Anonymous 1: I decided right at that moment.
The interviewer: Who were you with?
Anonymous 1: I was with my daughter-in-law, my nephew, and my niece. My son was in Austria during that time, he had an Arts exhibition before the war started. We went there a few days earlier. He got stuck there and we were left alone when the war started and the NATO bombings. On the first night I was really scared for the children because it felt like it was me who needed to protect them, my daughter-in-law, and my nephew and niece; well you can imagine the strength I could have if anything that big would’ve happened. But, my brother-in-law, on that night that NATO bombings were supposed to happen, told one of his children, because all of his children were adults, to come and stay with us; he was married and had children. We were alone at home. He asked him to come and stay with us because he believed we would be scared. When I saw him from the window coming I was extremely relieved. He told us that his father asked him to come there and that it’d be easier if we all stayed together. He came there with his wife and children. When the attacks started we ran to the basement. We laid some mattresses there so that the kids would lie down since they couldn’t sleep, they were scared. There were moments I thought that we simply got locked there. What if anything could happen and nobody knows where we were at. We stayed there for three nights. On the third day, my brother-in-law and his family came to our house because they were forced to leave the house by the Serbians in Dragodan. They stayed the night and on the following day they decided to leave. They wanted to leave because of the risks, they could’ve come and forced us out, too. They came that night, spent the night there, and got ready the following day. They all got ready but I told them I wasn’t going with them. That’s because I had the Art Gallery in my house and I wanted to keep them safe. When they were ready to leave on the following day, when they got in the cars and stuff… I told them to take my daughter-in-law and her children with them because it was fine about me. They all got in the cars and started the cars when I hear a shot; I told them to wait, I screamed out and asked them to wait for me. They asked me what happened and I told them that I changed my mind, I am scared to stay here alone. I was thinking what if I stayed there all alone – I wouldn’t be scared during the day but I would be scared during the night and what if I had to leave the house and go to other houses and spend the night because I would be scared to stay alone. So then we all set off together.
The interviewer: You got in the car?
Anonymous 1: Yes, immediately. I just got a bag and put the most basic stuff there, I closed the doors, and got in the car. We travelled for three days… it was horrible because there were long lines and the militaries would come by. The soldiers were young. They held their rifles and it felt like they didn’t even have bullets in their rifles. They were situated there because women started getting into the houses in Elez Han… it is interesting how all the houses there were rich people and they would give us everything they had like toothpaste, toothbrushes, soaps – all of their products were brought from abroad. Their fridges were full of meat, cheese, cream, and everything. You could see they were rich.
The interviewer: Did you go into those houses to get food?
Anonymous 1: Yes. The women who lived there would provide us with the stoves, or “saç” (a spherical metal lid used to cook) and everything they had. Women got there, laid the table, baked pies, cooked meat, and all other dishes because we had the time, we were blocked on the road.
The interviewer: How did you pass the border?
Anonymous 1: Well, first… this is how it was. Some people were able to go and cook and provide food for the others. The militaries caught my attention actually. They’d ask us where we wanted to go. We didn’t even know where to go. We would have conversations with people we met there. Then, we arrived somewhere close to the border… not that close but closer than we were. When we got there my brother-in-law’s son went close to the ramp and he met someone from Ferizaj. They had a small talk about where their families were. The man told him that his car is close to the border but that he grew impatient and cannot wait any longer. He had decided to cross the border on foot. He was there with his wife and children. So, he decided to leave the car to us; it was like a van. He told him to come and pick us all up and get in the van because it won’t take too long till they let the cars go. My brother-in-law’s son came and got us all; we got the stuff we had with us and drove there. We then waited there for an hour or half an hour and they let us pass the border. There were two directions: Albania or Macedonia. We didn’t know where they were taking us. We were taken to Macedonia. I was happy because it was closer to home. So…
The interviewer: Where did you stay in Macedonia?
Anonymous 1: We spent the first night in Skopje. An employee of UNHCR helped us because she’d come there often. She admired art and she liked talking to me. We talked about the paintings so she visited us often. She was working in Macedonia – the border. She told us to let her know when we arrived there. I called her and she had found an apartment for us for that night. All of us stayed there, my brother-in-law and his children and everyone else. Meanwhile, I called the daughter of my neighbor, who was living in Tetova, and asked her if it was possible for her to find us a room or an apartment because this is what had happened. She then told me that Nehat had been looking for me; a student of my husband. He had been looking for us and asking other people at the border if they knew where we were because he wanted to offer us a place to stay. He couldn’t find us. Then, that neighbor talked to him. Then I got to contact him and went to Tetova from Skopje. They had a big house. It wasn’t a very good-looking one because nobody was living there. We got there. The house had enough space, it had two floors. And we got to stay there.
The interviewer: How long did you stay there?
Anonymous 1: We stayed there for 2 and a half months. My brother-in-law stayed there for a longer time. All the neighbors around there were caring and provided us with goods. We prepared our meals on our own since we had all we needed there: oil, flour and all we needed. We went out to the city and met our relatives. Then, one of the neighbors told us that on the following day he would go to the Embassy of Austria with his wife and children. I asked him whether I could go with him. He said that I could but warned me that he had sent his request long ago and that we had to wait. I told him that I was not going to wait and that I would go with him. If they accepted my request it would be fine, if not we would wait. I went there with him. We got dressed nicely because we wanted to leave a good impression. When we got there they offered our neighbor a separate seat. Then, they asked us where we wanted to go. My son was in Austria and we wanted to go to him. We told them we wanted to go to Graz. They asked us if we had anyone there. I didn’t know how to tell them that my son was simply a guest over there and we didn’t know the address or telephone number. But, he had a friend there so we gave them his number. He didn’t even know I just gave them his number and they called him. I was worried because we didn’t even let him know. When they called him and asked whether they would accept our family he immediately said yes and that it was no problem. He told them that he was a friend of my son and that it was all fine we just needed to travel there. You know, they gave us the plane tickets immediately, right there. They told us that we could travel after 15 days. We then got all ready and travelled after 15 days. My brother-in-law was still left there.
The interviewer: You, your daughter-in-law, and the children, right?
Anonymous 1: Yes. We first stopped in a military cantonment when we arrived in Austria. It was free there were no militaries there. The medical team was there and the place was arranged for the refugees. We were like in quarantine. There was also a cafe there and we wanted to have a coffee. They didn’t allow us because we first had to go through some medical examinations – an in-depth check-up. We went through X-ray examinations, we had a check-up with the gynecologist, and everything else. We stayed the night there. There was a big room filled with clothes and other stuff. You could find everything there from underwear to whatever you needed. We got there and took what we needed. Some Albanian students were working as interpreters there. They were also so caring. We spent the night there and on the following day we all got on a bus. We were together with 3 other families. They took us to Aflenz. Aflenz is a small beautiful place close to Graz. There was only a church, a grocery store, a pharmacy, and an amazing park. A beautiful place. Aflenz was all surrounded by thickets, it was so beautiful. Caritas had engaged some families to help the refugees – they actually paid those families to let refugees use their properties. We went to a family. They were only husband and wife and they were so rich. There was a big space; property and lodges. Not lodges, in fact they were houses, but small houses. They were 2 or 1 floor houses. They were all decorated and they even had saunas. We were 5 or 6 families. The owners welcomed us when we got there.
The interviewer: Did you have the chance to talk to your son?
Anonymous 1: Not yet. This is before we got together with my son. My son was in Graz. We got into our house. There was also a garden. That house also had an annex but they gave us the house. One of the families had one floor and we had the other floor. It was so beautiful. We had a beautiful view and we could hear birds chirping. We had a beautiful mountain view. It was like a fairytale. The yard was big and there were a lot of toys for the children to play with. There also was a mini-garden where they had planted everything.
Aty dilshim mbledhshin magdonozin, domate… ajo ishte knaqësi prej atyhit me marrë ti edhe po e përgatitë dreken. Na vetë e përgatitshim dreken, e kishim magazinen. Magazina e furnizune prej gjasë ma elementare deri te ato ma të mdhaja, deri te mishi. Edhe hijshim e merrshim shporten edhe hijshim çka të kishim nevojë. Çdo dy ditë shkojshim aty edhe u furnizojshim si me shku në ndonjë dyqan. Thojke mos merrni ma shumë pse me ju nejt mrena ju merrni sa të keni nevojë për dy ditë.
We would get the celery, the tomatoes… it was so pleasing when you got the vegetables from there to cook lunch. We prepared the lunch by ourselves. We had a storehouse there. The storehouse had everything you needed. We would go there and get what we wanted. It was like going shopping. They told us not to take the things we didn’t need, we could only get the food we needed for two days. It wasn’t necessary to leave the products stay in the house. We had everything. We would prepare the meals at home. The woman told us that she was happy seeing us cooking the meals and taking the fresh vegetables. It was a great atmosphere. We stayed there for 3 months. We had doctor visits regularly. If we had any worries they would take us to the dentist, the optician, or anywhere we needed. They would settle everything and just take us there. We only had to tell them the night before. That was an amazing period of time.
The interviewer: How did you meet your son?
Anonymous 1: Afterwards, they decided to move us to other places. Maybe I am getting into too many details…
The interviewer: Don’t worry.
Anonymous 1: But it was so beautiful, I can’t even describe how beautiful it was.
The interviewer: Then when did you meet your son?
Anonymous 1: They took us to Graz. Well, we arrived there… We contacted my son regularly through the phone. I forgot to tell you that when the bombings started in Kosovo, the phones would function, so I would take the phone down to the basement and talk to my son. He would inform us when they would start the attack and told us not to be afraid. We knew it before it happened.
The interviewer: The airplanes…
Anonymous 1: Yes… he would tell us when the airplanes would start the attacks. We would then get mentally prepared… and then we would hear it happen. He helped us be mentally prepared. Okay, then we went to Graz and got settled in a house. My daughter-in-law had gone there previously with a friend of hers, in Graz, and met with my son. They found the apartment. Then, we were no longer considered as refugees because my daughter-in-law got a job…
When we were in Aflenz the pedagogue came and the linguist. Because I moved to that part quickly. The language teacher and the pedagogue came and visited us and worked with the children. They wanted to check on their mental health. The language teacher taught them German. They were so caring. My nephew started going to school in the first grade. Then…
The interviewer: So your daughter-in-law got a job.
Anonymous 1: Yes, she got a job. My son was dealing with exhibitions. They really welcomed him there before the war.
The interviewer: Then you got settled in the apartment…
Anonymous 1: Yes, we got settled in a two-room apartment. It was a beautiful place. We had the pedagogue and the linguist in Aflnez and then she…

They liked her and they wanted her to work with the children and she got paid. This project was funded by European Union. It was a psycho-social project where she worked with Bosnian, Croatian, and Albanian children. This is important to know. So, she got a job and we were no longer considered as refugees, even in papers. We got an apartment and got settled there.
The interviewer: How long did you stay in Austria?
Anonymous 1: 1 year and a half.
The interviewer: Why did you decide to return?
Anonymous 1: Well… my son was a professor at the University, and he still is. He had to come to Prishtina to hold his classes. It was more about him. That’s why they decided to return. I returned because of the paintings, because of the art gallery. They gave my son a chance to have an exhibition and open his own art gallery in Austria, and they were so understanding… but we decided to return back home.
The interviewer: Did they damage the art gallery in Kosovo?
Anonymous 1: No, it wasn’t damaged.
The interviewer: At all?
Anonymous 1: Not at all. Our neighbors told us that they had seen them around our house but they didn’t touch a thing.
The interviewer: Thank you very much!

