KLUB000 <KLUB@maristb.bitnet> (04/02/91)
The lack of communication between rural areas of Albania and Tirana and other major cities played a crucial role in the inability of opposition parties to bring their message through to all the people. This was the conclusion drawn from an analysis by the New York Times and the Associated Press on the first free elections in Albania's history. In rural areas, where the Communist Party won representative seats by landslide margins, what telephones existed, and there were very few, belonged to privileged Communist families. Other modern means of communication, fax machines, computer networks, even automative transportation was non-existent. The Democratic Party, the main opposition party, had difficulty campaigning in many villages, despite being given telephones, computers, and private automobiles (which are illegal in Albania) by the Communists because of their inaccessibility due to the mountainous terrain of the country and a poor road system. Communists also continued to control the communications media. From descriptions of the country provided in travelogues, much of Albania is still trying to enter the 19th Century, never mind the 21st. According to news reports, the Communists garnered 70% of the total vote despite overwhelming opposition victories in Tirana, Durres, Shkoder, and other cities and the turning out of the President, Ramiz Alia, from his legislative seat. The point is the impact proliferation of information through telecommun- ications instruments can have on the development of alternative opinions and the push to democracy. However, poor telecommunications infrastruc- ture can undermine such an effort. Richard Budd | E-Mail: IBMers - rcbudd@rhqvm19.ibm VM Systems Programmer | All Others- klub@maristb.bitnet IBM - Sterling Forest, NY | Phone: (914) 578-3746