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.

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I went and checked it out myself. The news was true. The website for the Albanian Council of Ministers had another copy on the internet. The main difference was the domain name ending: from .al to .org

The original website: www.keshilliministrave.al and the supposed copy at: www.keshilliministrave.org

The official website even had a Press Release denouncing the fact, however, there is nothing illegal about it. Moreover, it announced that “it had contacted the relevant investigative organs and demanded to take all legal measures for identification and punishment of the perpetrators.”

I checked out the unofficial website and found much interesting information, in satirical format, denouncing the nonsense of government decisions and undertakings. Sadly, nothing in English, but nevertheless worth it.

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Albanian media report on international market developments, especially those affecting the price of oil. The fact is that Albanians have and regularly are affected but the ups and sometimes downs of the oil prices, especially as gas gets ever more expensive to buy.

Meanwhile, experts report another difficult year for Albania where the price of food, electricity and several other commodities don’t show any signs of slowing down thus forcasted to making it ever harder for poorer families to cope with the increase in expenses.

Another aspect is the borowing of the government for the patriotic highway connecting Tirana to Pristina which is costing about 600 million euro. This is a huge bill for our small country, however, my main concern remains not with its importance as much as the careless management of funds and the overall project.

I’m not an expert, nor do I claim to understand all what’s going on with our economy and the forces affecting its outcome. However, I do remain concerned (not a pessimist) and my hope is that something will be done.

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This last Sunday, I had the pleasure of having a friend of mine over at my house for lunch. May be there is nothing special about this event as I have people come over to my house rather often, but this occasion was rather unique, and there are several reasons why.

First, it was unique because my friend is not Albanian and it’s not everyday that I get to have someone from Lebanon visit with my parents.

Second, it was unique because this friend is a unique individual. One that I’ve gotten to respect, more so now that I have come to understand better his love for my country, which is quite admirable.
However, the main reason that pushed me to write about this here, is the fact that this was a rather unique experience for him as well as for me.

It was unique because this was his first time to have a traditional meal in an Albanian home. A meal prepared and offered by Albanians in his honor! Now, that may not seem like a big deal, but it is if you consider the fact that he has been here for 3 years already!

As I continue to think about this experience, there is a line of questions that continues to pervade my thoughts about a very important cultural aspect such as hospitality. Some of the questions go like this: What is happening to Albanian hospitality? Why was my friend never invited even for such such a long time as 3 years? Is this an indicator of something else that goes beyond this individual case? If yes ‘what’? Is it true?

If you read about Albanians throughout history, you quickly find out that we are quite hospitable and welcoming towards guests, especially of those coming from afar. However, something seems to be happening to our hospitality, to where it is, either changing into new and more western style forms or it is simply fading out as a distinctive aspect of our culture and customs.

Anyway, I cannot make that decision, nor can I be the judge of that. That is why I think this topic about Albanian hospitality is worthy of discussion even on such a place as this humble Blog.

Your personal stories and experiences would be greatly appreciated at this point, especially if you are a foreigner living in Albania. I would like to know if you’ve been invited to an Albanian home or that has not happened yet, because….

Please, comment away…

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In a recent article (before the NATO invitation, which was extended yesterday) the Financial Times had the following to say about Albania and its improving prospects for the future: “These are momentous days for Albania. Two separate events – Kosovo’s declaration of independence and … the invitation to join the NATO alliance – offer one of Europe’s poorest countries an unprecedented chance of improving its long-term prospects.”

“The invitation to join NATO is expected to boost Albania’s business climate, encourage more foreign companies to invest and accelerate the pace of modernization, according to European observers in Tirana,” said FT.

Meanwhile, according to the same source, “popular support for membership is high, with more than 90 per cent of Albanians in favor, according to opinion polls.”

“Acceptance into NATO would speed the ratification of the stabilization and association agreement with the European Union, and open the way for Albania to become a formal candidate for membership – although a starting date for accession talks may be a long way off, according to EU officials.”

Personally I think it is about time that we joined. And I say this not so much as a sign of the achievements of the current government, but first and foremost for the people of this country. As regards the current political class, there is great disappointment. However, such developments do bring about a renewed hope and a fresh awareness that things will improve in some form or fashion. Much has to be done, and Albania has still to face up to the illness of corruption and many other important issues affecting its people.

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Very interesting read: “As of June 2007, thirteen (13) Greek New Testament manuscripts were known to exist in the National Archive in Tirana, Albania. Western scholars had tried for decades to gain access to them. There were few success stories. A large part of the reason was due to the fact that Albania is a former police state. Only two of the manuscripts had ever been photographed, both with microfilm decades ago. Things changed dramatically in July.” Greek New Testament Manuscripts Discovered in Albania.

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It was not a big surprise to see what the first ISP in Albania would be, for its internet speed service, as I knew already based on my own sources, but the surprise came when I saw that the ISP I use at home was listed as second. That discovery made me think a little harder as to reasons why. (click on image)

I soon realized it had to to with the number of subscribers and the main type of service which each of these ISPs provides.

The SpeedTest.net internet speed testing site had the following ranking for the fastest ISP in Albania:

1. Ab-Com
2. Abissnet
3. Albtelecom

The first ISP, offers mainly high speed service, as does the second one. However, the third has truly the better service of the two due to its strong backbone connections, however, its overall speed is lower due to the fact that most of its subscribers use its dial-up service.

Does this make sense to any one? Anyways, the website was a good source if you want to do your own research into other countries and cities as well as testing you own internet connection which I did before discovering these later results.

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