Volt Kosova & Switzerland: More than just a cooperation

What is Volt?

Volt is a pan-European movement and political party operating in over 30 countries in Europe. We believe that cooperation between countries is the key to solving the challenges we face today: whether it’s fighting against the climate crisis, protecting the idea of liberal Democracy, or ensuring a fair healthcare system for everyone.

Volt acts on the local, regional, national, and European level.  Each of these levels plays a unique role in our daily lives and this is exactly our strength – being active and organised at every level all over Europe inside and outside the EU - in short:  everywhere where the decisions are made that affect the lives of all citizens of Europe.  With our pan-European approach we aim to build bridges between our societies by fighting discrimination of all sorts, by bringing in best practices from all over Europe and by working towards our long term vision of a Federal Republic of Europe.

Collaborating across borders and communities

Between Switzerland and Kosovo is a special bond. Being one of the first countries to recognise its independence in 2008, Switzerland demonstrated its strong support for the young nation and played a significant role in Kosovo's international standing and its path to European integration. Switzerland has also been involved in peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo and has invested in various sectors of Kosovo such as infrastructure, energy, and agriculture. The Albanian diaspora in Switzerland is one of the biggest in Europe and has played a crucial role in promoting economic ties between the two countries. They often filled labour shortages in various sectors of the Swiss economy, particularly in construction, agriculture, and hospitality. Also by establishing successful businesses in Switzerland they contributed to the Swiss economy creating jobs. 

The Albanian diaspora has been a valuable asset to Switzerland economically but also culturally, bringing in new perspectives, traditions, and customs to the cultural diversity of Switzerland. EAZ, a Swiss-Albanian rapper and singer, has achieved significant success in the Swiss music scene -  to just name one. His song "Juicy" was the first Swiss-German title to climb the charts in Germany in the last 50 years. Also the film industry gained a lot with Swiss-Albanian filmmakers. The yearly Kino Kosova film festival has added a lot to the cultural life in Switzerland building bridges between the two countries by exploring themes of identity, migration and the Albanian experience. And last but not least, also the Swiss Sports industry has gained a lot from Albanian migration. Football players like Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka became indispensable for the Swiss national football team. 

While the Albanian diaspora has made significant contributions to Swiss society, it has also faced various challenges. The conservative part of Switzerland still treats  members of the Albanian diaspora and their descendents as outsiders, with Albanian youth still facing prejudices in their daily lives, ranging from slurs or straight up discrimination in areas such as housing, education, and employment.These discriminatory experiences can lead to feelings of not belonging and alienation for some members of the diaspora, as balancing Albanian and Swiss identities can be a challenge for some. Others have successfully integrated into Swiss society and overcome these difficulties.

Addressing these issues is one integral part of the collaboration of Volt Kosova and Volt Switzerland: Volt strives for inclusion and equality across all of Europe, which is why we want to bring awareness to this situation. Apart from the change of mind that needs to happen in Swiss heads, we also want for example to modernise the naturalisation process. This is why we are supporting the Democracy Initiative that aims to unify and lower the very high requirements for obtaining Swiss citizenship. Another aspect of our collaboration consists of bringing the Albanian diaspora closer to their country of origin by connecting our cause on a pan-European level. 

A shared goal of closer European integration

While Kosovo and Switzerland are both not in the EU, they are still integral parts of Europe, sharing a common cultural heritage and common history. While there are still a lot of differences in our respective relations with the rest of Europe, Volt Kosovo and Volt Switzerland both share the same goal of a closer European integration for their countries.

Switzerland, on one hand, already has strong ties to the EU and has greatly profited from it. But there are still a lot of policy areas where Switzerland needs even closer collaboration. A common energy supply system, for example, has become more important than ever, since the Russian aggression against Ukraine has started.  Also, the European educational programme Erasmus+ as well as the research programme Horizon2020 are indispensable for Swiss educational and research institutions. On top of that, the Swiss-EU relations are under constant attack by the isolationist forces that have dominated the discourse for the last 30 years in the country. This is why Switzerland is in dire need of a clearly pro-European stronghold. Volt Switzerland aims to become this stronghold, which is why we launched the Europe Initiative in April 2024 as part of the Europe Alliance, aiming for the relations to Europe to be added to the constitution.

Kosovo, on the other hand, is the youngest state on the continent and is surrounded by EU accession candidates. While Kosovo itself has also applied for an EU-membership before,  it has not received the official accession candidate status so far. Starting this year, Kosovar citizens can now travel freely without requiring a Visa into the Schengen Area, which has been a great success for the rights of Kosovars. It is obvious that only the European integration of Kosovo and the rest of the Balkan countries can guarantee long-term freedom, security and prosperity to the region. But also from the perspective of the EU it is crucial to bring home the countries of the West Balkan and therefore stabilising the EU’s front yard. Through Volt Kosova, we aim to bring Kosovo closer to its political and economic European integration, to support reforms that improve the lives of Kosovar citizens in the country and abroad and to create opportunities for young people in Kosovo by building a strong economy and a clean environment for future generations, so that they actually feel that they are a part of the continent.

Stay tuned for more

Being part of one and the same political party, Volt Switzerland and Volt Kosova naturally share the same values and structures. The explicit collaboration between the two Volt chapters makes sure that these common values and political goals of Volt are achieved by actively promoting the strong ties between the two countries and by raising awareness of the chances and challenges the Albanian community faces in Switzerland.

Together we are organising a flyering action to raise awareness of this collaboration at the Kino Kosova film festival that takes place in Bern from the 11th to 15th of September. We create collaborative posts on social media and organise an event for the international migration day, addressing the several issues faced by the Albanian diaspora as well as Kosovo itself.

What can you do?

We believe that each of us can make a difference. If you share Volt’s values, join us! You can contribute from Switzerland, Kosovo or wherever you are, either locally by being an active member of our pan-European community in your country of residence or through online involvement, by helping us with our campaigns and projects. You can follow us on social media and spread our content or become an active member and produce some content yourself for us. We are working on different policies in Kosovo and Switzerland. For more, check out our websites and connect with us on social media or in one of our local events. The future of a united Europe, where Kosovo and Switzerland are actively involved is in our hands. Together, we can make this future come true

Sources

Bilateral relations Switzerland–Kosovo; eda.admin.ch
Kosovo and Switzerland: an intense relationship; swissinfo.ch
EAZ - Juicy; Youtube.com
Kosovo in Switzerland, Switzerland in Kosovo; swissinfo.ch