Corca City Hall: We don't cancel the concert. Goran Bregovitch will sing.

The Beer Festival, currently held 15 years in the town of Korca this year, will be held for four days from 18 August to 22 August. The municipality of Korca has invited Serbian singer Goran Bregovic to perform and the same will close the holiday on the last day.

Numerous singers and public figures have reacted sharply, rejecting the invitation the Korca municipality has made to the Serbian singer. Some of them have even cancelled participation such as the Capital T rapper.

But despite these reactions, the Korca municipality does not intend to cancel Bregovic's participation in the Beer Fest.

“We do not withdraw the participation of Bregovic from the Beer Fest because we refuse to position ourselves politically in this debate. There is no political approach to the participation of a Sarajevo-born singer and since before we contacted him to join him and we are correct there has been no position either against Albanians or against Kosovars”, Terova has said.

The deputy head of the Korca municipality has also commented on the song “Kalashnikov”, which has served as inspiration for Serbian paramilitaries to commit crimes in Kosovo, saying that song was composed much earlier than wartime.

“Which has been created by “Kalashnikov” was probably used by Serbian paramilitarys but was composed and created by Bregovic long ago, so we don't withdraw Bregovic's participation from the Beer Fest”, Teva told Gazeta Express on Friday.

Deputy Chairman Terova said Bregovovic has confirmed the turnout and everything is closed.

“He confirmed our participation, we hired an agency of events, tickets cut off, Bregovic is part of a tour of Europe coming from Kana where he has the concert, to us there are three concerts in Poland to peak with a concert in Moscow. So it's all closed to Bregovic that contracts are closed, plane tickets are cut because he comes from France with the orchestra. He will perform the last day of the” festival, she said.

I continued to say that Elite 5 and Dren Abazi were planned to be the warm-up of Bregovic, but were forced to withdraw as she said, the threats they received.

“We launch the holiday with Elite 5, are singers from Kosovo, Albania, we have one Nigerian group from Brazil, the festival has been organised for 15 years, and the goal is to promote respect for cultural and ethnic diversity. Bregovic has two Albanian musical bands that will make his warm-up, it was Dren Abazi who asked for himself to be Bregovic's Wood-up, even Dren, who is a very good boy and has been one of the Kosovo war outcasts who has been sheltered in Korca and we have a very big friendship. He has asked me because I have personal knowledge with him that it would be thewarm-up of Bregovic has done it at two more free concerts, free of charge, and only the Dren orchestras would have been paid and closed, last night would be Dren Abazi from Kosovo and Bregovic, that was the combination of last night, but Dren has received frightening threats from these nationalist groups, threatened with murder and a young boy, he told me he feels ashamed of the reaction of my Kosovo brothers. Drin, forced by the threats he has received and cancelled the turnout, while we had confirmed Capital T from Kosovo, closed the contract with Capital also threatened, we had Dafina Zeqiri as well from Kosovo. Dren contacted me personally, and he told me that they did great honor and I feel honored to do Warm-up of Bregovic and then received major threats”, Corca Mayor said.

Asked if there was any information that the Capital rapper was threatened, she said she didn't know exactly but withdrew.

“Yes, it is withdrawn, I don't know, we shut down the contract, the fee worth 9 thousand euros of Capital, but they risk losing their concerts and markets in Kosovo that has been the reason. Wregovic's Warm-up will be an Albanian ethno-jaz band, Hot Club Tirana, who are excellent musicians and they will make Brerovic's wind-up”, she said.

“From Kosovo we have group “NA”. Elite 5 from Tetovo have expressed satisfaction and said that we come with great satisfaction to see and meet Bregovic, but they also have the same problem because we asked them to be urm-up because the purpose of the Korca municipality outside politics is to give the message as Serbian prime minister has received with honour Ivala who has his Kosovo father waiting at his headquarters and has given concert in Serbia to deliver this good message of co-operation and art no connection with politics, but 5 again said we lose Benila at the Kosovo market because it is a nationalist spirit. I was reminded of that expression that I don't know which of the Albanian patriots that nationalism is the last refuge of bastards and fools, and that is, no stance on the extreme does any people and no nation any good. We've had excellent co-operation with various groups, Greek singers, singers from the Netherlands, we've had Guns N Roses guitarist, but for musicians we've never seen this thing like this”, she added.

The Erova said that Bregovitch tried to get it another time but that dates were impossible to realise.

We tried it again, but it wasn't possible dates. It has been in Tirana in 2006, that 2006 as a date has been closer to the war in Kosovo, but now I think that the part of factoring social media where one's status affects. I remember that in 2006 there was a reaction, he gave two very successful concerts as well as received the key from Edi Rama, who was in charge of the municipality. Now I read that Bregovic is the non-grath in Poland, the Polish ambassador accredited in Albania, along with the staff, has asked for tickets to Bregovic, I don't think that in the 21st century, this is the spirit that should be conveyed”, she said.

Asked if you think there might be incidents, Terova said there will be incidents and that Albanians are brave in talk and Facebook, but that in any case there will be police presence.

I don't think there's going to be any action, Albanians, if they were so brave, in talk and Facebook there's a lot, but in the fire situation that's involving Albania and that they're putting them in their own hands, they don't have the strength to extinguish the house fire, they don't join in there like many artists and individuals are joining the fires that are burning all over Albania, plus there's going to be a big police presence, and from what I know, this singer, Repi Nozy, who has promoted a move has been made to the police today to have a stop him from getting a bottle filled with everyone. I know there would be a state police response to the open threat Nozy has made, I also believe RedZi Fans because every threat constitutes a criminal act and I think that as the institution's representative, I think we should feel ashamed if such a thing happens”, Terova said. /Express