Written and edited by Ekrem H. Krasniqi, @E_H_Krasniqi ,
Skopje, 12 October 2026, dtt-net.com – The prominent student of law and leader of Albanian protesting students in North Macedonia who are banned as others of other faculties in the EU candidate country of other future professions from taking state-sponsored exams for professional licences before entering into the job market, today once more raised his voice over ongoing ban on Albanian students to take the exam in mother tongue.
On Monday Mevlan Ademi showed in social media a sign table at the border crossing at Italian Rimini port, written in Albanian language too for non-EU citizens entering Schengen area through Italy.
“Always show your residence permit together with your passport” reads the text, in Albanian language too, at border control point at Rimini, which caught the eye of Ademi from .
“Why does Rimini offer the Albanian sign to a traveller, while Skopje denies this earned right to its citizen? Because Rimini without a complex offers hospitality and does business with Albanians. Skopje is making politics with them. Italy writes Albanian from hospitality, without forcing anyone. In Northern Macedonia, the Constitution itself demands it, and we are still waiting…,” Ademi reacted through Facebook.
The sign translates from Italian to “Border Control” (Controllo di Frontiera) and explicitly instructs non-EU residents to “Always show your residence permit together with your passport” (Esibire sempre il permesso di soggiorno con il proprio passaporto).
Because of the high volume of specific regional travellers passing through Italian entry points, the instruction is repeated below in three other languages, marked by their national flags: 🇬🇧 English; 🇷🇴 Romanian and 🇦🇱 Albanian
In early August ethnic Albanian students led by Mevlani handed over a written request to the new (Albanian) Minister of Justice, reiterating their calls to take bar and other state professional exams in their native language, which was refused by the previous (Macedonian) minister.
“Today, on behalf of the Student Parliament of the South-East European University, I submitted to the new Minister of Justice the request for the development of the Bar Exam and other professional exams in the Albanian language as well,” Besjan Rexhepi of the Students Union said in a press release on August 7th.
The request was sent to the Minister Jeton Shasivari, who took over in June from Macedonian minister of ZNAM party Igor Filkov, after a wider government reshuffle.
Filkov had refused the call of students, which had prompted street protests of thousands in capital Skopje in April and May. Supportive protests were held in Tirana and Prishtina too.
Following the tensions, the government of the Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski came up with a new proposal, offering the bar exam for Albanian students to be taken in both, Albanian and Macedonian languages, which Albanian students reject arguing that the offer is in breach of the law on languages.
Shasivari was member of the team hired by the government which proposed a draft-law for exams to be taken in both languages. Students insist that they should be allowed to take the bar exam only in Albanian language as they did the studies in the mother language too.
Ademi explained that the request of August to Shasivari was handed over for all other state exams, including of notary, and bailiff, which he said “contrary to the Law on the Use of Languages, continue to be organized only in Macedonian.”
“Albanian students should not be discriminated against. They should have equal opportunities to be educated, certified and to practice their profession in their own country. Institutions have an obligation to enforce the law, to serve the citizens and to respect the language of a state-forming people. Albanian language is not a privilege. It is a right guaranteed by law and an undeniable reality of this state,” Ademi said in a press release in early August.
But it’s October already and Mevlani and his fellow students are still waiting to hear from Shasivari of VLEN coalition of Albanian parties, the junior member of governing coalition of Mickoski.
Mevlani is student at South East European University (SEEU). He was elected as the President of the Student Parliament and Association (SPA) in December 2023.
He continues to push for systemic institutional changes regarding minority languages beyond the state exams ban, and has expanded his criticism toward the government over the lack of full implementation of bilingual [Macedonian/Albanian] road signs in capital town of Skopje and beyond.
