Post by Bozur on Apr 25, 2005 17:01:08 GMT -5
Albania’s code of honor to become less bloody
Deal is hoped to end cycle of revenge killings
By Briseida Mema - Agence France-Presse
KUSHE, Albania - The social elite of northern Albania has rewritten the code of honor that has dominated the local clan-based social system for centuries, in a bid to end a cycle of vendettas that has cost untold lives and forced hundreds of families to hide in fear.
The chiefs of the most prominent families in northern Albania have adopted a new code of honor to replace the 600-year-old one written by Lek Dukagjini, a medieval leader, which demands blood for blood and an eye for an eye.
“The Code of Lek Dukagjini proclaims that all male members of a family with the same name as a murderer can be targeted by a vendetta,” said Gjelosh Palaj, who lost three children in revenge attacks last year.
“The family of the victim elects the one who should take revenge by killing a male member of the enemy family, depending of the degree of their relationship with the murderer.
“The new code clearly states that no one but the murderer should pay for the crime.” Kastriot Bajraktari, whose family is one of the most respected in this impoverished and conservative region, said the new rule stipulated that only the wrongdoer could be targeted by revenge, not his or her entire family.
“The new code states that the innocent are free,” Bajraktari said. “This is just a moral code, but it will raise a lot of awareness about the problem among a portion of the population.” The code, adopted after more than 5,000 people met at a gathering of prominent clan leaders on April 10, will be welcome news to some 650 families who have gone underground due to outstanding vendettas against them.
But it will also win praise from local police and the European Union, which is concerned about the effect of the old honor system on the rule of law and the judicial system, especially regarding witness testimony.
One of the poorest countries in Europe, Albania signed a stabilization and association accord with the EU last year but has been accused of dragging its feet on basic reforms. Under the Dukagjini code, families were obligated to protect those who carried out revenge killings, meaning that police investigating serious crimes are often confronted with a wall of silence. The new code does away with this. “A murderer should not be helped to flee or hide,” it says. Bajraktari said the changes could also help police tackle rampant organized crime in Albania, as mafia figures were known to carry out their bloody business behind the facade of socially accepted vendettas.
Deal is hoped to end cycle of revenge killings
By Briseida Mema - Agence France-Presse
KUSHE, Albania - The social elite of northern Albania has rewritten the code of honor that has dominated the local clan-based social system for centuries, in a bid to end a cycle of vendettas that has cost untold lives and forced hundreds of families to hide in fear.
The chiefs of the most prominent families in northern Albania have adopted a new code of honor to replace the 600-year-old one written by Lek Dukagjini, a medieval leader, which demands blood for blood and an eye for an eye.
“The Code of Lek Dukagjini proclaims that all male members of a family with the same name as a murderer can be targeted by a vendetta,” said Gjelosh Palaj, who lost three children in revenge attacks last year.
“The family of the victim elects the one who should take revenge by killing a male member of the enemy family, depending of the degree of their relationship with the murderer.
“The new code clearly states that no one but the murderer should pay for the crime.” Kastriot Bajraktari, whose family is one of the most respected in this impoverished and conservative region, said the new rule stipulated that only the wrongdoer could be targeted by revenge, not his or her entire family.
“The new code states that the innocent are free,” Bajraktari said. “This is just a moral code, but it will raise a lot of awareness about the problem among a portion of the population.” The code, adopted after more than 5,000 people met at a gathering of prominent clan leaders on April 10, will be welcome news to some 650 families who have gone underground due to outstanding vendettas against them.
But it will also win praise from local police and the European Union, which is concerned about the effect of the old honor system on the rule of law and the judicial system, especially regarding witness testimony.
One of the poorest countries in Europe, Albania signed a stabilization and association accord with the EU last year but has been accused of dragging its feet on basic reforms. Under the Dukagjini code, families were obligated to protect those who carried out revenge killings, meaning that police investigating serious crimes are often confronted with a wall of silence. The new code does away with this. “A murderer should not be helped to flee or hide,” it says. Bajraktari said the changes could also help police tackle rampant organized crime in Albania, as mafia figures were known to carry out their bloody business behind the facade of socially accepted vendettas.