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Don’t shoot, but love!
Operazione Colomba supports the campaign “Albania without arms”, which gives the possibility to deliver/withdraw any weapon without any penal prosecution by April 30, 2017.
If you want Peace, lay down your arms.
Balkan Insight: Kosovo’s Reconciliation Councils Struggle to End Blood Feuds
Unfortunately the blood feuds’ phenomenon is still present in Albania and Kosovo. Here we report a rare case where the mixture of ancient traditions and modern local intitutions gave rise to a real and effective reconciliation between the families in conflict. The text comes from Balkan Insight on November 4th, 2016.
Periodic European Commission’s Progress Report on the situation of Albania
On 9th November 2016 has been published the periodic European Commission’s Progress Report on the situation of Albania, which in 2014 acquired the candidate status to enter the European Union. The Report highlights a moderate progress in many areas, but particularly welcomes the enactment of new legislation aimed to the adjustment to the acquis communautaire; relevant improvements have been registered in the justice system reform and in the exclusion of criminal offenders from public offices. The Commission criticizes the high number of unfounded asylum applications by Albanian citizens in EU members and Schengen area countries and ask Albania to take adequate measures to tackle the phenomenon. As regards to the blood feuds phenomenon, the Report deals with it in the context of the protection of the right to life; it recalls the Albanian Parliament Resolution on March 2015, underlining that the Coordination Council against blood feuds has to be reactivated (p. 63 – “As regards right to life, the March 2015 parliament resolution and recommendations on blood feuds still require follow up. The Coordination Council has to be reactivated”). To read the full report click here.
“Të lidhim besen për… pajtim!” in Vlorë
The stage of raising-awareness “Të lidhim besen për… pajtim!” in Vlorë scheduled on November 2016 will be postponed to Spring 2017 for organizational reasons.
Operazione Colomba goes on creating a collective memory in order to commemorate the victims of the blood-feuds phenomenon and asking for commitment to local and international institutions to its overcoming.
September 2016 Report
Current situation
In September, the newspapers reported the case of a feud that took place in the region of Dukagjin. A few days after the murder, the murderer turned himself in to the authorities.
More and more often the “blood feuds” phenomenon goes beyond the national borders. It is the case of a recent extradition from Greece to Albania of a detainee who committed homicide for “blood feud” reasons. Moreover, the administrative tribunal of Düsseldorf denied the international protection to an Albanian citizen who fled to Germany in order to escape a blood feud, after being detained for the murder of a woman. (more…)