Remarks
by the vice-President of the Parliament of Albania, Mr. Namik Dokle
Mister President
Distinguished colleagues,
Thanking the Macedonian
colleagues for the organization of this important conference in this
crucial moment, I would also like to convey to all the other colleagues
from the region, a message of sincere cooperation and good understanding
from the Parliament of Albania. We come at this meeting committed to
contribute to the strengthening of dialogue, based on the values of
the democratic Europe.
This conference which
has gathered the highest representatives of the Southeast European parliaments,
proves the consolidation of the already establish cooperation among
the countries from the region. The chairmanship with this process from
different countries so far and their contribution have resulted already
with the accumulation of democratic experiences and the acquisition
of an integrating political code in our relations. The presence of the
highest representatives of the Council of Europe, of the OSCE and the
European Union and other international organizations at this meeting,
proves the importance that these prestigious organizations give to the
this process, and at the same time work on the concept of wider visions
and European values.
When I talk about European
visions, I refer first and foremost to the future. Often we the nations
of the Balkans, consider ourselves as the most ancient in Europe. We
boast that when Homer wrote the Iliad, the city of Paris did not exist;
we boast that when Cyril and Method invented the alphabet, Nobel was
not born yet; we boast that when the ancient city of Durres in Albania
was teaching the Romans to culture, the Great Duchy of Moscovia was
nothing but an unknown village.
While we must remember
history and the past, we still have to build the future. And we must
recall the genius though of Churchill saying "the Balkans produce
more history than they can consume. In other words, our region produces
such conflicts that they are often difficult to be resolved".
In this overall context,
my country Albania is determined to push forward the process of regional
integration and cooperation. For the Albanian this is one of the essential
values to achieve stability and peace in the region. The parliamentary
dimension is a powerful factor in the promotion of the integration process
among the countries from the region and one of the most efficient means
to fight against nationalist and isolationist trends, based on ethnic
origins or inspired by old alliances, which have become obsolete in
the eyes of current generations. The ideas of "Greater Serbia",
"Greater Bulgaria or "Greater Albania", wherever they
come from, seem to me as highly dangerous nationalist hallucinations.
The Albanian Parliament knows only one great union of Europe, which
today counts 43 member countries - the Council of Europe.
This is our future and
in the name of this future and our democratic process, it is indispensable
to encourage the activities and the structures that produce:
- Peace instead of conflict;
- Free voting instead of violence;
- Conventionality of the borders instead of their closing;
- Integration instead of isolationism;
- Free movement instead of obstacles;
- Exchange of cultures instead of disputes;
- Ethnic coexistence instead of domination;
- Rapprochement of people instead of confrontation.
The fact that the situation
in our region continues to be burdened with provocations and signs of
instability does not follow this direction. It is regrettable that elements
that generate tension and nervousness, have lately multiplied. After
the resolution of the Kosovo crisis and the democratic changes in Serbia,
it would be logical for the tensions to decrease. On the contrary, the
tension has increased.
- The situation in Mitrovica
remains tensioned and this city is becoming a small Berlin, loaded with
big problems;
- The political prisoners of Kosovo, who until yesterday were held hostages
of Milosevic, remain still prisoners and do not yet, have the answer
to the question, "When will they be released?"
- The armed provocations or the actions of the extremist groups these
recent days in the Valley of Preshevo and especially in Macedonia are
more than preoccupying.
According to our concept,
there is only one solution to these issues: the political and democratic
dialogue. The extremist approaches, wherever they come from enjoy no
support and have no future. Violence of any kind is unacceptable. The
situation must not be allowed to degenerate into an armed conflict.
I think that all possibilities existent, for the pending questions to
be resolved through peaceful means, in a spirit of mutual trust and
through the respect of equality among the citizens with all legal and
constitutional guarantees. The bases to the peaceful cohabitation in
Macedonia, must not be violated by old mentalities and old politics;
they must neither bear the burden of violence and demonstration of power.
