Episode 203: In Albania, past trauma still haunts the present

Talk Eastern Europe

In this episode, Alexandra and Nina start off with updates about the massive pro-EU protests across Georgia, speak about the recent explosion in the northern part of Kosovo, and touch upon election-related developments in Romania and Bulgaria. They close with news from Croatia, where the Health Minister was arrested on corruption charges brought by the European Public Prosecutor's Office.
Later, Adam is joined by Fatos Lubonja, a writer and critic based in Albania. Fatos is a significant voice in Albanian literature and intellectual circles, known for his piercing critiques of totalitarianism and staunch advocacy for democracy and human rights. They discuss his works which were not only published in Albanian but also in English and most recently in Polish. Fatos also discusses how the 17 years he spent in Albania’s communist prisons has impacted his literature. Finally they talk about the current perspectives in Albania, including its EU integration.
His book “Second Sentence. Inside the Albanian Gulag” can be found here: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/second-sentence-9781845119249/
You can watch the recent discussion at Columbia University on EU Enlargement in the context of Russia’s war in Ukraine, featuring TEE’s Alexandra and Adam, here: https://www.youtube.com/live/nhb6hlt5Rdk?si=PpAEgzxQIB4TfWJk
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