Today marks 16 years since the adoption of the Kosovo national anthem.

The proposal with the code “Europe” was approved on June 11, 2008, in a special session as the national anthem with 72 votes in favor, 15 against, and 5 abstentions.

When the melody by composer Mendi Mengjiqi was proposed, the anthem also had written lyrics, but due to restrictions imposed by the package of measures from former President Martti Ahtisaari, the selection committee was forced to remove the text.

Selecting the text for the national anthem would have been a difficult task because the majority of the population in Kosovo are Albanians. Serbs are the second largest ethnic group. The government emphasized that no ethnic group should be discriminated against, declaring the state a “democratic, secular, and multiethnic republic,” making it difficult to find a text that would not favor one ethnic group over another.

Similar issues arose during the selection of Kosovo’s flag. Furthermore, the rules also state that the proposal “Must not resemble any anthem or folk song of any country, or the anthem of any political party, movement, or institution of the Republic of Kosovo, or imply allegiance to any ethnic community of the Republic of Kosovo.”

/k.s/