Democratisation and Institutional Reform in Albania

261 Pages·2018·2.177 MB·English

by  Elvin Gjevori (auth.)

ELVIN GJEVORI
new perspectives on south-east europe
DEMOCRATISATION AND
INSTITUTIONAL REFORM
IN ALBANIA
New Perspectives on South-East Europe
Series Editors
Kevin Featherstone
London School of Economics
and Political Science
London, UK
Spyros Economides
London School of Economics
and Political Science
London, UK
Vassilis Monastiriotis
London School of Economics
and Political Science
London, UK
‘This empirically and theoretically solid account of Albania’s political
development from 1992 to 2009 gives a timely answer to the question
why one key societal area—the military—was successfully reformed
whereas another one—the judiciary—was not. While providing important
insights to the understanding of the case at hand, Gjevori’s book also gives
a very valuable contribution to the general literature on political dynamics
in post-authoritarian settings’.
—Professor Bo Petersson,
Malmö University, Sweden
South-East Europe presents a compelling agenda: a region that has chal-
lenged European identities, values and interests like no other at formative
periods of modern history, and is now undergoing a set a complex transi-
tions. It is a region made up of new and old European Union member
states, as well as aspiring ones; early ‘democratising’ states and new post-
communist regimes; states undergoing liberalising economic reforms, par-
tially inspired by external forces, whilst coping with their own embedded
nationalisms; and states obliged to respond to new and recurring issues of
security, identity, well-being, social integration, faith and secularisation.
This series examines issues of inheritance and adaptation. The disciplinary
reach incorporates politics and international relations, modern history,
economics and political economy and sociology. It links the study of South
East-Europe across a number of social sciences to European issues of
democratisation and economic reform in the post-transition age. It
addresses ideas as well as institutions; policies as well as processes. It will
include studies of the domestic and foreign policies of single states, rela-
tions between states and peoples in the region, and between the region
and beyond. The EU is an obvious reference point for current research on
South-East Europe, but this series also highlights the importance of
South-East Europe in its eastern context; the Caucuses; the Black Sea and
the Middle East.
More information about this series at
http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14733
Elvin Gjevori
Democratisation and
Institutional Reform
in Albania
Elvin Gjevori
European University of Tirana
Tirana, Albania
New Perspectives on South-East Europe
ISBN 978-3-319-73070-7 ISBN 978-3-319-73071-4 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73071-4
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To my family
P
reface
Faik Konica, the renowned Albanian publicist and diplomat of the twenti-
eth century, was a meticulous scholar of Albanian politics and society. In
his novel ‘Dr Gjëlpëra’ [Dr Needle], about a Western-educated medical
doctor of Albanian origin returning to Albania in the 1920s to help mod-
ernise it, Konica describes the custom officer’s advice to the newly arrived
doctor as follows:
First, in this country nobody accepts bribes. Second, here everyone expects
gifts […] So, dear doctor, in a country where no one accepts bribes but
everyone expects gifts, how can one go about conducting business? To give
to everyone is impossible; to give no one is madness […] The solution is to
give only to some. But to whom? […] Dear doctor, for every business, prob-
lem, worry, and need you might have the only safe and cheap way to make
your wish a reality is to be under the protection of the Camorra [mafia]
where there is no theft or misuse of funds but everything is predictable and
regulated by an honest tariff […] You must know that the Camorra is so
well-organised that it encompasses Albania’s entire strength. Even if its
leader and advisers fall the organisation will survive as many of the members
of the opposition are Camorrista […] Dear doctor, the leaders of the
Camorra can change, but its foundations are unshakable. (113–114)
Almost one hundred years later, Albanians and scholars who study it
can identify eerie similarities between Konica’s description and present-
day Albania. So the question comes naturally: Is Konica’s depiction of
Albania relevant today? Most importantly, is the parallel state in Albania—
vii
viii PREFACE
called mafia, camorra, and others—so pervasive and intertwined with the
‘real’ state that its removal is impossible? Are informal practices an abomi-
nation of the Albanian state and its institutions or its true character?
Although this book does not aim to provide an all-encompassing
answer to these questions, it does spring from a similar and deep-seated
fascination and frustration I have experienced both as a citizen and scholar.
In different ways, periods, places, and capacities, I have always wondered:
‘Why are Albania’s institutions so fragile? What will it take to “fix” them?’
