{"id":1213,"date":"2021-01-21T01:17:44","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T01:17:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/?p=1213"},"modified":"2021-08-19T09:17:14","modified_gmt":"2021-08-19T09:17:14","slug":"zarife-morina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/zarife-morina\/?lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Zarife Morina"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Bjeshka Guri (interviewer)<\/p>\n

Zarife Morina (interviewee)<\/p>\n

Acronyms: BG=Bjeshka Guri, ZM= Zarife Morina<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

BG:How do you remember the war? So, before the war started, before everything started, how were you, what did you do before the war?<\/p>\n

ZM:Before the war … First of all, may Allah have destroyed those Serbians, those idiots. They came to our place to torture us with all kinds of things. All of Kosovo needs to know what we experienced for 30 or more…<\/p>\n

Why should I be in such pain now?<\/p>\n

They once started demonstrations. Then they started to kill the cows in the barn, 15-16 of them, and I still remember the digger sounds when they threw them into the ground. Didn’t Kosovo, the Albanians, understand what Serbia was doing at all? The people of Kosovo?<\/p>\n

We were at home and we knew what was about to come since they were telling us beforehand, they were attacking us.<\/p>\n

They fired people here, they fired the police, they fired the army, and what did you expect from them?<\/p>\n

Why did you not strengthen yourself? Why did you not want to make a breach for your people? They still became soldiers somehow. Well done. They gave their lives, they swore, they fought with their rifles.<\/p>\n

Whether they won or not, they gave their lives, for the people who are in Kosovo, for their children, for their parents, for their brothers, for all a man can fight for; for something they found a reason to fight.<\/p>\n

One can fight for their family, so Kosovo as a whole is your family when you live there.<\/p>\n

So…<\/p>\n

When the war started, when they started to kill people, they wanted to kill a lot. They used to pour water on the asphalt and get the brides out of the car when people (husband’s family) took them, and told them “wash your hands”. They were young, they did not understand.<\/p>\n

Wash your hands in the bins, get a bucket of water, another with medicine.<\/p>\n

A bus that left from Prizren arrived in Krusha. This happened Krusha e Madhe.<\/p>\n

BG:They washed their hands!?<\/p>\n

ZM:They got out of the bus to wash them with this and then they were told to “get on”. This was done for violence. Do you think they wanted to do something good to you? We had nothing in our hands.<\/p>\n

Only to get rid of all the Albanians! Only to torment them.<\/p>\n

BG:So, they told them to go out of the bus only to wash their hands?<\/p>\n

Mr. M – Only to wash their hands and then told them to “get on now”.<\/p>\n

Law on violence, so that to stop us, to stop the bus, to stop the time. We had nowhere to go.<\/p>\n

They got them all out of the bus and told them “wash your hands here and wash your hands here”, whether they wanted or not. Even brides who were married had to go out. They told the brides, who were wearing their wedding dresses, to wash their hands and get into the car again and to go to their house. What should we have expected when they got here?<\/p>\n

Then the war came. Secretly and openly. When the war actually started, they even burnt and stole our wealth? It was Serbia doing this in our country, because we hadn’t gone there.<\/p>\n

Look at the rights we have! We did not go to attack the Serbs dear World, dear people of Kosovo, dear educated people!! Serbia has attacked us in our country, in the country that we, the Albanians, were born.<\/p>\n

We are Muslims of mercy, of love, of the Qur’an, of God!<\/p>\n

So the war started not only with the army; they also fought the people be them guilty and innocent. They even killed.<\/p>\n

BG:How did the war start here in your village?<\/p>\n

ZM:In our village, the war started because the army was captured in ’98 by the forces. The army came out on the field. Like a war can be. Why would we fight with our own people?<\/p>\n

But we did not have tanks, we did not have cannons. We did not have heavy weapons. What we had was, a gulinov (heavy machine gun) and an automatic gun.<\/p>\n

We did not have any other thing, because we did not have weapons in our country. We had to carry them from Albania by hand. Well done to the army on doing what they could!<\/p>\n

They fought with their hearts.<\/p>\n

We also cooked and waited for them. If we could, we would have all gone to fight. Just so that we could win and live in our country and so that they do not kill us.<\/p>\n

Why should they kill us? What for? We are not in Serbia.<\/p>\n

And there was no war here, because (Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

The army, now in Albania… (Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Yes, the village was guarded. We did not fall into their hands. We are fine, we are fine.<\/p>\n

My husband was disabled. We worked with agriculture. If we were dealing with something, we would be in Serbia and the Serbs would be here.<\/p>\n

We pitied our youth.<\/p>\n

Are our soldiers dying? Are they falling? Are they fighting? Are they winning?<\/p>\n