Anonim 2 ALB: No, we left two days before the bombings started. In fact, all the roads were blocked in Prishtina. The war had started long before in other cities in comparison to Prishtina. This is because all the media of the world was focused on the capital city. Therefore, Serbians used it as a strategy and didn’t make any big scenes and didn’t torture the people much because they were recording the scenes in Prishtina and other big cities like Peja and Ferizaj. You know, they were acting differently in order to make them think they were not doing anything bad. But, as soon as the sun set they went into the villages and exterminated the entire families. They’d go there by tanks… It was the military and they were not allowed to fight in Kosovo as such so they wore the police uniform and acted like they were only keeping order in the city and protecting the city from the Albanian groups of terrorists whom they called UÇK. They would pretend like the citizens, Albanians, were part of Serbia and they wouldn’t harm them, but they would only look for those groups of terrorists who attacked them. This is what they would say.
The interviewer: So you started to work as an interpreter for the media?
Anonim 2 ALB: Not yet. I was 17 years old. I didn’t even finish High School. I was 17 and my English wasn’t on that level of an interpreter. But… we lived in the center of Prishtina and we heard all those attacks. There was a curfew even before the war started. We weren’t allowed to go out at 4 p.m. in Prishtina. The markets were all empty. It felt like the beginning of the war was close. In fact, the war had already started in the villages, we could hear the gunshots and we would see all the sparks. The war started much later in the city although we knew and we felt like we were in the war. We lived in the city center. Mimi left earlier since the Embassy evacuated its employees and took them to the Embassy of Skopje. They rented a big hotel for the whole staff and they worked from there. Of course, the journalist went there because they felt safe surrounded by Americans. You know, the journalists. Then, after two days before the war started… you couldn’t go out in Prishtina the roads were all blocked, and you could only leave in big groups. The police then would stop you and take everything you had like rings, money, a nice car, and stuff like that. So, you first had to let everything you had there at their tanks or behind the big pinzgauer and then walk away. Everyone was leaving by bus, train, or on foot. People from our region were taken in the direction of Ferizaj in Gerlica – it was the road in the direction of Elez Han to Macedonia. Macedonia accepted us because it was obliged to, they had a lot of pressure from the internationals so they took advantage and benefited from the European Union and America and the Quint countries. Macedonia had arranged a camp for us where the basic conditions weren’t offered. We didn’t have a bathroom, we didn’t have enough water, we didn’t have enough food, we didn’t have… But, fortunately, the weather was warm since it was during the summer so any possible epidemic didn’t happen. So, it wasn’t cold. You know, the spring weather. People were all stressed. When we passed the border we didn’t see any cars along the road. From Prishtina to Elez Han only my parents were by car… before we passed by Prishtina my mother told me to lie down in the back of the car. I had to lie down and cover myself with a thick coat in order for them not to see me. Because they took women or you know men. So it was only my parents. I remember my mother was playing Ceca in the car. So we played the songs of Ceca so when the police stopped us they hear Ceca singing. My parents spoke Serbian because people in the city all spoke Serbian since you encountered Serbians on a daily basis.
The interviewer: You were coved in the back of the car…
Anonim 2 ALB: I was covered…
The interviewer: You stayed as such all the way there?
Anonim 2 ALB: All the way there. Mimi and some Americans were waiting for us with some cars of the Embassy when we arrived at the border. We didn’t have problems passing the border. We were so lucky. We made use of that time, it was the time right before the war 100% started. Fortunately, it was the time when they were dealing with the last touches of the war and they didn’t deal much with us, you just had to be in a higher position or something. When they say you owned a golf 2 car in 1999 it was like owning a golf 8 nowadays. That was the best car back then. If they would see you driving a golf 2 they wouldn’t stop you, because they thought you were a Serbian and that Albanians wouldn’t dare to drive on those roads like that. So, they thought we were Serbians. They didn’t notice me in the back of the car and they thought my parents were Serbians. I saw the paramilitaries of course because I couldn’t stay during the whole road covered it was suffocating. I saw them mining the tunnels. You know, the way they mine the tunnels when the rocks would block the tunnel and then you’d get stuck and wouldn’t be able to escape. They were all getting prepared for the war and carrying out those operations since they were informed about all of it beforehand.
The interviewer: They were armed.
Anonim 2 ALB: Not only armed, but the Serbian military had the best armament of the time. They had saved all the armament for the war since they knew that sooner or later that would happen. We passed the border and we didn’t have a problem. They were shocked when they saw us, Albanians, at the border. It was just our car, not a single dog, cat, bird, crow, or insect did move. You could smell the gunpowder, you could see tired faces, and young soldiers and policemen. They were some young nationalists; they were kids dressed in a police uniform who came to fight and it felt like they were lost. They didn’t know their job position yet so we were able to pass the border… we arrived at the neutral zone.
The interviewer: You went to Skopje…
Anonim 2 ALB: We went to Skopje… first, we went to the hotel where Mimi was staying, the Alexander Palace at the beginning of the city of Skopje – the one which the Embassy had rented. We first went there and then we went to my aunt who lived in the suburb of Skopje. When we went there the other aunts were also at hers and quite a lot of people, too. She had her own family there as well as her husband’s family. It felt like a mini-camp and we felt bad about going there. Even though you would do your part to help around the house – we spent our salaries to buy food, flour, cheese, and everything, you still felt bad about being there. My other aunts’ children were young and you had to share everything. It was just like in the war. We stayed there for 2 weeks and then after 2 weeks Mimi told me to go and help them with the translation; a friend of ours would pick me up. I told her my English wasn’t good enough to be an interpreter.
The interviewer: the level…
Anonim 2 ALB: It was understandable that as a journalist you had to speak English or any other language. She told me it was okay, as much as I could speak. I had to translate for the ones who just arrived there and she told me I would be fine… although the first expressions by the people were “they stabbed us, cut us…” – I didn’t know how to translate that. But when they spoke it felt like I experienced the whole situation, too. I started working as an interpreter in the camps in Macedonia. There were people who suffered and went through a lot, people who had babies, elderly people, people in wheelchairs, women who had just given birth in the camp, and elderly people who had died in the neutral zone but then Macedonians didn’t let their dead bodies in… They still have their graves in that neutral zone because people had to bury them as they weren’t allowed to take them to the other side of the border. The Macedonians didn’t accept them and then they weren’t able to return to Kosovo. It was a hard time. Then, I started working with OSBE in Oher. Me and my sister’s husband, who was working with OSBE a bit before the war started, he was working for that mission you know Organization for Security and Cooperation OSC – he worked as an interpreter; we worked together. OSBE’s budget was lower in comparison to the the Embassy of America. Embassy of America had fewer employees. So, OSBE, with the money they had rented three hotels in Oher and then we went there to work. I worked there with Diki. Mimi was working in Skopje. We traveled by car and turned back there. I worked in the reception and sometimes I had to work shifts since there were too many people and it was wartime. You would see and hear bad stories. Sometimes Diki and I had to work night shifts and then had to work outdoors the following day.
The interviewer: When did you return to Kosovo?
Anonim 2 ALB: Me and Mimi were the first ones to return… in fact, everyone wanted to return as soon as possible. You know we had that intense feeling on the 12th of June. It was the best feeling and we were waiting to see who would be the first to return. The border was crowded with people. I returned with UNHCR. I didn’t care if I was barefoot or not, dressed or not, I didn’t care whether the house was burnt or not, I wanted to leave with or without other family members… during those months many countries gave the opportunity to families to go abroad because the camp was full. They had to help out Macedonia as the Macedonian government stated that they couldn’t bare it any longer. It felt like the whole Macedonia was full of Albanians. There were Albanians everywhere. They weren’t welcoming from the first day but then America, the Netherlands, and other countries were taking families abroad… it was like an airplane would fly to the Netherlands once a week, another would fly to Paris once a week, and so that all would spread out. But, the conditions were way better abroad. The emigrant centers were all better, they had apartments. The camps in Macedonia were all improvised by UNHCR with nylons – the camps weren’t in barracks but in nylons you know like tents. A big surface of the land was taken and it was all muddy because the winter just had ended. So you had a tent. People were fighting over who to write their names on the lists to leave abroad first. They wanted to go anywhere just not to stay there any longer. So, families were taken to Europe, America, also a great number of them were taken to Canada. People wanted to leave because they claimed they didn’t have shelter back home.

But, there were also many others who were determined to return. We didn’t experience what others had since they didn’t maltreat people in the city because of the media. For example, Mimi and the Embassy had the mission to observe the whole situation in Kosovo. They would only observe. They had some big cars, they looked like half jeeps but that were made out of steel; they were military cars. The cars were painted in a red-orange shade in order to stand out from other cars. They would go out for this mission during the day. They slept in Skopje in that hotel but during the day they came to the war. They visited all the regions in Kosovo. Mimi would tell us everything and how they went through the woods and opened up tents in the middle of the woods. People felt safer coming down the mountains during the day and leaving up the mountains to hide during the night. But, the region of Dukagjin didn’t have any mountains close…. I mean the ones who didn’t have any mountains close to them had to fight. People in Drenica fought and they fought at a 200 meters distance; the front line of the army was that close between the Albanians, the UÇK, and the Serbian military – 200 meters distance. Some others had mountains close to them so they could hide over there. During the day they had to go back home and prepare something to eat since they also had young children. It also…
The interviewer: Do you remember anything about June 12th? When did you pass the border? What did Kosovo look like?
Anonim 2 ALB: Empty. It was all empty. But, the traffic lights were working. The place was empty, it felt like nothing moved. It smelled gunshot powder… a place that I left looking differently… In fact, the country was looking miserable when I left it but when I returned it was in an even worse condition. It was interesting how the traffic lights were working. Anarchy. People were confused. They started breaking into the markets and stealing food because they were starving. The markets were empty but they’d do anything to survive. Nobody stopped at the traffic lights; cars were going in the wrong direction… it was wild. KFOR got here first and then of course we got here after them. They were on patrols non-stop. They tried to keep order and keep people safe.
The interviewer: Did you find your house?
Anonim 2 ALB: Yes. I found my neighbors there. First, I returned to my house and then I went to my grandma’s. When I arrived home I found the door unlocked, obviously, but the apartment was empty and broken… not broken but like the door was broken so that they could enter. Somebody had been living there. While the war was going on…
The interviewer: Someone had been living there…
Anonim 2 ALB: Serbia had made its people come there and occupy our houses. It was a lame political move. There were two Serbian women in our apartment. They had taken their clothes with them and had the intention to occupy the Albanians’ property. They thought that we left and wouldn’t return to Kosovo. It was their strategy to make people flee the country and bring their population, within the night, into our houses – everything readymade.
The interviewer: Did they refuse to leave?
Anonim 2 ALB: No, they left immediately when KFOR arrived. I saw two of my neighbors and asked them where had they been. They were scared to speak, they only said they were leaving now that we had arrived. I told them okay leave just like we did – go there and try how it feels like, but at least they’d go to their own country, and we went to someplace we didn’t feel welcomed. Those Serbian neighbors had lived in Prishtina from long time ago, I’d known them since I was born; they weren’t like the ones who came during the bombings. But, I will never understand the audacity to come here from Serbia. They brought people from all over Serbia to occupy our property. But like the audacity to come during wartime, during the bombings – to come and occupy someone’s property. Who in their right mind would risk their life for an apartment?!
Somebody else: They forced them.
Anonim 2 ALB: No, no, nobody can force you to leave your country.

