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Council of Europe: Albania Is A Multiethnic State
35 % of Albania's citizens are not ethnic Albanians. Which
Balkan country is next in line for some sort of a Framework Agreement is
anybody's guess. (Pogradec would be a great location to sign it).
An old Macedonian proverb says: "a bear that dances in neighbor's
house will soon dance in yours." (Mechka shto igra vo komshii, kje
igra i vo kukja)
By Irina Gelevska The
official report on minorities by the Albanian Government says that only
2% of the population in Albania are not [ethnic] Albanians. This
information has been presented to the public since the time of the
ultra-communist ruler Enver Hoxha. [Compare CIA's
info.] Last
October, Council of Europe's mission visited Albania and formed a Center
for Ethnic Research in Tirana. In April 2002, the Center delivered a
questionnaire of 33 questions to the Albanian population all over the
country. "The
results of this research show that about one million or 35% of the
total population in the country are members of minorities. This
makes Albania a multiethnic state," said the Director of the Center
for Ethnic Research in Tirana, Kimet Fetahu. According
the initial research results, seven minority ethnic groups live
in Albania: Macedonians, Greeks, Vlachs, Egyptians, Roma, Serbs and
Montenegrins. The
biggest minorities are the Macedonians and the Greeks. The smallest
minorities are the Serbs and the Montenegrins. There are 5 organizations
of Macedonians in Albania, 2 of the Vlachs, 2 of the Roma, 2 of the
Egyptians, 1 of the Greeks and 1 joint organization of the Serbs and
Montenegrins. The minority organizations cooperate poorly with the media, the political parties and NGOs in Albania. A large degree of discrimination exists in the education and employment policy of the Albanian Government. These results are expected to be included in the Year Report of the Council of Europe for minorities in Albania at the end of September 2002.
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