Dialogue between political actors in a democratic society has a special place as the only way to resolve political misunderstandings and harmonize different opinions, while the Parliament is an arena where different political viewpoints and interests converge to be heard, Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi told a Conference on Democracy in Europe in Stockholm on Monday.

“After all, the meaning of democracy is precisely in the right of every parliamentarian to participate in parliamentary discussion and dialogue. That is why the strengthening of political culture is crucial in the development of democracy,” said Xhaferi.

He stressed that in the past 30 years, the country has gone through many transitions in its democratic development and yet, despite everything, today it is a country that is starting EU accession negotiations, it is a NATO member and a loyal partner of the international community, which of course is a big a benefit for the people and for the development of our democracy.

Xhaferi said that the country has gone through several stages on the way from formal to essential democracy, and with the Constitution of 1991, it proclaimed itself as a liberal and democratic state, based on the principles of democracy and the rule of law.

“In our country, it took time, and it still takes time to establish that essential democracy, which I understand as a way in which political elites participate in a political competition with equal and fair rules, where they participate equally in the process of making political decisions or, as Abraham Lincoln said, I quote, “Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people,” said Xhaferi.

Speaker Xhaferi is attending the conference, on June 18–19, together with a delegation of MPs Sonja Mirakovska, Ramzi Mehmedi and Nikola Micevski.

The conference is part of the parliamentary dimension of Sweden’s Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers.