15 settembre 2016

BBC reportazh për Shqipërinë: Ja çfarë mund të na mësojë ky vend i vogël për besën!

screenshot_1TIRANE, 15 Shtator/ATSH/- Në një kohë kur refugjatët po mbushin kufinjtë në të gjithë botën, duket se kemi shumë për të mësuar nga virtyti i mikëpritjes shqiptare.
Kështu e nis agjencia angleze e lajmeve BBC një artikull kushtuar Shqipërisë dhe virtyteve të saj.
“Në të gjithë vendin ndërtuan kampe refugjatësh për të mbrojtur kosovarët që ishin në luftë me Serbinë. Familjet shqiptare ndërtonin një kamp, gjenin një familje kosovare dhe e strehonin aty. Nuk ishin as miq e as të afërm, ishin të huaj, megjithatë shqiptarët i strehonin dhe në shtëpitë e tyre, i ushqenin, u jepnin dhe rroba, i trajtonin ata sikur të ishin pjesë e familjes”.
Duke pritur një makiato në një kafene të vogël në Berat, qytetin e famshëm të 1001 dritareve, dëgjova se si një vajzë me emrin Nevila Muka kujtonte impaktin që kishte Lufta e Kosovës në vendin e saj. Për t’ju larguar vdekjes dhe shkatërrimit të forcave ushtarake serbe në vitet ’90, më shumë se 500 mijë refugjatë u larguan nga Kosova për t’u vendosur përkohësisht në Shqipëri në një hark kohor prej dy vitesh. Shpejt mësova se Muka jo vetëm që e kishte parë eksodin nga larg por dhe e kishte përjetuar.
“Gjyshja ime u fut në një familje, unë isha e vogël dhe mbaj mend që luaja me fëmijët e tyre shumë. Mbaj mend që ishin bukëpjekës shumë të mirë, buka më e mirë që kam shijuar”.
D68F73 Europe, Albania, Gjirokaster, Unesco World Heritage Site. Image shot 10/2012. Exact date unknown.
D68F73 Europe, Albania, Gjirokaster, Unesco World Heritage Site. Image shot 10/2012. Exact date unknown.
A ishte e vështirë për ju? – pyeta unë.
“Ne patëm fatin e mirë që gjetëm familje shpejt. Por për shumë familje të tjera nuk kishin para të mikprisnin kosovarët në shtëpi. Ishin shumë të varfër. Megjithatë ata hynin në borxhe, por kurrë nuk na kthenin mbrapsht”.
Kur e pyeta përse, ajo me një të qeshur tha: “Kështu e kanë shqiptarët, është besa e tyre”
E kisha dëgjuar fjalën besa edhe më parë por mendoja se kishte lidhje me besimin apo fenë, por në këtë kontekst nuk e kisha dëgjuar kurrë. Muka më shpjegoi se ishte një si farë kodi i shqiptarëve, dikush që të hap derën në shenjë mikpritjeje. Nëse dikush të kërkon ndihmë, ti i hap dyert e shtëpisë.
Pas kësaj doja të mësoja më shumë për besën e shqiptarit dhe u takova me një student shqiptar i cili më tha se kjo ishte një traditë që njihej prej shekujsh që nga koha e Kanunit të Lek Dukagjinit, një libër me ligje për fiset e veriut të Shqipërisë në shekullin e 15.
F1CC7M Kol Gjoni guesthouse, Grykat e Harpura, Valbona Valley National Park, Accursed Mountains, Albania, Balkans, Europe
F1CC7M Kol Gjoni guesthouse, Grykat e Harpura, Valbona Valley National Park, Accursed Mountains, Albania, Balkans, Europe
Aty mësova një proverbë që shkruhej në Kanun: ‘Shpija para se me qenë e Shqiptarit, asht e Zotit dhe e mikut’. Sipas tyre duhet të ishte gjithnjë i përgatitur për të pasur një krevat bosh natën ose ditën. Kur e pyeta nëse ishte ndonjëfarë detyrimi ai më tha: Në fakt shumicës së shqiptarëve i pëlqen të presin miq. Është një lloj krenarie për ta. Nuk ke pse kërkon hotel mjafton të trokasësh në shtëpinë e dikujt dhe të fton brenda.
Edhe pse disa aspekte të besës kanë humbur me kalimin e kohës, ndjenja e mikëpritjes vazhdon të mbetet tek njerëzit shqiptarë.
Përveç luftës së Kosovës, pak e dinë se Shqipëria ishte i vetmi vend që priti numrin më të madh të hebrejve gjatë fundit  të Luftës së Dytë Botërore. Pavarësisht presionit të fashistëve italianë dhe nazistëve gjermanë, shqiptarët refuzuan të spiunonin të ftuarit e tyre..


