Republic of Albania
Nationwide Reconciliation Committee
National Assembly of Reconciliation Missionaries
Address: Rr. “M. Muça”, Pall. 46, Ap. 23, Tirana, Albania
Tel & Fax: 00355 4 2 263 126.
Tel: 00355 4 2 259 124 Mobil 00 355 68 27 37 989 00 355 69 32 38 786
web page: www.pajtimi.com
SUBMISSIONS
Before the institutions of the Albanian state, the President, the Assembly of Albania, the Constitutional Court, and the bodies of justice.
ON THE DISRUPTION OF MONOPOLY
On politics, national assets, and the market.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION AND COOPERATION
The European Parliament and Commission, the Council of Europe, the Senate and the Security Committee of the US Congress, the NATO Council, the US State Department, the European Court of Human Rights.
Purpose: Protection of Albanians, prohibition of slave exploitation, removal of monopoly over politics, national assets, and the market.
Paragraph I
Monopoly has ruined democracy and the culture of law; it has led to a lack of justice for many years, with devastating consequences for the country and the lives of citizens. Despite NATO membership and steps made towards EU integration, today’s economic and social situation of the majority of Albanians is very serious as a result of corruption and dysfunction of state institutions. Albania’s partners, the United States of America and the European Union, are determined to protect the functioning of the rule of law and stand firm for the establishment of justice but are abandoned by politics. Albanian society suffers because of the monopoly over politics, national assets, and the market. 60% of citizens have been financially supported for more than 35 years by remittances because corruption at all levels of government, in the central and local administration, has affected the salaries and pensions, which remain dramatically low. Albanians are treated as slaves by a group of politicians and businessmen who have monopolized politics and the state. The monopoly on politics has created a monopoly on the state, the market, and national assets; it has undermined democracy and the rule of law, it has violated society and human dignity, it has brought corruption as a culture, the looting of public property and money, depression in society, violence in families and organized crime, conflicts, murders, suicides, and the abandonment of the country by the majority of citizens. Albanian political parties, in the perception of public opinion, have become the most sophisticated organizations where individuals and groups of organized crime find refuge for the theft of the state budget and public property. In the struggle for power, they have turned several times into violent organizations over the institutions, inciting civil war, but they have never been tried for their criminal activities.
Second Paragraph
Legal status of submissions
Submissions are made by the Senior Elders under the legal status of the National Reconciliation Committee. The National Reconciliation Committee was founded in the 1990s by the most prominent academics and intellectuals of the time in order to prevent conflicts that arose with political pluralism in Albania. The committee has aimed to preserve peace, religious brotherhood, and gender equality, as well as the integration of Albanian society in the European Union. The establishment of this committee was supported by the Secretary General of the UN, Mr. Perez De Cuellar, and the US Department of State since 1990. In 2002, the ambassador of the United States of America, Mr. James Jeffrey, reconfirmed to the Albanian government that the US State Department supports the National Reconciliation Committee and its strategy for the application of tradition in support of the rule of law. This cooperation was deepened by the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Mrs. Nancy Pelosi, in 2008, who expressed interest in the report of the National Reconciliation Committee on the tragic event of Gerdec and the secret political agreement in Tirana, forwarding it to the Security Committee of the US Congress. They cooperated with the National Reconciliation Committee, the United Nations Organization, the Prosecutor’s Office at the Hague Court, the European Court of Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Commissioner, the Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner, the European Parliament, the Office of the European Commission, and the OSCE. The National Reconciliation Committee played a very important role in preventing civil war in 1997, which was instigated by the political leadership. The missionaries of reconciliation stopped the boys from the north of Albania to the south from fighting against the protesters, while at the head of the Public Rescue Committee in Lushnja district, the people elected the representative of the Chairmanship of the Nationwide Reconciliation Committee, Mr. Pasho Uruqi, who stopped any kind of confrontation between citizens and protected the police and institutions from organized attacks.
