NID: ALBANIA: RESISTING THE DOMINOES

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: The Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe: A 30-Year Legacy
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 06826840
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 26, 2019
• Document Release Date: December 10, 2019
• Publication Date: December 28, 1989

Approved for Release: 2019/10/29 C06826840
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ALBANIA: Resisting the Dominoes
The regime in Albania, the last Stalinist state in Eastern Europe.
appears to be trying to preempt an upheaval like that in Romania.
Albanian media reported the events in Romania factually, including
the Albanian Government's declaring "respect" for the Romanian
peoples' right to establish complete freedom, independence, and
sovereignty. Signs of antiregime sentiment among Albanian students
arc increasing, and the regime replaced the first secretary of the youth
union this week. Earlier this month. the regime denied Yugoslav press
reports of a demonstration in Shkoder, near the Yugoslav border.
Comment: Like their Romanian neighbors, Albanians have long
suffered dismal living standards and a repressive police state. There is
no sign of an organized opposition movement, but visceral hatred for
the current regime could make any confrontation escalate quickly
into widespread violence. Because the population has access to
Yugoslav and Italian broadcasts, the government probably felt
compelled to report on events in Romania. Albanian exiles in France
yesterday demanded that Paris "vigorously denounce" the Alia
regime. The declaration of "respect" for the Romania people may
embolden the few dissidents in Albania to increase agitation for
political reform.
NR Record
7
--TW-Se.CW
TCS 3000/8
28 December 1989
Approved for Release: 2019/10/29 C06826840