Corruption continues to be a major issue facing all levels of the Albanian society. A recent corruption survey report by the Institute for Development Research & Alternatives (IDRA) reported a 13% increase in the corruption index perception for 2008, compared to last year figures by the same institute.
According to the U.S.A. Ambassador in Albania, John Whithers, the media has condemned corruption in Albania regularly but the same cannot be said of the judicial system.
However, what was the most important part of the speech by Mr. Whithers for me, was not the assessment of corruption or the many stories about it, but the need to understand and correct our response to this phenomena in our society. Here I want to quote a paragraph from his speech:
“Albanians value honesty as much as any people in the world and as much as any people that I know. Albanians hate corruption. They hate the fact that the few who are corrupt spoil it for the many who are not.
And I particularly do not like the implication in that answer which implies that corruption is a symptom of Albanian culture; it is not. Anyone who knows the Albanian people knows that it is a violation of the ethical and moral code that Albanians have.
Albanian culture places honesty and integrity above all else. For Albanians, a promise given is a promise kept. And the principle of Besa, the quintessential Albanian virtue, is a bond that cannot be broken. So, I repeat, anyone who implies that corruption is natural to Albania is wrong; corruption is a violation of what it means to be Albanian.
So, what is to be done?”
And that is my concern as well. Why do Albanians find themselves unable to respond to this cultural, social and most importantly moral illness? Is it a lack of understanding of this phenomenon? I think not. Then is it a lack of knowing how to respond in a way that it is effective? May be “yes” and may be “no”.
I do not purport here to have an answer to the issue nor to understand all of its implications and cultural aspects, however, I agree with Ambassador Whithers and his call for action. Some of the practical things he mentioned include these:
- The political elite of Albania should lead by example.
- Change the immunity law, which protects senior officials in courts, in Parliament and in other offices from prosecution.
- The political leadership of Albania should empower the institutions that seek justice.
- Public responsibility: citizens who see corruption or victims of corruption, protesting it, criticizing it, exposing the incidents of corruption, demanding more of the leadership to do something about corruption.
O more vlla,
Mos u merzit, populli nderrohet si moti. Po ku ke mesua aq mire me shkrua Anglisht? Shkruan me mire se gjys SHBA! Seriously.
In my opinion, Albanians have been educated in the wrong direction. We do not count on governments either to keep their word or as worth giving and keeping promises too.
Besa was never created or given to the government. It was actually created as an alternative way to govern.
Even as we settle in other countries, there is always resentment towards the government and the people we see as figures of authority.
It comes from long years of being lied to, betrayed and treated as part of this and that clan, rather than an individual citizen.
Albanians are not clear that they have rights or that they can demand their rights. Even when somebody “enlightened” comes from a foreign country and reminds them, they smile sadly, shake their heads and think that the sooner this person learns how things are done the better it would go for him/her.
Albanians are not corrupted. They are just resigned.
In my opinion , maybe the reason for this is that in order for you to do something , having power may if be financial or political on order to do something substantial in society. And not only that you need to have the support of a influential collective.
Unfortunately most of these people are the ones who are responsible for the corrupt political system. They have the most power thus the ones most capable of bringing change , instead they are the ones who propagate the self serving and corrupt political system that’s plaguing society.
The situation that two million Albanians face today is phenomenon that for some is very difficult to understand. More specifically the economical situation or better yet the corruption situation that the Albania people face today is much more simply to understand than people make it out to be. For instance, I would like the people who read this response to think about the year 1997. We all know about the pyramid scandals that not only embarrassed us as a people but it crushed the lives of hundred and thousands Albanians. We all pointed fingures to zoti Sali Berisha and rightly so because one can not deny that he was partly responsible for it. In any case here we are twelve years later and the same person has been Prime Minister and President and Prime Minister over and over again. So who can we blame for this phenomenon? It is ourselves. We the people continue to re-elect the same corrupt thieves who continue to do the same thing over and over again.