Northern Kosovo Serbs vote in contentious referendum

(KOSOVSKA MITROVICA) - Serbs in northern Kosovo Tuesday started voting in a referendum aimed at highlighting their opposition to Pristina and anger at concessions Belgrade has made in EU-brokered talks.

Some 35,000 voters in the majority Serb north of Kosovo will be asked in the vote: "Do you accept the institutions of the so-called republic of Kosovo seated in Pristina?"

Serbs in north Kosovo have never accepted Pristina's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia and are expected to overwhelmingly vote 'no'.

"Of course I came to vote as it is the first time that someone officially asks the people if they want to live under Pristina's institutions," said 74-year-old Ljuba Savic, who was one of the first to cast his ballot in Kosovska Mitrovica Tuesday morning.

"I voted 'no' and I think all people in northern Kosovo will do the same."

The vote is seen as an act of defiance against the Serbian government, which many of northern Kosovo's Serbs feel has been too conciliatory in the Belgrade-Pristina talks.

The referendum comes just two days ahead of the fourth anniversary of Pristina's 2008 declaration of independence, which Belgrade has not recognised but has been accepted by 87 countries, including much of Europe and the United States.

Out of a population of about two million, there are some 120,000 ethnic Serbs in Kosovo, 40,000 of whom live in the north on the border with Serbia proper. The rest of the Serbs live in enclaves dotted around the territory.

Kosovo Serbs in the southern enclaves surrounded by the ethnic Albanian majority are generally more inclined to work together with the Pristina government while those in the north still cling to Belgrade.

Krstimir Pantic, mayor of the Serb-dominated part of the town of Kosovska Mitrovica, said the vote "will show that the Serbs in northern Kosovo do not want to be under Pristina institutions."

The north of Kosovo has been the scene of unrest in the last few months. In November some 50 soldiers from the NATO-led KFOR peacekeeping force were hurt as they moved to dismantle barricades erected at the border by Serbs.

Ethnic Albanian hardliners, who oppose all contact with Belgrade and want unification with neighbouring Albania, also tried to block the crossings in January leading to clashes with police.

Some 82 polling stations in northern Kosovo municipalities will be open from 7:00 am (0600 GMT) to 7:00 pm (1800 GMT) on Tuesday and Wednesday for the two-day vote.

Belgrade has labelled the referendum "unconstitutional", further fanning the fears of Kosovo Serb hardliners that Serbia could eventually give up its claim to Kosovo under pressure from the European Union.

Belgrade and Pristina, which have been engaged in a dialogue under EU auspices since March 2011, have already reached several accords addressing everyday problems created by Kosovo's independence.

Brussels has insisted that Serbia make progress in its relations with Kosovo to further its bid for EU membership.