kosovo War

Kosovo was never going to be to Tony Blair what the Falklands war was to Margaret Thatcher.

But, as he visits Sarajevo to discuss the future of the region, the prime minister will stand alone as the only international leader whose standing was enhanced by the war.

He was the only leader not to lose his nerve during the conflict and benefited from a “Kosovo factor” as a result.

Before the conflict with Argentina, Mrs Thatcher was the most unpopular prime minister of the century. When Nato started bombing Serbia, Tony Blair was still riding historically high in the opinion polls.

There was also a relatively simple issue at stake in the Falklands – British territory had been invaded by a foreign power.

In Kosovo, Nato was interfering in the affairs of a sovereign state.

And the aim of the Falklands conflict was also pretty straightforward, to kick the invaders out of the islands. The objectives in the war with Belgrade were never crystal clear and changed many times.

Lady Thatcher benefited hugely from the war and the “Falklands factor” entered the history books as she was swept back into power at the next election on the back of it.

No cries of ‘rejoice’

When Tony Blair visits the Balkans to survey the wreckage left in the wake of the war with Slobodan Milosevic and the attempts to hold the peace together, there will be no Thatcherite cries of “rejoice.”

The Nato alliance appeared fragile at points when it hit the wrong targets

But that is not to say the prime minister has not benefited politically from the stand he took against Belgrade.

His determination to see it through despite growing attacks from all sides, transformed him from a massively successful national leader into a serious player on the world stage.

He was the only leader to never waver over the conflict, even though that saw him branded variously as naive, ignorant or confused.

At one point, the cross-party consensus behind the action even appeared to be crumbling in the wake of some tragic Nato bombing mistakes.

But Milosevic’s surrender finally allowed Mr Blair an “I told you so” smile – even though he was far too canny ever to suggest such a thing himself.

He still faces major criticisms for his commitment to the action and it will long be debated whether or not Britain and Nato should ever have got involved in a domestic conflict where yesterday’s angels rapidly turn into today’s devils.

And it still remains to be seen whether, once the dust has settled, things will be any better in the region in future.

But, for the time being at least, Tony Blair has been boosted by the war both at home and internationally.

• Wikipedia – 1999 NATO bombing
• BBC, April 22nd 1999 – Tony Blair Kosovo Crusader

• Interview with Tony Blair, Kosovo
• Frontline War in Europe – Comprehensive reports on Kosovo

Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci is the winner of this year’s special edition of Nobel Prize for Media Management, the Nobel Committee announced on Friday.

The decision comes as second major surprise from the Norwegian Committee, after they’ve awarded US President Barack Obama with the Nobel Peace Prize, earlier this month.

In an extraordinary press release, the Committee said it “decided to break the rules of procedure” and announced Mr Thaci as Nobel laureate for this special prize, three weeks after the normal prizes were awarded, due to his extraordinary achievements.

A member of the Committee, who preferred to remain anonymous, told Gonzodiac that it was the ongoing election campaign in Kosovo that catalysed this decision.

“We have considered to create a new prize for media management and we have considered Mr Thaci for the first laureate in this prize since early this year,” said this member.

He praised Thaci’s commitment in overall media management in Kosovo, claiming that the prime minister is also acting as General Director of the public Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK) and as editor-in-chief in at least three newspapers in the country.

“This man’s capacities are astonishing,” said this member of the Committee.

Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci

Kosovo’s government could not comment on the decision. A government official said they haven’t received the original confirmation from Norway yet. He added that the news was not a surprise.
Hashim Thaci, the former leader of the guerrilla Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), is heading Kosovo’s government since late 2007. Leading the government of the youngest country in the world was not enough for the young man from Buroja. Since he took the office, he was truly engaged in many non-governmental activities.

He is especially known for his media management skills, media interference and restrictions. His engagement in RTK has been rated as controversial, as he was alone directing, producing, editing and airing most of the news. In three daily newspapers, Infopress, Tribuna Shqiptare and Express, he is the editor-in-chief, while in many other media outlets, serves as editor or consultant.

Mr Thaci also chairs most of the Parliamentary Committees in Kosovo’s Parliament, manages regulatory authorities and all level of judiciary, while his she only black hole in his career is his attempt to take over the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) in June 2009.

Hashim Thaci is also known as a promoter of philanthropy by spending taxpayers’ money on tractors and other gifts for many poor families in Kosovo.

(Gonzodiac team wants to thank Mr Koka for providing insights regarding this story. The Nobel Prize Committee thanks Mr Koka too, for constant support and inspiration.)

January 24, 2010

Kosovo has initiated a military siege against neighbouring Macedonia on Sunday morning, in what seems to be an invading attack that will once again shake the puzzle of Balkan countries.

Troops of the recently formed quasi-army of the newest state in the world, the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) have been marching towards Macedonian capital Skopje, using light weapons in the attack which authorities in Pristina have described as “necessary” and “just”.

The two countries have failed to establish diplomatic relations ever since Macedonia recognised Kosovo’s independence in late 2008. The key reasons that led to the attack, according to analysts, are permanent borderline problems between two countries and recent fuss over an encyclopaedia published by Macedonian Academy of Sciences, which labels Albanians as “savages” and “war criminals”.

In addition, the book describes Albanians as “settlers” who had arrived in western Macedonia in the 16th century.
Macedonian authorities failed to agree on withdrawal of the publication, due to, as they say, their national pride.

Kosovo’s President Fatmir Sejdiu, who was the one to make the final call for the state of war, said he did warn his Macedonian counterpart of the risk of war, in case authorities wouldn’t withdraw the publication and formally and publicly apologize to the Albanian nation.

“I told President Ivanov that our history and our Illyrian background are Alpha and Omega for Kosovo’s future,” Sejdiu said in an interview.

“I guess he didn’t believe me… I mean, come on, the guy didn’t even invite me in his innaguaration ceremony,” he added.

Justifying this attack, Sejdiu said that Kosovo had to do something in order to liberate the people of Macedonia from the sadist government that has ruined their lives, and guarantee them peace and security.

Fehmi Mujota, KSF minister, said his troops were already prepared, and that the order given by the head of state, President Fatmir Sejdiu to attack the neighbouring country, was not a surprise.

“I can confirm that so far, we have successfully occupied Skopje, with the help of Macedonia’s Albanian guerrilla that was operating there,” said Mujota.

Ethnic Albanians that consist some 25% of Macedonia’s population have joined the fight, helping their Kosovar allies in this invasion.

One KSF officer from the first lines of the front, told Gonzodiac that the strategy of Kosovar troops is to skip the Western Macedonia, as authorities there were already overthrown by local Albanians whoa re assisted by neighbouring Albania.

“We’re in Skopje. It was easy so far. We have faced no resistance. There’s no living soul in this country and we have only fired two bullets to far to kill some stray dogs.’ this officer who preferred to remain anonymous said.

Most of the population of Macedonia have been leaving the country in the last three weeks, following the visa liberalisation act, which entered into force as from January 1, and makes them possible to travel without visas to the EU countries.