As citizens we are often exasperated with institutions and institutionalisa-
tion is at once dreaded, desired, and mysterious. We want to be treated
like the unique individuals we believe we are, but we also want to be
treated in a predictable and equal manner, and we neither know nor care
to know the organisational logic or legacy of the institution we are dealing
with. As scholars we are perplexed when faced with informal practices
more resilient than written rules and the onset of institutionalisation
remains shrouded in mystery. This frustration and lack of understanding—
from citizens and academics alike—gradually can transform institutions
into entities that politicians talk about but seem unable to fix, political
scientists study but appear incapable to explain fully, and people complain
about but feel powerless to change.
This feeling of disconnect and alienation from the institutional archi-
tecture one lives in is more pronounced in emerging democracies whose
citizens are surrounded by old de-legitimated institutions or new ineffec-
tive ones. As a young boy growing up in post-communist Albania I know
that feeling all too well. Therefore, this book represents my academic and
personal journey, over many years, grasping for a fuller account of institu-
tionalisation. To put it simply, this book is my attempt to answer the ques-
tion I often posed: ‘What is the matter with Albania’s institutions?’ To put
it more academically, this book aims to elucidate the onset of institution-
alisation in Albania by answering a number of questions. How is the cycle
of de-institutionalisation and informal practices overcome? How can
emerging democracies like Albania overcome burdensome legacies and
achieve institutionalisation? Providing an answer to these questions can
help scholars and policymakers alike gain a better grasp of the processes,
factors, and actors conducive to institutionalisation in emerging democra-
cies. As importantly, it can help citizens gain a fuller perspective of the ills,
and possible cures, of the institutions that so often intrude into their lives
and infringe upon their freedoms.
PREFAC E ix
Although not directly, Konica was preoccupied by the question of
institutionalisation his entire adult life and often was disgusted by the
institutions of the state he represented for over ten years as ambassador to
the United States. He waxed and waned between being cautiously opti-
mistic and darkly pessimistic about Albania’s ability to create a modern
institutional infrastructure. He angrily proclaimed: ‘it makes me desper-
ate that ‘experts’ neither want to learn nor stand aside, or—at a mini-
mum—allow the introduction of civilised practices. Quite the opposite,
through deceitful methods they have succeeded to scare away all Albanians
who could have modernised this country’ (50). Konica often fell into
despair and let anger and frustration get the better of him. In so doing he
fell into the trap of determinism by viewing the failures of the past as
indicative of the certain fiascos of the future. Such accounts are attractive
because they are simple and easy to communicate. However, they obfus-
cate the opportunities for change and advancement. So, while this book
shares Konica’s interest in the analysis of institutions, it substitutes his
artistic pathos with a scholar’s approach to account for military and judi-
cial institutionalisation in post-communist Albania. Although less thrill-
ing than Konica’s writings, this book holds the potential to be more
revealing of the mechanisms that affect the phenomena he so accurately
described.
We tend to become almost melodramatic when confronted with unre-
sponsive institutions and informal practices that absorb our energies and
resources. In so doing we fall into the trap of neither seeing the opportu-
nities for change nor understanding the causes of the institutional behav-
iour. The analysis of military and judicial reform in Albania from 1992 to
2009 demonstrates that even in the seemingly bleakest cases there is
opportunity for change and that understanding the factors that shape
institutional behaviour is key to bring about change. This book demon-
strates that we are neither doomed to relive our past nor trapped in vicious
cycles controlled by forces beyond us. We live in a ‘world of our making’
and studying it is the key to changing it. So, while seemingly the founda-
tions of the Camorra are unshakable, they stop being so when we stop
viewing them as such.
To put it simply, this book retraces the story of how ‘experts’ caved,
allowed being grafted, and made room for military institutionalisation
while refusing to learn or step aside on judicial institutionalisation. Overall,
this book enriches the knowledge of post-communist Albania and expands
x PREFACE
the scholarly understanding of the mechanisms that influence institution-
alisation in emerging democracies. Hopefully, the book will also help some
young woman or man grappling with similar questions—who unbe-
knownst to them will likely become political scientists—understand the
causes of their country’s maddening institutional labyrinths and identify
the sources and potential for change.
Tirana, Albania Elvin Gjevori
September 2017