Gjonaj, Prizren, 2 May, 2024
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, stayed in Gjonaj of Hasi, at the opening of the 35th edition of the Folklore Festival “Hasi Jehon 2024”, which is held on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the Hill of Reconciliation, Gjonaj village.
At the solemn opening of this festival, Prime Minister Kurti in his opening speech stated that “Hasi Jehon” has defied the difficulties and has strengthened in terms of quality, thus making it receive the epithet of one of the most important festivals of the source folklore of lands where Albanians live.
“For several decades ‘Hasi Jehon’ was the cultural and artistic meeting place of our cultural and artistic societies,” said Prime Minister Kurti.
As he spoke about raising the capacities for financial support from the Government of Kosovo, and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, he promised continuous support for ensembles, special projects, studies, publications and various activities throughout Kosovo. at the central and local level.
This year, the “Hasi Jehon” Folklore Festival celebrates the 35th anniversary of its artistic life, and like every other year, this year continues to bring a quality program, professionally chosen and presented with great care by our folklore bearers. Therefore, as the Prime Minister said, we see the “Hasi Jehon” festival as an unstoppable cultural activity and inseparable from our cultural heritage.
During his speech, Prime Minister Kurti emphasized that tradition, professionalism, the public, sincere cooperation, continuous seriousness have made this festival under the protection and support of the state of Kosovo.
He expressed his heartfelt gratitude and thanks for the organization, activities, commitment and tireless work of all the organizers of the festival, while he wished success to all the participants who participate with their performances in the festival, and the attendees a pleasant viewing and experience during the three nights that the festival lasts.
On this occasion, he called on them to come and visit Hasi and follow the festival in these three nights, because in this way they convey the cultural heritage everywhere, since as the Prime Minister described, the territory of Hasi is the heart of Albanianism.
Prime Minister Kurti’s complete speech:
The honorable, director of the “Hasi Jehon” Festival, Mr. Haziz Hodaj,
Dear cultural and artistic societies from Kosovo, Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and from our diaspora,
Dear art lovers,
Dear attendees,
Ladies and gentleman,
Sisters and brothers,
Our source folklore continues to echo every year in Hasi Jehon!
“Hasi Jehon” because our folklore has an echo, an echo that has not been stopped by any difficulty or challenge. Fortunately, our folklore is still alive and developing naturally distinct from other countries, where it can rarely be found as rich and varied as we find it across our lands.
Therefore, other peoples and other cultures have not stopped being amazed by our folklore, our culture, our autochthonous, and our identity, and here a very valuable contribution has been made by Hasi, this extraordinary good luck to our people and nation.
Faced with the difficult years from the last century to the present, “Hasi Jehon” has defied the difficulties and has been strengthened in terms of quality, taking the epithet of one of the most important festivals of the original folklore of the lands where Albanians live. Tradition, professionalism, public, sincere cooperation, continuous seriousness have made this festival under the protection and support of the state of Kosovo.
For several decades “Hasi Jehon” was the cultural and artistic meeting place of our cultural and artistic societies. Even this year, traditionally, it continues strongly to bring a quality program, professionally chosen and presented with great care by our folklore bearers. In this place, on this stage, for years, our rich ethno-cultural heritage in general, especially the ethno-musical one, has been gathered, united and celebrated.
This year the festival completes 35 years of its artistic life, and all together, starting with you, the owners of the house here, the Hasjan public and all Albanians and foreigners, our state institutions and everyone else, we see the Hasi Jehon festival as cultural activity unstoppable and inseparable from our cultural heritage. As a result of your work, we have increased our expectations that this festival will develop and be enriched every year and more.
The Government of the Republic of Kosovo and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports have continuously raised the financial support capacities for all spheres of culture. By supporting in particular ensembles, special projects, various studies, publications and activities throughout Kosovo at the central and local level. In the same way, we have raised the reimbursement capacities at the institutional level for all actors, including all cultural institutions and in this case the folklore profile through the “Shota” Instrumental Vocal Ensemble.
As the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, we will always be close to our rich cultural heritage, we will help to preserve and document it, and in this way to cultivate it.
With the most heartfelt congratulations for the organization, the many activities and the tireless work, we wish success to all the participants, a pleasant viewing and experience to all those who will follow the festival during its three nights.
Acknowledgment, thanks to all those who work, who are committed to cultural heritage, for the “Hasi Jehon” festival, which echoes not only in Kosovo, but also abroad, not only for Albanians but also for others who are interested in us through to this very valuable echo of our common cultural heritage.
Thank you, and from here I call on as many citizens of the Republic of Kosovo as possible in these three nights and not only to come and visit them in order to take some cultural heritage from here and pass it on everywhere, because the land of Has is the heart of Albania.
Thank you!
Last modified: May 3, 2024