Gonzodiac sources claim that Macedonia’s President Ivanov is not in the country either. The President has been controlling the government, ever since the former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski resigned from this position to escape to the neighbouring Greece, where he is occupied with a 20 million euro investment project to build the highest statue ever of Alexander the Great.

On the other hand, the Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha said that his country is not directly involved in this war, but admitted that it is supporting the Kosovo troops.

“We have done our part when we vetoed Macedonia out in the NATO summit,” Berisha said. “However, we cannot see our Kosovars brothers struggling with those old Albanian-made AK-47, so yes, we are providing them weapons and ammunition,” he added.

While KSF forces are marching towards southern Macedonia, it remains unclear, as how will this conflict end. Analysts warn that after invading Macedonia, Kosovo may become the next major destabilizing force in the Balkans.

At about 2 in the morning I finally managed to find and book a hotel for Podgorica, I had to ring them as it said there was no availability online.

It costs €55 (and that’s the cheapest in town) which is a bit annoying as that’s not far off a week’s worth of hostels but I didn’t really have any other choice. There’s only one hostel there as I’ve mentioned earlier and that has an 11pm curfew (one of many daft rules they implement) which is no good to me when my bus won’t get in until well after midnight.

At least the hotel is right near the bus station apparently, so I’m not going to have to faff about with directions or taxis.

Podgorica isn’t actually supposed to be that good but I like to see a country’s capital city and I don’t think I could have got to Kotor (near the Montenegro coast line) direct from here anyway. I’m looking forward to Kotor, it should be a chance to relax after what’s been quite a hectic few weeks.

Bloody hell, how annoying. I just had to hand over €4 (which lets face it, is pretty much 4 quid these days) to ‘The Professor’ at checkout as I’d borrowed one of the city guides and left it in the bus station while rushing about yesterday. It’s only a crappy small magazine, one that in most cities would be free, so I thought he was trying it on at first (and maybe he was and did get them free or cheap, I can’t have seen him forking out €80 for 20 as he said) but it does say in tiny letters on the front €4. This is fastly turning in to an expensive week.

I just stopped for a lunch time pint at a place where I saw there was a wireless network and before ordering I asked if it was their’s and the barman confirmed it. Then after I’ve got the pint of Peja they give me the password which is wrong and it transpires they don’t know the right one, great. I wanted to stock up on my podcasts for my imminent 7 hour bus journey. I guess I’ll just have to find another pub, oh the hardship.

I know I’ve not said much about Pristina as there isn’t really much to say, it’s not done anything for me. To be fair it is a city in what is in effect a new country which is changing fairly rapidly so in another 5 years who knows what it will be like.

The only thing I can think to mention is that Bill Clinton appears to be pretty big over here, streets and shops named after him and bill-boards (geddit?) with his swede plastered on. The Kosovan government even subsidises the cost of cigars. I presume all of this is because he was the American commander-in-chief when NATO bombed Serbia to get them off Kosovo’s back.

The mozsters got me again (8 bites is the count) as I forgot to apply the repellent last night, blighters to the end they are.

I just had a very early tea at XIX only 90 minutes after my lunch as I had to fit it in before my bus ride. It was my first ‘Full English’ in 2 months and it was ruddy gorge’.

Crikey, I’m dying for a haircut but with still the best part of 2 months to go I’m likely to look like Pat Sharp on my return.

On the bus now, goodo. I just got a bottle of water and a bag of crisps before embarking and the shopkeeper said to me “Where you from?”, “Manchester” was my obvious reply. “Wayne Rooney!”. “No, Carlos Tevez”. “Ah, Manchester City”. That’s more like it fella.

Oh boy this is going to be a long journey. They’ve just switched the ‘entertainment’ on. Some DVD of people (Albanians I think) singing and dancing to that awful tuneless Turkish sort of music. It’s penetrating and therefore ruining my Mayo and Kermode (though he’s not on it this week as he has swiney) weekly film reviews podcast.

I’d honestly rather listen to drum ‘n bass than this, it’s the most horrific sort of music on the planet and every ruddy song is exactly the same. I could make a killing (pun intended) selling cyanide capsules to fellow passengers.

I’m going to have to switch to something louder to drown out this assault on the ears out. Cue my thoughts on Beirut’s ‘March of the Zapotec and Realpeople Holland’. Well it’s almost a companion piece to their first album ‘The Gulag Orkestar’ with the powerful horn section and graceful synths present again. I really like it but it’s not quite at the standard of Gulag (granted, a very high standard that was), I’ll need to download the album imbetween now.

Over 2 and a half hours in and that stuff on the box is still going, they’ve turned it down a fair bit now though so I can bare it. Oddly, currently on screen is a tall and skinny Albanian man in a suit who is a great lookey likey for Matthew Kelly.

On the way out of Kosovo the customs man who boarded the bus was looking for my inbound stamp, I knew I should have got one when coming from Macedonia. Luckily he just gave it me back and that was that.

Very strangely there was no Montenegro customs at all, that’s a new one on me. Another stamp goes begging. I’m telling ya, it’s an international conspiracy to deprive me of the travelling badges of honour that are righly mine.

Actually I take it back, there is a Montenegro customs, but it’s a good 5 miles I reckon from the Kosovan border. That’s a new one on me. Got a stamp though, whoo!

They’ve turned the sound back up. Boo.

Well it’s gone over 7 hours and still no Podgorica. I don’t think it’s helped that the driver has stopped for ages loads. I hope we get there soon, I’m dying to collapse in my bed. The good thing is that my hotel is supposed to be 200 metres from the station.

Also, I’ve just yawned and my ears have popped. That’s made the travesty of sound even louder. Not pleased.

Another bleedin’ stop. The driver has the bladder of an infant guinea pig. Onwards I say, onwards!

This is ridiculous. This numpty has more breaks than a Spanish builder, they last ages and ages too. I’m not sure what I hate him more for, his music taste or his laziness. Nearly half 1 in the morning, I’m not going to get very long for my €55.

I’m finally there readers, thank Jehova.

The hotel is really nice, 10% off with my ISIC too which will save me a fiver. Night.

I caught the 2nd half of ‘A History of Violence’ last night. I remember seeing it at the pictures and thinking it possibly the worst film ever made. My opinion hasn’t changed. How Mark Kermode (who is a hero of mine!) can rate it I’ll never know.

There are indeed some very strange channels on this cable setup. One called 21 Junior just has weird and awful Eastern European songs sung and danced to by little brat kids 24/7. It’s very bizarre and a bit disturbing. Oh for Sky Sports News.

This morning I had a mini-adventure to find an ATM so I could pay for another night in this guesthouse. Apparently the nearest one is just 10 minutes up the hill. Well it’s right back down the other side again and the road splits numerous times without a clear obvious route to take, I got there in the end though and at least I now have an idea of the route to town. I’m hoping there will be some sort of travel agents there to get my next bus ticket rather than having to go on a right mission to the central (or not so central) bus station.

To make up for rising accommodation and transport costs I picked up some supplies while I was out. For €4.40 I got 2 croissants, a carton of apple juice, pasta, pasta sauce, some meat for the pasta and pepper. That’s my next 4 meals taken care of, not bad eh.

