Second Part
Riza Krasniqi: Somewhere Sunday afternoon Besa asked to go…she said, “Let’s go to my family.” We noticed that she decided to forgive [the blood], we changed our schedule and while on our way, she asked, “Can we stop by the graveyard?” We stopped, and when she went to her father’s grave, the professor and I went after her, we went close to her and she developed a very difficult dialogue. “Father,” she said, “You know that I gave you the besa, always,” she said, “you told me to keep besa and you even named me Besa. But nowadays, the times are changing, Kosovo’s youth is asking for your blood to be forgiven, Kosovo’s interest is asking for your blood to be forgiven. Your daughter is faithful, and she will be so for a lifetime. But Kosovo’s interest seems to be greater than the given besa, so father…please forgive me because today…I have to forgive your blood.”
Besa started crying at her father’s grave, we started too…but after a couple of hours, we went and she forgave the blood. I never saw Besa again, I don’t know what happened to that female…not only Besa, but all the forgiven bloods were forgiven for Kosovo’s future…for one Kosovo, for a better state… a Kosovo we all dreamt for, a better one than the one we have today. And the bloods, there are hundred cases [of the forgiven bloods] and they were all forgiven for Kosovo’s youth, for its future. They weren’t forgiven for any party or for any other intention.
[The interviewer asks the speaker to talk in a more detailed way about the women’s role in The Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliation. The question was cut from the video interview]
I already mentioned that the female role was one of the pillars, even we, the males, kind of resented to say it (smiles), but whenever we couldn’t manage to reconcile the blood feud in men’s odë, Bajram Kelmendi would ask the girls’ team, Hava, Myrvete, “Go to the women now, it’s your time to get the work done there.” Because we lived with the illusion that men with moustache forgive the blood, but that often turned out not to be true. I remember one case of a mother whose little son was killed, she had two other sons. She had no husband and both of her sons were grown up, that means around thirty-thirty five years old. When we went to men’s odë, both of them, “We know why you’re here, but…even if we forgive the blood, our mother won’t. My mother’s little son got killed, there’s no way she will agree .” When they said this, we said, “But you, you will forgive it?” They said, “We will forgive it only if our mother says so.” That’s when it seemed way easier for us and we asked Hava right away, “You go downstairs, not that day, but the next day or the day after.” When they went there, the mother waited for them with these words, “Even if boys forgive it, I won’t. He was my little son, whom I loved the most.” “It was impossible,” they were telling, “to convince her.” But even in those cases we always looked for a solution of how to…we asked and they told us that that mother whose son got killed had a sister to whom she was so close in the village, but she has no children…and she considered the children of her sister as her own children. Then the team went to the sister’s…and in the beginning she had those words, “Even if my sister’s sons and my sister forgives the blood, I won’t! Because that boy was more my son than my sister’s.”
Then the negotiations started and Hava with Myrvete persuaded her to forgive it at last, because, “If it doesn’t get forgiven, what happens…let’s suppose the big son takes revenge for the blood. They will come and kill the second son. So, this will truly never end.” And she said, “You will remain without the three of your sons.” They forgave the blood and somewhere after six months the sister with no children died, we went to visit the old lady who forgave the blood since we knew that she loved her sister extraordinarily much. And the conversation turned to the blood, she told us a detail we never thought about before, she said, “To be honest, I am sleeping comfortably since the blood was forgiven. Each time my sons went out in the city, I was afraid that they would meet the killer, or his family and kill them, for God’s sake, someone would kill my sons. You know, I couldn’t live a normal life, I didn’t know what life was.”
We often only dealt with the sufferings of the isolated family. But we never dealt with the family who had to avenge the blood, which in fact was a victim, because the victim was from that family. I remember another case that maybe illustrates it best, because the students of the Peja gymnasium at that time had a task, I am talking about Peja and its surroundings, to come and tell me and professor Nimon about the cases, in which village there were killings, where were bloods that needed to be reconciled. Then we made the schedule, the students worked in their way, through students, and we would gather every Friday to make the plan where we were supposed to go the next day. Because to be honest, when they said, “Come on Saturday and Sunday with professor Anton,” we were ninety percent sure that the blood would be forgiven. Because the hardest work was done before professor Anton came.
