Aerial
footage taken on August 23 confirmed the theory that the Italian island
of Sardinia in fact could be the new lost Atlantis, La Stampa reported.
This theory belongs to Italian journalist Sekpio Frau.
He believes that Sardinia has all the characteristics of Atlantis and
corresponds to the description of Atlantis by Plato as the “land rich
with water and forests, with mild climate, which made it possible
to collect harvest several times per year.”
In
addition, Plato referred to the inhabitants of Atlantis as the “tower
builders”. The same can be said about the famous Sardinian ancient stone
fortified dwellings.
One of these monuments was found not far from the Sardinian town of Barumini.
It took archeologists 14 years to dig it out from under a 12-meter layer of mud. Footage
of aerial photography has shown that almost all ancient dwellings that
are located just above sea level, were flooded with mud, while those
that were above, remained untouched.
Perhaps it was a result of a tsunami, which, according to the legend, killed the Atlanteans.
However, one cannot fully believe in the theory’s accuracy as it
interferes with one fact. Plato wrote that Atlantis was destroyed “9,000
years ago.” This cannot be true as by now about 11,500 years would have
passed. In addition, there was no civilization in the Mediterranean
region at that time.
However, Plato might have meant about 9,000 months rather than years as it was typical for the time.
In this case, Plato referrers to 1200 BC and it could be just right
about Sardinia. At that time, the Italian island experienced strong
earthquakes and was in mid-transition from the Bronze to the Iron Age.
It is also a well-known fact that Atlantis was located west of the
Pillars of Hercules, who, according to the legend, until the 3rd century
BC was not in the Gibraltar Strait but rather in the Tunis Strait,
between Sicily and Tunisia.
However, it is believed that Eratosthenes Kirensk moved poles, known
as “the edge of the world”, to make Delphi the center of the known
world. This happened after Alexander the Great pushed his eastern
borders when conquering new territories.
Με πρόσχημα την ανάπτυξη στην «Αλβανική Ριβιέρα», ο Εντι Ράμα
αρπάζει τα χωράφια από τους φυσικούς ιδιοκτήτες τους και τα δίνει σε
φίλους του. Εκχερσώνουν και υπεραιωνόβιους ελαιώνες
Ο Ελληνισμός της Χιμάρας δέχεται επίθεση! Με πρόσχημα την τουριστική
ανάπτυξη της προνομιακής, λόγω φυσικής ομορφιάς, περιοχής, η κυβέρνηση
του «σοσιαλιστή» πρωθυπουργού Εντι Ράμα διεκπεραιώνει μεθοδικά τα
τελευταία χρόνια σχέδιο εθνοκάθαρσης των Ελλήνων και εκδίωξης από τις
πατρογονικές εστίες τους. Το σχέδιο έχει ως πρώτο στάδιο την άτυπη
αλλαγή χαρακτηρισμού της γης (από αγροτική σε τουριστική), την απόσπασή
της από τους Ελληνες φυσικούς ιδιοκτήτες της, την απόδοσή της ακόμα και
με πλαστογραφίες τίτλων σε φιλοκυβερνητικούς «επιχειρηματίες» και, σε
τελική φάση, τη μετακίνηση και την εγκατάσταση πληθυσμών από άλλες
περιοχές της Αλβανίας για να εξαφανιστεί το ελληνικό στοιχείο!
Για το πέρασμα στη νέα πραγματικότητα τα πάντα είναι έτοιμα.
Υπάρχουν τα πρόσωπα (επιχειρηματίες με ενδιαφέρον στην περιοχή,
πρωτοπαλίκαρα του εκάστοτε κυβερνήτη, βουλευτές της αλβανικής Βουλής,
ακόμα και νονοί του οργανωμένου εγκλήματος), οι νόμοι (ν.
7501/19.7.1991, απόδοσης των περιουσιών στους τοπικούς πληθυσμούς μετά
το καθεστώς Χότζα, με πολλές ασάφειες που περιπλέκουν το ιδιοκτησιακό
καθεστώς γης), η αναπτυξιακή δικαιολογία, που στην περίπτωση της Χιμάρας
είναι η τουριστική μετάλλαξη, και τα σχέδια επί του εδάφους.
Η «κυριακάτικη δημοκρατία» εξασφάλισε τα μυστικά σχέδια της
παραλιακής ανάπλασης του θαλάσσιου μετώπου της Χιμάρας και παρουσιάζει
ένα από αυτά, στην περιοχή Κυπαρό. Εκεί η αλβανική χωροταξική υπηρεσία
(πολεοδομία) έχει ήδη ξεκινήσει την εκχέρσωση ελαιώνων με χιλιάδες
υπεραιωνόβια ελαιόδεντρα. Στη θέση τους προβάλλει τη δημιουργία
ξενοδοχειακών μονάδων, χώρων στάθμευσης, πεζοδρόμων και οργανωμένων
παραλιών στην παρθένα σήμερα τοποθεσία, που έχει χαρακτηριστεί «Αλβανική
Ριβιέρα».
