By Lutfi Dervishi
In December 1990 the initial student demonstrations against the communist regime floated the slogan: “We want Albania to be like the rest of Europe”! At that time this slogan had a simple and straightforward meaning and was translated into two words, “Freedom and Democracy.”!
An interview which the then Opposition Leader Sali Berisha gave to an Italian newspaper almost became an electoral boomerang for the Democratic Party. Berisha declared to the Italian journalist that, “perhaps it will take about ten to fifteen years for Albania to join the European Union.” That statement was tantamount to committing political suicide. Peoples’ hopes and illusions were so very high. It was not an overnight change that was expected, but an instant, on the spot and immediate change! On 23 March, 1992, one day after the defeat of the Socialist Party in the elections, all eyes and moreover all minds anticipated the implementation of the electoral slogan, “We run the country, the rest of the world helps.”
Twenty years down the track we are still outside the doors of the European Union; closer than ever before, but still outside. The good news is that the doors are ajar. The bad news is that we know less than ever about what we are letting ourselves in for once we cross the threshold. We are late and that is why we are pushing to reach the right place with the right friends. There is no need to study surveys to understand that for the majority of the population, the EU translates into free movement. Finally, Europeans!
I felt “European” for the first time when I was in Boston in 1995. Father Artur Liolini introduced me to the Albanian-American community there as “a 27 year old European journalist.”
It is no easy undertaking to answer the question of what it means to be a European. Since 1990, many of my compatriots tried at becoming Greeks, Italians, Germans, British, but after all was said and done, others accept you for what you are and not what you claim to be or strive so hard to present yourself as being. Today, we have got the message loud and clear that if others do accept us they do so as Albanians.
What do we have to add, as Albanians, to a table around which twenty seven countries have sat down at so far? It has repeatedly been stated that we offer, “religious harmony and tolerance,” and “traditional Albanian hospitality.”
I’m afraid that we have a slightly idealistic image of the “sun that rises in the West.” We think that everything is perfection itself; our feet are not planted firmly on the ground when we speak about the process of EU membership. We forget there is a real world out there where different interests are in conflict; the protracted road the EU has traversed to reach the point it is at today.
At the end of the XIX Century “Nietzsche mentioned, “The good European”, when the German philosopher writes about, “The Demise of God” and the perils that the loss of the European spirit could bring about. The transition from Christianity to the pinpointing in the Centuries of national identities are two of the challenges mentioned by Nietzsche for the continent which was to experience two World Wars in the course of the following Century.
In 2004, the debate on the preamble of the Constitution (which failed to be approved later on because of the refusal of the French and Dutch through a referendum), gravitated around the Christian roots of the European Union. Finally, compromise triumphed. “The EUŮis inspired by the cultural, religious and humanist heritage of Europe, from which universal values have developed, sacrosanct and inalienable Human Rights, liberty, democracy, equality and Rule of Law.
Nowadays, when the focus is on the economic crisis, we hear less and less mention made of the European Union per se but increasingly mention made of “Germany’s of France’s stands” or Greece’s problem,” and moreover we even hear mention made of steps backwards, as was the idea floated that our southern neighbour should withdraw from the Euro zone. Add to this the anecdotal bureaucracy of the institutions of Brussels, and, at this point we could mention the mind-blowing fact that to this day 90 per cent of the persons questioned in a survey don’t give a second thought to EU membership (probably not even a first thought). When we finally become members we will have to both represent and defend our own interests.
In the race to sign and fill out forms we are forgetting what is to our benefit and what is detrimental. I believe this is the right moment to insert the expression, “Not everything that flies is edible.” A Brussels’ bureaucrat said condescendingly to a representative of civil society from Albania, “you speak about a process of negotiation, but we haven’t done negotiating with you yet, all you’ve dome is signed papers.”
I believe we all recall the enthusiasm that erupted with the signing of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the World Trade Organization (WTO) and later on with the countries of the region. The enthusiasm emanated from political reckonings and the consequences were bankruptcy and the weakening of Albanian businesses. Local production took a stunning blow, but even after his serious loss we failed to learn the lesson that signing agreements does not always mean winning.
If a prescription were required to cure this “fever of enthusiasm,” in two words this would be – information void. The media plays an irreplaceable role here. A role to understand for itself, explain, inform, analyze, observe and why not, criticize!
There are also countries which do not want to join the EU, such as Switzerland and Norway, very developed countries. These countries can’t join because their peoples firmly believe they stand to lose more than gain.
We stand to gain from membership to the EU because the rules of the game will become more transparent and the institutions stronger. Business will feel stronger and more solid. The Albanians will have access to compete on a far greater market than they have access to today. Notwithstanding all of this, a decision must be made as to which road we take to reach this goal. Almost every day we hear item of news about “chapters of the Questionnaire being completed,” but we know very little about what is being filled out. What does the Albanian farmer stand to lose and/or gain? What about industry? Fishing?
Unfortunately, so far it appears that we have only managed to be swallow the “hook” of the visas.
Twenty years ago, to us, Europe was tantamount to a community of free and democratic countries. Today, our understanding is broader and apart from freedom and democracy, we add market economy, the rules of the game, free and fair elections, independent media and judiciary and so on. This is the reason why there will be no slackening of the enthusiasm for the EU, but there will be much more disappointment when we realize that there is far more to this than just visas.