Did it get to that point?<\/p>\n

(Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

Most of Re\u00e7ak, 2 weeks on 15… The whole of Kosovo knows very well my case, but also their own. It was a great pain. And why did Re\u00e7ak fall and come to light? Because OSCE came and saw. They had committed crimes even insidiously, but they hid their own traces. You were killed and no one would know. But the OSCE came and it stayed 6 weeks or 2 months or more. How long did it stay?<\/p>\n

6 weeks after us, they stayed and brought us to light otherwise Kosovo would have not been liberated. But thanks to America and the countries that have helped us. The boys told me about Re\u00e7ak and we felt a lot of pain. Now I say we were imprisoned so much and Rugova mourned for 1 day.<\/p>\n

A real man, a righteous man. Muhamet, my second son said, \u201cmom, we would turn on the television, we would play songs, what could we do inside?” The youth were all for war, they all wanted to give their lives for freedom.<\/p>\n

But they already gave it, the 4 of them. He said “mother, today Rugova, may he rest in peace, said that it is a mourning day for Re\u00e7ak. They killed him and the next day it was a mourning day, it was Saturday. Yes mother, I was surprised.<\/p>\n

(Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

Where is it?<\/p>\n

In Shtime. This all happened in Shtime. It is coming towards us too, may Allah protect us!!<\/p>\n

He said, “Mother, do not turn on the television or the radio”.<\/p>\n

“No, no my son, I will not”.<\/p>\n

That day we were all caught. Re\u00e7ak was forgotten. They took them there and kept them for 1 month. In Prishtina, in the mortuary. After 15 days, which was 1 week this Friday, on the 29th, the war came here. We had noticed nothing that would make us understand. There was a shot. One day the village was surrounded. There was nothing inside the village. They caught us. Then they had come to get weapons. Quite a lot.<\/p>\n

After the war, but also before the war, they told me that this pile was divided for Rugova. That pile was back to its place.<\/p>\n

They were quite a lot, they fought there, and a Catholic was killed.<\/p>\n

Even these 24 or 30 were divided.<\/p>\n

They went to Goden and they saved him although they were wounded. But when they went to Goden, they could not get out, they were surrounded.<\/p>\n

Even there, only they know how they got here that night in a village of Has.<\/p>\n

And then they had to go from Rugova of Has to Krusha e Madhe and Retija, where our Albanian KLA headquarters were. They got into a van; so they ordered a van which helped and carried the Albanians, the armies. They did not have cars. Then the vans had to transfer those weapons and the wounded people, so they booked cars and vans to come and send them to Krusha and Retija.<\/p>\n

\u2026<\/p>\n

The village was surrounded; surrounded for two days.<\/p>\n

They knew what was going on.<\/p>\n

We do not know the expectations, the circumstances.<\/p>\n

They left at 5 o’clock. On a Friday. 15 soldiers.<\/p>\n

BG:Here in Rugova?<\/p>\n

ZM:In Rugova. That night they slept there. I know that it was 5 o’clock, Friday. Friday is the market day here in Rugova.<\/p>\n

At 4 o’clock they had already surrounded the place, the market, and the asphalt. Rugova was surrounded. I do not know how they heard!<\/p>\n

They even asked for the van from the neighbor.<\/p>\n

Then they were ambushed.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo!\u201d he said to the van \u201cit\u2019s a trap\u201d.<\/p>\n

The head of the house was in another car.<\/p>\n

He went back. When he returned he brought the van home with all 15 soldiers.<\/p>\n

We were at the door.<\/p>\n

I will tell you now.<\/p>\n

We were at the threshold.<\/p>\n

And at 05:40 when they came back, it was snowing. One or two fingers of snow fell. Maybe it was their blood to end the war. A snow bubble fell.<\/p>\n

These doors were open.<\/p>\n

As soon as the car with the driver with 15 soldiers entered and when it still hadn’t returned, 2 Serb army vehicles arrived. They started firing from the door for 20 minutes. The bride and the children were not here. They were at her family. It was me, my 14 year old daughter, my husband, the old man who was 90 years old.<\/p>\n

BG:Your husband and 3 sons?<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes, my husband and my 3 sons.<\/p>\n

BG:How old were your sons?<\/p>\n

ZM:My husband was 57, the eldest son, Selman was 23, Muhamet was 20 for 22 days, his birthday was on February 22; and Nisreti was 17 years old. They were young. The other were ready for war.<\/p>\n

But he had to help. He helped because he was there and had to help them with trucks.<\/p>\n

Did I tell you that we all were ready to fight with our hearts!?<\/p>\n

To save ourselves. To live a good life. We saw what was happening.<\/p>\n

Selman came from his room with a blanket and said, “Mother, the war has started.”<\/p>\n

I said “yes, it has indeed”. He then fell on the sponge bed and I covered me with a blanket since he came wearing pajamas.<\/p>\n

