FREEDOM IS THE SPRING OF THE INTELLECTUAL
Speech by President of the Republic Sali Berisha at the meeting with intellectuals
(Ladies and gentlemen)
Tonight, it is precisely this relationship that I, in my assessment, have considered to be an extremely important issue. This is a delicate moment, a difficult moment for all the countries of the former communist empire. The absence of freedom and the unconsolidated freedom of the intellectual create conditions for various phenomena, but above all for phenomena that have accompanied and are accompanying the entire process of decommunization. Old mentalities, submission to authority, prejudice, fear and servility are still alive. For this reason, more than ever, the intellectual must be free.
The intellectual can often be the object of manipulation, but he must not accept becoming its subject. Because only as a free subject can he exercise his social and moral function. And this is precisely where our great problem lies: the intellectual's relationship with freedom. This is his springtime, the condition for the blossoming of thought, creativity and public responsibility.
Under dictatorship, the intellectual was oppressed in different ways. He was imprisoned, interned, humiliated, forced into silence, pushed to become an apologist of power. Many were sacrificed, others withdrew into themselves, some were broken. Yet even under those conditions, free thought often found ways to survive. Today we must create the conditions for that thought to come into the light and take its role in the life of the nation.
The freedom of the intellectual is not his personal privilege. It is in society's interest. Because without it, society loses its critical conscience, loses the ability to look beyond the everyday, loses its moral compass. A free society needs free intellectuals, independent thought, debate, civic courage.
This is a process that cannot be achieved by decree. It requires strong institutions, the rule of law, pluralism, free media, open universities, civic culture. It also requires that intellectuals themselves free themselves from the temptation of conformism and from nostalgia for the old schemes. If the intellectual is not free, there can be neither free culture, nor free science, nor honest politics.
Today Albania is at a crossroads. On one side are the difficulties of transition, poverty, and the wounds of the past; on the other is hope, the energy of a society that seeks to move forward. At this crossroads, the voice of the intellectual is of extraordinary importance. He must help shape democratic consciousness, build institutions, defend the truth and confront the past.
Freedom is not only a right, but also a responsibility. A free intellectual cannot remain indifferent to injustice, corruption, violence, and moral poverty. He must speak, write, bear witness, criticize, propose. His silence would be a loss for society.
I believe that Albania has an intellectual elite capable of making a precious contribution at this historical moment. It must stand close to the citizen, close to the youth, close to the democratic state, but always with its moral independence. Only in this way can it be the living conscience of the nation.
We need a culture of freedom. We need to replace the culture of fear with the culture of argument, the culture of obedience with the culture of debate, the culture of submission with the culture of dignity. This is the road of Europe, and this must be the road of Albania.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The natural reason of the times, the intellectual cannot be given by decree. It is won through courage, responsibility, culture and truth. For this reason, I want to assure you that the democratic state will always be on the side of your freedom, your thought, your creativity. Because without the freedom of the intellectual, democracy remains incomplete.
Freedom is the spring of the intellectual.
(To be continued on page 2)
With the concern of involving democracy in Albania much more strongly
- PRESS CONFERENCE OF 20 OCTOBER BY MR. HUBER -
The press conference of Dr. Polyus de pasarem? and of the PDSH Mr. Hans Huber, as Dr. Kongs?berg wrote at the beginning of his speech from the invited lady, was the first direct representative of the PDSH to be held openly and publicly, and it is claimed? that in it? the? continuation of? all the diplomatic activities and exchanges of the PDSH within and outside the homeland. Albania is currently establishing democracy. The purpose of our visit to Albania was to cooperate with? and to cooperate with the PDSH, with the sister party, and to cooperate with a parliamentary delegation that came from Switzerland. On Saturday we took part in the celebration of the anniversary of the formation of the Albanian state. Afterwards we held talks with the chairman of the PDSH, Mr. Sali Berisha, with the prime minister of the democratic government, Prof. Dr. Aleksandër Meksi, as well as with representatives of the government.
2. What is the question of Albania's future? Our visit was also exploratory and supportive, with the aim of helping Albania's democratic development. Albania is taking important steps to link itself with the democracies of the world, and this takes time. Cooperation with the PDSH and with the Albanian government is a necessity for the future.
3. Mr. Hans Huber stated that the relations between the Swiss people and the Albanian people are ancient and friendly. He stressed that democracy in Albania must not be undermined by any force and that political pluralism must develop on the basis of law and democratic institutions.
4. At the conclusion of the conference, a brief press conference was held, during which questions from Albanian and foreign journalists were answered. The PDSH is an important force in the country's political life and we wish to contribute to bringing Albania closer to Europe.
(To be continued on page 2)
FREEDOM IS THE SPRING OF THE INTELLECTUAL
Speech by President of the Republic Sali Berisha at the meeting with intellectuals
(Ladies and gentlemen)
Perhaps the first question each of us must ask ourselves today is this: what has the intellectual been, and what must the intellectual be, in a free society? This question does not have a simple answer. But one thing is clear: the intellectual can no longer be the voice of power against society; he must be the voice of truth within society.
For decades, the totalitarian regime in Albania treated the intellectual as an ideological instrument. He had to repeat the dogma, justify injustice, cover failure with rhetoric. In this sense, the dictatorship not only suppressed the intellectual's freedom, but also corrupted his function.
Today we are called upon to rebuild this function. This means accepting the plurality of thought, respecting difference, encouraging criticism. Democracy is not afraid of criticism; on the contrary, it is nourished by it. Only insecure regimes fear free thought.
If the intellectual loses his independence, he loses himself. And when that happens, society loses as well. Because there is no institution, however powerful, that can replace the role of free conscience. Therefore I believe that our country needs intellectuals who do not shut themselves away in their tower, but take part in public life with dignity, courage and honesty.
In the Albanian transition there have been and will be disappointments. There have been mistakes, there has also been injustice. But this cannot be a reason to withdraw from the ideal of freedom. On the contrary, the greater the difficulties, the greater the need for clear voices, for independent minds, for creative approaches.
I know that many intellectuals have suffered. They have paid a heavy price for their beliefs. Some survived prisons and internment, some lived under imposed silence, some left the country. But today Albania needs their experience, integrity and courage.
Freedom of thought and freedom of expression are the foundation of the democratic order. Without them, elections are ritual, institutions are facade, and the law loses its soul. That is why we must defend them every day, not only in principle, but also in practice.
A true democracy does not ask the intellectual to be an applauder. It asks him to be responsible. Not to deceive, not to remain silent in the face of evil, not to use knowledge as a privilege against the citizen, but as service to him.
This is our challenge and I have faith that we will succeed. Albania will move forward if free thought becomes part of its moral and political energy. This is the spring we must protect.
(To be continued on page 2)
