Page 698 - Kosovo Metohija Heritage

From the 13th to the 20th century
The Serbian youth organization “Dečanski”, founded in Djakovica 1910
worse, because, firstly, the authorities did nothing about that and, secondly, the villains, resenftul with the complaint, were even more vindictive against Serbs. However, the peasants of these villages still filed a complaint to the Prizren Mute- sarif a couple of days ago. They submitted a copy of the com- plaint to the respective Russian, italian and austrian Con- sulates in Prizren. What happens further and what position the Consulates will take, i will have the honor of informing you in due time.
Please, Mr. Minister, kindly receive the assurances of my most excellent esteem.
a.S, MFa, Political and educational Department, 1906, row 59, No 6019 No 5. Xii 1906
a LeTTeR FROM SeRBS DiSPLaCeD FROM KOSOVO
Stamen Djurdjević, Spasoje Trajković—
to the Minister President of the Ministerial Council
and Minister of Foreign Affairs Belgrade, May, 17th/30th, 1907
Mr. Minister,
Due to the albanian terror and violence in the Turkish
empire, known to all of you, it is impossible for us, Serbs, to survive in the Turkish empire further, and we, the under- signed, had to leave the homes of our ancestors due to the force and caprice of albanians, in the villages of: Trnica, Ste- vanac, Crveni Grad, Babina Poljana, Koćura, Lesnica, Bala- ćevci, Dejance Punesence and Presevica, and to move to the Kingdom of Serbia, where we stayed near the town of Les- kovac, and there are about 250 of us.
The people who moved here have no bread or roof over their heads, because all that we had at our homes was taken by albanians, so we came to the new fatherland barefoot, hungry and impoverished.
On behalf of all of us signatories to the list, we are kind- ly asking you, Mr. Minister, to order that we be given food to support these people, and to ensure that the Minister of
People’s economy allocate land to each of the families, so that they could settle somewhere, as we have no intention of returning to Turkey and we want to stay in Serbia and to remain citizens of Serbia. Our people and children are in despair because they have nothing to eat, so we are begging you, Mr. Minister, to help us get some food as soon as pos- sible, because the authorities in Leskovac refused to give us any, saying they had nothing to offer us when we asked.
On behalf of all, begging you and hoping for assistance
soon.
On 17 May 1907 in Belgrade Stamen Djurdjević, Spasoje Trajković, Temporarily c/a Leskovac a.S, MFa, Political and educational, 1907, No 2395. letter. 17. 1907,
row 310
MUSLiMS CONFiRMiNG THaT THeRe iS ViOLeNCe aGaiNST CHRiSTiaN SeRBS
A group of Muslims to the police commissioner in Peć
Peć, October 1st/14th, 1907
We all claim in general that the complaint submitted by Mr. Metropoliten to his Tzar on his Christians faithful to the Tzar is truthful. The acts of terror, be them in town or in villages, are so blooming that they cannot be put up with any more, and the kinds of terror are: murders, arsonry, fines, thefts and conversion of faith.
although many of the suffering people have addressed the court, still the assassins have not been caught and thus such crimes are multiplied although the court council has registered all the acts.
Most of these miserables, for fear, dare not initiate a law suit, so they are leaving their homesteads all the time. There- fore, these emigrants and martyrs should be invited to be questioned why exactly they are moving. But, as long as these people in dismay cannot be in peace and security , they will not say the names of the criminals.
That is the situation and this is the people’s response. Sealed by the local: Hagi Mahmud-efendi Gul Maten Sinan Cheri-Pasha ismail-efendi from ali-Chaush mahala (quarter)
a.S, MFa, Political and educational Department, 1907 row 310 NeW aCTS OF ViOLeNCe
The attaché of the Serbian Consulate R. Šaponjic, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Political and educational affairs, No 1603
Priština, October 21th/November 3rd, 1908
To the Ministry of Foreign affairs,
The Consulate, in due time, had the honor of informing
the Ministry of the establishment of the constitutional re- gime would not be enough of a guarantee for improving the life of the local population and of begging to keep the well- known albanian besa (promise) concluded in Ferizovići. This opinion of the Consulate was, unfortunately, corroborated by the subsequent events on which the Consulate reported to the Royal Ministry.
696