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The Constitutional Court and the Albanian language

2024-12-09 16:44:00, Opinione Lutfi Dervishi

The Constitutional Court and the Albanian language

Journalist Lutfi Dervishi

The Constitutional Court of North Macedonia is at a historical crossroads. The expected decision on the status of the Albanian language has an importance that exceeds the legal framework, as it affects the historical, national identity, cultural survival and the very nature of the foundations of the state.

The history of the Albanian language is a history of challenge and resistance. Its survival is a testament to a people who rejected the assimilation that engulfed much of the continent. While other languages ??in the Latin-speaking part of the Roman Empire (Portugal, Spain or France) were romanized, the Albanians fanatically preserved their language.

For more than two millennia, Albanian survived in the face of waves of great imperial languages, from Roman Latin to Greek and Church Slavonic, from Ottoman Turkish to Arabic.

The importance of the Albanian language goes beyond the communicative function. Albania is the bearer of a unique cultural and historical identity. Not for nothing, the poet Pashko Vasa announced the motto that is second to none on the planet: "The religion of the Albanian is Albanianism." This statement states that: the Albanian identity, embodied by the language, exceeds religion, politics and external pressures/threats.

This motto was best expressed in the Congress of Manastir in 1908. Albanian intellectuals and patriots gathered in Manastir to standardize the alphabet of the Albanian language, eventually choosing the Latin alphabet.

This bold decision, taken under Ottoman rule and in the face of fierce debate and opposition, symbolized a break with the past and a step towards a Western future. Albanians became the first nation in the world, with a Muslim majority, to embrace the Latin alphabet. This decision taken in Manastir not only unified the language, but also marked the West as the Pole Star of the Albanians.

In the context of North Macedonia, the Albanian language is not only a language spoken by at least ? of the inhabitants; Albanian language is a constitutional pillar. The Ohrid Agreement of 2001 recognized the Albanians as a constituent nation of the state. This agreement not only ended the years of discrimination, but also sanctioned the principle of linguistic and identity equality.

To discuss today the status of the Albanian language with legal artifice means to question the very foundation of North Macedonia as a multi-ethnic state. The argument that the state belongs equally to Macedonians and Albanians is not only political, it is both historical and moral.

The Constitutional Court's decision on the Albanian language is not simply a legal issue; it is proof of the country's commitment to equality and unity. Albanians have suffered a lot, fought for a long time, shed blood to preserve the language, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.

The historical narrative is clear: Albanians have survived empires, foreign rule and religious conversions, but they have never abandoned their language. Since the recognition of its ancient roots, until the historic decision of the Congress of Manastir, the Albanian language has stood as the common denominator of all Albanians, regardless of religious affiliation.

The judges of the Constitutional Court now face a simple choice. They can either honor this history by confirming the equal status of the Albanian language, thereby strengthening the foundations of a multi-ethnic state; or they may turn back the clock, reviving old tensions and undermining not only the progress made since the Ohrid Agreement, but perhaps the very existence of the state.

North Macedonia, our eastern neighbor, has suffered for decades and is still suffering, on its way to the EU due to the lack of agreements with its neighbors: with the Greeks, 30 years of deadlock regarding the name, and now with the Bulgarians (among others) for language issue. (In the tiring and long journey towards the EU, the Macedonians have no better allies than the Albanians, but they should not take kindness for weakness)

As history has taught us, languages ??are more than words; they are the circulating vessels of identity. And the history of the Albanian language is one of the most extraordinary stories of survival in human history.

It is a history that North Macedonia should not be afraid of, but should embrace, certainly if it wants to build a future based on equality and mutual respect.

Those who do not learn from history risk repeating the mistakes.