Rexhep Selim’s grandson in protest: We didn’t just inherit a state, we inherited a trust
tidings
Express Newspaper
22/09/2026 23:02
The “Not in my name” protest continued tonight in “Skënderbeu” Square in Prishtina, for the seventh night in a row, against the decision of the Specialized Chambers in The Hague against the former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army.
Among the speakers of the evening was the student of the “Ahmet Gashi” high school, Gentian Selimi, the grandson of the former head of the KLA, Rexhep Selimi. He said that, although he did not experience the war, his generation has the responsibility to preserve the memory of the sacrifice that brought Kosovo’s freedom.
“My name is Gentian Selimi. Today, I stand in front of you as a student of the ‘Ahmet Gashi’ high school, as a young man who has not experienced the war. I was not there when our country was burning. I was not there when families were left from their homes by violence. I was not there when young boys and girls decided to devote their lives to the service of freedom. But today, I am here precisely because of this sacrifice,” said Selimi.
He has stated that the freedom in which he grew up is the result of the sacrifice of a generation before him.
“I grew up in freedom. I have the opportunity to dream, get educated, plan the future and call Kosovo my country, only because a generation before us, without discussion, sacrificed everything for freedom. Therefore, we, the generation that did not experience the war, do not dare to become the generation that forgets it”, he said.
Selimi said that the participants of the protest have gathered to demand justice for the former leaders of the KLA.
“Today we have come to demand justice for Hashim Thaci, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniq and Rexhep Selim! We are here because we have our voice and we have the right to emphasize what we believe. And this call today says: Not in my name! Not in my name!”, he declared.
He then listed the issues about which, according to him, the young generation does not want to be silent.
“Not in my name to forget the price that this people paid for freedom! Not in my name to forget the thousands of families who lost their loved ones! Not in my name to forget the missing for whom the families are still waiting for an answer! Not in my name to forget the testimony of the nation that did not find it easy to see Kosovo free! We have not come here for hatred, we have come for memory. We have come to demand equal justice for everyone. Because justice must to serve the truth”, said Selimi.
He has shown that the memory of the war, according to him, is also built through memorials, songs and stories of the generations who experienced that period.
“I have not experienced the war, but every time I pass by the memorials, I see the names of the KLA, I hear the songs dedicated to the martyrs and freedom, I hear the stories from this generation and I hear the story of how Kosovo was liberated with endurance, I understand that my freedom has had a price. The songs that are sung for the martyrs, for bravery and for Kosovo, are not just a melody. They are a memory, with honor and pride. They convey to us the voice of a the generation that fought and sacrificed for our freedom”, he said.
Selimi said that even the places and traces of the war are part of the history that must be preserved.
“Those mountains, those roads, those burned houses, those graves, those songs, those memorials are part of our history. They remind us that freedom did not come easily and behind it are great sacrifices,” he said.
In the end, Selimi called for his generation to see the preservation of memory and the construction of Kosovo as a responsibility.
“That’s why today I don’t want to speak only in my name, I want to speak for my generation, for those of us who know the war only from history, songs and stories, but who have an obligation not to let history be forgotten. Because we didn’t just inherit a state, we inherited a trust: to love this country, to become lord of this country, just as those who fought and sacrificed for freedom became lord of the homeland. Let’s build this country with knowledge, work and responsibility. To preserve the freedom and peace for which blood was shed, to remember those who were sacrificed, and when we believe that injustice has been done, to have the courage to raise our voices”, stated Selimi.
He closed the speech by repeating the protest call.
“Therefore today, for the fallen, for the missing, for their families, for the veterans and invalids of the war, for all those who sacrificed and for the generations that will come after, we emphasize: Not in my name! Not in my name!”, added Selimi.