Rrusta and our two other sons were in the chamber, since houses used to have chambers back then. We demolished that house. The chamber’s door would led you to the street. If they opened the door, the police would stop them at the door. There were other doors, others glass.<\/p>\n

My husband said to them “no, not through the door”. We are surrounded. “What?” “Yes” he said, “we are surrounded.”<\/p>\n

He took the boys and brought them near the window so they could go through the balcony and come to the room where I was with my mother-in-law and my daughter. Selman came. They came too. My second son went to his grandmother’s mattress. His grandmother covered him and started to warm his cold feet with her hands.<\/p>\n

“Lie down with me. Nothing is happening, we are just gathering”.<\/p>\n

The other son also came.<\/p>\n

He was further.<\/p>\n

I did not even remember to cover him.<\/p>\n

My husband came all dressed, like a man.<\/p>\n

I’m going out.<\/p>\n

And he came.<\/p>\n

I said “What is happening Rrust\u00eb?”<\/p>\n

He said, “Zarife, if we manage to live today, we will never die.”<\/p>\n

“Why?”<\/p>\n

He said, “We are surrounded.”<\/p>\n

I managed to come here but it is over.<\/p>\n

May all be well!<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat for?\u201d<\/p>\n

He said \u201csomething is happening\u201d<\/p>\n

We did not know anything.<\/p>\n

We did not understand because it was unexpected.<\/p>\n

He felt sorry for our son and took the blanket and covered the little son since I was confused<\/p>\n

He covered the three of them.<\/p>\n

He was dressed, I was dressed, and out daughter too.<\/p>\n

Another half hour passed. Maybe even more.<\/p>\n

No, no it was half an hour.<\/p>\n

Half an hour and it was already full of Serbs.<\/p>\n

BG:The garden?<\/p>\n

ZM:The garden and the whole village. Half of the village. The force of Gjakova, Rahovec and Prizren came. War was about to start. They were killed. But now they were stronger.<\/p>\n

I even wondered why these things were coming, these tanks!<\/p>\n

Then they came and were looking towards us, as if they were telling us that we came, we brought an army.<\/p>\n

May all be good!<\/p>\n

We stood up. We sat down again.<\/p>\n

At 7 o’clock they went inside. They broke down the door, knocked down the stove, the pampors we told you about. We even stood up.<\/p>\n

For the young boys.<\/p>\n

We did not learn Serbian. In my time we had one class per week in Serbian.<\/p>\n

The Serbs were still idiots somewhere in the villages, in Rahovec and some other places.<\/p>\n

I knew the terms “Ustani” and “Zagji” that they used. When one of them said “Ustani” I was the first. My sons stood up wearing their pajamas. Rrusta was all dressed. Come on “sagji” he was making gestures with his hand, that idiot. 5 at the door. The whole garden was surrounded. As if there was the KLA somewhere. I stood up the first when he said “Izagji”.<\/p>\n

Believe it or not that the automatic gun was pointed here and, until recently when I touched it I always felt a kind of pain, an embarrassment…<\/p>\n

He touched me with the automatic gun.<\/p>\n

If they raised their automatic guns, we would be dead.<\/p>\n

Death was near us.<\/p>\n

BG:He touched you with the automatic gun here?<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes, because I wanted to go out and they stopped me with the automatic gun.<\/p>\n

I was about to go out and they told me “go back to your seat”.<\/p>\n

“Go,” he said, “sit down.”<\/p>\n

I didn’t even know where to sit. I sat down.<\/p>\n

“You, come on,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Good mushki”.<\/p>\n

“Come on,” he said to Rrusta.<\/p>\n

Rrusta first, hands up. Selmani next, from the eldest to the youngest. Then after them were Muhamet, Nusret.<\/p>\n

Nusret’s pajamas were like this…<\/p>\n

They did not dare to show their faces. I wondered what to tell them. Should I scream? We surrendered. In our country we surrendered. They went out. They slammed our door. They went upstairs in the bride’s bedroom to look for something. The bride had a little bit of gold and some rings.<\/p>\n

They touched everything.<\/p>\n

Fresh blood, real blood.<\/p>\n

They did not take it.<\/p>\n

I remember that suitcase very well when me and my daughter went to look at it. They hadn’t touched it. There wasn’t much gold, they had left it where it was.<\/p>\n

They took the men. God killed them. They went. A lot of them. 200 police were in this garden. They opened the doors. 2 military vehicles. The garden was empty all day.<\/p>\n

We did not dare to go out. From 07:00 to 04:00 p.m.<\/p>\n

The place has been…<\/p>\n

We were afraid to even look in the window.<\/p>\n

They walked.<\/p>\n

I could hear the automatic guns.<\/p>\n

A massacre! They were firing automatic guns. We had already seen what a war was, they were killing and doing everything.<\/p>\n

When I said to my daughter “Oh Miz\u00eb, they killed them”, she said to me “Oh my mother, do not evoke negative things”.<\/p>\n

