Berisha’s cynical pirouettes on LGBT issues

Sali Berisha’s announcement of a draft law recognizing only two genders—male and female—has caused puzzlement and sparked cynical comments about his true motives. It is worth examining Berisha’s shifting positions on LGBT rights to understand how these issues have been instrumentalized throughout his career.

Background: In 1995, Albania took a significant step forward by decriminalizing same-sex relations. It was President Sali Berisha that took this step that brought Albania into line with the rest of Europe. Years later, in 2009, Berisha’s government became the first in the Balkans to propose a same-sex marriage law. Justifying the initiative, Berisha emphasized that Albania was aligning itself with European anti-discrimination norms: “This law is about legal rights and equality already recognized in Europe,” he remarked.

There were many at the time, who saw in this move a cunning and cynical attempt to improve Berisha’s credentials and gain Western favor in a politically challenging moment following the contested general elections which the Socialists accused Berisha of manipulating, leading to years of tensions. The political calculus in August 2009 appeared clear: a surprising embrace of such a courageous and controversial initiative as same sex marriages, was an attempt to carry favor with the West, while drawing attention away from the election controversy.

No progress: The suspicion about the true motivations behind the same-sex marriage initiative was reinforced by the fact that for the next four years nothing happened. Until 2013, when a Berisha with a seriously diminished reputation following the January 21 killing of protestors, the manipulation of the elections for the Municipality of Tirana which was aired live on television, practically shunned by most of the EU and US, again met with LGBT activists, reportedly expressing personal support for same-sex marriage. According to one of the activists present in the meeting, the prime minister encouraged the community to push for change, saying, “This is an ice that needs to be broken, and you’re on the right track.”

The initiative never took off. It faced strong opposition from the get-go, from politicians – many from Berisha’s own party – but especially from the Interfaith Council of Albania (KNFSH)—a body representing the country’s five main religious communities. In a letter conveying the unified stance of these groups, the Council declared: “We are in complete opposition to the government’s initiative to draft a law recognizing same-sex marriages in the Republic of Albania.”

But above all, the initiative fell flat because it was launched out of the blue, without prior public discussion and consultations; something that reinforced the suspicions that it was launched out of political expediency rather than a matter of genuine conviction.

What’s next: Fast forward to 2025, Berisha finds himself more isolated than ever before. He has been blacklisted alongside his family for corruption by the US, he has been blacklisted for links to organized crime by the UK and is shunned by the entirety of Albania’s western allies and partners. He is also faced with serious legal problems in Albania, having just emerged from house arrest and indicted for corruption alongside his son-in-law.

According to his public declarations, Berisha has pinned his hopes for a change in his personal legal fortunes on the Trump administration. That is why he has chosen to take a leading role in Albania’s version of right-wing culture wars as the best bet to curry favor with Trump and the Republican administration. Once again, he has chosen to play the LGBT rights card, but with a 180-degree change from his previous record.

This week, he announced a draft law proposing that Albania recognize only two genders—male and female—arguing that the initiative is part of his broader “de-Sorosization” campaign. He referenced former U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive orders on gender recognition, declaring, “These positions are crucial, not only for America but especially for Albania, which became Soros’s experimental garden.”

Berisha also denounced what he described as the spread of “woke culture,” vowing to combat it as a danger to societal values.

Whether the proposal will gain traction in Albania’s parliament is uncertain. Not only is the issue seen as irrelevant and not bearing any relation to Albanians’ concerns and expectations, but there is deep suspicion of Berisha’s true motivations. His critics argue that these abrupt shifts reflect a deeper cynicism—where principles are secondary to political survival. Regardless of whether his latest initiative succeeds or fades quietly, it serves as a reminder of how global debates can be appropriated for domestic political purposes, even when they bear little relevance to local concerns.