Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0005/00051.txt

Text File | 1991-06-24 | 11KB | 231 lines

$Unique_ID{COW00051}
$Pretitle{298}
$Title{Albania
Front Matter}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Eugene K. Keefe, Sarah Jane Elpern, Willaim Giloane, James M. Moore, Jr., Weston White}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{communist
albania
albanian
country
government
people's
foreign
area
national
party}
$Date{1971}
$Log{Figure 1.*0005101.scf
}
Country:     Albania
Book:        Albania, A Country Handbook
Author:      Eugene K. Keefe, Sarah Jane Elpern, Willaim Giloane, James M. Moore, Jr., Weston White
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1971

Front Matter

Foreword

     This volume is one of a series of handbooks prepared by Foreign Area
Studies (FAS) of The American University, designed to be useful to military
and other personnel who need a convenient compilation of basic facts about the
social, economic, political, and military institutions and practices of
various countries. The emphasis is on objective description of the nation's
present society and the kinds of possible or probable changes that might be
expected in the future. The handbook seeks to present as full and as balanced
an integrated exposition as limitations on space and research time permit. It
was compiled from information available in openly published material. An
extensive bibliography is provided to permit recourse to other published
sources for more detailed information. There has been no attempt to express
any specific point of view or to make policy recommendations. The contents of
the handbook represent the work of the authors and FAS and do not represent
the official view of the United States government.

     An effort has been made to make the handbook as comprehensive as
possible. It can be expected, however, that the material, interpretations, and
conclusions are subject to modification in the light of new information and
developments. Such corrections, additions, and suggestions for factual,
interpretive, or other change as readers may have will be welcomed for use in
future revisions. Comments may be addressed to:

The Director
Foreign Area Studies
The American University
5010 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20016

Preface

     Albania, or, as it proclaimed itself in 1946, the People's Republic of
Albania, emerged from World War II under the control of the local Communist
movement, which later adopted the name Albanian Workers' Party. The most
remarkable feature of Albanian life during the 1960s was the rigid alignment
with Communist China in that country's ideological struggle with the Soviet
Union. In mid-1970 the country continued to be Communist China's only European
ally and its mouthpiece in the United Nations. Propaganda broadcasts in
several languages, extensive for such a small, undeveloped country, continued
to emanate from the capital city of Tirana, constantly reiterating the Chinese
Communist line and making Radio Tirana sound like an extension of Radio
Peking.

     Albania's most notable tradition from ancient times has been one of
foreign domination. Brief periods of independence have been overshadowed by
long centuries of subjection to alien rule. Foreign rulers never seemed able
or willing to subject the Albanian peasants to the complete authority of a
central government. Throughout their history Albanians, protected by the
remoteness of their mountain villages, often enjoyed a measure of autonomy
even though they lacked national independence. The foreign domination plus the
limited autonomy developed in the people a spirit of fierce independence and a
suspicion of neighboring states that might have designs on their territorial
integrity.

     Militarily undeveloped but unwilling to submit to partition by its
neighbors, Albania has held on precariously to autonomy since World War II by
becoming a client state-first to Yugoslavia, then to the Soviet Union, and
then to Communist China. In all three relationships Albania has maintained its
independence but it has not been able to establish itself as a viable economic
entity.

     The Area Handbook for Albania seeks to present an overview of the various
social, political, and economic aspects of the country as they appeared in
1970. The leaders of the Communist Party have gone to extremes to maintain an
aura of secrecy about their nation and their efforts to govern it. Material on
Albania is scanty and some that is available is not reliable but, using their
own judgments on sources, the authors have striven for objectivity in this
effort to depict Albanian society in 1970.

     The spelling of place names conforms to the rulings of the United States
Board on Geographic Names, with the exception that no diacritical marks have
been used in this volume. The metric system has been used only for tonnages.

Country Summary

     1. Country: People's Republic of Albania (Albania). Called Shqiperia by
Albanians. A national state since 1912. Under Communist control after 1944.

     2. Government: Functions much like Party-state model of Soviet Union.
Constitution designates People's Assembly as highest state organ; its
Presidium conducts state affairs between Assembly sessions. People's Council
highest organ at district and lower echelons. Communist Party (offically, the
Albanian Workers' Party) organizations parallel government organizations and
control them from national to local levels. Party members hold all key
positions in government.

     3. Size and Location: Area, 11,100 square miles; smallest of the European
Communist states. Extends 210 miles from southern to northern extremities; 90
miles on longest east-west axis. Bordered on north and east by Yugoslavia; on
southeast and south by Greece; and on west by Adriatic and Ionian seas.

     4. Topography: A narrow strip of lowland borders Adriatic Sea; remainder
of country is mountainous and hilly, intersected by streams that flow in
westerly or northwesterly direction. Terrain is generally rugged.

     5. Climate: Unusually varied. Coastal lowlands have Mediterranean-type
climate. Inland fluctuations common, but continental influences predominate.
Annual precipitation is 40 to 100 inches according to area; highly seasonal;
summer droughts common. Temperatures vary widely because of differences in
elevation and the changes in prevailing Mediterranean and continental air
currents.

     6. Administrative Divisions: Twenty-six districts. Economic and social
factors played important role in shaping delineations. Control and direction
is from Tirana.

     7. Population: Estimated 2.1 million in January 1970. Growth unusually
rapid; at 1970 rate, would double in twenty-six years. Two-thirds live in
rural areas. Inhabitants are 97-percent ethnic Albanian. About 106 males per
100 females.

     8. Labor: In 1967 the working-age population numbered about 932,000, of
which approximately 745,000 were employed. About 66.7 percent were in
agriculture; 14.1 percent in industry; 5.4 percent in construction; and 13.8
percent in trade, education, health, and others.

     9. Lanfuage: Albanian spoken by everyone. Some of the 3- percent minority
use tongue of country of family origin as a second language.

     10. Education: Nearly all persons under age forty are literate, according
to Albanian statistics. Communist ideas and principles emphasized with strict
controls by centralized authority. Production of capabilities and skills
required for modernization and industrialization considered to be a major
goal.

     11. Religion: Organized religion destroyed by government action in 1967.
Party-directed antireligious campaign aims to eliminate religious thought and
belief. Pre-World War II data indicated population to be 70-percent Muslim,
20-percent Eastern Orthodox, and 10-percent Roman Catholic.

     12. Health: Many diseases, but reportedly greatly reduced or eliminated.
Health improved substantially after 1950, as reflected in Albanian reports.
Malnutrition, poor sanitary-hygienic conditions, and lack of trained personnel
are continuing problems.

     13.