I got back to the hostel and paid ‘The Professor’ the dosh for the room no probs. The Professor is what the fella who runs the place calls himself, he’s a bit of an old character and delighted in telling me that he studied in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne between 1971-1975.

‘Solaris’ has just come on telly now and I should really be getting out and hunting for a bus ticket but I’ve never seen it and it’s only 90 minutes so it has to be done, i don’t half miss my films. Mini review of sorts here as always.

I see on the news that Bazza O has won the Nobel Peace Prize. Ridiculous if you ask me, what has he actually achieved yet? I hope he goes onto do something that warrants such an award but all he has done so far is talk (very well I might add), all politicians can do that.

In the end I did have to go to the main station to get my ticket. I walked into town and had a look about but couldn’t find any travel agents that would sell tickets. So then I got a taxi to the station at a pre-arranged (I always do this as so many of the taxi drivers in these parts try it on) price of 3 Euros and tried to pay attention to the route so I could walk it back (which worked a bit, kind of, well I had to go back on myself a couple of times but it was dark by this time so that didn’t help!). I got the ticket and it was 16 Euros leaving tomorrow at 17:45 and taking about 7 hours.

So as I’m not going to be getting the bus to Montenegro in the morning at I thought (there is one but it’s at 7 so I’d have to be up at 5ish and I’ve not had much sleep lately as it is) I’ll have most of the day to have another look round Pristina. I’ve not been very impressed so far but granted I’ve not explored that much yet. What has been doing my head in is the roads here, cars are always parked on the pavements so you have to walk in the road a lot constantly avoiding traffic and often having to crisscross. Red lights and green men don’t seem to mean much in these parts either. The ying to that yang is I’m liking using the € again.

The fact that I’m here all day tomorrow also meant I could eat out this eve and use my remaining supplies for lunch before I leave the guesthouse. I found a cheap little place called Pizziera Rona. 3.50 for a decent pizza and a bottle of the local pilsner, Peja (very nice).

I’ve listened to another couple of albums today offline with Spotify (will ya shut up already about that!). ‘200 Million Thousand’ by Black Lips was first up. It’s very much in the same garage-rock vein as their previous outing, ‘Good Bad Not Evil’ and it’s reasonable enough but the killer tunes that it’s predecessor had just aren’t there this time round, so ultimately it’s a disappointment for me. The other album was ‘Dropping the Writ’ by Cass McCombs. It’s appealing to me more with every listen so far, reminding me of Elliott Smith in a lot of ways. Goodie gumdrops is the initial verdict.

Another film was also somehow squeezed in earlier, ‘Semi-Pro’ with Will Ferrell. My thoughts are in the same place as my ‘Solaris’ ones. I will say that Will Ferrell could make me laugh reading the dictionary though, genius that fella.

I’m currently sat trying to sort a hotel for Podgorica for when I arrive at about 1 in the morning tomorrow night (that’s a paradox right there that is), is a ball ache and taking ages (to do it cheaply anyway). I’ve just booked 2 nights at a nice looking hostel for Kotor afterwards though. It’s not very far from Podgorica so it should be pretty easy to get to, that’s what I’m hoping anyway.

Today’s best search ‘buy a jar of gypsy tears’. Maybe I should start floggin’ them on here?

Somedays I end up eating very little and some quite the opposite. Today was the latter.

I started with 2 full boiled eggs while waiting for my 4 slices of bread to toast, 2 of which I put butter on and the other 2 chocolate spread. Yum. More grub to follow later.

Before brekkie I was speaking to an interesting Norwegian bloke who’d very much been travelling off the beaten track. He’d followed up a a year in Shanghai by making his way home in a rather indirect fashion, I’m talking about all the Stans for starters. You know, Kazak, Tajik, Uzbek, Turkmen etc. Impressive.

I didn’t get very long at all to see Skopje today as I didn’t leave the hostel until well into the afternoon with trying to sort stuff out for the next leg. I’ve got a hostel (of sorts, which is unlikely to have WiFi so it may be a while before I can actually post this) for tonight in Pristina but beyond that my plans are a bit sketchy.

I’ve been unable to figure out online, what buses run from Pristina to Podgorica in Montenegro and also to find a hostel there. Hopefully there will be some info at the station tonight. There is actually one hostel but it looks bloody awful and it’s relatively expensive for it too. I eventually had to give up on the planning as there was a power cut, that kind of took the matter out of my hands. I’ll have to try and get net access in Pristina somewhere and sort out a cheap hotel if I can.

Whenever I’m on the net I tend to multi-task a lot to stop boredom setting in. So while trying to figure out my travel logistics I also signed up to Spotify’s premium service. Warning, you may want to skip the next 4 paragraphs if this sort of stuff doesn’t appeal to you in the least.

When this first came out a month or so back (or actually that’s when the iPhone app came out but that’s the bit that makes the premium service useful to me in my current circumstances) I initially thought why on earth would I want to pay a tenner a month for music that I won’t actually own. But when you look at it closer, what you get for the price of a pint a week is pretty damn fan dabby.

You can listen online to pretty much anything you want without any advertising interruptions or any other obstructions. But the really cool bit is that you can also download the music to play it offline as much as you want (as long as you maintain your subscription obviously) too and you can do all this directly on the iPhone (or a PC).

For example, earlier I downloaded some albums I had on my ‘to be purchased on the cheap via eBay’ list and I’ll listen to them later on the bus without any internet access. The very first 5 albums I searched for were all available and as the artists were Adem, Beirut, Black Lips, Cass McCombs, Crystal Stilts and Cymbals Eat Guitars they aren’t exactly mainstream.

It’s pretty impressive stuff and means I’ll get to listen to a huge amount more of music I wouldn’t have had access to before. I know you can listen to the tunes online via the free version of Spotify anyway (and I did used to back in my working days) but the offline feature together with the iPhone is just so liberating and perfect for travelling too. 10 quid well spent.

Anyway, Skopje. When i got out in the end I made my way across the River Vardar (over a bridge like, I didn’t swim it) to the old town and I liked it a lot. There’s lots of very narrow old rustic streets and it’s not touristy at all. It does get a bit skanky towards the back where there is a massive Market though.

I got a touch lost on the way back as it’s a right labyrinth. Luckily I found some high ground to spot some landmarks (like this) to get my bearings again.

After that I had a look round the fortress which isn’t particularly impressive but it’s worth a gander if you’re about anyway and it gives decent views of the city.

Ohh oh, here comes another Spotify paragraph, I’m not participating in an affiliate program honest. While wandering around I listened to all of ‘Takes’ by Adem and I don’t know how it made my list in the first place, it’s wishy washy nonsense and incredibly dull. Amazingly the songs are all covers. A real shame as I loved ‘Homesongs‘. So Spotify has probably saved me a fiver or so already as that’s what I’d have eventually paid for the album on eBay. Splendid. The only downside so far is that you have to run it interactively so you can’t do anything else on the phone (like compose stupidly long blog posts) whilst listening, but this is a restriction Apple apply to all 3rd party applications anyway.

