Albanian tragedy!
The pursuit of happiness destroyed!I personally hold Albanians in high esteem. I can testify to the great traditions of this people through a few personal encounters I was lucky to have with a couple of them and which were brutally terminated (like in many other cases!) when "our" government proceeded to deport them again after having temporarily let them in. I also could observe a bit the Albanian community here in Hamburg and was impressed. Sort of too decent people for this world!
My deceased friend C. Neal Brady was engaged in helping several Albanian families too (in Luxemburg) and testified to the same.
Of course, mutual contact with that country has been quasi-inexistant for most of my life time, Albania having been that tragic prison. But is the real scandal not the fact that this country is still now mistreated by the European political community, notwithstanding the fact that we are all more or less mistreated by politics?!
Therefore I gladly post here the following message which was forwarded to me by Ken Schoolland who made the acquaintance of Kozeta during the Kosovo War. She is the ISIL representative for Albania. Ken found her "to be one of the greatest champions of desperate refugees" that he has ever met.
I take this opportunity to officially announce the new upcoming Immigration section on this website. It will soon be located at http://www.butterbach.net/immigration/. Already since a long time this website offers the following pertaining to the subject:
~
From: Kozeta Cuadari <kcika@yahoo.com>
Subject: Albanian tragedy!
It was 9.00 p.m. on Friday, 9 January 2004. The programmes of Top Channel, one of the most successful TV Stations in Albania, were interrupted with the shocking news that a boat of more than 30 refugees was sinking in the Adriatic Sea, only 5 miles far from Vlora Coast. The strange voice of a man calling from his mobile was asking for help publicly. We could hear his voice directly on the extraordinary edition of Top Channel news: "Please help us! We are drowning...". The news broadcaster, pale and in a trembling voice, implored the police, government and local people in Vlora to go for help. The number of his mobile remained on the screen for a couple of hours, but no response came on the other end of the line.
Here started the marathon of that tragic night. And step by step the whole truth was revealed, mostly by the media. At 5.00 p.m., on Friday 9 January, more than 30 people from Shkodra district, Northern Albania, one of the poorest in the country, set off to follow their dream that would be the last: their impossible dream for a better life that brought those people to death. Among them were 6 women. They were all refused to be given a visa from the Italian Embassy to join their families and relatives in Italy. They had paid 1500 EUROS each to cross the sea illegally, being discriminated up to the point that they could use every other means to go abroad, risking their lives in the middle of the winter. The news caused panic and everyone got stuck in front of the box, waiting hopefully for a solution. Gradually, after the news was broken, the government started to take measures. Help was asked from NATO Forces that were settled in Albania and from Italian Naval Forces. The Ministry of Defence sent the order for special troops to be put to sea, but the sea was so rough that it was impossible for the rescuers to find the boat. It was too late.
By the next morning one of the ships of the Italian Naval Forces found the boat. Only 11 people had survived, 21 were found dead and it is thought that there were more than 5 other people missing. The survivors were so shocked that they could not give further evidence to what really happened that night. They were sent to the hospital and given first aid. All they say is that they survived due to their young age and strength (they were all between 29-30 years old). They say they could hear the helicopters so near that night, and the ships passing by, but no one saw them because of the wind and big waves. Anyway, the news seems to have lots of contradictions, regarding the exact number of people in the boat, the delayed help, and people implicated in the tragic event. It is said that some chief police officers are involved in the illegal traffic. This is one reason why they delayed help, though they knew about the boat of clandestines two hours before the phone call. Another hypothesis is that the police was informed that there were drugs in the boat, not people, so they thought it was better to sink.
Actually, measures have been taken by the government to prevent the illegal traffic and to stop the smugglers. Two years ago it was said that the government had put an end to the illegal traffic and some boats had been burned to show this was achieved, but it was all a comedy show. High officials are involved in the traffic.
More than 20 people lost their lives in this tragic event. No one can bring them to life again. Albanians know that unless they are treated as human beings by the foreign authorities, they will try every means to follow their dreams for a better life, for water and electricity, for feeding their children and joining their families that they haven't seen for years. It is the government's duty to respect their own citizens and support their free movement. Albania is one of the most ancient countries of Europe, with an old culture and excellent traditions. We deserve to be called Europeans and share their rights. This event was an appeal to old Europe and its old-fashioned laws. If the doors of the world remain closed for the Albanians, they will still try to go illegally, they will dig a tunnel under the sea and try to go away from poverty. And no one can stop them! Even death!
