User:Eraldkerciku/Peja Municipality

The Municipality of Peja is an administrative unit which was discovered from the place of Peja.

in the north-western part of Kosovo. It belongs together with the Municipalities of Burimi and Klina in the District of Peja. The administrative center of the Municipality of Peja is the city of Peja. The municipality is bordered to the west and north by Montenegro, to the east by the Municipality of Burimi and the Municipality of Klina and to the south by Municipality of Gjakova and Deçan Municipality.

A little history
Peja is known as an ancient city since Illyrian times. Due to the many wars in this region, from the Ottoman occupation to the last one with Serbia, it has not been possible to preserve all the Illyrian characteristics, where, among other things, Peja Castle also suffered.

In Illyrian times it was a large settlement center. According to archeological research, this city also had a fort, on the ancient ruins of which, unfortunately, the factory of accumulators was built.

The Serbo-Slavic regime tried to convert some remaining Catholic churches in many parts of Kosovo from the Illyrian times into Orthodox churches, such as The Patriarchate in Gryke i Rugova. Its characteristic is the Bazaar-Mosque built over the years 1600 - 1700 as well as the Tower of Haxhi Zeka. Haxhi Zeka was the chairman of the League of Peja in the year1899, in his time, Peja belonged to the Kingdom of Montenegro.

Geography
The general characteristic of Peja's position is that; it lies at the north-western end of the fertile valley of Dukagjin, in front of the picturesque gorge, under the slopes of the Albanian Alps. (Albanian Alps).Peja lies in the valley of Lumbardhi surrounded by the Albanian Alps. Peja, together with the entire Dukagjin Plain, lies between the northern latitude 45-50 degrees and 42-53 degrees and the eastern longitude 19 degrees, 58' 30' to 21 degrees. The city of Peja is located on the Neogene alluvial terrace at an altitude of 505-520m above sea level. This city rises in the plain of Dukagjin and is surrounded by high mountains.From a geomorphological point of view, Peja constitutes an economic center and in itself preserves and cultivates the tradition of an ancient history. Peja is connected to Pristina, Mitrovica, Gjakova, Rozhaja and Plava by road.

The city is surrounded by the Bjeshka mountains, which are part of the dynamic massif that includes the entire Western Balkans. These mountains form a crown of high peaks such as: the top of Kopranik (2460m), Zhlep Mountain (2352m), Hajla (2460m), Mokra (1932m), the mountains of Lumbardhi, i.e. Guri i Verdhë (2522m), the top of Viellak ( 2012m), Peklena, the top of Hasan, etc.

With the rapid flow of the rocky gorge of Rugova, the "Lumbardhi" river begins to meander through the plain of Peja, passing through the middle of the city and dividing it into two parts. Lumbardhi, which during its course forms fertile fields, flows into the largest river called "Drini i Bardhë" which originates from the mountains of Zhlepi in the village of Radac. Lumbardhi has a water quantity of 300 m-3 per second. But the mountains of Peja are also rich in lakes such as: Lake Nicinat and Lake Ridi. The climatic properties of Dukagjin, i.e. also of Peja, are characterized by a modified medium continental climate, with components of the Mediterranean climate. The very favorable geographical position, as well as the features of the relief and the climate, have influenced the habitation of these territories since the beginning of the Indo-Europeanism of the Balkan Peninsula. The Dardanians were formed as a nation according to E. Qabej, before the century. XII BC

When it comes to the territory of Dardania, which also includes Peja, the Dardanians, according to researcher F. Papazoolu, are treated in the suzas of the tribes of the central Balkans in pre-Roman times. The Dardanians are mentioned as strong warriors, very good miners, livestock breeders and well-known traders. The Dardanians were the largest Illyrian tribe that was placed at the head of the Dardanian kingdom, in the central Balkans, mainly in Kosovo.

Peja - the regional center of northern Dukagjin, identical in terms of the number of inhabitants to its southern counterpart Peja with 95,723 inhabitants before the start of the war, has also well represented the tertiary-quaternary group of the population, with which it stands before Prizren and the second after Pristina, among Kosovar centers with (32.6%). The population density is high with about 300 inhabitants per 1 (one) km-2. the birth rate is 34, while the mortality is 7. Peja is the center of a wide region with (almost 1,500 km-2), while Peja with its villages has 603 km2. Within the administrative boundaries of the Municipality of Peja there are 97 settlements organized in 28 territorial communities. The municipality of Peja borders with: Istog, Klina, and Deçan. And with the municipality of Plava, Berana and Rozhaja, you border with Mali e ZI. On the other side, you border the Republic of Albania. The territory of the Municipality of Peja consists of two geographical areas: one with a continental climate, a Mediterranean climate that includes approximately 30% of the total surface, and the Albanian Alps in the northwest, with a network developed hydrograph that affects as a modification of the climate in this part.