Προ ημερών οι μπουλντόζες του Εντι Ράμα άρχισαν το ξερίζωμα ελαιώνων
από κτήματα Ελλήνων της Χιμάρας χωρίς αποζημίωση (!) στους ιδιοκτήτες
τους, ούτε καν προειδοποίηση, σε μία επιχείρηση με στοιχεία ψυχολογικού
πολέμου. Στόχος, οι επιδρομικές αυτές ενέργειες να κάμψουν την όποια
αντίσταση των ελληνικών οργανώσεων. Οι «ψυχολογικές επιχειρήσεις»
ξεκίνησαν με την κατεδάφιση τον περασμένο Αύγουστο του προσκηνηταρίου
του Αγ. Αθανασίου στο χωριό Δρυμάδες, σε μια επίδειξη δύναμης του
καθεστώτος.
Τις πραγματικές προθέσεις των Αρχών παραδέχτηκαν ανοιχτά σε δηλώσεις
τους στην αλβανική Βουλή οι ηγέτες των δύο ισχυρότερων αλβανικών
κομμάτων, με τους Εντι Ράμα και Σαλί Μπερίσα να αλληλοκατηγορούνται
δημοσίως για το ποιος έχει επιφέρει τη μεγαλύτερη «καταστροφή». Οπως
αναφέρθηκε στα αλβανικά ΜΜΕ, η κόντρα ξέσπασε στα μέσα Δεκεμβρίου, με
αφορμή δηλώσεις του Ράμα στους Αγίους Σαράντα για την «αρπαγή»
παραθαλάσσιου κτήματος του Μοναστηριού του Αγίου Γεωργίου από πρόσωπο
βορειοαλβανικής προέλευσης.
Ο Ράμα παραδέχτηκε ανοιχτά ότι 50.000 στρέμματα γης έχουν «κλαπεί»
σε Αγ. Σαράντα και Χιμάρα. «Εχουν πάρει τα κτήματα των Χιμαραίων με
πλαστογραφίες και διαφθορά, άτομα που δεν έχουν καμία σχέση ή καταγωγή
από την περιοχή. Ατομα που έφερε από τις Αλπεις ο Μπερίσα και τους έκανε
ιδιοκτήτες στο Ιόνιο» είπε χαρακτηριστικά ο Αλβανός πρωθυπουργός,
ρίχνοντας τις ευθύνες στην προηγούμενη κυβέρνηση.
Αντί άλλης απάντησης, ο Μπερίσα παραδέχτηκε δικό του σχέδιο
αλλοίωσης των ελληνικών πληθυσμών! «Εχω δουλέψει προγραμματισμένα και
στους Αγίους Σαράντα έχω κατεβάσει μόνο Λάμπηδες» ανέφερε. Ο Μπερίσα
ήξερε τι έλεγε. «Λάμπηδες» είναι μουσουλμάνοι κάτοικοι της Λαμπουριάς
(Laberia), περιοχής ανατολικά της Χιμάρας (πίσω από τα Ακροκεραύνια
Ορη), με αισθήματα ανάλογα με τους Τσάμηδες. Συχνά γιορτάζουν τις
«ιστορικές επιτυχίες» του οθωμανικού στρατού, που κατέπνιξε την
επανάσταση του 1878, κατακαίοντας τα ελληνικά χωριά στη Β. Ηπειρο.
Αντιστρόφως, ο Μπερίσα κατηγόρησε τον Εντι Ράμα ότι προωθεί τους
δικούς του «γενίτσαρους» στην περιοχή. Αναφέρθηκε στο ότι ο Εντι Ράμα
έχει παραχωρήσει τη νομή της παραθαλάσσιας περιοχής στον βουλευτή του
Σοσιαλιστικού Κόμματος, σύμβουλό του και διαπλεκόμενο επιχειρηματία (με
ελληνικές ρίζες), Κότσο (Κωνσταντίνο) Κοκδήμα, με το αιτιολογικό ότι «οι
Κοκδημαίοι πρόγονοι του νυν βουλευτή από τη Χιμάρα στήριξαν τα
παλιότερα χρόνια την κυβέρνηση της Αυτόνομης Βορ. Ηπείρου του Γεωργίου
Ζωγράφου»!