Food was needed by this time and a little bistro called Trend looked decent and reasonably priced. I had the Pesto Genovese and it was okay, a little bit bland though. On the plus side the portion was rather large and I liked how they put Parmesan around the edge of the deep bowl rather than all over the pasta. Not bad really for 3 and a half €.

Then it was back to the hostel for a quick recharge of batteries (both the IPhone’s and my own) before making my way to the bus station.

My last meal was the unhealthiest of the lot. After a bit of messing about I ascertained that I didn’t need to pay to put my bag in the bus luggage hold so this left me with 130 local currency to get rid of with 7 minutes before the bus departed. I went back into the depot and spotted a fast food place doing burger, chips and a can for exactly 130, well that’s a sign isn’t it. The chips were rank but the burger was surprisingly tender.

This journey takes between 2 and 3 hours I think and the bus has plenty of leg room so it will likely go quickly.

Skopje is near the Macedonia/Kosovo border so it wasn’t long before the customs malarkey, it feels like I do this every day at the moment. The bad news is I didn’t get a stamp again and I don’t know why, man.

I’m in Pristina now and I think I’ll have to get a taxi as I’m in the middle of nowhere, it’s getting late and there’s no walking directions anyway.

The hostel said it should cost €3 and he wanted €8, I got him down to €5 by just walking away when he wasn’t having it, though I’m not sure where I was walking to as there were no other taxis about!

As expected, this gaff is much more a guesthouse (I suppose the clue is in the name) than a hostel. It’s okay though, for 15 Euros I’ve got my own room with cable TV (with loads of channels in English) and a fridge.

I’m enjoying just veging in front of the box, after so long travelling I could lie here for days. I watched a little bit of the World Cheer-leading Championships on Eurosport 2 and it’s the cheesiest thing I’ve ever seen, there’s even some blokes doing it, the gymnastics levels are pretty impressive though. Now I’m watching some rubbish Bruce Willis flick where he’s an army geezer in Africa. It’s cheesier than the cheer-leading stuff.

I may well have to stay another night here as it was all closed up at the bus depot when I got there tonight and by the time I get there again tomorrow (having also sorted a hotel) my bus may have left or at the least I won’t have time to see this city.

بطاقة الطالب is the most unusual search of the day. WTF?

Okay, I suppose I’d better reign this one in then. Time for tubby bye bye.

To enter Malaysia, visitors must have a national passport or other internationally recognized travel documents with a validity period of at least six months beyond the length of stay in Malaysia. All passports and travel documents must be endorsed for travelling in Malaysia.

Most visitors, either on business or pleasure trips, do not require visas to enter Malaysia but this really depends on how long you will be in the country. Please refer to the following information on visa requirements to see if you will really need a visa.

Note: All transit visitors who fly into Malaysia are eligible for a visa free visit, as long as the period does not exceed 72 hours. Regulations may change from time to time; please check with the nearest Malaysian Embassy before you start on your trip.

Visa Exemptions
Citizens of the following do not need a visa to enter Malaysia:

Commonwealth countries, with the exception of those from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan
British Protected Persons
Republic of Ireland
Switzerland, Netherlands, San Marino and Lichtenstein

Three Months Visa Free Visit
Citizens of the following countries are eligible to visit Malaysia for three months without a visa:

Albania Slovakia Iceland Morocco Sweden
Austria Denmark Italy Norway Saudi Arabia
Algeria Egypt Japan Oman Turkey
Argentina Finland Jordan Qatar Tunisia
Bahrain France Kuwait Spain UAE
Belgium Germany Luxembourg South Korea USA
Czech Republic Hungary Lebanon Bosnia Yemen

One Month Visa Free Visit
Citizens of ASEAN countries are permitted to stay in Malaysia for one month without a visa.

14 Days Visa Free Visit
Citizens of the following countries are eligible for a 14-day visa free visit to Malaysia:

Afghanistan Iran Iraq Libya Syria

7 Days Visa Free Visit
Citizens of the following countries are eligible for a 7-day visa free stay:

Armenia Estonia Latvia Russia
Azerbaijian Georgia Lithuania Tajikistan
Republic of Belarus Kazakhstan Moldavia Ukraine
Bulgaria Kirghizstan Romania Uzbekistan

Some Diplomatic Missions in KL

Australian High Commission
6 Jalan Yap Kwan Seng 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21465555
Fax: 603-241 5773
Email: consular@australia.org.my

British High Commission
185 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21482122
Fax: 603-244 7766

Canadian High Commission
7th Floor, Plaza OSK 172 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21622362
Fax: 603-2718 3376

Embassy of the People’s Republic of China
229 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21441966
Fax: 603-241 3943

Embassy of the Republic of France
195 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21620671
Fax: 603-248 9117

Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany
3 Jalan U Thant 55000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21751666
Fax: 603-241 3943
Email: contact@german-embassy.org.my

High Commission of India
2 Jalan Taman Duta Off Jalan Duta 50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-20933510
Fax: 603-253 3507

Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia
233 Jalan Tun Razak 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21452011
Fax: 603-241 7908

Embassy of the Republic of Italy
99 Jalan U Thant 55000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-4526 5122 or 603-4256 5228
Fax: 603-4257 3199

Embassy of Japan
11 Pesiaran Stonor Off Jalan Tun Razak 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-2142 7044
Fax: 603-267 2314

Embassy of Jordan
2 Jalan Kedondong Off Jalan Ampang Hilir 55000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-4252 1268
Fax: 603-452 8610

Embassy of the State of Kuwait
229 Jalan Tun Razak 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-2141 0033
Fax: 603-242 6126

New Zealand High Commission
21st Floor Menara IMC 8 Jalan Tun Razak 50250 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-20782533
Fax: 603-238 5644

Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia
7 Jalan Kedondong Off Ampang Hilir 55000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-42563089
Fax: 603-457 8751

Singapore High Commission
209 Jalan Tun Razak 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-2161 6277
Fax: 603-261 6343
Email: shckl@pd.jaring.my

Royal Thai Embassy
206 Jalan Ampang 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-2148 8222
Fax: 603-248 6527

Embassy of the United Arab Emirates
12 Jalan Keranji 2 Off Jalan Kedondong 55000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-4253 5221
Fax: 603-241 3943

Embassy of the United States of America
376 Jalan Tun Razak 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-21685000
Fax: 603-242 2207

Malaysian Embassies and High Commissioner around the world

Embassy of Malaysia (Brussels, Belgium)
Contact: H.E. Dato Mohammad Kamal Yan Yahya
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 414A, Avenue de Tervuren 1150
Brussels BELGIUM
Tel: (322) 776 0340
Fax: (322) 7625049
Email: mwbrusel@euronet.be

Embassy of Malaysia (Paris, France)
Contact: H.E. Dato Che Hamidah Mohd Yusoff
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 2, Bis Rue Benouville 75116
Paris FRANCE
Tel: 331–45-53-11-85
Fax: 331-47-27-34-60
Email: mwparis@wanadoo.fr

