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Death
dressed like life
It is a paradox for the
occidental world, but a true reality for Albania, that the main problem of
the Albanians today is the right of living. The “dressing” of crime of the
Albanian government, though appearing like a dressing of life,  is killing. Our
newspaper today has given space to the report of Europol, where Albania
appears to be a serious danger as far as organized crime is concerned, being
thus dangerous to the family of the European Union. The situation is serious
even within the territory
of Albania. Those who
spend for rights and freedom, for a pure democracy, are trailed, violated,
menaced, or killed. One of those seriously in danger is even Sokol Ndrekë Prozhmi, an active partaker in the anticommunist protests
in the beginning of the democratic processes in Albania and the freedom of
religion, prohibited by law by Enver Hoxha since 1967. Even his father, Ndrek
Prozhmi, had been in political prison and in 1981
was condemned by seven years, but set free in 1985, thanks to an amnesty. His
grandfather and his uncle had suffered the hell of prison. Sokol,
thus worked hard in the Democratic Party, to install a true democracy,
especially in Shkodra, the center of the Northern Albania as well as the center of democracy,
intentionally left in extreme poverty by the state. Many young people joined
him, even though he and many others had been beaten and menaced several
times. Besides the pressures, he was also called at the police station many
times and anarchists or terrorists have placed explosive to his house,
risking even his family. All those who think and act differently from the
dictator power-keepers, have their lives in danger. Most of them are killed,
other, if fortunate, leave Albania,
just like the democrat Sokol Prozhmi.
This is a plague, a true drama of the Albanian life, getting
every day tougher.
Albert
Vataj
Gjakova:
An Albanian family is missing
It is more than one and a
half year that an Albanian family is missing in Gjakova.
They are the family Deda. The destiny of that
family seems to be as dark as that of many other families. Lastly you can see
by the streets of Kosovo, many people lifting up pictures of missing people,
in search of them, even near the international offices. The wound of Kosovo
is bleeding, and it seems to go on like that for a long time, as the
consequences of Milosevic left a great impression. Aleksandër
Deda was an inhabitant of Gjakova,
born on July 4, 1976.
In 1998, during the war, he was imprisoned by Serbs for three months, accused
as a soldier of KLA, later set free without a sentence. About three months
later, the Serbs had burned his house up and he was declared wanted. The
young guy felt so forced to leave his birthplace and find shelter in Macedonia, to
leave even from there, toward western countries, according to some reliable
sources we had. What looks more tragic to us is not only the fact of missing
his touch with his family, but the tragic destiny of his family. His brother,
Gjelosh Deda, was killed
one and a half year ago by unknown people. None knows about where his father,
Nok Deda and the other
members of the family reside. We could have only this evidence through people
that knew them, but no picture of any of the members of that family, as the
documents had been burned too. The situation in Gjakova
and generally in Kosovo is still grave. Many houses are empty there. There is
no evidence for the destiny many families. There are many massive burials
there, not found yet. Even today there are many murders being reported there.
Denada Kraja
Albanian,
the Hebrews of the 21st century
The Albanian people is
living its hardest time in the entire ancient and modern history. The
Albanians of the 21st century have the bad destiny of
the Hebrew people. Many Albanians are being killed; many others are wounded
becoming disabled for the lifetime, while many others emigrate. These last
ones, who leave Albania
to save their lives, go toward death themselves. Only in Shkodra,
the center of the organized crime, there are two associations today: the
Association of Otranto 1997, and that of the Tragedy of January 9, 2004. Both of these
tragedies, where 60 Albanians lost their lives in the waters of Jon, have
become now one of the many unhealed wounds of the Albanian society, while the
social-communist state is the direct responsible for this. Many Albanians,
who could reach the occidental countries, when unable to convince the courts
there, have returned in Albania
where have become contingent of the victims of the criminals on power.
According to our investigations, Rrapush Ymeraj from Tropoja and Sadik Sokolaj from a village in
Korça, though giving reliable evidence to the
occidental courts, that their life was seriously in danger in Albania,
because of their political convictions and revenge, have been returned back
in Albania and some times later have been killed.
Murders like these are taking place every day and night in Albania.
Medieval violence, revenge and the impotence or the unwillingness of the state
to provide order and justice, is ranking Albania among the most
problematic countries of Europe, as far as
human rights is concerned. This young guy you see in the picture, named Kujtim Mehmetaj, is one of the
violated Albanians, one of the good people who risked the life many times,
even today. On December 8, 1998, when he was a policeman, while the students
of the University “Luigj Gurakuqi”
of Shkodra were supporting through their
hunger-strike, the students of the State University of Tirana, in the
anniversary of the students’ arise that made fall the communist system of Ramiz Alia, at the beginning of the democratic processes,
he was commanded to kill the former leader of the Students Union, Alfred Pëllumbi. The policeman Mehmetaj,
instead of obeying the command, he made it known to the student Pëllumbi. This last one, whom we met in Brussels and had a cup of coffee with him,
told us he was beastly beaten by the communists. Our friend Alfred Pëllumbi, speaking for our journal “Shqipëria
Etnike”, showed his respect for the former
policeman Kujtim Mehmetaj,
and expressed his sorrow that Mehmetaj was
discovered and put on target to be killed by certain dark segments of the
Albanian state. It hadn’t been so easy for Mehmetaj.
