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Seminar “Serbia
and Kosovo:
Intercultural Icebreakers”
Belgrade, Novi
Sad, Prishtina, and Prizren,
November 9-17, 2016
The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia has organized the
sixth seminar within “Serbia and Kosovo: Intercultural Icebreakers”
program on November 9-17, 2016. Young people from Kosovo and Serbia,
active and interested in culture and arts, spent ten creative and
working days in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Prishtina and Prizren, making
friends and exchanging experiences and knowledge about their
societies and cultures.
Participants in the seminar had an opportunity to listen to lectures
by prominent authorities in arts and culture. A writer Sasa Ilic
delivered a lecture on “Literature of the Separated Worlds -
Cultural Exchange as Peace-building (Kosovo/Serbia)” addressing the
history of divided societies, cultural and political developments
since early ‘80s until today, the culture and politics of denial,
the avenues for cooperation in arts and culture, especially at the
literary scene, and the importance of cultural exchanges.
“Communication is being created through culture and arts. It is
necessary to show that kind of openness in the communication and to
allow the inflow of information and stories in order to change
ourselves, and through our change we can make changes in societies
we live in,” he said among other things. Culturologist Aleksandra
Đurić Bosnić held a lecture in Novi Sad on „A non-silent culture:
about the deconstruction of ideological codes in closed societies“.
Film director and professor Ismet Sijarina discussed with
participants about art that brings people together at the Faculty of
Dramatic Arts in Prishtina. And, the last but not least, the lecture
given by philosopher, political analyst, and art critic Shkelzen
Maliqi, who spoke about contemporary Kosovo art and about protection
of cultural heritage.
Besides lectures young artists were attending daily workshops held
by sociologist Demir Mekic. During the workshops they teamed up for
creative campaigns to be staged in the period to come. In this way,
the program helps the promotion of young artists from both
societies, who will be working together for breaking prejudices and
stereotypes, and promoting good relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
Besides the campaign, young artists shared their views and
impressions in the essays, which will be also available at our web
page.
We have also visited different cultural institutions and
organizations in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Prishtina, and Prizren. We
toured the Salon of the Museum of Contemporary Art and Centre for
Cultural Decontamination in Belgrade. Participants also visited the
Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade where dean Zoran Popovic
welcomed us and presented the work of the Faculty. In Novi Sad we
were kindly welcomed at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Vojvodina
and Academy of Arts in Novi Sad. While in Prishtina, we visited the
Contemporary Art Center - Stacion, and the Faculty of Dramatic Arts.
Participants enjoyed a theater play at the National Theater in
Prishtina, after which artist Jeton Neziraj talked with young
artists, and shared his views and experiences on the subject of
Serb-Albanian relations in art and culture. At the end, in Prizren
we toured the Museum – Albanian League of Prizren, Ethnographic
Museum, and we had a great talk with Dokufest creators and
organizers.
Furthermore, we enjoyed some of the cultural events in Belgrade and
Prishtina, such as the Free Zone film festival in Belgrade, and many
others.
One of the participants, Dejan Krstić, student of the Faculty of
Fine Arts in Novi Sad speaks about his impressions saying:
“Participation in this program drastically changed my understanding
and acceptance of relations of two different cultures. The whole
concept of exposure to each other, of direct interaction and
discussion about joint ideas, and problems that preoccupied us,
essentially contributed to mutual connecting and understanding of
“the Other” who is on the other side of the border. The experiences
I’ve gained during this seminar through interaction with my colleges
from Kosovo, but also from various lectures which in a very creative
and concrete way influenced the interaction between two cultures,
and also awoken the will for further development and care of the
idea of connecting seemingly two different worlds.
I am very delighted by the flexibility and the accessibility of the
program which gives us the absolute freedom and right to cherish our
acquired knowledge and transfer it into something more through art
colonies and organization of joint projects which take place months
after the seminar. The thing that encourages me the most in
realization of this program is its artistic and creative character
which is present during the all of the activities. Only through
something universal and yet provocative, something that brings
another perspective, may lead to the final change, impression,
tolerance and respect. Art as something that has the power to
connect, educate and does not know boarder of expressing, is ideal
medium for destroying established negative stereotypes and feeling
in society which by themselves required a long time to reach any
kind of change. It is often said: “The young shall inherit the
earth”, and in that sence, I’m glad that we are contributing in
making youth to know better the world that surrounds them, and the
cultures that fulfills it, that with a lot of respect and knowledge
of the past we try and make place for the new, modern ideas and
visions which will, driven by the past experiences, result in
something, simple called, “a better place to live in”.”
Trëndelina Halili, born in Pristina, student of Film and Television
Directing at the Academy of Arts of University in Pristina shared
her thoughts: „The problem of intercultural interaction is usually
made by improper way of interpretation during the delivering of the
massage. Lack of knowledge and information about the culture of “the
Other” may lead us to uncomfortable situations as the consequence of
this problem, and this can lead us on a very dangerous road as well.
That is the problem that is currently occurring between two
countries, Kosovo and Serbia. I think that being familiar with the
culture of “the Other” is the fact that brings fear to people who
build walls, since they want to hide this truth.
I think that this program broke that wall, by bringing these two
societies with different cultures in order to communicate and
cooperate, and that can lead us to more peaceful situation.
Intercultural communication between these two countries was on quite
distance, and that is why I believe that idea of this seminar is
really efficient and important in order to make progress in cultural
integration.
Travelling to Serbia and meeting with young people who were open for
cultural cooperation make all the prejudices, which are made during
the wrong transmission, disappear and that was really emotional part
of this seminar. Visits to the different institutions in Belgrade
and Novi Sad such as Faculty of the Dramatic Arts, galleries,
museums, theaters, festivals, and other, made me to fall in love to
this country with great culture opened for interaction. While the
workshops were the funniest but at same time also the most emotional
part of this seminar, because every participant shared his personal
story, but also we shared new ideas and information about the
culture of our countries. Because of all this I think that now I
have to tell a new story in my life.”
The overall goal of the program is to contribute to renewing old and
create new ties between young people, academic and artistic
community, media and civil society from Belgrade and Prishtina by
promoting intercultural dialogue, reconciliation and normalization
process.
Gallery
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