Lake Rehab

10-06-2016

By Nienke Dek

Although it feels like we have been in Kosovo for at least one third of our lives, it is only the fourth and actually third real day in this country full of mountains, lakes, sticks with peanut butter, and pollen (sorry for those with hay fever: or more specifically Thomas). We started the day after a night at a bar full of sport-loving men in a small town near Mitrovica in which we stayed at hotels with wonderful non-English speaking owners that drive to get breakfast ingredients really quickly after you told them your 'UN-bus' really leaves at 9:00. A delicious breakfast including scrambled eggs was the result of that, so we were all happy. In addition to that, two EULEX man showed up at the hotel, and immediately half of the group took the chance to talk to them and ask questions about their work (you have to understand, it was only nine o'clock and they were just coming there to have a nice breakfast, but oh well, that's what Peacelab does to you). On our way from the small town to Mitrovica, people tried to write some (of course very inspiring) stories in their journals (something impossible), and we got some lunch at the ENORMOUS mall where all the Dutchies of course tried to find some sort of sandwich they did not have. Peanut pretzels it was.

Our first meeting was the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), something I also presented on in class and thus was quite excited about to see in real-life. Of course we asked some critical questions, and afterwards we all got to bomb the employees with our project questions individually. Babs, Mirthe and I are asking everybody we meet to tell them what they think the people at home (so also those reading this blog) should know about Kosovo. What do we have to tell you when we come back? We're so excited, and hopefully you will get to see a nice result!
After the meeting at the OSCE, we went to Community Building Mitrovica (CBM), an NGO that focuses on bringing Kosovo Serbs and Kosovo Albanians together in Mitrovica by organizing various projects. Anne must have been very happy during this meeting, because the first capstone-related questions were asked by Marijn and Roos. Afterwards, we had some time to look around in Mitrovica, and of course everybody first crossed the bridge. Weird, because something so normal for us took most of the men working at CBM more than 10 or even 15 years.

After the meeting with CBM, there was only one left: UNMIK, the UN mission in Kosovo. And thus in our UN-bus we went to the UN compound in Mitrovica (we felt so UN-like). Again, we bombed
them with questions, some more critical than others: Jasmin just asked them about their exit-strategy, and of course no real answer was given to that one. Afterwards, when we were all quite tired, our wonderful bus driver took us back to Pristina in which we were all dropped off at our guest families again to rest before what will probably be another gezellige night.

That's where I am now, no nap for me Roos.

Authenticity

Yesterday we were in North Mitrovica. Here we were introduced to some of the UN agencies that aim to facilitate development in the area. Each UN representative gave an introductory talk after which the students could split up and ask specific questions.

Afterwards, we were expected at the University of Pristina, temporarily resettled in Mitrovica. Meeting with Serb Kosovan students, helped our little brains understand the complexity of the situation better. Bearing in mind that some members of our group had already visited the university two years prior, they were able to put things into context. The meeting felt quite constructive, because the university representatives and students were nuanced in their answers and opinions.

After the meetings, we went to a lake where we swam in the ice-cold water, and had dinner there too. Then we drove to our accommodation for the night, which was a lovely hotel. Lastly, we met some ‘authentic Serbs’ at a pub in one of the majority-Serb municipalities of Kosovo.

Day 1, Pristina, Kosovo – 08/01/2016

by Marie Smit

After quite a hectic trip from Science Park to my parents’ house (in a small panic attack my mom had to help me to pack my bags…), to Schiphol, to Istanbul: we arrived in Pristina yesterday. It still feels very unreal to be here, especially after a week of hard-core Balkan history and studying for our exam. However, now the time has come to put theory in to practice and experience everything that we have learned about Kosovo first-hand (yes!!!).

As I am still trying to figure out what Pristina is really like, I decided to write down some of my first impressions. So what stood out to me is, first of all, how extremely welcoming our host families are. They are incredibly generous, even make us breakfast, and they also have the cutest children you have ever seen. Secondly, the coffee is different as they serve it with chocolate on top (yummy) and two(!!) bags of sugar on the side. Also food wise: the huge amount of feta reminds me of the tasty food in Tel Aviv and cities in Greece. Lastly, I feel like I should note how inspiring the energy of the people that we met today feels.

In order to also inform you of what we did today: we went to the University of Pristina, Vetëvendosje, and QEsh. At the University of Pristina the vice-dean and her students told us about the role of students in reforms, the (huge lack of) capacity in the University, and the disappointment towards EULEX. Other subjects we touched upon are the struggle of visa liberalisation and youth unemployment.