Στην ουσία, πίσω από τις αλληλοκατηγορίες και τα κροκοδείλια δάκρυα
του Εντι Ράμα για την απώλεια «των στρεμμάτων των Χειμαρραίων» κρύβεται
το ίδιο σχέδιο συστηματικής και προγραμματισμένης αλλοίωσης του
ελληνικού πληθυσμού, καθώς ο Κότσος Κοκδήμας βρίσκεται πίσω από την
«τουριστική ανάπλαση» της παραθαλάσσιας ζώνης της Χιμάρας. Είναι γνωστό
ότι όλες οι αλβανικές κυβερνήσεις έχουν επιχειρήσει να αλλοιώσουν τον
ελληνικό πληθυσμό, αλλά είναι η πρώτη φορά που οι Αλβανοί ηγέτες το
παραδέχτηκαν δημοσίως.
Γενίτσαροι για βρώμικη δουλειά
Ο επιχειρηματίας Κότσος Κοκδήμας (του Θοδωρή και της Ιφιγένειας)
είναι «κολλητός» μυστικοσύμβουλος του πρωθυπουργού Ράμα. Κατάγεται από
τη Χιμάρα και δραστηριοποιείται σε οικοδομικές και επιχειρήσεις ξυλείας
και παράλληλα στον χώρο των media, διαθέτοντας εφημερίδα («shekulli»),
ραδιοσταθμό («+2») και περιοδικό («spector»). Τα προηγούμενα χρόνια
αναδείχθηκε στον υπ' αριθμόν ένα επικριτή του πρώην δημάρχου Χιμάρας και
επί σειρά ετών διακεκριμένου εκπροσώπου της Εθνικής Ελληνικής
Μειονότητας (ΕΕΜ) Βασίλη Μπολάνου γιατί δεν έπαιρνε τις «δουλειές» που
ήθελε. Παρά την ελληνική καταγωγή του, φέρεται ότι τρέφει έντονα
ανθελληνικά αισθήματα. Χειμαρριώτες ανέφεραν στην «κυριακάτικη
δημοκρατία» ότι σε πλήρη ευθυγράμμιση με τον νυν δήμαρχο Γ. Γκόρο
(επίσης ελληνικής καταγωγής, που δήλωνε πριν από τις δημοτικές εκλογές
ότι «οι Ελληνες της Χειμμάρας είναι μετανάστες από την Ελλάδα»)
διακηρύσσει ότι θα κάνει όλη τη Χιμάρα μουσουλμανική, ενώ, όταν κάποιοι
του υπενθύμιζαν ότι λόγω μειονότητας θα πρέπει να ληφθεί υπόψη η Αθήνα,
απαντούσε: «Η Αθήνα είμαστε εμείς!»
Οι αλβανικές κυβερνήσεις εκμεταλλεύονται διαχρονικά τις ασάφειες του
νόμου 7501 που συντάχθηκε μετά την πτώση του κομμουνιστικού καθεστώτος
Χότζα, για την απόδοση της γης στους κατοίκους ανά περιοχή. Ο
βασικότερος νόμος μεταβίβασης ακίνητης περιουσίας από το κράτος στους
πολίτες είναι ο ν. 7501/1991, που έλαβε εξειδικεύσεις ανά τόπο (ταπί).
Με τα «αλβανικά» πρότυπα ο νόμος έδινε ιδιοκτησία αλλά όχι τίτλο. Τα
προβλήματα στην εφαρμογή του ήταν πολλά, λόγω παρατυπιών, λόγω
μεταβολών της γεωμορφολογίας, αλλά και επειδή η εφαρμογή του νόμου
ανατέθηκε σε τοπικές επιτροπές στις οποίες συμμετείχαν άνθρωποι χωρίς
ειδικές γνώσεις. Στο σαθρό αυτό καθεστώς πατούν οι αλβανικές κυβερνήσεις
για να ερμηνεύουν κατά το συμφέρον τους τη χρήση γης και το ποιος την
κατέχει.
Επίσης, πολλοί από τους Ελληνες της μειονότητας, ακαθοδήγητοι από το
εθνικό κέντρο, αποκόπηκαν από τις περιουσίες τους και δεν γνωρίζουν πού
έχουν τα χωράφια τους. Ολες αυτές οι λεπτομέρειες κάνουν την κυβέρνηση
να επεμβαίνει στις περιουσίες χωρίς αντίσταση.
Το σχέδιο του «στραγγαλισμού»
Τα τελευταία 25 χρόνια η πολιτική που εφαρμόζουν οι Αλβανοί είναι
απλή: υφαρπάζουν τις περιουσίες από τους Βορειοηπειρώτες, προκαλώντας
τους οικονομικές δυσκολίες, και τους υποχρεώνουν να αφήσουν τις
πατρογονικές εστίες τους. Η περιουσία τους καταλήγει σε Αλβανούς, οι
οποίοι με τη σειρά τους θα μετακομίσουν στη νέα περιουσία τους,
αλλάζοντας έτσι την πληθυσμιακή σύνθεση της εκάστοτε περιοχής. Πρόκειται
για αποδοτική εθνοκάθαρση μέσω οικονομικού στραγγαλισμού. Οταν ο
σχεδιασμός ολοκληρωθεί, οι Ελληνες θα βρεθούν αποξενωμένοι από τον
ισχυρότερο δεσμό γης. Το σλβανικό βαθύ κράτος θα έχει έτσι οριστικά
απαλλαγεί από τον βραχνά της ελληνικής παρουσίας στην περιοχή για πρώτη
φορά από την αρχαιότητα! Θα έχει συντελεστεί με τον τρόπο αυτόν ακόμα
μία καταστροφή, με το ελληνικό κράτος απλώς να παρατηρεί και εκ των
υστέρων να μοιρολογεί.
