Patriotic kukurec and insult from afendikoi: Rama's offer yesterday in Athens

Alfred Lela

Edi Rama sweated on Sunday in the speech he delivered in front of a packed hall in the Greek capital. Despite the good participation - even if the socialists of the border areas, Bilisht, Gjorkastër, etc. are excluded from it - the meeting is a spectacular failure. Such because, for no moment, it did not serve or reflect the state and concerns of the diverse and vibrant Albanian community of Greece in relation to Rama and his government, or others before him in Albania. In none of the banners was there any concern of the community, both in relation to Albania and in relation to the second homeland, Greece.

The atmosphere created, since it was also a sports palace - some called it a stadium - was more like meetings of American tele-evangelists, leaders of the third world, tallava concerts or a wedding/circumcision of a large oriental family, somewhere in Maghreb or in the former Muslim Soviet republics.

Rama himself did not deal with the big topics, or even if he touched on them, he did so only to leave my mouth. For example, pensions, diaspora vote, economic and fiscal facilities for immigrants and their possible businesses in Albania, etc.

He put his entire speech under the drumbeat of nationalism, dealing with the victimization of Albanians by history and by the Greeks. The prime minister called yesterday's gatherings 'Europeans', but treated them as narrow-minded nationalists, who are enough if you throw the name of Bubulina at the center of the Greek revolution and the famous 'brooms' of the 90s.

Edi Rama carried out a successful propaganda operation yesterday, but he didn't say, he didn't do, he didn't take or bring back anything that is worth the Albanian community there or the two countries. He can be satisfied with that, because after all, there was a meeting of the Socialist Party in Athens, but should the diaspora eat this old raisin from him?

Those, among the Albanians of Greece or here in Tirana and elsewhere, who were satisfied with the fact that Rama mentioned to the Greeks the 'law of war' and Chameria should get off the wagon of excitement and get on the wagon of precedent.

The prime minister made the same "verbal war" in Belgrade. The nationalist narrative in Pristina and Tirana was flooded with pride when Rama mentioned the recognition of Kosovo in the presence of Vucic and in the 'heart of Belgrade'. Are you saying that the Serbian politicians and journalists at the press conference would immediately turn into stadium ultras and throw chairs, microphones and whatever appeared in front of the prime minister of Albania?

Rama's 'strong' rhetoric has produced nothing more than patriotic fluff that fills and empties itself in the endless recesses of the internet, and is no more than a cuckoo enjoying a meal, anyway.

What did the 'bravery' of Rama or the open Balkans produce for the Albanians in Kosovo and for the Albanian economy? Did Serbia stop in its rhetoric towards Kosovo, in official efforts to prevent recognition and even to ensure some recognition of independence? Did Vucic change his mind about Kosovo? Was the Serbian president wrong when he decided not to join the countries of the region or the West in the anti-Russian boycott? Were they not paramilitaries with inspiration and state support from Belgrade, who attacked Banjska, killing an Albanian officer and provoking a military escalation on the borders between the two countries and in the region?

With the policy of Medemek patriotism and Serbian appeasement, Edi Rama did not change anything in his policies. He just used a TV moment to play a Balkan John Wayne. Free propaganda and nothing more.

The Greek case is the same. His speech with the 'peacock complex', adorned with pan-Albanian glosses and Albanian-victimization, will not produce anything except the one-day effect.

The agenda of Albanian-Greek relations is at the same point as until Saturday. Even today, the Albanian community in Greece will begin, as every week, the usual series of work and challenges. When the elections approach, just like so many other times, the socialist realtors will appear in the cafes of Albanians to collect the "day workers" of the next elections. In the end, this is the only status that Edi Rama was recognized and accepted by our compatriots in Greece. That of the "political daily worker" whom the socialist accused, who gets off the plane or luxury car, offers, in exchange for 50 euros, a round-trip bus ticket and the minimum daily expenses.

At this point, the Albanian community in Greece has not moved since the early 90s. They go out again to Omonia or elsewhere and wait for someone from Tirana, as they waited for the Greek gentleman at that time. With the only difference that it doesn't happen every day but once every 2 years.

The offense remains the same.