20-24 septembrie 2009 - Biblioteca Metropolitana Bucuresti

884 Viorel StănilăIn order to reduce the ability of neighbouring states to interfere in itsaffair, the government in Tirana resorted to limiting the rights of ethnic andconfessional minorities through various methods.Starting with the year 1925, the Aromanian society in Albania startedfeeling the effects of this policy, so that in October 1927 the official decisionto socialize the Aromanian schools had been made, by continuing to teachin Romanian.The issue of education and religious service in the vernacular forAromanians in Albania had always been in the attention of Romaniandiplomacy as seen as a priority. The increased communications concerningthis issue, which were received through the master station from the legationin Tirana, show records of efforts made by Romanian diplomats, who triedhard to protect the statutes of Romanian schools and churches in Albania,so that on November the 1 st 1930 the Aromanian schools had been givenback to the communities.This was just an intermezzo, because on April the 25 th 1933 the newAlbanian constitution was enacted, through which all the private teachinginstitutions were being socialized again, including those that belonged toAromanian; teaching in Albanian was also introduced.On April 5 th 1934, the Hellenic national minority in Albania addressedthe Council of the Nations’ Society in order to challenge the actions of theAlbanian government, namely those of doing away with private schoolswith teaching in Greek language.On January 11 th 1935, the Council of the Nations’ Society decided toseek the service of the International Permanent Court of Justice in Hagueconcerning ethnic schools in Albania.On April the 7 th 1935, the Permanent Court of Justice in Hague issuedthe consultative service. The court ruled against the flimsy suggestion ofthe Albanian government, which said that the removal of private school inAlbania would constitute a general measure which had to be applied bothto the majority and to the minority, according to Paragraph I., Art. 5 of theAlbanian Declaration from October the 2 nd 1921. 4All these were witnesses to the strenuous labors of Romanian diplomatsto return to the system that the Aromanian schools and churches have hadever since the time of the Ottoman Epire, according to the Iredell in 1905:countless audiences to ministers, prime-ministers and the king of Albania,4Vişoianu, plenipotentiary minister, to N. Titulescu, minister of Foreign Affairs,telegram of the legation of Romania in Tirana, 7 august 1936, registration number MAS45815.