Albania S Transition To A Constitutional Democracy

1
Albania’s Transition to a Constitutional Democracy
Christopher T. Barber
May 2015
“We, the people of Albania, proud and aware of our history, with responsibility
for the future…with the determination to build a righteous, democratic, and
social state… with the centuries-old aspiration of the Albanian people for
national identity and unity…”1
Taken out of the preamble of the 1998 Constitution of the Republic of Albania, this excerpt
appropriately reflects the demeanor of the Albanian people at the cusp of a transition from a
Stalinist, socialist state to that of a Western style, parliamentary democracy. Under the cult-like
devotion to Albania’s communist leader Enver Hoxha, the political climate of the People’s
Socialist Republic of Albania 2
from 1946 to 1992 was comparable to today’s Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea under the Kim dynasty. The single party state allowed no
participation, representation, or dissent in politics or among civil society groups, and furthermore
prohibited all private property throughout the country. Given the context of the concurrent fall of
the “iron curtain,” the creation of the Republic of Albania in 1992 offered the Albanian people
their first realistic opportunity at establishing a pluralist, representative democracy that would
protect their individual rights and freedoms. As we will see, the Albanian political journey in the
Balkan Peninsula has been eventful, volatile, and emblematic of the transition that many other
eastern European countries have made, thus deserving our attention. Additionally, it is important
that we take this transition period into consideration while discussing the future of Albania and
potential legislative and judicial reform, especially in light of future EU accession.
Creating Albania: The Long Journey
As descendants of ancient Illyrian tribes in the southwest Balkan Peninsula,3
the Albanian people
have not had much governing tradition, not to mention any governing experience due to being
occupied first by the Byzantine Empire for nearly a thousand years (with brief conquests by the
Bulgarian and Serbian principalities) and then by the Ottoman Empire for another 500 years.4
The cultural characteristics of the Albanian people were distinguished by their small, nomadic,
communities in the Albanian mountains, where families survived from subsistence farming and
1 Constitution of the Republic of Albania, (1998): I have modified the official English version of this preamble
provided by the OSCE to accommodate a more accurate translation of the Albanian text. The phrase një shtet
të së drejtës literally means a righteous state and reflects no emphasis on what the OSCE worded as the
rule of law , a feature of the Albanian Constitution and Albanian culture which should not be overlooked.
2 Originally called the People s Republic of Albania from -1976, the official name of Albania adopted
the word socialist along with the creation of the Albanian Constitution which reaffirmed Albania s one
party, socialist regime.
3 Biberaj, (1990).
4 Ibid: Some regions of Albanian independence did develop for brief periods, including the Principality of
Arbër and the Kingdom of Albania, but were rather short-lived and did not contribute to the development of
any larger entity that we can directly associate the current Republic of Albania with today.

2
the grazing of sheep and goats. The occupation by more powerful empires proved to be an
impediment to the development of any pan-Illyrian political identity or political institutions, not
to mention the perpetuation of the historical traditions of tribal law which crippled the
mountainous, isolated regions.
Predating much of recorded history in the Balkan Peninsula, the tribal laws known as the Kanun
constituted much of the legal and moral structure for Albanian populations in what we know
today as Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo, and Macedonia.5
The all-encompassing nature of the de
facto6
Kanun customary laws played an important role in quotidian functioning of Albanian
society, effectively providing consolidated regions with their own form of a judicial system.
Under the Kanun every region had its own Council of Elders, which were made up of the oldest
members of each village or kinships, thought to of had the most knowledge due to their lifelong
experience. Those who made up the Council of Elders were effectively “judges” of the Kanun,
which lent their advice and interpretation of specific ad hoc issues and incidents in their
communities. Despite the lack of contemporary Western-style processes and institutions, these
“judges” were accepted as legitimate and seen as impartial and fair when proceeding on most
issues.7
Even without an explicit system of checks-and-balances, community members were able
to request a revision of the case if the judgment made by the Council of Elders didn’t seem just.
Legal proceedings in general were fairly rudimentary, depending exclusively on the central ideas
of honor, trust, hospitality, and mutual respect. While issues pertaining to blood feuds made up
most of the cases, the Kanun also touched upon topics such as family property, marriage,
livestock grazing, work, and interfamilial loans.8
Under the four decades of Enver Hoxha’s communist dictatorship, the customary laws of the
Kanun were banned, and secret police kept an effective watch on any participation of these
traditional laws. After the fall of communism in Albania, the immediate transition period left a
majority of regions in Albania isolated from political participation or representation, as well as
increased the capacity for villages to function without the presence of secret police, in effect
allowing these regions to continue implementing the Kanun laws. In recent years there has been
a movement to combat the use of the Kanun, especially due to the tragic effects of blood feuds
typically involved.9
Marjola Rukaj of the Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso claims that the
reappearance of the Kanun has been due to the power vacuum and corruption in Albania’s post-
communist transition period.10
Furthermore, we can associate the Kanun’s reemergence with
5 Boman & Krasniqi, (2012): The Kanun of Lekë Dukagjini is the most well-known set of traditional Albanian
laws, although there are around six variations of throughout the different Albanian territories. Some Serbian
scholars maintain that the Kanun were created under Dušan’s Code by the Tsar Stefan Dušan in under
the Serbian Empire, yet there is widespread belief that Tsar Dušan based his law off of precedence of
Albanian tribal law to legitimize his power in the region.
6 O Donnell, : The Kanun tribal laws were officially codified by the 15th century Albanian elite Lekë
Dukagjini, but were only first ever written down in the 19th century by an Albanian Catholic priest named
Shtjefën Gjeçovi. Before Gjeçovi published his findings, the Kanun was only known orally (also because the
aforementioned Dušan’s Code never reached much of the isolated and illiterate Albanian communities).
7 Ahmeti, (2014).
8 Mangalakova, (2004).
9 Kuntz & Feck, (2014): There are currently around 200 families in Albania affected by on-going blood feuds.
10 Rukaj, (2012).