“There were refugee camps set up for the Kosovars all over the country. Albanian families would go to a camp, find a family and then take them home. These weren’t relatives or friends, they were strangers, but the Albanians would take them in, feed them, clothe them, treat them as if they were part of the family.”
Nursing a macchiato in a small cafe in Berat, Albania’s famed city of 1,001 windows, I listened as Nevila Muka remembered the effects the Kosovo War had on her home country. In order to escape the death and devastation brought by Serbian military forces in the 1990s, more than 500,000 refugees fled from Kosovo to seek sanctuary in Albania over the course of just two years. I quickly learned that Muka hadn’t just observed the mass exodus from a distance.
Albania has generosity in its blood (Credit: Credit: Christian Kober 1/Alamy)
Albania has generosity in its blood (Credit: Christian Kober 1/Alamy)
“My grandmother actually took in a family. I was young, so I remember playing with their kids a lot. I remember they were really good bakers, they made the best bread I’ve ever tasted.”
“Didn’t that ever get difficult?” I asked.
It’s the Albanian way. It’s besa.
“Not really for us, we were okay. But for many families it was a struggle, a lot of them didn’t have the money to support the Kosovars. Many people went into debt doing it, but they would never turn anyone away.”
When I asked her why, she shrugged.
“It’s the Albanian way. It’s besa.”
Albania has offered refugees a safe haven over the years (Credit: Credit: Brian Atkinson/Alamy)
Albania has offered refugees a safe haven over the years (Credit: Brian Atkinson/Alamy)
I had heard the word besa before, and knew that it meant something akin to belief, trust or faith, but I hadn’t heard it in this context before. Muka explained that it’s like a code for Albanians, one that dictates their generous hospitality. If someone comes to you looking for help, you give them a place to stay. It’s that simple.
After our discussion, I was fascinated by the concept of besa and wanted to learn more, so I contacted Orgest Beqiri, an Albanian university student and history buff I had met during my time in the country. I knew that if anyone knew more detail about besa, it would be him.
When we met, he explained that the tradition has been passed down for centuries as part of the Kanun of Lekë Dukagjini, a set of customary laws created in the 15th Century to govern the tribes of northern Albania. Though the Kanun is often considered to be the original source of besa, many argue that the tradition is in fact even older and that the Kanun merely put words to the tribal traditions that had existed long before.
Travellers could knock on a door and ask for refuge (Credit: Credit: Peter Eastland/Alamy)
Travellers could knock on a door and ask for refuge (Credit: Peter Eastland/Alamy)
 
“There’s an old proverb written in the Kanun,” he said. “‘Shpija para se me qenë e Shqiptarit, asht e Zotit dhe e mikut’, which means ‘Before the house belongs to the owner, it first belongs to God and the guest.’ It’s a strong tradition, and in the older times, if you were a traveller or seeking refuge, you could knock on the door of the first house you found and ask ‘Head of the house, do you want guests?’ and the owner would have to take you in. The Kanun says that the master of the house should always have a spare bed ready at any time of day or night, in case a guest arrives unexpectedly.”
“So it was a duty, then?” I asked him. “Even if you didn’t want to host someone, you were bound by besa to do it?”
“Not exactly. Yes it’s a duty, but honestly most Albanians really enjoy hosting guests. It’s a point of pride for them. In fact, there’s an old story about a town in the north somewhere that rebelled when a hotel was going to be built there. All the people went to the town hall and complained, saying people who needed a place to stay could just come and knock on their doors.”
The master of the house should always have a spare bed (Credit: Credit: Henry Wismayer/Alamy)
The master of the house should always have a spare bed (Credit: Henry Wismayer/Alamy)
 
Although some of the more rigid aspects of besa have lost their hold over the passing of time, this general sense of duty and hospitality has endured in the Albanian people. Even though the Kosovo War was certainly the largest crisis that the country has ever had to deal with, it was neither the first nor the last.
Little known to most, Albania was the only European country to emerge with a larger Jewish population by the end of WWII than at the start, saving nearly all of its original Jews while offering refuge to more than 2,000 others from surrounding countries. Despite pressure from Italian fascists and occupying Nazi soldiers, Albanians refused to yield their guests, as doing so would not only result in great shame but would bind the master of the house to  “clean the blood”, meaning to take vengeance.
An ancient code dictates Albania's generous hospitality (Credit: Credit: Ian Bottle/Alamy)
An ancient code dictates Albania's generous hospitality (Credit: Ian Bottle/Alamy)
More recently, Albania has again found itself offering besa, this time to those travelling from the Middle East. Hundreds of Iranian refugees are currently residing within the country, having been displaced from their war-torn homes. Syrian refugees have also been offered sanctuary; prime minister Edi Rama said in an interview that the 500,000 Kosovar refugees harboured by Albania was evidence that the entirety of the EU could certainly be doing more to bear the burden.
Despite all these heroic instances, unassuming Albania remains unrecognized for its great services to the huddled masses of the world. The truth remains that this Balkan nation is small and poor, and as such it hardly receives international attention for its exploits. Yet at a time when refugees are being turned away at borders all over the world, it seems that there is a lot to learn from Albania’s penchant for hospitality. 
I later shared this sentiment with Muka, long after our first discussion about the Kosovars that her family took in.
The ancient hospitality code of besa is the Albanian way (Credit: Credit: Chad Case/Alamy)
The ancient hospitality code of besa is the Albanian way (Credit: Chad Case/Alamy)
“It’s a shame most of it’s unknown. Albania is so under the radar that most of these things happened without anyone giving a second glance,” I said.
She smiled knowingly, nodding her head.
“Yes, but now you know, and that’s something. You can start telling others. Maybe one day the rest of the world will know about it, too.”
/a.g
https://www.ata.gov.al/bbc-reportazh-per-shqiperine-ja-cfare-mund-te-na-mesoje-ky-vend-i-vogel-per-besen/

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