But I was counting.<\/p>\n

I really counted. 4 times. Every time someone gave their soul, my fever went up and down.<\/p>\n

My daughter covered me with those 3 blankets. My son’s blankets. She covered me.<\/p>\n

“Cover me”.<\/p>\n

My daughter.<\/p>\n

“Should I get out?” it was so uncomfortable there.<\/p>\n

Ugh mother.<\/p>\n

Where do I go? We were surrounded. All right, I’m staying here.<\/p>\n

At 10 o’clock they came again.<\/p>\n

“Do you have any other man?” they asked me.<\/p>\n

“Don’t”, I said.<\/p>\n

“Please don’t”.<\/p>\n

“Do you have any other men in the house?”<\/p>\n

“I do not!”<\/p>\n

Hands up. I even gritted my teeth unconsciously. My daughter later said to me “I was expecting them to kills us because you were mad”.<\/p>\n

“Do you have other men?” in Serbian.<\/p>\n

“Nemosh”, inSerbian.<\/p>\n

As if…<\/p>\n

They were all of our district.<\/p>\n

Yes, 4 times.<\/p>\n

They stopped the machine guns and had done what they came for.<\/p>\n

They went.<\/p>\n

No one came.<\/p>\n

The idiots did not even curse me.<\/p>\n

It was enough that they killed 4 men of my family.<\/p>\n

But they did not to me what they did in some places.<\/p>\n

Why?<\/p>\n

Since we were clean.<\/p>\n

We did not have anything.<\/p>\n

But when they sent them… at 3 o’clock they loaded them. The police. At some time some private trucks came.<\/p>\n

One with a yellow tarpaulin, the other with a white one. You know how those grey trucks look like? Can you understand me? Trucks that carry things.<\/p>\n

You can take it. It is clean.<\/p>\n

The truck with the yellow tarpaulin was brought inside to load the corpses.<\/p>\n

We did not even know what was killed there!<\/p>\n

They had sheep and cows.<\/p>\n

“They killed them, they killed the cows. They will take the boys and they will beat them”, I said.<\/p>\n

That was convenient to me.<\/p>\n

How would they kill 4 of my men!?<\/p>\n

4!!!<\/p>\n

They started to load them all.<\/p>\n

They loaded them all and did what they usually do.<\/p>\n

Oh God.<\/p>\n

“Mother,” she said, “they are going.”<\/p>\n

I said “yes, they are leaving and then your father with the boys will come back”.<\/p>\n

We were glad they were going. The place was being free of them.<\/p>\n

They have beaten them, yes. But at least they are alive. Those who have a spirit shall be alive.<\/p>\n

They left.<\/p>\n

Do you believe, for the love of God…<\/p>\n

Yes, the people of God are true, they are the believers of God, and whoever believes in this place also lives in this place.<\/p>\n

Then suddenly the truck stopped at our gate.<\/p>\n

Allah made the truck stop, do you believe me?<\/p>\n

“Mother,” she said, “the truck broke down.”<\/p>\n

2 military vehicles went back.<\/p>\n

The truck with the corpses was back.<\/p>\n

Like the brides, the brides’ car that stays at the end.<\/p>\n

The Serbs got out and went around the truck.<\/p>\n

The gate was open.<\/p>\n

Believe it or not I am convinced that God the Almighty has stopped them, has stopped the truck.<\/p>\n

4 boys came out of the door. For half an hour they went round and around and we were watching from the window.<\/p>\n

We were wondering how they will take that truck now that it is broken down.<\/p>\n

We wouldn’t be able to go out.<\/p>\n

Rrusta won’t be able to come.<\/p>\n

The boys won’t be able to come and we won’t be able to go out. We were not aware that they had left this place forever.<\/p>\n

It left.<\/p>\n

I said “they went”.<\/p>\n

“They fixed it mom, they left”.<\/p>\n

We are Albanians of God.<\/p>\n

My daughter said “mom”.<\/p>\n

I said to her “I should go and close the gate, because when Rrusta comes back he will ask me why I hadn’t closed the gate after they went”.<\/p>\n

This is what we used to do. Albanians have their customs.<\/p>\n

My brain was telling me to do that since I had done it for several years.<\/p>\n

I went out.<\/p>\n

My daughter came out in the garden.<\/p>\n

My mother-in-law was on the mattress. She was 90.<\/p>\n

She just asked “where did they take the men?”<\/p>\n

She did not say anything else and…(Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

“We don’t know, I don’t know”.<\/p>\n

I went out. When I went out the door everything was dark, all dark.<\/p>\n

The people of the village had come and the OSCE. It was full.<\/p>\n

The OSCE came when they were killing my sons but they were not allowed to enter.<\/p>\n

At that time, we were glad that the OSCE came because they would rescue my sons even if something happened.<\/p>\n

