Albania After Communism: From 1990 Protests to NATO and Kosovo

The story of Albania after communism begins in December 1990, when student protests forced the authorities to allow other political parties. The shift to democracy and a market economy was difficult and included the crisis of 1997. The country then turned towards the West, joining NATO in 2009 and becoming an EU candidate in 2014. Over the same period, Kosovo went from losing its autonomy to declaring independence on 17 February 2008.

This is the eighth and final chapter of our guide to the history of Albania. It covers the years from 1990 to the present day.

The fall of the communist regime (1990–1991)

The one-party regime collapsed within a few months. On 8 December 1990, students at the Student City in Tirana took to the streets to demand political pluralism. On 11 December the ruling party allowed other parties to form, and on 12 December the first opposition party appeared: the Democratic Party.

The students were soon joined by intellectuals and ordinary residents of Tirana, and the protest grew into a movement against the regime. The decision to allow pluralism was taken by the Central Committee of the Party of Labour of Albania (PLA). Political pluralism is a system in which two or more parties exist.

The beginning of change

Albania was no exception in Eastern Europe. The fall of the Berlin Wall set off a domino effect, and the communist regimes of the region collapsed one after another.

The first open protests in the country took place as early as the beginning of 1990. On 14 January 1990, people in Shkodër tried to pull down a bust of Stalin, and the police arrested many of those involved.

By the summer, the crisis was plain for the whole world to see. On 2 July 1990, people stormed the embassies of Italy, West Germany, France and other countries to ask for political asylum. Around 10,000 people gathered outside the embassies, and about 5,000 asylum seekers took refuge inside.

The authorities had tried to stay in power through reform. In the summer of 1990, Ramiz Alia removed some of the old leadership, issued passports to people who had taken refuge in foreign embassies and promised to review the constitutional order. None of it was enough.

Over the winter, events gathered pace. In February 1991, students and lecturers went on hunger strike, demanding that the dictator's name be dropped from the name of the University of Tirana. Alia gave in, dismissed Prime Minister Adil Çarçani and appointed Fatos Nano in his place. On 20 February 1991, protesters pulled down the statue of Enver Hoxha in Tirana's Skanderbeg Square.

The country was on the brink of civil war at the time, and the concessions to the students were an attempt to avoid it. In March 1991, most political prisoners were released, including those who had taken part in the protests of 1990.

The first elections

Albania held its first multi-party elections on 31 March 1991. Of the 250 seats, the Party of Labour won 169 and the Democratic Party 75. In April, the law on the main constitutional provisions renamed the state the Republic of Albania, and on 30 April Ramiz Alia was elected president.

The opposition in the new parliament was made up of the Democratic, Republican, Social Democratic and Ecological parties, together with Omonia, the organisation of the Greek minority.

The country was still in turmoil. After a general strike, Fatos Nano's government resigned on 4 June 1991 and was replaced by a "Government of Stability" under Ylli Bufi. On 13 June, the Party of Labour of Albania was dissolved and re-founded as the Socialist Party of Albania.

The "Government of Stability" did not last long. It resigned after the Democratic ministers left, and was replaced by a technocratic government under Vilson Ahmeti.

The events in Shkodër on 2 April 1991

Not everyone accepted the results of the first elections. On 2 April 1991, a demonstration against the outcome of the vote took place in Shkodër and ended in violent clashes with the police.

Four Democratic Party activists were killed during the protest: Arben Broci, Bujar Bishanaku, Besnik Ceka and Nazmi Kryeziu. Later, the miners of Valias went on hunger strike, demanding higher wages and the naming of those responsible for the events in Shkodër.

The first pluralist parliament

The first pluralist parliament sat from March 1991 to March 1992. Its most important act was the Law on the main constitutional provisions.

Passed in April 1991, this law marked the end of the dictatorship. It established the separation of powers, political pluralism, private property and human rights.