He had faced violence many times and on December 1, 2000, unidentified people had
killed his father. This young man, as well as many others today, has no
address. The year 2004 in Albania
has started with numerous murders.
Sokol Pepushaj
Racial
discrimination, a troublesome issue for Kosovo
“Ashkali”
(meaning gipsy) is one of the most offending terms used for a man in Kosovo
after the conflict of 1999. To better understand it, this is a term used in
Albania for gipsy people. This community was found between two fires in
Kosovo during the conflict. They weren’t supported by the Serbs, but were
also attacked by the Albanians. Even after the conflict this went on in both
sides of the boarder of Kosovo with Serbia, especially in Presheva, where a
great number of Albanians live. These last ones accuse the gypsies of
supporting Serbs. After the end of the conflict of 1999, there’re no rights
or safety for the minorities in both sides of the boarder between Serbia and
Kosovo.
There
are many cases of tragic events proving the fact of unsafe life for all the
gypsies, whatever their age. A macabre happening in Presheva, in the valley
with the same name, occurring on February 2, 2004 (just yesterday), is told
with sorrow. In this area lives a gipsy community experiencing, even today,
the racial discrimination. Two members of the family Doda, after beaten to
death by unidentified people, were thrown in the river where they drowned.
The other members of the family went to the police as they were terrorized.
The police not only didn’t help them for their security, but they showed no
reaction after this happening. Fear and terror wrapped the entire community,
where racial discrimination and violence is very frequent. This happened, and
still happens, but will go on like this, because of the silence of the State.
the member of the family Doda, son and brother of the two victims, Gjovalin
Doda, father of four children, confirmed this to the “Shqipëria Etnike”
journal, stating that he and his family were mistreated several times before;
and after this tragic happening, as they have no support from the structures
of law, life is really unsafe and fearful for the children and the families
in this community.
Moved
from this sad story and many others occurred until now, as a staff of this
journal, we want to appeal both pairs, Serbs and Kosovars, to guarantee the
life and security to the gipsy community, and support it. Let them evidence
the human virtues, for even gypsies are human beings, just like Kosovars and
Serbs. We hope and wish that such macabre incidents might be as rare as
possible on the pages of our journal, and that we might have news on normal
coexistence amongst Serbs, Kosovars and gypsies.
Jetmir Delaj
Leaving
Albania
as the only way to live
Many Albanians have chosen
as their only way to live, leaving their country. The dictatorial governing
of this unconscious government has caused 29 people to drown in the Jon Sea.
While 21 cadavers were p ulled out by the
Italian “Guardia di Finanzia”, other eight are
still lost in the waters. The causes of the phenomenon of escape are
numerous, but according to Sali Berisha,
leader of the Albanian opposition, as well as most of the people, the
politics of the social-communist party on power is the main cause, killing
every day and night innocent people, who find their indwelling here
impossible. Many democrats who spent for a free Albania have been killed, or at
least beaten, violated and forced to leave, by the anarchist groups of
political background. This is what happened to the well-known democrat Lul Gjon Brektushi,
who suffered death threats and pressure, not only psychological, but physical
too, to renounce voting, as he was distinguished in many activities of the
Democratic Party. According to reliable source he had, on August 3, 2003, a vehicle of the police
had used violence on his father, who was with a neighbor named Nikoll Rroku. The source makes
known that the police had not explained the motive of their action. The
Albanian police have now gone beyond the human limits. The chief of
anti-trafficking in Shkodra, the center of the
Northern Albania, had been arrested as involved in trafficking as his son was
realizing illegal trafficking from Vlora toward
Italy. Lul Brektushi had
also been shot next to his house on September 28, 2003, by two masked people. Only God and
the destiny saved him unharmed, while the bullets hit a few meters further.
Even during the regime of Enver Hoxha,
the family of this democrat had been persecuted and discriminated. His
grandfather, Lul Ndue Brektushi, had fought against communism in 1944-1945 and
was arrested from 1945 until 1948. His father too is known as anticommunist,
as a democrat. That’s why the young Lul Gjon Brektushi has decided the
way of emigration, as the only way to live. This is the heaviest plague for
the Albanian society today, a plague that is being wounded every day more by
the state.
The Correspondent of “Shqipëria Etnike”
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