Student Movements: 1968, 1981 and 1997 The impact of students in mobilizing society to chant for the Republic of Kosovo Atdhe Hetemi Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of East European Languages and Cultures Supervisor Prof. dr. Rozita Dimova Department of East European Languages and Cultures Dean Prof. dr. Gita Deneckere Rector Prof. dr. Rik Van de Walle October 2019 i English Summary This dissertation examines the motives and central visions of three student demonstrations, each taking place within different historical and political contexts and each organized by a different generation of Kosovo Albanian students. The years 1968, 1981 and 1997 witnessed a proliferation of student mobilizations as collective responses demanding more national rights for Albanians in Kosovo. I argue that the students' main vision in all three movements was the political independence of Kosovo. Given the complexity of the students' goal, my analysis focuses on the influence and reactions of domestic and foreign powers vis-à-vis the University of Prishtina (hereafter UP), the students and their movements. Fueled by their desire for freedom from Serbian hegemony, the students played a central role in "preserving" and passing from one generation to the next the vision of "Republic" status for Kosovo. Kosova Republikë or the Republic of Kosovo (hereafter RK) status was a demand of all three student demonstrations, but the students' impact on state creation has generally been underestimated by politicians and public figures. Thus, the primary purpose of this study is to unearth the various and hitherto unknown or hidden roles of higher education – then the UP – and its students in shaping Kosovo's recent history. By arguing that the students' demands were also part of a wider quest for human rights rather than merely a straightforward nationalistic matrix, this study reclaims the critical character of the 1968 and 1981 uprisings, as well as the social struggles and all-out war of the 1990s, effectively leading the country to the implementation of the political ideas of self- determination and independence. I also focus on how the student movements and public opinion interacted concerning the violence of the Yugoslav and, later, Serbian regimes. This dissertation intends to look at multiple layers of the student movements as pivotal historical events. This approach will offer me the best opportunity to understand the participation of all parties involved in the wider context. As such, my data collecting strategy concentrated on sources held in the Archive of Kosovo, Archive of Yugoslavia, Archive of Serbia, Central Archive of the Republic of Albania, and the Archives of Albania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The reason for consulting sources from these countries is that they were directly involved in the process of the initial founding and subsequent development of the UP. The present study also utilizes insights from oral history: interviews with activists, academics, politicians, and other officials, conducted in ii Prishtina, Tirana, Belgrade, and Skopje, because these actors participated in, influenced, or had in-depth knowledge of the student movements in Kosovo. The eruption of the first student movements in Kosovo during the last century depended not only on the dynamics of that particular time (the 1960s) but also on pre-existing conditions. Thus, to understand the overall picture, one must be aware of previous state transformations, relations between communities living in the area as well as with the authorities, etc. That is why this dissertation offers a historical overview of how the Albanians living in the SFRY viewed themselves and were viewed externally by other peoples in the country. Whereas the third chapter seeks to understand the emergence and development of collective actions during the late 1960s, particularly in Belgrade (the SFRY's capital) and Kosovo. Here I analyze the conceptual connections and differences between student movements in Belgrade and Kosovo during the specific historical period. I explicitly look at the interactions between regional/local policies, institutions of higher learning, and student movements in Kosovo (1968) and the impact of these movements on the establishment of the UP. Thereafter I present and analyze the eruptions and development of the student demonstrations of March and April 1981. These demonstrations will be remembered in history as events that triggered deep societal divisions in addition to generating destabilization and bringing about great changes both at the level of Kosovo and at the level of the SFRY. Another chapter covers the fraught atmosphere which dominated Kosovo during the 1990s. The key concepts of the analysis revolve around the