DIOGUARDI IS A LIVING LEGEND I heard about Mr. Joseph DioGuardi for the first time in 1987, on the Voice of America, from a transistor especially made to be hidden in the equipment in the jail of Idrizova. At the time when the U.S. Congress brought an aggressive resolution against the oppression of Albanians in Former Yugoslavia It was necessary that I wait for Mr. DioGuardi at the border Qafë Thanë in 1992. He was coming from Albania, where he had been with a group of American Senators and Congressmen. Now, Congressman DioGuardi was an organizer and was waiting for the delegation from the US Congress to convince the State Department to invest in American Politics for the Albanian cause in these regions. Mr. DioGuardi and his delegation had problems with the police trying to reach Qafë Thanë. The hotels Biser and Drim didn’t want to accommodate, since they were informed about his reason of visiting. We took the US Congress and Senate into our homes. The primary reason of their visit was the referendum for territorial and political autonomy for the Albanians of Macedonia which was held in 1992 and the Republic of Illirida was announced in Struga. The first visit by the American delegation was in the village of Llambunishtë of Struga. Then they advanced to Kercova, Diber, Gostivar, Tetova and Shkup. They ended up in Kosovo and then Montenegro. Later on Serbia stopped them from entering Yugoslavia. The echo and importance of the American Delegation wrote the Chronicles of that time. This visit had a very dimensional character. The United States gave a strong message that it was going to be on the side of Albanians for democracy. “They brought the rabbit out of many Albanians stomachs.” After the visit of the American delegation headed by Joseph DioGuardi followed the visit of some officials of a high level in Kosova. A stronger interest in the Albanian cause had begun. There are hundreds of political activities, demonstrations, memorandums and commemorative and humanitarian gatherings that are registered in the archive of the Civic League. Mr. DioGuardi is an emblematic figure of the national movement of Albanians in the United States. He was a member of the US Congress from 1985 to 1988. For the work done in US Congress, there are hundreds of hours recorded that can be found on the Official website of the Albanian American Civic League. Mr. DioGuardi speaks and acts beyond any Albanian that was born and raised in the middle of Albanian lands even though he is an Arberesh Albanian. The Serbian lobby in the United Stated offered millions of dollars for him to withdraw from Anti-Yugoslav politics. They even threatened him with his life. He didn’t lose his concentration from continuing to work for the freedom of his people. His contribution and sustainability has surpassed that of Albanian Politicians who take selfies with Methodius Shatorov Sharllon and eat the bread and sweat of Joseph DioGuardi and many Martyrs. Mr. DioGuardi has done a lot of work for Albanians to be recognized for their rescue of Jews. During World War II, not a single Jew was killed. In Macedonia, where there were several thousands of Jews, the natives and the occupying Bulgaria surrendered them and the Jews were sent to concentration camps in Germany. Mr. Joseph DioGuardi has given a huge contribution to the formation of the Albanian Lobby in the United States. This gentleman gathered Albanians and the legends of the US Congress who were SenatorsBob Dole,Joe Biden, Congressmen Tom Lantos, Ben Gilman, Henry Hyde, and many others. The US Congress and activist Albanians convinced the US State Department to take control of the Albanian cause. Congressman Tom Lantos was the person who brought the first resolution in 1992. The world first heard about Albanians and their miserable situation from this resolution.The direction US politics had taken with respect to the Albanian cause changed from this resolution which was based on the report of American delegations headed by Mr. DioGuardi. The Albanian American Civic League has a colossal archive for Albanian issues. The AACL, has a grand archive, and the fact that it is possible that we have a few Doctorate themes that honor the work of the Ohrid Agreement is surprising. We do not have any Doctorate work for the important work of the Albanian American Civic League. Browse pages at WWW.AACL.COM has hundreds of documents, recordings of Albanian activities and session hearings beginning in the year of 1987. In all of these hearings, that were held in US Congress in concern of Southeast Europe more precisely Albanian lands, Mr. DioGuardi and is the head reference for the Albanian cause along with Mrs. Shirley Cloyes and many Albanian activists. To see with how much emotion and strong heart Mr. DioGuardi protects the Albanian cause, you would think that the cream of the Albanians is talking. DioGuardi speaks with heart. He feels what he speaks. He suffers for Albanians that still don’t live in freedom that they deserve. The style and emotion that Mr. DioGuardi presents remind me of the discussions of Ismail Qemali and Hasan Prishtina in the councils of Europe, before and after the Conferences in London and Paris and before and after 1912. AACL, with different videos and films have sensitized and informed the whole world on Albanian issues. It wasn’t an accident that during the war in Kosovo in 1998, many