The third day arrives, with the sweltering Prishtina atmosphere greeting the students. The morning provides a trip to the Ethnological Musuem, where the group learned of "traditional" Albanian family structures, art, and value codes, among other aspects of Kosovar history.
After a break, everyone meets up at Friends restaurant for an informal lunch with Dukagjin Gorani. Dukagjiin has an esteemed background in journalism, but has since rejected the practice and now pursuing academia and teaching at the Kosovo Institute for Journalism & Communication (KIJAC). KIJAC is a Graduate School of Journalism for Kosovar scholars, with state of the art facilities, roughly 30 students, and a penchant for self-awareness. While the hungry conferencers awkwardly attempt to eat and listen at the same time, Dukagjin gives a riveting speech that references, among others, Michel Foucault, Benedict Anderson, and the problematic construction of identities. Arguing against the current political paradigms of nationalism and ethnicity, Dukagjin is fascinated by parallel systems of reality, identity, and power structures within the Balkans. He believes that while the European Union may be an imperfect identity for Kosovo/a to strive for, it nevertheless is an archetype worth pursuing. His parting words state a desire for politicians to become public servants rather than wielders of power.
From one bar to another: the group borders on becoming the "badihavxhi," though a politically-minded one to be sure [see: wandering, jobless coffee-goers]; as they head down the street to sit and reflect on the sometimes-paradoxical yet always illuminating conversation with Dukagjin. Talk is focused on problems of the European Union as a "way out" of identity issues, but soon its time to move forward with the day to meet another critic of Kosovar politics: Jeta Xharra.
As coffee and, for a change of pace, mineral water, is served to the group, Jeta Xharra discusses her career as the host of an acclaimed and controversial political debate show "Jeta ne Kosove" (Life in Kosovo). Among other distinguished criteria, Jeta's bachelor's degree in War Studies seems to have been one of the biggest influences, as weekly she stands up and holds accountable politicians and other figures all along the political spectrum with her riveting and controversial interview style. She argues that her potent and direct questioning is an act of undermining the staid conventions of politics in Kosovo/a, and as a young woman she is bringing important issues to the table and opening debate beyond the traditional polemics. She detailed the difficult path taken by her and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network that she directs. A small, but important aspect she notes was subtitles: so that those in the region could here other languages in places other border checkpoints and police stations.
Some free time finds the group leisurely sprawled across the apartment, out shopping for shoes and cigarettes, and some more chaos in the kitchen. Another great meal is served, though - gibanica, a Serbian phyllo pastry pie, and a plethora of salads - Greek, Serbian, and a surprise fruit salad with whipped cream to top off the meal. After dinner, plans to paint the town red dissolve into relaxing on the balcony and continuing with playful and engrossing banter into the early morning. Day 3 is concluded.
7.23.2007
Day 2: (15 July) The relative tranquility of a Sunday in Prishtina
Sundays in Prishtina seem to provide the only break in pace in a city that is otherwise constantly moving . Talk for Tomorrow followed suit and planned a more tranquil day; allowing people to recover from the fatigue of 8 hour bus rides from Belgrade and/or the late night group bonding that took place at a Germia, national park rave the night before.
Nevertheless, after a late breakfast, some time of reflection and journal writing, the T4T team set out to fulfill the service component of the "Beyond Differences" project. The Red Cross provided the group with a list of empoverished families living in Prishtina and the group set out to buy, assemble, and deliver packages of essential food and household supplies to each of these families.
The experience was no feel good, self congratulatory demonstration of humanistic hubris but rather a sobering look at the aftermath of the war. The familes and individuals visited came from many backgrounds; some Albanian, some Roma and othes Serbian. Many had lost family members, jobs or a sense of security during and after the conflict and their response at seeing and interacting with a diverse group of students was overwhelmingly positive. For Kosovan Albanians and Serbians alike the realty that these visits present make it hard to sustain claims of victimhood that conform strictly to national or ethnic identities. Perhaps the most telling and moving example of this was the visitation to a elderly Serbian lady who lives alone in Prishtina, with no contact with her estranged Serbian family, and who would be too afraid to venture out in the city even if her ailing sight could permit her to do so.
Nevertheless, after a late breakfast, some time of reflection and journal writing, the T4T team set out to fulfill the service component of the "Beyond Differences" project. The Red Cross provided the group with a list of empoverished families living in Prishtina and the group set out to buy, assemble, and deliver packages of essential food and household supplies to each of these families.
