Rafaela Prifti/
Djellza Pulatani, President of F’Oda, was devastated that for the third time in a matter of months, she and her partners rallied against Femidice. Last week’s rally came on the heels of loosing Erona Cokli and Gjyljeta Ukella, two more women of our community in Kosova at the hands of their husbands. “Their deaths, within days of one another in April, are a stark reminder of the epidemic that plagues our society – femicide – the killing of women because they are women,” said Djellza.
The rest of the speakers at the rally, most of whom young Albanian women, echoed her remarks. Yet each one reflected upon the complexities of the issue by drawing on their specific disciplines from international studies, photography, performing arts, to politics and more. The speakers are partners, Dora Nano of NYU, Ariela Ziu, a rising freshman law student, Vanessa Marku, Legal Intern, Greta Rustani, Performing Arts student, Alma Stafa and Dita Dreaj, respectively F’Oda Vice President and Secretary, Beti Tale, a supporter of the advocacy group initiated by young Albanian women in the diaspora last year, designed to be a platform for girls, by girls. They believe that “Any advanced society should be able to critique the violences and injustices of their culture and correct them.”
F’Oda speakers call for change. In order to get there, they think that the force of law has to go hand in hand with the public support that is currently lagging. One of the frustrations of the organizers are the posts on social media platforms, showing patriarchial style responses instead of condemnations of the violent acts against women by their domestic partners. F’Oda organizers recognize the risks of a society “that is desensitized by violence” while at the same time call upon the justice system to hand down severe sentences and harsher punishment for the perpetrators of such crime.
F’Oda aims to bridge the gap between homeland communities and the diaspora. The rally in midtown New York was called as a tribute to two young Kosovar women killed within days of one another to echo the protest march held in Ferizaj following the death of Erona Cokli at the Center for Social Work, in Kosova, two weeks ago. Shortly before starting the rally, the F’Oda team made the executive decision to instead enter the physical space of the Kosova General Consulate to debunk the anti-state allegations regarding prior rallies, according to the statement on their Instagram.
At the Consulate reception area, F’Oda activists delievered an emotionally charged and a moving discussion highlighting the continual silencing of violence against women and the importance of breaking the veil of shame that often surrounds it. Furthermore, the event practically made the case for coordinating between activism and government, a collaboration to help implement effective solutions and enact meaningful change, rather than operating on opposite sides of the spectrum.
In the end, the organizers brought their signs outside the building and onto the corner of Second Ave and 43 Street. They conversed somberly while taking a group picture at the spot where the rally was originally called. Suddenly, there is was: a presentation of the different roles of activism and politics which can and often do overlap, or even collide. Activism is defined as actions called for the purpose of changing a public policy or law. Politics is driven by a general ideology or a specific agenda on which it promises to act.
From the F’Oda rally to the recent police arrests of the pro-palestinian student protesters on campsus around the country, is politics entering a new phase of interfering with activism? I pose the question to Djellza. She says that “politics and activism have and will continuously intersect. It is the unequivocal responsibility of any government to not only acknowledge the concerns of community activism, but confront them with meaningful and collaborative solutions. All forms of silencing are completely contradictory to the fundamental basis of governance”.
Her activism was underscored at a meeting with Kosova Consul General Ambassador Blerim Reka that delved into topics of gender-based violence, the impact of Albanian women in the diaspora, and the importance of government representation in advocacy efforts like The F’Oda Summit.
The upcoming summit this July is the second meeting of the advocacy group focused on girls’ empowerment for high school students in Kosova. She anticipates a positive reception from the political actors and even hopes for enthusiastic support. Understandably, the President of F’Oda is driven by the notion that activism plays a crucial role in effecting change, adding that “a society that disregards the voices of its people is not realizing its full potential.”