Anonymous: I cannot remember the dates much…
The interviewer: It’s okay. So, it means before the NATO bombings was your first attempt to leave the country.
Anonymous: It was the first attempt to leave the country but we couldn’t make it. We believed that there would be a second time of the bombing, but then we thought, damn it, maybe they will not bomb once more. The shootings were terrifying. My son was little. I’m not sure, but I believe he was one-year-old, a year, and two or three months old. I was extremely scared. The bombings started and we got locked inside our houses. Then, we were trying to decide what to do whether the gather with the other people but then we had doubts about whether to try to escape because of the traffic jam. Some of my family members were with me; my youngest brother was with me while the oldest one was living abroad. I worried about my parents. I didn’t have the chance to contact my parents because there was no phone signal, so I went to their apartment. My parents refused to come with me. My father was sick so he said that instead of dying on the run he’d rather stay there. He asked me to take my little brother with me. I took my little brother only since the oldest brother was abroad.
The interviewer: With how many cars did you leave? How many people were there approximately?
Anonymous: Well, each car carried around 4-5 people. Our family and other relatives and neighbors had 4-5 people in their cars. We set off. I don’t know how we went out as we were too stressed and frightened. We didn’t take our clothes with us only some basic stuff because we were in a rush. Serbian neighbors were all around our neighborhood and we were frightened. We were scared that they would inform their authorities during the night and that’s why we left as such. As much as I can remember, we set off, and when we arrived at the roundabout at the Medical High School, the paramilitaries stopped us.
The interviewer: Okay. So this was the first time you tried to escape, right?
Anonymous: Yes, this was the first attempt. The paramilitaries were 2 meters tall. My brother-in-law was ahead of us and he got stopped first. We were right after him and the others were after us in line. My father-in-law was in a different direction (you know when you pass the roundabout to enter the highway – close to the Medical High School) and was also stopped by the paramilitaries right at the Medical High School. A big bunker was there; a tank or a bunker I don’t know what that was. They took him in that direction and we were in the other direction. My brother-in-law got stopped so we stopped after him, too. We were all stopped in that traffic and were waiting to see what was about to happen. When… he got out of his car, most probably they asked him to, and they asked him for money. We knew nothing about what was going on, but it’s something he told us afterward. We were staring from inside the car and couldn’t hear a thing but we could only assume. We saw him get out of the car. My mother-in-law was sitting in the back of our car. I think they asked him to open the trunk of the car. He opened it and (*speaks in Serbian) – it means they asked him to put everything he had in the trunk so that they could take it. And I don’t know what he did, most probably he put there all he had. After doing so, I don’t know if he spoke to them or anything but they started hitting on him. They started hitting them with the police rod and also boxing on him. We were simply waiting for our turn and observing what was happening. My husband wanted to go out but I told him not to. I told him not to do so because his turn was next and he could worsen the situation; he would try to protect him and they could shoot at him, so that wouldn’t be the right choice. I told him to stay in because his turn was next. I was sitting in the front passenger seat and my children and my brother were sitting in the back. My children were crying and screaming because they were scared.
The interviewer: They saw the whole scene…
Anonymous: Yes, yes, yes. They were young, my son doesn’t remember a thing because he was only 1 year and two-three months old, but my daughter, who was four, remembers it all. I remember that my mother-in-law didn’t see the whole scene going on behind us since she didn’t turn around to see what was happening. Suddenly, when she turned around and saw what was going on she went out trying to protect her son. I can vividly recall the moment when they pushed her head against the car. The poor woman took out all the money she had from her breast. She gave them all she had as a sign to let her son go. When they saw the money she had they asked my brother-in-law to get there and grabbed my mother-in-law by her head and forced her to get inside the car. They released them afterwards. My brother-in-law got inside the car. Then, it was our turn. They came to our car and asked my husband (*speaks in Serbian) – which means what are you waiting for, get out. He went out of the car. I was shaking. My husband had given me a sum of money telling me I could need them if anything happens and we get separated and won’t see each other. I told him not to because I would be with him wherever he’d go. He insisted I take the money because what if I’d end up with the children in a different place from him. I didn’t want to accept the money but he insisted. He had put the money inside a box and told me to keep it. As soon as he went outside the car he started hitting him with the machine gun right on the head (boom-boom) and put him down. Perhaps he was feeling numb at that moment since you wouldn’t be able to feel the pain because of the fear. When they hit on him he stood up immediately. They hit him again on the head and his head was cut and started bleeding. He stood up again. I don’t know if he started speaking with them but one of them got inside our car. I was sitting in the front passenger seat… the policeman, I remember his face vividly to this day, he had blue eyes, a had, and with a machine gun sat on my husband’s seat. He sat down and pointed the machine gun right here. He said (*speaks in Serbian) what are you waiting for you bitch, (*speaks in Serbian) give me all you have. It might sound funny but I was too stressed as my right hand and leg were jumping like this and I wasn’t able to put my hand in the pocket and give it to him. My brother told me to give the money to him and I couldn’t even turn my head around. I told my brother I couldn’t get the money because my hand was shaking. My hand and leg were shaking like this. I will never forget that moment. Somehow I managed to get the money, I gave it to him without looking at him (*speaks in Serbian) – which means I am telling you to give me the money. I told him I didn’t have any more money. When I told him as such that’s when he understood that the money is inside that box, because I gave him the box which was a medicine box. When I told him I didn’t have any more money that’s when he understood the money is inside the box and most probably he thought I was joking around with him or God knows what that idiot could’ve thought. When I told him (*speaks in Serbian) my brother sitting in the back said that he was waiting for the moment he would do something to me, touch me, or anything, and he would react. If he would react he would kill us all there. I told him not to say anything or react. He took the money and went out. He took everything we had. They then told my husband (*speaks in Serbian) to get in the car while swearing at him telling him the children were crying. He got in the car and the same thing happened with the cars behind us except they didn’t hit on them they just took the money. My father-in-law on the other side was also beaten up but then released. He got in the car and we were waiting. All of a sudden they started breaking the windows of the car with the police metal rod. As we were waiting inside the car they hit and broke all the windows boom-boom. I was creaming out and telling my brother to protect the children. I told him to cover their eyes because if a piece of glass would get in their eyes it would get them blinded for life. I was telling him to protect their eyes… cover their eyes. He told me he was doing so. My daughter was crying. My son, too, but since my daughter was older she was more aware of it and got traumatized. She was traumatized to the point she didn’t want to pass the border back to Kosovo because she thought the same thing would happen again. After all the cars’ windows were broken, it was cold, they told us to move and leave. The windows were all broken and it was windy. When we arrived in Llapnasella there were the militaries, not the paramilitaries, the militaries. When they saw us in that condition they asked us where we were heading to like that, and they spoke in Serbian. We didn’t know what to tell them but we said that we were trying to get somewhere. They asked us to go back because we weren’t in a good condition to travel. We turned back. We then separated from the others because we were afraid to spend the night at home. I went to some of my relatives, my brother-in-law went someplace else, and my parents-in-law to another place, and just like that we separated to spend the night somewhere in order to decide what to do on the following day. We spent the night there but we couldn’t really rest. At the family I was staying with some other relatives fot there and told them to leave the house immediately since the Serbians are getting in tonight. So, I had to move along with them. I didn’t know anything about the other family members. I didn’t know anything about my parents because the last time I saw them was before the paramilitaries maltreated us; when I got there to take my little brother. But, I don’t know how my mother found out about how they had maltreated us…. Oh, or it was because when we returned after that scene we took my brother back home. When the military turned us back we took my brother home. We only left him there at the parking and he must’ve told them what had happened afterwards. So, I didn’t know a thing about my parents. When my mother found out about all that, she tried to find us since we lost touch. She knew what happened to us because my brother told them. She then went to our house but the house was empty, nobody was there. She was trying to find us. In the meantime, on the following days, my parents were forced to leave the apartment and I didn’t know where they were. They had spent the night at my uncle’s, then… in the meantime, while my mother was trying to find me, my brother and father were forced to leave the apartment. So, when my mother got back she didn’t know where my father and brother were. She didn’t know a thing about her husband, her son, and her daughter. It was a big mess. The second time… I don’t how we got ready to leave because we didn’t have any cars. We left our broken cars in the garages and didn’t have a vehicle to escape. Then, we got in our neighbors’ car – they were 4 of them – the husband, the wife, their daughter and son. The car was small and I don’t know what kind of car that was. Plus, it was me, my husband and our children. We were 8 in total. We set off to Macedonia. My brother-in-law also tried to escape I don’t who he was with, I believe he was with my parents-in-law since my father-in-law’s car wasn’t broken – only the windows of our car and my brother-in-law’s were broken. So, my brother-in-law and my parents-in-law were all in a car; my sister-in-law, my brother-in-law, their two children, and my parents-in-law. We were in our neighbor’s car and we set off to Tetova, or Macedonia, this was the second time… or not, the second time was when we were trying to escape with the relatives of the relatives we spent the night at. At the border in Tetova we waited for a long time, almost the whole night staying inside the cars. We couldn’t cross the border so we turned back to Prishtina. So, that was the second time. The third time was this one when we tried to leave together with my in-laws. We set off with two cars – their car and the car of our neighbor. Then, we waited in Elez Han. When we arrived at Elez Han…it was the sixth day my mother-in-law didn’t take her dialysis treatment so she started feeling worse. The line was too long. When we arrived there we figured out that people had been waiting there for a week or two. They all had gotten inside the houses in Elez Han cooking food for their children. They had to because the line got stuck, it blocked, and they didn’t let them leave. We waited as much as we could there, but then my brother-in-law walked for I don’t know how many kilometers to the border. He walked till there to speak to the colonel or someone there about my mother-in-law’s condition and that she needed to be treated immediately in Skopje. He walked for many kilometers and got to the border. So, it means he walked from Elez Han or even before we got to Elez Han since the line was long, I don’t know how many kilometers that is. We were waiting there and then he returned there with the colonel, by their car. He told us to get inside our cars, but only my parents-in-law were able to pass the border. They went to the border by car and we were still stuck in that line. But, we weren’t as far behind the line as in the beginning since we were able to get closer because of my parents-in-law… they passed the border and waved us goodbye. We didn’t know what would happen next or whether we would be able to see each other again – whether we would cross the border or go back. Fortunately, as soon as they passed the border on foot, a taxi there or I don’t know what that was took them to Skopje because she was not in a good condition… we also passed the border then. After a few hours, they got an order to let some cars pass the border, not the whole line but only the first 10 cars. We were one of those first 10 cars, we crossed the border and got settled in Veleshta. My parents-in-law were in Skopje and we still didn’t know what had happened. But, my husband and my brother-in-law went then to Skopje to check on them. We got accommodated at my father-in-law’s relatives and we stayed there…
The interviewer: For how long did you stay there?
Anonymous: Well, if we got there at the beginning of April, it means that we stayed there during April, May, and June – for 2 months and a half. Two months and a half because Prishtina got liberated on the 18th or on the 12th – on the day when Prishtina got liberated, either on that day or on the following day, I am not sure, my husband immediately returned back to Kosovo. We were still all staying there because my husband went to Kosovo to see how the situation was, whether the house was in a good condition, and see how things were around the house and in the area. We had given our house’s key to our neighbors. We had left a lot of food in the house and had told them to take whatever they needed… but the house was just as we left it. There was nothing missing, but even if it did nobody cared about it, the most important part was to have a place to live. Then, it didn’t take long when we all turned back home, I don’t know when maybe after 2 or days. On the way back we had trouble with my daughter because she was scared to get back home. Until recently when the police stopped us in traffic she would start crying. We tried to convince her that now everything is over but she would only say “The police, the police, the police” – even when they stopped us because of the speed or anything else she would start crying and was out of her senses. I wasn’t aware back then that I needed to treat her and take her to a psychologist. We didn’t know she was traumatized. This didn’t happen with my son because he was only 1 year and two-three months old so he forgot all about it, but my daughter was in a bad condition.
The interviewer: Thank you very much!