3
what some people see as an unreliable judicial system and an increasing politicization of
government institutions, leaving common people with distrust of modern forms of democracy.
In recent recorded history before the communist regime of Hoxha, the initial movement towards
Albanian national awareness can be linked back to the Kararname of the League of Prizren (a
city in current day Kosovo), a document by the Albanian population in the Balkans showing
solidarity with the Ottoman Empire in the face of regional threats by the Bulgarians, Serbians,
and Montenegrins. While this document was religious in nature and did not request autonomy, it
was the first major instance of coordinated representation by the Albanian populations in the late
19th
century. The first decade of the 20th
century presented the Albanian people with drastic
changes in their ability to finally pursue self-determination, in a move now away from the
Ottoman Empire. The Young Turks11
political reform movement, based off much of the same
ideology and aspirations as the Young Ottomans, successfully revolted against the absolute
monarchy of Sultan Abdul Hamid II in 1908. Bringing with them free elections and a multi-
party system, in what is today called Turkey’s “Second Constitutional Era,”12
the Young Turks
eventually raised taxes on the Balkan vilayets and increased military conscription for the
Albanian populations. Albanian revolts occurred in 1910 and 1912, followed by the First Balkan
War, eventually leading to an autonomous Albanian state.13
Taking the helm for first time as an independent people with its own territory, Albania officially
declared unilateral independence on the 28th
of November 1912, during the Assembly of Vlorë.14
Joining the assembly were representatives from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, who soon after
took part in the London Conference of Ambassadors15
in late 1912 and there promoted the notion
of the sovereign Albanian state. After the Ottoman’s defeat in the Balkans, in May 1913 its
representatives joined in the London Conference and helped draft the official territorial border of
the Principality of Albania. Despite losing almost half of their historical territory, the Albanian
people finally owned claim to their own internationally recognized state. Following the Great
War, US President Woodrow Wilson successfully argued against the division of Albania by the
11 Ahmad, (1969): After the revolution, the Young Turks officially became the Committee of Union and
Progress, but interparty fragmentation by a more liberal and less centralized cohort called the Freedom and
Accord Party became an opposition party, and between 1911 and 1913 there continuous political power
struggles, electoral fraud, and military revolts.
12 Ahmad, : Turkey s First Constitutional Era is known as the two period in which Abdul (amid ))
allowed a constitutional monarchy to exist between 1876 and 1878. The Ottoman Constitution of 1876 was
written by the Young Ottomans. Some scholars maintain that this was the first type of modern constitution
which existed outside of the Western World, aiming to limit the Sultan s power.
13 Trotsky, (1980 : )n addition, members of the Balkan League Bulgaria, Macedonia, Serbia, and
Montenegro) also gained autonomy. Immediately after the First Balkan War, the Second Balkan War broke
out in 1913 between Bulgaria on one side, and Greece and Serbia on the other.
14 Roselli, : This assembly took place in the port city of Vlorë and established Albania s first provisional
government under Ismail Qemali, who then became president.
15 Trotsky, : The London Conference of Ambassadors or London Conference included the six great
European powers of that time: Great Britain, France, Germany, Austro-Hungary, Russia, and Italy.

