Albanian politics: same old business

By Jerina Zaloshnja
It is only natural that whoever is unfamiliar with the way politics and its players operate in Albania feels worried on witnessing the deep going discord in relations between the Government and the Opposition, the conflict between central and local government, controlled by the parties in the Opposition; the appeals to boycott the upcoming local elections, the threats of street protests and the non recognition of institutions; the conduct of the two main parties as if they represent two different states; how they avoid institutions and boycott Parliament. But for those who are familiar with how the political system works in Albania, there is nothing new or unheard of for them. Same old business. During the last fifteen years of political transition this has been the predominant scene. The consequences are known. As is known, the least is a colossal waste of energy in political conflict and the neglect of projects to develop the country; and as is again known, the worst is a profound upheaval of the stability and security of the country and even the collapse of the State.
The zero sum game does not function in a democratic system. There have been no winners via this formula, which has been predominant in the process of the evolution of Albanian democracy. There was hope that we had drawn the appropriate lessons. However the indications are not promising. There was hope that there had been a minimal maturing, which, in other words, meant a solution of disagreements via the institutions. But instead of making use of the institutions, the first kind of action that the political parties automatically think about are street protests. The same old business goes for the way the Albanian players try to resolve political conflict. Once again we had a repetition of the third party mediation syndrome. Although not an Albanian phenomenon, this syndrome has also been predominant during Albania’s post communist electoral progress. The same phenomenon appears. Finding themselves in a delicate position with one another and light years away from a spirit of consensus and compromise, the Opposition and the Government turned their eyes to the International Community for help. And we had a repetition of the same old story of the last fifteen years since the collapse of communism.
The political conflict between the government and the Opposition was finally resolved. The same old business. A third party brokered the agreement between the Government and the Opposition and the issues were solved as if by magic. But, prior to reaching a compromise, it was if the Albanian sides represented different states, each in his own trench. This has happened on countless occasions. Political disagreements have been solved by third parties. And as we know, there is no lack of voices here that frequently even find fault with the mediators, the third party, the OSCE for example. It appears that in our political conduct too, time and again, there is an urge to find an enemy at all costs, outside of our ranks. The mediation of the International Community is still needed in this very fragile Albanian democracy. However, this can not go on forever. We should have been demonstrating political maturity and a growth of democracy by finding a compromise on our own, without the need for third party intervention. It is no longer acceptable for a country that aspires to EU membership to reveal that it is incapable of settling political squabbles between institutions. Whilst all heading downhill into a full blown political crisis, all the political parties vocalized endlessly about European standards and defended their stands again with European standards. All of them speak as if they are foreign diplomats or representatives of the IC. The Head of State too also repeated that the political parties must head towards consensus and resolve their differences institutionally. But could not the President of the Republic have taken the initiative, for example, to be the mediator between the Albanian political parties?