We went once, they told us about one killing, they killed a 30 years old five years ago. We went to the village but we didn’t know where his house was. I stopped the car and saw two boys around seven-eight years old maybe, no…none of them was going to school at that time which means they were six-seven years old. They were playing with wooden rifle, bam-bam. “Good afternoon, boys!” They, “Good afternoon!” “Where’s his house?” we asked. He said, “This is the house,” We were already in the house of the ones who were supposed to forgive the blood, “What are you doing?” I asked one of them. He said, “I am killing Hasan.” “Why are you killing Hasan?” He said, “Because he killed my father and I have to take revenge. My father left two sons…” “Are you in school?” “No,” he said, “but I will register this year.” For one moment I stopped and thought, a child who doesn’t go to school, who doesn’t even know the letters, is taught at home how to kill someone, how to take revenge. Can you imagine such a family, where every night they talk about how to kill their father’s killer. I mean, the environment that person is raised in. How many such families we had in Kosovo, in which it was discussed how to kill someone, what did the children hear in those families, “We will go out and cross someone’s street, this and that…” In those families there were no discussions about economic development, how children should learn in school…but how to take revenge, that was the main point.
Let’s say in the other families, what was discussed, in the isolated families? In the isolated families, did they talk about who should work the land, how to work the land, how to eat food? Because it’s known that based on the Kanun, they didn’t take revenge on females. That is why the females of the houses had the right to go out and work in the land… the power of the female at that time is known, what can a female work in the land in those conditions. And now the female, the male didn’t dare go out…what do isolated families think about, the children cannot go to school. I don’t know if I can ever imagine for a moment the situation in which both families exist. Let’s say, in the isolated families, if someone, for example, had their sister in that family, they were also involved one way or another. That means, each family, the one that had to avenge the blood as well as the one who was isolated had also five to six other surrounding families that were involved in that problem. So, if we count the number of the families involved, even if it is in a direct or indirect way, it’s an extraordinarily high number. Was it difficult to forgive the blood? It was extraordinarily difficult. I always said it and will always repeat it for as long as I am alive that the only heroes of the Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliation are the ones who forgave the blood. We, the others, were only peons who ran from a house to another, but the real heroes were the ones who forgave the blood.
I remember another case after war, one Sunday I went for a walk in the city with my wife Shpresa and my big daughter Tringa. I saw a person who was slowing down his pace and walking towards me, I knew him. And one notices when someone slows down their pace and wants to greet them, I stopped with him. “Good afternoon.” “Good afternoon.” “How are you doing?” “Do you know me?” I said, “Yes. What are you in Peja for?” Because in Peja, I am talking about that time, 15 years ago, people from the villages came to Peja more rarely on Sundays. And it was obvious, the man with the white plis and… he said, “Professor, I came in the hope to see someone from you of the reconciliations, because I am kind of sad.” I said, “Yes of course, let’s sit and have coffee.” I apologized to my wife, and said, “Continue with the girl.”
When we sat to have coffee, he asked me, “Do you know me?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “Do you know my case?” I said, “Of course I do.” And told him that his son was killed with kmesë in primary school, a small axe that was used to cut the tree branches. He sent his son to primary school, he argued with his classmate, someone from the boy’s family came and killed his son with kmesë. In primary school! I know how much we suffered when we went for the preparations of the case…”Eh, professor,” he said, “My son’s classmate is getting married today, there’s music, they are eating meat and pie,” he said it in the folk way, “my son is eating dust. I took my wife and went to his grave, we cried until we couldn’t cry anymore…now she went to her sister’s and I went out in the city in the hope to see someone from you.” You know, the person who forgave [the blood], we left them in pain for a long time. That is why I am saying that the ones who forgave [the blood] are the real heroes and it’s such a shame for our society that we still don’t have a commemorative plaque, a monument of those who forgave [the blood], be it unnamed, but to those who forgave the blood of their beloved ones for the sake of Kosovo, so that we could have a state. And this state of ours even after 26 years can’t build something, not even a statue of professor Anton as the carrier of the Movement, not even a whatever you call it, a place where those who forgave the bloods maybe go once a year and see their contribution. An extraordinary contribution.
I guess I said it once before, we as a nation, as Kosovo, have two big achievements, two big triumphs. The first triumph is the one we achieved with the great Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliation, for the reconciliation of thousands of families. The second triumph is the liberation from Serbia, but if we don’t achieve the third triumph which consists on this youth to love the state of Kosovo, the first two triumphs are useless. If we don’t manage to create a state which is loved by our youth, even those two triumphs are useless. If we don’t manage to…I’ve read somewhere that Stipe Mesić refers to the state as a “forever parent,” if we don’t invest in the forever parent, I am afraid that the two great triumphs are useless.
[The interviewer asks the speaker to talk about how old were the cases of families in blood feuds. The question was cut from the video interview.]
