The European Union “leaves outside” the Balkans’ Muslims

“The application of Albania for the status of the candidate country to the European Union was not examined by the Foreign Ministers’ Council for technical motives, not political”. This was the official statement given by EU authorities after their meeting in Luxembourg.
Since the beginning, the public answers for not considering some of the Balkans’ countries’ application for the EU, have been various. To make this simple to understand for everyone, the main reason was that “the governments of these countries didn’t do the homework given by the EU”. Yet, it made an impression to me, as well as to many others, the statement of Elisabeth Stam, Swedish Ambassador in Tirana, who tried to disprove voices that “Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina were left behind in the process of  joining the EU because of the majority of Muslim population in these countries”. No effort is needed to understand the contrary of what normally an Ambassador says, whose government has the next presidency in the EU. Actually, with this last two departing with the train toward Europe, Turkey had to be included too, who made its application as a country candidate for the EU since 4 years ago, and still waiting for “not respecting the Kurd minority rights”, etc., etc.
Let’s not start from Albania in details, but let’s speak through numbers, which somehow prove “the fear” of the EU from the Muslims in majority in Bosnia and Turkey.
The little martyr state of the Balkans, known through the conflicts in Balkans, especially through the martyr Srebrenica, is calculated to have approximately 4.6 millions of inhabitants, of which 45% are Muslims, 36% are Orthodox, 15% are Catholics and 4% Hebrews and Protestants. So, they’re a country with a Muslim majority, almost 2 millions of inhabitants. According the official statistics, easily found in internet, annual income for a person (pro-capita) in Bosnia are over 17.000 USD (over 55.4 billion USD of nominal GDP).
Turkey, one of the most powerful NATO countries, a very close country to the USA, is a laic state since the time of Ataturk. Yet, the majority of the population is still Muslim. The Muslims are 97%, Christians are only 2% and other religions are 1%. The history of the relationships between Turkey and EU is very interesting. Turkey was associated to the EEC (later the EU), since 1963, and is part of the EU custom system since 1996, while it has the status of the candidate country since 1999. Official negotiations for the admission of Turkey in the EU started in 2005, and we’re at the end of 2009. The reasons for this are found in the so-called repression on the Kurd minority, with the fact that only 3% of the Turk territory is in Europe and also the Cyprus’ split in two after the conflict of 1974 when Turkey’s army made an intervention. The annual income for a person in Turkey is about 14 millions USD. Over 73 millions of Turkish people are Muslims, and with Bosnia-Herzegovina make over 75 millions of Muslims who might, hypothetically, join the European Union.
Let’s now speak about numbers concerning Albania, though approximate and can be taken from internet. According to official the Albanian population is now almost 4,3 millions of inhabitants.  Annual income for a person is over 4 thousands of USD with a nominal GDP of over 21 billions of USD. As far as religious composition is concerned, the majority is still Muslim. Actually, various studies give different percentiles which vary from 64% to 79.9% of Muslims. However there is an average of about 72% of Muslims in Albania, which might be about 3 millions of inhabitants, which reach an amount of 78 millions, adding to those of Turkey and Bosnia-Herzegovina, not considering here the Muslims of Kosovo and Macedonia, possible candidates for the EU, which might go over 80 millions of Muslims.
We’ve been giving only numbers that can easily be checked out. Besides the Muslim population of these countries, another “fear” of the EU, in case they will be admitted in the Union, is not simply linked to the 80 millions of Muslims, which “counterbalance” the German population (the engine of EU), but also to the way the communitarian institutions will work. As equal amongst equals, these countries with the majority of Muslims, will have the highest number of their deputies with this religion, as well as possible commissionaires, as part of executive institutions of the EU. In voting occasions in the Council, Commission or even in the Parliament, their votes will have the same importance in the decisions to be made. On the other side, beyond these numbers of Muslim population, there are other millions which in the beginning were immigrants with limited rights (to elect and to be elected) that will have then the same rights as members of the EU, which might also increase the influence of the Muslim world in important decisions of the communitarian institutions, and even change the actual balances after several decades.
Though there was the effort to place Christian roots, since the very first articles of the EU Constitution, which failed and then replaced by the Lisbon Tractate (if it will be approved), none had the courage to speak clearly about the reasons of avoiding the association of the abovementioned countries to the European Union. Yet, everything is determined in the “homework” of these countries: reformation of justice, power division, secure borders, biometrical passports, fighting corruption, population registration and other stories like these. All these fall if we consider the membership of Bulgaria and Romania in 2007. The level of functioning of the state, corruption, the economical level are very poor in these countries, what also caused the EU to freeze founds. At the time, either the EU hurried because of their same religion (at least Christian!), or they have to admit they’ve done wrong, or even favored these countries, while they’re not only a failure but have also stopped the desire of the same European Union to enlarge. To return to the Albanian elections’ question, let’s remember that one vote was bought at 50 Euros in Bulgaria, while at the head of the government came an individual with a not so spotless pat, with a career as a bodyguard.
Trying to make a copy of the United States of America, the European Union attempted to open the doors to various nations and cultures, which was realized until 2-3 years ago. Yet, the EU can never be like the USA, who take a Kenyan with a Muslim father, and put him at the head of the country as a President. The EU is now going through a strong dilemma, which is also linked to the new developments after September 11th, but also with the fear of the implementation of a mentality  that might be imported along with the new possible memberships of some countries mostly composed by Muslims. This indeed, is not the problem of the countries who want to join the EU, but of this same organization, the way it is built and works, which might need a deep, fast and true reformation. The greatest dilemma of the EU might be linked to the coexistence or not of two different cultures, mentalities or even to the possible assimilation or an unexpected passage to minority. All these calculations are done in some particular offices of the European Union, yet they’re never published. Meanwhile, many countries wait behind the doors of this house, amongst whom there are millions of Europeans, with about 80 millions of Muslims, which might be surely considered as a danger to the European Union.                                  
Blerti Delija

