TIRANA, Feb. 23 – Massive amounts of money money are circulating in Albania from drug cultivation and trafficking and some of it could be used to buy influence, candidates and votes in the upcoming June 18 parliamentary elections, the head of the OSCE Presence to Albania, Ambassador Bernd Borchardt said this week.
“There are more than 2 billion euros in dirty money in the market. There is a high risk that this money can be used to buy off MPs,” Ambassador Borchardt said in a television interview broadcast by Ora News.
Through his comments, Ambassador Borchardt became the first international representative in Tirana to publicly raise the alarm on drug profits being used to harm the fairness of Albania’s elections and political system, a threat that has been lauded by Albania’s main opposition Democratic Party for more than a year.
“Marijuana has been grown in Albania since the beginning of 1990s. In 2013, Guardia di Finanza estimated that Albania produced more than 1,000 tons of marijuana with a market value of 2 billion euros. Cannabis cultivations in Albania has increased significantly since 2013, and not all shipments have been destroyed and seized,” Borchardt added.
He argued that the issue of cannabis and the potential use of drug money in the upcoming elections is pushing OSCE to seek amendments to the Electoral Code to avoid or to limit vote buying.
Borchardt said he believes both political parties are equally concerned about marijuana production and that the society is aware of the huge risk that Albania is facing.
“We will support the government to draft a national strategy against cannabis,” Borchardt said.
The OSCE diplomat also commented the recent anti-government protest by the opposition Democrats and said that the parliamentary boycott will slow down the reforms, particularly the judiciary reform.
Borchardt said that he does not oppose the introduction of electronic voting and counting in the parliamentary elections, but warned that there is not enough time left to include the provisions in the legislation.
OSCE has repeatedly called on Albania to approve the recommendations of OSCE-ODIHR, the main international election observing body, but political disputes between the ruling party and opposition have made it impossible for the electoral reform to succeed.
Albania’s main opposition Democratic Party is currently boycotting parliament and has said it will not return until a caretaker government is allowed to manage the upcoming general elections. The Democrats say the industrial scale cultivation of marijuana across Albania seen last year has tacit government support and is aimed at producing massive profits that can be used to buy the elections.
The Democrats have also criticized international representatives in the country for not being forceful enough with the government on the matter and of not speaking publicly about the risks in the country’s stability should a drug-based economy take hold.
On the other hand, the Socialist-led government says it is fighting cannabis cultivation, and launched this week a massive operation to make sure the next crop is not allowed to be planted.
