Muslim-majority Kosovo has embarked on a “rebranding” campaign to – as prime minister Hashim Thaci says – communicate that the new country that unilaterally separated from Serbia last year is “democratic, peaceful and progressive.”
Mr Thaci is being disingenuous. The unfair truth is that what little the rest of the world knows about Kosovo is that there was a brutal war there not long ago, and that its declaration of independence is supported by the ethnic Albanian majority but fiercely disputed by Serbia. Which, of course, is precisely why the Kosovan government has paid Saatchi and Saatchi millions of dollars to come up with a more positive image. So now we have a young, vibrant nation, full of beautiful people.
These rebranding efforts are becoming more common among smaller, less well-known countries:
Less celebrated countries, like Kazakhstan, Armenia and Montenegro have got in on the act, trying to throw off negative stereotypes, and project images of beautiful, sun-kissed lands, rich in heritage, with friendly people who are eager to greet visiting tourists and businessmen.
The campaign to rehabilitate Kosovo’s image is called “Kosovo – The Young Europeans,” and here is a 60 second promotional ad produced by the international powerhouse advertising firm Saatchi and Saatchi to introduce you to the beautiful, sun-kissed, friendly young Kosovars.
Somebody doesn’t like the video however, and has attempted to limit the viewership of the campaign by flagging it on Youtube as obscene, containing “content that is inappropriate for some users, as flagged by Youtubes user community.” You have to confirm that you are over 18 to view it there. It could be Serbian nationalists who want to limit the viewership of the campaign, or it could be Muslim conservatives who don’t like the pretty pictures of all those touchy-feelly, uncovered, beautiful young Kosovars…