But when they came here, Serbs told them “nothing is happening here.<\/p>\n

You should go inside the village”.<\/p>\n

They were killing my sons. Otherwise they would have saved them.<\/p>\n

And then I said, “I did not close the gate because a darkness had fallen on the road”.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I was shocked\u2026 What had happened?<\/p>\n

I was thinking that sheep were killed.<\/p>\n

I saw a neighbor with the OSCE and how the neighbor’s brother was killed.<\/p>\n

He was talking to them.<\/p>\n

At 11 o’clock they had announced that Rrusta and the boys were killed.<\/p>\n

And I was loudly calling my neighbor by his name.<\/p>\n

He dare not answer me looking me in the eyes.<\/p>\n

I know what it is, I know what happened. It was ruined, all the men of the house were killed. He did not say a word. Another one came. I said “Please, listen to me. Are you going in here?”<\/p>\n

\u201cI am\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

He also knew.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell Rrusta to come home now\u201d, I said to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I will\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy sons too\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right\u201d, he told me \u201cI will tell them\u201d.<\/p>\n

Keeping his head down, he entered.<\/p>\n

I stayed a little more.<\/p>\n

Then I wondered why I didn’t go there myself.<\/p>\n

Rrusta will say to me “My wife, why did you not come to ask for me and our sons?”<\/p>\n

Then it occurred me.<\/p>\n

The door was close. When I went out the door I saw the van. There was bloodshed up to one’s ankles. The OSCE was there and the whole village were there in 20 minutes.<\/p>\n

“Oh, poor mother,” I said. “They killed them”.<\/p>\n

But the breeze (relief) of Allah is strong. When I went inside the women of the house, my cousins asked me “Aunt Zarife, where are your sons?”<\/p>\n

I said, “Ah, may God kill them”.<\/p>\n

I was heartbroken at once.<\/p>\n

I said, “They took my sons from this place”, pointing my finger.<\/p>\n

Xhevdet’s wife, who had seen them then said \u201cYes, aunt Zarife. Uncle Rrust\u00eb and Selmon were killed in the van”.<\/p>\n

“Aaaah”<\/p>\n

She said “they even told him you are all in the army. Look at the army which you have cared for and whom you fed.”<\/p>\n

As if they were saying to him “this is what happens when you want to fight with us”.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is what the army did to you. You are all in the army\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“They first stabbed the boy in the neck,” she told me.<\/p>\n

At that moment he had said “uh mom”, and it was heard. Those houses nearby have heard him.<\/p>\n

They told me that they had heard his scream after 5 years.<\/p>\n

Because it was early, 7 o’clock.<\/p>\n

“They stabbed Rrust\u00eb there, let me tell you how they stabbed him”.<\/p>\n

“The other two…” she wanted to talk. They took them later and took them elsewhere. The youngest two.<\/p>\n

“We do not know about them,” she said.<\/p>\n

Her sister-in-law said to her “woman, what are you talking about?”<\/p>\n

She said to her “you have not seen anything. What do you know?”<\/p>\n

She now backed away. She did not tell me anything else.<\/p>\n

They were elsewhere. They then broke their ribs and lungs. The other two had their arms and bodies broken, just as the Serbs knew to do that. This is a massacre, my daughter! Re\u00e7ak people were shot and massacred. Rugova of Has is a living massacre. They played with their souls, like chickens when you take off their head, they move around. They do not rest until their souls leave their bodies. They have killed them in this way.<\/p>\n

I had to go to The Hague trial. They didn’t send me there. Because I have told these conversations of what I have seen, what I have experienced, everywhere. I neither add nor leave something untold, because I have sacrificed one family. I sacrificed it for this land. They have been in Prishtina for 9 days. They took them and send them there. On the 9th day, they came and said “come and take the corpses”.<\/p>\n

Who dares to take the corpses!?<\/p>\n

Even the OSCE did not come with me.<\/p>\n

When we went to Prishtina, a neighbor, Selim Beqa, said “I want to come”, he said “I will give my life for them”.<\/p>\n

I said, “Yes, I’m coming with you.”<\/p>\n

“No,” he said, “not if I am alive.”<\/p>\n

I said “I will know my sons because they were wearing pajamas. Do not insist. I want to take my sons.”<\/p>\n

“Can you?” He said.<\/p>\n

I said “I can”.<\/p>\n

They gave their lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the help of God, I can\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

I want to know where they are.<\/p>\n

I went with them.<\/p>\n

When we went to Gjakova, I told the OSCE “I cannot take 4 corpses home”. It will shock my family. The old woman was here. It would be like the end of the world.<\/p>\n

After NATO, families like ours have fallen back then… This massacre lasted until NATO came.<\/p>\n

