The journalist denounces the scandal in the fortress of Bashtova: Mortar and stones were thrown without criteria and without professional assistance

2023-06-03 20:18:00, Aktualitet CNA

Journalist Aulon Kalaja has denounced an event that happened in the Bashtova fortress, denouncing it as a scandal.

He published a video in which he shows that some people do not allow him to take photos and push and verbally abuse him.

Among other things, he emphasizes that there was no professional in the field to follow the works, which is a legal obligation, but individuals who behaved with cultural heritage as if it were their object.

The journalist underlines that mortar and stones were thrown there without criteria and without professional assistance of cultural monuments .

"SCANDAL:

In the fortress of Bashtova, they don't even allow you to take photos, as irresponsible people push and verbally abuse.

My going there today was without any specific purpose. The desire to take some pictures within the walls of the castle was unacceptably turned into an absurdity by certain individuals whom I had never met before.

Bashtova Castle is a national, public property, inherited between generations, and the firm that received the tender (which I do not know), cannot treat it as private property.

This denunciation should be seen by the Ministry of Culture, the institutions of the European Union that have spent the money to restore this castle, and the local government. If they do not react by public denunciation, I will turn to other instances.

Not only was there no professional in the field to follow the works, which is a legal obligation, but the "strong" individuals there treated the cultural heritage as if it were their object. They threw mortar and stones without criteria and without professional assistance of cultural monuments. But that wasn't my issue, it just happened on the spot, completely by accident, since I didn't even have alerts and of course I have to follow them.

While I introduced myself as a journalist, they did not introduce themselves at all. Apparently they hinted that I had gone to check on the works and increased the doses of aggressiveness and nothing was normal anymore. But I had gone as a visitor to the castle, not as a journalist. I often do it on weekends. Even today, I visited the castle of Elbasan, Peqin, and Petrela and I could not see it, since I went around 8 am and found the iron gate of the castle closed. While a resident of the area told me that the castle opened at 10:00. However, I didn't encounter any problems anywhere in the aforementioned forts, and I even took as many photos as I wanted.

I love the castles, not only because I have such a surname, but because there I find inspiration.

Strange that cultural heritage assets are left in the hands of the individuals you will see in the video. This would not happen anywhere in Europe.

Imagine when this happens to a journalist, what can happen to a citizen without such a status. In March I visited Venice. The Cathedral of "San Marco" was under restoration, but no one stopped me from taking photos, not only me, but thousands of tourists with cameras and phones.

Soon, I will go to Bashtova Castle again, to see if something has changed from the irresponsibility I found today and of course to enjoy one of the beauties of my homeland.

(The recording of the video started after the moment when the individual with the hat touches me with his hands and pushes me, as I did not think of this inappropriate action.)" /CNA.al