Νίκος Σταυρουλάκης / Κυριακάτικη Δημοκρατία Πηγή: http://www.himara.gr
Both
Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbs are reportedly concerned about
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama's planned visit to the upcoming economy
and security summit in Belgrade.
Some
of Albania's leaders are reportedly alarmed over Albanian Prime
Minister Edi Rama's decision to speak on behalf of Kosovo. Meanwhile,
some Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo
Serbs have reacted angrily to Rama's intention to attend the
forthcoming Belgrade summit on the economy and security, scheduled
for October.
The Albanian delegation of industrialists headed by Rama is due
to take part in the summit, which is slated to be held in Belgrade
between October 12 and October 14.
High on the agenda will be bolstering economic cooperation
between Tirana and Belgrade as well as discussing Albanian-Serbian
relations in the region. The gathering is expected to be attended by a
delegation from Kosovo, due to be headed by the Deputy Minister of the
Local Self-Government of Kosovo, Bajram Gecaj.
Serbian Progressive Party supporters hold Serbian flag during a pre-election rally in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 21, 2016
In an interview with Sputnik, Pristina-based
political analyst Berat Buzhala said that it is unclear how "the people
of Kosovo will react to such a move by Edi Rama," and that he is very
much concerned about the fact that Edi Rama moves to speak in Belgrade
on behalf of Kosovo."
He added that he wants the Kosovo authorities to continue
negotiations with Belgrade, and that the venue of the talks should not
be moved to Tirana.
"I think that Tirana must not represent Kosovo
anywhere in the world. Issues under discussion are not the problems
of relations between Albania and
Serbia. These are the problem of Kosovo and Serbia. And I would very
much like their early resolution, but without Edi Rama," Buzhala said.
He described Kosovo as a full-fledged state, saying that only
Kosovo's own leaders are authorized to negotiate with Belgrade and
resolve internal problems.
In the meantime, Kosovar Serbs see Rama's participation in the
upcoming economic summit in Belgrade as a sign that Serbia is signaling
its readiness to recognize Kosovoa as an independent state.
Momcilo Trajkovic, chairman of the Serbian Resistance Movement
from Kosovo and Metohija, told Sputnik that he is not surprised
about the latest events on the matter.
"The Kosovo authorities are gradually begin to open checkpoints in Central Serbia,
and they are looking for a way to justify it. All this may slowly
but surely lead to the recognition of Kosovo's independence
by Belgrade," he said.
Prime
Minister of Serbia and Albania Aleksandar Vucic and his Albanian
counterpart agreed during last month's Conference of the Western Balkans
with EU countries leaders to hold the congress, which will be attended
by Serbian and Kosovar politicians and businessmen.
According to them, the gathering should see the sides clinching a
deal strengthening bilateral cooperation and improving relations
between Serbia and Albania.
During the visit of the Albanian Prime Minister to Serbia, the sides
are also expected to negotiate direct flights of the air carrier Air
Serbia in the direction of Belgrade-Pristina. Rama, for his part,
recently touted the Serbian-Albanian ties as "good", but added that the
main problem between Belgrade and Tirana is related to their divisions
on Kosovo's status.
The leaders of "Vetevendosje" take Albanian citizenship, a list decreed by President Nishani
Senior officials of Vetevendosje Movement have received Albanian citizenship.
President of the Republic of Albania of Albania, Bujar Nishani has decided to grant citizenship president of this movement, Visar Ymer and former leader Albin Kurti.
In the list are also MP of Vetevendosje, Aida Dërguti, and leader of the Parliamentary group Glaus Konjufca. In the list are also Liburn Molliqaj and Dardan Aliu .
With this act, Albin Kurti, can create a political movement similar to "Vetevendosje" in Albania, launched by the Parliament of Albania, the unification of Albania with Kosovo.
According to the geo-strategic analysts, such a move sponsored by USA, can bring a plain B in the Balkans, change of borders and the creation of ethnic states.
Former CIA official Stephen Cohen, in an opinion some time ago, has analyzed changes of borders in the Balkans, could create new divisions in the Balkans, based on the creation of ethnic states.
Between Albania and Kosovo, Movement "Vetevendosje" led by Albin Kurti, has been described as a political mechanism which will convene a referendum on unification of Albania with Kosovo, while giving Albanian citizenship by Albanian President Nishani, marks the first officially step of this
process.