Kozeta Cuadari Cika
Tirana, Albania
PS by CB: A few days earlier Kozeta had written the following letter to her friends at ISIL. I quote it in full and have set in bold characters the passages that seemed most remarkable to me:
Dear Isil Friends,
This year has had a terrible start for Albania. On Saturday, 10 January, a boat of 30 or more illegal emmigrants tried to cross the sea to Italy but sank in the water. More than 20 people were drowned. All clandestines were young people. They had their families in Italy and wanted to join them, and the only way was to travel illegally, because the Italian Embassy denied the visas. They asked for help since they saw that the sea was rough and impossible to sail, but help arrived too late. It is reported that the traffic of illegal emmigrants is supported by people in power, high police officers are also implicated in this traffic. Albanians are the only people in Europe who cannot move to other countries, even if they have legal docummentation. This is crazy to think that we live in the 21st century, and Europe denies us the free movement to join our families who live abroad or to look for work in other countries. Albania is still a very poor country and the so! cialist government is doing nothing to improve the situation. All clandestines were from Northern Albania, which lacks not only places of jobs but also running water and electricity. These people were looking for a better life accross the borders, but they found death instead. Yesterday we mourned their deaths. A lot of protests are being organized by people and organizations agains the illegal traffic of people, poverty and government. More information in the coming days, if you are interested.
Yours in Liberty,
Kozeta
Please forward the above to others wherever you can!
Christian Butterbach, 21 January 2004, 12:57 GMT+1
[also in the blog archives]
Follow-up to Albanian tragedy
As suggested by Louis James, CEO of Free-Market.Net, I post hereafter new information received since the above editorial and will continue to add such information as it reaches me. I will quote from my e-mail exchanges with that group of libertarian people who took a special interest in this incident and the basic problems it reveals. You will see that this exchange, in spite of the sadness of this tragedy, will also contain a few remarks that will draw a smile maybe, as some of the remarks of my private brand sometimes do. And to loosen up a bit, to prevent the strain of reading so much text on a matter easily becoming too technical for some (not everyone has the frame of mind of a Miss Marple), I often do not cut out more incidental remarks of these exchanges.
Most input will of course come from Kozeta. Some may envy us this direct and qualified source. Here we go!
To my announcement ("Please see what I have done with this at http://www.butterbach.net/ (Editorial)" to ten people that I had added Kozeta's appeal in an editorial to my "CB's notewok" on my home page, Louis answered and I quote him here with my answers to the different points:
At 07:59 21.01.04 -0600, Louis James wrote:
Hi,
FMN needs a specific page to link to. Christian, I appreciate your
effort, but since it's on your home page, the link will cease to be
accurate at some point. If anyone puts the article on a page of its
own somewhere, please let me know, and we'll spread the word far and
wide.
Louis, as I already told you in a separate message, the article is now permanently at
http://www.exterritorial.net/albania.htm
also at
http://www.butterbach.net/albania.htm
and at
http://www.butterbach.net/blogs/net/archives/00000035.htm
Kozeta, can you clarify: had rescue crews responded to the phone call
immediately, would they have been able to save more people? If it was
dark already, it sounds like the delay wouldn't have mattered.
My opinion is that delays always matter in some way you cannot know in advance and that emergency calls should be answered urgently. As for darkness, there are helicopters that are equipped with searchlights. And the refugees might have had (and certainly should have had) some kind of flashlight or torch or fire or whatever and through that might have been located by a plane flying over the area.
Also, is there any information that indicates that the delay was
unusual, or does it always take them a while to get a rescue out onto
the water (esp. if the seas are rough)?
This is a good question, I think. And it would disservice the cause if we did not remain objective here.
One more thing: is Albania part of the EU? If not (yet), is the
Italian policy particularly harsh or unusual? I don't believe in
borders at all, mind you, but many people do, and don't see why Italy
should go out of its way to let in bunches of people who might just
further burden its welfare system.
Albania is not a member of the EU. Discounting for one moment that the EU is a totalitarian socialist affair people in general and especially we libertarians have never asked for, and that it would better not exist, as it exists though and has within its framework certain advantages, Albania should be allowed to become a member and not be singled out and cast off.