4
larger regional powers16
during the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, awarding Albania further
international recognition by the newly created League of Nations in 1920.17
The period between 1920 and 1946 was politically unstable and even sometimes volatile for the
young state of Albania. Revolts frequently occurred, resulting in a continuous power struggle
often dominated by King Ahmed Bey Zogu, which led to a lack of public credibility in the
development of any new government institutions. This period saw the Albanian state evolve
from the “Principality of Albania”, to the “Albanian Republic,”18
and finally into the “Kingdom
of Albania.”19
Foreign pressure and alliances with domestic actors, religious and regional
identities, and even the initial formations of ideologically motivated groups were some of the
exogenous factors fuelling the political instability and domestic unpredictability. Leading up to
World War II, between 1928 and 1939 the Kingdom of Albania was seen to be a de facto
protectorate of the Kingdom of Italy, up until its invasion by Italy in 1939. Prohibiting King
Zogu’s return to power after the war, the anti-fascist National Liberation Movement became the
provisional government in 1944, led by Enver Hoxha and his Communist Party of Albania.20
Other than being the state’s Prime Minister, Hoxha also simultaneously served as Albania’s
foreign minister, defense minister, the commander in chief of the military. To aid the 1944
“People’s Tribunals,” the “Special Court for War Criminals and Enemies of the People” was
established in 1945 to purge the country of perceived fascists or war criminals.21
In January of 1946 the communist party formed a Constitutional Assembly,22
and after two
months it published the first of Albania’s two communist constitutions, officially calling the state
the “People’s Republic of Albania.” 23
This constitution provided the fundamental socialist
16 Gallagher, (2001): Yugoslav, Greek, and even Italian representatives spoke openly about partitioning
Albania at the Paris Peace Conference. The official Albanian borders of 1913 were ultimately decided upon.
17 Pipa, (1990): During the latter months of the Paris Peace Conference, in January 1920 Albanian political
leaders held the Congress of Lushnjë in the Albanian city of Lushnjë to discuss details in how to expel the
Italian and French forces which still occupied parts of the country. Soon after the War of Vlorë erupted,
ultimately expelling all Italian forces on Albanian territory.
18 Fischer, (1984): In 1925 King Zogu declared Albania a republic with a bicameral parliamentary legislature,
with a constitution that was modeled after the constitution of the French Third Republic. Similar to the
French version, the President of the Albanian Republic was given powers similar to that of a monarch (Ahmed
Bey Zogu wasn t referred to as a King yet .
19 Fischer, (2007): Three years after the founding of the Albanian Republic, in 1928 King Zogu established a
new constitution, changing Albania to a parliamentary monarchy called the Kingdom of Albania. The 1928
constitution changed the parliamentary chamber to unicameral and gave King Zogu wide ranging powers and
authority over both the legislative and executive branches of government. The judicial branch of government
ultimately never had independence and an ability to freely function due to the King s broad power.
20 Prifti, : Renamed the Labor Party of Albania in and under Albania s single party structure, it
was the only legal party until 1991.
21 Pano, (1968): The Special Court was set up by the Anti-Fascist Council on National Liberation and
lasted only one month, holding 31 sessions, trying 60 people, and sentencing 17 to death by firing squad.
Others were sentenced to life imprisonment or many years of hard labor.
22)bid: While it isn t known who made up the Constitutional Assembly, they were most likely directly
nominated by (oxha, with the intention of copying the Soviet structure and institutionalizing (oxha s power.
23 Constitution of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania, (2014): The second constitution was published in
, officially changing Albania s name to the People s Socialist Republic of Albania to emphasis the
communist character of Albania s centrally planned economy.

5
structure which limited individual freedoms and rights, similar to that in the Soviet Union.24
The
prohibition of foreign travel, the nationalization of the industrial and production sectors, and the
regulation of private property were significant features of the country’s centrally planned and
bureaucratic Stalinist regime. After thirty years, Hoxha’s Constitutional Assembly published
their second constitution in 1976 in an effort to re-emphasize the socialist essence of the
country. 25
The new constitution came about with new economic reforms which further
centralized planning and the nationalization of property, as well as increasingly limited
individual rights in contrast to the already collectivist Albanian culture. Examples of this
constitution include the following:
Article 2: The People’s Socialist Republic of Albania is a state of the dictatorship
of the proletariat, which expresses and defends the interests of all the working
people… based on the unity of the people round the Party of Labor of Albania…
Article 3: The Party of Labor of Albania, the vanguard of the working class, is the
sole leading political force of the state and society…the dominant ideology is
Marxism-Leninism. The entire socialist social order is developed on the basis of
its principles.
Article 16: …In the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania there are no exploiting
classes, private property and the exploitation of man by man have been liquidated
and are forbidden.
The death of Albania’s four decade-long dictator Enver Hoxha in 1985, along with the Soviet
Union’s glasnost and perestroika reforms around the same period, set the stage for Albania’s
eventual political and economic transition.26
Ramiz Alia was chosen by Hoxha to continue to
lead the country on its socialist path, but due to increasing pressure by citizens and state officials,
Alia began implementing democratic reforms. In 1991 Alia signed the Helsinki Accords27
and
became a member of the OSCE in an attempt to improve relations with the west, while at the
same time opening Albania’s borders for its citizens to travel abroad.28
Pluralist political parties
were allowed to develop in 1991 when a transitional constitution was drafted,29
outlining that
24 Constitution of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania, (2014): The Preamble of the 1976 Constitution
includes reference to the 1917 October Socialist Revolution in Russia, of which aided in the dispersion of
communist ideas worldwide.
25 Carlson, (2010): The Sixth Congress of the Albanian Labor Party issued the order for constitutional reform
in 1972, a process which took four years. According to government documents, Enver Hoxha said a new
constitution was needed to complete the construction of socialism and the further development of our state
of the dictatorship and the proletariat.
26 Pipa, (1990).
27 Biberaj, (1990): Albania was the only country in Europe which did not sign the Helsinki Accords in 1975,
in which the leader Enver Hoxha accused other Soviet satellite states of wanting to break the shackles of the
Warsaw Treaty, although Albania withdrew in 1968 due to a lack of credibility in it. In 1991, Ramiz Alia
signed the Helsinki Accords.
28 Laurasi, (1997).
29 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, (2014): The interim/transitional constitution was created by
the parliamentary People s Assembly and was titled Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions . )t was
officially adopted in 1992.