Unfortunately, it’s…we never held a statistic of how old each blood feud was. There were various cases. You know it’s…I read that there were cases of killings on both sides that lasted for fifty-sixty years. But, we have to know that those blood feuds were created…or are a consequence of the lack of laws. Professor Fatos Tarifa has a book, Hakmarrja është e imja [Revenge is mine]. Revenge has existed even in western countries, it existed in America, but then laws were created, laws were executed and laws punished the one who caused harm, in this case the killer. When law punishes the killer, there’s no need for you to take revenge. But if we look at our history, where there always was a lack of law, and when the killer never got punished the way they deserved to, not even close to that. Then, everywhere in the world, even here, people who cause harm exist. If someone doesn’t punish them, then they will always cause harm.
That is why blood feud was a necessary element at some time because there are bad people who would kill someone everyday. If fear wasn’t an element of education, that if you kill someone, someone else will kill your child, then bad people would commit killings everyday. That’s why I am saying, killings are a consequence of lack of law, I am talking as Riza Krasniqi. After the war, only once there was one who came like, “Come, come, because the case is like that, I just want you to be there when they reconcile.” Because I wasn’t engaged in reconciliation after the war, because I think that we should fight to create a good state, where the law is the law, when it wants it does, and it sentences the punishment, not humans. That is why, I repeat, I will fight all my life for Kosovo to have a state, to create a law which will be equal to everyone. And when we will have the law the way it should be, people will not need to engage in blood feuds. Because we cannot enter Europe with blood feuds, we cannot move forwards with blood feuds. We will only destroy each-other with blood feuds. This way, we will only move forwards when the Prime Minister doesn’t know the phone number of the chief prosecutor, they don’t need to know that. But when the Prime Minister, no matter who they are, know that, they will be punished for the mistake they might’ve done.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Were there cases when people didn’t forgive the blood?
Riza Krasniqi: Well, there were such cases in every Movement. The whole nation is never…no matter the great success we achieved, we made the first reconciliation on the 10th of February in Raushiq. The Movement managed to gather half million people for eighty days at Verat e Llukës. This is to me a unique occasion in history, when in only eighty days, from 22 people that were in the first day in Raushiq, most of them, as I said, students and former-political prisoners, in eighty [days] they became five hundred thousands supporters of the Movement. There were no mobile phones that day, when five hundred thousands of people gathered. There were no tools like nowadays, and each one of us who went there that day, went with fear because Verat e Llukës was surrounded by police. I never saw so many police and Serbian tanks like that day. I don’t know…you could feel a power, I never felt more powerful. If I tell you about tanks, Serbs, the police in every corner, but I don’t know how, today this is unexplainable, I wasn’t afraid. Earlier in Peja, I would be so afraid even if I just saw a policeman, that day there were plenty of them…a lot….maybe the masses, maybe the desire, the great will to contribute, I wasn’t afraid.
I am telling you that we managed to gather five hundred thousands people in eighty days, because the aim was good. People understood the aim of the Movement, it was a honest Movement, lead by honest people, where the female fulfilled her role, maybe in the best way in our nation’s history and took the position that belonged to her. Where money was never mentioned, in any case, I don’t know, not…because Serbia on that side probably did its best to be able to ask someone to say, “Anton Çetta gave me 100 marks” or whatnot, but they never found such a person. And I am telling you, it was such a honest movement that its leader died in poverty, not to say an extreme one.
Jeta Rexha: Where did this occasion with five hundred thousands of people happen?
Riza Krasniqi: Close to Deçan, in 1990 at Verat e Llukë,s in one village.
They said that Isa Boletini historically held a gathering and it was decided to be held at Verat e Llukës, where 66 bloods were forgiven during only one day. And it’s, as far as I know, until now the greatest gathering Albanians ever held, because now I sort of joke when I say that all the politicians put up together cannot gather five hundred thousands of people. And at that time, not…none of them, not to say from all of this movement, I don’t know who continued engaging in politics. I guess, Adem Grabovci is one name crossing my mind that is engaged in politics, and I never heard him taking advantages out of blood feuds’ reconciliations, a movement like this…because none of the friends hasn’t…hasn’t continued engaging in politics. They didn’t misuse it and say, “I was in blood feuds’ reconciliations, this is our meritocracy.”
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Can you explain in a more detailed way what happened that day?
Riza Krasniqi: Yes, yes, it’s…
Erëmirë Krasniqi: How was it decided?
Riza Krasniqi: What do you mean?
Jeta Rexha: How was it decided to be held in that venue, who dealt with the decisions? How was it?
