TIRANA, Aug 31 /ATA/
By Edi Rama
There are a few brighter pages in the history of Albania than its only example of heroism in the face of the destruction of European Jews during World War II.
No one asked our grandparents to risk and often sacrifice their lives to save people from the Holocaust, but countless Albanians – Muslims, Christians and atheists – did just that. Thanks to the Albanian code of honor, which requires us all to provide shelter to foreigners in need, Albania was the only country in Europe with more Jews at the end of the war than at the onset.
Shortly afterwards, we experienced persecution first hand. After defeating our external enemies, we faced an equally cruel one at home: an oppressive totalitarian regime that imprisoned, tortured, and killed those it perceived as foes.
We lived through what the people of Afghanistan are experiencing now as the Taliban consolidate their power across the country. We lived in a state that sealed its border and persecuted dissidents and their families, just as the Taliban are expected to do with their adversaries. For nearly 50 years, we aspired to have the freedom that Afghans have enjoyed over the past 20 years and now seem to be losing.
Today, Albania is a member of NATO, enjoying the benefits and sharing the burden of responsibilities associated with cooperation. In view of our history, it is right for us to be the first country in the world to provide shelter for thousands of refugees fleeing the Taliban. All NATO members must recognize their responsibility.
Yes, there are important questions about what is happening in Afghanistan and why, and how current events will shape the future of the Alliance. But while it is imperative to restrain emotions when having these conversations, there is only one thing to do now: let us act together to save as many lives as possible. We must uphold the values of the North Atlantic Alliance and the commonalities between democratic countries. This means not turning our backs on people whose lives are now in peril because they believed in us.
Until a few days ago, NATO members were the main source of support for the people of Afghanistan. We cannot pull out as ghosts, in addition to the ideals, principles and promise of freedom and democracy we have made over two decades. The most powerful military alliance in the world, built to support those ideals with the presence of strength and the force of example cannot act as a spineless entity in the eyes of the Afghan people and millions of people in other countries who want to live in a free, fair and democratic society. All of us, the community of our countries, must give hope, shelter and a new life to all those who trusted us, worked for us and fought for the promise of the future we represented.
When we agreed to shelter Afghan refugees, we did it because we take our obligations to our allies seriously. But more importantly, we did it because of who we are. Just 30 years ago, we were the Afghans on the Adriatic coast, making desperate attempts to escape the “red Taliban” of Tirana, and who during the war in Kosovo opened our doors to shelter half a million refugees escaping the ethnic cleansing of Serbia under Slobodan Milosevic.
We had to face up to all sides of tyranny, either when left in the hands of a brutal regime or when we seek to build a new life as refugees in other countries. Those experiences have taught us that it is not danger that creates fear, but fear that creates danger.
Albania is neither big nor rich. It is not separated from the complex realities of Europe, including how migration is often perceived as a burden. We know that fear of foreigners impacts the polls, elections and commitments of parties and politicians seeking to win office, and we respect the difficult choices that all other countries have to make. But when it comes to question of life and death about the people we ought to help, our path is clear.
Refusal to act now means turning our backs on our history and forgetting what we have learned from the tragedies of the last century. It would be tantamount to disregarding the memory of many fallen soldiers and erasing countless sacrifices made during the 20 long years on the battlefield, while the Taliban and the atrocities they exemplify remind humanity once again that evil never dies.
Albania is ready to have its share of burden that all NATO countries must bear together. But now I ask: if Albania, the poorest member of the Alliance, can manage its share of the burden, which of the other NATO member states cannot?
And what political excuse can be strong enough to disregard our basic human obligations?
There are too many fingers pointed at, but not enough hands up for humanity.
NATO’s founding principle is that attacking one is an attack on all. So, even a humanitarian challenge as great as what NATO is leaving behind in Afghanistan must be embraced by all.