The leaders of "Vetevendosje" take Albanian citizenship, a list decreed by President Nishani
Senior officials of Vetevendosje Movement have received Albanian citizenship.
President of the Republic of Albania of Albania, Bujar Nishani has decided to grant citizenship president of this movement, Visar Ymer and former leader Albin Kurti.
In the list are also MP of Vetevendosje, Aida Dërguti, and leader of the Parliamentary group Glaus Konjufca. In the list are also Liburn Molliqaj and Dardan Aliu .
With this act, Albin Kurti, can create a political movement similar to "Vetevendosje" in Albania, launched by the Parliament of Albania, the unification of Albania with Kosovo.
According to the geo-strategic analysts, such a move sponsored by USA, can bring a plain B in the Balkans, change of borders and the creation of ethnic states.
Former CIA official Stephen Cohen, in an opinion some time ago, has analyzed changes of borders in the Balkans, could create new divisions in the Balkans, based on the creation of ethnic states.
Between Albania and Kosovo, Movement "Vetevendosje" led by Albin Kurti, has been described as a political mechanism which will convene a referendum on unification of Albania with Kosovo, while giving Albanian citizenship by Albanian President Nishani, marks the first officially step of this
process.
The
former New York City Mayor argues that the severity of Hillary’s
condition remains unknown to the public because the media has been
aiding her throughout the campaign.
Former
New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who served the city on the day that
9/11 struck and formerly was Hillary’s chief rival in her bid for the US
Senate, struck once again about Clinton’s rumored health issues which
have become a major talking point after video footage where it appears
the former Secretary of State suffered a footage in front of a cadre
of reporters – the incident went unmentioned by the media until it
appeared later on YouTube.
"All you’ve got to do is go online," Giuliani commented on Fox News. "Go online and put down 'Hillary Clinton illness' and take a look at the videos for yourself."
Giuliani said that despite the former Secretary of State’s
purportedly waning physical condition, which her rival Donald Trump
frequently alludes to by questioning her "stamina" to fulfill the duties
of the office of US President, he believes that she has a built
in political advantage that has masked the severity of her condition.
"She doesn’t need to campaign," the former New York City mayor
opined. "She has the New York Times, she has the [New York] Daily News,
she has ABC, she has CBS, she has NBC. She has an entire media empire
that constantly demonizes Donald Trump and fails to point out that she
hasn’t had a press conference in 300 days – 200 days, 100 days, I don’t
know how long – and fails to point out several signs of illness by her."
Giuliani’s thoughts about Hillary’s physical health has been derided
by the media as a "conspiracy theory" or a "hoax" despite growing
concern emanating from visuals of the former Secretary of State falling,
the infamous seizure video and other visual signs that she may be
suffering from a condition.
Clinton did resign from her post as Secretary of State somewhat
spontaneously after suffering complications following a concussion. It
has been widely rumored that Hillary Clinton may have suffered mild
brain damage, either as a result of the immediate injury, or due to a
mild secondary stroke.
Trump’s national spokeswoman, Katrina Pierson claims that the
Democratic nominee exhibits symptoms of dysphasia, a neurological
condition caused by a brain injury resulting in partial or complete
impairment of the ability to communicate using speech. The basis
for this out of the blue diagnosis by an individual with questionable,
if any, knowledge of medical conditions remains uncertain as Secretary
Clinton has shown herself capable of speaking before large rallies and,
albeit not often, before reporters.
If Hillary does have a chronic physical condition, it may not
disqualify her from office nor may it ultimately be viewed as any more
than a fleeting fascination for the public. Two of America’s most
revered Presidents, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy (JFK)
both had debilitating health conditions. FDR, in fact, was unable
to stand unaided under normal conditions – something that it seems
Donald Trump currently suggests would disqualify the hallowed leader.
Unlike Greece and Serbia, Montenegro could allow controversial historian Tahir Veliu to enter the country to promote his book about his project to create a 'Greater Albania'.
Podgorica Tahir Veliu. Photo: Movement for a United Albania.
The Police Administration in Montenegro told BIRN that if Albanian politician and historian Tahir Veliu were to approach a border post to enter the country, he would be allowed to come in “if he meets the legal requirements”.
The police did not explain exactly what that means, but under Montenegrin law, border officers can deny enter to foreigners if they pose a “threat to the constitutional order and security of Montenegro”.
Tahir Veliu has announced that he will hold a promotional event for his book about a pan-Albanian state in Montenegro on August 20.
The event is reportedly scheduled to take place in the majority Albanian town of Tuzi, near the capital Podgorica.
A spokesperson for the Police Administration, Tamara Popovic, told BIRN that a public meeting in Tuzi related to Veliu’s visit had not been announced to or approved by the police.