Albania after communism: the move to a market economy (1992–1996)

The Democrats won the elections of 22 March 1992, taking 92 of the 140 seats to the Socialists' 38. Aleksandër Meksi became prime minister. Ramiz Alia resigned in early April (4 April, according to the textbook), and on 9 April parliament elected Sali Berisha as president.

The Democratic Party formed a coalition government with the Republicans and the Social Democrats. From 1992 to 1997 the country was governed by the DP in coalition, at various times with the Republican and Social Democratic parties, and Aleksandër Meksi remained prime minister throughout. Sali Berisha was president from 1992 to 1997 and later, from 2005 to 2013, headed the government.

The new government pushed market reforms further. It freed prices and privatised housing and small businesses. The break-up of agricultural land had already begun under the Law "On Land" of July 1991. In the months right after the fall of communism, the country relied on emergency aid, mainly from Italy through Operation Pelican. Ties with Western institutions began in 1991 with agreements with the IMF, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The changes had a darker side too. Illegal trafficking and corruption spread, and the most dangerous development of all was the rise of pyramid schemes.

Politics remained tense. A draft constitution was rejected in a referendum on 6 November 1994. The elections of 26 May 1996 were marred by irregularities, and the opposition disputed the results and boycotted parliament.

Laws and institutions of the new state

Until there was a permanent constitution, the legal system rested on the Law on the main constitutional provisions, which was gradually expanded. A chapter on the judiciary was added in April 1992, and a chapter on fundamental rights and freedoms in March 1993 (the Albas textbook dates both chapters to April 1992).

New legislation was drawn up at the same time. The Civil Code was adopted in 1994, and the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure in 1995. An attempt to adopt a full constitution in November 1994 failed when voters rejected the draft in a referendum.

The state apparatus was rebuilt. Purges swept through the administration, the diplomatic service and above all the Sigurimi, which was replaced by the National Intelligence Service (SHIK). Military ranks, abolished in 1966, were restored after 1992.

The new authorities also settled accounts with the communist past. In 1991–1992, former senior PLA officials were arrested, among them Enver Hoxha's widow Nexhmije Hoxha. In 1995, the Genocide Law and a lustration law were passed, barring former senior officials of the regime and Sigurimi officers from standing for parliament until 2002.

The 1996 elections

The confrontation between government and opposition grew sharper. Fatos Nano, chairman of the Socialist Party, was arrested in 1993 and convicted of corruption in 1994, which inflamed the political situation.

In the elections of 26 May 1996, the DP took 95 of the 100 constituency seats and 122 of the 140 seats in parliament overall. The opposition refused to accept the results. The international community called for the vote to be rerun in 40 constituencies, but the government refused.

The crisis of 1997

The crisis grew out of the problems of the previous years: the disputed 1996 elections, the opposition's boycott of parliament, corruption and the pyramid schemes. When the schemes collapsed, the political conflict turned into a nationwide one.

In 1997, Albania came close to civil war after the collapse of pyramid schemes into which a great many families had put their savings. Order returned thanks to a compromise between the parties and Operation Alba, an international mission led by Italy.

The first protests broke out in January 1997 in the south, and Vlorë became one of the main centres of unrest. On 9 March, with the OSCE mediating, the parties reached an agreement: they formed a coalition Government of National Reconciliation under Bashkim Fino and called early elections.

State of emergency and weapons in civilian hands

The situation quickly spiralled out of control. On 2 March 1997, parliament declared a state of emergency. In March, crowds looted army weapons depots, and the population armed itself.

Former Austrian Chancellor Franz Vranitzky acted as mediator in resolving the crisis. The negotiations led to Bashkim Fino's coalition government and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in Albania.

Operation Alba ran from April to August. It was a multinational force of about 7,000 troops under Italian command, operating under a UN mandate (Resolution 1101). In the early elections of 29 June 1997, the Socialists won around two thirds of the seats in parliament, and a referendum held the same day rejected a return of the monarchy.

