President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs Atifete Jahjaga participated today at the unveiling of the statue of the patriot Hasan Prishtina in Tirana.
Initially, President Jahjaga laid a garland of flowers at the grave of Hasan Prishtina in Kukes, accompanied by the local officials and her staff.
Later on, in the presence of the leaders of the State of Albania and representatives from various parts of Albania, she participated at the unveiling of the statue of Hasan Prishtina at the capital of Albania.
Below is the text of the speech that President Jahjaga held on this occasion:
Honourable Prime Minister of Albania, Dr. Sali Berisha,
Honourable Speaker of the Parliament of Albania, Ms Jozefina Topalli,
Honourable Minister Bumçi,
Honourable Mayor of Tirana, Mr Lulzim Basha,
Honourable officials of the Republic of Albania and Republic of Kosovo,
Honourable family members of Hasan Prishtina’s family,
Honourable citizens of Tirana and of all our lands,
Today, at the one hundredth anniversary of the declaration of the Independence, I have the honour and pride, to, as President of the Republic, come here in Tirana to unveil the statue of Hasan Prishtina, a patriot, ideologist and organiser of the uprisings for the freedom and independence of the country.
For this diplomat, statesman, minister and Prime Minister of Albania.
For this man who wanted the education and advancement of his people, who gifted his own wealth for Albanian schools and pupils. For this man who lived all of his life in endeavouring to make Albania and Albanians a free state and nation of Europe.
On my way here I stopped in Kukes and bowed and paid my respects at the tomb of Hasan Prishtina, and brought him a garland of flowers grown on the soil of Kosovo.
Honourable citizens,
We are honouring all the activists who spared nothing to make the freedom and independence of the country come true. In this manner we praise our century’s long attempts towards freedom and state , and respect the values through which today we are free, equal and dignified with the rest of the nations of the world.
A nation that remembers, honours and respects the past, has a reliable future.
Hasan Prishtina, throughout all of his activities, shows to us that he has not ceased working for a single day for his fatherland and democracy. He never ceased working for the education and advancement of the nation, he never ceased working that his people and his motherland become friends of the powerful international nations, most of all the United States of America.
Hasan Prishtina writes to the US President Wilson: “… Please take into consideration the aspirations of our nation….for the future of Albania…Albanian nation has sacrificed so much for the realisation of their national ideals and has shed so much blood for this aspiration…”
Honourable citizens,
Today, we are aware that the ideals of any generations of patriots and activists have not come true in full, as they worked in constraints of the conditions of their era. As Hasan Prishtina wrote” we fight and maybe we will not be able to enjoy the freedom, but those who will come after us, will find the marks that we left”.
The patriot Hasan Prishtina was the leader of the Albanian uprisings for the national liberation. He was the man who created the political platform and national programme. He was the ideologist that unified all political currents towards this aim because as he said: “ as yesterday, today or tomorrow, FATHERLAND was and is the holiest thing for us”.
It was through all this engagement, this unending work that made possible the Flag of Independence to be raised in Vlora, as the independence of Albania has previously been won in Kosovo.
Luigj Gurakuqi, wrote in 1909 about Hasan Prishtina: “ May the excellent patriot, this angel of Albania live a long life… and a marvellous statue , a marble statue will be erected for you, after the years have passed by, that will be read in front of the civilised world, because a whole nation feels that they owe it to you”.
Thank you!