Feuding Albania Parties Reach Deal to End Boycott

Albania’s parliament during a plenary session | Photo by :LSA

The ruling centre-left coalition of Prime Minister Edi Rama and the centre-right opposition, headed by the Democratic Party leader, Lulzim Basha, have agreed on a proposal to enable the opposition to end its prolonged boycott of the assembly.,

The deal guarantees secure the efficient and inclusive work of the parliament, respect and implementation of decisions of the Constitutional Court and includes a commitment to address the issue of people with criminal records running for public office. 

The opposition have boycotted parliament since June.

Negotiations were led by two MPs in the European Parliament on Albania, Knut Fleckenstein and Eduard Kukan, who visited Tirana from the 19^th to the 22^nd of December.

“We have reassured our political partners in Albania about the continuous support of our political groups for the European integration process,” Kukan and Fleckenstein said in a joint statement on Tuesday, announcing a breakthrough in the negotiations.

“We have demonstrated this support by willingness to engage in renewing political dialogue between ruling majority and opposition and by encouraging the opposition to put an end to the boycott of the parliament,” they added.

“Albania needs sustainable and constructive political dialogue between ruling majority and opposition in order to fulfil the European ambitions of its citizens,” the European MPs continued.

“It is a shared responsibility of the both sides to create conditions and ensure that such cross party dialogue is taking place primarily in the parliament.”