Riza Krasniqi: The organizational council, I was not part of it, because they started…how was it decided? After some time, I mentioned in the beginning that there were twenty reconciliation krushq, let’s go back chronologically a bit. The team of reconciliation krushq started to constantly extend. Somewhere around the third week, fourth, the team had to split. Anton Çetta was not in Peja anymore, he started going around Drenica. After some time, they started waiting for us in…because there was not enough room in men’s ode. They started waiting for us in meadows, and we have photographs where meadows and Anton Çetta with the team or professor Mark, and many others on this side….it was obvious that meadows are…there was a need for more room for the masses. Then we started in Rugova, for example Musa Xhevat held a gathering with three hundred thousand people in Bubavec just two weeks before the one in Verat e Llukës. And it was seen as a necessity, not to say the peak [of the movement, to find] a place, and it was decided to be Verat e Llukës.
What was characteristic of that day, for example I remember I went with professor Ramiz Kelmendi from Peja, and it seemed like there was no Peja citizen in streets. It was the same for Pristina, as people told us, when Ramiz Kelmendi said, “Riza, there’s no people in Pristina, everyone is at Verat e Llukës.” I am telling you, not only it seems like…but it seems unbelievable when you look at the pictures of that time, someone might think, it’s a photo-montage or something. On my way, I saw Hava, I said, “Hava.” “Professor,” she said, “we reconciled two bloods by three in the morning.” I said, “Girl, do you remember that…” I know she had health issues from being a caretaker in the prison. I said, “Are you planning to look after yourself at all?” She said, “Professor, I want to look after Kosovo’s health.” I said, “Take care of yourself a bit,” because she was, she had health issues. She said, “No professor, that’s not important.”
Then Myrvete, then…all the students that day that…it happened in Deçan, there something happened that Deçan people decided that day, the Lluka village with the surrounding, not to allow anyone to leave without eating. And imagine, when it was done, all the doors were opened, our mothers had prepared bread, fli for the people who lived far from Deçan. That day, they tried not to allow anyone to go back, let’s say to Pristina, or Mitrovica or Prizren, without eating food. They forced people, “Come, eat a bit.” The atmosphere of that day in Deçan was unexplainable. Today when I see for example, because there are the footages of Pristina Radio Television, I guess they still have some footage. It’s an atmosphere, it’s the around 90 years old man, he stays there all the time with two fingers like this {raises two fingers}. I don’t know where he took the strength from…it’s an atmosphere when the children come, 15 years old is one of them, who says, “I’ve decided to forgive my father’s blood,” to Zekerija Cana. There are some moments which are difficult to forget, because they can only be experienced once in a lifetime, and lucky is the one who got to experience them. I had the luck to experience them, and I feel good for having had such luck.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: How was the closing of this ceremony, how many bloods were forgiven? Did you safely go back home since you were surrounded with tanks?
Riza Krasniqi: No, not safe. That day for example, I remember professor Zekerija Cana, because he showed his chest to the police and said, “Ubijte, ubijte!” [Serbian: Kill us, kill us!]. Because professor Zeqa was the bravest among us, and he had genetic bravery. But on the other side they, I don’t know, it wasn’t to their advantage killing professor Zekerija in the presence of five hundred thousand people, because it was to no one’s advantage for it to explode there. I remember that they beat him on the way, but we didn’t count these much back then, you know (smiles). The pleasure of blood being forgiven, the pleasure of we doing something for Kosovo was greater than all those barriers.
For example, I remember the case of Enver and Skender whose father was killed. Before the preparatory team arrived, we would check who was the one who could influence them. We found a close cousin of theirs who could influence them. We went there twice and they didn’t forgive [the blood]. Professor Anton at some point said, because all of those who wouldn’t forgive [the blood] would say, “Alright, we are with you, but my case is more specific. My case has this, my case has that…” Each one of them had [its specifics], because each blood feud is a history itself. They didn’t forgive it and professor Anton would say, “Enver, Skender, you are good boys but we cannot come anymore.” “Professor, we apologize, but we cannot forgive.” “Alright.” We turned back. I was working as a professor in the Peja gymnasium at that time.