6
Albania had effectively become a parliamentary republic based on democratic institutions that
would protect individual rights, including its 1992 amendments which created the Albanian
Constitutional Court,30
the first of its kind in the history of the Albanian people. In 1992, the
transitional constitution became adopted, the Constitutional Court was formed, and national
parliamentary elections were held, concluding with a large win by the Democratic Party with
nearly 2/3 of the votes.31
The rest of this essay will focus in detail on the on the years leading up
to the drafting and adoption of the 1998 Albanian Constitution, which is still in force today.
Transitioning Towards Democracy
This section of the essay will now focus on the political pressures and divisions that
characterized the process which ultimately led to the adoption of the 1998 Albanian Constitution.
Specifically, new institutional bodies, international engagement, and public participation will be
discussed and their effects on the constitutional outcome will be described here. Before we
delve deeper, the historical regional and political divide that still exists today must be noted, as it
has had a profound effect on the constitutional making process. If one looks at a topographical
map of Albania, she will notice the Shkumbin River running east-west through the middle of the
country. North of this river is where Albanians speaking the Gheg dialect are found, and amidst
the majority Muslim population are large pockets of Catholic communities. Instead, south of the
Shkumbin River is where the Tosk speaking Albanians are found, and amidst the southern area’s
majority Muslim population there are large Orthodox Christian communities.32
Given that Enver
Hoxha came from the city Gjirokastër and completed his studies in Korçë, two prominent
southern cities, today most of Albanians from the south support the Socialist Party of Albania led
by the incumbent Prime Minister Edi Rama. The former Prime Minister and first President of
Albania, Sali Berisha, comes from the northern region of Tropojë.33
Thus, the majority of the
northern populations have been staunch supporters of Berisha’s Democratic Party of Albania.
Both parties and their followers see the other with suspicion and contempt, and a deep
politicization of nearly every aspect of life has ensued since the emergence of Albania’s
multiparty state. While the country is not completely politically divided between north and
south, the perceived division exists in nearly every Albania’s mind. Furthermore, the weak
credibility in western-style governance and the lack of experience in managing democratic
institutions has continued to fuel a perpetual struggle for power throughout the state, a feature we
will see in analyzing the process of democratization.
30 Ibid: The interim constitution held a section titled The Constitutional Court, with its first article, article
, written as The Constitutional Court is the highest authority, that protects and guarantees respect for the
Constitution and the legislation, as well as making definitive interpretation of the Constitution.
31 Bogdani & Loughlin, (2007): With the victory of the Democratic Party, Aleksandër Meksi became Prime
Minister. )n separate elections by the parliamentary People s Assembly , Sali Berisha was elected President.
32 Due to the high level of ethnic homogeneity in the country, these dialectical and religious differences have
played a large role in objectifying and exaggerating the fairly shallow political differences between Albanians.
33 Mangalakova, (2004): King Zog was also from the northern region of Albania, near the city of Burrel, and
symbolizes a break from the communist legacy. Along with King Zog and the tribal Kanun laws previously
mentioned, the northerners are thought of as brave and honorable, epitomizing the Albanian idiom: The
Northerners make the nation, but the Southerners make the state .

