Martin Berishaj

Martin_Berishaj

After I finished primary school and secondary school in the city of Tuzi in Montenegro I applied for studies at the Faculty of Social Sciences in Ljubljana, Slovenia. I finished studies with honours in 1984. My diploma work titled International importance of Prizren league was published as a book. After that I got my Master’s and Doctor’s degree on Faculty of arts in Ljubljana. During my studies I did expert and research advanced study at »Instituti i kultures popullore« in Tirana, Albania on the field of Albanian customary law. My experience on this field was published together with my doctoral dissertation in a book titled »Skrita moč Bese« (translation Hidden power of Besa). Until now I published five monographs and a lot of expert articles.

From the year 1989 I cooperated in the development of cultural policies and inclusion of Albanians into Slovenian cultural and political area. I was president of the first Albanian political party in Slovenia – »Demokratična Zveza Kosova« (translation Democratic Union of Kosovo) that also took part in the Slovenian parliamentary elections in the year 1990. From the year 2001 I am also the main and responsible editor of the newspaper »Alternativa«, which is published in Albanian, Slovenian and English language.

After I got my Doctor’s degree I also made expert and research advanced study at Institute for ethnic studies in Ljubljana on the theme minority problematic. Between 2002 and 2003 I worked for NAAC in Washington on the theme international diplomacy and intercultural dialogue in Southeast Europe. In 2003 with the cooperation with Albanian Civic League I did another expert and advanced scientific study on Princeton University on the theme border and ethnic issues.

From the year 2003 I’m head of Institute for Albanian studies in Ljubljana and from the year 2005 of campus »Victory« in Pristine in Kosovo, where I’m on the position of a dean of the Faculty for foreign politics and diplomacy. I lecture in various foreign and national universities and am a member of international associations of sociologists, anthropologists and political scientists.

In all these years I’ve been actively involved in intercultural dialogue in which I strived to help establish ways and opening new horizons for marginal groups and to help creating a better and kinder social and cultural space.