Albania Considers Creating a ‘Sovereign State’ of Bektashi Muslims in Tirana

The Albanian government wants to create a “sovereign state” Bektashis, a Sufi brotherhood of Islam, like the Vatican, on an area of ​​around ten hectares in the capital Tirana, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced on Monday, September 23.

The microstate will serve as a spiritual home for Bektashi Muslims, the fourth largest religious community in Albania after Sunni Muslims, Orthodox Christians and Catholics.

“Our inspiration is to support the transformation of the Bektashi World Center in Tirana into a sovereign state, a new center of moderation, tolerance and peaceful coexistence”Edi Rama said Sunday in a speech to the UN General Assembly in New York, also broadcast by his office in Albania.

The Bektashis make up about 10% of Albania’s population, according to the 2023 census. The country, where just under 50% of its 2.4 million people are Muslim, is known for its tradition of religious tolerance.

A tolerant and open branch of Islam,

Founded in the 13th century in the Ottoman Empire, this religious order is considered a tolerant and mystical branch of Islam, open to other religions and philosophies.

Some of its most important leaders settled in Albania after being banned in Turkey in the early 20th century. One of them proclaimed Albanian independence in 1912, ending Ottoman rule.

The Bektashi Order of Tirana welcomed the government’s announcement. The sovereignty of the Bektashi Order constitutes an important step in strengthening the values ​​of inclusion, religious harmony and dialogue in an increasingly divided world.”he said in a statement, specifying that the order “will obtain sovereignty similar to that of the Vatican”.

Citizenship in the future state will be granted only to members of the clergy and its administration. Its government will be headed by the head of the order and a council that will oversee its religious and administrative functioning.

The new state will occupy the same area as the current Bektashi World Center, namely “about ten hectares”, or about a quarter of the area of ​​the Vatican and “will have spiritual leadership as its sole objective”according to the press release.

The timing and manner in which this new micro-state will be proclaimed have not yet been revealed.