The next day, I mean on Monday, I had classes starting at eight, or half past seven. When I went there, one of the brothers was waiting in front of the gymnasium door. “Good morning.” “Good morning.” “Professor,” he said, “do you have time, two minutes?” I said, “Of course.” He said, “I have a request.” I said, “What is it?” “Can you come next week to our place?” I said, “Why, what happened?” He said, “We decided to forgive.” I said, “We were there last night, I mean, on Sunday, we left you at around four o’clock,” I said, “and you didn’t forgive it. What happened?” “Yes,” he said, “after you left, I have a Serb neighbor, and when I went out, he asked me ‘Who were they?’ And I said… ‘Have you found a bride?’” He asked him, because there were many of us. “‘Oh,’ he said, ‘I haven’t found a bride, but they were here for this reason, to forgive the blood.’ ‘And, what did you do?’ he says. ‘I didn’t forgive it because my blood was more…a different case.’ ‘Eh,’ he says, ‘you are man of men for not forgiving it, because for real your father was like this and you shouldn’t have forgiven it.’ ‘So,’ he says, ‘when do you want to take revenge for the blood?’ the Serb said to him, ‘if you don’t have a rifle, I will give it to you. And don’t be afraid of the prison, I will free you.’ ‘When I turned back,’ he said, ‘at home, I told my brother what happened.’ ‘Eh,’ he said, ‘let’s forgive it. Since Stojan told us that, ‘The rifle is from us,’ let’s see.” I said, “Alright Enver, professor Anton Çetta with the whole team tried twice and didn’t manage to convince you, and Stojan did…” “Professor,” he said, “Stojan convinced me.” And we went to his place, I mean we went the next Sunday, he forgave the blood.
You know, there were these kind of things as well, but the Blood Feuds Reconciliation, I think that in that Movement the intellectuals failed a bit because we never described what we saw in a proper way. I remember one case in Rugova for example, it’s a difficult case. Even though it didn’t happen to us, one’s daughter was killed, her husband had killed her. We went two-three times in preparations, the old man wouldn’t…”It’s not possible!” he’d say. That Sunday, when we went, Azem Shkreli, Bajram Kelmendi were both from Rugova, Ramiz Kelmendi from…professor Anton was in Drenica. Out of fear, I said, “Azem, I am afraid it will be difficult because the team has weakened.” We had to split in two groups, I said, “And we have remained a few men,” you know, in that respect. Azem as Azem said, “Riza, men have to be in Rugova now, we have to…burrëni is not what they ask from us, they ask them for it, because they will forgive [the blood]. We went to the old man’s and he didn’t want to forgive the blood. He said , “See, they’ve…” and tells how his daughter was killed, “they left me with two orphans.” He says, “The orphans wake up at night, and…” because they witnessed how their mother was killed, “They still have psychological problems.” And, Azem was Azem, Azem Shkreli, I mean, he had an extraordinarily convincing vocabulary, and started to convince him.
He said, “Oh men, I haven’t got anyone to forgive it to, because if I had someone, I would forgive it.” Azem said, “We don’t know that person, and we are not asking you to forgive it on his behalf. But even your orphans, for whom there are people fighting, even they will take the favors of this forgiveness, because we will establish a Kosovo in which they will grow up as they should. And not one like the one we have today.” And it’s…each time Azem with professor Mark, Bajram…would convince one. There was a neighbor there who said, “Oh men, he will forgive it but it is a bit difficult because you cannot find a girl like his in seven villages. I was close to him when they brought his dead daughter. You didn’t see what I saw. He will forgive, but not today…you know, he would ruin the situation.” At some point, Azem said to him, “Man, not all of those who eat from your bread, wish you good. That is why, for Kosovo’s good…” they convinced the man, he forgave the blood. When he forgave, he said, “Now, you have to drink some coffee.” “Alright, since you forgave the blood.” While having coffee, the neighbor said, “Well,” he said, “I was certain that even if the whole Kosovo forgave it, you wouldn’t, because you used to be brave, a real man” (sighs). The girl’s father sighed and said, “Men, to be honest, God already forgave him, because after he killed our daughter and got out of prison, I followed him in order to kill him. And some time later he went to Peja with his mother to sell dairy products. But how can one kill another when he is with his mother, one can never do that. I won’t kill him, I would have no morals if I killed the killer while he is with his mother. In the evening I saw him alone, I went near him in order to kill him, and when I got close, I wanted to face him, because it’s not fair to kill somebody from behind. I heard him talk to his friend, because he asked him, ‘Where did your mother go?’ He said, ‘Mother went to buy a samun, because we haven’t eaten for the whole day and I am dying from hunger.’ In that moment,” he says, “somehow my father called me from his grave and said, ‘You can’t kill a hungry man because the moral code of Albanian says so,’ and I said. I will kill him after one week. One week passed, then another one, but he didn’t go out, and it seems I didn’t forgive him, but God did.”
Then we would discuss it with Azem Shkreli, “Riza,” he’d say, “there’s no code nor book nor movie in the world that says that the hungry man cannot be killed, it’s only in the Albanians’ code. It only exists in the moral code of Albanians that a hungry man cannot be killed.” Eh, I said it many times, if we had a state, a movie should’ve been created for this man, because the hungry man cannot be killed. You cannot find such a moral code anywhere in the world. So, in the Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliations I saw the positive national side of ours as well as the killings that don’t serve us that much.
