Hysen Sogojeva

The 1981 demonstrations

Despite the many interpretations, which in some cases can be contradictory, the demonstrations of 1981 remain one of the largest and most important events in the history of Kosovo. They mark the beginning of the strengthening of the dominance of Serbian politics within the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as the beginning of the process of suppressing the autonomy of Kosovo and the 1974 Constitution, which had advanced the political and social status of Albanians. At the same time, these events are also considered the beginning of the process that led to the dissolution of this federation and of the Yugoslav communist state itself.

March 11

The demonstrations first erupted at the Student Center in Prishtina on Wednesday evening, March 11, 1981, when students broke plates during dinner in the student cafeteria in protest. The immediate cause of this protest was the students' reasonable dissatisfaction with the poor food and housing conditions.

At that time I lived in Dormitory No. 3. Since the village of Graboc i Poshtëm belonged to the Municipality of Prishtina, it was difficult to secure a place in the dormitories, due to the criterion that students from the Municipality of Prishtina could only be admitted if there were free places. For this reason, until a place was freed, I, together with Ibrahim Ramadani - who is today a university professor at the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, in the Department of Geography - slept in the same bed.

On the night of March 11, the entire dormitory was in turmoil and engulfed in an unusual atmosphere. In every room and corridor, there was talk of the protest that had begun during dinner in the student cafeteria. The students' conversations focused on the events that were taking place and the discontent that had spontaneously erupted among them.

Probably due to the fact that a football match between Prishtina and Partizan Belgrade was taking place at the Prishtina Stadium that same day, many citizens initially did not understand what was happening. Some of them thought that the people gathered in the street were simply football fans.

The protest that broke out in the student canteen had been planned the night before, on March 10, 1981, in room 312 of the student dormitory. Discussions about organizing a reaction regarding the improvement of the students' learning, housing and food conditions continued in room 310. Although I did not know them well, but only as students with whom I studied at the University of Prishtina at the time, according to the information that was circulating, the most vocal were Kadri Kryeziu, Ramadan Gashi, Bedri Deliu, Murat Musliu, Jonuz Jonuzi and Gani Koci, etc. Although they were students, I knew them only by sight and not by name, and I had no close contact with them. The demonstrations of March 11 continued until the early hours of the morning, when they were stopped after the intervention of the Militia forces.

March 25 and 26

In the demonstrations of the following days, on March 25 and 26, 1981, the structures of the Albanian political underground began to be involved, as well as various groups that began their organizational activities.

Until March 25, meetings were organized almost every night in small groups of students. In these meetings, there was constant discussion about the events of March 11, and especially about the fact that during this time the authorities had begun to summon many students to so-called “informational conversations,” including some of those suspected of being organizers of the protests.

On March 26, 1981, the Youth Relay, a symbolic organization of the then Yugoslavia that honored the figure of Josip Broz Tito, his birthday, and Youth Day, was expected to arrive in Pristina.

Since I was a student at the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences and lived in Dormitory No. 3, on the night of March 25, I did not stay in the dormitory, but stayed in the village with my family, so I was in my house in the village.

The next day I had lectures starting at 9:00, but first I had to go to the dormitory to get the books and notebooks needed for lectures.

As soon as I reached the space between Dormitory 1 and Dormitory 2, I saw a small group of people discussing the students' demands, which they began to read out loud. I moved closer to see and hear more clearly what was being said. Within a very short time, so many students had gathered that I was left in the middle of the crowd.

I knew the people who were speaking only by their faces and not by their names. As the talks continued, police officers began to gather, forming a perimeter and gradually surrounding us.

That same day, March 26, the arrival of the Tito Relay was planned, and various activities were expected to take place in the city center, which would continue all night at the Youth Palace with music and dancing.

However, the large crowd of students began to head towards the exit into the city, even though it was surrounded by police. During this time, as we were gathered almost all day, various citizens would occasionally bring us pies and other food.

Several academic and political figures, such as academician prof. dr. Gazmend Zajmi, rector, prof. Pajazit Nushi, as well as Azem Vllasi and Sanije Hyseni, arrived at the place where the students were giving speeches, and tried to calm the crowd. However, their efforts were in vain, as the participants were determined to continue the demonstrations. It is worth noting that the vast majority of professors at that time expressed support for the students.

The students came very close - only about five meters away - to receive the Tito Relay, with the intention of disrupting the plans and organizations foreseen for this event. Unfortunately, there were also those who continued the celebrations at the Youth Palace, guarding the relay with music and dance.

The red-and-black flag without the star, a powerful symbol of Albanian national identity, was raised for the first time in the demonstrations of March 26, 1981. Various slogans were used during the protests, expressing social discontent, political demands, and ideological influences of the time.

