Skopje, 22 November 2024 (MIA) - Professors Avzi Mustafa and Afrim Osmani were presented the 2024 "November 22" award in Parliament on Friday. The award recognizes the achievements of individuals who contributed to advancing coexistence and mutual understanding among members of different communities, cultures and religions in the country.

Professor Avzi Mustafa said that this recognition is very significant to him, but also affects him emotionally, because it is presented on Albanian Alphabet Day. He expressed concern about the insufficient protection of mother tongues.

"This is not my first award, but it is very significant and affects me emotionally, because it is presented on the day when the Albanian alphabet was adopted. What I'm seeing and observing regarding the languages today is that we all need to be concerned about the way we preserve our native languages. I can say that there is no mother tongue anymore, but we have a first, second, third language," Mustafa noted.

According to him, it is precisely this situation that should trigger a linguistic "urgency" in the actions that need to be undertaken in the future to protect the mother tongue.

Professor Afrim Osmani said it was both a privilege and responsibility to be the recipient of the "November 22" award.

"It is an honor and a pleasure to be the winner of the November 22 award, which is dedicated to the celebration of Albanian Alphabet Day. Indeed, as much as it is a privilege it is also a responsibility, and my motivation and incentive to continue with my scholarly and research activities, especially in the field of law, but also in the field in which I am active, which is ecology, or the environment,” Osmani said.

According to him, the state invests poorly in scholarly activities, citing as reason the low attendance of international conferences by scholars due to insufficient state funding. ssh/nn/

Photo: MIA