Jeta Rexha: How many bloods were forgiven in total by the end of this process?
Riza Krasniqi: See, there are statistics for which we cannot be very thankful, because every blood [feud] is a history in itself. That is why let’s say, it always bothered me, “No, I participated in this number of blood [feuds].” “No, I participated in this number of reconciliations.” “No…according to some notes, because the Movement continued even after the 1st of May, even though with a lower intensity.” Somewhere it’s manipulated, not manipulated, but it is said that around 1500-1600 families and bloods were reconciled . But if 1500 multiplies by two, then it’s 3000 families. If each of those families had five other families, which I said before were directly or indirectly involved, then we have 15.000 families. If these 15.000 are counted in a village, one member, with an average of ten members, then we have 150.000 people involved here. And we concluded that after the Movement, 150.000 people were allowed to breathe freely. Without counting the other benefits.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: How did you spend the time of war? The war, how did it find you in Peja? How did you get over it, what did you do?
Riza Krasniqi: (Sighs) The war, how…when the war started in Peja, I went to Ulcinj with my family, we stayed in Ulcinj all the time. My wife was pregnant and had other problems with which…of course when we came back from the war, everything was burned. But, I repeat, the pleasure that now we are free and the first visit I made after I came back and saw the completely burned house was at my father’s grave, where I talked to him for around half an hour and told him, “Father, there’s no Serbs in Peja anymore, we are liberated, sleep calmly!” As I said before, I always felt bad because my father was born and died under Serbian occupation. He was born in 1919 and died in 1996. And when I would say, “Father, say something,” because one wants to…”Son,” he would say, “what do I say, I was born under Serbs and I am dying under them.” An atmosphere…and my father’s greatest prayer was, “For the sake of Albania’s time!” When…those three years of Greater Albania here were the only years he enjoyed. I am telling you that it’s a conversation that….I would talk , but I didn’t know whether my father was believing me or not (smiles), in that style.
After the war we continued moving on and working. We didn’t take advantages of those activities and so on because… I consider that one is obliged, I am saying obliged with capital letters, to work for the national issue, because I don’t understand people who say, “I am contributing to my family.” Because to me, the family and our state are like siamese brothers, even more tightly bonded. And one cannot say, “I have a happy family” in a non-developed state. To me, the state is even more important, the permanent family, as I said, more than the family, because a developed state makes even a middle class family move forward, while a non-developed state destroys even the best family. If most youth aim to live abroad, then where is… where is our goal.
That’s why I am telling you that I’ve always tried to work for this country, even as a professor in the gymnasium, and…it doesn’t mean that we all have to engage in big businesses. To me a real patriot is the one who does their job as professor the way they should do it, because one can show their patriotism everywhere. To me a good patriot today is a good journalist who does his job in a loyal way.
For example, at that time…because one can and has to always work for the national issue. Earlier you mentioned the years ‘90 and ‘99, at that time I was working at a jeweller in Peja, as an adviser of Sali Kastrati. At that time we knew how to specify it this way, all of the Peja students who had the average grade over eight, were given a scholarship of 100 marks. The whole long qarshi of Peja gave money for the students. The only condition was not to cheat. Where was the aim? The aim at that time was for the student to think how to make their average grade over eight, not think who was the member of the commision. Not think of how to find intercessions in order to get the scholarship, but think of how to make the grade. When they made the grade, society would think of them. Some time ago I publicly said that…to me even today, maybe because I worked for a long time in education, but I believe the expression, “Where the education is sick, the state is sick as well.” This is a Latin one. I still think that if the Education Minister had came out with a declaration that all the Kosovars who register in the top one hundred best Universities in the world, will be provided the scholarship from the state…money for the students. The only condition was not to cheat. Where was the aim? The aim at that time was for the student to work in order to have an average grade over eight.
Automatically, the level in high schools would raise not to say by one hundred percent, because high school students would no longer think about, “Who is a member of the [admission] committee for Medicine? Whom can I find to intervene?” These are the conversations in our schools. But they would think how to study and register in the university, because one knows that not interventions, but knowledge, is what will help them to register in good international universities. First, this way we would show them that we have a state for our youth, second, I would say to my son, “Study, son, you have the state, it provides the education for you, don’t ask for anything from me.” And he would not think about interventions any longer. Because today he thinks, he says, “Father…” I keep asking Drin to study. He studies, but he says, “Father, the other one told me one hundred times, ‘You don’t have a good intervention that will help you register in a good faculty, we cannot register you without interventions.’ Why should I study?” And I am in a bad position as a parent. In this aspect, I mentioned the case before…of the old man with whom I had coffee in Peja. The desk mate [of his son] who was married that day, we drank those coffees in tears that day. And I thanked him.