Among the slogans of a social nature were: "Someone in an armchair, someone without bread", "Until when in the cellar", "We demand better conditions", "Trepça works, Belgrade builds".

Slogans with political content included: “Republic, Constitution - here with hatred, here with war”, “We are Albanians, not Yugoslavs”, “Kosovo of Kosovars”, “We love our imprisoned comrades”, “Long live Adem Demaçi”, “Long live the brotherhood of the Albanian people”, “Union of Albanian lands”. Meanwhile, slogans inspired by the Enverist ideology of Albania at that time were also heard among the protesters, such as: “Long live Marxism-Leninism”, “Down with revisionism”, “No negotiations with the red bourgeoisie”, “Long live the working class”. One of the slogans that particularly impressed me was: “We are Albanians, not Yugoslavs”.

The police did not allow us to go out into the city and we stayed in that area until the afternoon. Around 16:00 PM, special units from Niš and Belgrade arrived and began attacking us from all sides. As a result, the crowd dispersed and everyone tried to flee in whatever direction they could.

I, along with a group of students, headed towards Dormitory No. 4. We went inside and climbed the stairs to the fourth floor. We entered several rooms and then went out onto the terrace to get some fresh air. The terrace was large and full of students,

The police had started throwing tear gas. They even managed to get inside the dormitory and were approaching us. At that moment we had two options to escape: to jump from the terrace to the ground - which some students did, or to go back inside and face the police. I chose the second option. I entered a room and then went out into the corridor, where I was confronted by the police cordon, which was lined up on both sides of the corridor. They started hitting us with every tool they had in their hands.

Luckily, I escaped with minor injuries on the fourth and third floors. However, on the second floor, a policeman hit me so hard that blood gushed from my nose and mouth, which would not stop. I remember that I was wearing a light-colored sweater and, to hide the blood, I turned the collar up and continued walking to get out. However, as soon as we got out, we were confronted again by the police, who backed us up near the student barracks.

Outside, ambulances were waiting to pick up the wounded, while some of us, leaning against the wall, waited for the trucks that would take us to the prisons. As I looked towards Dormitory No. 4, I began to lose my sight due to the heavy bleeding.

There was an Albanian policeman next to me. I asked him if I could go to the hospital because I wasn’t feeling well. He helped me and put me in an ambulance, where there was a nurse and a driver. On the way to the hospital, I started talking to the nurse, who carefully told me that the driver was Serbian.

I must emphasize that, because my father had been a member of the NDSh and had been sentenced to 15 years in prison, I tried at all costs to avoid falling into the hands of the police, as I knew that even more severe punishments could follow for me.

At the entrance to the hospital, near the roundabout, I thought about jumping out of the vehicle to escape, but the nurse begged me not to. In the end, we agreed that she would try to find a way to get me out of the hospital without falling into the hands of the police. Her name was Vjollca.

After we got to the hospital, the doctor checked me and put a bandage on my nose, but the bleeding still wouldn't stop. He also checked my left eye and told me that I had escaped by a millimeter, because - according to him - if the blow with the rod had been just a millimeter closer, it would have caused me to go blind.

The nurse told me to stay where she left me because she would try to help me leave. At that moment, only the doctor and another nurse were in the room. After a while, the doctor left and I was left alone with the nurse.

She asked me my name and suggested that I not give my real name. I told her to write it however she wanted. The hospital where I was was the gynecology hospital, while today the surgery is located in that place. With the application of bandages and the passage of time, the bleeding began to stop and I began to recover.

I was on the second floor of the hospital and approached the window. I thought I could get out of there, but at that moment the nurse approached me and asked me what I was doing. I told her my plan, while she begged me not to jump. However, I grabbed the rainwater gutter and, thanks to my height, managed to jump. But when I fell to the ground, I hit the concrete hard and seriously injured my knees.

At that moment, three pregnant women saw me, who immediately approached and surrounded me, so that I would not be noticed by the police, who were everywhere. They accompanied me to the workers' barracks, where I mingled with them to avoid being noticed by the police.

When I met the workers, one of them, who had fortunately bought a bean that day, gave it to me and even helped me clean the blood from my eyes and face.

Meanwhile, it was getting dark and I was thinking about how to leave to go to the village. I noticed that there were a lot of police on the side of Uglareve and Fushë Kosovës, so I decided to head towards Babush i Muhaxherevë, where my sister lived. I started walking, passing by the hospital that is now a neuropsychiatric hospital, and ended up in Veternik. It was dark, but fortunately, because the road was damaged, the bus driver noticed me, stopped and I got on the bus from the front door.

