Rape crimes during war in Kosovo represented at European Parliament in Brussels

The book “A oral story of rape survivors during the war in Kosovo”, authors Anna Di Lelio and Garentina Kraja. The event was organised by Embassy of the Republic of Kosovo in Brussels, in co-operation with the European Parliament Delegation for Relations with Kosovo, rapproton albinfo, broadcasts Periscope.

The presentation was held within the framework of the delegation's regular meeting, which began with a exchange of opinions between the Eurodeputs and the ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo in Brussels, Agron Bajrami. In the first part of the session, under the chairmanship of Croatian Eurodeput Davor Ivo Stier, Ambassador Bajrami briefed the latest developments in Kosovo, including the organisation of elections, the process of forming institutions, the adoption of agreements with European Union, the budget and progress in European integration.

He stressed Kosovo's strategic orientation towards Euro-Atlantic values and urged continued European institutions' support for the country's aspirations towards EU membership.

In the second part of the meeting, the author Anna Di Lelio and Mrs. Cadire Tahiraj, contributing to confession research and director of the Women's Promotive Centre in Drenas. They spoke of oral stories of sexually violent survivors during the war in Kosovo, highlighting the serious crimes committed by Serbian forces to the Albanian civilian population, especially against women.

During the discussions, it was stressed that justice is still lacking for thousands of women raped during the war, while underlining that no one has been convicted of these serious crimes. Author Di Lelio pointed out that pursuit of justice remains essential, especially at a time when the use of sexual violence as a weapon continues to repeat in other conflicts, including the war in Ukraine.

Activity in the European Parliament was praised as an important step in internationalising memory and raising awareness of the need for justice and responsibility for crimes committed during the war in Kosovo. /Periscope/