Third Paragraph
The obligation of the international community toward the sacrifice of the Albanian people for peace
These submissions are made following the conclusions drawn from the two-year expedition of reconciliation missionaries, April 2022 – May 2024, who worked on the ground to promote the culture of law and the rule of law. The submissions coincide with the 80th anniversary of the European victory over Nazism, which brought about humanity’s greatest tragedy in World War II. This victory aligned the Albanian people on the side of the Western Alliance for freedom and the rule of law. In relation to this fact, the High Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation reaffirms its position that the sacrifice of those who died in the Second World War and the day of victory over Nazism should unite the Albanian people on the path of freedom and democracy and not be used by politics as a division among Albanians. The Senior Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation brings to the attention of the International Community that the tragedies of the First and Second World Wars came as a result of the injustices that were made at the expense of the peoples, especially the Albanians. The Senior Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation appeals to the International Community to consider the obligation it has toward the sacrifice of the Albanian people who were divided into five states for the interests of some great powers. It is the duty of this International Community to appreciate the sacrifice of this nation that has never in history violated the territories of its neighbors or the peace in Europe. The National Reconciliation Committee has asked the European Union to prioritize the possibility of compensating the damage through funding in infrastructure, education, health, and the environment in all countries that have taken Albanian territories, because this way, the other peoples of the region can see the value in peace. The damage caused to the Albanians for more than a century amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars and has never been examined by either the Albanian internal policy or the International Community. The International Community must reduce the costs of wars and turn them into investments for peace because no victory in war brings peace. The Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation is against any attitude that promotes hatred, nationalism, or border changes in a United Europe but requires a fair stance from the European Union so that Albanians are equal with the other peoples of Europe. Albanians sacrificed themselves for the peace of Europe; therefore, it is the duty of Europe and the former great powers to appreciate this sacrifice.
Fourth Paragraph
Politics and the state must be based on tradition, virtue, morality, and justice
Albanians in the 20th century were considered capable of running a state when they inherited the best model of the rule of law. They had established their rule of law 800 years before Europe as a means of peace and service based on virtue, morality, and justice, transmitting a unique example of the culture of law. The Arbers never accepted the state as a tool of violence. The Arbers regulated life with their ethical codes that were not related to religion, ideology, or the laws of the conquerors, but only with what was right, showing that the Reign of Justice brings the Reign of Peace and happiness to citizens. The state of Arber was founded in Mirdita, but it spread throughout Arberia as a custom and culture of law, preserving language, customs, and national identity. The state of Arber led Mirdita for 800 years without an army, police, or prisons, without taxes and protests, but only with conscience and justice. That organization protected freedom and the citizens’ need for a safe life, peace, and freedom, in harmony with nature and the environment, without succumbing to the instinct and ego for unjust rule and enrichment. The leaders of the Arbers were noted for their freedom and equality with citizens, clear conscience, and high responsibility for the people. The state was governed according to the laws and codes determined by democratic assemblies and the elders, in which even the children participated. The leaders and elders served without any benefit and remained equal to the citizens all their lives. Taking advantage of property from the leader and the member of the eldership was severely punished, with the burning or confiscation of property as well as beating. Nature and the environment were above all, defined as “IMMOVABLE GOODNESS,” “WORSHIPFUL” that no one could misuse because it was the “COMMON GOOD.” Justice and Right were applied equally to every citizen regardless of religion, gender, background, or social position. The state of Arber is one of the three wonders of humanity: Asia is proud of Buddha (the miracle of philosophy and meditation), Finland is proud of Santa Claus (the miracle of the dream and love of billions of children), while the Albanians are proud of their unique state of law, the State of Arber, the eternal dream of humanity.