When the driver saw my condition, he picked up a passenger and put me in the front seat. He asked me to remain quiet and not be noticed, because - according to him - there were two Albanian spies on the bus who were checking the passengers.

When we passed the village of Llugagji, he told me that we were now calmer, because those people had probably gotten off the bus. When we reached the entrance to Babushi i Muhaxherëve, the driver offered to take me by bus to my sister's house, but I thanked him and told him that I would continue on my own.

I arrived at my sister's at around 22:15 PM. She was, of course, very shocked to see me in that condition. She and her family tried to give me first aid. We cleaned my eyes and wounds, while I also had a high fever. I stayed there for two nights. That same night, my son-in-law Hasani drove up and informed my family that I was with them and that, despite my wounds, I was fine.

After two days my brother Islami came and we returned home. My cousins ​​and uncles had gathered there, and when they saw me in that state they started crying. Mixha Avdi Sogojeva scolded me in a way. He said that my father Veseli (Boll Bali) had suffered a lot in prisons and asked me why I was getting involved in these events. However, this same uncle was wounded in the leg with three bullets during the demonstrations of April 1 and 2, and his story was in many ways similar to mine.

About two weeks later, not wanting to miss lectures, I started going to the faculty again. However, my wounds were clearly visible. During Professor Enver Dukagjini's lecture, in the Human Ecology course, the professor noticed me. After the lecture ended, he asked me to go to his office and asked me where I was hurt.

I told him what had happened. He said, "Please, my son, I will excuse you for missing lectures. Until you recover, don't come to the faculty."

He then told me some of his experiences from the time he was imprisoned in the infamous Goli Otok prison.

After this meeting, I did not continue my studies for a while, until I fully recovered.

During this time, several meetings of the Communist League were held at the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (FShMN). Unfortunately, there were also professors who condemned the demonstrations and demanded punitive measures against the participating students. However, after I resumed lectures, professors Asllan Pushka and Hivzi Islami invited me to their office and informed me that six students, including me, were on the list for expulsion from the University. Both professors clearly told me that if they left the faculty, then we would leave too. And so it happened: thanks to the support of the absolute majority of professors, who stood on our side, most of us students escaped punishment.

April 1, 2 and 3

After the events of March, students took to the streets and squares, and among them were also schoolchildren. In these days, a harsh and brutal reaction of the special forces of the militia followed in the Student Center, where many young men and women were beaten in the dormitories. This situation caused the demonstrations to take on a nationwide character on April 1, causing the student revolt to spread throughout Kosovo.

On April 1 and 2, 1981, in addition to Pristina, demonstrations also took place in Podujevo, Vushtrri, Viti, Lipjan, Ferizaj, Mitrovica, Gjakova, Gjilan, Prizren and many other parts of Kosovo. Hundreds of thousands of Albanian students, workers and citizens participated in these mass protests, demanding equality and political rights.

The main demand was Kosovo's equality with the other republics of the former SFRY, articulated with the motto: "Republic - Constitution, here with hatred, here with war". This demand remained the slogan and main goal of Albanian demonstrations and political movements from 1981 until the liberation of Kosovo in June 1999.

At that time, the 1981 population census had also begun. We students were assigned by the Local Community of Bardhit i Madh to participate as members of the population census groups. For the village of Graboc i Poshtëm, I and Ibrahim Berisha (now a radiologist) were assigned, while the leader of our group was Ismajl Sogojeva, responsible for the population census in several villages of the municipality of Prishtina.

On April 1, 1981, a meeting with the workers of the Bardhi i Madh Open-pit Mine was announced, where over two thousand workers were expected to participate, as well as the then political representative Xhavit Nimani. When we realized that this gathering was being held, we decided to join the workers' protest. We interrupted the population census work, while we were in the field in the Berishëve (Rranollëve) neighborhood, and we agreed to meet at Ibrahim's house, from where we would go together to the protest.

I took a white piece of fabric (a duvet cover) from home. I met my fiancée Zade, and together with Ibrahim's two sisters, Buqe and Fatmira, we started writing slogans with colored pencils. One of them, inspired by the demonstrations of March 26, was: "We are Albanians, not Yugoslavs."

With this slogan we set off towards the protest site. When we arrived at the entrance to the complex - the Bardhit i Madh Surface Mine, over two thousand workers had gathered there, as well as many students, among them Osmon Maxhera, Ejup Breznica and others.

Since the protest was organized by the workers of this combine, I asked some of them to raise the slogan in a place visible to the crowd. Most found reasons not to do so. Meanwhile, Ibrahim was with another group on the other side of the crowd, where the cheers continued without interruption. Then I decided to raise the slogan myself, placing it high on a bulldozer-excavator that was nearby. The slogan immediately received a great response. The crowd also started chanting other slogans such as: “We want a Republic!”, “Republic, Constitution - here with hatred, here with war!” and many others, even while Xhavit Nimani was giving a speech.

