Albania

by Vickers, Miranda; Pettifer, James

• ISBN13: 9780814787946
• ISBN10: 0814787940
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1997-09-01
• Publisher: New York Univ Pr

Summary

Situated between Greece on the south, the former Yugoslavia on the north and east, and the Adriatic Sea on the west, Albania is the country the world forgot.Throughout this century, Albania has been perceived as primitive and isolationist by its neighbors to the west. When the country ended fifty years of communist rule in 1992, few outsiders took interest. Deemed unworthy of membership in the European Union and overlooked by multinational corporations, Albania stands today as one of the poorest and most ignored countries in Europe.Miranda Vickers and James Pettifer take us behind the veil of former President Enver Hoxha's isolationist policies to examine the historic events leading up to Albania's transition to a parliamentary government. Beginning with Hoxha's death in 1985,Albaniatraces the last decade of Albania's shaky existence, from the anarchy and chaos of the early nineties to the victory of the Democratic Alliance in 1992 and the programs of the current government. The authors provide us with an analysis of how the moral, religious, economic, political and cultural identity of the Albanian people is being redefined, and leave no question that the future of Albania is inextricably linked to the future of the Balkans as a whole. In short, they tell us why Albania matters.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	vii	(5)
Map of Albania	xii
1. Introduction	1	(9)
2. The Crisis of the One-party State after Enver Hoxha's Death, 1985-90	10	(23)
3. The Time of Dark Forces, November 1990-March 1991	33	(22)
4. 1991 - Popular Movements and the End of Communism	55	(20)
5. The Democratic Party Victory	75	(21)
6. The Revival of Religion	96	(22)
7. Social and Cultural Changes	118	(24)
8. Kosova and the Question of National Unification	142	(24)
9. The Other National Question: Macedonia and Montenegro	166	(20)
10. Ethnic Minorities in Albania after Communism	186	(23)
11. International Relations and Defence	209	(18)
12. The End of Party Politics? - Democracy under Threat	227	(20)
13. Renewed Political Tension and the Constitutional Crisis	247	(19)
14. The May 1996 Elections and the Future	266	(25)
Appendixes	291	(16)
A. `The Fiftieth Anniversary of Liberation' (document written by Sir Reginald Hibbert)	291	(4)
B. Albania: Basic Information	295	(1)
C. The Last Communist Government of Albania, September 1990	296	(2)
D. The 1991 Elections in Albania	298	(1)
E. The 1992 General Election and Albanian Political Parties under Democracy	299	(4)
F. The Democratic Party Government formed after the 1996 General Election	303	(2)
G. The European Union Programmes in Albania	305	(2)
Select Bibliography on Contemporary Albania	307	(2)
Index	309