7
The aforementioned interim constitution, called the “Law on the Major Constitutional
Provisions” was drafted in May 1991, effectively replacing the socialist and paternalist
constitution of 1976.34
The Soviet glasnost and perestroika, along with the Soviet Union’s
eventual collapse, incited the members of the Albanian Labor Party to begin making radical
structural reforms on the Albanian system of governance. In an effort to appease their
constituents with greater representation and participation in governing affairs, while promoting
individual rights over the rights of the state, democratic institutions and pluralism were adopted
in this new set of laws. Although the laws listed in this new document were often ambiguous
and easily amendable,35
they were seen as the first significant steps towards creating a modern
framework for a democratically governed state.
One of the most notable changes that developed from the 1976 socialist constitution to the “Law
on the Major Constitutional Provisions” was the division of the branches of government,36
specifically with regard to the development of the judicial system and the separate and
independent Constitutional Court. The section on Chapter IIIA for the competencies and duties
of the Constitutional Court and its judges37
is quite extensive, reflecting a complete shift in
comparison to the previous constitutions. The first article on the Constitutional Court is the
following:
Chapter IIIA, Article 17: “The Constitutional Court is the highest authority, that
protects and guarantees respect for the Constitution and the legislation, as well as
making definitive interpretation of the Constitution. In the carrying out of its
functions, it is independent and subject only to the Constitution.”
In November 1991, Albanian legal experts began to collaborate with the Venice Commission of
the Council of Europe38
, with hopes of receiving consultation from European professionals in the
field of constitutional law39
. Then in 1993 the parliament formed a constitutional parliamentary
commission which would oversee the drafting of the new constitution. The incumbent president,
Sali Berisha, then chose a special group of legal experts which would finalize the work of the
1993 parliamentary commission, despite this group lacking any members of the opposition
Socialist Party.40
As the political divisions deepened over these early years of democracy,
34 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, Chapter IV, Article 45: The Constitution of the PSRA, adopted
on . . , as well as its later amendments, are invalidated .
35 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, Chapter IV, Article 43: The adoption of amendments is done by
the People s Assembly with a majority of two-thirds of all deputies .
36 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, Chapter I, Article 3: The fundamental principle of state
organization is the division of the legislative, executive, and judicial powers .
37 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, Chapter IIIA, Article 18: The Constitutional Court consists of
nine members, five of which are elected by the People s Assembly and four by the President of the Republic .
NOTE: Chapter II, Article 25 also claims that the President of the Republic is elected by two thirds of the
People s Assembly.
38 Created in 1990, the Venice Commission (officially the European Commission for Democracy Through
Law) is an advisory body in the Council of Europe that offers expertise in the field of constitutional law.
39 Kume, (2014): Completing its review one week before the 1994 referendum, the Venice Commission
claimed that it was Unfortunate that the protection of rights… does not form part of the fundamental
principles of the Constitution .
40 Carlson, (2010).

8
President Berisha passed a law in October 1994 which would effectively change the legal
mechanism adopting the new constitution. Knowing that he wouldn’t have had the full two-
thirds majority in parliament to amend the “Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions” in
regard to the constitutional referendum process, Berisha passed a law using simple majority41
.
The Socialist Party openly protested this maneuver and claimed it was unconstitutional. They
then lodged a complaint with the Constitutional Court, but soon it became obvious that the court
had no intention of residing over this case before the constitutional referendum took place42
.
Claiming that the petition of unconstitutionality was accidentally lost, suspicion of political
involvement began to develop. Three of the constitutional court judges resigned from their posts
in protest, yet the referendum still took place, resulting in an unpredicted rejection.43
For two years the process of drafting the new constitution seemed to deteriorate due to the power
struggle between the Democratic Party and Socialist Party. Intimidation and threats coming from
the supporters of the incumbent Democratic Party characterized the 1996 parliamentary
elections, and their landslide victory was seen to be a result of electoral manipulation.44
In
addition to the suspicion behind these results, the government’s inaction in regards to the 1996-
1997 pyramid scheme crisis45
further pushed the question of legitimacy for the incumbent party.
Allegations that the Democratic Party was actually involved in these, along with the rejection by
the Tirana District Court to see all cases involving the pyramid schemes, outraged most of the
population and sparked protests throughout much of the country.46
In addition to the Italian and
NATO troops which helped secure stability throughout Albania, international political
engagement developed with the acceptance of the OSCE representatives in Albania. The OSCE
Presence in Albania was mandated to assist in the democratization of Albania and its legal
professionals quickly began working with Albanian parliamentary members, as well as other
various domestic and international actors. Despite this, domestic credibility in the new
democratic institutions began eroding and the question of constitutionality magnified, ensuing in
public chaos and looting which pushed the Democratic Party to resign and form a technocratic
government with the opposition, before holding new elections in 1997.47
A number of negotiations and bipartisan political compromises preceded the 1997 elections, as
all members of government saw the urgency in establishing civil order, domestic stability, and
41 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998).
42 Carlson, (2010).
43 Kume, (2014): 56.38% of voters were against the 1994 constitution, while 43.6% were in favor; the
turnout rate was 84.4%.
45 George, (1997): New to capitalism and a market economy, many Albanians lost their life savings and many
firms went bankrupt between 1996 and 1997, due to widespread pyramid (Ponzi) schemes throughout the
country. Civil unrest ensued in 1997 and martial law was declared with the help of Italian and NATO troops
throughout Albania in Operation Alba .
46 Carlson, (2010): Despite the crisis, the largest pyramid scheme, Vefa Holding, continued to operate
through its illegal television networks. )t s owner Vehbi Alimuça was member of the incumbent Democratic
Party. This further demonstrated to the people how powerful the ruling government had become. President
Berisha s reluctance to step down from power, in order to ensure stability, caused further controversy.
47 Opinion on Recent Amendments to the Law on Major Constitutional Provisions of the Republic of Albania,
(1998).