But EU membership is not the real issue here. EU membership would allow Albanian citizens to look for work in other EU countries for instance. But the issue here is that everyone from any country should get at least a tourist visa to visit, in this case to visit relatives. It is only countries like former East Germany (German Democratic Republic) that were famous for denying this kind of basic right to travel to its citizens to such a large degree. Albania used to be part of the group of such totalitarian countries. But that is over now. And if one honestly wants this country to evolve even more in the direction of a free or (classical) liberal country, one should welcome it with open arms. But that is too much to expect of those Brussels sprouts who deal out liberties only as a marketing tool and candy in order to later on be able to put us on a thousand handcuffs. The sprouts always talk about the market they want to strengthen, but actually they are building a large planned economy more than anything else, only a bit different from what the former Communist bloc had. Formerly we had in Europe smaller countries with a bad government, now we have a bigger "country" with a bad government, thus a bigger bad government. Formerly we had small businesses, medium businesses and large businesses, now we have much less small and medium businesses, but more very large ones that have grown enormous. Thus we have a combination of very big government and very big corporations who go to bed together, while we pay the condoms (V.A.T. included). No, thank you! :-)
Addressing these issues will clarify the freedom-relevance of the
story to people around the world who lack the context to see it the
way you do.
Sorrowful best wishes,
L
~
To this Kozeta has answered me:
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 12:50:18 -0800 (PST)
Hi Christian,
I want to thank you: I am really impressed with what you are doing and I appreciate your comments very much. I am forwarding you my correspondence with Louis on the matter, just to clarify some of the questions he asked, but I totally agree with your notes.
Kozeta
~
The following is Kozeta's answer to the questions of Louis:
Date: Wed, 21 Jan 2004 10:32:11 -0800 (PST)
Hi Louis,
As I have already said, the rescuers offered help after the call on the Tv Channel. At that time it was nearly 9.00 pm. It is confirmed that the radar on the coast had signalled that there was a boat in the sea since 6.00 pm, but no one took measures. The police thought that they were carrying drugs, not people, so better let the boat sink, as the weather was bad. There have no been other public cases showing if help could be possible, so that we don't know for sure what would have happened if they intervened before. The foreign troops acting as rescuers stoped their actions after midnight, because the sea was rough and they couln't see anything, and they re-started in the early morning. The press and some non-government organizations claim that help was delayed on purpose, because th local police was itself involved in the traffic. As for the Italian Embassy, they issue visa to Albanians because we are not yet members of EU. One has to present all the necessary documentation, an invitation or business documents, but still it is very difficult to obtain a visa due to too much burocracy. This is true for all foreign Embassies that are settled in Albania. Sometimes no reason is given why you can't take a visa. So the policy they follow is really harsh, especially to people who have their parents, husbands, wifes or children living abroad. Sometimes they don't give even short touristic visas, just to go and see how your people are. Of course there are cases when people go and stay illegally there, so they don't come back, but this is not common. I think if they legalize visas, few people would want to stay in other countries. If you heve any other questions on the matter, please ask.
Kozeta
~
Louis replied:
Hi Kozeta,
It really is a tragedy -- I hope you understand that I am not
unsympathetic to the plight of the victims. It's just that to
motivate large numbers of people, it helps to be as clear as possible
as to who did what to make the tragedy happen. If people read the
account and come away thinking that the delays didn't matter because
no one could have been helped until morning, I don't know that we
will have helped much.
Christian's page is good, though, and we will link to it in
tomorrow's news dispatch.
Bests,
L
~
FMN (Free-Market.Net) did link and at present the link can be found on more than one place on its site (you can use the local search engine and search for albania or immigration, kozeta, butterbach etc.), for instance here:
http://www.free-market.net/directorybycategory/commentary/T21.3/index.html#5
RRND (Rational Review News Digest) had linked to the editorial the day before in its newsletter issue of 01/22 (item 34), which can be found at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rrnd/message/292
~
Kozeta replied:
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 12:38:17 -0800 (PST)
Hi,
In my opinion the delay mattered a lot. But everything is still under investigation and we don't know yet the whole truth. It is mostly the press that is giving an impact to this. At this very moment another information is unveiled: the Ministry of Order knew about the boat since 6 o'clock, but it informed the Ministry of Defence 1 and a half hours later, so the search started late. If they had intervened at 6 o'clock, refugees could have been saved, because the sea was less rough at that time. Regarding the report on the aid of foreign troops, it is said that Nato's helicopters couldn't help in that terrible weather, the Italian and Albania ships neither. There is nothing said officially, though. In the boat they had fireworks, but they were not used by the trafficers. The refugees say they didn't know that. As you see, there are many unclear things and many contradictions, too. What is known for sure is that some segments of the local police were implicated in the traffic. Two high officials from this police department have been arrested. Other investigations are being carried, but everything is too slow. It seems as if someone wants to hide the truth. We are just waiting for other news.
Kozeta
~
Again Louis:
Hi Kozeta,
Thanks for the update. Perhaps it would be useful to send periodic
updates to Christian Butterbach, so he can post them to his page on
the subject. The arrests certainly seem like relevant news and your
take on the delays clarifies things a bit -- is there any Albanian
news agency that posts news on the web in English?
