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German newspaper: Edi Rama irritates the Albanians with the idea of ​​the Bektashi State

Politiko 2024-09-26 10:29:35

German newspaper: Edi Rama irritates the Albanians with the idea of ​​the

From Zeit Online

Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama wants to create a sovereign mini-state within his country based on the Vatican model. It will be established in the capital of Albania, Tirana, and will be led by the Muslim Bektashi order. However, it will take a long time to be implemented due to the necessary changes in the law, writes Rama on the X platform.

Rama first presented his idea on Sunday at the United Nations Future Summit in New York, completely surprising most of his countrymen.

Own borders, administration and planned passports

The head of the Bektashi Order in Tirana, Edmond Brahimaj, expressed his enthusiasm: "the excellent initiative" will bring "a new era of religious tolerance and the promotion of peace". The Bektashi "Vatican" will be built in Tirana on an area of ​​about ten hectares in the "Bektashi World Center" which is currently located there, with its own borders, administration and passports.

The Sunni Dervish order, which was founded in the 13th century, was widespread in the Ottoman Empire and moved its center to Albania after it was banned by Kemal Ataturk in 1925. Currently, about 50 percent of Albanians profess Islam. - 10 percent of whom are Bektashi. The rest declared in the last census in 2023 that they were Catholic or Orthodox Christians.

At the time of communism, the practice of religion in any form was forbidden in Albania. Brahimaj was an officer in the Albanian army from 1982 until the fall of communism.

Criticism from Albanian Muslims

The umbrella organization of Muslims in Albania, KMSH, strongly criticized Rama's idea. It endangers "religious harmony". "Such initiatives can create a dangerous precedent for the future of the country", says a statement to the Albanian media. Rama had not previously consulted with either the KMSH or the Interreligious Council of Albania.

The constitution of the NATO country, which is trying to join the EU, also states that the country is "united and indivisible". The constitution can be amended by a two-thirds majority in parliament.

Rama wrote in X that the project aimed "to preserve and enrich the priceless treasure of religious tolerance and harmony, for which the Bektashi Order, irreplaceable alongside the other three faiths, has its merits and role". He accused his critics of "fiendish ignorance and brutal negligence".

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