Peace Lab: Day Two

10 June 2020

By Max Ross

Today during our class in Peace Lab, the University of Pristina was discussed, its history was examined and I found its current ethnically segregated status particularly interesting. The University of Pristina, originally founded in 1969 has become symbolic of the political and ethnic divisions within Kosovo. Today there are two universities in Kosovo claiming the same name, one located in Pristina and the other now in North Mitrovica, the university students and faculty are divided along ethnic lines with each dominated by Albanians and Serbs respectively. As universities are almost universally considered to be safe spaces designed to encourage debate and the mixing of diverse perspectives, it seems as if there is a missed opportunity to create a platform through which Albanian and Serb youth of the post-war generation could create bonds and breakdown boundaries. There is significant evidence that institutions of higher education have the potential to play a transformative role in the post-conflict peacebuilding process and thus the University of Pristina could fill this position and help create a dialogue between two divided communities.

It is important to note that the current segregation of the two university communities was initially done out of necessity and for good reason due to the immensely volatile nature of the war in Kosovo. It is also true that institutions of higher education can potentially have the effect of undermining the peacebuilding process. However, as time goes on and as the tensions begin to ease, and with a new generation of students entering university born after the war, it may be possible to revert this separation in a constructive way. Of course, there are obvious barriers to the implementation of a full transition back to a single university including simple things such as the language barrier and the different national controls of each respective university but the exploration of at least some increased contact between students seems valuable.

The ‘contact hypothesis’ in post-conflict environments makes the claim that, on the dividing lines of conflicts, increased contact with adversaries will build bridging social capital and create trust and cooperation between groups. As individuals make the transition out of their largely insulated primary and secondary educational institutions, universities often provide the first opportunity to ‘meet the other’ and if handled delicately, can provide an opportunity to build lasting bridging social capital and understanding. It can be argued that the current ethno-sectarian segregation is causing harm to the peacebuilding process as it reinforces the differences between groups and causes universities to function as a divisive force where they could act as a platform of positive transformation.

This is, of course, a hugely complex issue and it is true that placing two communities such as these in one university poses some risk of causing friction and negative socialization. However, it seems as if there is room for some increased contact between the two groups and for the university to act as a cooperative platform in bringing people together rather than acting as a divider in reinforcing differences between the groups.