Then at Vetëvendosje, a nationalist Albanian movement that opposes foreign involvement in internal affairs of the country, they first showed us this very unusual and rather violent promotion video of their movement (which left me quite confused). Then, however, I got even more confused because their leader – this insanely smart and charismatic man – showed up, who really made everything they do seem exceptionally logical. Especially the way he used language to convince us was really impressive. When he accidentally used the word enemy, he immediately realized his mistake and said he actually meant to say “political adversaries” (haha). He basically stated that a society has to build itself, so instead of having the UN in Kosovo it should be vice versa, so Kosovo should be in the UN.

Afterwards we went to Qesh (literally: smile) where they promote the LGBT rights within the Kosovo community. Here they informed us on the current status of people who identify as LGBT and how they try to improve this position by making this community more visible. What I liked about this meeting is how they emphasized that it is necessary to get out of victimization and proclaiming the LGBT community should be as positive as they can.

At this point I think we all feel like 1) overwhelmed 2) very tired 3) very happy. We probably all feel like we are “the chosen ones” as we are here, and luckily there is so much more to come. 

little brains on a big adventure

By  Roos Hogerzeil

Our first day in Kosovo is a fact. When we arrived yesterday, I had no idea of what Prishtina would be like and I was not able to compare this place to any other place I have ever been to. Together with four girls, I get to stay in an apartment on the seventh floor of a tall building, which allowed us to overlook the city by night. It felt strange to actually finally be in this place we had been learning about for a week, trying to cram all the information about the history of the Balkan countries from ancient times until now into our 'little brains', as Anne likes to call them.

It was very exciting to overlook this place from our balcony, having no idea what to expect, what the people would be like, what the vibe on the streets would be like. The view of Prishtina is amazing, and it made me really excited to go around town the next day and see, feel, hear what this place is like. It made me smile to hear a mosque's night prayer that just started when I sat down on my bed. It made me feel (sort of) at home - as I enjoyed the songs so much when I was in Israel and in Cape Town.

After this first day, I can tell the city has got a really special ambiance. Everywhere people ask us where we are from, and when we answer that we're (mostly) from Europe, they all smile and thank us (for what, I do not know).

First fun fact: apparently the taxis do not know the street names here, so we were told by Barda's sister Kaltrina that we ought to just give the name of a café or shop as a reference for our destination (in our case Market Edi Tophane).

This morning we visited the University of Prishtina, where we got to chat with the vice dean of the law faculty and with a couple of very dedicated andn enthusiastic students. What struck me was that there was a very prominent sentiment amongst the professor and students of how important they consider to study, to become an excellent student, go abroad, then come back and contribute to their country. Taking their international knowledge and experience back to Kosovo and teach others  is considered one of the best things one can do for ones country.

Next stop: the head quarters of Lëvizja Vetëvendosje (movement for self-determination)., which is a nationalistic political movement that opposes foreign involvement in internal affairs of the country and campaigns for the sovereignty exercised by the people instead, as part of the right of self-determination. As we learnt about this movement in class, I was quite biased and thought of the movement as rather radical and hectic as it had participated in several violent happenings. However, when we got to ask questions to the president of the movement Visar Ymeri, I was blown away by how well-spoken, clever, passionate yet not aggressive (as opposed to scenes during protests in 2007 that we saw in the documentary we were shown first) he was. He had a certain fire in his eyes, leaned forward while tapping his fingers on the table, and was able to think ahead while answering his questions. This very well-organised man was good at what he does: he knew exactly how to answer controversial questions, and to provide answers that shine a bright light on his organisation without feeling misled by pretty words.

It felt valuable to discuss this extensive meeting with the organisation, because if I had not known anything about it and about its past, I might have (too easily) agreed with everything he said because of his charisma. There was almost no time to talk though, as we needed to go to our last meeting with QEsh, an organisation that aims to create a safe, tolerant, gay-friendly environment for the LGBTQ community of Kosovo through awareness raising activities. As Liridon - the head of the organisation - told us, Kosovo is generally a heteronormative society, where a man ought to be tough and masculine, and a woman is supposed to be soft, work in the kitchen, and produce a loooot of children (Liridon himself has 6 siblings). It is quite a harsh environment for a person who identifies as LGBTQ to live in, which also came to the fore in his stories. For example, the organisation's office does not have a sign outside the building: the people who also live in the building know about the organisation's background, but it is likely that it would cause (violent) problems if a sign would be put up. The main challenges, as explained by Liridon, were the religious background of most Kosovar people that complicates the acceptance and tolerance of non-heterosexuality, and foremost the LGBTQ community itself that still does not feel like coming out because many people are afraid.

