The president's silence about the great friend of the Albanians

The year 2023 marks the 100th anniversary of his death Aubrey Herbert, the British soldier, diplomat and politician who went down in history as the greatest friend of Albanians and as a champion of Albania's independence. This was the reason that a group of intellectuals and activists in London sent a proposal to the President of the Republic of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, for the decoration of this very important personality for Albanians.

In the part of the proposal, as required by formality, we presented the reasoning why Aubrey Herbert should be decorated, giving the reasons for the extraordinary contribution, as well as noting that in this way it contributes even further to the cultivation of friendly relations between Kosovo and Great Britain.

In a separate section, we also sent a short biography of this personality, emphasizing that among Albanians, he is one of the main heroes. So, we noted briefly that Aubrey Herbert, appearing openly as a friend of the Albanians, had made a great contribution to the popularization of the Albanian cause in the British newspapers and public opinion at that time; highlighting Kosovo as Albanian territory; founding the Albanian Committee through which he brought the Albanian delegation to London in 1913, to influence the process of the London Conference; because of his close social connection with Isa Boletini; his commitment to the recovery of the Albanian state after the irreplaceable activity he had shown at the Paris Peace Conference (1918), where Albania's sovereignty was endangered; his humanitarian activity in Albania and Kosovo, as well as the commitment he made through the British government, putting pressure on the Belgrade government so that the Albanians who remained in Yugoslavia were not mistreated...

We presented other details and sent the request to President Osmani on December 28, 2022. We waited a few weeks to receive the usual response that official bodies send: "We thank you for the proposal, which we will consider and notify you with time".

A few more weeks passed and even this necessary answer did not come. So I contacted one of the president's advisers to find out why there was no response. Even the counselor made some 'evasions' to avoid the answer. Then, towards the middle of April, I wrote to the president again. In vain. The president does not answer. She has decided to remain silent.

But why is the president silent?

Such requests are not passed over in silence and she should know this. It is difficult to know exactly the reason for the silence since there is no answer. Perhaps the president does not think this group of ours is worthy to present these proposals. However, she cannot now say that she has no knowledge of who Aubrey Herbert is. But silence in this case not only opens up the possibility that the assumptions will be proven correct, but also has the meaning of hidden rejection.

No matter how the job stands, Aubrey Herbert cannot be turned down. Therefore, President Vjosa Osmani should definitely decorate this friend of ours, the greatest we have had.

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