Albanians of the Presheva Valley protest against discrimination

Hundreds of Albanians from the Preševo ​​Valley in southern Serbia marched on Monday, as they said, against discrimination and in search of equality and rights for Albanians in Serbia.

One of the organizers of the march said that "from here we sent the message that Albanians want equality, that equality does not become injustice." The demands of the Albanians are shameful, the silence of the state and the injustice it is doing to the Albanians is also shameful."

She said that the demands are the return of the court, the implementation of the agreements so far, the return of the addresses of Albanians in Presheva, Bujanoc and Medvegja, the recognition of school diplomas and the integration of Albanians in state bodies.

Serbia has repeatedly denied that Albanians in this country are discriminated against.

They marched through the center of the city of Presheva near the institutions holding placards with inscriptions such as: "Stop selective passivism", "We want Albanian books" and "return the address", as well as wearing jerseys with the inscription "For identity and dignity".

The march, which was led by the only representative of Albanians in the Serbian Parliament, Shaip Kamberi and the mayor of Presheva, Ardita Siani, stopped near the Presheva municipality building, where the Albanian national anthem was sung.

This is the second protest of the Albanians of the Valley in the last two months, after the one in Bujanoc in August.

According to the latest population census, Albanians are the fourth largest minority in Serbia, namely 61,687 Albanians live in this country.

The representatives of Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac – municipalities also known as the Preševo ​​Valley – have often complained of being discriminated against by the authorities in Serbia.

A problem faced by the Albanians of the Presheva Valley is the non-recognition of university degrees obtained in Kosovo, despite the fact that Kosovo and Serbia have reached an agreement on this in the dialogue mediated by the European Union.

They have several times reached agreements on the mutual recognition of university degrees, while in 2020 they reiterated their commitment to the recognition of professional degrees and certificates, but so far no steps have been taken to implement them.

Meanwhile, at the end of last year, the Albanians in the Valley also complained about an increase in the number of deactivations of their addresses by the Serbian police, accusing it of having deleted them illegally, to deny them basic rights.

The problem of deactivating addresses is mentioned in the European Commission's report on Serbia in 2022, in the part that deals with respecting the rights of minorities.

After the August protest in Bujanoc, the Government of Serbia said that it was an attempt by the Government of Kosovo, led by Albin Kurti "to destabilize the region".

The Serbian government rejected the accusations of MP Kamberi for discrimination against Albanians and insufficient representation in institutions.

In 2001, an agreement known as the Consular Agreement was reached for the demilitarization of the Liberation Army of Presevo, Medvegja and Bujanovac (UÇPMB) and for the integration of the Albanian minority through a democratic process.

In July 2013, the Government of President Aleksandar Vučić approved the seven-point plan, which was almost the same as the previous agreements.

The Serbian government said in August that that plan was interrupted by the then Albanian deputy in the Serbian Parliament, Riza Halimi, in November 2013./ REL