Political meddling in historical facts and honors needs to end, with all changes in street names and monuments done only after a long public consultation period and with advice from independent historians, not orders from party headquarters.
By ANDI BALLA
Seventy years ago, a few months before the end of WWII, more than eighty Tirana residents were dragged from their homes and executed without a trial. They were suspected communist sympathizers or just people at the wrong place at the wrong time. The massacre was honored by giving the name Deshmoret e 4 Shkurtit (The February 4 Fallen) to a street in downtown Tirana, which had the distinction of being the main street of the closed-off Bllok neighborhood, from where communist leaders led one of the most brutal regimes in Europe.
Two years ago, the street name was changed with little explanation and renamed after Ibrahim Rugova, the late Kosovo president. No one would argue against naming a street after Rugova, a beacon of nonviolent resistance who is revered anywhere Albanians live. He should probably get a wide boulevard named after him for his service.
But the decision to strip this particular street of its former name was seen by many as very wrong and as part of a series of other wrong efforts by politicians to use historical facts to advance their political needs. These include the naming and renaming of streets and squares as well as monument placement and replacements.
Today’s political parties, whether it is the right or the left, want to focus on historical figures and facts they see closer to their shade of the political spectrum, which is fine, but the problem is that they try to be exclusive rather than inclusive, highlighting one side of history while trying to delete or minimize the rest.
We suspect the average Albanian citizen does not want the symbols or history to be exclusive. He or she prefers co-existence and for each political figure to take the merits and demerits of his or her service to the Albanian people. Who decides? History should be left to the historians and that discussion too should be as inclusive and as well-researched as possible.
The genesis of this editorial today is an initiative of the Socialist Movement for Integration to reverse the Deshmoret e 4 Shkurit name change. It is ironic that the same party that was in power and in a coalition with the center-right Democrats when this and other changes happened has now had a change of heart, but it also points out that it is again a political party that is taking the lead in what should be a civic action.
Albania is not unique in former communist Europe with this problem. In Poland, Hungary and the Baltic republics there have been similar cases of controversial honors and dishonors.
But, at least in theory, a solutions is available. Political meddling in historical facts needs to end: Each street or square renaming, and each monument placement and movement should be done only after a long public consultation period and with advice from independent historians, not orders from party headquarters.