“The obligation to seek police permission applies only to gatherings in public areas and when they include more than 20 people,” Popovic said.
Veliu is the leader of the recently-founded Movement for a United Albania, LSHB, an organisation which “intends to unite Albanians into a single state”.
“A united Albania, besides being the most valuable ideal of every Albanian, proposes a true Albania with its legal and historical borders, and guarantees permanent stability in the region,” Veliu wrote on his website earlier in August.
On Sunday, the Greek authorities refused Veliu entry into the country for a planned promotional event for his book, according to Serbian TV station N1, which quoted Greek media reports.
Veliu tried to enter Greece at the Kakavija crossing on the Greek-Albanian border. He had previously been declared ‘persona non grata’ because of his claim that parts of Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia “belong to Albania”.
Veliu reportedly intended to present his book in Yannian, an area predominantly inhabited by Albanians in the 19th Century.
On August 7, Serbian police banned Veliu from entering the country and declared him ‘persona non grata’ after the Movement for a United Albania announced a promotion in the majority-Albanian town of Presevo.
But two weeks ago, Veliu visited the Macedonian capital Skopje, and gave a speech promoting his United Albania idea.
In the speech, Veliu said that the only rightful solution for Albanians who were living “under the occupation of an artificial Macedonia” was self-determination.
Veliu’s view match those of Albanian opposition politician Koco Danaj, another promoter of a campaign to create a pan-Albanian state in the Balkan region.
Danaj, leader of an opposition party called the List for a Natural Albania, has served as an adviser to several Albanian prime ministers, and launched an initiative in 2013 to collect a million signatures from Albanian expatriates living in Europe to convince Western governments of the need to unite all Albanians into one state.
According to Danaj’s plan, ‘Natural Albania’ should include all areas inhabited by Albanian-speaking people, both where they currently form the ethnic majority in Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Greece, and areas where they were in the majority in the past but were expelled over the past century. - See more at: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-could-allow-entry-to-pan-albania-state-promoter-08-18-2016#sthash.GwQCcDan.dpuf
The Muslim populations of the two Balkan ethnic-majority
Albanian states have historically practised a moderate form of Sunni
Islam. In Albania and Kosovo, some fear that this may be changing.
Despite a centuries-old tradition
of religious tolerance among Albania’s 2.8 million people, the Islamic
State (ISIS) has found a small but devoted following.
More than 100 Albanians have traveled to the Middle East to join the terrorist group, and a few have gained prominence.
Their call to Islamist militancy has been echoed by a handful of
ultra-conservative mosques that have sprung up in Albania in recent
years, some of them built with help from Islamic charities and
missionaries from Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf region.
Ironically, for nearly 50 years until the collapse of communism in
1990, the country’s Marxist leaders proclaimed Albania to be the world’s
first atheist state, officially banning religious observances and
persecuting imams and priests.
But the fall of Communism provided an opening for extremists. Islamic
charities, some with the backing of oil-rich Gulf kingdoms, began
building mosques and madrassas. Young students were offered scholarships
to study theology under the tutelage of fundamentalist clerics in Saudi
Arabia.
In the past decade, Albania has witnessed a proliferation of
independent mosques, unaffiliated with the Muslim Community of Albania,
the organization that presides over the country’s moderate worship
centers.
Extremist messages find fertile ground in poorer neighborhoods and
villages, where official corruption is high and unemployment among young
adults often exceeds 40 per cent.
“Religion has never been the problem here; it’s education. It’s the
lack of a developed civil society. And it’s poverty, especially in the
remote areas,” Ylli Manjani, the country’s justice minister, remarked in
an interview with the Washington Post.
Albania’s government has now passed laws forbidding participation in
the Islamic State, and the security services have cracked down on
recruits making the trek to Iraq and Syria. Some mosques were closed or
forced to change leadership.
Three clerics and six others were sentenced in May to prison terms of
up to 18 years for encouraging young Albanians to embrace violent
jihad.
In Kosovo, whose 1.8 million mostly ethnic Albanians were liberated
by NATO from Serbian domination in 1999, extremist clerics and secretive
associations funded by Saudis and others have also transformed a
once-tolerant Muslim society into a font of extremism.
Newly-arrived clerics sought to overtake the Islamic Community of
Kosovo, an organization that for generations has been the custodian of
the tolerant form of Islam that was practiced in the region.
Saudi-sponsored charities often paid salaries and overhead costs, and
financed courses in religion, as well as English and computer classes.
Many were funded by Al Waqf al Islami, a Saudi organization that was one
of 19 eventually closed by investigators.
Families were given monthly stipends on the condition that they
attended sermons in the mosque and that women and girls wore the veil.
