Prishtina, 6 March, 2024
As part of the state activities to honor and mark the 26th anniversary of the Epopee of the Kosovo Liberation Army, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, participated in the Memorial Academy dedicated to March 5, 6 and 7.
In his speech, Prime Minister Kurti said that “Although words follow thoughts and precede actions, words are always insufficient to convey both thoughts and actions. And in the case of the Epopee of the Liberation Army of Kosovo, this becomes an impossibility, so the song “I got words” also shows the limits of words.”
He added that the Epopee of the KLA is “26 years of glory, because every year that passes, the glory of the resistance of the Jasharaj of Prekazi keeps growing, just as the entire legacy of the history of the Kosovo Liberation Army keeps growing. On March 5, 6 and 7, 1998, Ademi with Hamza and father Shaban, as well as all the others who joined them that day and those who continued the path of their ideals in the following days, months and years, made history with the greatest dedication and the highest consciousness”.
In conclusion, the prime minister underlined that in the coming anniversaries of the KLA Epopee, we want to transform Prekazi into a historical landscape, which will be dignified to preserve and cultivate the entire history of the Jashari resistance and what it represents for us, but also for the world.
“Since we are dealing with an event and a historical figure that surpasses us. It surpasses us as a people because it stands for universal freedom. Therefore, this is the way we should and will appear to the world, not only to ourselves”, said the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Kurti’s complete speech at the Memorial Academy marking the 26th anniversary of the KLA Epopee:
Dear Mr. Rifat,
Dear Jashari family,
Dear Ms. Besarta Jashari,
The honorable Mr. Glauk Konjufca, Speaker of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo,
Dear families of martyrs and martyrs of the nation, invalids and veterans of the liberation war,
Dear Members of the Assembly of the Republic, Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers of the Government,
Dear officers, generals and soldiers of our army,
Dear activists of the national issue,
Dear representatives and leaders of our state institutions,
Academics, professors, students,
The honorable historian, Mr. Durim Abdullahu,
Dear attendees,
Sisters and brothers,
Ladies and gentleman,
We started today with tributes at the “Adem Jashari” Memorial Complex in Prekaz and with a visit to the tower at Mr. Rifat, meanwhile we are closing this day of March 6 with a memorial academy here in Pristina.
Tonight we are taking the floor in this academy just like yesterday we “took the floor” in the Assembly of Kosovo for this story, just as the words about Adem Jashari are coming back to us, with the verses of the song “I got the word”. The song that was sung yesterday by the soldiers and officers of the Kosovo Security Force, in the barracks of Pristina, which is named after the Head commander Adem Jashari.
Although words follow thoughts and precede actions, words are always insufficient to convey both thoughts and actions. And in the case of the Epopee of the Liberation Army of Kosovo, this becomes its own impossibility, so the song “I got words” also shows the limits of words. The words that you probably can’t find, that you have to take and find somewhere and somehow, to explain or describe this unrepeatable Epopee with still unexhausted meaning. In other words, “mora fjalë” means that for this Epopee it is difficult to describe with words. Now you all know the lyrics of the song, which starts with what we are doing when we sing: ” Mora fjalë, mora vargun, mora qarkun me i thurr këngë “. So what are we doing? This is how the song starts, this is also the chorus. And then the second stanza, while trying to say something, we say “Qou Adem”. So it is impossible to go further than the first stanza without falling into action. And I believe that this is the reason why there are songs, but there are no lyrics. Only with the song with such a beautiful text and with an equally extraordinary melody, it has become possible to find something artistic that becomes culture since the heart of the people beats.
Dear attendees,
Last year we had the 25th jubilee anniversary of the Epopee of the Liberation Army of Kosovo, namely the epopee of the liberating soldiers, and this year, we have the 25th anniversary of the liberation of Kosovo. Liberators precede liberation, because their struggle is the precondition of freedom.
In the calendar of days marked in the Republic of Kosovo, the dates March 5, 6 and 7 are circled in red, while above them is written in capital letters: The Epopee of the Kosovo Liberation Army! This year, above these words, it is written: “26 years of glory”. It is 26 years of glory because every year that passes, the glory of the resistance of the Jasharaj of Prekaz grows, just as the entire legacy of the history of the Kosovo Liberation Army keeps growing. On March 5, 6 and 7, 1998, Ademi with Hamza and father Shaban, as well as all the others who joined them that day and those who continued the path of their ideals in the following days, months and years, made history with the greatest devotion and the highest consciousness.
Many witnesses and sources have recounted the events of those days in Prekaz, from the fighting on March 5 to the burial and reburial of those killed in the following days. Among them is the journalist Sabit Istogu, who in those days he had seen sheltered in the building of his house about 100 meters away from the positions of the police forces, from where he observed and reported for the media. In his book titled “The Roots of Freedom”, a narrative is articulated that follows the history of freedom fighters in Prekaz, which shows how not only Adem Jashari makes Prekaz, but also Prekazi makes Adem Jashari, since Ahmet Delia in 1912 and the resistance of Shaban Polluzha in 1945, to Tahir Meha in 1981, until the resistance of Jashar in 1998.
What remains for us today and for all the generations that will come in the future, is to take care of the great legacy that this history has produced. From the beginning, we have been committed with the greatest seriousness and care to design and implement the Project for the “Adem Jashari” Memorial Complex in Prekaz and to carry out the necessary remedial interventions. A lot of work has been done by the Interministerial Committee and especially by the Commission of Experts, as well as by various officials and professionals to realize this project, stage by stage and step by step.
In the coming anniversaries of the KLA Epopee, we want to transform Prekazi into a historical landscape, which will be dignified to preserve and cultivate the entire history of the Jasharaj resistance and what it represents for us, but also for the world. Since we are dealing with an event and a historical figure that surpasses us. It surpasses us as a people, because it stands for universal freedom. Therefore, this is the way we should and will appear to the world, not only to ourselves.
On March 5, 6 and 7, 1998, three days of fighting were fought in Prekaz, while tomorrow will be a total of 78 days spread over three days during these 26 years, which commemorate those three days of war. The years will pass and the days when we will remember them will be increased by three days each year, but beyond the three days of the KLA Epopee, the trophy of those days which is the freedom of our country and our people is lived for every day.
Glory to the life and heroic work of the Head commander Adem Jashari, the Jasharaj of Prekazi and all the martyrs of the nation at all times!
Thank you.
Last modified: March 7, 2024