Life and work of the first President of the Republic of Kosovo, of the historic President, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, makes us proud of the path that us as a nation, have trodden upon together.
Honourable representatives of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo,
Honourable Ambassadors and representatives of the diplomatic missions in Kosovo,
Honourable families of the martyrs,
Honourable friends and associates of the President Ibrahim Rugova,
Honourable citizens of the Republic of Kosovo,
Honourable Mrs. Fane, Mendim, Uke, Teuta,
Honourable Rugova family,
Life and work of the first President of the Republic of Kosovo, of the historic President, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, makes us proud of the path that us as a nation, have trodden upon together.
Today, as we evaluate our achievements, we remember with utmost piety all those that sacrificed themselves, that fell at the altar of freedom, that worked for the wellbeing of the people and fatherland, deeds that lead to a dedication to become free and Lords of our lands; for an independent and sovereign Republic of Kosovo, a member of the European Union and NATO, member of the United Nations Organisation and member of all international organisations and mechanisms and in eternal friendship with the United States of America.
The whole journey, the vision, makes us honour and remember with highest respects the leader, the architect of independence, our visionary leader, who unequivocally directed our country and our nation towards the United States of America, embracing the western values.
Today we remember the First President of the Country, who, in tough times, knew how to take difficult decisions, decisions that indicated the direction of history and which finally determined our fate as a nation and the future of the country.
Honourable participants,
At the beginning of the disintegration of former Yugoslavia, at the dawn of the domination of hegemony which in a threatening manner converged over the fate of the nations, Ibrahim Rugova chose to establish a political and philosophical thought based on the viewpoint of the ascertained patriotism, as a philosophy of active peaceful politics, thought that mobilised the nation that was thirsting for freedom, independence and democracy, for the development of life of pluralism, for the advancement of democratic processes and state building.
This proved the organisational abilities and capacities of the nation, to have and to hold a state. We had a strong international support, as never before recorded in the annals of our history, support that peaked with the military intervention by NATO on humanitarian grounds, in order to prevent genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Honourable citizens of the Republic of Kosovo,
Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, together with many other intellectuals, established and lead the Democratic League of Kosovo, the very first Democratic Party in our history to publicly operate and directed towards the United States of America and European Union. In cooperation with other political parties, he created the pluralistic party system acting towards state building and contravening with great success the occupating forces.
All this work and activity, based upon the democratic values and standards, directed Kosovo and its citizens towards the Free states and nations of Europe.
Upon the initiative of Ibrahim Rugova, the Council of the Political Parties of Kosovo was established, leading to a later establishment of the Coordinative Council of eleven political parties of the Albanians in Yugoslavia, Council that upon the basis of parliamentarism built and approved the “Political Platform for the solution of the Albanian question in Yugoslavia”.
Coordinating all the activities, he managed to build an efficient system of governance and administration in the Republic of Kosovo, a free and democratic country of equal citizens.
Dr. Ibrahim Rugova was the strategist of the state of Kosovo, of the Republic of Kosovo, that carried the legitimacy and nationwide support, as well as the legal basis for its activity.
In September 1991, a Referendum for Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state was organised, while in October the Government of the Republic of Kosovo was elected with all the ministerial structures in place, thus establishing the mechanisms of the governance and decision taking.
By organising the parliamentary and Presidential elections, the attempts were made to achieve functionality of the electoral process under the occupation, as a proof and the will of the nation of Kosovo to have and to hold a state.
The Rugovian political philosophy was characterized as an active peaceful policy based on the historical experience of the survival of our people. It was a political program adapted to the circumstances of time to create the conditions for liberation, preserving the biological existence and the territorial integrity. The philosophy of Rugova internationalized the issue of Kosovo gaining support by unmasking the aggressive hegemonic policy.
President Rugova hoped very much that he would be able to avoid the war against defenseless people in Kosovo, taking into account that the progressive world had taken lesson from the bloody wars in Croatia and Bosnia and would prevent the genocide and displacement of the people of Kosovo.
But when the war started, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova without even the slightest hesitation at the Rambouillet Conference passed the leadership of the delegation and leading role to the representatives of the Kosovo Liberation Army.
Rugova always valued the historical merits and respected the real factor of representation. The politician, Ibrahim Rugova went through the election process and despite winning support through votes, was supporter of the option for comprehensive coalition of governance in state-building and in the promotion of democratic processes.
President Dr. Ibrahim Rugova is known for the syntagma FREEDOM, INDEPENDENCE, DEMOCRACY which was His political platform; to work, to gain freedom, to declare the independence, to build the democracy. This has already become reality, as well as the vision of eternal friendship with the United States of America.
The merit for the construction of parties of pro-Western and democratic orientation belongs to President Rugova as well, cultivating the freedom loving, patriotic and civilized character of the nation and permanently removing from these areas the communist ideology as an evil that caused suffering to the people in the past.
Honorable participants,
The Republic of Kosovo honors its sons and daughters, who contributed that we, on this day, are free, independent, equal and dignified in our lands. President Ibrahim Rugova is on the pedestal of these intellectuals, activists, politicians who as a proficient leader knew how to lead the people and homeland towards the European future.
Thank you!
Eternal respect and reverence for the work of the First President of the Republic of Kosovo Dr. Ibrahim Rugova!