The 1998 constitution and changes of government

Albania's current constitution was approved in a referendum on 22 November 1998 and proclaimed on 28 November. It made the country a parliamentary republic, with a single-chamber parliament of 140 members elected for four years, and a president elected by parliament for five.

After years of provisional laws, the country finally had a permanent constitution: the 1991 Law on the main constitutional provisions gave way to a full basic law in 1998.

In September 1998, the Democratic MP Azem Hajdari was murdered, raising tensions even further. From then on, power changed hands through the ballot box: the Socialists won a second term in 2001, the Democrats returned in 2005, and the Socialists came back in 2013.

Governments after 1998

After the murder of Azem Hajdari, Prime Minister Fatos Nano resigned and Pandeli Majko took over the government. His cabinet dealt with the crisis of refugees from Kosovo.

From 1997 to 2005, the country was governed by a centre-left coalition led by the Socialist Party. The prime ministers in those years were Fatos Nano, Pandeli Majko and Ilir Meta. The Socialists won a second term in the elections of 24 June 2001.

After the defeat in the 2005 elections, Nano stepped down as SP leader, and the party was taken over by the mayor of Tirana, Edi Rama. The Democrats returned to power, and Sali Berisha became prime minister.

The elections of June 2013 were won by a coalition led by the Socialist Party and the LSI. Edi Rama's government took office in September 2013.

The road to NATO and the European Union

Joining Euro-Atlantic structures became democratic Albania's main foreign-policy goal. The country moved from its first agreements in 1991 to NATO membership in 2009 and EU candidate status in 2014.

The reforms needed for a NATO invitation picked up speed after US President George W. Bush visited in June 2007. Albania joined the alliance in the year of its 60th anniversary. On the EU side, the decisive step was the 2016 judicial reform: in November 2016 the European Commission recommended opening negotiations, provided the vetting of judges made progress. Albania is currently negotiating its accession to the European Union.

The road was not a smooth one: the 1997 crisis set the country back, and the main steps towards NATO and the EU came only in 2006–2014.

The road to NATO

Albania's path into the North Atlantic Alliance took almost two decades. In 1992 it joined the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (NACC), and on 23 February 1994 it signed up to the Partnership for Peace programme and formally applied for membership on the same day.

An important step was its inclusion in the Membership Action Plan (MAP), which set Albania on the path to NATO integration. The country was invited to join at the Bucharest summit on 3 April 2008 and became a full member in April 2009, together with Croatia.

Closer ties with the European Union

Relations with Europe began immediately after the fall of the regime. In 1991, Albania established diplomatic relations with the European Community, the forerunner of the EU, and in 1992 signed a Trade and Cooperation Agreement with it.

The crises of 1995–1997 and the collapse of the pyramid schemes slowed the rapprochement. Only in June 2001 did the EU decide to prepare negotiations on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement. The regional framework for this was provided by the 1999 Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe, designed to support the European integration of the countries of the region.

The visit of European Commission President Romano Prodi on 31 January 2003 marked the official opening of negotiations. The agreement was signed on 12 June 2006, and Albania applied for membership in April 2009.

In October 2013, the European Commission recommended granting Albania candidate status, on condition that the fight against corruption continued. Albania became a candidate country in June 2014.

Kosovo: from autonomy to independence

After Kosovo lost its autonomy in 1989, its Albanians went from peaceful resistance and a parallel state, through the war of 1998–1999, to UN administration and finally the declaration of independence on 17 February 2008.

This path can be divided into four stages: the abolition of autonomy and the emergence of Albanian parties (1989–1990), peaceful resistance led by Ibrahim Rugova, the KLA's armed struggle and NATO intervention (1998–1999), and international administration and independence (1999–2008).

