Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha announced in a Facebook post that he held a meeting at the DP headquarters with MEP Marco Tarquinio, Chair of the European Parliament Delegation to the EU-Albania Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee.
During the meeting, Berisha said he informed the MEP about the opposition’s concerns regarding the political, economic and criminal situation in the country. Berisha described the “narco-state” as Albania’s main problem, accusing the government led by Edi Rama of links to organised crime and drug trafficking networks.
Berisha said the meeting also addressed the impact these developments are having on the economy. The Democratic Party leader highlighted the depreciation of the euro and the dollar, the decline in industrial production, the growth of the construction sector, as well as emigration and falling birth rates.
“Dear friends, yesterday I welcomed MEP Marco Tarquinio to a meeting at the DP headquarters. He is Chair of the European Parliament Delegation to the EU-Albania Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee. Mr Tarquinio is a friend of Albania and belongs to the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament.
I informed MEP Tarquinio that the most serious problem facing Albania today, with devastating consequences for the country’s democracy, rule of law, society and economy, is the narco-state headed by Edi Rama, the first and only one of its kind in Europe. In this context, Albania is today the main exporter of cannabis in Europe. Albanian drug cartels are the main transporters of cocaine and among the main stakeholders in its market in Europe. In Albania, they control the ports, which currently operate as free ports for drugs.
Albanian drug cartels in Albania and Latin America have direct links not only with the police, courts and prosecution, but also documented direct links with the head of the Albanian executive, Edi Rama, who receives representatives of the Sinaloa cartel in his office and, in violation of the law, grants them licences for a casino and a five-star hotel. Court files have established that the Prime Minister’s Office organises trilateral meetings, such as in Aruba, between drug traffickers, Albanian developers and his direct representatives.
The most serious consequences of the narco-state are being felt in the country’s economy. In Albania, more than in any other country in the world, the euro and the dollar have depreciated. The world’s most powerful currencies have depreciated by 32% and 35% respectively, and the country’s exports have depreciated by the same amount. As a result, industrial production in Albania, according to Eurostat, has fallen by 15.3%. Meanwhile, the construction indicator, in a sector where drug money is laundered, is three times higher than the EU average.
The most serious consequences of the narco-state are also reflected in an unprecedented demographic shock in our history. Again according to Eurostat, over the past 10 years, 1,099,000 citizens emigrated to the Schengen area alone. If those who emigrated to other regions are also included, it means that 47% of Albanians have left the country. The Civil Status Register shows that births have now fallen below the level recorded 100 years ago, when Albania had fewer than one million inhabitants.
The major problem regarding the narco-state lies in its denial, and in fact this denial amounts to supporting it, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Likewise, the idea that the narco-state in Albania can be dismantled by two or three prosecutors is not at all realistic. Clear political positions against it and other measures against the regime are necessary.
Taking into account the conditions under which the most recent parliamentary elections were held and the findings of international reports, the Democratic Party leader stressed the need to establish a technical government as a necessary condition for holding free and fair elections,” Berisha wrote.
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