Interviewer: Let’s start just before the bombings begun. What did you manage totake when leaving the house? Where were you? Who were you with? How old were you?
Afjete Bashota: We were at home before the bombings. We got ready; we got some more food suplies at home. Even when the bombings started, we stayed home, because the boys and Nuri did not accept leaving the house. After two or three days they decided to leave the house, Nuri and I went at my sister’s… Drita, my second sister. We decided for the boys to go to Besa, with their wifes and Vesa, who was three and a half years old. After… two days we stayed there. Drita’s house was in front of the hospital. When we woke up in the morning, early Tuesday morning… on Sunday we went there, on Tuesday morning we noticed people from Velania… a convoy of people who were driven away from their homes. Among them, Skender Berisha and his wife. He is a colleague of Nuri at the faculty and his wife a doctor. I turn to Nuri: look, Skender and Drita, I said, they are going with a suitcase in their hand… they’re taking them uphill to Veternik. I called the boys on the phone and told them…I said: we are coming to pick you up. Really? We are coming to get you. We had a Fiat Uno…imagine, seven people in that car. Anyways, we left? They left the day before, they stopped them in front of “Slovenia Sport”, they took them out of the vehicle, they searched Shkëlzen and Genci with machine guns pointed at their chests. They had the car registered on Belgrade plates, because they worked with some Jews. They were two brothers. They were our family friends and working in a same company. Finally, they had left them pass. So, they also had decided to leave, they came and took us. We left the house keys to Drita and told her to give them to Besa and we continued on our way. We passed through those tunnels on the way to Kaçanik, without any problem. We reached there safe and sound.
Interviewer: Was there no army on the way?
Afjete Bashota: Yes, sure there was. When we got there…
Interviewer: Didn’t they stop you?
Afjete Bashota: … they caught us… no. When we arrived in the evening, it became evening because the convoy stopped, it stopped moving, then we stayed in the vehicle. There were people saying that the soldiers are approaching. Those Serbian soldiers, paramilitaries, all sorts of them. Luckily, a friend of the boys saw Shkëlzen and Genc in the morning and he told them, look, we’re going down with the car, we want to leave the car at the Cement Factory. Come with us and bring your car down there, because we’re going to move from here on foot, we are going to leave the car behind. That pharmacist… no, they are dentists. Anyway, I can’t even recall his name now. Then, the boys got into the vehicle quickly. They drove… we were not far from this Cement Factory. We arrived there, when we arrived, Shkëlzen and Genc told us: mom, dad we have decided to go on foot. Nuri, told me: you too go out and leave. I told him: I will not leave you alone, that is never going to happen. Both of us will stay here, let it be. Let’s hope they will manage to pass and survive. As for us… we will see how we will handle this… this situation. Genc sat on the wall of the factory and began cryimg. Because we didn’t know, we were thinking that we are probably parting forever because he didn’t know where life was taking us. Anyway, they managed to pass through. We stayed for seven days at the border. It was interesting…
Interviewer: You stayed with the vehicle?
Afjete Bashota: We stayed with the vehicle. After a few days, I saw Musa Limani’s wife as she was walking. Her name is Mybezen. I opened the window and said: where are you going? She said: I’m going to the border. I said: can you walk all the way there, on your feet? Because she was suffering from her legs, they were hurting and stuff. She said: I left Musa in Pristina, because he was in Rambouillet, and continued: my boys are in Tetovo. I was in a car belonging to one of Musa’s friends, but both him and his wife were too difficult… I couldn’t bear it anymore, and so I left them, she added. I told her: Come in here with us, if the odds are on our side to cross the border you will also cross with us. If not, we come back the three of us, what else can we do. So, she then joined us and sat on the back seats. She was blessing me, but that’s how I am. You too Rita…
Interviewer: Did you have food, aunt…
Afjete Bashota: They brought us food from time to time. Some milk, some bread, too. But otherwise, those women, especially those who were from the village, they would go to all those houses in Elez Han and cook and prepare whatever they could…they took everything they found in the refrigerators. This was all right, but they also took clothes and that was a problem… this had been so… intolerable. And so, one day Mybezane…, told me, come on, let’s go there, let’s go prepare something. I agreed and when I went there, I see them fighting; no, I came earlier, not you, and so on. You know what, I said, shall we stop this? Let me go back. I’d better starve than get in conflict here with all kinds of women. So, we went back. But, opposite us there was someone in a vehicle “Fiqa”. He was with his wife and two children. It seemed, it was someone who worked at this… those security agencies, because he was very well informed. From time to time he would enter our vehicle and talk with Nuri. He knew how they killed Rexhai Surroi, he was someone very, very… and he would say: Professor, as much as you can, don’t go out of the vehicle, don’t get too exposed… there is a lot of danger here, this situation we are in. His wife would go to prepare food and she would bring us something too. A piece of bread with something… Humans manage to live in any way possible. This is so true. After seven days, they turned everybody back.
Interviewer: Vehicles?
Afjete Bashota: Vehicles, all those that were staying in that area at the Cement Factory, but not those in Bllace. Those with cars staying on the plateau of the factory, thousands of cars were turned back. We luckily had our vehicle with Belgrade registration plates. Nuri was very good at things and he knew how to maneuver. He went to talk with a police officer… a policeman there at the customs, and he said to him: I was on an official trip. And continued: I’ve been caught in this crowd of people. Therefore, he said, I don’t accept turning back because I have nowhere to go. Luckily for us, that policeman gave us an order to pass. Four vehicles passed altogether. The person who was with the vehicle opposite us, the one with “Fiqe”, when they came to turn him back, he said no, I don’t have the keys of the car. My son took them, he said, he got out and I cannot drive. He played well; life had taught him that. After a week, four days… four cars, we stayed one full night in front of customs there. There was Hysen Badivuku with his wife, with Pranvera, Violeta Pufja, Hajro Ulcinaku with his wife, us and I don’t know who else, and a woman Rita. A very brave woman. She went out and told to the police: if you force me to turn back, I will kill myself here. She said, I have my children abroad, they are in Macedonia. Therefore, she said, I don’t accept turning back. After four days, the barriers were lifted up, they let us pass, and so we reached that neutral border area. When we went there, the boys tried to find connections as much as they could. Young with phones, because we didn’t have phones. They said: Mom, Dad, do everything you can because there is no way for us to get out. We are who knows how far behind, we have nowhere to go, only if we fly because we have nowhere to go. When we got to that neutral zone, what did I see there in Bllacë, the horror I saw there… A friend of Salih… oh my God, he was… they came from Bllaca in a line to go to the border. Esat Meka approached and asked me: Afjete, where is Salih? I said: I left Salih in Pristina. He said: oh no… for my brother. He said: better you hadn’t tell me. Anyway, after a while, the son-in-law of the house we were going to was a member of the Parliament of Macedonia, Sefedin Aruni. The boys managed to inform him. So, he came with an officer. He took us, when we arrived at the border he said to Nuri: professor, give me the steering wheel… the steering wheel because you are tired, and I will drive. So, when we arrived at the border, they let us go without a problem. He drove us all the way to Gostivar. When we arrived in Gostivar, his house was in the center of Gostivar, opposite…
Interviewer: So, you had found the house beforehand, right? Because other refugees were initially accommodated in the Mosques.
Afjete Bashota: No, we had arranged it in advance, because he… both brothers were Nuhi’s students, they had offered us the house. We also had the boys… the boys went before us. They also went…they settled there. They told us, how Mrs. Mejrem, the mother of this student, of these two students, has welcomed them when they arrived. He said, when we woke up in the morning, he said… we took a shower, we got cleaned and… the house had several rooms. The boys had their own separate rooms, we stayed at the big living room with kitchen downstairs. Mrs. Mejreme had her own room; everything was in order. She came out… it was something like an alley and she was waiting for us in the middle of the road. I started crying. I can’t desribe how touched I was. She said come on, welcome, we are so happy that you came, and the boys have become very worried about…because of the waiting time at the border… well, we stayed there for three months. Since April when we left, the bombings started in March, then April, May, June. We were the first to return. We felt at home there. We had money with us, we went out and got supplies. In front of us there was this market place. Often times, she would take the meat and vegetables out of the her fridge, whatever she had, she told me, don’t go out to buy anything, because I have everything that is needed. Neighbors, relatives would invite us for tea and so on…that, not her daughters, no… Nuri was getting invited by his own students. Rita, when they found out that he was in Gostivar, believe me, they would come to bring us food with boxes. They were saying: professor, what you have done for us, we don’t believe we will be able to repay. Had it not been for the University of Pristina, we would have been left without a school, without a degree. They invited us to their homes? At dinners, they tried everything. Nuri, had a school friend from… from high school here in Pristina, Mr. Ilmi. All of Gostivar called him teacher Ilmi. He was very careful. He had a dentist friend. Someone named Selman Tusha, a real gentleman, Rita something immeasurably. He would come to take Nuri and go out with him every day. I would tease him sometimes, I would say to Mr. Ilmi, what is this custom of yours here, only with men, you were going out with men and not taking women with you. And he would say: you, too, madam will also go out. Whenever he came he has never come empty handed. Vesa used to go out in that square in the neighborhood… playing with children. He would bring candies, salty sticks….whatever he remembered. When one day he was coming, I went out, I heard the doorbell and then I saw him. He said: Mrs. Afiete, these 100 euros are for Vesa. They loved Vesa very much, very-very much. The dentist gave me this, he said, Selman, the friend. I said, there is no need, Mr. Ilmi, because we have money. He said: we didn’t give you this money, this is only for Vesa. I took it with lots of resistance. When I took the money, I told Shkëlzen and Gentian, you know what, take this money, go out and buy the girl whatever she needs. The weather improved, we had only winter/thicker clothes… so, they went out and bought everything she needed with that money. So, we’ve really been there somewhat… plus this guy from America mailed us a package. Nuri got a complete set of clothes, me as well, daughters-in-law, the children, Vesa everyone got clothes. I have kept Nuri’s clothes to this day. I gave away many Nuri’s clothes, but I kept those because they were so good, something extraordinary.
Interviewer: Do you remember, how did you decide to come back when the war ended?
Afjete Bashota: The decision? In a moment… When we saw that the bursts of rifle fire started around the neighborhoods, we went into the basement. In an alley where we have the oil boiler, we went there and we all hid for fear that they were breaking into our house.
Interviewer: Oh, no, I meant from Gostivar to return to Kosovo?
Afjete Bashota: Nuri and I returned from Gostivar earlier. Immediately after doing that… of Kumanova, done on nine… The Kumanova Agreement of 9 June. We decided to go back by bus. We left the car to them. Then, after a couple of weeks, I don’t know exactly, a week or two, maybe ten days, they returned from there with their wives. Merita was pregnant with Arian. I was telling to Ms. Mejreme: imagine, if she gives birth here, the daughter-in-law is going to deliver here. She started… she gave birth in September. Then she would reply: so what if she gives birth here? We will do all what is needed here, including the baby shower… yes, but I was saying…. You know, Rita, the wedding parties there are organized with 1,000 guests. Something not normal, so to speak. Nuri and I returned. Fortunately, we found the house in a good shape, just as when we left. Besa and Merita’s mother went to our house every second or third day and took whatever food they needed. We told them, during the time we were in Gostivar, Besa’s son, Mustafa, had an office in Dardania, over there, around Bill Clinton, I don’t know exactly, maybe in Ulpiana… He was constantly going there and informing us by phone. Many people, all those who needed went there, since the phone came out from his office. And with internet…with internet, internet, because they gave the boys a… “heck”, a computer. We received news through Mustafa. For everything.
Interviewer: Did you also communicate with the sisters and brother you left here?
Afjete Bashota: Yes, yes. The brother in the apartment, surrounded by parliament… paramilitaries and…at least one… now I’ll tell you who… he came, he said, we begged Salih to give us the girl… I met him in Gostivar, he said, he didn’t let her go. He said no, let the girl stay with us. And so, she…what… now I don’t remember. Someone close to Salih, someone that worked together and so on. So, they were under a serious danger. Salih did not leave the house for 40 days. He was kind of petrified. While Besa she was stronger, more … Drita grew stronger, because she used to be much more cowardly. Checking the girl’s house…then the other one, he stayed at Besa’s.
Interviewer: You didn’t have any damage? Neither at home, nor…?
Afjete Bashota: No, luckily not. Luckily not. though they had tried to. It could be seen from the footprints as they kicked the door. But Nuri had put some wooden posts on the door, including also on both sides and on that small door below towards the yard and here. It could be visible that they had kicked them. They tried to open but couldn’t. Otherwise, luckily, we had the blinds completely closed. So, we were lucky in a way, even though there were only few houses in our neighborhood that had been damaged, very few, two or three houses were burned down, the others were completely the same as when we left them. Telling to one another… talking among themselves, deciding which house will belong to who …
Interviewer: So, they kept them safe?
Afjete Bashota: Yes, yes. Further down from us were the houses of Orana’s, the Behluli and Amir Agani, they were more damaged. Not completely burned, but very much destroyed, demolished. While up here in our neighborhood, no.
Interviewer: Thank you very much!
Afjete Bashota: Also. Experiences…

