The Difficulties of Developing Civil Society in Kosovo

The significance of this book is to add to the growing body of literature on the ways in which the relationship between civil society and politics is enacted in transitional countries. The process of civil society development in Kosovo is explored from its days of origin, through the complicated political situations of the 1990s, and its increasingly active role in contributions toward the current democratization process. The study focuses on the various meanings of civil society and various existing discourses of civil society. It describes the historical roots of civil society development in Kosovo before the war of 1999 and the process of establishing and developing NGO sector as part of civil society after the war, under the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) administration and in Independent Kosovo. The role of civil society is compared and analyzed by indicating challenges that civil society, namely NGOs must overcome in order to meaningfully contribute to the current democratization process in Kosovo and the risks that they can pose when they decide not to become force for democracy.