The President of the Freedom Party, Ilir Meta, spoke from his cell to Panorama Newspaper, giving the arguments why he is against his arrest.
He also states that there were offers to escape, but it is not in his character to do these actions, while he emphasizes that his arrest was an extreme act.
“It is universally known that I have always been open and have responded to the invitations of SPAK and every institution of justice. In the same way, I had all the opportunities (even offers) to leave the country and this not only did not happen, but it has nothing to do with my character, because I would justify the false accusations of Ramaforma and I will abandon those who have chosen me and support me”, said Ilir Meta, among other things.
Meta does not call it imprisonment, but isolation in order to weaken the activity of the Freedom Party and opposition activity.
The former President says that he knows the prison from the time when he visited Fatos Nano, sometimes with permission and sometimes without permission.
PART FROM THE INTERVIEW
But you didn’t seem so calm at the time of the arrest?
It wasn’t an arrest, but a literal kidnapping, the way only gangs do. How can a traffic jam on one of the main entrances to the capital be staged for minutes by dozens of masked, heavily armed forces with private cars, who pretended to be checking citizens’ cars to come as bandits to the car where I was traveling together with the secretary for the organization of the Freedom Party, Artimis Peca?!
Their behavior was bandit-like, streetwise, forcibly entering the vehicle together with the automatics with masks on their heads, without agreeing to identify who they are, what they represent, and without presenting any legal document or official document ordering my arrest. That’s why I refused to accept the kidnapping, believing that it could be thugs like those who kidnapped the former Prime Minister of Italy, Aldo Moro. Even those in police uniforms did the kidnapping. With the brazen lies that I have used violence, they only want to justify the extreme illegality, the violation of the Constitution and the law, but also of the SPAK “arrest” order itself.
Likewise, they also handcuffed and kidnapped the secretary for the organization of the PL, Artimis Peca, for whom there had been no arrest warrant. At the same time, they did not allow us to contact lawyers and did not acquaint us with our rights under the law. Only after 2 hours at the Police Directorate, I was given the court decision, while Artimis Peca was released as there was no decision. So, those animals, you can’t call them police officers, if there were two other people in the car with me, they would have been arrested just like Artimis, that is, for “fun”. This is Edi Rama’s reign, which will not last long. If Edi Rama’s narco-policemen behaved like this with the gangs, tragedies like the one in Shkodra would not have happened.
Did you know the prison earlier…?
I know the prison early, from the years ’93-’94 when I visited Fatos Nano in the Bênca prison, both without a permit and with a permit. Likewise, I do not feel imprisoned, but simply isolated in an extreme and illegal way only for very strong political reasons. First, to paralyze the activity of the Freedom Party, as the second opposition force, and to weaken the reaction and opposition action. Because there was no reason for this extreme act when it is universally known that I have always been open and responded to the invitations of SPAK and every institution of justice.
In the same way, I had all the opportunities (even offers) to leave the country and this not only did not happen, but it has nothing to do with my character, because I would justify the false accusations of Ramaforma and I will abandon those who have chosen me and support me. Their accounts to block me “tired” for the past 10 months did not work. Nor their attempt to disrupt the historic Convention of April 27, which approved the 5 Priorities for 4 million plus Albanians.
The subsequent attempts to block the organization of the Freedom Party and its financial activity also failed, so much so that the financier of the PL for 20 years left the office only leaving the keys to the party guard and without making any handover, task or clarification of the problems inherited. But the elections are approaching and time was running out, so they acted in this bandit way. They want to pervert and frighten the real opposition and create spaces for ‘fake’ opposition parties, which are fed by the regime, the government, the municipality and the notorious foundations for recruiting and brainwashing young people.
