Dutch students are helping to bridge the divide between Serbian students and their Kosovan peers. Ten years after the war, the groups are still far apart even in the younger generation. “Now and then someone bangs their fists against the wall in anger.”

text and photo by David-Jan Godfroid

There is an unusual gathering at Belgrade restaurant Sesir Moj (My Hat), in a popular street of restaurants and bars: 15 students from Serbia, Kosovo and the Netherlands. Albanian Kosovans are still a rarity in the Serbian capital. Both sides are still affected by the war.
 
The Dutch students are in Belgrade for an IKV/Pax Christi project. The Dutch church organisation has been trying to break down the barriers between the two communities with small-scale projects for several years, says Dutch project coordinator Linda Schevers.
 
“Even though the war and NATO bombings were ten years ago, the wounds are very deep. As a result there is complete segregation, fed by the media and nationalist politicians. Both sides have demonised the other. They are so divided that you actually need a third party to bring the people back together.”
 
Row
The Albanian majority in Kosovo declared independence in February last year; a step which Serbia refuses to recognise and which Belgrade will continue to reject in the foreseeable future. The row over Kosovan independence, which has already been recognised by 60 countries, has generally only made matters worse.
 
But the students in the restaurant are not your average students. The differ from their peers in that they are prepared to step over the ethnic divide.
 
“I think nationalism on both sides is getting stronger because of the immaturity of our politicians,” says second-year political science student at the University of Belgrade, Naim Lio Pesiri. “What is needed is time. Perhaps in five years time, there will be closer cooperation between Kosovo and Serbia. I see a future for the two countries together in the European Union.”
 
Multi-cultural
Fellow student Nertila Qari from Pristina did not need long to think about whether to join the IKV/Pax Christi project. “I like working in multi-cultural projects,” she says, while salads and grilled meats are served in large quantities. She was not afraid to come to Serbia. “Otherwise I would not have come.” But in the past few weeks her friends have wondered what she thinks she is doing in Belgrade.
 
It is just a small group of people in the restaurant. A group of 15 people isn’t going to change the world or even the Balkans. “But it is the little things that make a difference,” continues Nertila Qari. “We cannot convince all Albanese and Serbians in one go to do as we do.”

Emotions
What the Dutch students add to the gathering is not immediately clear. But social sciences student Cor van der Leemputten thinks it is not that strange. As relative outsiders, they can play a mitigating role when emotions get high. And that does happen sometimes, he says, especially in the beginning.

“A hero to one person is a butcher to the other. If someone talks too flippantly about it, the other is affected and that can lead to heated arguments. Sometimes there are tears and other times someone bangs their fists against the wall in anger.”
 
Refreshing
When this happens, the Dutch students can “give quite a refreshing view” on issues of national pride and ethnic sensitivities. Mr van der Leemputten:

“If we say: it is just a flag or an anthem, don’t take it so seriously, that can be quite refreshing.”