9
public faith in state institutions.48
The new parliamentary elections were held on 29 June 1997
alongside a referendum which would reinstate the former hereditary monarchy of King Zog.49
The Crown Prince Leka was born in the last year of the 1939 monarchy and was the only son of
King Zog I. The referendum resulted in a rejection by 66.7% of voters, despite evidence in
recent years of electoral manipulation.50
As for the parliamentary elections, all seats were up for
reelection, resulting in a victory by the Socialist Party with over half of the votes and a majority
of 101 seats.51
The Democratic Party on the other hand only received a quarter of the votes,
giving them 24 seats in parliament.52
After only two months of the new government in power, the parliament approved Resolution 339
titled “For Assignment of the Commission for Designing the Draft-Constitution,”53
effectively
laying the groundwork for the process of drafting the new constitution. Resolution 339 outlined
a special 21-member parliamentary commission composed of members from all of the
represented political parties, and even included the schedule of public discussions, televised
debates, and public opinion polls.54
Despite the unprecedented level of public, bipartisan, and
international inclusion, the Democratic Party refused to participate in the drafting process and
boycotted all opportunities for engagement.55
The political representation in the parliamentary
commission was proportionate to their parliamentary representation, but since the Socialist Party
had a one-seat majority, the Democratic Party insisted on having veto-power during this
process.56
To lessen the politicization of the drafting process, two minority party members were
chosen to chair the commission in an effort to demonstrate the drafting’s transparent and non-
partisan essence.57
In the midst of the deepening political divisions, a 13 November 1997 decision by the
Constitutional Court further fueled a power struggle within the government. Under advice of the
IMF, a provision was drawn up which would have taken away the assets of firms responsible for
the pyramid schemes, effectively liquidating the pyramid schemes for good.58
The Constitutional
49 Carlson, (2010).
50 )bid: After Crown Prince Leka s death in , Sali Berisha admitted to electoral manipulation of the
referendum which would have reinstated the monarchy.
51 Constitutional History of Albania, (2014): This includes the coalition of smaller center-left parties; Fatos
Nano of the Socialist Party was chosen to be the Prime Minister.
52 Ibid: Voter turnout was at 72.6%
53 Under the 1991 Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions, Chapter )V, Article says: The provisions of
this Law operate until the adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Albania, whose draft will be worked
out by the Special Commission charged by the People s Assembly. The composition of the Commission and
the schedule of the presentation of the draft-constitution is defined by special decision of the People s
Assembly .
54 Resolution Nr. 339, date 3.9.1997.
55 Carlson, (2010).
56 Ibid: Following proportionality, the smaller parties benefitted by receiving more relative representation in
the parliamentary commission that they had in the parliament.
57 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998): Sabri Godo of the Republican Party and Arben Imami of the
Democratic Alliance Party.
58 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998):

