From: Agron Islami

There is no doubt that June 10, 1878 - the Albanian League of Prizren - marks one of the most important events in the creation of the Albanian state and nation. It all began with the Albanian elites who were an active part of political and cultural life in Istanbul, who drafted the first Albanian political platform.

The main points that also constitute the programmatic core of the Albanian League of Prizren, had initially become part of the activity of the Albanian Cultural Association in Istanbul, founded in 1864. Later, these patriotic ideas - which aimed to raise national consciousness, through the development of language and culture - became topics in the sessions of the Ottoman Parliament in 1877-88. It was the Albanian deputy, representative of Janina, Abdyl bey Frashëri, who presented a detailed report on the reform in education in the session of December 1877. Frashëri placed the main emphasis on the low level of education in Albanian lands and the necessity of drafting a general educational policy, so that the Albanian population could be educated and reach a certain level of civilization. Another Albanian deputy, Mihal Harito, in the session of January 20, 1878, focused on the problem of sending Ottoman officials to Albania and Bosnia, without knowing the language of the country, for which witnesses in the courts were forced to testify with the help of translators (which prolonged the service expected of court officials).

In the sessions of January 1878, the topics of the protection of the territories and the situation of the Muhajirs who had been forcibly expelled from their lands in the area of ​​Sanxhak of Nis, were in the focus of the deputy Mustafa Efendi Kosova, then the mufti of Pristina, Zejnel Abidini, Abdyl Bej Frashërit, etc.

As is known, the Russo-Ottoman war and the losses suffered by the Ottoman Empire led to the signing of the agreement of Saint Stefan (Aya Stefanos) on March 3, 1878, which provided for a large part of the Albanian lands to be given to the Bulgarian states, Serbian, Montenegrin and Greek. But when Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire, all members of the Ottoman Parliament, Muslim and non-Muslim, united to oppose Russian expansion. The sessions continued until February 14, 1878, when the Sultan suspended Parliament.

The March agreement between the Ottomans and the Russians, which severely damaged the Ottoman Empire and particularly affected Albanian lands, led to the establishment of the Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Albanians - which was a continuation of the diplomatic struggle of the Albanian elite to protect lands within the Ottoman Empire.

The agreement of St. Stephen also upset the balance of forces established in the Paris Conference (1856), as well as violated the agreements signed with Austria-Hungary and Germany. Thus, Russia had violated the agreement that provided for the handover of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. At the same time, the creation of a large Bulgarian principality also violated the condition that prohibited the creation of a large state in the Balkans. On the other hand, the surrender to Russia of the eastern lands of the Ottoman Empire (Kars, Ardahan and Batum), directly threatened English interests in the Far East region. As a result, it was decided that in June 1878, in Berlin, once again the powers of that time would meet to review the agreement of St. Stephen.

The most tangible change that was made at the Congress of Berlin is that of the borders of the Bulgarian principality. Thus, as a result of this decision, the Province of Eastern Rumelia (Rumel-i Şark Vilayeti) and Macedonia were founded. The first territory was to be ruled by a Christian governor (vali), while the second remained under Ottoman jurisdiction, but on the condition that the reforms proposed for Crete in the nizamna of 1867 were implemented.

The objections expressed by the Albanian elite to the Treaty of St. Stephen - which envisaged that the territories inhabited by Albanians would be given to Montenegro and Greece - were not taken into account by the delegations of the Berlin Congress. In fact, the German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, denied the existence of the Albanian nation and proposed that Muslim Albanians be recognized as Turks, while Orthodox Albanians as Greeks.

The decisions of the Berlin Congress left the Albanians no other option open - except to experience the same fate as the Ottoman Empire, or to wage war to defend themselves against their neighbors who were supported by the great powers of the time. Thus, the reaction in the form of petitions addressed to the representatives of the Great Powers, very quickly turned into a military movement for defense by the Albanians. This movement was initially supported by Sultan Abdylhamit II, who tactically aimed to benefit from the Albanian uprising. Based on this political tactic, he ordered the prefects of Gjakova, Peja and Prizren to remain neutral towards the Albanian movement. Thus, on June 10, 1878, the first meeting of the League was held, with representatives from all over Albania and without any interference from the forces of order in Prizren.

The Albanian elite had well understood the unfavorable position in the international arena. Therefore, to preserve their lands, the only way was to wage a political struggle for autonomy within the borders of the Ottoman Empire. On this basis, branches of the League of Prizren were established in Albanian cities, which operated according to program directives coming from Prizren. The demands of the League of Prizren were: the administration of Albanian lands in a single vilayet; the officials of the Albanian Vilayet to be conversant with the language of the country; elections to be held for the parliament of the Albanian Vilayet once every four years; the expansion of the educational system and the use of the Albanian language (with the Latin alphabet) as the school language; budget allocation from the center of the Empire - for investments in the field of education - as well as other issues that advanced the position of the Albanian people within the Empire.

