Bamir Topi
Encyclopedia
Bamir Myrteza Topi baˈmiɾ ˈtɔpi (born 24 April 1957) is the fifth and current President of Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

 since 24 July 2007. He was also Honorary President of Albanian football club KF Tirana from 2005 to 2007.

Early life and public activities

Topi, born in Tirana
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...

 on 24 April 1957, graduated from the Agricultural University of Tirana in veterinary studies with high grades and earned a PhD
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...

 degree in the same field. In 1984, he was appointed a Scientific Researcher at the Institute of Veterinary Scientific Researches until 1995. During the period 1987-1990, he attended post-graduate studies in Italy in the field of Molecular Biology. After his return from Italy, Topi was appointed Director of the Food Safety and Veterinary Institute, a position held until the end of 1995. During the activity in this Institute as the Director and Scientific Researcher, Topi gave a Western world physiognomy to this important institution of the country. Alongside his work as Scientific Researcher, Topi has carried out a dense academic activity in preparing the educational curricula of the Toxicology and Pharmacology subjects for the students and postgraduates of the Veterinary Medicine Faculty while at the same time he was also a Lecturer of these subjects for about a decade. He was first elected as a parliamentarian of the Assembly of Albania in 1996 and was appointed Minister of Agriculture and Food where he served until 1997. He was elected to three mandates in the Assembly of Albania
Assembly of Albania
The Parliament of Albania , formerly the People's Parliament is the unicameral parliament of the Republic of Albania.It has 140 members, elected for four-year terms. The electoral system is closed list proportional representation. There are 12 multi-member constituencies, corresponding to the...

 as a candidate of Democratic Party of Albania
Democratic Party of Albania
The Democratic Party of Albania is a center-right, Conservative, political party in Albania and the leading party in the governing coalition since the 2005 parliamentary elections...

. In two terms Topi led the Parliamentary Group of Democratic Party in the Assembly. He has been elected vice-chairman of the Democratic Party of Albania, which is led by Sali Berisha
Sali Berisha
Sali Ram Berisha is an Albanian politician and cardiologist, currently the Prime Minister of Albania and the leader of Democratic Party of Albania ....

. Topi has been distinguished and widely hailed as a politician of a moderated profile, as very active in resolving the crisis between the ruling majority and opposition and as a protagonist of political agreements and various parliamentary initiatives. He also holds the title of Honorary President of Albanian football club KF Tirana
SK Tirana
KF Tirana is the most successful Albanian football club earning 47 major trophies in the country and is branch of Multiple Sport Klub of Tirana . KF Tirana is the most popular football club in the country with a considerable number of supporters...

.

President of Albania

On 8 March 2007, Topi said that he would be the candidate of the ruling Democratic Party in the 2007 presidential election
Albanian presidential election, 2007
Indirect Albanian presidential elections in 2007 were held on 20 and 27 June, 8 and 11 July, 14 July, and 20 July.-Constitutional provisions:According to the Albanian Constitution the President is elected by the Assembly...

. Both the Christian Democratic
Christian Democratic Party of Albania
The Christian Democratic Party of Albania is a small Centre-right, Christian democratic, political party in Albania.The PDK's first election was in 1996, where it won no seats in the 140 seat Assembly of Albania but took 1.3% of the popular vote. In the following year, 1997, it won a single...

 and Republican
Republican Party of Albania
The Republican Party of Albania is a right-wing, national conservative political party in Albania.-History:The Republican Party of Albania was founded in January 1991 under the leadership of the writer Sabri Godo, who was also its first chairman. After the Democratic Party, this was the second...

 parties said that they would probably support him. Parliament took 4 tries, and the opposition finally gave up and elected Topi, a choice of Prime Minister Sali Berisha
Sali Berisha
Sali Ram Berisha is an Albanian politician and cardiologist, currently the Prime Minister of Albania and the leader of Democratic Party of Albania ....

.

On a vote held on 8 July, Topi won 75 votes in parliament; this was not enough to be elected president, as at least 84 votes are required. The opposition, led by the Socialist Party
Socialist Party of Albania
The Socialist Party of Albania , is a centre-left, social democraticand socially liberal political party in Albania, it is currently the leading opposition party in Albania. It seats 66 MPs in the 2009 Albanian parliament . It achieved power in 1997 after a political crisis and governmental...

, boycotted the vote. The second round of voting for electing the president was held on 10 July. The parliament still failed to elect a president; this time Topi received 74 votes. On 14 July, another vote was held; this time Topi won only 50 votes, while Neritan Ceka
Neritan Ceka
Neritan Ceka is an Albanian archaeologist and Professor of Archaeology. He has actively participated in politics since 1991 and was a presidential candidate and is now leader of the Democratic Alliance Party....

 of the Democratic Alliance Party
Democratic Alliance Party (Albania)
The Democratic Alliance Party is a centrist liberal party in Albania. The party was formed in 1992 by Neritan Ceka and other dissidents of the Democratic Party of Albania. Theyopposed the leadership of the party's leader Sali Berisha. The Democratic Alliance Party became part of a socialist led...

 won 32.

On 20 July, in the fourth round of voting, Topi was supported by some members of the opposition and won 85 votes, thus being elected as the President of the Republic of Albania for a five-year term. He was sworn in on 24 July.

Topi officially resigned his position as vice-chairman of the Democratic Party of Albania and at the same time withdrew from his party. He is considered to be impartial politically.

Support for Kosovo's independence

Topi has been a vocal advocate of independence for Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...

. He staunchly pointed out the need for a sovereign state of Kosovo before the European Council
European Council
The European Council is an institution of the European Union. It comprises the heads of state or government of the EU member states, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, currently Herman Van Rompuy...

 and other international instances.

With a joint invitation of Kosovo's President
President of Kosovo
The President of the Republic of Kosovo is Head of State of the disputed Republic of Kosovo. The President of Kosovo is elected by the Assembly of Kosovo. The first post-war president, who served until his death in January 2006, was Ibrahim Rugova. His successor was Fatmir Sejdiu. When Sejdiu...

, Fatmir Sejdiu
Fatmir Sejdiu
Fatmir Sejdiu is a politician from Kosovo. He was the leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo and was the first President of the Republic of Kosovo.-Early life and education:...

, and the head of the UN mission, Joachim Ruecker, Topi stayed for a three-day visit in Kosovo in January 2009. He was proclaimed an honorary citizen of the capital Pristina
Pristina
Pristina, also spelled Prishtina and Priština is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous municipality and district....

 and awarded with the golden medal, the Goddess on the Throne. During his visit, he was also conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of Pristina.

Honours and awards

  • Knight Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King Tomislav
    Grand Order of King Tomislav
    The Grand Order of King Tomislav , or more fully the Grand Order of King Tomislav with Sash and Great Morning Star , is the highest state order of the Republic of Croatia...

     ("For outstanding contribution to the development and improvement of relations between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Albania." - 7 April 2009)
  • Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Pristina (25 January 2008)
  • Honorary Citizen of Pristina
    Pristina
    Pristina, also spelled Prishtina and Priština is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous municipality and district....

     (26 January 2008)

External links

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