The respect of values of the Council of Europe, stipulating that all
citizens are equal among them, open wide prospective for mutual understanding.
By "disarming" the spirit of the people we will not have guerillas
in the mountains or tanks in the cities.
Albania is one of the
first countries that recognized the independence of the Macedonian state,
by considering it as a factor of stability in the region. In regards
to the last events, all state institutions of Albania, as well as the
political entities and those pertaining to the civil society in Kosovo
and in Macedonia, have unanimously and coherently expressed themselves
in favor of mutual understanding, tolerance and cooperation; they have
condemned the violence as a means to achieve political goals, and have
committed themselves to support a democratic, peaceful and integrating
solution.
Moreover, I would like
to express my appreciation for the fact the political situation in Kosovo
is still present in the agenda of the Council of Europe and other organizations
that have contributed to the resolution of the crisis. In addition,
the future of Kosovo and its status, is not only a Serbian and Albanian
problem, nor a simply regional one, it is an international problem,
which it compatible to its current status of an international protectorate.
This protectorate, the presence of KFOR troops and the civil Administration
of the UN in the region, the civil and military dimension of the international
presence, have had positive effects on the preservation of the stability.
I consider, that a conference such as the Dayton one would be highly
beneficial for Kosovo, after the parliamentary elections. The organization
of these elections, would serve to improve the situation and to strengthen
the democracy, the ethnic cohabitation and the prosperity.
Distinguished colleagues,
The advancement of the
cooperation between the countries of Southeast Europe and the European
Union is a considerable acquisition for all the countries in the region.
This progress has received an additional impulse in the course of the
Zagreb Summit last year. Regardless of the various stages with the European
Union, we consider that each individual success of the countries is
a success for the whole region. At the same time, the difficulties and
the obstacles faced by all the countries in this direction, bear hard
consequences for the whole region. We have welcomed the concrete steps
taken by Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria and Macedonia in this direction
and we intend to follow the positive experiences so far.
In this context, we consider
that the fight against illegal trafficking and organized crime, to be
one of the priorities in our cooperation. In accordance with the official
Albanian policy, "the crime has no country, it doesn't know any
ethnic belonging, and it doesn't know any border." No one will
be protected if acting alone. If we cooperate in the fight against organized
crime, the results will be guaranteed and beneficial for all of us.
We should not forget that often political tensions are encouraged by
the international mafia, which has always considered that the destabilization
of a certain region is a fertile land for illegal trafficking.
The long-term stability
of our region requires strengthening of the cooperation process. It
is related to the implementation of one of the fundamental and oldest
principals of the Helsinki Charter, especially the one referring to
the free movement of people, goods and ideas. For the Albanian Parliament
and Government, the European integration begins with the good neighborliness
and the regional integration. This is why I wish to reaffirm here that
the free movement of people, goods and ideas, the liberalization of
markets, the realization of common projects, the establishment of a
regional "Shengen", would show to the western world the new
mentality that we nurture today in our region.
We are being offered a
great opportunity today with the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe.
In its essence, it embodies the serious involvement of the European
Union, of the United States and the international institutions in view
of the prosperity and stability of our region. The Pact remains the
surest and most serious initiative, a model of integration, of partnership
and of europeanization of our region. Its effective realization will
accelerate the process of progress in our countries respectively.
In order to be able to
intensify the parliamentary dimension in the aforementioned areas, we
have proposed the creation of a parliamentary assembly of the countries
included in the Stability Pact. If there is no objection in this context,
we can soon begin with its realization.
Distinguished colleagues,
Today, we share the same
concerns and the same aspirations for the future of our nations. We
might have different opinions for the same issues, but our common message
is the concept of a modern and European future for the region. These
projects can be realized only if we see the progress of each one among
us as part of the common interest, as a step forward in our integration
in the united and democratic Europe.
Thank you for your attention.