Fifth Paragraph
The situation in Albania is contrary to tradition, the rule of law, and the culture of law
If Albanians had preserved their tradition for the rule of law, they would not have experienced the tragic event of the overthrow of the government of Vlora and the assassination of the first prime minister, Ismail Qemali; they would not have needed an international commission to determine the borders; they would not have endured the barbaric movement like that of Haxhi Qamili; they would not have experienced the betrayals of Esat Pasha and the overthrow of the democratic state of Fan Noli; they would not have witnessed the abandonment of the country by the King or the Nazi-fascist occupation of the country; they would not have endured 50 years of isolation under dictatorship and a 35-year transition that has destroyed human values, society, and the country’s assets. In the current situation, due to corruption, Albanian State Institutions do not enjoy authority among the people. Politics has become a concept of evil for citizens. The law and the constitution have been invalidated by misuse. Even when the political class approves laws in accordance with European standards, it does not apply or implement them in society. The main law regarding freedom of life on land and property, mortgage, and legalization has been dragged and misused for 35 years, resulting in self-judgment, conflicts, and thousands of people killed over land and property. Court cases drag on due to corruption and a lack of judges. In all courts, backlogs of files are created due to the lack of judges and prosecutors. They can only be reviewed after several years, when the deadline has passed and the decision is no longer useful or effective. 40% of citizens do not go to court but seek a solution from the elders of the National Reconciliation Committee. All decisions of the elders of reconciliation are accepted by the parties, while court decisions have resulted in 4,200 deaths. The crime of stealing state money has turned into a system that fuels other economic crimes against public property and the environment. The trafficking of laws in parliament has created a monopoly over the market, politics, and wealth of the country. The current political class is perceived by the people as working solely in the interest of ruling and the personal gain of a narrow group connected to the political leadership and its family. Political parties have introduced members into the administration who are unaware of their responsibilities toward citizens. Political parties, which should be the nation’s precious asset, have turned into groups that do not aspire to democracy, justice, and the well-being of the country but rather the narrow interest of holding power. Every Albanian citizen is reluctant to become part of the solution to these problems by participating in politics or voting, as the state and politics are under the negative influence of an empowered minority that monopolizes political parties. Political parties have continuously generated hatred among citizens, inciting conflicts and killings.
Paragraph Six
The monopoly over politics and the market has constantly contributed to rigging, the buying and selling of votes, and the deformation of the electoral process
After 35 years of transition, over 50% of voters do not participate in voting, are not represented in parliament or municipal councils, due to vote rigging by the staff of political parties that hold the monopoly. Parliamentary political parties, in order to maintain their monopoly, adopt electoral laws in favor of the party leader’s preferred deputies through closed lists without competition. This has also created a monopoly over politics and the market. About 200,000 young people who have completed secondary and higher education have emigrated because the market in Albania is monopolized by individuals connected to the government and political parties. The media have not been able to advance society, even though they have diversified and improved in professionalism. Some are under the control of the political leadership that holds the monopoly and finances them. Albanian intelligence services, known for their high level globally, remain disappointed and uninterested in working in Albania. The current political parties have corrupted trade union leaders who should oppose the monopoly over the market. Women’s and youth forums in these parties are corrupted by the party leader they join and are misused. The market for all kinds of domestic products is failing, not only due to monopoly but also due to competition from imported goods connected to monopoly representatives in the market. Unfortunately, the international community has not objectively analyzed Albanian political parties, which lack mission, are not guided by democratic principles, and are unreformed internally. The international community must support public control and justice institutions over the illegal activities of political parties and their leadership and assist in investigating all individuals involved in elected legislative and law-enforcing bodies, without exception, up to senior leaders of political parties, the government, and the state. The monopoly on politics and governance has established formal audit offices within departments with employees appointed by the minister or department head to cover up abuses and thefts. Until now, they have served to hide corruption and theft of budget funds through audit reports controlled by the minister or department head. The people seek justice and demand the punishment of crime up to the highest levels, but this is hindered by political party representatives working against reforms and justice.
Paragraph VII
Political parties must be held responsible before the law for damages to the state and society
Political parties have the constitutional obligation to protect democracy, the rule of law, the state budget, which is the work, sweat, and blood of the people’s children, to raise the economy and the well-being of all citizens and guarantee their happiness, but they have acted contrary to this duty. They have willingly violated the people’s trust and show no remorse because the laws and decisions enacted do not incriminate them; they only strengthen their ruling position. In the Parliament of Albania, there are parties bought and sold by individuals seeking to enrich themselves through government presence. Political parties have not been investigated or tried so far, like any other organization, legal or natural person, even though they should be judged, punished, and outlawed when they fail in their duties, engage in looting the state budget and national assets, commit electoral fraud, and traffic laws in government or corrupt municipal council decisions. They have never been tried for these decisions, nor for the violence against institutions and the killing of citizens in the struggle for power. Through their presence and decision-making in parliament, political parties have pressured and controlled justice. Judicial reform, supported by Albania’s main partners, the USA and the EU, has awakened hope among citizens, but the new justice bodies are attacked publicly and privately by corrupt political representatives. The reform has not been fully implemented, nor is it supported with the necessary financial means, human resources, or infrastructure. Justice remains under the pressure of two destructive factors, politics and organized crime, which cooperate against this justice.
