Prime Minister Edi Rama is on a visit to Jerusalem, Israel, where he was received by the President of Israel Isaac Herzog, who hailed the meeting with the Albanian government head as a very important one in terms of the traditional close friendship between the two nations, a friendship witnessed during times of hardship, as well as the relations of mutual respect between the two countries. On his part, PM Rama expressed appreciation for the hospitality, highlighting the fraternal friendship between the two people as a precious value that has always guided the dialogue between the governments and the countries. “Albania has always been a second additional home for the Jews,” the Prime Minister Rama said during the meeting,  also focusing on ways to boost bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interest, including economy, tourism etc.

During his visit, Prime Minister Edi Rama attended the leadership dinner of the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement in Jerusalem, where he delivered a speech to the participants: 

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Host: Prime Minister Rama, on behalf of the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement, it is really an opportunity to thank your predecessors, to thank the people of Albania, to thank your beautiful custom of “Besa” (literally “to keep the promise.”) Albania is the only country in Europe that ended the war with more Jews that it had before the war started. Many Jews from different countries around Albania immigrated to Albania and they were saved. So, it is an opportunity to really thank you very much. I know it is a state visit and you have a very busy schedule. I would also like to thank you for sending us the best representative to be part of the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement Governing Board, Mrs. Valentina Leskaj, and I am taking this opportunity to invite you and address this event.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: It feels really great to be here because there is plenty to tell you.

Exception of the Jews and the protection provided to them during the World War II are just the latest episode of their exemplary long co-existence with Albanians in their homeland, which was globally seen as an additional homeland for the Jews in the ‘30s and not many people are aware of it.

And there is a fundamental component that unites the large massive arrivals of the Jews in Albania. They never headed towards this calm port anytime, but only when they were most at risk.

During the centuries of Ottoman rule in Albania, Jews of all groups like the Sephardic, the Romaniote and the Marrano Jews, came together in Albania and even though it is known that the relations between these groups had not been always brotherly one. The great thing about the Jews, at least what we know, is that they are brave when they have to fight someone, but they are not so good when they have to settle with one another.

However, they were able to live among themselves and with Albanians in an excellent manner. In 1931, the then government of Albania ordered a complete census or registration of the population.

On this occasion, the Jews were recognized the right to community, including the Sabbath. This was a unique act in the then Europe already dominated by the anti-Semitism.

There is something you should know. The Albanian first constitution, the Albanian Code of Honour in the middle ages, contains a paragraph that would define history of Albanians over the centuries as following:

“The house of the Albanian belongs to God and the guest”. And the real word “the guest”, the true meaning of this word in Albanian is about a guest not in the sense of someone you invite, but someone who knocks on your door. And basically, someone knocking on your door is someone needing help. Betraying the guest, as stipulated by the Code of Honour of Albanian, is an ultimate unforgivable crime. 

So, these negotiators explained the Nazis that if they were to dare agree and give up the Jews they would lose all their followers. They agreed to hand over the gold, but they didn’t accept to hand over the Jews.

The other part of the story is the incredible contribution of the Catholic Church. And you know very well that the Catholic Church wasn’t really very kind to the Jews during the World War II, but the then Archbishop in Albania was in person engaged to provide Jews with false certificates of Christian identity in a bid to save them.

Protecting and saving the Jews became an inherent Albanian virtue.

Albania is the only country in the Balkans where the religious composition doesn’t have a determining or distinguishing role in regard to the identity. The four religious communities already used to live together and still live together in what Pope Francis baptized it not as a religious harmony, but a religious fraternity. And a fifth community, a Jewish one, was not an issue at all.

I strongly believe that this is not simply a beautiful page of our history, but this is a very important treasure of our national heritage.

For us it is absolutely important to be aligned and unified in the fight against anti-Semitism, because anti-Semitism, as we understand it, is not about the Jews only.

Host: You see, this is a standing ovation without us asking for it.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: You didn’t ask me either, but just kept me here instead and what else are they supposed to do.

Host: There is a joke here in Israel about the difference between an English gentleman and a Jewish gentleman. The English gentleman comes and goes without saying goodbye and the Jewish one says goodbye but never leaves. The same goes for the not boring speakers. We are going to hold elections here in a week time and you have here like more than 150 people in the room and most of them will vote, the ambassadors are going to vote and we have no clue what people will be voting for and we will probably have 300 opinions. We do have one thing that guides us and which is the Torah, our holy book and also when you come to the Synagogues there are a lot of arguments. But then we have one leader, who has this thing that is called Yad and he follows Torah and all of a sudden everybody becomes aligned with what is happening. So I think that Adam and Valentina would like to give you this special present for strong leadership. And once again thank you for your country.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Thank you very much.