Albania In Depth: A Peace Corps Publication

Albanians are descendants of the ancient Illyrians, and their history can be traced back to the Bronze Age in about 2000 B.C. Their name comes from the Albanoi tribe of Illyrians, and their language forms its own branch of the Indo-European language phylum, a group also containing the Slavic, Celtic, Germanic and Romance languages. The history of Albania is one of occupation, including periods of administration or rule by Alexander the Great, the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and the Ottoman Empire€" the latter beginning in the 14th century and continuing until 1912. The modern borders of Albania were drawn by the European powers during the First Balkan War in 1912, and excluded about half the former Albanian lands and 3 million Albanians. Albania had a brief period of independence from 1912 until 1939, after which it was occupied by the Italians. It was during this period that Ahmet Bey Zogu declared himself King Zog I.

During World War II, the Germans replaced the Italians and a resistance movement began in the south under the leadership of Enver Hoxha. Hoxha and his supporters took over the country in the aftermath of the war and established a socialist republic. Foreigners were expelled and their assets nationalized, churches and mosques were closed, and agriculture and industry were collectivized. Hoxha was a doctrinaire Stalinist who broke away from Marshal Tito and Yugoslavia in 1948; from the Soviet Union in 1960, when Nikita Khrushchev abandoned Stalinism; and from China in 1978, when China established diplomatic relations with the United States.

All outside economic assistance ended in 1978. From that time until his death in 1985, Hoxha made Albania one of the most isolated and repressed countries in the world. At one point, Hoxha had 700,000 reinforced-concrete bunkers built throughout the country to defend against a multifront attack, each equal in cost to a two-bedroom apartment. Albania was the last country in Central and Eastern Europe to be caught up in the collapse of communism, introducing its first cautious reforms in 1990. Even after his death in 1985, Hoxha€s successors in the Communist Party continued to govern the country until elections in March 1992.

The period from an election victory by the opposition Democratic Party in 1992 to the current day has been challenging and often tumultuous. The Democratic Party€s Sali Berisha governed the country from April 1992 until mid-July 1997, when the Socialist Party€s Fatos Nano formed a new government. Manic investment in a number of pyramid schemes marked the period from February 1996 to February 1997. When the pyramid schemes began to fail in late 1996, demonstrations erupted and soon turned violent.

With increasing concerns about safety and security, the Peace Corps evacuated its 73 Volunteers in March 1997 and closed the post shortly thereafter. With the help of Greek and Italian peacekeeping forces, the government reestablished order and eventually led a successful effort to pass a new constitution in 1998. During the spring and summer of 1999, Albania sheltered more than 450,000 Kosovar Albanians who had fled Kosovo to avoid the actions of the Milosevic regime and the dangers of the NATO action against it. With Kosovo declaring its independence in 2008 there is renewed hope that the northern areas will be safer for travel and a Peace Corps presence.

Local elections in October 2000 and October 2003 and parliamentary elections in June 2001 and July 2005 were conducted in a peaceful atmosphere and were judged to represent some progress toward meeting democratic standards. The elections of 2007 saw more democratic particiaption. National elections will take place in June of 2009 and there is hope for a smooth process. Albania was accepted into NATO in 2009 and has her eye on joining the European Union in the next several years. Both of these actions will bring recognition and stability to Albania.