REFORMA ARSIMORE E VITIT 1933: MBYLLJA E SHKOLLAVE PRIVATE DHE ACARIMI I RAPORTEVE ME KLERIN KATOLIK DHE VATIKANIN. (Albanian)

EDUCATION REFORM OF 1933: THE CLOSING OF PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND THE FLUSTER OF RELATIONS WITH THE CATHOLIC CLERGY AND THE VATICAN. (English)

A new conflict between the Albanian government and the Catholic clergy began when King Zog took a series of measures, which reaffirmed the independence path and were at the same time a measure against the Italian coercive policy. This culminated in April 1933 when Parliament approved the amendment of some articles of the Constitution, which prohibited the operation of private schools and turned them into state monopoly. This initiative found approval of intellectuals, teachers and the press of the time. Clergy and Catholic Church had already expressed their opposing stance. Therefore they considered the reform as a direct attack to Catholicism. On April 30, 1933, clergy sent the government a memorandum expressing concern about the law on the closure of private schools which had shocked deeply the conscience of Albanian Catholics. The closing of Catholic schools along with protests against the government and parliament was accompanied by an internal pastoral of bishops. In this pastoral were tackled specifically the reasons for which the education of youth was responsibility of the parents and the church. After sending the memorandum to the government, Council of bishops decided that in all parishes of the country was to be conducted the public reading of the pastoral. This caused in some parishes, critical comments for the government. Therefore, the latter, in an urgent meeting of the Council of Ministers discussed about this new offensive of the clergy, in order to take the necessary measures. The Albanian government decided to pursue an indifference policy toward such manifestations, while notifying the Archbishop of Shkodra and other bishops as well as all other archbishops, that if other critical gestures would take place, serious sanctions would take place against them. Catholic clergy sent to League of Nations a memorandum that demanded the Albanian government recognize the rights of minorities. But this was opposed by the representatives of the Albanian state on the grounds that the Albanian Catholics were not a national minority, but an integral part of the Albanian people. However, closing of Catholic schools caused tension between Albania and the Vatican. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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