Albania re-visited
Rune Ottosen to the right, Besnik Baka in the middle and Richard van der Brink to the left – with the new Albania book on the table.
As a former tourist in the country, Ottosen talked about his blindness for oppression. Together with Besnik Baka, an Albanian journalist and translator, he has documented oppression, political assassinations and imprisonment during the regime of Enver Hoxha.
They have met with former prisoners, but also people who still retain a positive view of this regime. Albania is today a profoundly divided country, and there has not been a real critical assessment of the past, said Ottosen.
The book was commented by a panel. It was followed by a discussion about how the book can be relevant for Albania today, with Besnik Baka and the Albanian publisher Richard van der Brink in Skanderbeg Books in Tirana. Also the Norwegian publisher Edvard Thorup was present.