Muhaxhiri: Insufficient education of young people fuels radicalism in Kosovo, populism even more dangerous

Analyst from Pristina, Artan Muhaxhiri, believes that young people who do not invest enough in education are more inclined to accept dogmas, including radicalism, however, he tells Kosovo Online that it is even more dangerous that they accept populism without critical thinking.

"The level of education and overall emancipation is directly linked to the level of critical thinking, which is why young people who do not invest enough in education are more inclined to accept dogmas, including radicalism. However, I believe it is more dangerous that they accept populism without critical thinking, as it influences elections, the political spectrum, and thus allows politicians to more easily succeed with baseless promises, fake news, and promises that are impossible to fulfill in practice. This affects their lives, but also the lives of others," Muhaxhiri says.

He points out that as the level of education rises, so does critical thinking, and simultaneously, people’s demands on politicians and institutions increase.

“For example, when you are a taxpayer, you have much more power and can demand more from your politicians every day. However, in Kosovo and the Balkans in general, this is not always the case,” he adds.

He notes that the problem of radicalism existed several years ago, when ISIS was growing stronger, and there were connections between radical groups in Kosovo and Syria.

“However, this is no longer the case, as even the state has made efforts to curb it. They monitored and prosecuted people connected to ISIS, who were recruiting youth to join ISIS. This is no longer the case to that extent, of course,” the analyst from Pristina says.

Muhaxhiri insists that populism is a greater problem than radicalism in Kosovo.

“Because people easily fall into the trap of populism, creating a domino effect: they vote for populism, then for populist leaders, and then other, rational politicians see that only through populism can they win the majority of votes, so they also use populist approaches, which damages the political spectrum,” he concludes.