Organized Crime and National Security : The Albanian Case

This thesis argues that the building of democratic institutions in new democracies was and still is a painstaking task. It shows that the new institutions are fragile and at times unable to cope with powerful organized criminal syndicates, rampant corruption, illegalism, elite bureaucratic cartels, and weak judicial systems still in the process of post communist reconstruction, extreme concentration and personalization of power. This thesis proceeds from the premise that organized en me constitutes a threat to democracy, in particular a serious threat to new democracies and subsequently to the national security of the country. The first section defines organized en me as phenomena corroding the democratic institutions. It deals in particular with the fragility of the new democratic institutions focusing mainly on the organized crime activities that threaten the national security and the challenge posed to democratic development of Albania. It tackles problems of corruption in government and law enforcing agencies. Secondly, it considers issues of merging of crime and legal business and their impact on the institutions and society at large. Thirdly and most importantly it focuses on the fact that organized en me merges with the State machinery, thus undermining the very existence of democratic institutions. Fourthly, it looks into some forms of criminal activities such as drug business, weapons trade, money laundering, and white- slave trade. Finally it provides some policy recommendations for tackling the organized en me in Albania.Naval Postgraduate School Monterey CA is the author of 'Organized Crime and National Security : The Albanian Case', published 2004 under ISBN 9781423514879 and ISBN 1423514874.