THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS HAD AND WILL HAVE ITS DOORS OPEN TO INTELLECTUALS
Some remarks concerning Mr. Viktor Martini’s article entitled “P.D. is losing its course”, published in the newspaper “Republika”, 6 October 1991
By Hamit Kaba
…[?] it is not the first time that comrades and friends with different views have tried to throw mud and smear the activity of the Democratic Party, but on the other hand it is surprising that these attacks and this mud are not being thrown by our political opponents, but by some intellectuals who until yesterday were founders and active members of it. To achieve this aim they do not choose honest means and methods, but slander, fabrications and intrigue.
What prompted me to write these lines was Mr. Viktor Martini’s article, published in the newspaper “Republika” under the title “P.D. is losing its course”. His article, besides being tendentious, is also unfounded. Instead of arguing with facts, he deals in assumptions and insinuations that do not serve the truth.
The Democratic Party was created as a new political force, open to the intelligentsia and intellectuals. It has had and will have its doors open to honest intellectuals, to people of knowledge, to all those who want pluralism, democracy and the rule of law. This has been shown by its activity and by the contribution of many well-known figures from Albanian intellectual life.
Mr. Martini tries to present it as though there is an exclusionary spirit within the party toward intellectuals. That is untrue. On the contrary, people with a high cultural and professional background have found a place in its structures, and they have helped in drafting programs, in public debates and in its political orientation.
Likewise, it is unfair to identify the problems of the time with the positions of the Democratic Party. The general crisis the country is going through, the consequences of the old system, the economic difficulties and the political uncertainties cannot be blamed on a force that has only just appeared on the political scene. On the contrary, P.D. has been a powerful voice against abuses, against arbitrariness and in defense of civil liberties.
Albanian intellectuals have their place in P.D., but not as decoration, nor as an alibi. They have an active, critical and creative role. If someone leaves or keeps their distance, that is their choice, but it cannot be presented as the party closing its doors. The doors have been open and will remain so for anyone who comes with free thought and democratic conscience.
Finally, I wish to emphasize that debate is useful only when it is based on intellectual honesty and respect for the truth. Articles such as Mr. Martini’s do not help public opinion nor the intellectuals themselves; they only feed confusion and harm the new democratic climate we are trying to build.
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