18 September 2019 President Meta: The values of democracy are collapsing before our eyes
The President of the Republic, H.E.Mr. Ilir Meta greeted today the 7th Congress of the Unification of Independent Trade Unions of Albania, held in Tirana.
Due to his present visit in Strasbourg, in an official visit, President Meta conveyed his message through the Advisor to the President on Local Government, Mr. Ylli Asllani.
The complete message of President Meta:
“It is a great pleasure for me, as President of the Republic, to thank you for inviting me to the 7th Congress of your honorable Union!
Unable to be among you at this important moment in your activity, I would like to warmly congratulate you through this message:
I wish success and good proceedings to the Congress!
Firstsly, I thank Mrs. Sharran Burrow for her outstanding solidarity and participation!
The presence of the Secretary General of the World Confederation of Unions is a great encouragement in the struggles of the Albanian workers for a better life and in their fight against the oligarchs, who have clutched the country’s economy.
She honors not only the Congress, but the entire union movement and the aspiration for the protection of workers’ rights and democracy in Albania
Dear friends,
As a citizen and politician, and now as President of the Republic, I have followed with great attention your journey in defending your union cause!
I have been and still am today your fellow fighter in the battles for a better Albania and a fairer society!
In the 1990s, we stood together against the dictatorship and totalitarian regime in search for a democratic Albania and a free market economy, where the rights and freedoms were respected, the well-being of all workers and the citizens were guaranteed.
Today we are again facing a situation in which the values of democracy are collapsing before our eyes. This is not because of the path chosen together 30 years ago, but because of the distortions that democracy and the governance system has undergone in these years.
In Albania, a certain type of politics and economics are being installed that are away from the interests of citizens and beyond the control of the people.
Free and fair elections are missing, unions are crushed and their voices suppressed.
Civil society organizations are captured and blocked. The press and the media are largely under the censorship and in the service of the propaganda state.
In order to get out of this situation, we must admit how down we have fallen!
In our beloved homeland, misery has plagued the country. Investments are being exhausted day by day.
Public debt is crippling the economy. The Public-Private Partnerships are assimilating the public finances of today but also that of tomorrow. Labor and market rules are out of the question. The minimum wage cannot even feed poor families in 1/3 of the month. Social contrast is enriching a group of oligarchs and impoverishing employees of all levels every day.
Albanian society is losing its perspective, and the sons and daughters of Albanians are leaving their homeland in search of a better life.
In this situation we must all think together about a new political spirit and model for the country. For a more social, just and equal society, for a fairer redistribution of material goods, and for productive business and employment initiatives.
But first, we must return the free elections to this country. Not allowing to speak in the name of the needy, those who are getting rich at the expense of general poverty and, together with the world of crime, are harvesting every day the common income.
Dear unionists,
Your nearly 30-years activity is a new asset to Albanian society in protecting workers’ rights, a new work culture, and strengthening our fragile democracy.
Time requires from you and the whole of civil society to create a new behavior, a new relationship with power for the benefit of the employees, and a strong response to the prevailing policies as well as a new social relationship in the labor market.
Great battles also require strong solidarity.
You are not alone in this mission. You have the merit of supporting the program in the best contemporary achievements of European unionism and in the most advanced international conventions and legislation.
Therefore you have today among you Mrs. Burrow, who is a powerful voice in socio-economic policies and one of the most important personalities of world unionism.
You have the generous help of fellow unions who are with you at this convention as well.
Dear unionists,
In conclusion, I wish to point out that Democracy yields the true fruits when it becomes the property of patriotic individuals, honest political leaders and active citizens.
We all need your civic courage, for an open, transparent and equal society!
The State, Democracy, and the interests of all employees need a healthy, militant union that offers recommendations for good governance, but also reactions against injustice.
I wish you success in your noble mission!
Wish you a good proceeding in the Congress, and prosperity and happiness in your families!
Thank you!”