Withers: Gerdec changed Berisha

As never before, the former Ambassador Withers spoke about the Gerdec tragedy, which, according to him, transformed the government’s position towards the Prosecution and other independent institutions of the country.

“Everything changed after Gerdec, but it wasn’t me who changed. That incident was a turning point for this government, because until then – maybe because the NATO membership had not been finalized yet – the government’s position towards the institutions, especially justice institutions, had been very positive. Right after the Gerdec explosions, that government changed their stance. The attacks against the courts, the prosecution and the media became dominant and for someone like me, not used with such things, it was impossible to understand. The letters that the Parliament Speaker sent to the General Prosecution violated the borderline between the two powers: the legislative and the judicial ones. In essence, this was an effort for telling the Prosecution what to do. I had never seen attacks like that against the Prosecutor General. And from that moment came up the attempts for controlling who the next judges of the Supreme Court would be, and also the attacks against the media that simply tried to do their job for discovering what had really happened. There was the unusual situation with the then Minister of Defense, who had to leave his post but then returned in the government with another portfolio. Again, one would think that these actions are against the way democracy works. Why should a government do such a thing? Why shouldn’t the main organism of a state have interest to discover what really happened? We all saw with horror the images, the ambulances, the people covered in blood, old and young, while being transported to the hospital with the terrible wounds, and everyone asked themselves how could this happen? But rather than trying to discover the truth, the government turned against the institutions whose job was exactly that, discovering the truth. One would ask: What didn’t they want to be revealed for the public? When I visited Gerdec, I met a woman that was holding a necklace with the photo of her son, who was killed by the explosion. And she told me: ‘Mr. Ambassador, will I ever see justice?’ And I owe her an apology, because I told her: ‘Yes, justice will be served’. But so many years have passed, and there has been no justice for this lady or the others who were wounded, and this is very sad. I regret promising her that. I had more trust to the government and the institutions than it was justifiable”, Withers declared.

The former ambassador was asked about his critics towards PM Berisha, which Berisha considered as personal stances of Withers, and that they didn’t represent the foreign policy of the US in Tirana, after these stances were published by the Wikileaks cables. Withers was careful to clarify that these critics were not addressed to PM Berisha or the opposition leader, but to their policies.

“From my point of view, that wasn’t a critical stance against the Prime Minister or the opposition leader, or any other personality in Albania. It was about their policies, the widest topic of the democratic principles, and this is what matters. It was not about individualizing any person, because that was nothing personal. It was about analyzing the actions that are not in accordance with the democratic principles. When the government attacks democratic institutions, and when it ignores democratic principles, this is something that deeply concerns me”, Withers declared.

The former ambassador brought the January 21st events as an example for his opinion, although he was not in office when it happened. According to Withers, the government should be the first to have interest and demand the full revelation of the truth, but they did quite the opposite. They attacked the Prosecution, and the Prime Minister used a horrible language against the Prosecutor General, rather than trying to find out who ordered the police to fire. Withers then raises the question if the Albanians are being left in the dark about the January 21st events.

“We’re almost in the anniversary of the January 21st events. Four people died, blood was shed in the streets of Tirana, precious blood of Albanian people. In such cases, one would think that the government would be the first wanting to discover what really happened, and offering the necessary support to the investigators and prosecutors, in order to shed light on the truth. But rather than doing this, the government attacked the prosecutors and the Prime Minister used a horrible language against the Prosecutor General, and this was a real shame for the country. A Prime Minister should never make such things. But most importantly, why would a Prime Minister attack those that he had appointed and supported, rather than trying to help finding the truth? Who gave the orders? All around the world, to the police is given a great deal of power. Who gave the order to open fire? Are the Albanians being kept in the dark about anything that makes the government attack those who are attempting to find the truth, rather than doing the opposite? The President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy spoke about this. He was talking about the actions of the Syrian government towards their people, and when he was asked about the differences between the Syrians and the Albanians, regarding the shooting by the police, he said that there was no difference. An Albanian life is as valuable as a Syrian life or any other life. Why the President of France is more concerned about the Albanian blood, than the Albanian leadership”, the ambassador declared.

The former US ambassador evaluated the corruption in the justice system as an event with deep roots in the Albanian politics. For this he blames the political class, which does not represent the national interest or a good governing for the people, but their own power.

Mr. Withers quoted Abraham Lincoln: “Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, for the people”. He invited the Albanian people to reflect if they see themselves represented by their political class, if they see a government of the people, or a government that has detached themselves from the people.

Withers also commented Ilir Meta’s trial by declaring that beyond the official side, it is important for the leading politicians to have a higher standard than anyone else, and I hope that the perception for this conclusion will not be negative for Mr. Meta or even for the court.

As for the election of the next President, Withers says that the European Union and the US friends are also concerned for the deep political divisions, and that he will be the first to insist for a consensual President. According to Withers, that would be a real leadership.

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