Acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti commemorated the October 1, 1997 student protest in Kosovo, emphasizing that the event broke the myth of the “defiant Serbian police” and set the stage for the UÇK liberation war.
In a Facebook post, Kurti explained that the student-led protest, which later became a broader public demonstration, preceded and joined the just war of the Kosovo Liberation Army (UÇK) that unfolded from the end of 1997 until Kosovo’s liberation in June 1999. He paid tribute to the students, professors at the University of Pristina, and thousands of citizens who courageously joined the movement during this crucial stage in Kosovo’s path to freedom.
“Since 1991, the apartheid regime of Serbia in Kosovo had excluded students and professors from the University of Pristina campus, as well as students and teachers from high schools. Until the outbreak of the war, around 3,000 homes and private spaces were adapted to host educational activities under extraordinary conditions,” Kurti wrote.
Driton Lajçi, a former organizer of the protest, also recalled the movement, highlighting that it began with demands for the liberation of university facilities and evolved into a powerful public movement against Serbian occupation. It helped raise international awareness, supported the UÇK, and influenced Kosovo’s political status process.
“I am proud to belong to the generation that courageously contributed to freedom. Congratulations on October 1, 1997, and respect to the generation of freedom students,” Lajçi wrote on social media.
