By Alba à‡ela
It must have really startled the European MPs at the table, confused them and made them scratch their heads in disbelief. In a bewildering move the MPs representing the opposition in Albania requested to amend the drafted resolution in order NOT to recommend to the Council the setting of the date for opening negotiations with Albania. And then the next day they actually repeated such an AGAINST – recommendation, with the notable exception of the Head of the EU National Council for Integration, Majlinda Bregu. It was upsetting and frustrating. But then those European MPs, seasoned now with the Albanians’ political conflict, must have summoned some courage and gather a smile. What else did they expect?
The reasons that the opposition put forward in their justification of this No vote include their growing concern over the fate of elections next year, their growing concern about the cannabis situation in the country and other similar repeated claims. What they don’t seem to be concerned at all though is the fleeting opportunity for Albania to progress in its EU path, in the most difficult of situations: with an EU retreating into itself to deal with multiple internal and external crisis. It must be a hell of a short sightedness not to be able to see that the window is closing at breakneck speed.
Let’s be clear on one issue: this vote against negations is wrong. Despite the possibility that the elections might be in danger of interference, despite the beliefs you might hold about the cannabis amounts and despite all else, Albania needs and deserves to get ahead in its European integration process. First of all Albania has done no more and no less than other countries which have already started negations from the Western Balkans 6. Second, the pressure on decision making and policy making from the EU does not diminish, on the contrary it rises and gets more structural in case of opened negotiations. In private all opposition MPs, at least those that know even a little bit about integration, accept this.
However for the sake of the others it might be worthy to explain them that: If Albania fails to hold free and fair elections, certified so by international monitors, the EU can freeze negotiations, if Albania fails to set a positive track record in its fight against narcotics, the EU can take a number of measures including freezing negotiations. It has all the mechanisms in place to keep negotiating with the Albanian government for as long of a time as it deems fit.
All Albanians, including the opposition, should rejoice at the good news of Wednesday. The opposition should better reflect at its desired role and its political future. It shall gain no votes if it becomes an obstacle to the European future of the country. It shall gain no respect from international partners either. It should learn to differentiate between the legitimate fights at home and the Don Quixote battles abroad so that it can become a viable governing alternative and not laughing stock. They can do so and they should, and for their own good they should start quickly.
