There are still chances for normal elections in Albania, but for this we
need quick actions. Robert Hand, an old election observer in our
country and good connoisseur of the political developments in our
country sees some light in the end of the tunnel.
Earlier he has expressed his
regret for what he calls “political games” and that include the
situation created at the Central Election Commission. He says that if an
agreement will be reached with he Central Election Commission, it
should be long-termed and in full support of the law.
“The
international community is not happy with the way how politics is made
in Albania, what blocks the realization of the true potentials of this
country”, Hand declared.
When asked about what depends from the
June 23rd elections, Hand gave a very direct answer: patience with
Albanian is running out.
The high rank political adviser of the
American Helsinki Committee declared that the United States of America
want Albania to be successful. He says that there has been progress, but
it is not enough.
“Without any doubt, Albania should have been
able to hold free and fair elections, so that everyone could trust the
institutions and the elections’ result. Unfortunately, we see that many
games are being made with the next elections. The Central Election
Commission is one of them. This is causing loss of trust, and I think
that this is really regrettable”, Hand declared.
According to
him, if the elections in Albania will not receive a good evaluation this
time, there will certainly be consequences for the European Union
integration.
“The accession takes time even in normal
circumstances. That’s why Albania cannot afford any further delay. The
elections need to be regular. There is still the opportunity, but they
need to act quickly to realize this”, Hand declared.
He
underlined that the political forces should sit and discuss how to
complete the Central Election Commission, but this shouldn’t be just a
continuation of the political game, where a handshake between the
parties goes above the law.
“Many people think that if the law
would have been respected, this shouldn’t have happened. I think that
what Albania needs is a new commitment to the Electoral Code, and a
clear idea for further progress”, Hand underlined.
“My view for
the Central Election Commission is that its members are elected by the
parties, but after being elected, they should behave with
professionalism and not politically. They need a political agreement to
return this formula, and a clear confirmation that they will respect the
code, the laws, and not just agree on what they want to do or not”, he
added.
The Albanian Prime Minister, Sali Berisha, introduced the candidates of his political force in the town of Gjirokaster.
Berisha mentioned the
promises that were kept by this majority, such as the conclusion of the
Gjirokaster-Tirana road and all of its segments. The Prime Minister
declared that same as he had promised four years ago, the Gjirokaster
citizens will be able to travel to Tirana for 2.5 hours.
The
Prime Minister mentioned the support given by this government to the
farmers of this district, saying that the Democratic Party program
focuses on the citizens and how to create economic facilities for them.
Berisha
accused the opposition of blocking the candidate status and for not
voting the three laws required by the international community.
The list of Democratic Party candidates in Gjirokaster is led by Genc Ruli, followed by Spiro Ksera and Adrian Kokalari.
The Socialist Party introduced this Monday afternoon the Revival Program on the second day of the National Convention.
After the working groups of
the Revival Team introduced the program, Edi Rama declared that the
Socialist Party will bring a different government by using politics as
an instrument for the citizen, and not for making the leaders richer.
“Shall
we vote for the future with hopes, or for four other years like this?
Shall we vote for a new beginning, or shall we continue with the old.
Everyone here will vote for the Socialist Party because we are committed
to our common cause”, Rama declared.
“We have the obligation to
bring people out of that dream for a better life and give them the
opportunity to see that Albanian dream that we will realize together. I
want this to be the basic rule of this campaign. We are not being part
of this battle for ourselves. We are in this battle for the common
people of this country”, he declared.
Rama promised that th enew
government will help the citizens who have been disappointed for 20
years from this government, adding that this will be the difference
between the Socialist and current governments.
“This is not a
battle between two forces of the same level. This is a battle between
the Albania of the past and the Albania of the future. This is a battle
between two worlds, between a politics that is thirsty of power and
another politics that wants to detach from it and join a world where
politics is for the people and with the people”, Rama declared.
He
underlined that the middle class will receive help through honest
taxes. Who earns less will be paid less, and who earns more will pay
more.
“We appeal teachers, police officers, nurses and state
employees that the wage increase that is accompanied by inflation, by
increased prices and dropping of the buying power is not a solution, but
a trick. This can be resolved by honest taxation, with those who earn
more will pay more taxes, and those who earn less will pay less taxes.
The honest taxation will bring one additional salary at the end of the
year. This is the reason why we are different”, Rama underlined.
