A.S. – Prime Minister Rama, your country is ready to host thousands of Afghan refugees fleeing the Taliban. Europe, and also Italy, on the other hand, seem hesitant about taking this step…

E.R. – When it comes to Italy, unfortunately I am biased. I also feel Italian and therefore not in the shoes of someone who can judge, although as an avid observer of Italian politics, I understand the complexity of the problem. I can talk about my country. For us, the hospitality of Afghan refugees is a very important, natural and moral thing. Thirty years ago we were in the shoes of Afghans, it was us who sought hospitality on the other side of the sea. We, who at that time seemed foreign to the Italian people and European public opinion, as the Afghans seem today. On the other hand, we have a long-standing tradition to honour. Albania is the only European country that offered shelter to the Jews before and after the end of World War II. We are bound by a code of honour to be hospitable. Under this code, the house of every Albanian belongs to God and the guest. I believe we should continue to do this for our children as well. They too must foster, as a precious asset, this sense of obligation towards others in need, also being the children of a people that, at various moments in its history, have relied on the hospitality of others.

A.S – Albania, which has decided to host thousands of Afghan refugees, is a small country struggling with economic problems, I suppose, exacerbated by the breakout of a wild pandemic. I cannot but emphasize that thousands of your refugees are equivalent, if compared with Italy, to at least half a million people…

E.R. – You see, I think that the road that connects the economic and financial situation of a country with the fate of those standing between life and death is not right, if you can do something and give them a chance to live and do not leave them in the claws of death. You say that if we automatically guess a comparison between those that we host and those that Italy hosts, the result will be half a million people. It is exactly the same number as our brothers from Kosovo, who in 1999 managed to escape the ethnic cleansing of Slobodan Milosevic, finding hospitality and shelter in Albania. From an economic point of view we were definitely in much worse conditions than today, which are certainly difficult, but not even comparable to those at that time. However, we were not wiped off the face of the earth. We have not suffered the consequences that it is now said that a country can suffer if it shelters tens or even hundreds of thousands of refugees. Indeed, we have become, in my opinion, richer morally and stronger mentally. And the numbers show that the most developed countries in particular need a workforce that can only be secured from those coming from outside their borders, because the younger generations are not inclined to accept any type of work. We will welcome Afghan refugees also because, as I told you, Albanians preserve the memory of their history, a history that has written extraordinary pages of hospitality given and received. A story we cannot betray. Providing a safe haven for those fleeing the violence of the Taliban is a must for us that goes beyond any other reason, comparably insignificant.//ervo/sm/