Milosevic went. Milosevic went after this massacre.<\/p>\n

Because Clinton was here then.<\/p>\n

The OSCE and Clinton had my sons’s pictures on the table.<\/p>\n

When I went to Pristina, the one of the OSCE, Mr. Fisher told the men.<\/p>\n

He said “did you come out, did that family come out?” He said “yes”.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He said “that family has fallen and Milosevic signed”, otherwise who knows when he would have stopped.<\/p>\n

He signed for the NATO. (Unintelligible) America took over and took us to Albania. The village was burnt.<\/p>\n

BG:Did you then go to Albania?<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes, we went to Albania.<\/p>\n

But when we went to Prishtina, I said “in the Mosque”.<\/p>\n

The mosque in the village was prepared that night. Corpses, my 4 family members were killed in the morning at 7. The owner of this house was also killed. Also, 3 other people of a neighborhood further and 1 from nearby were killed. That day 9 people were killed. From Rugova. 4 were from my family. Those 5 were from other houses. So 9 in total.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And when I went there, there were 24 corpses. There were also 15 soldiers. That day 24 were massacred, killed, and shot. War and beyond the war. Rugova of Has. The red nation.<\/p>\n

When we got there we went to get them in the morgue. Idiots, those idiots with long beards.<\/p>\n

My little boy was 17.<\/p>\n

May God punish him!<\/p>\n

They were saying “soldiers”. How could he be a soldier? The disabled (invalid husband) too can no longer hold those weapons. They were refusing to give their corpses to me. The documents had not been prepared. I could not even find them. I was afraid.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome and get them another day\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t take these 2 corpses today. But you can take the 7 other corpses.<\/p>\n

Rrusta, Selmani…<\/p>\n

You can take Selman and Muhamet, but not Rruste and Nysret.<\/p>\n

Did I tell you that the country punished them, the world punished them? I was afraid. If I spoke, he would shoot me, and I would be dead. We went to the morgue.<\/p>\n

He said, “Whose corpses are these?”<\/p>\n

“No”, I said I can’t take 5-6 people with 2 cars.<\/p>\n

“A mother”, he said. Her husband and 3 sons. One of those idiots nodded his head. As if he was thinking that those are lots of corpses for 1 family.<\/p>\n

He also said “there is 1 cigarette, do you smoke?”<\/p>\n

Oh my God!<\/p>\n

“No, no, no”.<\/p>\n

My neighbor said, “No, none of us smokes”. He was mad.<\/p>\n

They brought them. When we brought them to Gjakova … on our way back, the OSCE came with us. When we went there we were not safe. OSCE came on our way back.<\/p>\n

They prepared the documents and my neighbor said “We will either take all the corpses or come tomorrow for all of them. All or nothing\u201d.<\/p>\n

We were waiting.<\/p>\n

It was 8 pm because we went in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

They were pretending to arrange the documents because they were already arranged. They knew they would be caught, the world is 100% aware of it. They arranged the letters and gave them to me. When I went there to get them out, he said “come on, we will bring them now”<\/p>\n

We went to the morgue. When we went they had put them in black bags. I thought they were dressed.<\/p>\n

Ah mother’s sweethearts. I wanted to save your clothes? What did they do to your clothes?<\/p>\n

My neighbor opened the bag of Rrusta.<\/p>\n

He was out of breath, I was out of breath.<\/p>\n

I wanted to scream so much so that no one is left on the face of earth. Like those cartoons that we see on TV. That’s how I felt. “Aunt!” he said. My breath stopped.<\/p>\n

He was on one side I was on the other.<\/p>\n

We sat down.<\/p>\n

The bearded police with an automatic gun was listening to what we say.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease, be strong aunt\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

My cousin that brought you here, Isuf\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n

We were with them, with Selim. \u201cBe strong\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t say a word. God knows what would happened if I did. But I couldn\u2019t keep it inside. I was stuck like that. My body. For 20 minutes. Both of us.<\/p>\n

He felt better sooner than me.<\/p>\n

\u201cAunt, are you fine?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I feel better\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

With the help of Allah I felt stronger.<\/p>\n

\u201cSelim!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

I told him \u201copen it once again!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, aunt. We saw them\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, no, I want to know whether they are my family\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why I came here\u201d.<\/p>\n

He opened the black bag.<\/p>\n

He said \u201cIs this uncle Rruste?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

What would you see!!<\/p>\n

\u201cIs this Selman?\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cEhem\u201d, I nodded.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs this Muhamet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd this is Nysret?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u201d, I said.<\/p>\n

I told him to \u201cput Rrusta\u2019s hand up\u201d. They hadn\u2019t touched him.<\/p>\n

Whatever Allah wants, Allah will save it.<\/p>\n

That hand was the evidence for the world to see what they have done. That fresh blood so that Kosovo wins.<\/p>\n

This is why I was so upset that they did not come here, even once a month to say “oh dear people of the house, how do you live?”<\/p>\n

