Motherland, do not hollow out days of youth
With those protests
With that land in flame
With those battles of glory…
Dr. Dashnim Hebibi, a renowned poet from Presevo and based in Switzerland, shares his poetry
Dr. Dashnim Hebibi, a doctor of political science, journalist, poet, moderator, and publicist from Presevo, was born on June 12, 1976, in Vranje, a city that was once populated by Albanians, located just a few kilometers from Presevo, near the Red Apple Province. As a young man, he began writing about these regions, including Presevo, Medvedja, and Bujanoc. After completing primary and secondary school in Presevo, he immediately pursued higher education.
Dashnim Hebibi completed several postgraduate studies, including the Diplomatic Academy and Crisis Management in Tirana. In 2011, he earned a Master’s degree in Diplomacy from the South East European University in Tetovo. He also graduated from the International Academy of Criminalistics with the renowned Avi Bleier in Tel Aviv, Israel. He worked for several years as the editor of the diaspora section in the daily newspaper “Bota Sot,” in the Zurich editorial office; he worked as a correspondent for the Macedonian Television, Albanian language editorial office, for three years from Switzerland.
He has edited and reviewed many works, always as a freelance journalist. Until February 2010, he was the director of the “Albanian Media Center” (the only media center in the diaspora), as the editor of the News Agency “Kosova e Re,” serving as an informative window for the Albanian diaspora.
Dashnim has conducted many interviews with various political figures, both from the homeland and internationally. Among the foreign personalities, he has interviewed: Wesley Clark, Eliot Engel, Calmy Rey, the President of Croatia Mrs. Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, Milan Bandić, the mayor of Zagreb, and many other prominent figures.
Dashnim Hebibi has received many acknowledgments in the diaspora for his significant contributions to the integration of the Albanian community. He has participated in various events related to the homeland, whether in the political, cultural, sporting, or social spheres.
A journalist with extensive experience in almost all fields of journalism, an editor, and a chief editor. A knowledgeable expert on the circumstances of Southeastern Europe. He is a Swiss citizen and is working on several projects, aware that the Albanian community in Switzerland is steadily growing. According to our sources, over 400,000 Albanians live and work in Switzerland. The Albanian language is present in many institutions across Switzerland. He is also well-acquainted with the mentality of the diaspora in Switzerland, given that Dashnim Hebibi has a PhD in political science with a thesis on the Albanian diaspora. A life dedicated to journalism.
He writes journalism, comments on various events, and does not rush into analysis and approaches, but when they are read, it is clear that they are based on thorough research. He published the Diaspora newspaper ‘AMC Press’, ‘Kosova e Re’ across the Albanian diaspora, but due to financial reasons, he had to stop it. He has also written several patriotic songs for well-known singers like Arif Vladi, etc. He has also collaborated with TV Diaspora-RTK for the Swiss edition. He was also a correspondent for TVM, the Albanian-language editorial office, during the war in Macedonia, where Mr. Hebibi had daily reports from the Albanian diaspora.
Being a freelance journalist, he has written for the daily newspapers ‘Zëri’ and ‘Illyria’ in the USA. Furthermore, he has organized numerous entertainment and sports evenings in the diaspora, moderating them with great professional modesty.
Mr. Hebibi was also the designer of the first Albanian library in Switzerland, specifically in Zurich in 2002. Dashnim has also participated in many initiatives for the benefit of the Albanian diaspora in Switzerland and has received numerous acknowledgments from associations operating throughout our diaspora, such as from LAPSH in Switzerland and Germany.
He has worked as a teacher at the supplementary Albanian school in Switzerland, specifically in three classes in the Aargau Canton. In April 2011, Dashnim Hebibi was nominated as “AMBASSADOR FOR PEACE” by the UPF (Universal Peace Federation), an organization with special status in the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (UN). From 2013 until the end of 2015, he was part of the media project ‘Dialog Plus’ with an editorial office in Zurich.
He also worked as the deputy editor-in-chief of the monthly magazine “Plisi,” which was published in Switzerland. He has spent no less than over two decades in this profession. His writings are published in many media outlets in both the homeland and the diaspora. Currently, he is the Director of the Helvetic Scientific Institute for Southeastern Europe, based in Switzerland.
On March 24, 2023, he successfully completed the third cycle of doctoral studies at the Faculty of Contemporary Social Sciences, Program in Political Science at the South East European University (SEEU) in North Macedonia. He has also published several scientific papers in various academic journals.
He lives and works in Switzerland. He is deeply committed to his noble profession in journalism, covering various fields such as politics, culture, and even sports.
His written projects are expected to be realized here in Switzerland one day, because as Dashnim Hebibi himself says, “In the diaspora, we have a complete Albania or Kosovo.” Integration, work, respect, and peace are the alpha and omega for Dashnim. Since November 1, 2024, Dr. Hebibi has launched the media project www.helveticALforum.ch, which has been warmly welcomed by the Albanian diaspora based in Zurich, Switzerland. He has published many books in various genres.
MOTHERLAND
MOTHERLANDMotherland, do not hollow out days of youth
With those protests
With that land in flame
With those battles of glory
My lips become dry
Whenever I call you, Motherland
A gram of nostalgia equal to an aristocrat
In Europe Motherland,
I pulled out the teeth of darkness
I was afraid it would bite us in freedom, too.
(Tiranë, January 2008)
***
Sadness by betrayal thunder
Sadness by slyness with a price
Sadness by blood sipping
Sadness by stealing the given word
Sadness everywhere
***
Wrong are those who say
This is not Medieval Age
Evening threats this way
With its thick darkness
Just like in old tales
The bloodiest ones
***
When I am no longer among you
Do not commemorate me in tears
Neither in dirge
But in memory of my deeds.
________________
Coordinated by Angela Kosta Executive Director of MIRIADE Magazine, Academic, journalist, writer, poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, translator, promoter