Politics

 * In the 2013 local elections, Gazmend Muhaxheri (LDK) was elected Mayor of Peja, where in the second round he defeated the candidate Ali Berisha (AAK) with a margin of 6,000 votes. In the runoff, AAK formed a coalition with PDK as well as some small parties, but it did not achieve its goal.
 * Youth political entities: FR of LDK, Youth Alliance, FR VV, RDK,
 * The main base of the Italian KFOR for the Dukagjin Plain.

From the beginning of November 2016, a new national force was added to the political life of Peja Lëvizja për Shqipëri të Bashkuar - Peja branch.

Economy
Peja is one of the richest cities in Kosovo. Of the 603 km 2, half of the territory is a mountainous area - Rugova, rich in forests and pastures and suitable for livestock development. The rest of the city and its surroundings are fertile and arable land, suitable for the development of agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, etc.

Peja was an industrial city with more than 10 factories, but at the moment they are mostly inactive. In Peja, private business is being successfully developed with more than 4,000 registered businesses. In the process of privatization, it is expected that new jobs will be opened in Peja and economic development will take place.

In Peja there is also a customs terminal or customs point.

Demographics
As of 2003, the city has a population of 81,800 inhabitants. whereas as a municipality as a whole there are about 160,000 inhabitants

Culture
In Peja, the cultural life is quite sensational. Peja has Kino-Theater “Jusuf Gërvalla”, Professional Theater of the City "Istref Begolli", The "Azem Shkreli" Regional Library, the Ethnographic Museum, the Archive, the Art Gallery, the Institute for the Protection of Monuments, the Multiprofessional Center in Fierza, and many monuments of great cultural and historical value. In Peja, there are also many cultural and artistic societies such as the City Choir, the "Haxhi Zeka" Ensemble, "Sofra Pejane", the "Rugova" Ensemble, "AVI Progress" etc. which develop valuable cultural and artistic activities.

Municipality of Peja, during the violent Serbian measures of the years 1990-1999, there was 6 public library with 87,212 books. The main library had 64,231 books, while its branches for Vitomirica, Baran, Tërstenik, Zahaq and Gorazhdec districts had collections of 22,981 books.

As a result of violent measures (1990-1999) and serbian War, 4 libraries with 20,171 books have disappeared and only the city library of Peja and the one in Gorazhdec (which was almost completely filled with Serbo-Croatian books) have survived.


 * Primary schools: "Asdreni", "Dardania", "8 Marsi", "Lithja e Prizren", "Ramiz Sadiku", "Pjeter Budi", etc.
 * "Bedri Pejani" Gymnasium, "Ali Hadri" Economic Professional High School, "Odhise Paskali" Applied Arts High School, "Shaban Spahija" Technical High School, Vocational School for the Blind and "Cambridge" Private College, while "Mehmet Akif" College will soon be opened.
 * Faculty of Applied Business Sciences and Faculty of Law.

Characteristic clothing of Rugova and Dukagjin Plain can be visited at the National Museum of Albanian Tradition in Pejë, near "Haxhi Zeka" square.

Sport
Peja as a city has the "Shahin Haxhiislami" Football Stadium, the "Karagaçi" Sports Palace and a large number of football clubs.(BESA - www.kfbesa.com,), basketball,(PEJA,KB 12), handball (BESA - www.khbesa.com),Boxing Club (PEJA) multiple champion of Kosovo, karate (IPPON), judo (IPPON), skiing (ALPI, PEJA, RUSOLIA), Peja Taekwondo Club - www.tkd-peja.tk horse riding, motorcyclists, etc. which develop numerous cultural and sports activities. Peja is also known as the "city of basketball", it was also announced as the city of sports in 2004, 2005, 2006.

Watch also

 * Peja
 * District of Peja

Data Source

 * Documents of OSCE found on the Internet in the year 2006, for profiles of Kosovo municipalities: mik/2005/02/1197_en.pdf
 * Documents of Electronic Network of Kosovar Environmental Organizations - Sharri.net 2006: peja.pdf
 * Documents of Post and Telecommunication of Kosovo found on the internet 2006: KodePostare.pdf
 * Documents of the Kosovo Library Mission found on the Internet in the year 2006: Report of IFLA-s/FAIFE, april 2000: Anex 3