10
Court struck down this provision and in response, the parliament amended a constitutional
provision in the “Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions”, followed by reenacting the
provision that the Court had previously struck down59
. The Constitutional Court responded sua
sponte by issuing a decision which rejected the new parliamentary amendment. In effect, the
Constitutional Court attempted to demonstrate its legal supremacy despite the fact that the
parliament acted justly under the “Law on the Major Constitutional Provisions”, which as
mentioned, permitted the amendment of provisions by a two-thirds parliamentary vote. 60
Criticism of the Court ensued, with the Venice Commission declaring: “The Constitutional Court
therefore overstepped the limit of its authority and entered into a political dispute with the
People’s Assembly, which can only be to the detriment of the functioning of both organs.”. A
further power struggle continued when the parliament passed a resolution which required the
court to fulfill its constitutionally mandatory rotation of judges. Since the incumbent judges
serving had been elected by the previous Democratic Party-dominated parliament, the
Democratic Party condemned the decision, saying that the Court was exercising its constitutional
rights 61
. In essence, the Constitutional Court became a political instrument during the
constitutional transition.
Within the government the Ministry of Institutional Reform was created, and three constitutional
lawyers62
were invited to help structure a transparent process in which foreign legal assistance
and domestic public participation could positively contribute to the drafting.63
With the help of
the OSCE, these three lawyers created the Administrative Center for the Coordination of
Assistance and Public Participation (ACCAPP), which would work independently of the
government and international organizations, while supporting their involvement, cooperation,
and engagement in the drafting process64
. Most importantly, the ACCAPP worked to facilitate
electoral civic education around the country, provide training to involved political and civil
society bodies, distribute objective and bipartisan information, and provide technical assistance.
The ACCAPP took a rigid stance towards political neutrality and worked with Albanian citizens,
NGOs, and international bodies alike to facilitate greater participation and inclusion in the
constitution-making process.65
In May of 1998 a “Three Powers Symposium”66
was held which
served to create dialogue between international experts and the parliamentary drafting
commission on the topics regarding the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of
government. An Albanian television program was nationally broadcasted to show the
59 Opinion on Recent Amendments to the Law on Major Constitutional Provisions of the Republic of Albania,
(1998).
60 Ibid.
61 Carlson, (2010).
62 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998): All three lawyers were outside of the government. Two were
Albanian and one was foreign.
63 Carlson, (2010): This initiative was supported by the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID), the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GIZ), as well as by the OSCE.
64 Constitutional History of Albania, (2014).
65 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998): The ACCAPP also published and distributed regular newspapers
which outlined recent developments, in both the Albanian and English languages. An informed and involved
constituency was the seen as the foundation for this constitution-making process.
66 Ibid: This symposium was sponsored by the Central East European Law Initiative through the American
Bar Association, as well as by GTZ with the collaboration of ACCAPP.

11
developments of the symposium and to inform domestic views on issues related to the new
constitution.67
On 5 August 1998, the first constitutional draft was available to be reviewed and discussed.
International and domestic experts were allowed to give their input and analysis, including
significant participation from American and European experts, yet the single biggest foreign
consultant and advisor was the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe.68
Inclusive and
participatory public forums were held throughout Albania which aimed at eliciting public
inquiries, yet most of the opposition Democratic Party rejected any form of participation by
instead boycotting all of the public events.69
Since the media outlets, including newspapers,
radio stations, and television programs, were typically associated with one of the two main
political parties, it was difficult to separate facts from rumors with regard to political issues.70
All of the public comments, suggestions, and critiques were documented and indexed according
to their specific theme by the ACCAPP.71
They were then considered by the parliamentary
commission and technical experts, in which 50 modifications were made to a total of 45
individual articles, which was roughly a quarter of the 183 articles in the draft constitution.72
The fact that such a wide range of individuals, interest groups, and civil society organizations
took part really legitimized the drafting process.
Amidst the final stages of this drafting process, on 12 September 1998 Adem Hajdari, a
Democratic Party member of parliament, was assassinated. 73
The Socialist Party was
immediately blamed and Democratic Party supporters began looting, occupying government
offices, and destroying public property in protest. Upon reaching the capital city Tirana,
protestors took control of military tanks and the state television programs, as well as occupied
the Council of Ministers. The OSCE began a diplomatic effort to stabilize the country and open
dialogue with the party supporters causing havoc.74
In an effort to quell further chaos, the Prime
Minister Fatos Nano resigned and his Socialist Party nominated another party leader, Pandeli
Majko. These events were seen to be an attempted coup d’état by the Democratic Party, but due
to the lack of support by the general population, they didn’t succeed in taking over the
government or changing the drafting process. 75
Following the attempted coup, the draft
constitution was finalized and was submitted to the People’s Assembly on 30 October 1998.76
After passing the People’s Assembly, the next step was to hold a national constitutional
referendum the following month. Unfortunately, instead of concentrating on the substantive
67 Carlson, (2010).
68 Ibid.
69 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998): The Democratic Party and its coalition group of smaller center-right
parties boycotted most of the constitution drafting process due to the fact that the Socialist Party had a one
seat majority as outlined in Resolution 339.
70 Observation Mission: Referendum on the Constitution 22 November 1998, (1998).
71 Carlson, (2010).
73 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998). Adem Hajdari was a leading student protester during the 1991
protests and became a national symbol of the anti-communist movement.
75 Carlson, (2010).

