The Acting President of the Republic of Kosovo, Albulena Haxhiu, participated today at the opening of the “Eye to Eye” Exhibition.
In her address to the participants, Acting President Haxhiu said that through the “Eye to Eye” exhibition, vision is brought to us in its most special form: through the iris.
“The iris is a unique sign of man. We have it in our eyes throughout our lives, but we rarely stop to think about it. Here, the iris has been taken out of everyday life and brought to the public as a sign of human presence, with as much closeness as art requires and with as much content as dignity requires,” saidActing President Haxhiu.
She further said that this is also the power of the creative concept of “Eye to Eye”.
“Because it does not reveal the person until the end. It gives us a sign of the eye, that is, an identifying trace, just enough to stop. That is enough to feel his presence. The rest, what is not said and not shown, remains his, and precisely this content makes him even more dignified”, said Acting President Haxhiu.
Acting President Haxhiu, addressing the participants, said that behind this exhibition lies the long work of the KRCT and also of the organization “Pro Peace” with testimonies and stories of survivors, family members and people affected by sexual violence during the war in Kosovo.
“These stories do not only speak about the difficult period, that of the war. They also speak about the years following it, which for many survivors of sexual violence in Kosovo were even more difficult, because the pain was compounded by silence, mistrust, judgment and also the fear of telling,” said Acting President Haxhiu.
She stated that stigma should also be discussed here, and that according to her, “For many survivors, stigma has been a heavy part of the years after the war. They have lived with the shame that has been unfairly placed on their shoulders. A society that wants justice for those who were raped during the war must first learn to see them with respect and gratitude for the strength with which they have continued their lives.”
In this regard,Acting President Haxhiu thanked the Kosovo Center for the Rehabilitation of Torture Survivors for this exhibition, as well as the organization “Pro Peace”, and also for their long-term engagement with survivors of sexual violence during the war.
According to Acting President Haxhiu, this is work that is done with patience, with slowly gained trust, with professional care and with a lot of responsibility.
“As Acting President of the Republic of Kosovo, I want to say that individuals who were sexually abused during the war are part of our history and our state responsibility. They cannot remain on the edge of memory, nor be mentioned only on certain days. The Republic owes them recognition, care, justice and a life with dignity”, emphasized Acting President Haxhiu.
