Behgjet Pacolli facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Behgjet Pacolli
|
|
|---|---|
Pacolli in 2015
|
|
| 2nd President of Kosovo | |
| In office 22 February 2011 – 4 April 2011 |
|
| Prime Minister | Hashim Thaçi |
| Preceded by | Jakup Krasniqi |
| Succeeded by | Atifete Jahjaga |
| First Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo | |
| In office 15 April 2011 – 9 December 2014 |
|
| Prime Minister | Hashim Thaçi |
| Preceded by | Hajredin Kuçi |
| Succeeded by | Hashim Thaçi |
| In office 9 September 2017 – 3 February 2020 |
|
| Prime Minister | Ramush Haradinaj |
| Preceded by | Hajredin Kuçi |
| Succeeded by | Avdullah Hoti |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 9 September 2017 – 3 February 2020 |
|
| Prime Minister | Ramush Haradinaj |
| Preceded by | Emanuel Demaj (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Glauk Konjufca |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 30 August 1951 Pristina, AR Kosovo and Metohija, FPR Yugoslavia (now Pristina, Kosovo) |
| Nationality | Kosovar Swiss |
| Political party | New Kosovo Alliance (2006–February 2011; April 2011–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Independent (February–April 2011) |
| Spouse | Masha Pacolli |
| Children | 6 |
| Signature | .svg) |
| Website | www.behgjetpacolli.com |
Behgjet Isa Pacolli (born on August 30, 1951) is a well-known politician and businessman from Kosovo and Switzerland. He served as the second president of Kosovo for a short time in 2011. He was also the first Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo from 2011 to 2014. Later, he became the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2017 to 2019.
Mr. Pacolli is a major owner of the Mabetex Group, a large construction company based in Switzerland. He also leads the New Kosovo Alliance, which is one of the biggest political parties in Kosovo. He is known as one of the wealthiest people of Albanian background in the world. Besides his political and business work, Pacolli has helped in freeing people who were held hostage in different countries.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Behgjet Pacolli was born in 1951 to Isa and Nazmije. He was the second of ten children in his family. He finished his first years of school in Marec and then went to high school in Prishtina. He is from Kosovo, but he also became a citizen of Switzerland in 1992.
After getting his first degree from the Hamburg Institute of Foreign Trade in 1974, he served in the Yugoslav army. Soon after, he started working for an Austrian company as a sales representative. He covered areas like former Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Poland, and Russia. Two years later, he moved to Switzerland and joined a Swiss company he had met in Moscow. Pacolli continued his studies at the Mösinger Zurich Institute, where he earned a master's degree in marketing and management. He can speak many languages, including English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, and Serbian.
Career Highlights
In 1974, Pacolli began his career as a foreign language correspondent and a deputy director at a textile company in Gjilan. He worked there until 1975, when he left Kosovo to find more career opportunities in Western countries.
From 1976 to 1980, Pacolli held important leadership roles in several companies. These included being a commercial director for Peter Zimmer in Austria and Interplastica Project Engineering in Morbio Inf., Switzerland. He later became the general director at Interplastica.
In 1990, he started his own construction company, Mabetex Project Management, in Lugano, Switzerland. This company grew into a large business group called the Mabetex Group. It now works in many areas like construction, banking, insurance, hospitals, and media. From 1992 to 1999, Pacolli's Mabetex worked on several projects in Russia. His company renovated important buildings like the White House in Moscow, the State Duma Building, and the Kremlin. There were some accusations about payments related to the Yeltsin family, but Swiss authorities investigated and later dismissed the case against Pacolli in March 1999, as no evidence was found.
During the Kosovo War in the late 1990s, Pacolli helped by organizing aid and donating money. In 1999, he created the Foundation for the Organisation and Reconstruction of Kosovo (FORK) in Lugano. Later, Pacolli also started business activities in Kazakhstan, where Mabetex built new buildings in Astana.
Working for Kosovo's Independence
Pacolli continued to work for his homeland after the Kosovo War. In 2005, he created a group called "The New Kosovo Alliance" to help Kosovo become an independent country. During this time, Pacolli worked with many important world leaders, especially from America. For four years, he was also part of the board of trustees for the Center for International and Strategic Studies (CSIS). He continued to work hard to create the right conditions for Kosovo to declare its independence.
The goal of "The New Kosovo Alliance" was achieved when US President Bush visited Tirana in June 2007. He stated that "Kosovo must be a country, an independent republic, now." Since Kosovo declared independence in February 2008, Pacolli has been working to convince other countries to officially recognize Kosovo as an independent nation. He continues to meet with leaders around the world to gain more recognition for Kosovo.
New Kosovo Alliance Political Party
On March 17, 2006, "The New Kosovo Alliance" became a political party. In the 2007 elections, the AKR became the third-strongest party. It led the opposition in the Kosovo parliament and helped in the declaration of Kosovo's independence on February 17, 2008. Even while in opposition, Pacolli kept working for international recognition of Kosovo's independence.
Pacolli became a member of the Assembly of Kosovo and joined the Committee for Budget and Finance. His rise in politics was seen as a great help for Kosovo's development.
Presidency of Kosovo
On February 22, 2011, Behgjet Pacolli was elected as the second president of the Republic of Kosovo. Early in his presidency, he visited Mitrovica and went into North Kosovo, an area with many Serbs, to show Kosovo's authority there. As president, Pacolli also visited Albania and Macedonia.
He left the presidency on April 4, 2011. This happened after the Constitutional Court of Kosovo decided that the way he was elected was not correct. The court said that a formal election needs two candidates and that at least 80 members of parliament (two-thirds of 120) must vote for a candidate. This decision helped improve Kosovo's legal system.
