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May 11, 2010
Albanian Village Needs Help Fighting Gov’t Land Grab
Develop Don't Destroy Accursed Mountains via Only The Blog Knows Brooklyn
Sure, Albania's a little bit outside of our usual purview, but news of this land grab comes from Catherine Bohne, proprietress of Park Slope's Community Bookstore. Plus, they've got a cool flag.
The Valbona Valley where I’ve been half-living is traditionally one of the toughest places in Europe - they don’t call these the Accursed Mountains for nothing! Perhaps in order to survive the people have become both adapted to the land AND fiercely protective of each other — really GOOD to each other. And to me! Now the local government - which, like most government in Albania, is very corrupt – is moving to grab land in Valbona. And the Selimaj, my adopted family, are standing up to them. This really is the little guy fighting against huge forces. Will you help?
Landgrabbers, apparently, are not exclusive to New York State's allegedly representative democracy. They're perfectly at home in Albania's formerly Communist parliamentary democracy, too.
Here are the two videos I made so far which summarize the situation – I was up all night making the last one, so I’m sort of blotto right now, and I think the videos will be clearer than I will be.
Valbona Land Grab – Part 1 (5/9/10)
Valbona Land Grab – Part 2 (5/10/10)
This land grab promises no hoops, but it will offer ping pong! And a community benefits agreements — which will deliver basketball ping pong before affordable housing running water.
The Komun has published reports to various foreign investors promising over 80 infrastructure projects to benefit the people of Margegaj Komun and Valbona specifically, including really important things like bringing running water to the houses of Valbona village. They were supposed to start work this summer. They haven’t. Instead, they’re rushing to build this tourism complex (with Ping Pong) which (you may have noticed) employs mainly members of the Head of the Komun’s family (who live in Shoshan, not Valbona).
In all seriousness, click thru to learn how you can help the Selimaj fight the good fight.
Posted by eric at May 11, 2010 11:14 PM