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My name is Galdim Jusufi
I'm 28 years old
I'm from Prizren, i grew up here.
The first thing I want to say is...
...that Kosovo is safe.
My name is Labinot Krasniqi.
I live in Klina, Western Kosovo.
For a long time I've been working in a "Civil Society" organization.
I am Melanie, from Germany, near Leipzig. And currently I am working in Kosovo.
Kosovo, Kosovo… What do I like about Kosovo?
The mountains... Rakia (local liquor)...
The majority of the population in Kosovo is Muslim
and everyone is free to practice as they wish and want.
... And the people. Because people really place value on family
and family is always put on first position,
prior to career and anything else.
I am saying that because the religion here is more traditional.
in Kosovo, life is more based on the region and family tradition.
I'm very lucky to live in this historical town
with a beautiful and young environment.
The majority of the population in Kosovo represents a youthful age,
50% of the population is younger people under 35 years old...
For me, it is pretty difficult to understand what the young people,
the people that are my age, have been through.
And it is incredibly hard to imagine what my peers here in Kosovo did during the war.
How they had to flee and what they have witnessed.
...which is a great potential and it's very important to take
greater care of this part of society, and also to invest more in the youth.
I think that you still can note what I said.
And you also can note that this young generation simply wants to be
like every other young generation around the world.
That they just want to be free and young…
…and actually they cannot be, because as Kosovar citizens
they are only allowed to travel to Serbia, Albania, Montenegro and Macedonia.
Speaking about freedom of movement,
I want to tell more about the movement abroad,
'cause Kosovo is the only country in the region
who cannot travel to Europa without a visa.
The first thing about the war that i have to say is that it wasn't a good experience,
it was a bad experience.
Albanian citizens are not guilty, but they are the ones
who always suffered from bad political policies.
At the moment, we are staying in the room I used to stay in when I was 15.
I remember that those windows were covered with blankets
for the reason that you don't want to show the light
because of the bombing and other reasons.
Kosovo had big problems many years ago, recalled in the 80s :
when students were forced to leave their schools, when teachers
were not allowed to teach, and when in Kosovo there was a brutal regime
that undermined each Albanian, and every element that was Albanian.
The second thing I remember : I was young,
I knew that we were being bombed
and the feeling that at any moment we could
be killed or have what happened to others families in Kosovo...
It was terrible...
The '1998-99 War' was a terrible war
with about 14,000 people killed
and over 5,000 people missing,
and the eviction of 1 million citizens
from their homes by Serbian Forces.
There are still 1,500 civilians
that were killed by Serbian forces
whos bones have not yet been found
and families still expect a piece of a bone.
I'm happy that we survived the war
Now we have a new start in life
I soon will be a father.
I would like to think more to find the best firstname,
so that he likes it when he grows up.
For me, there is two importants issues :
My message to the world is :
Consume less, love more
Recognize Kosovo's independence and visit Kosovo.
Make more love and respect each other...
and laugh a bit more. Ja man !