links between higher education (specifically the UP), political influences and students. By examining the dynamics of the demonstrations, I analyze the dimensions, forms and implications of student uprisings and resistance, as well as the struggles for dominance by local (Kosovo), federal (SFRY), regional (Albania and Serbia) and international actors (outside the Balkans). To help the reader understand that these demonstrations, although organized by students, were not necessarily academic but rather political, this dissertation presents and analyzes the impact that students had on mobilizing society to demonstrate for self-determination. Given that each demonstration took place under different historical and political circumstances, and that each was organized by a different generation of Kosovo Albanian students, this dissertation examines how the vision of independence impacted the first and subsequent student movements. Additionally, this dissertation elucidates the influence and reactions of domestic and foreign powers vis-à-vis the students and movements of 1968, 1981 and 1997 iii in Kosovo. Taking into consideration the complexity and scope of the topic, I am aware that this dissertation cannot claim to be either perfect or complete. However, I hope that my modest offering will inspire further interdisciplinary discussions as well as an appreciation of the students' contributions. iv Nederlandse samenvatting Dit proefschrift bestudeert de motieven en centrale visies van drie studentenbetogingen, die plaatsvonden in verschillende historische en politieke contexten en georganiseerd werden door verschillende generaties Kosovaars Albanese studenten. In de jaren 1968, 1981 en 1997 kwam het tot een snelle toename van studentenmobilisaties als collectieve reacties met de eis voor meer nationale rechten voor Albanezen in Kosovo. Ik betoog dat de centrale visie van de studenten in alle drie bewegingen de politieke onafhankelijkheid van Kosovo was. Gezien het meervoudige karakter van het doel van de studenten spitst mijn analyse zich toe op de invloed en reacties van lokale en internationale mogendheden vis-à-vis de Universiteit van Prishtina (hierna: UP), de studenten en hun bewegingen. Gedreven door hun streven naar vrijheid van Servische hegemonie, speelden de studenten een centrale rol in het “beschermen” en overdragen van de ene generatie op de andere van de visie dat Kosovo de status van “Republiek” moest krijgen. De status Kosova Republikë of Republiek Kosovo (hierna: RK) was de centrale eis van alle drie studentenbetogingen, maar de impact van de studenten op staatsvorming is algemeen ondergewaardeerd door politieke en publieke figuren. Aldus is het eerst doel van deze studie het blootleggen van de verschillende tot dusver onbekende of verborgen rollen van hoger onderwijs – en later de UP – en haar studenten in de vorming van de moderne geschiedenis van Kosovo. Ik beargumenteer dat de studenteneisen ook deel waren van een breder streven naar mensenrechten in plaats van louter een rechtlijnig nationalistische matrix. Op die manier ontgin ik het kritische karakter van de opstanden van 1968 en 1981 en ook de sociale strijd en de algemene oorlog van de jaren 90, die het land uiteindelijk tot de implementatie van politieke ideeën van zelfbeschikking en onafhankelijk brachten. Ik besteed ook aandacht aan de interactie tussen de studentenbewegingen en de publieke opinie omtrent het geweld van het Joegoslavische en later Servische regime. Dit proefschrift poogt de verschillende lagen van de studentenbeweging als pivotale historische gebeurtenissen te bekijken. Deze benadering biedt me de beste mogelijkheid de deelname van alle partijen te begrijpen in de bredere context. Mijn strategie voor dataverzameling concentreerde zich op bronnen in het Archief van Kosovo, het Archief van Joegoslavië, het Centrale Archief van de Republiek Albanië en het Archief van het Albanese Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken. Ik heb bronnen van deze landen geraadpleegd v omdat deze landen direct betrokken waren in het proces van de initiële vorming en latere ontwikkeling van de UP. Deze studie benut ook inzichten van oral history: interviews met activisten, academici, politici en andere functionarissen, afgenomen in Prishtina, Tirana, Belgrado en Skopje, omdat deze actoren deelnamen in, invloed uitoefenden op, of diepere kennis hebben van de studentenbewegingen in Kosovo. De uitbraak van de eerste studentenbewegingen in Kosovo tijdens de vorige eeuw hing niet alleen af van de dynamiek van die bijzondere periode (de jaren 60) maar ook van de vooraf gegeven condities. Om het algemene beeld te verstaan moet men zich dus bewust zijn van de voorafgaande staatstransformaties, relaties tussen gemeenschappen in de regio en met de