Highly esteemed Ambassador Malaj,
Dear Albanians,
Honourable Speaker of the Parliament, Mr. Basha,
Honourable Prime Minister, Mr. Kurti,
Honourable Ambassadors,
Honourable Guests,
Dear Citizens, Members of our Diaspora, Sisters and Brothers wherever you are,
To homeland, one gives it all, because homeland is everything. Today is a day that is not measured in hours and minutes, but in centuries. November 28th is the day when our history breathes, when our hearts beat in unison, when the red and black flag is raised as a sacred symbol of our identity, sacrifice and national pride.
November is the month when our history is celebrated. It is a story that can never disappear or fade, because it is engraved from generation to generation. Precisely in this month, on November 28, we united the legacy of generations in a single day: Flag Day, Albanian Independence Day, the birthday of the Legendary Commander Adem Jashari and the first public appearance of the Kosovo Liberation Army, four events that create a sacred symbiosis of our national spirit.
Novembers in our history are almost always months of glory, a stream of events and sacrifices that make our nation immortal. The first of November, in 1443, when our hero Gjergj Kastrioti raised the flag with the double-headed eagle over the fortress of Kruja, paved the way for all other Novembers, transforming this penultimate month of the year into the month of Albanians, of bravery and freedom.
Today, we bow down to those who kept this flag alive, in war, in prisons, in the mountains and through time, and raised it forever so that it would wave forever.
For decades, this flag was banned in Kosovo. Albanians were imprisoned, beaten, persecuted and killed just because they hung it in windows, raised it in houses or carried it in their pockets as a keepsake. The Yugoslav regime and then the Serbian one wanted to erase our identity, but no one can ever erase the spirit of the Albanian. Because this flag was and remains the testament of our freedom.
The independence of Albania was declared under this flag. Under the leadership of Ismail Qemali and patriots who came from all Albanian lands, including Kosovo, the voice of a nation that had decided to no longer live in slavery was raised. From Hasan Prishtina, Isa Boletini to hundreds of other Kosovar patriots who gave everything for the freedom of the Albanian state, Kosovo was there with blood, with rifles, with mind and with heart.
On that holy day in 1912, Albania was carved, free and independent, as an inalienable right of the Albanian people.
“However, God willed, through the hard work, and with the bravery and the unparalleled courage of the Albanians, that from today onwards the miseries and sufferings of our Homeland will end, because, here and now, we are FREE, INDEPENDENT and SOVEREIGN, and therefore: laugh and rejoice!”
These words of the elder of independence, the patriot Ismail Qemali, are history, guidance and commitment.
This right was later realized in Kosovo, under this same sacred flag, when the Kosovo Liberation Army, the best sons and daughters of this country, rose up against the genocidal Serbian regime to win freedom.
Therefore, November 28 is our quadruple holiday. It is our main holiday, because on this day, in addition to the first public appearance of the KLA, we also celebrate the birthday of the Legendary Commander Adem Jashari, a man who belongs not only to one family, but to the entire nation on both sides of the Drini. He led the Kosovo Liberation Army to freedom under the red and black flag, transforming the sacrifice of Prekaz into a turning point in our modern history. Adem Jashari was not only the leader of our liberation army, but also the greatest sacrifice of our freedom.
The first public appearance of the KLA was a historic moment that gave voice and vision to the long-awaited freedom. Under the red and black flag, our fighters showed the world that our country never surrenders, that the people of Kosovo had decided to defend themselves and free themselves from the genocidal regime. This act of courage marked the beginning of a new era in our history, uniting the hearts of all Albanians in a common cause for freedom and independence.
Distinguished guests,
Albania is moving confidently towards the final stage of its membership in the European Union, but it is not alone in this journey. All Albanians are strongly behind it, wherever the Albanian heart beats: in Prishtina and Tirana, in Tetovë and Gostivar, in Ulqin and Tuz, in Preshevë, Medvegjë and Bujanoc. This is the journey of an entire nation, united in dream and effort. It is also the journey of our diaspora in every corner of the world, which in the most difficult years kept our name, language, tradition and flag alive. They are precisely the bridge of our power, the proof that Albanianness does not fade, but grows, is cultivated and kept alive generation after generation.
Today, more than ever, our fate is linked together. A stronger Albania in the EU means a stronger Kosovo; a consolidated and sovereign Kosovo means a safer, more respected and more developed nation.
Our two countries, separated on maps but united in heart, are getting closer every day towards a Europe where Albanians will no longer be spectators, but equal contributors.
Our future is inter-Albanian integration, as two states in the EU, in NATO and in the United Nations. With more common economy, culture, common projects, market and common vision. More Kosovo in Albania and more Albania in Kosovo. This is the direction, this is the mission, this is the path.
As the red and black flag waves today more proud than ever, our common journey leads us towards a destination we have long dreamed of, towards the European Union.
Kosovo and Albania walk side by side, as two states and one nation. Two state flags, but one single Albanian heart. Both countries have fought for freedom, for independence and for a state, so now together we are fighting to become part of the European family, to which we belong historically, geographically and by identity.
In the heart of Europe, we will stand as two free, independent, sovereign and successful states. Our future is coordinated and stems from the dignity that history gave us and the pride that sacrifice gave us!
Just as the song of our hearts states: “Xhamadani vija-vija, eshtë Kosovo, eshtë Shqipëria”.
Happy Flag Day!
Happy Independence of Albania!
Eternal honor and glory to the Legendary Commander Adem Jashari!
May God bless Kosovo, Albania and Albanians wherever they are!