“They promoted political Islam,” according to Fatos Makolli, the
director of Kosovo’s counterterrorism police, who spoke to the New York
Times. “They spent a lot of money to promote it through different
programs mainly with young, vulnerable people, and they brought in a lot
of Wahhabi and Salafi literature.”
Some 200 Kosovars took advantage of scholarships after the war to
study Islam in Saudi Arabia. Many returned with missionary zeal.
Kosovo now has 240 mosques built since the 1999 war and blamed for helping indoctrinate a new generation in Wahhabism.
The influence of the radical clerics reached its apex with the war in
Syria, as they extolled the virtues of jihad and urged young people to
go there.
Over the last two years, the police have identified 314 Kosovars,
including two suicide bombers, 44 women and 28 children, who have gone
abroad to join the Islamic State, the highest number per capita in
Europe.
Kosovo’s interior minister, Skender Hyseni, recently reprimanded some of the senior religious officials.
“I told them they were doing a great disservice to their country,” he
stated. “Kosovo is by definition, by Constitution, a secular society.
There has always been historically an unspoken interreligious tolerance
among Albanians here, and we want to make sure that we keep it that
way.”
It won’t be easy.
Henry Srebrnik is a professor of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island.
US Vice President Joe Biden and Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic. Photo Source: Serbian Government Website
Summer
is usually the time when political activities tend to subside, but that
has not been the case in the Balkans this year, particularly in Serbia.
With a new government sworn in, economy still struggling, tense
relations with its neighbors, and amid a visit by the US vice president
Joseph Biden, Serbia was a hot name in Balkan geopolitics this summer.
New Serbian government : Reforms vs. Controversies
It took Aleksandar Vucic, the recently
re-affirmed Serbian Prime Minister about three months to form a new
government. Mr. Vucic’s new cabinet won the popular mandate on a
platform that promised increased reforms and completing talks for
Serbia’s entry into the EU by 2019, while at the same time maintaining
close ties with Russia.
Mr. Vucic comes from an
ultra-nationalist background. He lately started to nurture more of a
centrist image after his party started to hold state power since 2014.
The fresh elections of 2016 reasserted Mr. Vucic’s popularity, and
provided an opportunity to broaden his coalition to share the
responsibilities of his proposed reforms.
Although there were signs that the Mr.
Vucic was considering coalition partners outside of the SPS, the party
formed during the early nineties by Slobodan Milosevic, the final
changes in the Vucic cabinet were limited. Some local analysts have even
started asking the question what was the utility of the fresh
elections, given that cabinet changes were so few and far between?
Prime Minister Vucic’s reform minded
policy plans appear as follows: to establish his personal status as the
great leader who resolved Serbia’s economic blights, bring the country
on the brink of the EU membership, resolve the status of Kosovo
permanently, mend relations with the neighboring states, particularly
Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and at the same time, remain in good
relations with Russia besides developing strong ties with China and
Arab states.
The centrist Serbian weekly magazine
“Vreme” characterize Mr. Vucic’s rule as that of holding the country in a
“state of perpetual election campaign”.
Mr. Vucic wants to assert himself as the
policy lead and chief negotiator in negotiations with the EU. As part
of that plan, he took positive steps in improving relations with
Serbia’s neighbors, for example, signing adeclaration of understanding with the Croatian President Ms. Grabar-Kitarovic in June 2016, and agreeing to hold a trilateral meeting
between Serbia, Albania and Kosovo later in the year. There were also
noticeable attempts at developing stronger relations with the West.
Prime Minister Vucic’s ministerial
appointments reflect his agenda for improved international ties as well.
He retained the finance minister Dusan Vujovic, a former World Bank
economist, whose confirmation is seen as a signal of continuation of economic policies
undertaken since 2014 when Mr. Vucic first came to power. This is a
welcome news given that the Serbian economy is still sluggish and
lagging other countries in the region, and Mr. Vucic’s centrist policies
have shown some serious promise fixing the economy.
Mr. Vucic replaced Ms. Kori Udovicki,
the previous minister for state administration, a sensitive post in a
country that needs deep reduction in state administration costs. Ms.
Udovicki was an Yale graduate and former UN assistant secretary. Mr.
Vucic gave Ms. Udovicki’s portfolio to Ms. Ana Brnabic,
a graduate of the University of Hull, England, former USAID official in
Serbia, who also happens to be the Balkan region’s first openly gay
minister.
To nurture stronger ties with Russia,
Mr. Vucic is going to rely on his main coalition partner SPS and its
leader Mr. Ivica Dacic. Along with the current Serbian President Mr.
Tomislav Nikolic, a key member of Vucic’s ruling SNS party, Mr. Dacic is
widely seen as the key “Russia guy” within the Serbian government.