The end of autonomy and new parties

The Serbian authorities stripped away the rights Albanians had gained under the 1974 Constitution: they shut down the Assembly of Kosovo, filled institutions with Serbian officials and closed Albanian newspapers. In July 1990, Serbia dissolved the Assembly and government of Kosovo, and the new Serbian constitution of 28 September 1990 placed the province under full Serbian control and suspended its elected bodies.

In response, Kosovo Albanians began forming their own parties. In December 1989, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) was founded under the writer Ibrahim Rugova. Its aim was a mass peaceful movement and the internationalisation of the Kosovo question. Besides the LDK, the Social Democratic, Peasant, Parliamentary, Christian Democratic and other parties emerged.

Peaceful resistance in the 1990s

On 2 July 1990, delegates of the Assembly of Kosovo adopted the Constitutional Declaration of Kosovo as an equal unit within Yugoslavia. On 7 September, meeting in secret in Kaçanik, they adopted the Constitution of Kosovo and proclaimed it a republic. A referendum on independence followed in September 1991, though Serbia and Yugoslavia did not recognise it. In parallel elections in May 1992, Ibrahim Rugova was elected president of the Republic of Kosovo.

Rugova thus held the two top posts at once: he remained chairman of the LDK and became president of the Republic of Kosovo.

Under Rugova, Kosovo Albanians practised peaceful, passive resistance and built parallel, unofficial institutions, including schooling in Albanian. These were funded by a government in exile under Bujar Bukoshi, which collected contributions from the diaspora. Rugova's only agreement with Milošević, on Albanian-language education, was signed in September 1996 but stayed on paper.

Besides education, diaspora money also paid for a parallel healthcare system.

The war of 1998–1999

The Kosovo War began in February 1998, with the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA, UÇK) among the fighting forces. On 7 March 1998, during a Serbian attack on Prekaz, KLA co-founder Adem Jashari was killed along with most of his family. In early 1999, Serbian forces carried out mass killings of civilians, in Reçak and Rugova among other places, and this pushed the international community to step in.

The KLA had begun to make its presence felt in the mid-1990s. Adem Jashari was a legendary commander in Drenica. In the spring and summer of 1998, the KLA controlled a large part of rural Kosovo. On 13 October 1998, Milošević was forced to declare a ceasefire and partially withdraw his troops.

The Reçak massacre took place on 15 January 1999, and it was followed by the failure of the Rambouillet conference.

At the Rambouillet conference in March 1999, the Albanian side accepted the proposed agreement and the Yugoslav side rejected it. From 24 March to 10 June 1999, NATO carried out 78 days of air strikes on Serbian military targets. More than 10,000 Albanians were killed or went missing during the war, and more than 850,000 became refugees.

After the bombing, Milošević withdrew his forces, and Kosovo came under the international administration of KFOR and UNMIK. During the war, many refugees from Kosovo had ended up in Albania, and it fell to Pandeli Majko's government to deal with the crisis.

UN administration and independence

Under the Kumanovo Agreement of 9 June 1999, Serbian forces withdrew. On 10 June, UN Security Council Resolution 1244 set up the UNMIK mission, and on 12 June NATO troops (KFOR) entered Kosovo. On 4 March 2002, Ibrahim Rugova was elected president within the provisional institutions under UN administration.

UNMIK, headed by the French politician Bernard Kouchner, became the civilian administration of the province and shared its governance with KFOR.

In 2005, the process to determine Kosovo's status began, and the UN Secretary-General appointed the Finn Martti Ahtisaari as special envoy. In 2007, Ahtisaari proposed making Kosovo a multi-ethnic democratic state with independence under international supervision.

On 17 February 2008, the Assembly of Kosovo declared independence, with 109 of its 120 members voting in favour. The move followed the plan drawn up by UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari. Fatmir Sejdiu was president at the time and Hashim Thaçi prime minister. The Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo came into force on 15 June 2008. On 22 July 2010, the UN International Court of Justice found in an advisory opinion, by 10 votes to 4, that the declaration did not violate international law.

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