Embassy of Malaysia (Tripoli, Peoples Libya Arab Jamahiriya)
Contact: H.E. Dato Zulkifli Yaacob
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 32, Trovato Partition Kilometer 6, Gargaresh P.O.Box 6309 Hai Andalus Tripoli, GREAT SOCIALIST PEOPLES LIBYA ARAB JAMAHIRIYA
Tel: (218 21) 483 0854
Fax: (218 21) 483 1496
Email: mwtripoli@lttnet.net

Embassy of Malaysia (Algiers)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Badruddin Abdul Rahman
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Lot. 34, 35 & 36, Chemin Al Bakri (ex Macklay) Ben Aknoun, 16033 Algiers ALGERIA
Tel: 213-21-912693 / 913693 / 911869
Fax: 213-21-912785
Email: mwalger@djazair-connect.com

Embassy of Malaysia (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Contact: H.E. Dato’ Mohd. Roze@Radzi bin Abdul Rahman
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Villanueva 1040, (1426) Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA
Tel: 54-11-4776-0504 / 4776-2553 / 4777-8420
Fax: 54-11-4776-0604
Email: mwbaires@ciudad.com.ar

Embassy of Malaysia (Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzegovina)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Ramlan bin Ibrahim
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No.6 Trnovska,
71000 Sarajevo Bosnia and Herzegovina BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA
Tel: 387-33-201578
Fax: 387-33-667713
Email: mwsrjevo@bih.net.ba

Embassy of Malaysia (Brasilia, Federative of Republic of Brazil)
Contact: H.E. Dato Ibrahim Mustapha
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia SHIS QI 05,
Chacara 62 70477-900, Lago Sul 55, Brasilia, BRAZIL DF
Tel: 55-61-248-5008 / 248-6215
Fax: 55-61-248-6307
Email: mwbrasilia@persocom.com.br

Embassy of Malaysia (Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia)
Contact: H.E. Adnan Othman
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No.5, Street 242, Sangkat Chaktomouk,
Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA
Tel: (85523) 216176 / 177
Fax: 85523-216004
Email: mwppenh@online.com.kh

Embassy of Malaysia (Santiago, Chile)
Contact: H.E. Abdullah Faiz Mohd Zain
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Edificio de Malasia,
Av. Tajamar 183, Piso 10 & 11 Casilla 8, Correo 35, Las Condes, Santiago CHILE
Tel: 562-233-6698
Fax: 562- 234-3853

Embassy of Malaysia (Havana, Cuba)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Zainol Abidin Omar
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 5th Avenue and 68th Street,
Miramar, Playa, Havana CUBA
Tel: 00-53-7-204-8883 / 84
Fax: 00-53-7-204-6888
Email: mwhavana@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Berlin, Federal Republic of Germany)
Contact: H.E. Dato Md. Kamal Ismaun
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Klingelhofer Strasse 6 D-10785 Berlin
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY Germany
Tel: +49-30-88-57-49-0
Fax: +49-30-88-57-49-5
Email: mwberlin@malemb.de

Embassy of Malaysia (Conakry, Guinea)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Othman Samin
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Quartier Mafanco Coleah Corniche Sud,
B.P 5460 Conakry, REPUBLIQUE DE GUINEE
Tel: 224-46-76-54
Fax: 224-45-14-03
Email: mwcnakry@sotelgui.net.gn

Embassy of Malaysia (Budapest, Republic of Hungary)
Contact: H.E. Dato Wan Yusof Embong
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Pasareti ut.
29 1026 Budapest REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY
Tel: 361-488-08-10
Fax: 361-488-08-24
Email: mwbdpest@axelero.hu

Embassy of Malaysia (Jakarta, Republic of Indonesia)
Contact: H.E. Dato Zainal Abidin Mahamad Zain
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said,
Kav. X/6, No.1-3 Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan 12950 REPUB OF INDONESIA
Tel: 62-21-522-49-47
Fax: 62-21-522-49-74
Email: mwjkarta@indosat.net.id

Embassy of Malaysia (Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Contact: H.E. Dato Syed Munshe Afdzaruddin
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia
No.6, Shahid Akhgari Street Fereshteh Avenue Elahiyeh,Tehran
P.O Box 868 ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Tel: 98-21-201-161 / 0016
Fax: 98-21-201-0477
Email: mwtehran@parsonline.com

Embassy of Malaysia (Rome, Republic of Italy)
Contact: H.E. Dato Lily Zachariah
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Via Nomentana
297 00162 Rome REPUBLIC OF ITALY
Tel: +39- 06-841-5764 / 841-7026 / 841-1339
Fax: +39-06-855-5040
Email: mw.rome@flashnet.it

Embassy of Malaysia (Tokyo , Japan)
Contact: H.E. Dato Marzuki Mohammad Noor
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 20-16,
Nanpeidai-Cho Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0036 JAPAN
Tel: 03-3476-3840
Fax: 03-3476-4971
Email: maltokyo@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Amman, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan)
Contact: H.E. Dato Syeed Sultan Seni Pakir
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Lot. 701, Tayser Na’na’ah Street,
Off Umaweyyen Street,Abdoun, P.O.Box 5351 Amman 11183 Amman HASHEMITE KINGDOM OF JORDAN
Tel: 962-6-5902400 (4 lines)
Fax: 962-6-5934343
Email: mwamman@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Almaty, Republic of Kazakhtan)
Contact: H.E. Dato Than Tai Hing
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No.66 Kaldayakov Street
050100 Almaty REPUBLIC OF KAZAKSTAN
Tel: 7-3272-9396-40 / 41 / 42 / 44
Fax: 7-3272-9396-45

Embassy of Malaysia (Beijing, Peoples Republic of China)
Contact: H.E. Dato Syed Norulzaman Syed Kamarulzaman
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No.2, Liang Ma Qiao Bei Jie,
Chaoyang District Sanlitun, 100600 Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaChina
Tel: (8610) 65322531/2/3
Fax: (8610) 6532 5032
Email: mwbjing@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Kuwait)
Contact: H.E. Husni Zai Yaacob
Designation: Ambassador of Malaysia
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Plot 5, Istiqlal Street, Area 5,
Diplometic Enclave, Daiya, Kuwait City KUWAIT
Tel: 965-2550-394 / 395 / 396
Fax: 965-2550-384
Email: malkuwait@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Vientiane, Laos Peoples Democratic Republic)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Ahmad Rashidi bin Hazizi
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Route That Luang Quartier Pholxay
P.O Box 789, Vientiane LAOS PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC
Tel: 856-21-414-205 / 206
Fax: 856-21-414-201
Email: mwvntian@laopdr.com

Embassy of Malaysia (Mexico City, Mexico)
Contact: H.E. Dato Shamsuddin Abdullah
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia
Calderon de la Barca 215 Delegacion Miguel Hidalgo (Polanco)
11550 Mexico D.F. MEXICO
Tel: 5255-5254-1118 , 5255-5254-1120
Fax: 5255-5254-1295
Email: mwmexico@infosel.net.mx

Embassy of Malaysia (Kingdom of Morocco)
Contact: H.E. Datuk Haji Mohd. Nor bin Hj. Atan
Designation: Ambassador of Malaysia
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No. 17 Avenue Bir Kacem Soussi-Rabat,
Kingdom Of MoroccoMorocco
Tel: (212-37) 658324/ 658355
Fax: (212-37) 658363
Email: mwrabat@maghrebnet.net.ma

