Kosovo/Kosova As Seen, As Told in both Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The OSCE-KVM developed a reputation among refugees and local authorities for conducting professional interviews in a confidential setting. International partners often approached OSCE-KVM human rights teams whenever they had identified a potential eye-witness. When the OSCE re-entered Kosovo in June, there were still many pending requests from refugees to give statements of their experiences. It was a general policy not to interview small children and refugees who appeared traumatized. The Human Rights Division was aware of the limitations and varied expertise of its human rights officers. On the subject of sexual violence there were some human rights officers with extensive experience in interviewing rape victims from Bosnia and Rwanda. Whenever possible, only these staff members spoke to victims of rape and sexual assault. 39 The OSCE-KVM had enjoyed the trust of Kosovo Albanians before its evacuation from Kosovo, and this trust continued in the camps. Refugees often commented to human rights officers that the widespread presence of the distinctive orange OSCE-KVM vehicles reassured them that their plight was not forgotten and that assistance would be given to them. In collecting information in Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia about human rights and humanitarian law violations in Kosovo this rapport was unique. As it had done when deployed inside Kosovo (see above), when collecting data in Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia following its evacuation, the OSCE-KVM Human Rights Division implemented strict security and confidentiality safeguards. At the end of every interview with a refugee, the interviewee was asked if he/she would allow the information to be passed on to the ICTY. In all cases the interviewee consented and often insisted that the information provided be passed to the appropriate judicial body. Standardized interview forms were used in both the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Albania. Completed forms were collected daily by team leaders. No copies were retained in the field or kept by the interviewer. All completed forms were stored at the field operation headquarters in Tirana and Skopje. The completed forms were numbered, stored in binders and kept in locked facilities with restricted access. At no time did the Human Rights Division produce reports with names of victims or witnesses. The Human Rights Division shared general information from the interviews with UNHCHR officers working in Skopje, who agreed to treat the data in a confidential way. The Human Rights Division had strict press guidelines and restricted access to the information collected to those with a "need to know" only. These guidelines remain in effect. All interview forms were then centralized, indexed, and catalogued in Skopje. A database was designed and used to index and catalogue the enormous volume of information collected. Safeguarding and analysing the OSCE-KVM human rights files Ensuring confidentiality and the integrity of the information gathered by the OSCE-KVM Human Rights Division continues to be of the utmost importance to the OSCE. http://www.osce.org/kosovo/documents/reports/hr/part1/ch2.htm (12 of 16)12/5/2003 11:48:40 AM