The dualism inherent within the
reformist agenda of Prime Minister Vucic, where he wants warm relations
with both the West and Russia is expected to not go without
controversies. The SPS leader and Foreign Minister Mr. Ivica Dacic and
Labor Minister Mr. Aleksandar Vulin, known to be an “old fashioned”
anti-West politician, recently proposed erection of a statue of former
Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic as part of a new national
monument in Belgrade. President Slobodan Milosevic was controversially claimed by Serbian Foreign Minister Mr. Dacic as being “exonerated” by the International Crimes Tribunal for Yugoslavia.
While the Serbian President Mr. Tomislav Nikolic remained ambiguous in his support for the Milosevic monument by stating that “he is being torn between being in favor and against”
such a monument, Prime Minister Mr. Vucic remained more measured and
calculative, even though he allowed Mr. Dacic and Mr. Vulin go out to
the public with their controversial monument building proposal. For his
part, Prime Minister Vucic publicly stated that “he did not want to
remain in the Nineties”, and that he was “angered by the glorification
of Milosevic’s policy and of what he did.” Media reports suggested that
Mr. Vucic thinks it is “neither the right place nor the right time” to
engage on the Milosevic monument.
Mr. Vucic’s statements are helpful in
de-escalation of nationalistic sentiments in the Balkans, particularly
in response to latest radical moves in neighboring Croatia, where there
was a similar issue around building amonument commemorating Mr. Miro Baresic, the man who infamously murdered the Yugoslav ambassador to Sweden in 1971.
US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit : Serbia showcases US support
The Milosovic monument controversy crept
into the affairs surrounding the visit of the US vice president Joe
Biden to Belgrade. While it was first planned that Mr. Dacic as the
foreign minister of Serbia would greet Mr. Biden at the airport, at the
last minute it was the Prime Minister Mr. Vucic who greeted Mr. Biden
first.
Mr. Vucic had to cancel his Washington
D.C. visit in June 2016 for undisclosed reasons. He reportedly have
worked hard to mend ties with the US during the Vice President Biden’s
visit.
After the talks, Mr. Biden publicly stated
that “The United States and Serbia do not agree on every issue”, and
the Vice President also extended his condolences “to the families of
those whose lives were lost during the wars of the 1990s, including as a
result of the NATO air campaign [of 1999].” The NATO air strikes
referred here by Mr. Biden lasted from March 24, 1999 to June 10, 1999,
under the operational code name “Operation Allied Force”. The NATO
bombardment continued until the withdrawal of Yugoslav armed forces from
Kosovo and till the commencement of the UN peacekeeping mission there.
The NATO intervention was to protect the Albanian population in Kosovo
who were being persecuted by ultra nationalist Serbs, Serbian police,
and Serbian paramilitary forces. The NATO bombing was not authorized by
the United Nations due to veto threats from Russia and China. NATO
went ahead with the bombings, which killed about 600 people in today’s
Serbia under the operation which was described as a humanitarian
intervention at that time by NATO.
During the talks between Mr. Vucic and
Mr. Biden, the former got the much needed promise of economic support
from the United States, as well as the promise that the latter will put
pressure on Kosovo to continue the stalled Brussels negotiations.
The US Vice President kept his words
during his visit to Kosovo as part of the same tour, when he urged
Kosovo to seek reconciliation and work towards normalization of
relations with Serbia in order to make progress towards joining the European Union.
From the standpoint of US interests, Mr. Biden went to the Balkans to
initiate engagement and peace making among former enemies namely Serbia,
Kosovo, and Albania.
Serbian Prime Minister Mr. Vucic made
few concessions of his own during the talks with Mr. Biden. Serbia
agreed to play an active role in the trilateral talks between Serbia,
Albania and Kosovo. Mr. Vucic also promised to put pressure on Bosnian
Serb president Mr. Milorad Dodik to cancel a referendum that is
increasingly likely to take place in the Bosnian Serb entity Republika
Srpska on their “Republika Srpska day”. The referendum is drawing
condemnations and warnings from Bosnians and Western officials. A
constitutional court declared the day unconstitutional, and this
referendum may eventually work as a precursor to the entity’s secession
from Bosnia in the future.
During the talks between Mr. Biden and
Mr. Vucic, the Serbian Prime Minister also accepted to receive more
former Guantanamo Bay detainees along with the two that were already
sent to Serbia.
Vucic’s balancing acts to continue
Serbia is expected to continue its
attempts to balance as much possible between the West and Russia,
improve ties with its neighbors and former enemies. The Russian Prime
Minister Dmitry Medvedev is expected to visit Serbia later this year.
After receiving
19 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles or “HMMWVs” from the
United States for participating in UN peace keeping operations, Serbia
announced a set of joint military exercises with Russian armed forces to
be held soon.
Since non-alignment is not an option any
more, Serbian Prime Minister Mr. Vucic’s balancing acts between the
West and Russia are quite intriguing, however, their eventual outcome
will remain murky for quite sometime. This will for sure keep the Balkan
observers engaged for years to come.
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