Let’s go back to the topic of the conversation. “Thank you because your case was…” He said, “No, thank you.” He told me his case. He said, “You know I have another son?” I said, “Yes,” he said, “Had I not forgiven [the blood],” he said, “the other son was supposed to kill the guy,” to avenge his brother’s blood, that was considered normal. He said, “Had he killed him, today my son would be in prison.” But the blood was forgiven. After it was forgiven, my son continued his studies. He continued school, his studies. And at some point he said, “My son graduated from University two months ago,” he said, “the day he graduated was the most…I never felt happier since my little son was killed.” And I told him, I said, “Since your son graduated, then wait for us next week, because we are coming.” He said, “Why are you coming?” Because he told me that…. When he told the case of the wedding, “There,” he said, “the flag is waving. They are eating meat and pie, my son is eating dust.” You know, he had those…
Before the war, I had a friend from the Netherlands and when he came to my place, which is a true story, we looked at the photographs and he saw a photograph of my wedding in 1990, the flag was in front of the door. “Riza, this flag?” I said, “When I got married,” he shaked his head {shakes his head}. “Why?” he said, “In our region, in the Netherlands, we put the flag when someone graduates, because that’s a national holiday.” I said, “No, we put it when we get married,” He said, “Riza, even a fool can get married, shall we put the national flag when a fool gets married, does the whole nation get happy when the fool gets married?” He made me think, “National happiness,” he said, “Is when someone graduates, because that’s the day when an intellectual who will help is born.” And I told the old man, “We are coming in two weeks and raise the flag because your son graduated, because that’s when the nation is happy.”
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Did you go back to teaching after the war?
Riza Krasniqi: No, because I had some other plans and realized other…teaching didn’t provide me with some…to help the children’s education. It was a bit problematic to…because the greatest problem in life is the balancing of short-term interest and the long-term one. We are often deceived by the short-term interest. Short-term interest is let’s say, to sleep, to rest, to say it’s ok because I will finish my homework tomorrow, there’s time for it. The short-term interest has often destroyed our long-term one even in the national issue. It’s good to manage a balance between these two interests. But truly, our long-term interest, the greatest long-term interest of all of us is to invest in our state. Because I say that if our children go abroad, we are to be blamed, not them. If we don’t establish a state which they will love, we are to be blamed, not them.
Because to me it was a misfortune, or…yes it is a misfortune, in these last years, most of the weddings or kanagjegj we are invited to, the boy lives here and the girl abroad or vice-versa. It’s a misfortune when one student of mine, five-six years ago, asks me, “Professor, is it better to live in Germany or in Switzerland?” I said, “Why?” She says, “Because I have two offers to get married, one of them is in Germany and the other in Switzerland, with documents, they offered me.” I said, “What about the boys, which one of them is better? Do you look at the boy, is the one from Germany better?” “Professor,” she said, “I don’t know any of them, but I am asking you where is it better to live?”
You know, we have arrived to a point that to me is a national misfortune, marriages for documents. I will marry someone from Germany because they have the documents. Now, most of the weddings I went to last year, in Peja, are like this. It’s a misfortune when an old man in Strellc invites you for dinner and celebrates because his only son has received the German documents, he got married to a girl from Germany. What does the old man celebrate? His loneliness and the lost son? But I don’t blame the boy, I don’t blame the youth. We are to be blamed, my generation, if we don’t establish a Kosovo which our children will love as much as they should and the way they should. This is our greatest interest and our long-term interest which we have to work on.
Jeta Rexha: Mister Riza, can I ask you something…
Riza Krasniqi: Ask as much as you want, don’t feel bad (smiles).
Jeta Rexha: When you spoke to us a little about your grandfather Cen Avdyli, who has a song [written about him], how is it?
Riza Krasniqi : Does it seem personal?
Jeta Rexha: Well, that’s actually the idea. If you want.
Riza Krasniqi: No, I say it with pride, because I am proud of him.
Jeta Rexha: I think it would complete it a bit.
Riza Krasniqi: Alright, alright, I don’t want to do the unscrupulous promotion of myself.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: No, it’s the family education and your tradition that was followed generation after generation. It’s what we need now.
Riza Krasniqi: I told you that my father, always in the Božić night, gathered us, and the topic was how his father was killed. Ahmet Riza was my father, which means that in the village they called them based on their parents. I carry the name of my grandfather.