“For
them it is enough to have a group of people living well, and they have
no problem that the assets of the entire country are concentrated in
less that 5% of the population. We want to reduce taxes for 95% of the
population. Albania will have a new balance by sharing the
responsibilities”, the opposition leader declared.
Then he spoke
about the January 21st, saying that justice will be brought and it will
reestablish the foundations of this ruined system.
“January 21st
is the case that will establish justice. We will not stay calm until
those who ordered the killings will be brought to justice”, Rama
underlined, promising to reestablish order in the country.
“We
need 300 days to make crime return from where they came from, and we
will give a decent state police to the Albanian citizens”, Rama
declared.
Health was another topic mentioned by the Socialist
Party leader, Edi Rama, promising the establishment of a free health
system not only for those who are able to pay.
Rama said that the
education system will change in the same way, because now, according to
Rama, it only favors those with financial capabilities.
Introduction of the Revival Program
Members of the Socialist Party introduced a detailed view of the Revival Program.
Ilir
Beqja: The program offers real employment opportunities; a new economic
model; a rural and productive economy that supplies the inner market
and brings revenues. This is a difficult challenge but completely
feasible.
Taulant Balla: We have told hundreds of corruption
stories in these eight years. A foreign businessman arrived in Albania,
met the Prime Minister and after two hours ended in his daughter’s law
firm, where he was told to pay 3 million EUR. We consider war against
corruption as a priority.
Sajmir Tahiri: We will reestablish order in the first 300 days. We will bring the police back to work and will fight crime.
Eduard
Shalsi: We will take Albania’s natural assets under control and will
return it to the Albanians. We will also give an end to the oil
smuggling and fiscal evasion.
The Democratic Party introduced their candidates in the Lezhe District,
where the Prime Minister accused the Socialist Party leader, Edi Rama,
of blocking the candidate status for Albania.
“What would Skanderbeg say, who fought to defend the western values of his country”, Berisha declared.
In Lezhe, Berisha appealed the Socialists of this district to abandon what he considered anti-European thoughts.
“You
don’t have anti-European thoughts in your mind. They exist only in the
mind of the person who has captured the Socialist Party. This painter
has brought the theory of a fake Albania, because he lives in his purple
bus with black windows and cannot see anything around”, Berisha
declared.
Another promise given by Berisha was realizing a 247 water supply for Lezhe, further investments and facilities for business.
Recent data from the Institution of Statistics and Bank of Albania show
that construction is the sector that has felt the economic crisis much
deeper.
Construction shrank with 17%
compared to one year ago. The calculations of Bank of Albania show that
only due to the dropping in the construction sector, the economic growth
slowed down with 2.1% during 2012. If construction would not fall in
these levels, the economic growth in Albania would have been at almost
4%.
Since 2009, production has slowed down in all economic
sectors, but construction has seen a drastic fall. Experts say that this
was to be expected.
Construction was the main contributor of the
Albanian economic growth before the crisis. Its weight in the GDP
during 2008 reached the historic record of 15.8%. For some experts, the
sector was taking the shape of a bubble, while the World Bank warned
that economic growth based on construction was unstable.
Three
years later the warnings came true. Construction in the GDP has reduced
with 10%. Although it was expected in a long-term, World Bank experts
note that the risis has accelerated the shrinking of the construction
sector, without leaving time to the economy to compensate it with the
orientation of production to other economic branches.
The prestigious American
newspaper “Huffington Post” paid attention to 14 cultural and historic
objects that are in danger in Europe.
The Durres Amphitheater is
on this list. Huffington Post writes that “Europa Nostra”, an
organization for preserving the cultural and historic heritage listed a
list of 14 cultural heritage objects that are endangered through Europe.
Among these objects there are churches, archeological areas and ancient
habitats.
“Huffington Post” writes that this amphitheater of
rare archeological and cultural values is endangered by the Durres urban
construction, which has affected some of it even by the lack of
attention.
On June 16th, seven of the 14 mostly endangered
objects in Europe will be selected to become part of a rescue plan that
will be presented to the Organization and Preservation of the European
Heritage during the conference that will be held in December in
Brussels.
The Durres Amphitheater was discovered in 1966, and it
is the biggest and most important in Albania and even Balkan. It was
built in the first century of our era, under the roman Emperor, Trajan.
The
amphitheater has an elliptical shape with a 136 meter of diameter and a
20 meter height. It has been an important center for organizing the
Olympic and Roman games, and its capacity was calculated at around
15-20.000 people.
Even one year after the Himara tragedy, drama ensues at the family of
Aurora Molla, the girl from the Verdova village who lost her life in the
terrible accident.