Americans volunteered to fight for Albanians. Their opinions were created what the AACL believed in. There are plenty of populations that are larger than the Albanian population, but the Albanian Lobby is the one that organizes a sessional hearing each year every September. In these sessional hearings, many people and organizations are present including the Committee of Foreign Affairs from the US Congress. On September 17 2014, there was a sessional hearing that included the most important leaders from Congress who work on Southeastern European affairs. They have the keys that belong to the Committee of Foreign Affairs. Ed Royce (Chairman of the Committee of Foreign Affairs from Congress), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen( Chairwoman Emeritus of the Committee of Foreign Affairs), Dana Rohrabacher(Chairman of the Subcommittee on Europe, and other members of Congress were at the hearing. This sessional hearing, as always was organized by the AACL this year. The US is a country with aim. When someone testifies about foreign politics in front of Congress this means that you are someone. That someone is the Albanian Lobby with Mrs. Shirley Cloyes and Mr. Joseph DioGuardi with their Albanian Associates. In the sessional hearing on September 17 2014, Mrs. Shirley DioGuardi was very Albanian and persistent for the protection of our cause. She shows that she cares more than all of the Albanian Politicians put together. She is very persistent for the Albanian cause in Macedonia, because Shirley and Mr. DioGuardi have the Albanian population in their hears. In that remarkable sessional hearing on September 17 were many people. Mr. Destan Aliu from Zajaz, who was jailed and donated the land where the Memorial Nena Shqiptare was built. Agim Alickaj was full with fire and very alive on his comments about Kosova and the Serbs. Ramazan Hajdini and Marush Nuculaj showed the true naked side of Albanian politics in Macedonia and Montenegro. There were many others that I cannot mention in a newspaper writing. In recent times its important that Albanians need to focus on strengthening the Albanian American Civic League and not to form a rival lobby. The United States doesn’t recognize two lobbies but only one. Who has two, no one has two. The sleeves need to be rolled up since all of the old pro-albanian Congressmen aren’t there anymore. We need to strengthen the lobby with new young staff-Albanian Americans who have been educated. Only in this manner can we eliminate the wastes of UDB in the Albanian Lobby. America is not a place where you can make a friend by paying for 5 kebabs and a coffee. DioGuardi or our activists don’t sit at a cafe where a coffee costs $1. We need to put a finger on our heads. The United States functions differently from the Balkans. The lobby needs to be one and only one. Albanian Political Parties, where ever they are should be declared subject non grata to the lobby. The weakening of the lobby began on the first day that political parties released the tentacles of the Octopus in the United States. Political parties aim at the power. They have a cloudy political platform. They don’t have the essential care for the Albanian cause that the AACL has. You can see from the material and the friendly status of the AACL. The practice of the AACL has shown everything and there doesn’t need to be a comment or question on it. I hope that in the next sessional hearing in the United States on September 17 2015 that all Albanians of the US of all political groups and factions to represent Albanians with a strong voice. This is the only thing that I is ask of you from the Association of Jailed Albanian Politicians (Shpetim Pollozhani-President). 29 September 2014 Shpetim Pollozhani (PS Part of the text above, today will go to the Press of the Country) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Artan Grubi, “pizga”(NOT ALBANIAN-sounds negative) of Ali Ahmeti, today is in the center of a scandal. On a street in Skopje, 2 statues were built. One is of Nexhat Agolli, Vice-President of First Assembly of Macedonia and the other is of a war veteran of the VMRO Party. The statues did not have names. Grubi unknowingly was photographed next to the statue of Metodi Shatory Sharllo thinking that he was being photographed at the statue of Nexhat Agolli. This picture was seen on all types of social media. Boasting that he was the first to take a picture at the statue. This puppet of UDB; his name need not even be mentioned. He is not important at all as a person. He(Artan Grubi) resigned with his staff, immediately all Government services have new people with which they will replace them.(Translated by Flamur Memeti) Regards, Flamur On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 10:44 PM, wrote: Flamur--I am so pleased you know the Albanian language so well. THANKS for your good translation of the message from Bekim from Macedonia. He made some very good points and I sent your translation to our AACL Board so your father can see what you are doing for us already. Can you do another that just came from Shpetim Pollozhani in Macedonia? It is attached. Please call me to let me know.--Joe Hon. Joseph J. DioGuardi President, Albanian American Civic League aacl jjd@aacl (914)-671-8583
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 02:07:19 +0000
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