Polyparty-ism - Search for Common Ground

56
The overall atmosphere, which
prevailed in the state, could easily
be illustrated with the atmosphere
within the faculty, usually with
greater or lesser ethnic mix. At first
glance, everything seems alright,
things are like they used to be. But
on the other hand, in March and
June 2001, for example the
amphitheatre or the buffet were
very different from how they were
in March and June of some other
years. Needless to hide things, Now
it's not necessary to hide things.
More than ever before we can feel
and notice the old unwritten rule
"everybody with his own folks."
Although not every conversation or
discussion is related to the situation,
the topic is mentioned when
the circle of conversation is "clean"
as long as surreptitiously everyone
can assume each other's ethnic
background. This does not mean
that friendships, which really existed,
disappeared at once. It seems
that they have been put on hold.
Even in the past politics used to
be one of the least favoured topics,
so it was rarely possible to find
Albanian and Macedonian students
in political discussions. Now it
seems this has gone by the wayside
and has become a difficult barrier to
overcome, which limits friendships
to a simple "What's up?", "How
have you been?" or "When is the
exam?" There are certainly some
exceptions but they represent nothing
but a drop in the ocean. On the
other hand, sparring aimed at others
has experienced a real "renaissance."
There are indeed some even
more extreme cases. If you are
lucky, you can hear straight from
the lips of academics warm words
such as "I can no longer stay here
where there are Shiptari.
Fortunately, these comments are
rare.
On the other hand, now there
seems to be an extra excuse for failing
at exams. Although, quite
frankly, even in the past one of the
excuses was, "I failed the exam just
because I am Albanian." Whereas
now the excuses are somewhat richer,
"He was nervous as a result of
recent events, so he failed the
exam." Realistically speaking, it's
impossible to derive precise conclusions
from this, because only the
student and the professor know the
truth, and they are not always 100
per cent unbiased. There are certainly
cases which contradict this
rule. Thus, it must be said that, in
the heat of the crisis, there were
Albanian students, albeit few, who
passed exams given by the most
problematic professors. Therefore,
the assessment of this always
remains subjective and it will stay
that way, while the saying "where
there is a smoke, there is fire" continues
to apply.
When talking about exams, students
now long for their old studying
conditions, regardless of what
those conditions were like. Now it
has become natural to keep your
head under the book, for planes to
fly overhead, to hear detonation
from the battlefield in the vicinity
of the city or to set up your studying
schedule in accordance with the
nightly news. Depending on where
you live, it could well be that you
have no good studying conditions.
For months now students from
Tetovo and Kumanovo regions
couldn't attend lectures, or even sit
for exams. Although additional sessions
for these students have been
announced, nothing has been done
so far about it. Yet it is often said
that the youth, including students,
represent the most vital segment of
a nation. That's what they say and it
is not far from the truth. The youth
are more optimistic. No matter how
well we adjusted to the omnipresent
atmosphere of greyness, deep down
there was the hope that "it will get
better." It seems as if the August 13
agreement changed many things, as
if to confirm this saying. Although,
it did so in an unnoticeable way.
Leaving aside political calculations,
realistically speaking, students
gained a lot from it. First of
all, and this is applicable to everybody,
it secures a long-term peace
which is something that everybody
desires. In addition, more solid
foundations are laid for the future
in which we will all live.
Furthermore, new opportunities are
appearing. For example, higher
education in the mother tongue for
everybody. Again, regardless of
political colours, a real competition,
a unique competition among
several universities, among different
students, could bring about positive
things. Gates of knowledge are
opening wider for the student-especially
the Albanian student-of
today, On the other hand, if there is
an equal start for everybody, results
will depend on personal abilities
and skills, and not on ethnic background.
Lastly, competition represents a
basic principal of a market economy,
which we all strive to achieve.
This market economy, transferred
into education, does not recognize
Albanians and Macedonians, it recognizes
only successful and unsuccessful
individuals. Therefore, we
really need to finally "work, work,
day and night, to see a bit of light,"
because "the world represents a
field for cultural competition among
different nations," doesn't it?
(The author is a student at
the Economics Faculty)
Youth and crisis, October 2001