The interviewer: Let’s start the interview with the story of Nanë Tereza. You worked for Nanë Tereza.

Shqipe Kumanova:  For 3 years, I guess…

The interviewer: 3 years. How did it all function in Nanë Tereza? What was its mission?

Shqipe Kumanova: It all started after all Albanian health institutions got closed and after all the teachers and the best doctors were fired. The people of our country had to do something about it and start something in a small building at least for the children. Then, we were offered an opportunity. Shaban had a big building, I don’t know exactly who he was, that’s how they called him, Shaban, and he let us use his house. We used the basement to take care of the children ages between 0 to 8 years old in one room, then another room of that building was used for children aged up to 15 years old. Upstairs were the pulmonologist and the internist. Then, step by step the surgery and the gynecology department got opened. The doctors were working as volunteers, like the gynecologists. A great number of women gave birth in Nanë Tereza. They were all scared, so they had to come here to Nanë Tereza since they didn’t feel safe giving birth somewhere where Serbians worked. The same happened in other departments like the surgical one. People felt scared to go to the hospital where Serbians worked. So, we had to open Nanë Tereza. I worked there for 3 years, in the internist department. I worked with both children and adults. I started working there right after I had graduated. We were looking forward to working as interns since we had just graduated and we needed to practice our profession; the practice and the experience are necessary and that pays off all the days we didn’t get any money. We worked there for three years and we never got a penny from it; the employees were not paid in Nanë Tereza. But, we got the needed experience. The conditions there then began to improve; the number of medicine started to increase and everything else was needed. Foreign people would provide us with such necessities and bring them by loading trucks. Food was also distributed to people like flour and everything else – milk and oil. Families living abroad would deliver them and people in need would stock up.

The interviewer: Let’s move on to when the situation worsens, the story of Jasharaj family when the war actually began.

Shqipe Kumanova: It was such difficult timing when we heard the news about the Jasharaj family and how the 50 members of the family were sacrificed for this country. It was distressing and we were left hopeless. I don’t know what else to say.

The interviewer: How do you remember the beginning of the bombings?

Shqipe Kumanova: The beginning of the bombing was difficult. We were all eyes and ears as the news on the radio and TV were delivered. We were waiting to see what would happen; would they bombard the place or not? We remember the first night of the bombings. We heard the explosion and we were scared and hopeless. We didn’t know what would happen next; they would bombard the Serbians but then what would happen to us; we were scared the Serbians would come to our houses and maltreat us… This lasted… the bombings occurred on March 24th, or by the end of March. I went to Bllaca on April 6th.

The interviewer: From Bllaca…

Shqipe Kumanova: It was March 31st I believe, or April 1st because I had stayed with all of them and for another 4 days with my mother – it seems like it was March 31st.

The interviewer: How did you make the decision to leave?

Shqipe Kumanova: Well, we suddenly just saw the great number of cars leaving…the police didn’t come to our house, but we saw a great number of cars and people just like at a big wedding.
The interviewer: What did you take with you?

Shqipe Kumanova: The main things as I told you earlier.

The interviewer: Can you list the things you took with you?

Shqipe Kumanova: I was actually confused but my mother and my sister-in-law, Diana, packed the things. I don’t know about it. The blankets, the diapers, the wet wipes, baby clothes, and similar stuff. Also, some food that my sister-in-law was able to get. She also put some tracksuits in a big bag and so on…

The interviewer: You set off in two cars…

Shqipe Kumanova: Yes, two cars…

The interviewer: How were you divided into cars? Was it crowded?

Shqipe Kumanova: Yes, yes, it was crowded…

The interviewer: How many family members…

Shqipe Kumanova: Too many family members, it was crowded for sure. But as they say, the more you are the better it is. Our only worry was to escape.

The interviewer: Then you stayed at Hani i Elezit…

Shqipe Kumanova: We stayed in Han Elez for 6 days. 5 nights and 6 days, on April 6th I believe, or not…

The interviewer: You mentioned that there were many paramilitaries on the first night there…

Shqipe Kumanova: On the first day that we got there, the day not the night… I remember that during the day we were waiting in a long line of cars which was 2 to 3 kilometers away from the border; Han Elez, in Bllaca. So, the car line was 5 to 6 kilometers long, maybe 10, I am not sure, but my family and I were only 1 or 2 kilometers away from the border. There were some vehicle military parades. They were all armed and masked. They wouldn’t allow you to get out of the car. They would force you to get inside the car and would shut aggressively shot your door. There were cases they hurt people’s arms or legs while closing the door, telling them to stay in with the door closed. First, there were only the paramilitaries, then the airplanes…

***

The interviewer: So they would violently shut your doors…

Shqipe Kumanova: Violently…

The interviewer: And then on the following days?

Shqipe Kumanova: This didn’t happen in the following days. Perhaps, I can’t remember. But, I wasn’t that scared anymore since the airplanes started circling around and we would listen to the news on our car radios that America and the allies were protecting and helping us in this humanitarian disaster. We felt a little relieved and more relaxed when they would tell us not to be afraid as they had our back.

The interviewer: At first only your father and brother crossed the border…

Shqipe Kumanova: My father, brother, sister-in-law, and their two children. My brother had a certificate that proved that he was an OSBE employee and that’s how he passed the border. My mom, the other two children, and I were left in the other car…

The interviewer: Why were you left in the car and didn’t cross the border altogether?

Shqipe Kumanova: Because, you know, some people would leave their cars behind and cross the border but I wasn’t sure about leaving the car behind – what would we do without the car? We stayed there for another 4 days.

The interviewer: Was it cold?

Shqipe Kumanova: Not that cold since it was April. My mother would start the car sometimes for twenty minutes or half an hour. We had some blankets with us, thanks to my sister-in-law who had taken them from home. I don’t remember feeling cold. Of course, the people who were waiting behind us, the ones who were taken to Bllaca by train, so they got there by train, they were cold and went through more difficulties. We had it easier in this case since we were in a car. In comparison to them we were in a better condition.

The interviewer: Afterwards you went to Gostivar for 2 weeks…

Shqipe Kumanova: Yes, for 2 weeks. We stayed in Gostivar for around 2 weeks.

The interviewer: How was the house you stayed in?

Shqipe Kumanova: The house… the house was like an abandoned house. The owner left that house since he was living abroad. But, he let us stay there for 2 weeks. We had the elementary living conditions, we had a kitchen, rooms where we could rest, a bathroom, and so on. We made use of it. My sister was in Tirana, she got herself an apartment. My brother drove us to the border. My sister was waiting for us at the border and then we hopped in a taxi and went to Tirana…

The interviewer: You stayed in Tirana for 2 months…

Shqipe Kumanova: We stayed there for 2 months. We stayed there during the whole of April – so it was 2 full months.

The interviewer: How was your daily routine in Tirana; you told me they held classes there.

Shqipe Kumanova: Yes, they made it possible for us to have classes. We went there during a specific time and had classes. Some professors came to the University of Tirana and then we had classes – they planned out a learning schedule for certain students and the classes were held at an amphitheater. There was not a great number of students attending the classes but it was enough to make the learning process possible.

The interviewer: Then, you returned to Kosovo…

Shqipe Kumanova: Yes.

The interviewer: What was Prishtina like when you got back?

Shqipe Kumanova: It was… that probably was the most difficult moment of them all. When we got back the apartment was opened… the paramilitaries had slept there, they had lived there. It was filthy. But, it wasn’t burnt down. We then started cleaning everything and putting everything in its place…

The interviewer: And the house?

Shqipe Kumanova: The house in Tasligje, as I mentioned at the beginning, had the third floor burnt. Fortunately, the fire had stopped by itself; nobody stopped the fire, it was stopped on its own. We started cleaning and repairing the house. Seeing your house in such a condition was so difficult. But, on the other hand, since nobody was hurt, every family member was fine, so even if the house would have gotten burnt it would’ve been fine – it was something you could fix.

The interviewer: Thank you very much!