Embassy of Malaysia (Yangon, The Socialist Republic of The Union of Myanmar)
Contact: H.E. Shaharuddin Md Som
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 882, Diplomatic Quarters Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road,
Yangoon THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF THE UNION OF MYANMAR
Tel: 0951-220-248 / 220-249 / 220-251
Fax: 0951-221-840
Email: mwkyangon@mweb.com.na

Embassy of Malaysia (Muscat, Sultanate of Oman)
Contact: H.E. Saipul Anuar b. Abd. Muin
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Villa No. 1611,
Way No. 3019 Shanti Al-Qurum PO Box 3939 Ruwi Post Code 112,
Muscat SULTANATE OF OMAN
Tel: 00968-24-698329 / 643
Fax: 00968-24-605031
Email: mwmuscat@omantel.net.om

Embassy of Malaysia (Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam)
Contact: H.E. Dato Ahmad Anuar Abdul Hamid
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 43 – 45 Dien Bien Phu Street Hanoi
SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Tel: (844) 734 3836 / 3849
Fax: (844) 734 3832
Email: mwhanoi@hn.vnn.vn

Embassy of Malaysia (Sanaa, Republic of Yemen)
Contact: H.E. Dato Misran Karmain
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Hadda Road (Behind Crown Suites)
PO Box 16157, Sanaa REPUBLIC OF YEMEN
Tel: 9671-415-605
Fax: 9671-416-181
Email: mwsanaa@y.net.ye

Embassy of Malaysia (Lima, Peru)
Contact: H.E. Datuk Mohd Nor Atan
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Av.Daniel Hernandez
No.350 (Av. El Bosque) San Isidro, Lima 27,
P.O.Box 41-126 REPUBLIC OF PERU
Tel: 51-1-422-0297 / 441-1939 / 441-0795
Fax: 51-1-221-0786
Email: mwlima@terra.com.pe

Embassy of Malaysia (Warsaw, Republic of Poland)
Contact: H.E. Dato Mohd Daud bin M. Yusof
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia UI. Gruzinska 3,
Saska Kepa 03-902 Warsaw, REPUBLIC OF POLAND
Tel: 48-22-617-4413 / 617-3144
Fax: 48-22-617-6256
Email: mwwarsaw@it.com.pl

Embassy of Malaysia (Bucharest, Romania)
Contact: H.E. Datin Paduka Halimah Abdullah
Designation: Charge dAffaires a.i.
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No. 1, Piata Cantacuzino (Polona Street), Bucharest ROMANIA
Tel: 4021-211-3801 / 3802
Fax: 4021- 210-0270
Email: mwbucrst@ictnet.ro

Embassy of Malaysia (Moscow, Russian Federation)
Contact: H.E. Dato Mohammad Khalis ali Hassan
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Mosfilmovskaya Ulitsa 50
Moscow 117192 RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Tel: 7095-147-1512 / 147-1514 / 147-1523
Fax: 7095 –937-9602
Email: mwmoscow@co.ru

Embassy of Malaysia (Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)
Contact: H.E. Dato Dr. Ismail Ibrahim
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Diplomatic Quarters
P.O Box 94335 Riyadh 11693 KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Tel: 9661-4887-100 / 488-7098
Fax: 9661-482-4177
Email: mwriyadh@awalnet.net.sa

Embassy of Malaysia (Dakar, Republic of Senegal)
Contact: – Vacant -
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia No. 7, (VDN) Fann Mermoz
B.P. 15057 Dakar REPUBLIC OF SENEGAL
Tel: 221-825-8935 / 825-8936
Fax: 221-825-4719
Email: mwdakar@sentoo.sn

Embassy of Malaysia (Seoul, Republic of Korea, South Korea)
Contact: H.E. Dato M. Santhananaban
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 4-1, Hannam-dong Yongsan-ku,
Seoul 140-210 REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Tel: (822) 795-9203 / 795-3032
Fax: 822-794-5488
Email: mwseoul@kornet.net

Embassy of Malaysia (Madrid, Spain)
Contact: H.H.E. Dato Dr Mohd Yusof Ahmad
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Paseo de la Castellana,
91-10 Edificio Centro 23 28046 Madrid, SPAIN
Tel: 34-91-555-0684 / 555-0737
Fax: 34-91-555-5208
Email: mwmadrid@adv.es

Embassy of Malaysia (Khartoum, Republic of Sudan)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Mohd. Zamri Mohd. Kassim
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Street 3, Block 2,
Alamarat P.O Box 11686, Khartoum REPUBLIC OF SUDAN
Tel: (249-183) 482 763 / 482 764
Fax: (249-183) 482 762
Email: mwktoum@sudanmail.net

Embassy of Malaysia (Stockholm, Sweden)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Jasmi Md. Yusof
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Karlavagen 37
P.O. Box 26053 100 41 Stockholm, SWEDEN
Tel: 46-8-791-7690
Fax: 46-8-791-8760
Email: mwstholm@algonet.se

Malaysian Friendship and Trade Centre (Taipei, Taiwan)
Contact: -Vacant-
Designation: President
Address: Malaysian Friendship and Trade Centre 8th Floor,
San Ho Plastic Bldg 102, Tun Hwa North Road Taipei, Taiwan REPUBLIC OF CHINA
Tel: 886-2-2713-2626
Fax: 886-2-2514-9864
Email: mwtaipei@ms34.hinet.net

Embassy of Malaysia (Bangkok, Kingdom of Thailand)
Contact: H.E. Dato Shaarani Ibrahim
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 35 South Sathorn Road Tungmahamek Sathorn,
Bangkok 10120 KINGDOM OF THAILAND
Tel: (662) 679 2190 / 6792199
Fax: (662) 679 2208
Email: mwbangkok@samart.co.th

Embassy of Malaysia (The Hague, The Netherlands)
Contact: H.E. Dato Noor Farida bte. Ariffin
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Rustenburgweg 2,
2517 KE The Hague THE NETHERLANDS
Tel: 3170-350-6506
Fax: 3170-350-6536
Email: mwthehague@euronet.nl

Embassy of Malaysia (Ankara, Republic of Turkey)
Contact: H.E. Dato Ahmad Mokhtar Selat
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 58, Mahatma Gandhi Caddesi,
06700 Gaziosmanpasa, Ankara REPUBLIC OF TURKEY
Tel: 90-312-446-3547 / 446-3548
Fax: 90-312-446-4130
Email: mwankara@isnet.net.tr

Embassy of Malaysia (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)
Contact: H.E. Dato ABdul Mubin Razali
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia Humaid al Mazuree Villa,
Al Saada Street No. 19. New Corniche, P.O. Box 3887,
Abu Dhabi UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Tel: 9712-448-2775 / 776
Fax: 9712-448-2779
Email: mwadhabi@emirates.net.ae

