The Greeks and the planned census in Albania

by Constantine Holeva In the first half of April 2011, the neighboring Albania will host the first-hopefully objective and democratic-census population. For the country itself that is important because the census is one of the conditions set by the institutions of E. Union to move closer to Albania's economic and political institutions of the EU.

The survey of minority ethnic and religious communities, the way will become and the presence or absence of protests from interested parties will provide a good sample of the intentions of Tirana to the respect of Human Rights. Let us not forget that the concepts of minority religious groups, etc. have a special charge in the neighboring country.

First, because the Communist government of Enver Hoxha and Ramiz Alia, of Albania, was proclaimed as the first completely atheistic country in the world. Priests imprisoned or executed, and Roman catholic Orthodox churches were converted into stables, and even mosques closed. Secondly, because Islam in Albania is divided into two large groups and will now look for the first time how many more:

The Sunnis (with Turkey homogenize) or Bektashi. Third, because even after the fall of communism in 1990-91, the Greek ethnic community who live mainly in Northern Epirus, suffered a political persecution, sometimes the hard way (trial of 6 members of OMONOIAS) and sometimes a mild but insidiously (decrees and judicial decisions adverse to the Greek property ownership).

On the basis of religious and ethnological map of Albania proper recording of communities and minority interest: In terms of religious factors, the Orthodox Church, the Vatican, and the Sunni community Bektasiki worldwide. In terms of states interested in Greece where Greeks, Skopje Slavophones few Christians in the region Prespa-them as "Macedonians minority" - Montenegro the Orthodox community of Skoder and lately the official interest for the Romanian Vlach-speaking Greeks, which characterizes Bucharest and Romanian...........................

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