First Deputy Prime Minister
After leaving the president's office, Pacolli continued to work in the government. He became the first deputy prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo. In this role, he focused on getting more countries to recognize Kosovo and attracting foreign investments. He met with over 100 presidents, prime ministers, and kings from many countries to lobby for Kosovo's recognition and its place in the world.
In February 2015, the Albanian President, Bujar Nishani, gave Pacolli the Nderi i Kombit (Honor of the Nation) Award. This was for his efforts in getting Kosovo recognized and for improving economic ties between Kosovo and Albania. The award ceremony took place in Tirana. In late 2017, Pacolli discussed creating Serb Municipalities for the Serb minority in Kosovo with EU officials. He also worked to build peaceful economic relationships with Serbia.
Vice Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
From September 2017 to February 2020, Pacolli served as both the vice prime minister and the foreign minister of the Republic of Kosovo. On December 16, 2019, Pacolli and his wife met with Pope Francis at the Holy See. They discussed how different communities and religions can live peacefully in Kosovo. They also talked about the Kosovo War. Pope Francis encouraged Masha Pacolli to continue helping women who were affected by the conflict.
Recent Activities
On November 26, 2019, a strong earthquake hit Albania. As the outgoing Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Pacolli and his family personally donated 1 million euros to help with the relief efforts.
On January 15, 2021, Pacolli visited the damaged village of Thumana with Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama. Pacolli announced that he would continue to support the relief work and build a housing complex with 80 apartments.
Helping Hostages
Behgjet Pacolli has been directly involved in helping to free hostages in Afghanistan and other conflict areas many times. He is known as one of the few people who can successfully negotiate with groups holding hostages. For example, on October 28, 2004, three United Nations workers were taken hostage in Kabul. One of them was from Kosovo and had no support from other countries. Pacolli traveled to Afghanistan and spent a month negotiating for their release. He is credited with helping them get free on November 23, 2004.
In October 2006, an Italian photojournalist, Gabriele Torsello, was kidnapped in Afghanistan. An Italian intelligence agency asked Pacolli to help. Pacolli successfully negotiated Torsello's release, and he was freed on November 3, 2006. In 2007, Pacolli helped negotiate the release of 23 South Korean Christian missionaries from Afghanistan. He managed to free 21 of them after two were sadly executed.
In 2008, two Swiss citizens were held hostage in Libya. In early 2010, Pacolli negotiated with Muammar Ghaddafi to try and secure their release. In 2011, an American-Kosovar lobbyist was arrested in Eritrea. Pacolli traveled to Eritrea and negotiated his release, and he was freed after five months.
Giving Back: Philanthropy
Throughout his successful business career, Pacolli has also done a lot of charity work. His Behgjet Pacolli Foundation helps young people get good education, supports those in need, builds schools and hospitals, and helps sports and culture. In 1993, Pacolli started "Les Enfants du Sakha," which is now called "Ibrahim Kodra Foundation." This fund aims to provide medical care, education, and fun activities for children. In Kosovo alone, the Behgjet Pacolli Foundation has given over 20 million euros to various projects.
Pacolli has been a main supporter of the Aleksandër Moisiu Foundation and the "Bambimi Di Sakha" Orphanages Foundation. Since 1993, he has financially supported a hospital that cares for abandoned children with physical disabilities in Sakha.
Starting in 2006, Pacolli began donating for the construction and renovation of several buildings in Kosovo. He helped renovate the Parliament Building of Kosovo in Prishtina. Later, Pacolli funded the building of the American University in Kosovo campus. In 2008, he paid for the reconstruction of the Mosque of Llap in Prishtina, which is an important cultural site. The next year, Pacolli funded the expansion of the College of Philosophy at the University of Prishtina. In 2017, he suggested a plan for a big renovation of Prishtina.
Awards and Recognitions
Behgjet Pacolli has received many honors and awards for his work:
- 2002 – 2006: Member of the Center for Strategic and International Studies and advisor to a committee led by Henry Kissinger.
- 2002 – 2010: Honorary Diplomat of the State of Liberia.
- 2009: Peace Ambassador of the Universal Peace Federation.
- 2010: Cavalier del Millennio per la Pace ("Knight of Peace of the Millennium") from Italy.
- 2010: Honorary Citizen of Lezha.
- 2011: Gusi Peace Prize, Philippines.
- 2012: Honorary Citizen of the City of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
- 2012: Chancellor's Gold Medal from the Community College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
- 2012: Keys to the City of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana.
- 2012: Honorary Citizen of Korça.
- 2014: Special Leadership Award from POLIS University for his work in politics, peace-building, and humanitarian efforts.
- 2015: "The Acknowledgement of the City of Tirana" honor.
- 2015: Kazakh President "2015 Constitution of Kazakhstan" Medal.
- 2015: Nderi i Kombit (Honor of Nation) Award from Albania.
- 2016: Order of the Kazakh President Kurmet for his services to the economy, science, culture, education, and social affairs.
- 2018: Doctor Honoris Causa in Economics from the Ismail Qemali University of Vlorë.
- 2018: Honorary Citizen of Kukësi.
- 2019: "Mother Teresa" High Award.
- 2019: Acknowledgment from US President Bill Clinton.
- 2022: Key to the city of Tirana.
- Certificate of appreciation from the AUK (American University in Kosovo).
- Nelson Mandela Foundation Award.
- Rochester Institute of Technology Honorary Degree.
- Doctor honoris causa of European University of Tirana.
- Honorary Citizen of Astana, Kazakhstan.
See also
In Spanish: Behgjet Pacolli para niños