The “new” left-winged menace from the old bunkers

It seems quite unbelievable after five years that the Democratic Party and its allies have the power, that well-known democrats with great contribution for democracy are menaced. Threats have an author (without name), and they come from the same direction, the Socialist Party and its left-winged beasts, who’ve become even more feral after the catastrophic loose during the parliamentary elections of June 28, 2009, not trusting anymore in democratic ways to have the power back. This is proved by the continuous threats by the leaders of the Socialist Party and their allies, like the menaces of the un-restorable Bolshevik, the last vice-minister of security of the communist state (sigurimi), Gramoz Ruçi, the “prodigal” son of the communist bloc, head of the SP, Edi Rama, the fabric of the red poison, Skender Gjinushi, to the former left-winged missionary in the right-winged camp, Spartak Ngjela (son of the ill-famed prosecutor, member of the Central Committee of the PL, Kiço Ngjela), who lead the antidemocratic protests, even menacing an armed revolution like that of 1997. The Socialist Party and its allies are showing themselves to be worthy successors of the Albanian communists, to whom Europe and all the democratic Occidental world was an enemy. They do not consider the positive valuation of the elections of June 28 in Albania, named by the international factor as the best, the most righteous and democratic eve held in Albania. This is the judgment by the international factor that holds Albania closer to the removal of the visa-system and its membership in the European Union. The Socialist Party and its leaders like Gramoz Ruçi and Edi Rama, have declared that they don’t recognize the evaluation of Europe and America for the elections, neither recognize the development of the country during the government of the Democratic Party and its allies, they’ve also affirmed that it’s already past the time of considerations and councils from Europe and the occidental world, giving the impression that they’re ready to apply the old methods used by the communist past of Enver Hoxha, when Europe and America were considered the greatest enemies of their regime. This politics followed by the high socialist leaders has come “down” to the socialist basis organized like paramilitary groups. These groups are known in Albania as the left-winged extremists who menace and use violence (in darkness more than often) on the democrats and other political opposition. The point is that on their target there are those democrats coming back from the occidental world, especially from USA. The democrats coming back from America feel menaced and violated, and also considered (like by the communists) as missionaries and agents of the Americans coming back to “prevent” the return on power of the left-winged forces. Our journal was often informed about such happenings, but we couldn’t give names for different motives, yet we wanted this time to make more sensible the Albanian society about the danger coming from these forces of darkness (as they menace and violate during the night, out of the sight of the State), remaining this way anonymous, although it is known now that their center is the Socialist Party and its left-winged tails…
Ndue Baca