Bests,
L
~
Now it gets interesting, from Kozeta:
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 13:17:43 -0800 (PST)
Hi,
Here comes another news from a direct program on Top Channel Tv. At that day there were two boats in the sea: one with drugs and one with clandestines. It seems that the police had some information on the first boat, so they thought that the one sinking in the sea was that boat. And thay didn't consider helping it. But, to the irony of the fate, it arrived safe and sound to Italy. This was confirmed by someone that was travelling on that boat, but still nothing is official. At the same time, it is now known that one of the refugees on the tragic boat has called his brother in Lezha, a small city in the northern Albania, who worked in the police department of this city, and informed him that the boat with 30 refugees on board was broken and they were all in danger. The brother immediately had called his colleagues in Vlora, so they already knew about it long before the phone call on Top Channel. And they act immediately.
I am not sure of any web in English. I will ask tomorrow. Good night!
Kozeta
~
Louis:
Ok, thanks. Get some rest! Bests, L
~
More news from Kozeta:
Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 11:54:36 -0800 (PST)
Hi,
Today there was an interview from one of the Nato commanders in Albania. He said that he was not informed officially about the boat that night, but from a journalist he met at a restaurant while dinning. Their connection with the officials started later. He also added that neither Nato troops, nor Italian Naval Forces here in Albania owned proper means and equipment to act in that grave situation. (It seems as if they are here on holidays.) Today the prime minister criticized The Albanian Information Service(SHISH) for bad commitment and said that the government would do the impossible to reveal the whole truth.
Kozeta
~
Latest news from Albania:
Date: Mon, 2 Feb 2004 23:19:10 -0800 (PST)
Hi Christian,
It seems as if everything about the tragedy is forgotten. No more news or other investigations. Some police officials in Vlora district are already sacked from work. But none is really blamed for what happened. Anyway, on 7 February protests will be organized in the streets of Tirana by Democratic Party which is in opposition. They are addressed to the government, and mainly to the withdrawal of the prime minister, who, according to opposition, is responsible for the tragedy, as well as poverty and high prices. Two days ago the price of bread increased by 20 per cent. In December the price of energy and telephone costs already doubled. It is expected a wide range of demonstrations and protests against the government during February, until the prime minister resigns.
Kozeta
Comment of Christian Butterbach: What we have here, are the wonderful results of left-wing socialist centrally planned economy and statist politics and interference with the market. Dear ATTACkers, it is not "capitalism", market economy, globalism or "neo-liberalism" which are responsible for this. It is your ATTACking the wrong enemy, supporting the real one. It is thus your own stupidity, intolerance, envy and misinformation which lets you starving. A true free market (not yet in existence anywhere) and even the still very limited one in existence in the most affluent countries would lower the price of the bread and create jobs also in Albania. The State and Government are about redistributing wealth, not about letting it be created in the first place. They are hindering the creation of products and services. You cannot distribute what is not created and therefore does not exist. The market will create these products and services and distribute them better and more widely, with more justice, than any bureaucrats ever could (assuming for a tiny second that all of them really have good intentions) and it will add to the wealth the share taken by these parasites.
~
Date: Sun, 8 Feb 2004 08:27:38 -0800 (PST)
Yesterday was 7 February, the beginning of the protests against the government. There were thousands of people gathered in the main square, mostly supporters of the Democratic party, and under the guide of the Parties in opposition (Democratic Party and its allies), they marched towards the Prime Ministry, asking for the resignation of the Prime Minister. It was all foreseen as a peaceful protest, having mainly economic requests, but to some extent it degenerated into a violent and political one. The demonstrators tried to violate the Prime Ministry, they threw stones at the police, who on their turn, shot in the air to make them go back. Anyway, no one was injured. Another protest is planned to be organized on 20 February, bigger than this.
Today the position press called yesterday's event as a "planned script" by the Democratic party to overthrow the government by force.
On the part of the opposition, it was said that those who ordered the police to shoot at unarmed people should be sent to court.
The political situation seems unstable, though the streets are quiet now. The Prime minister is in Spain, taking part in the International Socialist Congress.
The representative of the EU and the USA ambassador in Tirana called the violence of the demonstrators as unnecessary. They said that everything should be solved peacefully and only in the parliament. Albania is not Georgia. It has made steps forward to reach the European standards, and another popular riot will only do harm to the progress and economic measures taken by the government. They also praised the police actions and their patience in dealing with the irritated crowds of demonstrators.
It is expected that with the arrival of the Prime minister today, an urgent meeting of the government will be held to discuss about the situation.
