On April 14, during the Day of Sexual Violence Survivors of the War in Kosovo, Ramadan Nishori made history by becoming the first man to publicly declare that he was raped by Serbian forces during the Kosovo war.
“Death would have been peace for me,” said Nishori, recalling the traumatic experience he endured in 1998. At only 22 years old, while detained at the police station in Drenas, he was subjected to brutal sexual violence by two Serbian police officers. “They forced me into a bathroom. One of them raped me. They threatened me not to tell anyone about it,” Nishori recounted.
Years of silence and suffering followed. Speaking in an emotional interview with Selvij Izeti, a psychologist at the Kosovo Center for the Rehabilitation of Torture Survivors (KRCT), Nishori revealed the weight of the trauma he carried alone for so long.
“I didn't want anyone to know. I feared judgment, bullying... I used to sneak out at night just to cry and scream. The shame was heavier than the pain,” he recalled.
His journey toward healing began slowly. In 2005, seven years after the assault, he found the courage to tell his wife and three children. Their acceptance and support helped him begin to reclaim his life. “It made me finally feel like a real husband and father,” he said.
Professional psychological support from KRCT played a crucial role in his recovery. “It helped me free myself from the trauma and live without fear of judgment,” Nishori emphasized.
Today, his message is one of courage and hope for others who have suffered similar atrocities. “Someone out there is watching me now—another survivor. I know what they’re going through. I want them to know there is hope. You must never give up. The shame is not ours—it belongs to those who did this to us.”
Although the exact number of survivors of wartime sexual violence in Kosovo remains unknown, estimates by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest as many as 20,000 people were subjected to such crimes during the 1998–1999 war. Yet, only around 2,000 have been officially recognized with legal survivor status.
Nishori’s testimony is a powerful reminder that breaking the silence is an act of resistance—and that justice and healing must include every survivor, regardless of gender.