Embassy of Malaysia (Washington D.C. , USA)
Contact: H.E. Dato Ghazzali bin Sheikh Abdul Khalid
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 3516 International Court,
N.W. Washington DC.20008 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Tel: 202-572-9700
Fax: 202-572-9882
Email: malwash@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan)
Contact: H.E. Mohd. Zain Abu Bakar
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia 28 Mariam Yaqubova Street,
Yakkasaray District 700031 Tashkent REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN
Tel: 99871-115-2731 / 133-3227
Fax: 99871-133-3271
Email: mwtskent@rol.uz

Embassy of Malaysia (Vienna, Austria)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Dato’ Gulam Hussein bin Gulam Haniff
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia
Austria Prinz Eugen Strasse 18 A-1040 Vienna AUSTRIA
Tel: 00-43-1-505-1042, 1569, 6323
Fax: 00-43-1-505- 7942
Email: mwvienna@utanet.at

Embassy of Malaysia (Cairo, Egypt)
Contact: -Vacant-
Designation: Ambassador
Address: 21, El Aanab Street Mohandessine, Giza,
Cairo ARAB REPUBLIC OG EGYPT
Tel: 202-7610-013 / 7610-085
Fax: 202-7610-216
Email: mwcairo@soficom.com.eg

Embassy of Malaysia (Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
Contact: H.E. Datuk Ali bin Abdullah
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Level 3A-5A Shelbourne House Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge,
Dublin 4 REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Tel: 353-1-6677280
Fax: 353-1-6677282
Email: mwdublin@mwdublin.i.e

Liaison Officer Office of Malaysia (Pristina, Kosovo)
Contact: Mr. Raszlan bin Abd. Rashid
Designation: Chief Liaison Office
Address: No. 12, Partizani Street Pristina, KOSOVO
Tel: 381-38-243467 , 243468
Fax: 381-38-243464
Email: mwprishtina@mwprishtina.org

Embassy of Malaysia (Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco)
Contact: H.E. Datuk Haji Mohd. Nor bin Hj. Atan
Designation: Ambassador
Address: No. 17 Avenue Bir Kacem Soussi – Rabat MOROCCO
Tel: 212-037-658-324 / 355
Fax: 212-037-658-363
Email: mwrabat@maghrebnet.net.ma
Website: http://myperwakilan.mfa.gov.my/af/rabat

Embassy of Malaysia (Kathmandu, Nepal)
Contact: H.E. Mahinder Singh
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Embassy of Malaysia, Block B, Sanchaya Kosh Building, Latlipur District, Kathmandu, Nepal Kathmandu NEPAL
Tel: (977)-1 501 0004
Fax: (977)-1 501 0492
Email: malkatmandu@kln.gov.my

Embassy of malaysia (Manila, Republic of Philippines)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Datuk Iskandar Saruddin
Designation: Ambassador
Address: 107, Tordesillas Street, Salcedo Village,
Markati City, REPUBLIC OF PHILIPINES
Tel: 00-632-817-4581 / 585
Fax: 00-632-816-3158
Email: mwmanila@indanet.com

Embassy of Malaysia (Doha, Qatar)
Contact: H.E. Dato Ku Jaafar b. Ku Shaari
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Lusail Street,
Zon 66, West Bay, Dafna,
P.O. Box. 23760,
Doha, Qatar
Tel: 00974-4836463 / 4836493
Fax: 00974-4836453
Email: maldoha@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia ( Berne, Switzerland)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Dato Ismail bin Mustapha
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Jungfraustrasse 1 CH-3005 Berne SWITZERLAND
Tel: 41-031-350-4700 / 4701
Fax: 41-031-350-4702
Email: malberne@kln.tourism.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Damascus, Syria)
Contact: H.E. Mr. Zainuddin Yahya
Designation: Ambassador
Address: No. 2, Lot 326, Al Kansaa Street (Al Ghazawi Street),
West Mezzeh, Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
Tel: 00963-11-612 2811 / 612 2812 / 612 2813
Fax: 00963-11-612 2814
Email: mwsyria@scs-net.org

Embassy of Malaysia (Dili, Timur-Timor (Timor-Leste))
Contact: H. E. Amb. Abdullah Faiz b. Mohd Zain
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Jalan Pantai Kelapa Dili Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
Tel: 670-3311-141 / 3321-804
Fax: 670-3321-805
Email: mwdili@mail.timortelecom.tp

Embassy of Malaysia (Caracas, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela)
Contact: H.E. Ramli Naam
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Centro Profesional Eurobuilding Piso 6,
Oficianas D-E-F-g Calle La Guairita, Chuao Caracas 1060 BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA
Tel: 58-212-992-1011 / 992-114
Fax: 58-212-992-1277
Email: mwcaracas@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Manama, Bahrain)
Contact: H.E. Naimun Ashakli bin Mohamad
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Building No. 2771,
Road 2835,
Block 428,
Al-Seef District,
P.O. Box 18292,
Manama, Bahrain
Tel: 00973-17-564551
Fax: 00973-17-564552
Email: malmnama@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Belgrade, Serbia & Montenegro)
Contact: H.E. Dato Saw Ching Hong
Designation: Ambassador
Address: a406, Genex Apartments, Vladimira Popovica,
11070 Novi Beograd SERBIA & MONTENEGRO
Tel: 381-11-311-3570
Fax: 381-11-311-4113
Email: malbelgrade@kln.gov.my

Embassy of Malaysia (Zagreb, Croatia)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Dato Azman bin Mohd Nazir
Designation: Ambassador
Address: Slavujevac 4A 10000 Zagreb REPUBLIC OF CROATIA
Tel: 385-1-483-4346 / 483-4347
Fax: 385-1-483-4348
Email: mw.zagreb@sg.htnet.hr

Embassy of Malaysia (Prague, Republic of Chech)
Contact: H.E. Dato Salman Ahmad
Designation: Ambassador
Address: First Floor, Washingtonova 25, 110 00 Prague 1, CHECH REPUBLIC
Tel: 004202-234-706-611
Fax: 00420-296-326-192
Email: malprague@kln.gov.my

HIGH COMMISSIONERS

Malaysian High Commission (Canberra, Australia)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Md. Hussin bin Nayan
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: 7 Perth Avenue Yarralumla,
Canberra ACT 2600 AUSTRALIA
Tel: 612-6273-1543 / 1544 / 1545
Fax: 612–6273-2496
Email: malcanberra@netspeed.com.au

High Commission of Malaysia (Dhaka, Peoples Republic of Bangladesh)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Ashaary bin Sani
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission Of Malaysia House No. 19,
Road No. 6 Baridhara, Dhaka 1212
THE PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH
Tel: 8802-882-7759 / 7760
Fax: 8802-882-3115 / 7761
Email: mwdhaka@citech-bd.com

High Commission of Malaysia

(Bandar Seri Begawan, Negara Brunei Darussalam)
Contact: H.E. Tan Sri Mohd. Jamil bin Johari
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia
No.61, Simpang 336, Jalan Kebangsaan BA 1211, Kampong Sg. Akar,
P.O. Box 2826, Bandar Seri Begawan BS 4115, BRUNEI DARUSSALAM
Tel: 673-2-381095 / 096 / 097
Fax: 673-2-381278
Email: mwbrunei@brunet.bn