Paragraph VIII
On some legal and institutional reforms as a necessity to break the monopoly
The Senior Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation invites the President of Albania, the Assembly of Albania, the Albanian Government, and the Constitutional Court to reform the law on political parties through their own initiative and cooperation. The law should clearly define the responsibility of political organizations, their leaders, and deputies before the law for fraud against the people, misuse of the state budget, theft of taxes, and for all public works paid for by the state budget but not performed properly. Criminal proceedings should be determined by law for all members of corrupt decision-making bodies, such as the Council of Ministers and Municipal Councils. Elected representatives, deputies, and members of municipal councils, as well as state leaders at any level, should have no immunity before the law for decision-making that contradicts the public interest and favors monopoly. The criminal code should be reformed to ensure that corruption and abuse of office resulting in state budget theft are punished by law with maximum penalties of no less than 25 years imprisonment and are exempted from the statute of limitations for criminal offenses. To increase funding and ensure human resources for the new bodies of justice. Audit offices, which until now have served more to justify state budget abuse than to control it, should be independent of department heads and be transferred to the National Bureau of Investigation and SPAK. The Supreme State Audit and the Assets Control Declaration Institute should serve the new justice institutions. The budget of the audit offices, the high state control, and the High Institute of Declaration and Control of Assets has been inefficient and served corruption, therefore it should be dedicated to justice. The High Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation invites the government and legislators to reform the Ministry of Justice. Justice should not have a minister, as it is contrary to the principle of justice. Justice is independent and should not be minister-led. The government may have a Justice Services agency but not called the Ministry of Justice. Following the model of the United States, the Minister of Justice should be attached to the function of the Prosecutor General, completely independent of the government. It is necessary that in Albania, the private prosecutor’s role be legalized to assist citizens, prosecute crimes against them and the state, pursue corruption and organized crime, and investigate the links between crime and politics while maintaining denunciation secrecy. Laws should be enacted to control assets and vet politicians, deputies, and businessmen who benefit from state budget tenders. Laws should also regulate the control and investigation of money spent on all tenders and projects funded by the state budget. Assets invested with state budget money should be seized and returned to the people’s state. Seized funds should be returned to citizens through compensation, pension increases, and salary adjustments, which should have been no less than 500 Euro for pensions and 1000 Euro as a minimum wage if the state budget had not been stolen.
Paragraph IX
Countering terrorism and fundamentalism in Albanian territories
The High Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation, established for justice and peace among citizens, coexistence, gender equality, and integration in a United Europe, expresses deep indignation at the murder of innocent citizens in Albania and globally due to the absence of the rule of law, war, and terrorism. In this difficult time for humanity, the National Reconciliation Committee reminds the international community that Albanians cannot allow terrorism in their territories, having cultivated and preserved religious brotherhood, peace, freedom, and human dignity for centuries. The National Reconciliation Committee has repeatedly stated that terrorism and fundamentalism are fueled by barbaric, extremist ideologies that are unacceptable to the world’s peoples. Believers of any religion cannot be the cause of this hatred and terrorism against humanity. Violent acts have occurred in Albanian territory, culminating in 1997, leaving over 3000 citizens dead, including innocent women and children. Murders due to blood feuds and revenge during the 35 years of transition have exceeded 15,000 victims. Tragically, domestic violence remains widespread, with daily murders of women and girls, which contradict our civic culture. Women and girls remain controlled by men and boys within families, unequal in society, decision-making, and business, contrary to tradition. Since Princess Teuta’s rule, 300 years before Christ, Albanian women and girls have enjoyed freedom and equal rights with men, uninhibited by patriarchy or post-communist dogmas. During the 500-year Ottoman occupation, the Albanian nation preserved customs and culture to protect gender equality and religious brotherhood. However, organized crime has distorted this culture, with traffickers of women, drugs, and weapons controlling the market and maintaining political ties. History shows that all Albanian territories—from ordinary citizens to leaders like Ali Pasha Tepelena, Ismail Qemali, and Ahmet Zogu—encouraged harmonious life between Muslims and Christians. Yet today, there are thousands of cases of Albanian girls being abused for interfaith relationships, which stems from radical interpretations that deform ancient tradition. The National Reconciliation Committee records all murders since the fall of communism as barbaric, breaching all canonical rules, and has faced opposition from radical groups and terrorists who resist the reconciliation process, murdering reconciliation leaders from 1997 to 2012. Canonical distortions serve organized crime to propagate blood feuds and hatred. Against this underground war, the National Reconciliation Committee has worked tirelessly to spread the rule of law, stopping over 60% of murders. Without the committee and its volunteer missionaries, there would have been over 100,000 victims of barbaric killings from distorted canonical beliefs. The committee works successfully with Albanian religious communities, particularly with the Muslim community, in reconciliation. The committee highlights the peaceful values of Albanian Muslims and urges support for this community as a world leader in Islam, just as Albanian Bektashism has become. It calls on the Albanian people, state, the EU, and the Peace Alliance against terrorism to protect this heritage. The High Eldership of Nationwide Reconciliation requests that the International Community and the Albanian government expose and punish criminal groups and individuals working against reconciliation and tarnishing the committee’s image with disinformation and internet defamation.
