Date: 03 Mar 97 17:56:23 EST From: Chris Burford <100423.2040-AT-CompuServe.COM> Subject: M-I: Revolution in Albania: oppose intervention The dramatic events in Albania are complemented by the tone of intense alarm by the most authoritative western commentators. This situation is possibly only a matter of a couple of days away from a revolution. The BBC has just carried an interview with Jim Seebert (sp?), the spokesperson for the US State Department's South Central European bureau. It is remarkable for its earnestness and caution. He has just admitted that the May elections were widely agreed to be fraudulent. He has said the US had pressed for steps to be taken to redress the situation. He has expressed concern at the re-election of President Berisha. He said that the resignation of the government should be an opening for fresh elections. The implication was clear that the US state department wanted some sort of political compromise to contain the situation. He was followed by one, Geoffrey Stern, who spoke as an authoritative international commentator. He spoke of the "the tremendous economic mess" (since the fall of socialism). He said most revealingly, "It is of course always a mistake to intervene publically" and expressed his strongest desire that the US, the European Union and the World Bank intervene secretly. He emphasised that it is nonsense to say that the disturbance is local in the southern part of the country -" Vlora is one of the best ports in the region." "These people are desperate and very angry." There was absolutely no attempt to present the demonstrators as criminals, rapists, racists, violators of civil rights. There was total acceptance that they are rebelling and extremely determined. There was no attempt to present them as puppets of a manipulative neo-Stalinist party. The impression was that these capitalist commentators were looking into the whites of their eyes. This is a fast developing situation. My guess is that if western capitalism is to avert a revolution led by a new socialist government, it will have to pay through the nose to compensate the Albanians for the deprivations that rampant capitalism has brought upon them, however true it may be that the previous economy was not competitive in international commodity production. But there is a shortage of capital to buy off all the discontent in the Balkans. It is possible that through these upheavals marxists will over the next five or ten years find new ways to combine with democrats in these regions to resist neo-liberal colonisation. Anyone got more information? Chris Burford --- from list marxism-international-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---
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