Dua Lipa clarifies tweet about indigenous Kosovar Albanians after it sparked online debate

"I encourage everyone to embrace their heritage"

Dua Lipa has spoken further about a tweet she posted about the rights of indigenous Kosovar Albanians.

The singer recently shared a picture of a map of Albania with its emblem, alongside a sentence which stated that Kosovar Albanians are an indigenous group of people.

Lipa, who spent part of her childhood in Kosovo and whose family have Albanian heritage, wrote: “au•toch•tho•nous adjective (of an inhabitant of a place) indigenous rather than descended from migrants or colonists.”

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The tweet soon went viral, with parts of social media challenging Lipa’s statement by linking it to a far-right ‘Greater Albania’ ideology or challenging the accuracy of the statement.

Many others, including the ‘Team Albanians’ twitter account came out in support of Lipa, saying her tweet wasn’t “hate speech” as some online fractions deemed.

She has now explained the tweet further and said it “was never meant to incite any hate.”

Lipa added: “It makes me sad and angry that my post has been wilfully misinterpreted by some groups and individuals who promote ethnic separatism, something I completely reject.

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“Whenever I post about Kosovo, my feed goes crazy, even if it’s about something as joyful as food or music, and I am met with a fierce resistance to the idea of an authentic Kosovan culture.

“We all deserve to be proud of our ethnicity and where we are from. I simply want my country to be represented on a map and to be able to speak with pride and joy about my Albanian roots and my mother country. I encourage everyone to embrace their heritage and to listen and learn from each other. Peace, love and respect to all.”

Meanwhile, Lipa was one of a number of musicians who attended a Black Lives Matter protest in London last month, as demonstrations were held across the world in the wake of George Floyd’s death while in police custody in Minneapolis in May.

Footage shared on social media showed Lipa in the crowds at the protest alongside her boyfriend, Anwar Hadid. Others in attendance included Primal Scream, Sam Smith and Ghostpoet.

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