To see how we live during this Day of Resurrection! No one will be able to experience or tell about the Day of Resurrection. So I will say this kind of catastrophe. No, never. Everyone for themselves.<\/p>\n

He raised his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere it is\u201d, he said \u201cthe hand of uncle Rruste\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can put it down\u201d, I said<\/p>\n

10 days. Martyrs. Martyrs who have shed their blood.<\/p>\n

When we were near Nysret’s corpse I said “Put his hand up”.<\/p>\n

He had a mark, Allah brought him to this world with that mark. And it grew. He used to say “mother, this is on my left hand and it also became bigger. God has given me a clock.”<\/p>\n

“Yes,my son”, I used to tell him.<\/p>\n

I said, “Put his hand up just to see and recall this conversation we had.”<\/p>\n

When he did so, I said “ah, mother’s sweetheart”.<\/p>\n

He put his hand down. They loaded his corpse. We came. When we came to Gjakova, Serbs surrounded us at night.<\/p>\n

War.<\/p>\n

War.<\/p>\n

Now they told us to send them to the hospital there so that the world thinks that they were not in Prishtina, but in the morgue in Gjakova. They unloaded the corpses.<\/p>\n

They were loaded here, unloaded there. When they loaded them there, they loaded them in Gjakova.<\/p>\n

Is it already 4 times? Twice loaded, twice unloaded.<\/p>\n

So they wanted the camera to record that we were taking them in Gjakova.<\/p>\n

Some of the women in hospital in Gjakova even looked from their windows to see the horror that was happening.<\/p>\n

Serbs went crazy. They were all over there.<\/p>\n

The old Serb.<\/p>\n

Some were surprised.<\/p>\n

What a pity, a family of 4 on their own country.<\/p>\n

When we brought them were they unloaded? 5 times.<\/p>\n

When we put them to their graves, were they loaded? 6 times.<\/p>\n

Loaded and unloaded for 6 times.<\/p>\n

Only the strength of Allah has kept me going. Why did the strength of Allah help me?<\/p>\n

The God left our son in our place.<\/p>\n

Old age, life. Welcoming, escorting. So this place to exist once again. To be full of people.<\/p>\n

The bride stayed. The daughters grew. 3 of my daughters. Their… father and brothers. Those were hoping they were in prison. One of them said, \u201cSend them some blankets because they may beat them and they are cold\u201d.<\/p>\n

The one of Landovica “give the Serbs 1000 euros, so that they do not bother them a lot”.<\/p>\n

They lied the girl that they are in prison. In the beginning the girl did not know for 3-4 days that they were killed until the funeral took place.<\/p>\n

They are in prison.<\/p>\n

They turned off the TVs in the houses.<\/p>\n

They wanted to watch TV. But we all turned them off. “There is no power my daughter”. We were using the power from Kuk\u00ebs, since there was none in Prishtina. We received the news from Kukes.<\/p>\n

My girl, 6 times loaded and unloaded. They gave their life for this place.<\/p>\n

And then I went for 2 weeks to my sons’ place. A lot of blood. The next day we sent the corpses to the neighbor.<\/p>\n

When I came with my brother-in-law, I took Rrusta’s shoe.<\/p>\n

I found the shoe. I did not know how to find my shoes because I was numb. I went to the van. I said “yes, Rrusta’s show”. I took it. Army cigarettes. Red razors, do you know the ones they bring from states? Lighters. Army shoes. My shoes were all lost, whatever they found they took. Everyone left this place.<\/p>\n

Ripped, torn out. When I looked at the van, I felt I was the mother of all those soldiers. That day, I touched everyone’s hair and bones. My son’s and my husband’s too of course. Our brains looked like threads. There were brain pieces on the van. Lots of blood. Human brain. Pieces of hair. Mercy to their soul.<\/p>\n

I touched their shoes. I saw their cigarettes. I saw their lighters.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Oh God help us.<\/p>\n

All the soil was blood. It took 6 months or 1 year for that soil to be removed.<\/p>\n

Even after 2 weeks, when it was frosty, the snow bubbles melted.<\/p>\n

When it melted, blood came out of the gate, since back then there were no canals. My mother-in-law did not know. That’s why I did not speak in front of her. When I went out the door with my daughters, the blood of the martyrs, of my sons, was flowing on the streets. No one could wash it. There was even foam when it rained on some places.<\/p>\n

They gave their soul for this country. What else did they gave it for?<\/p>\n

The war came, and we had to win with our blood.<\/p>\n

My son would grow up with me. But I am a mother of Kosovo and Kosovo mothers had this luck. Not all brides are like my bride. There were many brides. Even orphans. There were many orphans. So were sisters. There were many sisters. Yes sisters, maybe there was one with 2 brothers. Mine had 4 family members. One family. Yes, with the help of Allah I kept going. May they rest in Paradise!<\/p>\n

