Racist calls to Kumanovo, Osmani: Republic of Kosovo to defend Albanians' dignity with determination

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani has reacted to anti-Albanian calls at the Northern Macedonia basketball match ♫ Romania.

Osmani said these calls are unacceptable.

“Anti-Albanian calls heard during the match in Kumanovo are unacceptable and violate the spirit of co-existence and mutual respect, which should be the foundation of any democratic society with European aspirations. Albanians are autochthon people on their lands, as well as deserve to be treated with dignity and equality, just as any other community”, Osmani said.

She stressed that even more disturbing remains the fact that top state officials in Skopje have not reacted to this hateful and exclusive language, leaving space for rhetoric undermining interethnic tolerance and the harmony the country intends to build on its path to the European family.

“Sport should be a uniting tool, not a platform for dark ideology that raises painful memories and threaten peace”, Osmani stressed.

The first of the state of Kosovo called on northern Macedonia institutions to take immediate measures against the organisers of these calls, the responsible and the spreading of hatred, condemning any form of hate speech, protecting the principles of co-existence and tolerance, as the basic value of a state aimed at EU integration.

Kosovo's “Republic will firmly protect the dignity of Albanians, wherever they live”, President Vjosa Osmani stressed.