As we walked out the building, the sun was shining on our faces and we gathered to do a check-in, as Sophie calls it, where we all told each other how we felt and what the day was like for all of us. It was really special to see that everyone felt overwhelmed but happy, safe and curious, and that the group enjoyed the presence of the people around. After such a long day with so many meetings, we allowed ourselves to unwind and close off with a lovely dinner at a restaurant named Old House. Now it's sleepy time because it's really late and we have to get up in five and a half hours to go to Mitrovica tomorrow!

P.S. lekker lekker lekker: coffee in Kosovo (which everybody drinks all day long, most of the time accompanied by a sigarette in the other hand - everybody smokes here) and Burak (I think it's spelled like this), a traditional savoury pastry you can get in every local bakery yummm

Little brains

Wow, wow, wow. Seriously though, that representative from Vetëvendosje was on point. Even when I asked about the widely covered incident of the MP that released tear gas parliament, and the context this happened in, he remained very judicious and shrewd. To be honest, I felt somewhat inclined to go along – maybe even too far – with his line of argumentation. However, actions speak louder than words. After all, this is the movement that makes points by vandalizing cars and public areas. Nevertheless, members of Vetëvendosje do not consider themselves to be violent, since they seem to direct any feelings of frustration or anger at people. Pff... confusing!

Newborn.

That cappuccino from this morning, with chocolate syrup on the foam, is still lurking somewhere in the back of my mind…

Peace Lab 2016: Peacemaking, peacebuilding, peacekeeping

By Anne de Graaf

On the Turkish Airlines flight from Schiphol to Istanbul. Erik playing on his phone. Beibhin writing in her journal. Iris remembering her study abroad in Istanbul last year. Andrea and most of the others asleep. I’ve just read their project proposals, due last night at midnight. Yesterday they took their exam on Balkan history and Kosovo identity. Quite a challenge forcing so much information into just one week of lectures. They co-presented most of the info, and it was so, so interesting to watch their understanding spark and kindle. First few days overwhelmed, then the patterns start to emerge and themes resonate.

Now we’re off to Prishtina for 10 days to visit various organizations from the UN to a Roma camp, NGOs dealing with LGBT rights, women’s rights, anti-corruption, EU governance, and everything in between, including a community-based initiative that brings young musicians from both sides together to just jam. This year we’ll also be spending the night in the mountains near the Serb border, on a lake, near the hometown of one of the UN Serbian guys who has sort-of adopted us during our visits.

It is very special—we are very special. When we walk in somewhere people look at us: young (well, most of us-ha!) and beautiful. Our backgrounds: Turkish, Irish, Italian, Dutch, American, Serbian, German, Colombian, Bulgarian, French, Armenian, Egyptian, Surinamese and Finnish. We are what Kosovo wants to be: the Young Europeans and then some!

Post-conflict country, identity, them-and-us, transitional justice, everyday peacebuilding, hidden transcripts—all phrases we have discussed and made our own this last week.

Yesterday after the exam I taught them interview techniques: Our phrase for the trip is: I’m trying to understand this a bit better, I wonder if you could help me, please. And I taught them my Colombo trick of almost ending the interview, then saving the most important (and sensitive) question for last, almost as an afterthought. It’s about building trust and timing.

This is the third year that Erik and I have had the privilege of taking young people to this great little country with a Europe-sized heart. Our Kosovar-Albanian friends and adopted family there will once again take our students into their homes and spoil them thoroughly. We watch and listen and laugh. At night we will all talk at once around long, candlelit tables, as we process the emotions and challenges of the day. In this way we grow in understanding—and that is in itself so very crucial to the process of peace.

2016 Blog Relaunch

By Jasmin Vassilev

Welcome to the 2016 relaunch of the AUC Kosovo blog, Crossing the Bridge! 

This year, 19 new Peace Lab students will be in Kosovo from 7-17 June, 2016. After a one-week crash course in Balkan history and post-conflict 'peace-building', we will explore the different perspectives and stories that Kosovo has to tell. We will also be working on our own projects while we are here, but more on that in the individual updates. All this is for the purpose of trying to understand the past, current, and future developments of this 'newborn nation', the experiences, struggles and hopes of the Kosovar people, as well as the implications in a wider European or global context. 

Two new blog entries can be expected every day for the following three weeks. These blog posts are about sharing our stories and experiences, for telling facts and reflecting on what we have learned. You are kindly invited to read along and to comment on our updates with your own thoughts and experiences. Also, please feel free to share this blog with anyone that might be interested. We are looking forward to taking you along on our journey.