Ottoman newspapers in Istanbul treated the Albanian demands as treason against the Caliphate; in fact, the question was often raised as to how the Albanians - who numbered just over a million - would be protected against Russia, which had defeated the great Ottoman Army. It was Sami Frashëri who formed the opinion of the Ottoman readers and necessarily the one who argued with his colleagues who consistently wrote against the platform of the League of Prizren (which had already been made public by Sami, in the newspaper he himself ran, Shark Translator). In December 1878, responding to these nationalist writings in the newspaper Translate the truth, among other things, emphasized that the Albanians were not traitors, but that their goal was to protect their lands from enemy invasions. According to him, this was done through the creation of an Albanian Vilayet where all lands in this administrative unit would be included. He even wrote that the Albanians did not ask for help from Europe, but from the Sultan, and that this is proof of loyalty to the state.

In fact, Sami Frashëri's approach was the platform of the League of Prizren. Always - considering the political circumstances in which the Albanians found themselves - they demanded autonomy and not independence. The soft approach of the Albanians caused the Sultan not to take the League's demands very seriously. In fact, due to international pressure to hand over the Albanian territories to Montenegro, he sent Mehmet Ali Pasha Maxharri to Kosovo, to convince the Albanians to accept the agreements. As is known, the Albanians did not disagree with him, but they first killed the postman in Prizren and, then, asked the Pasha, who was sheltering in Gjakova, to leave the city. Since he did not heed the call, he was killed on October 6, 1878.

The assassination of Mehmet Ali Pasha Maxharri created even more divisions between Albanians and Ottomans, but it had a positive impact on the unification of opinions within the Albanian League, where there were members divided into conservative and nationalist wings. At the same time, the risk of the fragmentation of Albanian lands between Montenegro and Greece - which came as a result of the international agreement of the Congress of Berlin - also led to a reflection of non-Muslim Albanians, those who were influenced by the Greeks and Italians.

The League now came up with a new platform for action and officially informed the Sublime Porte and the Western Powers that they had no ground to lose. Thus, in February 1879, when negotiations were underway to determine the new Ottoman-Greek border, the Albanians sent armed forces to the border. As a result, it was decided to postpone the talks for another time. According to the Congress of Berlin, the Ottoman forces left Plav and Guci. But when the Montenegrin occupation of these areas began, they were confronted by the forces of the League of Prizren. The Montenegrins denounced the Sultan to the internationals - for non-cooperation. The Sultan sent Ahmet Muhtar Pasha, but he also failed to convince the Albanians. Thus, on April 2, 1880, representatives of the participating countries of the Congress of Berlin gathered to review the situation on the ground. The Italian representative, Count Corti (Luigi Corti), proposed that instead of Plav and Guci, the region of Hoti, Gruda and Kelmendi be annexed. The Count made this proposal hoping that there would be no resistance, since these areas were inhabited by Albanians of the Christian faith. However, this time too, the Montenegrins encountered strong resistance.

The failures of the Montenegrins in Hot and Grudë caused, in June 1880, the western powers to ask the Sultan to surrender Ulqin instead of these regions. Sultan Abdylhamit II, who in a way remained indifferent to the forces of the League of Prizren, this time would face the threat that in the event of the failure of the surrender of Ulcinj, then Izmir would be occupied. This threat caused the Sultan to send special troops to surrender Ulcinj. In October 1880, Ulcinj fell to the land control of the Ottoman forces, as well as the military fleet of the Great Powers that controlled the sea.

The League of Prizren - led by Ymer Prizren - seeing the attempts of the Sublime Porte to break the Albanian resistance, declared itself as a provisional government, while creating an army of 20 thousand men commanded by Sulejman Vokshi. The League government took control of the entire area of ​​Kosovo, including Skopje.

The Sultan's expeditions against the League of Prizren will begin after the solution of the Ottoman-Greek border problem (March 25, 1881). Thus, the Albanian resistance will be broken by the actions directed by Dervish Pasha, during the months of March-April. However, the League of Prizren both as a platform and as an organization constitutes the first foundations of the Albanian state. For the first time, the Albanians united against the High Gate and the European powers, to protect their lands. The platform of the League of Prizren became known to the entire international diplomatic chorus. At the same time, the defeat of the Montenegrin forces in Ulcin is an indication of the good military organization of the military forces by the government formed by the Albanians. Thus, although for a very short time, the League of Prizren represents a unique case that did not happen before during the Ottoman rule. /Telegraph/

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