Zhupa: With the DP, concessions in cultural heritage end, we protect identity

Democratic MP Ina Zhupa has presented the points of the DP's 2025-2029 program for culture.

Zhupa said that the program foresees the prohibition of concessions in cultural heritage, the protection of Albanian history and identity.

The MP also emphasized that UNESCO will be the guide and partner of the Democratic Party.

Program points for Culture:

1-  CULTURAL HERITAGE, STOPPING CONCESSIONS
The Democratic Party guarantees that the practice of concessions in cultural heritage will end.
There is no longer any private person who will put their hands on the identity and history of Albanians.
We will protect history and identity at all costs.
We will do everything so that Butrint and every other cultural heritage site implements the highest UNESCO standards.

2-  UNESCO should be our most important guide and partner.
All foundations, all organizations should have the opportunity to make donations, monitor their money, but none, ever, can take possession of the national wealth of Albanian citizens.
We are proud of our history, of our identity, and we will do everything to elevate and protect it.
History, identity and cultural heritage will not be treated as a COMMERCIAL commodity but as a national asset to elevate and protect.

3- Culture for the purpose of  EDUCATION-SOCIALIZATION  and tourism, not for the purpose of enriching oligarchs to build shopping malls/visitor centers, private villas and resorts.

4-  INTRODUCTION OF HERITAGE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
We will introduce heritage impact assessment into the law. It is a concept used by UNESCO, it is a concept that European countries have and whenever an intervention of any kind needs to be made in cultural monuments, in archaeological parks, in archaeological sites, this process is carried out, which is called "Heritage Impact Assessment", which deals precisely with the assessment of the historical and archaeological significance and importance, when a project is considered to be implemented for its development or maintenance, in order to have more important the preservation of the values ​​and the concept of heritage than any other use for profit reasons or for tourism or PR reasons. This concept should be timely, it is a European standard.
The Democratic Party expresses this as an important point of its program for culture, where the assessment of the impact on heritage will become a legal obligation, it will be part of the law on heritage, a law that must be changed to remove once and for all what you have decided, to remove the concept of granting by concession, the concept of removing the state from the obligation it has to preserve, protect and transmit cultural heritage to future generations, with all the values ​​it has for the identity and history of a country.
The strict implementation of the standards of the UNESCO-Paris Convention.

5- Completing the files for adding tangible and intangible assets inscribed under UNESCO protection, starting with Grama Bay, Bylis, etc.

6- We establish a guide school to have certified Cicerones who convey our history to foreigners and Albanians. We invest in the digitalization of heritage, where there are audio guides that explain the heritage.

7- The scandal with Durrës that Albanian archaeologists cannot work, the decision of the Ministry of Culture, dated July 25, 2023, on the full concept of archaeological excavations for the area of ​​the Roman Amphitheater, the Byzantine Forum and the Roman Baths, has excluded the Institute of Archaeology from the right to excavate and continue research in protected archaeological areas, as monuments, which are officially protected, but also of national importance. The three monuments I mentioned, the Amphitheater, the Forum and the Baths, are discoveries directly related to the work and historical commitment of the professors of the Institute of Archaeology, since 1966. We guarantee that the VKM is canceled, and every excavation and research will definitely have fundamental Albanian institutions and institutes, with archaeologists and fundamental Albanian researchers.

8- Cultural Heritage elective module for high school students.

9- Youth Bonus for Culture - 100 Youth projects each year to connect youth with culture.

Great Albania is realized by exalting our great Culture, our identity and pride in being Albanian.