Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama sought to defuse recent tensions between Tirana and Athens while condemning a protest led by Greek politicians in Himare, southern Albania, against the arrest of a minority mayor Greek for alleged vote buying.
Two days before the local elections on May 14, 2023, Albanian citizen Fredi Beleri, candidate of Greek origin for mayor of the Himaré region, was arrested on suspicion of buying votes. He continued to win elections, but he remained in prison awaiting trial, along with 48 others suspected of similar crimes.
But the news did not please Athens, which said Beleri was arrested because of his Greek origin and that the case was politically motivated.
On August 14, a demonstration was organized in Himare by the Greek minority organization “Omonia”, which was attended by the mayors of Athens and Thessaloniki, Kostas Bakoyannis and Konstantinos Zervas. A pre-recorded message from the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas, was also broadcast.
Schinas, who is also Greek, urged Albanians to abandon what he described as an unproductive strategy that is hampering the country’s path to the EU. He also described this situation as “profoundly anti-European”.
Mayor Bakoyannis also said that if Albania wanted to join the EU, it must respect the rule of law and European principles, while his Thessaloniki counterpart Zervas said he had sent letters on the situation to mayors around the world, saying Beleri’s incarceration threatened democracy and citizens’ rights. the Greek minority.
Rama responded to the protest in a lengthy Facebook post. “There is no other case, to my knowledge, where elected officials from a democratic state organize a demonstration in another democratic state against the authorities.”
Although Beleri has Greek nationality, Rama continued, he is also an Albanian citizen and will be treated like the other 48 Albanian nationals, including former mayors of the socialist party that Rama heads, who face similar charges.
According to evidence leaked to Albanian media, phone tapping revealed that Beleri had received a list of names of people who would vote for him if he gave them 5,000 Lek (€50).
Beleri maintains his innocence and has appealed the arrest.
Rama noted that according to the decision of the three levels of the judiciary, Beleri cannot leave his detention until the case against him is finalized.
Albania is in the midst of a US- and EU-backed justice reform that has implemented scrutiny of the reputation, wealth and professionalism of all prosecutors and judges. Specialized structures have also been put in place to combat corruption – a crucial element of the European negotiations which began last summer.
Rama also criticized Schinas, who suggested in a letter to EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi that Beleri’s arrest could hamper Albania’s path to the EU. This follows similar threats made by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mistotakis and Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.
“I cannot hide my deepest regrets over the surreal intervention of the Greek side in the Albanian justice affair, the statements from Athens and the lamentations from Brussels,” Rama wrote, emphasizing once again that the process concerned possible electoral crimes. and had nothing to do with the rights of the Greek minority.
Around 0.9% of the Albanian population identifies as being of Greek origin, although this is controversial in some political circles. While several communities in the south of the country speak Greek and some road signs appear in Greek, Albanian nationalists say they simply identify as Greek to obtain Greek (and de facto European) passports and foreign money. Athens, which local communities vehemently deny.
Rama said that Greeks are invited to protest in Albania and Greek media are invited to write about the situation, but they must be ready to consider Tirana’s version.
He also listed the measures taken by his government in favor of the Greek minority, including granting the same rights to Greeks as Albanians, allowing them to freely elect Greek representatives in local government, with the Greek flag flying freely in Greek regions and massive legalization. of houses built illegally and belonging to Greek families.
He also highlighted property titles granted to Greek Orthodox churches and religious sites after decades of denial.
Despite the current situation, Rama said he had “very friendly feelings” towards Mitsotakis and noted the “extraordinary progress” made in recent years “in cultivating a truly European spirit among us and melting the glaciers of our frozen past.
The incident comes just months after Mitsotakis canceled a trip to Himare the day before the EU-Western Balkans summit in Tirana after Rama told EURACTIV in an interview, Greece cheated on its EU accession process.
The comments went viral across Greece and the Albanian PM addressed the problem during a bilateral meeting during the EU-Western Balkans summit in Tirana.
This also occurs in the context of prolonged disagreement over maritime borders which should be decided by an international tribunal.
In a interview with EURACTIV in December 2022Sali Berisha – considered closer to Athens – revealed that Ankara, a long-time foe of Athens, carried out a “very strong intervention” to block an agreement on the maritime border between Albania and Greece in 2009.
In his message, Rama expressed hope that the current situation does not degenerate, “fueling the fire of nationalism” and risking good relations between two nations which are “brothers and sisters with whom the future unites us inextricably”.
(Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic)
