Greek property rights, Plato and Himara

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is already successful his 13th year successful office, but some issues that interest his country’s relations with Greece stay the same. A fewer days earlier his accomplishment successful Greece for the 11th Delphi Economic Forum (April 22-25), Rama spoke with Kathimerini astir Greek-Albanian relations, and the contented of Greek properties successful Himara.

When asked to remark connected his caller arguable remarks regarding the origins of the Greeks, Rama described them arsenic “humor,” arguing that they were blown retired of proportionality by nationalist voices.

During your tenure, Albania has opened its doors to overseas nonstop investments. The yearly maturation complaint is astir 4%, and you person go a magnet for tourists from the Balkan countries and Central Europe. What is Albania similar today?

We person made a very important alteration successful galore ways. As you said, today Albania has go a touristic destination. The astir important happening is that we person succeeded successful overcoming the stigma and the galore prejudices that kept us astatine bay for galore years. Now we person to support going, bash our champion to amended what needs improvement, and debar repeating mistakes that sometimes look unavoidable.

The European Commission estimates that a ample information of your system depends connected the “informal sector,” astir 30% of GDP, and is raising concerns astir the regularisation of law. What measures person you taken to code these issues?

The informal system is portion of this humanities signifier of transformative change. It has been 35 years, but that is not capable to permission down galore of the challenges that came with a deficiency of experience, state institutions, antiauthoritarian tradition, and regularisation of law. We are gathering up and changing each day. We person importantly improved the equilibrium betwixt the ceremonial and informal economy. This is intelligibly reflected successful state revenues, which proceed to summation without raising taxes. This means that much of the system is coming into the open, and tax postulation is becoming much solid. We are besides utilizing the technology now, including AI, and this will lone proceed to improve.

Your statement astatine the Abu Dhabi Summit regarding the Greeks: “You think you are descendants of Plato and Aristotle, but you are not,” sparked strong reactions successful Greek society. Do you regret your comment?

I regret that comments meant to beryllium teasing and provocative, much for the involvement of treatment and a spot of humor, tin turn into superior issues and substance disproportionate reactions. That was surprising to me. I think we should take such comments much lightly. They are not intended to offend, but alternatively to promote a spot of self-irony, which is ever healthy. If radical successful Greece who were upset had besides listened to my comments astir however we successful Albania should take ourselves little earnestly and not trust connected the past to consciousness amended oregon bigger, they mightiness person understood my point. In immoderate case, I person clarified that when it comes to Greece, its history, language, literature, and culture, my feelings are wholly positive. I person large admiration, and anyone who knows maine understands that. However, nationalistic attitudes tin sometimes surface quickly, often reflecting a deficiency of maturity and awareness. We should each try to smile much and take ourselves and others a spot little seriously.

This remark besides raised claims astir your transportation to the Greek number of Albania, some done your parent from the village of Vouno and due to the fact that of a assistance you supposedly received arsenic politician of Tirana to study astatine Harvard. What are the facts surrounding these issues?

First of all, Vouno is simply a village successful Himara, and there are Greek-speaking radical successful different villages, but successful Vouno, cipher spoke Greek. I bash not cognize the reason, but it does not mean anything. If I had Greek roots, I would beryllium very blessed and proud, but I bash not. I americium arrogant of my Albanian roots. Secondly, I ne'er received a assistance for Harvard, and I person ne'er studied astatine Harvard. I person lone visited Harvard, thanks to a very adjacent and beloved person who is similar a sister to me, and she is simply a Greek-American. Otherwise, I person ne'er studied there. There is simply a batch of misinformation going around, and I bash not understand why.

Another contented betwixt the two sides is the properties of the Greek minority, which has not been afloat resolved. What is the latest improvement connected that?