12
material in the constitution, the Democratic Party used it as an instrument of further
politicization in the country. In an effort to save face and increase their political power,
supporters of the Democratic Party continued to intimidate, threaten, and slander opposition
parties or even neutral institutions that promoted voter engagement.77
To contradict this, the
Socialist Party spent much of its energy in defending the drafting process and their own
reputation.78
The incumbent President decided to hold the constitutional referendum on 22 November 1998,
giving them a little less than a month to organize the polling stations, voting schedules, and other
electoral resources79
. Educating the public on the referendum process ended up being the most
difficult feature in all of this, in addition to the acute technical details which needed to be solved
before the referendum took place. Another obstacle was the lack of consistent and reliable voter
lists provided by the Albanian government.80
The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and
Human Rights (ODIHR) was particularly concerned because according to Albania’s 1994
Referendum Law, an absolute majority of registered voters is required for a referendum to be
considered. 81
On 12 October 1998, the People’s Assembly passed an amendment to the
referendum law, requiring only 50% of those who vote. Seeing this as a political move, the
Democratic Party denounced the amendment and once again protested. 82
Nonetheless, the
referendum date for 22 November was still set and the Ministry of Local Government, the
Central Election Committee (CEC), the OSCE, the ACCAPP, the International Foundation for
Election Systems (IFES), and even the EU all took part in the effort to disseminate information
to the public on the articles of the constitution and the registration and voting procedures.83
Unfortunately, the incredibly politicized campaigns from the Socialist Party and Democratic
Party created an unstable political environment and threatened to disrupt the final constitutional
referendum.84
Particularly, the Democratic Party’s effort to persuade constituents not to vote
was pervasive, even with their representatives at the CEC who informed people of their “right
not to vote”. In the final weeks before the constitutional referendum took place, the Democratic
Party began to take part in discussing the constitutional issues at hand, spreading a slew of
misinformation and false statements in the form of fear mongering. International officials present
in Albania even mentioned that “The disinformation on the contents of the constitution, the
misrepresentation of international representatives, and unfounded allegations against the
constitutional process by the Democratic Party are to be regretted.”85
To help stabilize domestic
debate on constitutional and referendum issues, the OSCE decided to work more closely with the
CEC’s Democratic Party members in order to mediate their political rhetoric and respond to their
78 Carlson, (2010).
81 Kume, (2014).
82 Carlson, (2010).
84 Ibid.
85 Carlson, (2010).

13
many complaints.86
One of these complaints addressed the assistance by foreign NGOs in the
constitution drafting, of which they maintained was illegal. After examining the legal details
closely, the OSCE experts concluded that no law existed which prohibited the legal assistance of
foreign organizations in Albania.87
With collaboration from the OSCE and ACCAPP, the Ministry of Local Government 88
administered the constitutional referendum and evaluated the results soon after. Nearly 90% of
the votes were in favor of adopting the new 1998 constitution. International observers89
across
the country at polling stations reported that the voters behaved well and that nothing out of the
ordinary occurred. A statement was announced by the teams of international observers saying,
“The observers found on 22 November the voting procedures of the referendum were carried out
in a correct manner, for which voters and election officials should be commended.”90
Some
irregularities were observed, though it is maintained that they had no detrimental impact on the
referendum results.91
Another statement clarified that “The referendum followed an open and
transparent process where advice on the constitution was taken from many sources, domestically
as well as internationally.”92
The Emergence of Constitutional Democracy
The official adoption of the 1998 Constitution of the Republic of Albania on 28 November
occurred on the 86th
anniversary of the Albanian independence of 1912. Thanks to the enormous
help of the international community and the tenacity of domestic actors in Albania, the
constitutional drafting project came to fruition and has since further helped Albania on its
journey into becoming a fully functioning western parliamentary republic. Although the
phenomenon of politicization in politics and society is still just as widespread as during the
immediate transition period, the democratic and institutional experience being gained by
government officials is augmenting the potential for positive political growth. Issues of
corruption still plague the country, as in most eastern European countries in transition, yet the
help of NGOs and multilateral organizations are working to increase transparency in Albania.
On 23 June 2014, the Republic of Albania was granted official candidate status for future
accession into the European Union. Since beginning the Stabilization and Association
Agreement (SAA) in 2009, Albania has been undergoing domestic reforms with the hope of
becoming a member state of the EU.93
87 Carlson, (2010).
88 Albania: Constitutional Watch, (1998): The Ministry of Local Government was put in charge of
administering the nationwide referendum due to its reputation of neutrality and professionalism, along with
its extensive in-country network of offices.
89 Carlson, (2010): The main international observers were the OSCE, EU, and Council of Europe.
91 Ibid: Some of the irregularities include untimely opening of polling stations, the phenomenon of family
voting, unstamped ID cards, etc.
92 Carlson, (2010).
93 EU Candidate Status for Albania, (2014).

14
As we have seen, the Albanian constitutional process has become a positive symbol and
instructive example to other countries in the process of democratic transition. The long history
and deep cultural propensities of a nation should not become obstacles to their transition, but
instead should encourage citizens to find national solidarity in pursuing the development of their
political institutions. While the modern Albanian state is remains nascent, its future is bright
considering the long political and legal journey it has taken over the last millennium. We can
hope that the institutional structures outlined in the 1998 Constitution and the support provided
by the independent Constitutional Court will help the Albanian people in achieving future
government transparency and accountability.

15
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