Her mother confirms that she has received a ridiculous compensation from the travel company.
“One
year went away and my heart knows how days go by. We have received no
compensation from the company. They haven’t offered us even 30 million
ALL, a ridiculous compensation”, says Aurora Molla’s mother.
Students and relatives of the victims gathered today at the Elbasan University to commemorate the victims.
A
horrible bus accident took place in Himara, on 21 May 2012. A bus
carrying students from Elbasan fell off a cliff and 13 people died, 22
others were severely injured. The forensic report says that the accident
was caused by excessive speed.
United States Embassy commemorates victims
The
United States embassy in Tirana commemorated today the 13 victims of
the Himara tragedy. The embassy expressed their support on Facebook for
the victims and their relatives.
“One year ago everyone was
shocked by the tragic incident that claimed the lives of 12 young
students. Ambassador Arvizu and the United States embassy staff sends
our prayers and thoughts to the families of the victims. May God be
close to them who left us so soon and may them rest in peace”, the
message says.
The Socialist Party leader, Edi Rama, started meeting with the Tirana
citizens after introducing his party’s candidates in many Albanian
districts.
Kombinat was the next stop of
what the Socialists call “Word Corner”, a conversation between the
Socialist Party leader and the citizens.
Rama spoke about the
“Revival” program of the Socialist Party. This program, different from
Berisha’s promises, will half taxes on small businesses and facilitate
taxes for farmers.
“Even in 2005 Berisha promised to cut
taxes to half, but he did nothing. You should be careful with Berisha,
because he is worse in what he promises. This is what happened with
small business and farmers. We will cut profit tax to half and will
remove the double tax”, Rama declared.
Rama answered to the concerns of his supporters about protecting the Socialist Party vote:
“Don’t
expect the United States of America to make the opposition or
government of this country. This is up to us. If we won with 10 votes on
May 8th and that was stolen, this time we will win with 50.000 votes
and they will not be able to do anything”, he added.
One week after the arrival of the ODIHR mission that will observe and
report the standard of the June 23rd elections, the head of the ODIHR
mission, Cony McCormak, met with the Albanian Prime Minister, Sali
Berisha.
Four years ago Berisha refused to meet the ODIHR leader of that time, Odrey Glover.
But, same as four years ago, Berisha guaranteed her for a full support of the Albanian government in doing her duties.
The
official announcements says that the Prime Minister, by expressing his
conviction that the majority must secure the opposition’s trust in this
process, underlined that the electoral reform was based on the
opposition’s propositions, by fulfilling this way the ODIHR
recommendations.
As regards the Central Election Commission
problem, Berisha declared that the Socialist Party is trying to block
the electoral process by misusing its members at Central Election
Commission, through a politically orchestrated resignation.
However,
the Prime Minister expressed his readiness to complete the Central
Election Commission with the names coming from the opposition.
Mrs.McCormak
thanked the Prime Minister for the panorama and explanations on the
electoral process, and shared the same opinion with Berisha about the
great significance of transparency in the credibility of the electoral
process.
The Tirana European Institution in cooperation with the Ombudsman have
brought to the attention of authorities the difficult situation created
in the detention centers during 2012.
According to the monitoring
report of the European Institution, although there are some improvements
in the detention premises, the conditions there are very difficult, and
the detainees are often obliged to sleep on the ground with insects
around. This report recomments the closing of some detention centers.
“We
have suggested the closing of some of these institutions, where there
are enough conditions to guarantee human dignity. For example, the
institutions of Kukes, Saranda and Berat, the airing system and the
natural light is not enough. The national standard is four square meters
for person, and this has not been guaranteed. There is humidity and
unsuitable health conditions”, declared Marta Onorato, executive
director of the institution.
As regards the transferring of
detainees from Albanian to Greek prisons, Onorato expresses skepticism,
saying that this would make the situation in the Albanian prisons even
more difficult.
The report raises the concern of the health care
of the detainees, since the entire system has only three psychiatric
doctors, while 70% of the detainees suffer health problems of every
kind.
After casting polls for the ranking of the political parties on the
voting list, the Central Election Commission has just changed it.
Based on this decision, the Democratic Party will stay at number 44, from number 43 that it was decided by the lots.
The
Socialist Party representative at the Central Election Commission
considers this action as illegal. He says that the highest election
institution is being used to change the rules of the game after the game
is over, same as in 2011.
