Kosovo’s War Rape Survivors Scheme Hindered by Enduring Stigmas

The move comes amid concern about what is seen by some activists in Kosovo as a low number of applications by survivors to be officially registered as victims and therefore become eligible for welfare benefits.

Kosovo officials and civil society organisations dealing with survivors have repeatedly cited an estimated statistic of more than 20,000 wartime rape victims. But so far, only around 1,870 people have applied to the government commission.

Vasfije Krasniqi Goodman, one of the very few wartime rape survivors to have spoken publicly about her ordeal, said she is deeply disappointed by the amount of applications so far.

"The number of victims who have applied is very small. I expected much more," Krasniqi Goodman told BIRN.

"It's painful. It seems that there was not enough encouragement for them to apply," she added.

She also expressed concern that some applicants have not been dealt with sensitively enough: "Based on the victims' statements, not every case has been treated humanely by the governmental commission [assessing the applications]," she said. "Many of the victims have been asked to come in for interviews, and a significant number have expressed dissatisfaction with the way they were treated."

During the war in April 1999, Krasniqi Goodman was taken by two Serbian police officers from her home to an abandoned house, where she was assaulted. She was 16 at the time. She spoke out four years ago after two suspects were acquitted of raping her by Kosovo's Supreme Court.

Since then, she has been advocating on behalf of other survivors, encouraging them to come forward, tell their stories and apply for the official status of victims, which not only bestows official recognition of a victim's suffering but also...