Our nation always loved the brave ones, and they sang a song to him. The song of Cen Avdyli, if you search for it in the internet today, it’s clicked pretty much, the Vëllazërit Qetaj sing it, there are a few versions of it. But, an old man, I mean when one wants to fight, they find the way. My father always gathered us in the night of Božić, he raised us with this…the family history was mentioned in each Božić night, how Serbs destroyed my father’s future. That is why in my family we never said good things about Serbs, because they destroyed my family’s future, and left my father alone when he was only three months old. I told you, my father died without knowing what father, mother, brother, sister and family is. We were all he had. This is…the environment my family and I were raised in.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Do you tell this story to your children, have you followed it?
Riza Krasniqi: Yes, even though the children now…I know, in the beginning, when they were little, the CD came out and I played it many times with pride. My daughter who was seven years old, six years and a half, the second one said, “Father, change it.” I said, “Why? It’s the song of your grandfather.” She said, “Let Genta sing it father.” I said, “But Genta doesn’t sing this kind of songs” (smiles). She said, “Well, if Genta doesn’t sing it, then…” (smiles), this is it. You know, it’s normal that…the family is holy in every international culture, the family is the cell. The importance of the family, the importance of the education is the first…it’s that great that…but, every time is changing a bit, they say, “Walk with time’s step.” I am telling you that today to me my children are more important, if they study, because I publicly said it and will say it again, if for example, the success is there and children are here {shows with his hands}, the only way is the book. The only way to achieve success is through knowledge.
No matter that in some certain moments, it seems a difficult road…no matter that it seems that some cheater is achieving success by cheating on the other side. No matter some moments of demotivation, “This cheater who never knew anything in their own life achieved so much by cheating.” I want to believe and I believe that knowledge is the only way in life, the only way to success. That is why even today I try to teach my children that they will be successful through knowledge. Other ways can bring you to a momentary wealth, but it’s not a way to success.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Do you have something to add, something that would complete the story?
Riza Krasniqi: An appeal to my generation, to work for this youth. We have an excellent youth that no one else in the world has. Sometimes with some heavy actions, we succeed in destroying their future. So, let’s think a bit further, let’s think about a state where our youth would find themselves. Let’s not think about how to make our youth go to Germany or America. But let’s try our best to create that Germany as much as we can within Kosovo, this would be my message.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Can you tell us something about Nurie Zekaj, since she was your student?
Riza Krasniqi: I talk about Nurie with pleasure, because she was my student in Peja at that time, and she was one of the best students. Beside being a good student in school, Nurie had some other virtues which were rare at that time. Nurie is one of the first who was engaged in writing and she has a book of poems which was published after her death. She was engaged in the national issues and had a close relation to Hava Shala, I think she was her paternal aunt’s daughter. She also was in the Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliation from the first day. But unfortunately her days were cut very early because she died in a suspicious death during one trip with a friend of hers from Macedonia who was an activist too, she died in a traffic accident which is very suspicious for that time. At that time, we didn’t have the means to prove that it was caused by the State Security more than by human mistake. But I always remembered Nurie with respect and I always will. She came from a very honest family from Raushiq, a family that was constantly engaged in the national issue. She was in the group as I mentioned, during the reconciliations, in the group of girls. Each time we gave up in men’s odë, they would continue their work for reconciliation.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: When did her accident happen?
Riza Krasniqi: In 1990.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: After the reconciliations or during?
Riza Krasniqi: No, it happened during.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Was it part of political pressure or persecution? I mean, was there pressure on the girls who were engaged in reconciliation?
Riza Krasniqi: We constantly had pressure from State Security, but there were different pressures. After some time, they were smart, and had they killed someone at that time, it would have a counter effect. I told you the case when we went to one, they told him, “We will give you the weapon.” We constantly had pressure.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Were they followed?
Riza Krasniqi: But if it wasn’t for those pressures, the Movement for Blood Feud Reconciliations wouldn’t have happened. It was exactly those pressures that brought us to the Movement for Blood Feuds Reconciliations.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Any other comment, anything you remember related to Nurie, her writings?
Riza Krasniqi: As every young poet, she had pleasure when she wrote something, and couldn’t wait to…maybe because I was closer in character, “Professor, how does it look, how…?” There was an extraordinary pleasure in her face when she wrote three lines. And of course, as a professor, it’s your obligation to motivate her. I’d say, “Bravo Nurie, bravo. You’re a young poet…” “Only a poet?” “No, you will achieve much more in life.” And I honestly believed she would achieve much more in life, but great misfortunes happen, what can we do… they are part of life.
Erëmirë Krasniqi: Thank you very much!