“When we speak about lots, we mean
that something will be decided by fate. But the Democratic Party
representative do not agree with fate. This is a repeated situation that
leaves a bad taste regarding the legitimacy and credibility of the
Central Election Commission”, Gjoncaj declared.
Although the
Socialist Party has not decided if this will be appealed at the
Electoral College, Gjoncaj says that the Socialist Party will be
responsible and will not obstacle the process.
He says that in
case of an appeal, they could put in danger the printing of the ballot
paper, which this time will be realized in Slovenia. They agreed that
the ballots will arrive in Albania on June 17th, only a few days before
the elections. The Socialist Party representative declared that this
decision is based on a clear political purpose, because number 44 can be
identified easier in a ballot paper with 66 parties.
Roberto Batelli, special coordinator of the OSCE, who will lead the
short-term mission of the election observation mission, refused to
answer to Top Channel since his first day in Tirana.
Batelli preferred to send him
a declaration in which he says: “These elections will be another test
about the readiness of the political actors in Albania, and their
willingness to contribute in an active and constructive way for the
country’s institutions, despite the political competition and the
different interpretation of the laws. The main objective of the OSCE is
to enable citizens to measure the performance of political runners. They
also must make sure that the electoral process will not be prejudged.
An electoral campaign filled with claims about irregularities would
confuse voters even more, and would block Albania’s European Union
path”.
During his visit in Tirana, Batelli will meet Prime
Minister Berisha, the opposition leader, Edi Rama, and other officials
included in the electoral process.
The final report for the June
23rd elections will be planned by the short-term mission of observers
which is under the dependance of the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE,
which is led by the Austrian Wolfgang Grossruck. Roberto Batelli, a
Slovenian Parliament Member, and who serves as Head of Treasury at the
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. The suspicions about his close relations
with Grossruck increase after Batelli visited Albania in 2010 and
release a statement in favor of Grossruck’s report, who considered the
elections of 2009 regular. Batelli made his support official on the OSCE
website. Batelli was appointed as the man that will present the
preliminary election report on June 24th. Outside the cameras Batelli
declared for Top Channel that he will not be judged. “Wait for the
report and then give your evaluations”, he underlined.
The party of disabled people, part of the Alliance for European Albania,
introduced today its candidates for the June 23rd elections. Edi Rama
was present in this event and declared that the did not allow the
disabled people to express their opinion, when they should listen to
their voice.
“We are committed to return
the law that sanctions that no law about the disabled people will ever
be decided without your opinion, without listening to you and without
discussing with you”, Rama declared.
The Socialist Party leader committed to include disabled people in the governing adminsitration after the June 23rd elections.
“I
can’t promise that with the Socialist Party victory and the creation of
our government your hell with turn into paradise within four years. I
promise no miracle, but I promise that I will never betray you”, Rama
declared.
The Socialist Movement for Integration leader, Ilir Meta, after meeting
with the main observer of the ODIHR, Conny McCormack, declared that the
success of these elections is an excellent chance to reform not only the
international position of Albania with the European Union, but also to
facilitate the European Union candidate status.
This is what Meta answered
when asked if he has ambitions for becoming a Prime Minister after the
June 23rd elections, since Nasip Naco declared in Berat that there is
such a chance.
“The opposition has no confusion at all.
Everything is in full harmony. The opposition aims to reach 80 mandates
in an international scale and win with a 200.000 votes difference, which
is completely feasible. As for the case in question, I think that it is
resolved by the Constitution and the citizens’ vote. Berisha’s promise
that I cannot take his chair and that he has no intention to leave it, I
propose another compromise for this matter. Because he will accept the
will of the people, but he can take the chair with him at his home or at
the Democratic Party, as his idol did Lech Walesa did”.
“Now I
want to officialize the procedure for the issue of the three laws”, Meta
declared in a press conference, saying that it is up to the majority to
make this possible, since they lead the Parliament.
“It would
show how the majority is responsible for the fate of our country. It
would also be a contribution that they would give in the European
integration process. Because if they will not give this contribution now
and if the laws pass in September with 84 votes, without their
contribution, it wouldn’t be positive or serious. That’s why I want to
believe in the commitment of the Democratic Party for helping with the
European Union integration process. This is not the time for critics and
auto-critics about this matter”, Meta declared.
As for the
electoral polls, Meta declared that he trusts more the data that the
Socialist Movement for Integration receives from terrain. Meta thinks
that there is no poll that goes against the Socialist Movement for
Integration, and that everyone has lost his bets with his party
