The Wretched Situation of Albanians in Southern Serbia

The following article is an extension to a previous paper on " The Silent Ethnic Cleansing of Albanians in Southern Serbia ” , which can be read on my profile.

The Albanian minority in Southern Serbia have been living in a state of marginalization, discrimination and neglect for decades. The Passivation of Residential Addresses is still taking place, even though there seems to have been some sort of mentioning of it by the European Parliamenent, but we still cannot talk of a solution taking place any time soon, as long as the current regime stands.

Poverty and unemployment are rampant, while education and healthcare facilities are substandard or non-existent. This has resulted in an exodus of Albanian youth to neighbouring Kosovo or abroad, in an attempt to fulfill their dreams and ambitions, or put simply : to just pursue an education like normal people would do. The plight of the Albanian minority in Southern Serbia needs to be addressed in order to ensure the future of this region and the people inhabiting it.

Education

When Kosovo declared independence, Serbia prohibited the import of Albanian-language textbooks, preventing children in those territories from receiving an education in their mother tongue. This mostly pertains to geography and history curriculum. Milan Markovic, a former education minister, stated in 2011 that Albanians were justifiably frustrated with primary and secondary school textbooks, and that "the education system is the weakest link in the government's policy in Bujanovac and Pre?evo" because :

"for nearly 20 years, Albanian children have been learning from lecture summaries, illegal textbooks that deviate from the curriculum or from what they have written down,"

and that "it is high time that the Ministry of Education took a more serious approach to solving that problem in accordance with Serbian law and the practice that applies to other national minorities”.

The genuine solution to this problem has only lately begun. After 20 years, primary school children in Bujanoc, Preshev?, and Medvegja who attend Albanian language classes began the 2020 school year with new textbooks. According to Ragmi Mustafa, President of the Albanian National Minority Council, students (4,052 in total) would be able to learn from the same texts as their peers from Tirana, Shkodra, and Vlora. In addition to the Albanian Ministry of Education, from whence the books were obtained, Kosovo authorities provided approximately 140,000 euros for the textbooks, which were distributed free of charge.

The history textbook is the most contentious and controversial topic, because it portrays the leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army, Adem Jashari, as a hero who battled against Serbian security forces. More than 100,000 textbooks brought from Kosovo to Serbia by the Ministry of Education were seized at Serbian customs. Albanians sought assistance from then-Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, but he brushed it aside, to no avail.

"Classes are held using textbooks recognized by the ministry and translated into Albanian," claim Albanian teachers. They believe that the matter is not urgent and that complete collaboration between Serbian educational authorities and the work of the Albanian National Minority Council, which deals with education, is required to harmonize textbook material, particularly in social sciences. Another issue arises when translating textbooks. Actually, the textbooks must be translated from Albanian into Serbian, then back into Albanian. The translation into Albanian is quite poor, with numerous ludicrous errors and blunders.

According to professors from Preshev?, the state is not even bothering to teach students Serbian, despite the fact that Albanians need to know that language. Schools in Preshev? do not have digital gradebooks, and they have not had a hard-copy gradebook in Albanian for a number of years. Over the past decade, there has been no Education Inspector, which is why many teachers are working without a license. All of this demonstrates the working conditions of the teachers.

The Youth

Young Albanians participate in multiethnic projects, but once the projects are completed, communication is primarily private and away from the public eye. They communicate better with Belgrade and other cities than with local Serbs.

Young people are grouped around various local Organizations, but due to limited funding, they are unable to engage in continuous action. The municipality of Preshev? also includes an Office for Youth, whose activities are related to education, culture, and art. Unfortunately, young people do not see a future for themselves, owing to prejudice, non-recognition of diplomas, harsh economic conditions, and low living standards.

Young active Albanians have not partnered with local Serb organizations, but instead participate in projects from Ni? and other cities. As they point out, these multiethnic undertakings are not sustainable.

Young Albanians and Serbs do not hang out in cafes together because each group has its own identity.

Albanians are more willing to breach the "ethnic line," which some do. Bilingual education is provided in schools (under one roof, but due to previous incidents, they havedifferent schedules so that they do not overlap, and there have been no more incidents). A small number of them attend Novi Sad University on scholarships provided by the Coordinating Board.

Conclusion

Albanian teachers believe that complete collaboration between Serbian educational authorities and the work of the Albanian National Minority Council is necessary to harmonize the textbook material in social sciences. Furthermore, the issue of poor translations and lack of digital gradebooks in Albanian highlights the difficult working conditions faced by teachers from Preshev? . Lastly, the fact that the state is not even attempting to teach students Serbian highlights the unfairness faced by the Albanian minority. To bring about true change in the educational system, all of these issues must be addressed.

Ultimately, despite these challenges, young Albanians in Preshev? are determined to create a better future for themselves and their families by participating in multiethnic projects and bridging the divisions between the two. As young people, they are more open and willing to interact with the other ethnic group and use education and culture to create lasting change. By continuing to work together, they can help build a stronger, more unified community in Preshev?.