Professor of sociology at the University of Pristina, Shemsi Krasniqi, presented today the findings of the research "Memory in the Face of Forgetting", conducted together with students of the Department of Sociology, which addresses the experiences of those expelled from Serbia during the war in Kosovo, KosovaPress reports.
Krasniqi announced that the research had begun by chance, at the request of Professor Muhamedin Kullashi for the 10th anniversary of the exodus as a result of Serbia's actions for the ethnic cleansing of Albanians in Kosovo.
The research involved students from the Department of Sociology, who conducted around 300 interviews with survivors, while around 256 of them were selected for analysis, collected in four phases of research.
Describing the horrors of the time, Krasniqi said that Pristina resembled a “city of horror,” with a frightening silence and constant uncertainty. He emphasized the organization of residents for vigilance, care, and solidarity, as well as the importance of international media for information, despite the abundant misinformation.
"Pristina in those days resembled a city of horror. Everything was chaotic. In fact, a terrifying silence reigned, a silence that put fear in the core and warned that something bad would happen, the end would come. It was dangerous and uncertain to go out on the street, we were also in danger at home. Before leaving the house, we were forced to keep watch in our village, in the neighborhood. Every two hours we were on guard. Each family had a specific and comprehensive schedule as in and we took care of the entire village. We dealt with guarding, we dealt with all-round assistance as in the village, as in the families. At every moment we were ready, careful for each other, we had, that is, guards and guardianship and solidarity, were present in those days", said Krasniqi.
A special part of the research is dedicated to memories of leaving home in 1999. Interviewees recall taking photographs as souvenirs, the reluctance of the elderly to leave, painful family separations, and the feeling of leaving home for the last time.
“The day of leaving home, the moment in my memory from 1999. These are some statements, some sayings from the first research, that is, 2009. I remember well when my old mother told me, 'son, take the photos, take them because you have all the memories of this place in them'. A large-caliber bullet hit part of the house. Another says this. Another says, the parents stayed at home, they didn't think of leaving the house. This problem has been mentioned a lot, because in many cases, the parents, the elderly, because not parents now, we young people are parents too, but the elderly, the parents of the elderly or grandparents eventually, have insisted on staying at home and not leaving the house. The separation has been painful and very complex. We set off alone with the sky above our heads and we didn't know where we were going. In the end, I only got a few photo albums. Once again I look at the house, the neighborhood and the trees in the garden. It was the saddest night ever. We took the cooked bread, some cheese and salt. I stayed in the yard for a long time and looked at it as if it were the last time. I remember my dog who had accompanied me to the train. We got on and he was looking at us. The next word is, it seemed to me as if we were betraying him. And the last, is it life to return to our homes once again. This is one of those sayings of that time", he said.
He emphasized that in addition to the deportees, host families in North Macedonia were also interviewed. A case from Tetovo, according to him, testifies to the hospitality and emotional bonds created between host families and refugees, becoming important parts of the collective memory.
The war in Kosovo was accompanied by the massive expulsion of Albanians from their homes, culminating in the exodus of 1999, when hundreds of thousands of citizens were forced to leave. In the years after the war, the memory of these experiences risked fading, especially among the younger generations. It is in this context that the research “Memory versus Oblivion” was born, to document and preserve the collective memory of the war and the exodus./A2 CNN