The interviewer: Okay. Thank you for doing the interview. You can start the story by telling us the oldest memory from the war. Tell us where you were, who you were with, any decisions that your family made, and anything you can remember since you were too young.
Valmira Rashiti: Should I introduce myself?
The interviewer: Okay, no problem.
Valmira Rashiti: Okay. I am Valmira. During the war in Kosovo me and my family didn’t travel abroad, we stayed in Kosovo. I was 2 years old back then. By the time we started moving from one village to another I turned to be 3 years old. It’s interesting how the memories I have from that time are so vivid. They’re so vivid like when I compare those memories to the ones from high school or the more recent ones, the memories from the war seem more vivid. I don’t know if you got my point. I believe that I still recall those memories because they were so emotional for me and my family. We were living in Gllogov in the municipality of Lipjan when the war started. I remember how we refused to go somewhere out of Kosovo although we had the chance to. But, there was hope that the war wouldn’t last for too long and we would get back to our own houses. My family members, I don’t know who exactly, probably my uncles and my father, gathered and discussed that it was better for us to leave the house and move to a more mountainous area in order to avoid contact with the military and stay in flat areas. This was the reason we moved to the village of Verbica, a village now known as Zhegovc in the municipality of Gjilan. We were around 5 or 6 families living there. I don’t know exactly for how many months or how many days we stayed there, but I know that we stayed in a big chamber; we stayed and ate there altogether every day. We were all staying under the pressure of any attack that could’ve happened.
The interviewer: What was the food like during that period?
Valmira Rashiti: What I remember from that time is that we ate a lot of “pogaçe” and “krelane” (traditional food). Maybe because all we had was flour and the women in the house tried to make use of what they had. We were too many children there and I remember that, although I don’t remember that they ever let me feel hungry, but I do know that I always felt anxious about the food. I felt scared that there wasn’t enough food when all children were sat together around “sofra” (low dining table). We had to wait our turn for the food and you had the impression like you had to feel satisfied with all that you had and that you needn’t have many requests – I considered as a big request to ask for another piece of “pogaçe” or “krelane” back then. Even though we all ate like from the same plate or from the same baking pan we would still think that we should only eat our own portion of food because there were too many people and we didn’t have great conditions so we thought we shouldn’t ask for anything more. This is what I remember regarding food; I felt anxious that it was sufficient and that I had to compete with the other children or that I had to eat my food fast. In addition, I remember my great-grandmother. She was so old and her way of thinking at that age was childlike. She asked for food in the worst situations; when we were out in the mountains, when it was 2 a.m., when it was all dark and when we were afraid because there were militaries close to us and we had to keep our silence. I remember my great-grandmother screaming at 2 a.m. asking for food. I remember the shouts towards her because she didn’t understand as she was too old. But, my grandfather and other family members, especially men, were so frustrated towards her. I remember I felt sorry for her and I couldn’t understand how they’d yell at her just because she was asking for some food. I didn’t understand it because that was something normal. This is what I can recall regarding that; “pogaçe” and my great-grandmother are my main memories when talking about food during wartime.
The interviewer: Can you describe the mountains and the setting? Who were you with and were you able to walk when they asked you to?
Valmira Rashiti: No, I was so slow. I know that every adult was assigned to take care of a younger one. We were 5 or 6 families but I can only remember my close family. I remember some of my uncles and their children and my mother with my little sister who was 5-6 months at the time. My mom had to climb the mountains with my sister, I was with my grandmother, she was the one who took care of me while we climbed the mountains, and my grandfather took care of my brother. So, every adult had to take care of someone younger. I remember some chaotic scenes climbing up the mountains with my grandmother. She was overweight and I remember how she took breath and how her breath was getting heavier while climbing, the way she dragged me to reach the top, the times we both fell, the times when I fell and the other times when she fell. Her weight made the climb more difficult and the way she had to pull me and keep me close, but we made it. I don’t know how we decided to stop at a location but perhaps we found it a more isolated one. My memories in the mountains are mainly during the night, during the dark because we were scared of the attacks during the night and we were scared they would come to our chamber. If we would hear a little noise all the families had to immediately mobilize and had to prioritize what to take with them to the top of the mountains and set off. I remember how the tree shadows gave me a fright and that I was looking for physical contact; I needed my father or mother close to me because I felt unsafe in the dark. It is understandable because I was only 3 years old. I needed physical contact because the mountain gave me anxiety.
The interviewer: Do you remember if you were cold in the mountains?
Valmira Rashiti: Not much. I remember I was scared and that we had the tendency to be as quiet as possible because I felt obliged to listen and if I would hear anything, a move or a sound, I could run and tell the adults who were near me. My family tells me I was like “in denial” the whole time. Among the sequences I remember during the climb is me singing the song “A vritet pafajesia” by Leonora Jakupi with some flowers in my hands and picking flowers. I would tell my father “dad, this is all a lie, the war is all a lie, right?” – and my dad would tell me “yes, don’t worry it’s all a lie, they just want to scare children so they won’t cause troubles. But, you don’t have to be scared this is not for you, it’s a lie, don’t worry”. So then yeah, I believed that as true and moved on to picking flowers. I climbed the mountains as if nothing was happening. I know that I was in denial but I still felt anxious somehow. I asked my father questions trying to calm myself down because if your father tells you that it’s a lie then that’s how it should be. That calmed me down although deep down I felt unsafe.
The interviewer: Earlier you mentioned your uncle’s wife, right? Newly-wed? Why is she stuck in your memory?
Valmira Rashiti: It’s interesting when I try to recall my memories from the war, just like I said earlier, they’re all emotional. I was young but the way people around me experienced the war, the situations, and the separation affected me. They asked my uncle’s wife, who was newlywed, to separate from her husband, my uncle, and leave the village we were living to go to the mountains without him because he had to serve the country as a soldier. She refused to do so and her frustration mixed with sadness and anxiety were all shown on her face. I remember she didn’t want to come with us. She didn’t come with us, she stayed with him. This is what I remember about her, the way she didn’t want to separate from her husband.
The interviewer: Do you remember the time you returned home after the war?
Valmira Rashiti: Yes. Among my vivid memories is the part when the war ended and we returned to Gllogovc, in the village we used to live. I remember a weird feeling when we got in our yard and saw the grass all grown. My grandfather always took care of the grass it never got like that. The grass was big and the cow was tied. I remember the cow was physically weak and I felt sorry for the cow and that nobody was there to feed her during the time we weren’t there. It all gave me a bad feeling, a melancholy. I know that we all started checking the yard and see what had changed and what is still as it was. But, nothing was the same. There were too many holes in the ground, most probably the Serbians tried to find the things we had hidden. My father had buried our documents, a computer and other things that fortunately were not found by the Serbians. I remember that we all sat together around “sofer” (a low dining table) and ate our meal feeling relieved out in the sun. I remember we had to eat our food inside while feeling scared and hurrying. So we ate our meal outside and it was interesting how the helicopter would make you feel panicked waiting for another attack; but it was calm on that day. My brother used to lie on the ground whenever he heard something during the war in order not to be noticed. I remember when we returned to the village, right where we ate our meal, a helicopter passed by. And my brother immediately stood out of the table and lied down. He still had the propensity to lie down as he was scared and tried to go unnoticed because he thought they were the Serbians. In fact, it was NATO. This is what I clearly remember when we got back home. It was so confusing to me. I wasn’t sure if I should feel safe or if the danger is still close; if I should hurry up to eat my food; if we were staying there or if we had to go back to the mountains; I felt unsafe. But, at the same time, the weather was warm and we were at home. Mixed feelings.
The interviewer: Was the house damaged?
Valmira Rashiti: The windows were broken and when we went inside the house it was filthy. I know that the women immediately started cleaning the house and throwing away all the broken things. The tables were overthrown and all the furniture; it was chaotic. Just like in the yard, it was the same inside the house as well, nothing was in its place. The walls were damaged. They all took action and started cleaning the house and mowing the lawn and fixing what the Serbian military had ruined. It felt like they tried to leave marks everywhere. My grandfather tried to remove those marks like trying to tell them that it was over; the fighting was over, the discomfort was over and that we had to try to get back to normal from the first day we got back home. I remember the determination and the way they tried to clean it all in order to go back inside relieved in our house.
The interviewer: Thank you very much.
Valmira Rashiti: Thank you.

