HEKURAN
KOSOVO
25 YEARS
"Don't ever stop.
Don't be afraid of the power structures that exist,
as the people who potentially
are misusing their power right now, won't be in their
position for long.
It will be your role to
take charge of it."
When asked about his childhood in Pristina, Hekuran, who is now 25 years old remembers vividly growing up with a lot of stories. Mostly about the conflict and things that happened in the region that he just couldn´t make sense of. At Kindergarten age he began asking his parents questions all day long: „Is Kosovo a country? What is Kosovo? Why are we always on the news? What is happening in the region?“ To Hekuran’s regret however, his parents could not always convey straightforward answers on the region´s complex and conflicted history suitable for a five-year-old. Today, Hekuran is still driven by that enormous thirst for knowledge, which he is currently trying to satisfy with a master’s degree in Intercultural Conflict Management in Berlin.
Hekuran takes pride in the fact that he was unafraid to speak up against injustice from an early age on, following in the footsteps of his parents. Already in middle school he took on the leading position and joined the student council to raise the voice of his peers. Coming from a loving household within the Balkan region, he is lucky to be naturally equipped with a deep sense of community and an understanding of multicultural matters that have driven him his whole life. Growing up in Kosovo had a significant impact on becoming the person he is today. Therefore, the decision to leave his home and move to Berlin was not an easy one for him.
However, considering his aspiration for higher education, the institutions, particularly those in the educational system, were not operating at the optimal level to fulfill his needs. The constant reforms, which were not always completely implemented, coupled with Hekuran’s inclination to voice his opinions on such matters, have posed significant challenges for him.
In addition to the academic responsibilities of learning and following the content of his studies, he often had to deal with backlash that came with raising his voice. Rather than dwelling on the negative, Hekuran decided to act and move for his studies to Berlin. Today, he takes it as a promise to his future self that he will utilize his current learning and the insights abroad to the benefit of his homeland, Kosovo, where he would love to serve in the public sector with mindful and compassionate dedication in the future.
At the same time, the EU‘s current fragile state concerns many, including him. With Euroscepticism on the rise and a potential new conflict on the European continent in the back of many people’s minds, from Hekuran’s perspective, the best way for the EU and the Western Balkan region to stabilize themselves, is to listen to the people on the ground and most importantly: To the youth. Their voices being the most underestimated voices in the world.
Regarding climate change, societal acceptance, and openness, it is this generation that will inherit the consequences of current actions. It is therefore imperative that they be included at the negotiating tables. Not just to check a box, but to actually give them a vote. Besides the young knowing what their needs for their future are, historically speaking the youth have always been the leading forces of huge democratic change. If both sides involved want the Berlin Process to be successful and to reflect the reality, Hekuran states: “It´s the youth that should be listened and talked to.”
