On 18 April 2001, Republic President Rexhep Mejdani officially decreed the date for the next Albania's general parliamentary elections, which will be held on 24 June.

Opposition parties objected the date because not all their demands for electoral changes have been met. Different opposition proposals to change the electoral code itself were rejected by the Socialist majority in the Parliament's Law Commission.

Earlier, the ruling socialist majority showing a complimented political tolerance has approved an Electoral Code, which favours the small parties and does not permit absolute majority to control the parliament.

Opposition parties absented the Parliament Electoral Code voting, in effect.

The Albania's constitution sanctions that the Parliament consists of 140 deputies. One hundred deputies are elected directly in single-member electoral zones and forty deputies are elected from the multi-name lists of parties or party coalitions.

A recent electoral socialist surprise

Press sources confirmed recently that 35 of 100 socialist party nominal candidates will be introduced officially as "independent" in the electoral race to win chairs in the new parliament.

As it was believed to obtain a colourful parliament by this June general election, such news came as an unpleasant surprise to Albanian opinion that has became very sensitive to it.

Firstly the opposition parties and smaller parties in the left-wing ruling coalition have opposed such initiative regarding "independent candidates." According to these parties, the idea launched recently by the Socialists is an SP effort to win more seats in Parliament.

Senior officials of the Democratic Party (DP) have confirmed that they will oppose this so-called SP trick. But, Sali Berisha, former Republic President and leader of the opposition coalition "Union for Victory" dominated by DP at a meeting with 100 opposition nominees to race for the coming parliament declared that, "except Parties leaders, all the rest will be introduced as independent candidate".

Why such political surprise?

"May be such "genial" invention has got its cause to the possible crisis of the next president election, scheduled for the next year." - has said Fatos Lubonja a former communist system political prisoner and well-known publicist.

According to the Constitution Albania is a Parliamentarian Republic and its Republic President would be elected by a majority of three-fifths of all Parliament members.

Most of the analysts do think it is impossible for both biggest parties to obtain such percentage, with the present electoral code.

Setting their candidates in electoral race as "independent", the big parties - firstly ruling socialist but opposition democrats also -- artificially will reduce their own elected nominal percentage in the new parliament, aiming to profit more chairs by the proportional percentage.

But, if happens, risk to set to a minimal presentation the small political parties in the coming parliament and, it is considered by most political analysts as harmful for the fragile democracy of Albania.

Probably a personal move

Not long ago Fatos Nano, president of Socialist Party, (SP) a very conservative leftist political leader in Albania's political spectrum, announced to reporters that SP might run the electoral race alone.

Because of good relations among the centre-left-wing ruling coalition most of analysts have taken that as a personal eccentric statement, but later it was confirmed as a SP decisive strategy.

Independent source believe that Fatos Nano a three times failed socialist premier in these last ten years of democracy is playing such strategy to obtain the Precedence Office, next year.

But, it should be said that the Albania need a more colourful parliament than a next president elected without difficulties in it. Probably, it would bring the possibility to have the first experience of a non-partiac Albania's president, too.

"Possibly it will happens that the small parties will not enjoy the Constitutional rights to be represented in the new coming Parliament, because their chairs will be occupied by "the independent candidates": Fatos Nano, (SP Leader) Ilir Meta, (Socialist Premier) Pandeli Majko (Former Socialist Premier) and others" - says with sarcasm Mustafa Nano an independent analyst to the article: An unacceptable electoral move, published by Shekulli newspaper.

Article 66 of the electoral code

The International official's plan to improve the political image of Albania democracy on the coming 24 June 2001 elections seems to emphasize the need to reduce "political error," in the democratic election procedures.

On May 14, 2001 an American Democratic Institute delegation on foreign policies (ADIDFP), stated by a report that, the Central Elections Commission (CEC) political impartiality still remains disquietude on the electoral issue in Albania.

ADIDFP recommended CEC to intervene urgently by issuing concrete instruction for the article 66 of the Electoral Code, which relates to "Independent Candidates".

"If not, an immense confusion is possible after the elections" - ends the ADIDFP recommendation.

The Constitution's 64 article point 2 do sanction that: "The total number of deputies of a party or a party coalition shall be, to the closest possible extent, proportional to the valid votes won by them on the national scale in the first round of elections".

Source to CEC confirm that this central electoral institution is trying to find possibilities to limit to such defective Electoral Code space.

"SP and DP should abandon the idea of mal interpreting article 66 of the Electoral Code about "the Independent Candidates". This seems to be a Constitutional obligation and some body must exercise such obligation" ends Mustafa Nano his article appealing to CEC concrete actions.