The village took care of me. They have been taking care of me for 20 years. For 20 years I did not have anyone work. We could hardly raise the boy. I also gave hope to the boy. So that he is happy. So that he does not know what happened. Of course, the girls too. We experienced those times.<\/p>\n

This young bride. Me, a mother. Sisters.<\/p>\n

The little ones … are experiencing today, the girls know the story.<\/p>\n

And I’m imprisoned.<\/p>\n

I am not asking for the world. My sons are gone. Even if I have the whole world, without my sons I won’t need it. Why would I need it? We will leave everything behind. We will leave behind even this little wealth that we have when the time comes. Because time goes on.<\/p>\n

I am afraid. But then I am not afraid. I only feel sorry for those who took my sons’ blood. Let them know. We gave our lives for the soldiers. We gave our lives for Kosovo. So that the people live better. 6 weeks in a row I have documented for these people to eat with a silver spoon. They would have lived well. But they know what they did.<\/p>\n

They would have been alive. This child now wouldn’t be left on the streets after he would study. He would have lived in his place. They know. Let them do what they want. Except for this blood of mine, whoever took it, whoever knew and did not tell, let them know very well that they will be in great embarrassment. From Allah. From Allah.<\/p>\n

Thank you my daughter.<\/p>\n

From today onward, I will not give any more statements. My chest is now 100% tightened.<\/p>\n

Isuf’s daughter told me. Was it his son or daughter? His daughter is in Prishtina.<\/p>\n

“Aunt Zarife”, she said “We want to put them in the museum. We want to keep them as if they were coming out 3000 years ago. Evidence for each. But before the Second World War. How much is 50-60 years!?\u201d<\/p>\n

She even said that they are already lost because we know what is happening in Kosovo.<\/p>\n

She said, “We want to know where and who was killed, and what happened.”<\/p>\n

I told her that is this is the reason, I agree.<\/p>\n

But not if you want to fill your pockets (bribery).<\/p>\n

BG:No…<\/p>\n

ZM:Because I gave a lot and maybe they did this.<\/p>\n

BG:That has definitely happened.<\/p>\n

ZM:That has happened, I have heard and I know.<\/p>\n

BG:It still happens.<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes, it does.<\/p>\n

BG:No one talks about what we have experienced.<\/p>\n

Only those who saw it.<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes.<\/p>\n

BG:Have you been to Albania? How did it happen?<\/p>\n

ZM:Yes, we went there. We went to Albania. They did not do anything to us.<\/p>\n

Yes, we went. (Unintelligible)<\/p>\n

They did not even ask for the documents.<\/p>\n

Yes, I have gone there because I was afraid. I was there with my brother-in-law and my mother-in-law. The bride with 3 children were in Prizren. 6 weeks later they came to Albania with us. I did not know anything. The boy was there too. When I went to eat meals, because I was in Bulqiza, I did not know how to tell about that place in Bulqiza. I spoke there and testified. There is a program, people have found it, I have listened to it once or twice.<\/p>\n

I don’t know now. We went there. When we went to eat a meal. They found out, 2000 people there.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid the children come?\u201d
\n\u201cNo\u201d.<\/p>\n

They nodded their head. I was alone with the old woman. With the brother-in-law. His sons remained there too. 6 of us were left, 6 of us went to our families with my brother-in-law. We came, we got together. There we were safe.<\/p>\n

We came here. Now it started. May Allah protect us. Very sad. The boy came here. I just do not know what hearts we have but God helps you. Many of us were there. Just me as a mother, I had big obligations.<\/p>\n

I had to reconcile all.<\/p>\n

To raise 2 orphans.<\/p>\n

They are young, let them grow.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I hope we never experience this again.<\/p>\n

Until we die we will be in pain.<\/p>\n

I fall asleep and wake up without sleeping. I go to sleep. My mind wanders and there is no sleep. God has helped me because I prayed.<\/p>\n

Save my son, my daughters, grandchildren, the whole family.<\/p>\n

God saved me because of them.<\/p>\n

Those who are alive have to endure.<\/p>\n

They wouldn’t have been well, but I gave them strength and they gave me strength.<\/p>\n

We were strong thanks to each-other.<\/p>\n

In the name of Allah, thank you!<\/p>\n

BG:Thank you very much too.<\/p>\n

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Bjeshka Guri (interviewer) Zarife Morina (interviewee) Acronyms: BG=Bjeshka Guri, ZM= Zarife Morina   BG:How do you remember the war? So, before the war started, before everything started, how were you, what did you do before the war? ZM:Before the war … First of all, may Allah have destroyed those Serbians, those idiots. They came […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1052,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1213"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1213"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1213\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1337,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1213\/revisions\/1337"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/museumofrefugees-ks.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}