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OP-ED

A note about the German Krichbaum, who lost his metaphor and compass in Tirana

Politiko 2023-10-28 15:06:27

A note about the German Krichbaum, who lost his metaphor and compass in Tirana

Alfred Lela

I hope, or wish, that today's statement by German MP Gunther Krichbaum is a 'lost in translation' case. Because for a member of a parliament, especially when he is both a German and a lawyer, the former known for accuracy and the latter for knowledge (of the law in this case), it is not fitting to circulate bullshit.

The parallel that Mr. Krichbaum draws, evoking the Nazism and the Bundestag of that time, to illustrate a political-legal battle of the former Albanian prime minister, Sali Berisha, is out of place and context, a fall caused by the unfortunate meet of a morbid Germanic with Balkanista sanguinity. It is also sad because it reminds Germany of a dark age, and the example he brings goes against what the gentleman wants to convey. I am quoting: "At the time of Nazi Germany, when German MPs were sent to prison, the Nazis had the majority in parliament."

Yes, and this is today's main fear of those who oppose the process against Doctor Berisha. In given circumstances with Socialists having a majority in Parliament, ownership of the executive, control of most (if not all) of the mainstream media, with solid and reasonable suspicions of an extended hand in the affairs of the judiciary, there is a panic of overpowering majority violating the rights and freedoms of individuals or minorities, as happened in Nazi Germany or communist Albania.

The Hitlerian example had to serve Mr. Krichbaum to make the parallel and sound the alarm, not to speak from the 'German cathedra,' as someone interested in the present for the present, not its links to the past and the future.

It is, at the very least, intellectually dishonest. Politically and conjecturally, everyone minds specific interests, needs, and calculations.

Another moment that adds to my regret is the memory of a meeting a few years ago with members of the Bundestag, a visit organized by a German Foundation with offices in Tirana for a group of journalists from here. I don't remember if Mr. Kirchbaum was part of the tour of meetings (I have to consult the photos from that time), but in the 'off record' conversations, the Germans defended the idea that Basha, the head of the DP at that time, was a 'corrupt politician.' I was unhappy with this attitude then, just as I am saddened by the one now.

When someone from that group comes out a few years later at Basha's side to hand out indulgences of integrity for free, the taste of truth is lost, and the flip-flopping triumphs.

What seems to me not German at all is that the politician of a big country like Germany, which has defended Albania and has great sympathy among the opposition, behaves like a lobbyist for the time being, not like a statesman for all the time.

Of course, I know and cannot ignore the larger context of our world. Politics is no longer built on policies but on interests and lobbying, from private ones to large corporations and nation-states or supranational superstructures.

The sadness of what you know and have no power to change is relieved by saying what you know and think. I hope they don't take this from us with the government, Special Courts, or the politically correct, increasingly restrictive vocabulary of 'international.'