This is not a abstracted issue. Property rights stay a broader contented crossed the country, not something specific to the Greek minority. Greeks and Albanians surviving successful the aforesaid villages look the aforesaid challenges. Whether someone belongs to the Greek number oregon the Albanian majority, the occupation is identical. This situation stems from a very hard humanities legacy. There was a 50-year play of afloat expropriation affecting everyone. That was followed by a troubled transition phase, during which galore things went wrong, spot titles and documents were destroyed, and successful some cases, were assigned to the wrong people. What we are doing present is simply a process of cleaning up and consolidating the cadastre. We are making bully progress, and recently, we issued galore spot titles to radical successful the south, successful Himara. Regardless of whether they are of Greek oregon Albanian origin, radical are receiving titles for their aged houses, which antecedently had none. This process is analyzable due to the fact that it involves consolidating maps, and it is not arsenic elemental arsenic it whitethorn seem. There are still tens of thousands of aged houses successful the state that are successful the process of obtaining spot titles.

It appears that Himara is included successful the tourism improvement plan. Are you discussing with your Greek counterpart ways to boost communal tourism?

Himara has ever been portion of our tourism plan; it is not something new. It has been a destination for tourists from the very beginning. Like the remainder of the country, it has seen important maturation successful caller years, with substantial development. The municipality of Himara is 1 of the richest successful the state owed to tax revenues from development. Contrary to overmuch of the distorted accusation circulating successful Greek media, the radical of Himara payment importantly from this growth. When they participate into improvement contracts, often supported by flexible arrangements recognizing longstanding onshore use, they tin person substantial compensation from developers. Himara is doing very well, and the politician is performing strongly. He represents what I judge is simply a exemplary case: He has 1 Greek genitor and 1 Albanian parent, and helium is afloat committed to some communities. He supports Greek-speaking residents, and this is reflected successful tourism promotion materials, which are available successful Albanian, Greek, and English. What happened successful the past with the idiosyncratic [Fredi Beleri] who ended up successful jailhouse alternatively of serving arsenic politician was unfortunate.

On a antithetic issue, the erstwhile supreme person of Iran, Ali Khamenei, had described Albania arsenic a “small, devilish state successful Europe where Americans are cooperating with Iranian traitors, plotting against the Islamic Republic.” Albania has precocious been the target of hybrid attacks. Are you acrophobic that Tehran will effort to grow them?

I americium not informed astir paradise and hell, and I bash not cognize for sure if they exist, but if they do, I wish helium rots successful hell. I accidental this for the involvement of the hundreds of thousands of Iranian girls and women who person suffered under his regularisation and under this acheronian regime. I besides accidental it for the involvement of the galore radical who person been imprisoned, massacred, killed, oregon had their lives ruined under that regime. I person thing much to add. We bash not fearfulness them. We person hosted a radical of Iranians who reason the regime. It has been intelligibly stated successful our statement that they are hosted for humanitarian reasons, to prevention their lives, not to use Albania arsenic a level to enactment against that regime. We bash not similar oregon admit that authorities astatine all, which is why we chopped each ties with Iran.

Since your past interrogation successful 2023 successful Kathimerini, person you learned immoderate Greek words oregon phrases?

I already knew the two astir beauteous Greek words: “agapi mou” and “efxaristo.” For the rest, English works fine. I americium nary longer young capable to larn Greek. My brother, who is not overmuch younger than me, learned when we went to Corfu and continued practicing, so helium speaks it well. He tin easy grip situations, similar dealing with a taxi operator successful Athens, while I americium wholly astatine the driver’s mercy, and I bash not caput that.

I indispensable ask, person you visited galore places successful Greece?

I wish I could visit Greece much often and observe much places. However, due to the fact that of my work and the information that I americium well known successful Greece, for some bully and not-so-good reasons, it is not easy. Also, I person acceptable a regularisation for myself and for others successful the authorities that we bash not take holidays extracurricular Albania. The crushed is simple: It would not marque consciousness to beforehand Albania arsenic a tourist destination while spending holidays successful countries similar Greece oregon Turkey. I understand that [Greek PM] Kyriakos [Mitsotakis] tin let himself to bash that due to the fact that Greece is already a well-established and consolidated tourist destination. But we are still successful the process of gathering ours. By the way, I americium very impressed by what has been happening successful Greece successful caller years, particularly aft the fiscal situation and under Kyriakos’ government. The caller developments, peculiarly the high-quality hotels and resorts, are very impressive. Perhaps helium is present reaping the benefits of the groundwork laid earlier, arsenic is often the case. In immoderate event, it is very impressive, and we person overmuch to larn from Greece.