Kozeta
~
Date: Sun, 22 Feb 2004 05:58:52 -0800 (PST)
Dear Christian,
I am forwarding you a public report sent to me on the last issue we talked together, i.e. on the protests of 7 February in Tirana. You may have a better picture on the political battle between the Democratic Party (leader Berisha) and the Socialist one (leader Nano - actual prime minister).
Now some other update. Yesterday, 21 February, was the second stage of protests of the opposition to make prime minister resigned. This time the protest was peaceful. There were nearly 20,000 people gathered in the main square, and after several speeches from leaders of the opposition and from ordinary people, they marched along the main boulevard shouting "Nano, go away". The parties of the opposition are sure that these peaceful protests will make prime minister resign. On the other hand, the prime minister does not intend to resign. He has declared that only the vote of the people in the next year elections may make him go away. In the mean time, he is taking measures to lower the telephone costs, which had a double increase three months ago. There was also a withdrawal of the decision on the unpaid electrical bills from 1994 to 2000, mainly from people living in the northern Albania. But this decision caused indignation on the part of the majority of people who pay taxes and obey the laws. It is these people who bear the political costs of the chaos Albania is undergoing recently.
Kozeta
CB: The report (in English) mentioned above is also available
~
[AFTER A LONGER INTERRUPTION:]
Report from AlbaniaUpon my enquiry about the sad news reaching us from Albania, I receive the following answer from my special correspondent, Kozeta Cuadari Çika:Date: Sun, 16 Mar 2008 07:40:56 -0700 (PDT)
Hi Christian,
Thanks for writing. I and my family are okay, but really shocked.
The explosion was close to Tirana, nearly 15 kilometres. We felt it strongly and it seemed like an atomic bomb. It was a storehouse where munition was collected from every part of the country, and where more than 100 people worked for dismantling it.
The sad news is that it was quite close to a village of 5000 people.The nearest house was 100 metres away. There are almost 2000 houses damaged; 300 in ruins and 250 badly destroyed. 270 people are seriously injured and receiving hospital treatment, 10 of which are flown urgently to Italy. Until now are found 7 dead bodies, but tens of people are not found yet. There were more than 100 people working at the time of the explosion, so probably their bodies are ashes now. More people are supposed to be under the ruins of the houses closer to the munition storehouse. The fires have been burning during the whole night and stopped only this morning. Now army and police forces are searching for unexploded shells and people who may be buried under the ruins of the houses.
The funny thing is that the government isn't taking responsibility and there is no resignation on the part of the Minister of Defence or the Prime Minister yet. They say that it is the fault of the American company, contracted to perform the dismantling of munition. On the other hand, the American Company pretends that their contract was over on 7 December, and since then it was passed to an Albanian Company.
The question is: How can you build such a dangerous storehouse, with no proper technical conditions and no trained workers, so close to inhabited places?
You know, our international airport is very close to this place, and there were damaged windows in the VIP terminal of this airport. A lot of cars were damaged while driving on the motorway from Tirana to Durres.
There were a lot of women and children aged 14 and up working there, all poor people who didn't take the great risk into consideration. There was no proper information on what was done in that storehouse on the part of the ordinary people. Once it had been a military base. I didn't know it, either. They say that it could have been a catastrophe, if the explosion started from the tunnels holding the munition. The whole city of Tirana might have been in ashes now. We are lucky to be alive.
There is aid coming from the neighbouring countries, Kosovo and Macedonia, in blood and plasma for the wounded people. There is strong solidarization with the families of the victims and the wounded people. Most of the citizens of Tirana have been giving blood and other aids in clothes, food and shelter for them.
That's all for now.
Best,
Kozeta
~
More news:
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 2008 08:05:14 -0700 (PDT)
Hi Christian,
More news on Saturday's blast.
Until now the figures have increased:
19 people killed, 5 people not yet found, and nearly 300 wounded. Most of them are children and women, which shows that a great number of them worked in the depot, contrary to all security measures and to what the government pretends.
The Minister of Defence resigned, and now the people and the opposition are demanding the resignation of the Prime Minister, Berisha, who is directly involved in this affair.
Four people are arrested, among which the president and director of an Albanian firm, sub-contractor of the American company. Investigations are being held to find the causes of the blast and the people responsible.
They say that the American company is not known in US for this kind of job, only for producing sport guns. Many newspapers accuse the Prime Minister for being involved with Mafia on weapon smuggling.
Protests are being organized in various parts of the country. The rioters demand the resignation of the government and immediate measures to be taken to get rid of the munition depots, which are said to be numerous all over the country. We are sleeping on bombs, they say.
The situation is depressing, hopeless.
More news in the coming days,
Best
Kozeta
[TO BE CONTINUED!]
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