Opposition Boycotts Parliament

TIRANA, April 23 – Opposition Socialists boycotted the parliament Thursday saying that the government was purposefully not listening to their options of resolving the issue of the new identity cards for hundreds of thousands of poor Albanians unable to buy them.
The opposition said that the government was denying to listen to their alternatives they have been offering saying they would return to the parliament only when their demands would be fulfilled.
Parliamentary group leader Valentina Leskaj said they wanted the June 28 polls to be free and fair, adding authorities were in the last moments to resolve such an issue.
The Democrats responded in kind with the parliamentary group leader Astrit Patozi saying that the opposition was sure of losing the polls and was making its utmost to disrupt the process.
Following that the parliament continued the session without the Socialist lawmakers also taking some serious decisions, like creating an investigative parliamentary commission on the Tirana mayor, also leader of the Socialists, Edi Rama., or approving the fourth mobile operator in the country, both harshly opposed by the opposition.
The electoral crisis started a week ago when the Socialists seriously threatened to make undisclosed democratic moves unless the government decided to give the new identity cards free-of-charge to hundreds of thousands of Albanians who do not possess a passport.
The issuing of new identity cards seems to remain the continuous topic of debate ahead of the June 28 parliamentary elections.
The Socialists have not mentioned what they plan to do but have clearly hinted that they may likely either start street protests or even boycott the voting process.
In another move the Socialist Movement for Integration of former Prime Minister Ilir Meta suggested holding a round table with all political parliamentary parties to decide how to resolve the problem.
The government of the Democratic party and Prime Minister Sali Berisha turned down both suggestions saying that the process was going well and all non-passport voters would have their new IDs by mid-May, if they went to apply.
The Ministry of the Interior said that some 600,000 Albanians had applied and most of them had already received the IDs.
They said up to 17,000 had applied in the last few days and they were also issuing 19,000 cards a day.
The government said they had already offered a large degree of help to Albanians. Some groups of up to 700,000, including pensioners and certain groups, would receive the cards for free while others would pay only one-sixth of the 1,200 ALL cost. The government has also offered free transport to remote areas.
President Bamir Topi is also trying to play his impartial political role, by calling the people to apply for the new IDs and warning political parties to stay aside from the process and not spoil it.
Topi also turned down any voice suggesting a postponement of the June 28 polls, repeating that the voting process would be fundamental to the country’s further integration efforts into the European Union.
There have been different calls from the international community that the June polls would be decisive.
Last week Socialist lawmakers boycotted parliament’s threat to not return if the government did not lift the “vote tax” which refers to the payment of the new ID cards.
The opposition also threatened to begin street protests if there was no change in the government’s policy.
The opposition was not present at the session and also the commissions’ meetings this week.