This demonstration organized by the workers significantly influenced the increase in the awareness of the people, making it clear that these were just demands and that, sooner or later, victory would be achieved.

As a result of my participation in the demonstrations of March 26 and April 1, 2 and 3, 1981, as well as the fact that my father had been sentenced to 15 years in prison in Niš as a member of the NDSh, I, although I graduated in 1982 and received the title of professor, remained unemployed for a long time. I applied to almost every primary and secondary school in the municipality of Prishtina, both in the city and in the villages, but without success.

So, the protests that had begun on March 4 and 5, continued on March 11 and March 26, intensified and took on the proportions of a popular uprising on April 1, 2 and 3, 1981.

The 1981 demonstrations remain an important historical event, a powerful foundation of the movement for freedom and independence of Kosovo.

During the protests, the police forces of the SFRY, namely Serbia, killed 11 demonstrators. In the center of Pristina, at the forefront of the demonstrations on April 2, high school graduates Naser Hajrizi and Asllan Pireva heroically fell. More than 150 people were injured by gunfire - among them my uncle, Avdi Rexhep Sogojeva, who was wounded by three bullets in the leg. In addition, tens of thousands of participants in the demonstrations, organizers and members of the Patriotic Movement groups, were arrested and convicted by the authorities of the time.

The movement for the Republic of Kosovo, which gained momentum with the demonstrations of 1981, was later crowned with the victory of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) war in June 1999, while Kosovo declared independence on February 17, 2008.

Initially, the Provincial Committee of the Communist League of Kosovo described the demonstrations of March 11 as a revolt of a social nature. However, at the meeting of March 28, 1981, the demonstrations of March 11 and 26 were declared “hostile”. Meanwhile, on April 2, 1981, at the joint meeting of the Presidency of the Central Committee of the Communist League of Serbia and the Presidency of the Republic of Serbia, the demonstrations were described as “destructive”, with the claim that they aimed at destabilizing the constitutional system, undermining brotherhood and unity and overthrowing the political system.

A day later, on April 3, 1981, at the joint meeting of the Presidency of the Federal Executive Council and the Presidency of the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, the demonstrations were described as "irredentist", "nationalist", and even "counter-revolutionary".

The demonstrations of 1981 represent an awakening of the Albanian people from a long period of oppression and stagnation. They paved the way for the Albanian people of Kosovo to achieve liberation and full independence from Serbia. These demonstrations constitute an event of great historical and national importance, because they were a continuation of the efforts of the Albanian people for freedom and self-determination, efforts that were later crowned with the glorious war of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

In this historical context, international support, especially that of the United States of America, has been of particular importance for the processes that led to the liberation and state-building of Kosovo.

Personally, I feel very lucky to belong to this glorious generation. I am grateful to God for giving me the health, mind and courage to be part of the Kosovo Liberation Army, in the 4th Platoon, with Commander Dini (Abedin) Sogojeva, in the Second Company of the First Battalion of the 114th Brigade “Fehmi Lladrovci”, until the end of the war. Today I proudly hold the status of a Combat Veteran of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

I hope and believe that we will continue our efforts and work to build and strengthen our state, for which many lives have been sacrificed.

Kosovo's relations with the US and the EU

If we start from the current relations between the two governments, we can see a deterioration in their quality. This has been confirmed by representatives of the American Government, as well as by those who represent the American state in Kosovo. The deterioration of relations is mainly due to the lack of coordination of the actions of the Government of Kosovo with international allies, mainly with the USA, but also with the European Union and its member states.

International relations may be affected by these main factors: The lack of coordination between the actions of the Government of Kosovo and international allies, which is leading to the deterioration of relations; the importance of coordination, to avoid negative consequences and to maintain the stability of Kosovo's foreign policy; respect for allies, including the US and the EU, as a key element for continued and fruitful cooperation; appreciation of the international contribution, recalling that the US, the EU and Western European countries have provided and continue to provide great support for Kosovo's state-building.

It is important that the government and citizens of Kosovo constantly recall the extraordinary contribution of the US and the EU, as well as respect international partners, who are an essential part of the country's security and stability.

I appeal that relations with the US and the international community not be affected in any way, as they are vital for Kosovo and for all the Albanian people.

My story and the recounting of the events of those difficult times in Kosovo remind us that we must cherish freedom, respect the contribution of those who gave everything, so that we today can live without fear and build the future with hope.

Glory to all those who fell for freedom!

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