Paragraph X
The application of tradition in support of the rule of law, the duty of Albanian state institutions, and the European Union
Europe and the United States have steadfastly preserved legal traditions supporting the rule of law. Not enough has been done to preserve Albania’s heritage for the culture of law and the rule of law. The rules of law in Arber democracy were sacred because they were fair. They were inscribed on walls and stone slabs along the roads of Arberia to be always visible. In the 19th century, Austrian archaeologists placed inscriptions of the Coat of Arms of Arber on the walls of the Church of St. Mary of Arber, where the first state of law was established without an army, police, or prisons, based solely on conscience and justice. The Arbers of Illyria, though pagans, welcomed Apostle Paul, 40 years after Christ’s death, when he preached to them about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the devotion of his mother Mary, who stood by him against tyranny and torture. The Arbers adopted Saint Mary as a symbol of the love and sacrifice of mothers, daughters, and wives, illuminating gender equality. Unfortunately, these values of the rule of law and the Church of Saint Mary of Arber have been neglected. The Church of Arber is the only church in Europe that removed its divine veil to serve civic assemblies. It supported the Arbers under centuries-old conquests in preserving the main pillars of the rule of law, language, territory, coexistence, and community order, free from oppression. No religious institution has played a comparable role in fostering a state of law, equality, virtue, and religious brotherhood as the Church of Saint Mary of Arber did, at a time when blood was shed between nations of different faiths. This role and this church have been left in obscurity. All the Islamic West and East funded the restoration of the Church of St. Mary of Paris, known for its luxury like thousands of other temples that did not fulfill the same role as the Church of St. Mary of Arber, known by citizens as the Church of All Humanity. In 1993, Prime Minister Aleksander Meksi visited this church, supporting its restoration and the establishment of the Arber museum, but the project was not realized nor pursued by area deputies or mayors. In addition to reconciling families in conflict, the National Reconciliation Committee has organized national and international meetings to protect and promote the culture of law and Arber heritage in support of the rule of law. In 2014, on the 800th anniversary of the State of Arber, this committee held a scientific meeting in Tirana on Arber as the Temple of Justice. Foreign academics proposed that the International Conference on the Rule of Law for the Protection of Peace and Human Life be convened in the natural environment of the Arber Center. The conference took place on October 9 and 10, 2023, with 22 foreign researchers and 40 Albanian academics. The conference requested:
- May 25 of every year should be the Commemoration Day of Democracy, Peace, and Prosperity of the State of Arber, with political leaders, representatives of the state, diplomatic corps, deputies, judges, prosecutors, students, and citizens of various countries attending.
- The first Sunday of October, coinciding with Saint Mary of Arber’s day, be declared a National Holiday for Albanians in Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Kosovo.
- The Albanian government should restore the Church of Saint Mary of Arber, build the museum in the additional five rooms built for this purpose in 1993 with contributions from Western churches, and organize the square in front of it.
- The government should fundamentally repair the national road leading to this church, one of the most attractive roads for tourists and a strategic secondary road for NATO.
In light of these submissions and the outcomes of this international conference, we express confidence in the commitment of Albanian institutions and the International Community for the improvement of the situation and the full integration of Albania into the European Union.