REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA "CAMERIA" NATIONAL POLITICAL
ASSOCIATION

MEMORANDUM

Tirana, November 15,1998

On the issue of the Albanians of Cameria who are
currently living as emigrants in the Republic of
Albania since 1944 the time when they were forcibly
expelled by the Greek Chauvinists

Honorable Mr. President,

The June of this year marked the 54-th anniversary of
the day when the last act of ethnic cleansing on the
Albanian population of Cameria was carried out.

The violation and the terror exerted on the Albanian
population of Cameria by the criminal bands of the
Greek theocratic chauvinism led by the notorious greek
general Napoleon Zerva, forced the cameria Albanians
to flee from their ancient lands and to find refuge in
the Republic of Albania.

Mass killings, on-going persecutions, the denial of
every basic right it was entitled to as an ethnic
people as well as the fact that Cameria was left
unjustly under the greek yoke by Great Powers in 1913,
made Cameria and its Albanian population victims of
the first ethnic cleansing in Europe at the end of the
Second World War. As concerns the extent of the
effects it had, the Cam tragedy is one of the most
painful TRAGEDIES of the Albanian nation.

The most painful act of this tragedy began on 27-th of
June,1944 in the city of Paramithia, progressively
engulfing the whole of Cameria, thus ending in March
of 1945.

The afternoon of 27-th of June 1944, this black day in
the history of the Albanian nation, marks the
beginning of the massacres and crimes carried out by
the Greek Chauvinists against the innocent and
unprotected population of the area. Within one single
day, 600 men, women and children including expectant
mothers, were either killed, or slaughtered or baked
alive. The crimes carried out were brutal and unheard
of. Massacres took place in Parga on 28th of August
1944 where 200 people were killed, followed by Filat
in September of 1944 to be followed by massacres in
March 1945 in Vanar where hundreds of innocent people
were executed.

The population was forcibly expelled from its own
lands with a final balance of 2900 killed, and over
2400 dead persons who passed away while attempting to
get Albania. More than 60 villages were rampaged and
over 5800 houses were burnt and their properties were
plundered.

The issue of Cameria and its population did not
constitute an important priority for the Albanian
Government during the communist dictatorship Era. With
the overthrow of the communist dictatorship in 1991,
this issue became part of the program of the majority
of the newly-created parties and part of the program
of the first democratic government.

In order to defend the issue of Cameria and its
respective population, on 10-th of January 1991, the
first pluralist association in Albania was founded
under the name "Cameria" National Political
Association. The solution of this great problem of the
Albanian Nation formed part of its program.

"Cameria" Association as well as leaders of the
Albanian State have appealed to the Greek Government
and the Greek State to solve this problem which has
been frozen for so many years, judging that the best
way for solving this issue is the way of bilateral
talks.

The Greek Government and its high officials have taken
a denial stand to the issue or have simply kept silent
in the best cases.

According to the official Greek stand, the muslim
population of Cameria will not be allowed to return to
Greece "because they have collaborated with the German
occupiers during the Second World War and as such,
they are considered as war criminals and are sentenced
according to the greek laws" (K. Micotaqis, Tirana,
May 1992).

We consider this "hypothesis" as untrue and
fabricated. To consider the Cam population as
"Criminals" at a time when they have shed their blood
together with the Greeks for liberating Greece, is a
political and diplomatic crime against Albanians.

The Cam population have not collaborated with any kind
of occupiers, but are their VICTIMS.

If in Cameria were some "Collaborators" (a phenomenon
characteristic of all the states that have been
occupied during the Second World War), the number of
the so-called "Collaborators" in Greece was 30.000
persons led by the Prime Minister, Ralisi.

No one is accusing them in Greece today. On the
contrary, they have been rehabilitated after the
general amnesty was passed.

It is an historical fact that Cams have taken part in
the Greek resistance against its occupiers since 1942.
A set of documents which testifies to this fact exists
and no one can deny this.Documents of the German Reich
exist, which testify to the fact that Napoleon Zerva,
one of the main responsible persons of the genocide
against the Cam population has been a collaborator of
the German Gestapo.

A population of 35.000 people can not be held
responsible, because according to the special
political courts set up at the absence of the expelled
Cams, 1930 persons have been sentenced according to
the Greek laws.

This official Greek Stand does not do credit to the
Greek Government, which has signed all the
International Conventions on human rights, which is a
member of the European Union, OSCE, Council of Europe,
etc., while claiming at the same time that it is
fighting for the protection of the human rights and
the freedom of the individual.

THE CAM TRAGEDY IS GENOCIDE, ETHNIC CLEANSING,
VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE FREEDOM OF THE
INDIVIDUAL AS WELL AS A WAR ON A RELIGIOUS BASIS.

Honorable Mr. President,

We kindly ask you to exert your power based on your
rights and your convictions, to remedy this great
unjustice on behalf of the 4000 who have been killed
and the other 150.000 who have been away from their
ancestors' land for 54 years, without having a chance
to see the graves of their parents, brothers and
sisters and their childrens'.

WE DEMAND:

Restitution of the properties of the Cam population
from the Greek Government.

The return of the Cam population to its ethnic lands
and the recognition of all the rights of the ethnic
minority in Greece, in the same way as the Albanian
Government is recognising and respecting the rights of
the Greek minority in Albania.

Indemnity of the proceeds resulting from the 54 year
usage of the real estate of the Cam population from
the Greek Government.

The Greek Government to Allow the free mobility of the
Cam population to visit the graves of their cousins
and their ethnic lands.

The Greek Government to recognise and issue greek
citizenship to the Cam population who have never asked
for dropping this citizenship, at a time when this
constitutes an International Right which continues to
be denied by the Greek Government.

In 1947 the same Memorandum has been sent to all the
International forums by the Cam Antifascists
Committee, but unfortunately such an appeal has not
found a solution yet.

This Memorandum was approved unanimously by the
National Assembly of the "Cameria" National Political
Association on November 15,1998.

We express our deep conviction once again that You Mr.
President, will do everything possible in your power
to remedy this unjustice done to the Albanian
population of Cameria.

We would like to express our greatest considerations
and would like to thank you for your understanding.

The National Assembly of the "Cameria" National
Political Association.

Ā© 1998 "CAMERIA" NATIONAL POLITICAL ASSOCIATION
Memorandum is printed here with permition of the
"CAMERIA" organization. This is a legal document and
cannot be copied completely or in-part without
permition. For more information on the CAMERIA
organization and the above document contact Mr. Lutfi
Saqe




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