The Strongest Link: An Oral History of Wartime Rape Survivors in Kosovo

From February 1998 until June 1999, a war between the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the separatist Kosovo Liberation Army ravaged Kosovo. The counterinsurgency quickly turned into a state-led campaign of ethnic cleansing that resulted in the killing, deportation, and rape of thousands of Albanian civilians. While it is estimated that over 20,000 women were victims of sexual violence during the war, for nearly two decades after its end, few survivors have come forward to publicly discuss what they endured.

In The Strongest Link, Anna Di Lellio and Garentina Kraja aim to break that silence by presenting an oral history of women who survived weaponized rape during the Kosovo War. In their own voices, twenty women describe the war’s terror, as well as the nightmares that still haunt them today. Through these narratives, readers are given a glimpse into what it’s like to be a woman whose life has been altered and undone by a violent regime, war, and patriarchal rules. We see how these women suffered, but also how they exhibited immense bravery and an unflagging dedication to their families and communities.

Di Lellio and Kraja contextualize these narratives within a history of state repression, ethnic cleansing, and lack of justice. By weaving these women’s stories together and placing them within a chronological storyline, these stories can be read as one might listen to a choir: Each woman’s unique voice and story can be heard, but their power lies in a shared song, a story of courage and strength.

Anna Di Lellio is Adjunct Professor at the Master of Arts in International Relations (MAIR) at New York University. An expert on Kosovo, she co-founded the Kosovo Oral History Initiative. She has taught at Columbia University, Sarah Lawrence College, The New School, and the American University in Kosovo.

Garentina Kraja is a researcher, journalist, and former policy adviser. Her career comprises over two decades of reporting, researching, and advising policy in Kosovo and other countries in the Western Balkans, ranging from the coverage of the 1998-99 war in her native Kosovo to its transition to an independent state.