Preshëva-Bujanoc-Medvegja Valley Islamic Community Accuses "Mufti" Tërnava of Despotism

Preshëva and Its Valley -- Photograph 2008 Via Wikimedia Commons.

Preshëva, 29 August – The Islamic Community of Preshëva, Bujanoc and Medvegja (BIPBM), with its leader Necmettin efendi Saqipi, has appealed to the authorities of the Islamic Community of Kosova [BIK] to reduce emotions, avoid rancor and abandon hateful speech, thereby solving problems accumulated over the years in the high religious institution.

The honorable Islamic cleric Necmettin efendi Saqipi of Preshëva -- Photograph Via Koha Ditore.

BIK has become a significant problem which must be solved, not as "Mufti" Tërnava preaches, but by dialogue based on an institutional professionalism.

"No problem is ended with violence, conflict and discord. The language of defamation, denigration, intimidation, etc. does not contribute to the resolution of the situation created in the BIK. The leaders of this institution do not solve old problems, but create new problems, such as removal of their President, the change in their Constitution and other conflicts, which began on the eve of new elections in this institution," Mr. Saqipi said to the web portal Jehona Islame [Islamic Echo].

Albanian patriotic demonstration in Kosova, January 26, 2013, in solidarity with Preshëva-Bujanoc-Medvegja, called by the Lëvizja Vetëvendosje! [Self-Determination! Movement -- LVV], the main opposition party in the Assembly of Kosova -- Photograph Courtesy of LVV.

BIK, rather than working through the electoral process and changing its status commensurate with the independence of Kosova, acts illegally, interfering with the [Muslim] religious organization in the Preshëva Valley, without consulting its delegates, and often inspires and spreads disruption and intimidation in the region and beyond.

Contemporary mosque near Preshëva -- Photograph 2010 Via Wikimedia Commons.

BIPMB leaders appealed to the BIK to act in the spirit of understanding, tolerance, cooperation and reform in the institution. There is no other alternative, Necmettin efendi Saqipi told the portal.

We Are One.

[CIP Note: The Preshëva-Bujanoc-Medvegja Valley, an Albanian-majority area occupied by Serbia, and usually described as "Eastern Kosova," is a center of Albanian national sentiment. For information on Lëvizja Vetëvendosje (LVV) please see http://www.islamicpluralism.org/242/the-uns-kosovo-exit-strategy and other reports on this site under the heading "Articles" and the subhead "Kosovo."]

Related Topics: Albanian Muslims, Balkan Muslims, European Muslims, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Muslim Brotherhood, Wahhabism receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free center for islamic pluralism mailing list

Note: The content of external articles does not necessarily reflect the views of Center for Islamic Pluralism.