The experience was no feel good, self congratulatory demonstration of humanistic hubris but rather a sobering look at the aftermath of the war. The familes and individuals visited came from many backgrounds; some Albanian, some Roma and othes Serbian. Many had lost family members, jobs or a sense of security during and after the conflict and their response at seeing and interacting with a diverse group of students was overwhelmingly positive. For Kosovan Albanians and Serbians alike the realty that these visits present make it hard to sustain claims of victimhood that conform strictly to national or ethnic identities. Perhaps the most telling and moving example of this was the visitation to a elderly Serbian lady who lives alone in Prishtina, with no contact with her estranged Serbian family, and who would be too afraid to venture out in the city even if her ailing sight could permit her to do so.
7.17.2007
Day 1: (14 July ) Arrival in Prishtina
The group members trickle in at all hours of the early morning, and quickly get acquainted with the sprawling Prishtina flat. Due to an unexpected cancellation, there are 9 university students taking part in the 5 day conference: 5 students from Belgrade, and 4 from Kosovo/a; 6 boys, and 3 girls. With 4 coordinators, and 2 hapless "foreign correspondents" hanging around, the group is itself a healthy dose of cross-cultural dialogue.
After catching up on sleep and eating some breakfast stuffs, the group moves to the Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) to get better acquainted. After a rousing speech by the coordinators of Talk For Tomorrow, the group engaged in team-building activities ranging from the human knot (students must solve their physically binding puzzle), to the trust fall.
Some lunch down the road, and the group returns to YIHR to hear from Ivan Radic, the project coordinator of Kosova-Nansen Dialogue. The group is part of a wider network but contains offices in Prishtina and Mitrovica. Its goal is to promote inter-ethnic dialogue to contribute to reconciliation and peacebuilding. Ivan himself is Serbian who lives on the Serbian northern side of Mitrovica, displaced after the war in 1999. He tells of his project to school children of Serbian and Albanian heritage under the same roof, and the problems - the red-tape, the prejudice - that have stalled KND's efforts to restore Mitrovica from the divided city it is today. He emphasizes seeing faces instead of numbers, and active listening/dialogue rather than debate. "Perception is reality," says Ivan, arguing that we must go further to promote real change.
After Ivan takes off, the group has time to reflect, unwind, or cook. The cooking team's resolve is tested by a less-than-stellar kitchen, but in a few hours there is some traditional Albanian food bursting onto the porch - pogace (homemade bread, sausage w/cheese), salad, wine, and so forth. The dinner stretches into the late evening - a little too late for one's neighbors taste - but the group steadily carries on with conservation, laughter, and some fine picking and belting by T4T founder Behar.
The group members eventually diverge - some to much needed sleep, others to explore the bustling Prishtina nightlife, and day one of T4T's "Beyond Borders" comes to a close.
After catching up on sleep and eating some breakfast stuffs, the group moves to the Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) to get better acquainted. After a rousing speech by the coordinators of Talk For Tomorrow, the group engaged in team-building activities ranging from the human knot (students must solve their physically binding puzzle), to the trust fall.
Some lunch down the road, and the group returns to YIHR to hear from Ivan Radic, the project coordinator of Kosova-Nansen Dialogue. The group is part of a wider network but contains offices in Prishtina and Mitrovica. Its goal is to promote inter-ethnic dialogue to contribute to reconciliation and peacebuilding. Ivan himself is Serbian who lives on the Serbian northern side of Mitrovica, displaced after the war in 1999. He tells of his project to school children of Serbian and Albanian heritage under the same roof, and the problems - the red-tape, the prejudice - that have stalled KND's efforts to restore Mitrovica from the divided city it is today. He emphasizes seeing faces instead of numbers, and active listening/dialogue rather than debate. "Perception is reality," says Ivan, arguing that we must go further to promote real change.
After Ivan takes off, the group has time to reflect, unwind, or cook. The cooking team's resolve is tested by a less-than-stellar kitchen, but in a few hours there is some traditional Albanian food bursting onto the porch - pogace (homemade bread, sausage w/cheese), salad, wine, and so forth. The dinner stretches into the late evening - a little too late for one's neighbors taste - but the group steadily carries on with conservation, laughter, and some fine picking and belting by T4T founder Behar.
The group members eventually diverge - some to much needed sleep, others to explore the bustling Prishtina nightlife, and day one of T4T's "Beyond Borders" comes to a close.
7.13.2007
In preparation for 'Beyond Differences'
The week preceding Talk for Tomorrow's 'Beyond Differences' has been a frenzy of preparation, and anticipation. The ten students from Kosovo/a and
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