Interviewer: Thank you very much Urtina. Shall we start telling the story from when the family decided to run away? Where have you been? How do you remember that period of time?
Urtina Hoxha: Yes. We lived in Suhareka, in a two-story house. It was a pretty big house. In July 1998, the war situation started becoming tenser in our region. And in July there was a massacre in Rahovec. At that moment, my family no longer felt safe, they did not feel comfortable staying in Suhareka because it was too close to Rahovec. At that time, we had an aunt who lived in Lezha and she told us: I have space, you can come to us. So, don’t risk it, and don’t stay in Suhareka. And from July to the beginning of August, my family members were already dealing with documents, they had their passports ready. I know that I also got my passport for the first time ever maybe. And… but someone from the family couldn’t have it, couldn’t get the passport. I don’t know why, I think she was too young, I don’t know the exact reason, but the important thing is that she didn’t have a passport. I mean, we lived at home, me, my mom, my brother, and my sister. But we lived with our grandfather and grandmother. My three uncles and two aunts also lived with us. Also, my three uncles, my father, and two others were married and had children. One of my uncles had three sons, and the other uncle I think had only one girl… yes. On the other hand, my aunts and one of my uncles were not married at the time. So, we were a pretty big family and most of them are part of this story that I will now tell. So, in August 1998 …because they couldn’t go on the road to…
Interviewer: Yes, we were talking about August.
Urtina Hoxha: Yes, and in August 1998, due to the lack of a passport, it was not an option to go to Prizren, which is very close to Suhareka, an hour or so to cross the border with Albania. Because there were problems, my family members said that if someone did not have a passport from Kosovo in Albania they would cause a lot of problems. So, they chose an alternative path that was not… it was not legal, that is, illegal. So, from Suhareka they went to Brezovica. Then, from Brezovica, they went to Montenegro, to Ulqin, somewhere. Then, they stayed in Ulqin for a day or two, and mom says that they went to the beach and had a great time in Ulqin. Then, to go to Albania from Montenegro, they had to cross Buna. Here it was, it was a little more dangerous and we could not pass it on our own. So, they had to pay people to make this trip as safe as possible. And what we went through in Buna is one of the few memories I have. Because I was three and a half years old when this story happened. So, Buna is among the first and few memories I have. I remember that it had to be very dark to cross Buna because there were controls – there were lights to control that space, that area. We got on a very small boat. But we were too many people. It seemed to me… there was only my uncle and my mom with three children including me. There was also my uncle’s wife with her three children. So, there were a lot of women and children on that boat. They kept telling us that we shouldn’t talk, we should be very quiet. We had to go like that at extremely low levels and not stand up because those lights could catch us, they could see us. Then, when we got on the boat, we were… my uncle was the last person to get on, he was big, he was fat. And when he got on the boat, I know that he unbalanced the boat and I know that I was very scared at that moment because we might… I thought that we were going to roll over. And I remember that, that fear. And my mom, every time she talks about it, she always says that… I’m sure I hugged her or something to make myself feel more comfortable. After this point, we passed Buna. I don’t know how, but everything went okay. Those people who escorted us had to send us from Buna to cross the border of Albania and send us through, to the border… in Albania, exactly. Then, someone else had to come and pick us up. I have no information on this part and it is not that they talk much about this part. Everything went okay and as planned. But, around ten or eleven o’clock at night, we were already between Shkodra and Lezha. And we were in two cars. Actually… me, my mom, my brother Shpendi, and my aunt were in a small car. There was a driver ahead that my family paid to wait for us when we crossed the border. Plus there was another escort. In other words, my family has taken the greatest possible measures to make this entire trip extremely safe. That is, at each point there had to be someone waiting for us. He had to wait for us to send us from one point to another. But it didn’t happen. As a result, the journey was not safe. Then, in the other car, it was a van, there were too many people. I mean, it was my sister, my uncle’s three children, the other uncle’s wife who had a child, which I think… was one year old. She was a very small baby. Aunties… there were many people, plus those people who escorted us. Now, what has happened is that in Torovica, a place in the middle of the mountain, between Shkodra and Lezha, at that time Albania was in a kind of transition, a kind of strange state. So, many people came out in ambush, they… they were stopping the cars…
Interviewer: Mugging…
Urtina Hoxha: … they robbed them, they looted them, and this thing happened to us too, but the difference was that before we arrived, they already stopped a bus and looted it. But, I don’t know this part exactly, and neither do my parents… maybe they do, but from what they’ve told me it didn’t seem clear. Either they knew that the police were coming or they were… in some way they felt in danger for themselves because they knew that someone had noticed them and the police were coming. So, when they stopped my family’s cars, they didn’t rob them, they didn’t loot them, I mean, but they shot guns at our cars. They had slightly bigger guns, machine guns, or something, and they just kept shooting. But once again the drivers who were driving the cars did not stop but drove even though they only continued to shoot. But then, at a point when they were “safe”, that is, where they felt safe, they came out and understood what really happened… In the car where I was, in the car where I was, I was injured. I was wounded in my left leg… no, my right leg. In the other car was the uncle’s son who was eight and a half or nine years old, he was killed. He was killed on the spot. I knew that he was killed, there were bullets in his head, so when the car stopped he was already dead. His mother, my uncle’s wife, was also wounded on the left side near the chest, very close to the heart. In other words, there were three victims in this incident. But I was the easiest case of these three victims. Even at the beginning, they didn’t even notice that I was injured, because I was wearing, I don’t know, red pants or red socks, and they didn’t even notice that I was bleeding or anything. I know that my mom had my brother on her chest, and she saw that he had… he was… he was cut because when they were shooting…
Interviewer: They broke the windows.
Urtina Hoxha: … they broke the windows and the windows fell on our bodies and that’s how they were cut. Then, in a moment… I’m sorry, my throat got a little dry. … they broke the windows and the windows fell on our bodies and that’s how they were cut. Then, in a moment… I’m sorry, my throat got a little dry.
Interviewer: Then, you continued to the hospital?
Urtina Hoxha: Yes, but in a moment I told my mom that my leg hurts. And they saw that I am… I had wounds on my leg. After that, we continued to the hospital in Lezha, but because it was late, it was 11 o’clock or something, the hospital also had very few people, very few doctors, and very little hospital equipment. So, the situation was not very good. The rest of the family continued to Lezha, and the people who were not physically injured continued to Lezha to their aunt. Meanwhile, we who were physically injured, plus my mother who did not want to leave us alone, continued to the hospital in Lezha. They didn’t deal with me initially because I had minor injuries. The uncle’s wife had very serious injuries and lost a lot of blood from the place where it happened until she went to the hospital. So, they dealt more with her, and then they dealt with me. It was a moment that I remember as it was a bit more difficult. Because I remember, I don’t know maybe… since it happened…
Interviewer: The shootings.
Urtina Hoxha:  … but after the shootings happened, some… members of my family who were not physically injured continued and went to Lezha to my aunt’s. And those of us who were physically injured went to the Lezha hospital. My mother was with us, and being in the hospital is among my first memories because I wasn’t injured as much as the others were. They didn’t deal with me first. The few staff that were there went and dealt more with my uncle’s wife. Then they came to me. And you know, I remember it was a white room, it was a corner that… I was looking at the ceiling so, I remember that corner. And it seems to me, yes, at that moment they gave me the anesthesia that put me to sleep to undergo the surgery. I know that after it happened after they gave me the needle, I started losing consciousness, but I know that my mother left me, she went to see my uncle’s wife. I know I felt very alone. This is also a very bad memory that I have. Not only for this time, but somehow it is one of the worst memories I have. And I don’t know if I screamed but I have some kind of memory or a feeling that I screamed or I wanted to scream but I couldn’t. I remember that my mother left me alone and I felt very insecure and I felt very bad and then I lost consciousness. After that, during the night I don’t know when they operated on me. They removed the bullet from my leg. But, because I was very small, the bullet didn’t do much damage to me, it didn’t hurt my bones because the bones were very soft and they moved away from the distance, due to the speed of the bullet. Plus the bullet went through the car door before it got to me, so it wasn’t at full speed. The door has stopped its speed quite a lot … So, when it came to my leg, it stayed inside and didn’t explode my leg, it didn’t go through it. So that was a good thing that happened. Then, I don’t know for how long I stayed in the hospital. It seems to me that I haven’t spent much time there. At least I didn’t. I know about my uncle’s wife she stayed a little longer in the hospital. I returned home… not at home, to the apartment that they rented, that was in Lezha. I returned, I know that every day a female doctor and a doctor had to come to clean my wound, to bind it with… to prevent it from getting infected so that my leg heals a little faster. It seems to me that this thing has lasted for three or four months. So they took care of me until I got a little better. Mom tells me that my leg was completely black because of the wound. These I don’t… these are the things that I don’t remember myself, but when they tell this story, they always tell that I was very stubborn and I didn’t let anyone touch my wound. I was very independent at that age. They also tell me that I tied my leg myself, I untied it myself, and I didn’t want anyone else to touch it. Maybe I was scared because I was definitely in pain. But, my mom says that, for example, when I was sleeping, she had to straighten my leg because they were afraid that my leg would remain like that because I was then paranoid if… or to move it or whatever it had to do with that leg. Then, we stayed in Lezha for quite some time. I know the situation was very difficult, apart from us having injuries. I was the only child who had injuries, apart from my uncle’s son who died. The others did not have any physical injuries but were in a very bad emotional state. I know my sister had problems with… she was very scared, she couldn’t stay by herself, and the children were extremely terrorized. Even the older ones, of course, grown-up people who…
Interviewer: They experienced it all.
Urtina Hoxha:  … they experienced it all, they lost a grandson, son. My uncle’s wife was also in a pretty critical condition. She was in a serious condition. I mean, the situation was very, very bad at home. But, I was little and I don’t know about this thing, but all that bothered me was that I couldn’t go out to play. And I mean, they all went out to play in front of the apartment, they played with a ball, or whatever they were playing with, but I couldn’t go out because I couldn’t walk for several months. And that was my biggest worry and they told me that I cried so much and that I only wanted to go out to play, I didn’t care if I was injured or not, but I wanted to be a…
Interviewer: Have they seen you… have you ever had problems with your leg since then? I mean, after healing until today?
Urtina Hoxha: Yes, yes I still have. Especially when I was growing up at the time when your bones get longer. Then I had a lot of problems. Winter is pretty hard for me. It has always been. There were moments when I was in a lot of pain and I couldn’t even go to school. Also, the professors were not very understanding about the fact that I could not go to school. I know once, they called my mom and they said: if the child’s leg hurts a little, why do you need to stop her from coming to school? But I walk well, it’s not that I have… it’s not that you can notice that I have a wound on my leg. My leg is pretty normal. But I have problems, I have pain, especially when the weather changes when it gets cold. I can’t do some things, for example, I can’t run because it’s too painful it’s… I have great pain, for example, when I run or when I do some physical activities. But, I’m used to it, I don’t… you know, since I remember… since I remember myself, I remember this thing. So, it’s a very normal thing for me. I always know that when January comes, and also in February I always have pain in my leg. This condition has become normal to me. Maybe it shouldn’t be, but it’s now normalized…
Interviewer: Thank you very much.

The interviewer: Welcome to this interview. Shall we proceed with your story during the war from where you were living when the situation worsen; tell us who you were with and how old you were. You’ve already told me that your wife was pregnant. How do you remember all this period of time living in the village?
Rexhep Berisha: Hello. I am Rexhep Berisha from the village of Godishnjak. I was 34 years old back then and my wife was pregnant. We were all 14 family members including my father, mother, grandmother and…
The interviewer: What were your living conditions in the village?
Rexhep Berisha: We decided… we decided to move to Prishtina because my wife was pregnant. We moved there; we rented a house.
The interviewer: How big was the house?
Rexhep Berisha: The house had two rooms and a bathroom. I left my family there, and I …
The interviewer: You were working?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, I was working.
The interviewer: What did you work as?
Rexhep Berisha: I traveled. I had a butcher’s shop and I traveled. I went to the village, in Godishnjak every day because the UÇK, the military, got there. They got settled in our house. They asked me whether I could deliver them food and I told them I would deliver them food every day as long as I could.
The interviewer: So you delivered them food every day?
Rexhep Berisha: Every day, up till the NATO bombings started. The day when the NATO bombings started I wasn’t able to go there anymore.
The interviewer: Could you tell us some of the cases of what happened during the time you had to deliver them the food? What were the places the police or the military mainly stayed at? Where were the roadblocks?
Rexhep Berisha: They mainly stayed in Lebanë, Lupç and Lluzhan – at these three places. When I had to deliver the food I escaped by taking the road through other villages so they wouldn’t notice me and know I was delivering food for the UÇK. So, these were the places they would mainly stay at.
The interviewer: Did they stop you once?
Rexhep Berisha: They once stopped me and returned me back.
The interviewer: What was that conversation like?
Rexhep Berisha: Fortunately, among those men was a Serbian from Prishtina whom I’ve known, and because of that fact they let me go. Otherwise, they could’ve decided not to let me go.
The interviewer: What did they tell you? What was the conversation about?
Rexhep Berisha: Well, when I saw that Serbian guy I told them that he knows me. They called that guy, Dragan, and when he saw me he said “Rexhep, what is going on?”. I told him that I had to go home and he knew where I lived. He said that he knew where I lived, but he told me it would be better if I returned back to where I was coming from and grab my children and leave for Macedonia. He said that you never know what will happen and you could easily die here.
The interviewer: So, you returned back to Prishtina?
Rexhep Berisha: I had to go back to Prishtina that night and I couldn’t go to the village anymore. On May 21st the police came to the apartment where I was staying at Xhambazet – the apartment I had rented. They took me, my father, my brother and one of my cousins who was there with us. They put us on a truck. They took us to the police station in the neighborhood of Muhaxher and held us there for 12 hours. They put me then in a different room. They asked me where I had left the gun. I told them I hadn’t had one and that I don’t have one. They tied and beat me up to the point that I wasn’t conscious for three or four hours. Then, they took me to the second floor and got my finger prints. They checked me up whether I had a gun.
The interviewer: How did they check you up?
Rexhep Berisha:. With an elastic tool I don’t know what that was.
The interviewer: So they touched your neck with it?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, in order to find out whether I have touched a thing, I don’t how those things function. There’s where I once again met the same Serbian guy who let me go at Lebane. He told me to get my children and leave to Skopje since it was dangerous to stay there. In the morning of the following day I got my children and got on the bus at the “Shtepia e Mallrave”. I was with my children and my father left with the other family members by train. We then arrived in Skopje. They stopped us along the way and took 10 bucks from each of us.
The interviewer: Per person?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, per person – the Serbians, then we set off for Macedonia by bus…
The interviewer: Where did the bus take you?
Rexhep Berisha: …In Bojan and we go settled in tents.
The interviewer: How long did you stay in Bojan?
Rexhep Berisha: We stayed there for three weeks.
The interviewer: What were the conditions there? The food and sleep?
Rexhep Berisha: Just like in a tent, you know. We had food but we didn’t have showers… but it passed and we stayed there for three weeks. Then the doctors came…
The interviewer: Macedonian?
Rexhep Berisha: …I can’t remember whether they were Macedonians or… they were foreign as they spoke in English. So they got there. My wife was pregnant so she went there for a check-up. They took notes about our family; we told them we were 14 members. And then we went to England.
The interviewer: Did you request to move to England or it was what they offered you?
Rexhep Berisha: No, they offered us to go there. That’s how it worked, I don’t know. There were families who moved to Italy, France, and Germany. England was our destiny.
The interviewer: But your father and a part of your family were not in Bojan?!
Rexhep Berisha: No…they weren’t there.
The interviewer: Because you left the country separately?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, there were in Stankovec. Then…
The interviewer:: How did you get back together?
Rexhep Berisha: I went and picked them up. I explained everything to them… that we were going to England and that they had to come with me. I got them in a taxi and took them to Bojan. We went to England from there, on June 3rd. My wife gave birth on the 5th.
The interviewer: In England?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, in England. We stayed…
The interviewer: Where did you stay during that time in England? How was the place, the space?
Rexhep Berisha: It was kind of a hotel, I don’t know. I think that place was a retirement home in previous years. We took shelter there and we were around 130 or 140 people.
The interviewer: Were they all refugees from Kosovo, or…?
Rexhep Berisha: All of them. They were all from Bojana, they all came there from Bojana. Everyone was with their own family and they all had their own rooms.
The interviewer: Did you have food and other services?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes. The food was good and we could take showers anytime we wanted to.
The interviewer: Did you have shared bathrooms or how was it?
Rexhep Berisha: No, we had a separate bathroom for our family. Everyone did.
The interviewer: So, you stayed in England for a year. How was your daily routine in England?
Rexhep Berisha: It was fine, not bad. But, after a year, my mother got sick. We took her to the doctor for a check-up and they told us she didn’t have much time left. They told us if we wanted to take her back to Kosovo it would’ve been better to take her during that time as she was still alive. We then returned to Kosovo – it was after a year. After two months that we got to Kosovo my mother died. So from that time up till now we are living in Kosovo.
The interviewer: One of your brothers had to come to Kosovo a day after you did?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes, from England. I told him not to come since we didn’t have a place to stay or anything. We were thinking of a solution but…
The interviewer: How was Godishnjak? How do you remember it when you got there after the war?
Rexhep Berisha: When I came from England?
The interviewer: Yes.
Rexhep Berisha: All ruined. Only the foundation of the houses was left. You weren’t even able to see the foundation of our house since they got there with excavators and tanks and… they had ruined them all.
The interviewer: Where did you stay after the war since your house had been burnt down?
Rexhep Berisha: We stayed in a room… we put a door there, we just hooked it up. We first fixed the doors of two rooms within 3 or four days. Then, later on, we fixed the whole house…
The interviewer: Until you build another one?
Rexhep Berisha: Yes. Life goes on.
The interviewer: Thank you very much!