High Commission Of Malaysia (Ottawa, Canada)
Contact: H.E. Dato’ Dennis Joachim Iganatius
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission Of Malaysia 60,
Boteler Street Ottawa, Ontario K1N 8Y7 CANADA
Tel: 613-241-5182 , 5206 , 5210
Fax: 613-241-5214
Email: malottawa@kln.gov.my
Website: http://www.home.istar.ca/~mwottawa

High Commission of Malaysia (Suva, Fiji)
Contact: H.E. Dr. Fauziah binti Mohd. Taib
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia 5th. Floor,
Pacific House Butt Street, P.O. Box 356 Suva,
REPUBLIC OF THE FIJI ISLANDS
Tel: 679-331-2166 / 331-2617
Fax: 679-330-3350
Email: mwsuva@connect.com.fj

High Commission of Malaysia (Accra, Ghana)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Dato Muhammad bin Alias
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia No.18, Templesi Lane,
Airport Residential Area Accra, GHANA
Tel: 233–21–763691 / 783087
Fax: 233-21-764910
Email: mwaccra@ghana.com

High Commission of Malaysia (New Delhi, Republic of India)
Contact: H.E. Dato Zulkifly @ Ibrahim bin Ab. Rahman
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia 50-M,
Satya Marg Chanakyapuri New Delhi 110 021 REPUBLIC OF INDIA
Tel: 91-11-2611-1291 / 1292 / 1293 / 1297
Fax: 91-11-2688-1538
Email: mwndelhi@del2.vsnl.net.in

Office of the Asst. High Commissioner for Malaysia (Chennai, India)
Contact: Mr. Rosli bin Ismail
Designation: Deputy High Commissioner
Address: Office of the Asst. High Commissioner for Malaysia
No. 252, T.T.K Road Alwarpet Chennai – 600 018 REPUBLIC OF INDIA
Tel: 91-44-2498-2306 / 2498 / 2558
Fax: 91-44-2498-2405
Email: mwmadras@vsnl.net.in

High Commission of Malaysia (Windhoek, Republik of Namibia)
Contact: Ms. Hayati bt Ismail
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia 10,
Von Eckenbrecher Strasse P.O. Box 312, Windhoek 9000
REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA
Tel: 264-61-259-342 / 344
Fax: 264-61-259-343
Email: malhicom@mweb.com.na

High Commission of Malaysia (Wellington, New Zealand)
Contact: -Vacant-
Designation: High Commissioner Malaysia
Address: High Commission of Malaysia
No. 10, Washington Avenue,Brooklyn PO Box 9422,
Wellington NEW ZEALAND
Tel: 64-4-385-2439 / 801-5659
Fax: 64-4-385-6973
Email: mwwelton@xtra.co.nz

High Commission of Malaysia (Lagos, Federal Republic of Nigeria)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Ibrahim Abdullah
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia Plot 205,
Abiola Segun Ajayi Street Victoria Island Annex,
P.O. Box 3729, Lagos FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
Tel: 234-1-3200687 / 4619281
Fax: 234-1-3200787
Email: mwlagos@hyperia.com

High Commission of Malaysia (Islamabad, Republic Islam Pakistan)
Contact: H.E. Tan Sri Md. Hashim bin Hussein
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia
No. 78, Margalla Road F 6/2, Islamabad
P.O Box 1034 REPUBLIC ISLAM PAKISTAN
Tel: 92-51-227 9570 / 220 6234
Fax: 92-51-282 4761
Email: mwislamb@isb.comsats.net.pk

High Commission of Malaysia (Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea)
Contact: H.E. Dato Kamilan Maksom
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia
Unit 201/203,Pacific View Apartments, Pruth Street,
Korobosea, P.O.Box 1400, Port Moresby, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Tel: 675- 325-1506 / 325-2076
Fax: 675-325-2784
Email: mwpom@datec.com.pg

High Commission of Malaysia (Harare, Republic of Zimbabwe)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Shaharuddin bin Md. Som
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia 40,
Downie Avenue P.O Box 5570 Harare REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE
Tel: 2634-334-413 / 14
Fax: 2634-334-415
Email: mwharare@africaonline.co.zw

Singapore High Commission
Contact: H.E. Dato N Parameswaran
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: Singapore High Commission,
301 Jervois Road, Singapore 249077
REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE
Tel: 02-6235 0111
Fax: 02- 6733 6135
Email: mwspore@singnet.com.sg

High Commission of Malaysia (Pretoria, Republic of South Africa)
Contact: H.E. Datuk Zainal Azman bin Zainal Abidin
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia No. 1007 Shoeman Street,Arcadia, Pretoria 0083, REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
Tel: 27012-342-5990 / 91 / 92 / 93
Fax: 27012-437-7073
Email: mwprtoria@ishoppe.co.za

High Commission of Malaysia (Colombo, Republic of Sri Lanka)
Contact: H.E. Amb. Iskandar bin Sarudin
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia No. 33 Bagatalle Road, Colombo 03 SOCIALIST DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF SRI LANKA
Tel: 941-554-681 / 682 / 683
Fax: 941-554-684
Email: mwcolmbo@eureka.lk

High Commission of Malaysia

(London, United Kingdom of Great Britain & Eire)
Contact: H.E. Dato Abd. Aziz Mohammed
Designation: High Commissioner
Address: High Commission of Malaysia 45 – 46 Belgrave Square

London SW1X 8QT UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN & EIRA
Tel: 4420-7235-8033
Fax: 44-20-7235-5161
Email: mwlondon@btinternet.com

Welcome to the newest independent country of the world – Republic of Kosovo, it is just a baby still, hardly 18 months old, not yet a fully recognized UN member, but set to become one in near future. It is surreal how things work on this side, the contrasts are everywhere. One moment I’m walking down the slum and column of military police cars are rushing buy, the next I’m siting in exquisite restaurant eating steak that is just as good as in any of the world metropolis, but half the price. It is a place of extreme contrasts and it took my be surprise, as the other Balkan countries offered much tamer experiences than expectations I had about them before visiting.
First off the bling – Kosovo probably has the second highest ratio of luxury cars per citizen in Europe (after Monaco). The black market here is way bigger the the grey or official one. There are latest BMW, Audi and Mercedes SUV’s on every corner, literally. You are what you drive.
Second – the unfinished buildings. At first I thought its just a big construction boom after independence, but apparently, as wise local explained to me, it’s more to do with property tax. None of the buildings are ever really finished, as then you need to pay the tax.
Then my favorite subject – coffee. You can not go wrong with it in any of the establishments here, Kosovo probably serves consistently better espressos that most cities in Italy, the homeland of coffee fanatics. And the best thing is that it will cost you 1 euro max, or between 50 to 80 euro cents in most places.
Finally, the myth about safety – based on my last two days here and after talking to some locals, I’m pretty sure that my survival rate here is considerably higher that living in South London. Foreigners rarely get into trouble here. Things have changed dramatically in last 10 years and unless you try to steal some business from local mafia, you are extremely unlikely to get hurt. Over and out.