Electric power and water still cut out sporadically in Pristina, phone service is available only through an overtaxed mobile network, and breezes carry the dank smell of burning garbage, which has stacked up in the absence of trash pickups.
Meanwhile, a flood of homeless rural ethnic Albanians has strained housing supplies in Pristina and outlying cities. The weekend cultural festival was organized from the outside, at the instigation of British actress and activist Vanessa Redgrave, with financial backing from the Canadian government and support from a handful of international artists and the United Nations.
After North Atlantic Treaty Organization troops moved in, organizers revised the program and moved it to Pristina. Most of the program was dedicated to music, including Canadian singer-songwriter and humanitarian activist Bruce Cockburn, who performed twice Sunday, the first time in connection with a mine-awareness program for children. The centerpiece of the festival was to be the performance Friday evening of a play written by Enver Petrovci--an ethnic Albanian playwright, director and actor--featuring himself and Redgrave.
Petrovci said he was celebrating with graduating theater students in a local bar when two men opened fire with automatic weapons. He was wounded in the stomach, leg and hand. One of the student actors with him was killed. As Petrovci spoke, a British regimental band arranged itself atop the theater steps to play.
The band then moved to the street at the head of a parade of ethnic Albanians and international aid workers, many laughing and clapping to the march music. I cannot believe this is a reality. Despite all of this [war], thank you, God. The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