The interviewer: Welcome. Let’s start the story from when the situation started to worsen – based on what you recall; tell us where you were, who you were with, and what had happened…
Fioralba Kurti: I was 4 years old, 4 years and some months old. I can only remember some parts of the war. But, some of the memories still are so vivid to me. We were 9 family members: my parents, my grandmother, and 6 sisters. I was 4, during the war, and I got to hear the bombings shots from a neighborhood close to us. That’s when I truly knew what was going on. They burnt a family alive; the house, the family members, and everything was burnt down. We then knew they were getting closer. My parents put some cotton earplugs in our ears to block the bombings’ noise so that we wouldn’t know what was happening. I remember a night before we left the house, we got all gathered with some families from our neighborhood. We came together collaborating on how we would run away. There were too many shooting attacks that night so we weren’t able to sleep – also because we were too many people. Another thing is that some Serbian families were living near us, and that caused…
*****
The interviewer: You and many families came together…
Fioralba Kurti: Yes… we were not allowed to go out and play in order not to get into trouble. There were cases when our ball fell into their yard and we were afraid to go and get it. Because they would see it as a step of causing problems so we had to take a step back, stop playing, or simply stay in. Our parents would also yell at us and tell us not to tease them. We were kids, we didn’t quite understand it. Our childhood happiness was prohibited. When we ran away, as I mentioned, we were 9 family members, and we took the road to Durres. My late uncle, who is a martyr of the nation, accompanied us during half of our journey.
The interviewer: You were all in a single car?
Fioralba Kurti: I’m not sure but I think we got divided into two cars. Some of us were with my uncle and some of us were in the other car. After that, there is one scene that is a little vague since we kind of got stopped. My father and my big sister were stopped by the Serbian Forces. They were pointing their guns toward them and were asking for their documentation. My big sister started protecting my father and told them not to kill him because he was her father. So, at some point, they gave them the documents back and let them go. Later on, we were all back together. We had to walk to the border – the cars were all stopped and you had to walk in order to go to Durres. I remember that walk. Two of my younger sisters were so little and one of them was only one year old, or even not one year old yet. Me and one of my sisters had to carry the diapers as well as some of the clothes we had taken with us. It rained during that walk and it was gloomy – this is something stuck in my mind. From that moment up till now I have had a phobia of rain and I make sure to wear the right shoes. Back then, my feet were soaking wet and I was feeling miserable. I could hear how my wet shoes squished when I walked. Then, we stayed the night in a mosque or a church I don’t remember what it was exactly. Too many other families also took shelter there that night. I remember the moment I took off my shoes and that was the best moment of the whole day. I felt as such because my feet were soaking wet. From there, and Albanian family offered us accommodation. The first thing we did when we got there was take showers. They only had one boiler and we were 9 family members, so the showers had to be quick. We stayed at theirs for a few days and then we went to the refugee camp. There were some tents where families took shelter. I remember the food we ate at the camp. They mainly had pasta. This was what they generally offered and then I remember the medicine, the shampoos and the shampoos – the anti-lice shampoos – and everything else they brought to help us. I also remember the moment when they brought the showers. We were all given a certain time to take showers; when you and your family would be able to go there and take showers. In addition to that, I know that we went someplace, I don’t know exactly where but I know they had a phone. There’s where they told my mother that my uncle was killed, he was killed in the battle of Koshare. My aunt was also with us. My mother went somewhere else to talk on the phone with my grandfather and my other aunts who were staying in Gjakova. I didn’t understand well what was going on but I only know my mother was sad.
The interviewer: Did you ask questions?
Fioralba Kurti: I asked questions and I asked them to go with them. It was a time when you needed to go somewhere else so I wanted to go with them. But, I didn’t know what was exactly happening. Then, I remember there was a part in the camp of refugees where they gave health services. My big sister broke her arm and I know she went there and got a cast on.
The interviewer: Was that place improvised?
Fioralba Kurti: Yes, it was improvised. But, I also know we went there to take some goods…
The interviewer: Food?
Fioralba Kurti: Yes, food in order to get on with life. I know that the food would either be tinned or it would be like pasta, soup, ketchup, and mayonnaise and similar ones with a long expiration date.
The interviewer: Do you remember how long you stayed in that camp?
Fioralba Kurti: I am not sure.
The interviewer: Did you return to Kosova from the camp or did you go to another place?
Fioralba Kurti: We got back to Kosova after the war was over. We got back but I guess we went to a totally different house…
The interviewer: Do you remember the city of Gjakova and its condition when you got back?
Fioralba Kurti: I don’t remember it. I only remember the neighborhood and that a few families lived together; they would either be acquainted or not acquainted but they got to live together.
The interviewer: Was the village burnt down? Any material damage?
Fioralba Kurti: The city? No, we had an apartment in Deçan and I know that we had some material damage. But, here, you know, the things were broken, bombarded… but we found another place to stay when we got back here.
The interviewer: So, things were damaged?
Fioralba Kurti: Yes, they were damaged, but I don’t remember what was.
The interviewer: Thank you very much.
Fioralba Kurti: You’re welcome.

The interviewer: Shall we begin with the story from the moment the NATO bombings started?
Driton: Yes, let’s start from when the NATO bombings started. On March 2nd, ’98 – ’99. It was around 8 o’clock or 8:15 in 1999 when the news regarding the bombing was delivered on the Radio Television of Albania. We were all confused in our family and couldn’t believe it. After a few minutes, the power went off. When the power went off we went out on the balcony but we didn’t see a thing. So, we went back inside and believed it only got postponed – we knew it wasn’t fake news. Later on, we heard some explosion sounds and went out on the balcony. We looked for the airplanes, but we didn’t see any since they threw rockets instead. Me, my grandfather, and my two sisters were all out on the balcony. My grandmother was handicapped and was left in the kitchen. She was so stressed and thought we ran away without her. She couldn’t walk so she crawled in order to see us on the balcony. She felt relieved when she got to see us and got back inside while telling us that she thought we had left her behind. That’s what she said. I told her that I wouldn’t run without her, so if that happened we would leave together. Then, the bombing started, and we hid in our houses. My grandfather, on the other hand, tried to stop people in the neighborhood from running away – he would tell people they should stay in the country since that’s why our soldiers were there fighting for; if we wouldn’t stay to support them it would all be in vain. He succeeded twice or three times in that but then on the fourth time, people had to leave. So, on April 5th we too left the house.
The interviewer: Did the whole neighborhood leave or only your family?
Driton: We left altogether with the neighborhood. I don’t remember that part quite clearly. I don’t know if we were all organized or not. I think someone out there claimed that they were leaving so we all planned to leave on April 5th. My grandmother was in a wheelchair. Me, my two sisters, my grandfather, and my grandmother in her wheelchair headed to the train station. Along the way, we encountered many refugees running out of the apartments…We were not maltreated when we arrived at the train station. We got on the train and went to Kaçanik. When we arrived in Kaçanik it was disputable whether they would let us go or not, but then they did let us go. There were some policemen on the train but they did not maltreat us anyhow. When we got off the train the policemen told us to be careful and walk only through the railway since there were mines on the sides. One of my neighbors and my grandfather helped me get my grandmother off the train and walk through the railway. After a while, the wheels of the wheelchair were damaged but that’s how we had to manage and push her to Bllaca. It was a real terror in Bllaca. But, then we got to the neutral zone where it was believed that the Serbians would not shoot us any longer. When we arrived at that other part, in Macedonia, people were in a miserable state of being. I would see them running like crazy for a loaf of bread. I didn’t stay there for too long – from the morning until 9 or 10 p.m. My grandmother was in a wheelchair so we were prioritized. A French team of doctors and some Albanians helped us get through – they got my grandmother on a tractor. Macedonians were against letting my grandmother cross the border but some Albanians from Macedonia insisted. So, I took advantage and went were her and got on a bus. They took us to Stenkovac at around 10 or 11 in the evening. Once we arrived the English KFOR picked us up with their vehicles, and jeeps, and took us to the camp. Then, they gave us a tent and we settled there.
The interviewer: How were the conditions in the tent?
Driton: Just like in a tent, you know.
The interviewer: Was it cold?
Driton: It was cold as it was still April. They gave us some blankets, but they were made out of poor material so they didn’t keep us warm. It was a big tent without heating – a true misery. You weren’t able to sleep because it was too cold, however, you felt safe there. They brought us the tent and the blankets…. but then the weather started getting warmer so we felt better. They provided us with sufficient food, milk, bread, and everything needed. We had everything – water and all the rest.
The interviewer: How about the showers?
Driton: I don’t about that. I know there were some WCs but as for the showers I didn’t get to stay there for too long, I only stayed there for 10 days. After 10 days, they were setting up the process of the chances to leave abroad as a refugee. You had to go and sign somewhere. I went there twice but I wasn’t lucky enough. Later on, my grandmother got sick so I had to take her to the Israelis hospital and they gave her a document that she was supposed to be treated. I handed that letter to the German staff. As soon as they saw the letter they gave us the documentation needed to move to Germany. They informed us 1 day ahead that we had to stay ready to leave and wait at the camp’s gate on the following day at 7. They first checked the lists. When they saw my grandmother in a wheelchair the ambulance of the Germans military took her and helped her with the transport. I was there with her. They took care of her and took her to the airport in Skopje and got her on the plane. We went to Berlin. Afterwards, we arrived at a small village between Berlin and Dresden. We had to stay the night there in the German camp. On the following day, my grandmother was taken to the German hospital where she was treated for 2 weeks. After all the medical examinations she got back to camp. The conditions there were good – we bought our own groceries since they gave us the money. Usually…
The interviewer: Was it a house?
Driton: No, it was a camp – it was like a big cantonment where the former German military had stayed, but the rooms were separated. The rooms were separated in two. There were stoves and bathrooms. We stayed there till August 4th. I wanted to return to Kosovo of my free will. We then organized the way home. They accompanied us from Berlin to Macedonia – Macedonia’s airport. When we arrived in Prishtina I didn’t notice too much damage – the bus station was damaged, but the houses were damaged less – in comparison to other cities. It was a great feeling to return home.
The interviewer: Were you happy?
Driton: Of course. Some of our relatives were in Kosovo so we didn’t have information about what happened to them. Fortunately, the whole neighborhood was fine – most parts of Prishtina were okay.
The interviewer: Thank you!
Driton: You’re welcome!