In the period when thought and human reason possessed the world around, was also born the desire for good inter-human relationships. So, the wise, intellectuals, despite the banal quarrels for wealth and power, dogfights and battles through endless wars that destroyed the values created by humanity, started to talk for a world in harmony and peace between individuals, families, tribes and human societies, as God had commanded. So, they theorized for a model Earthly Paradise, according to the model of Paradise that holy books preached. Thus in this variety of theorizes, was born the “middle gold” theory which approached to people an ideal of relationships that if it was applied and transformed in demeanor culture, would take toward the so much dreamed, Earthly Paradise. The ideal of “middle gold” was welcomed by many ideologist of this world and became as an essential shaft of many philosophical trends, however most of the time as once and now was and remains simply an ideal. People who accepted this ideal as a way of behavior, that transformed in part of their culture, behaved respectfully to each-other, applied all the codes of ethic of inter-human relationships, so, they demonstrated to be peaceful human. So, tending toward the harmony of relationships, with the desire to estimate not to harm the human creatures, scholars, ideologists, philosophers, as without understanding were transformed into the first diplomats of human world. They were the first ambassadors of peace.
So based on long experience created by the first diplomats of peace, idealists of the “middle gold” theory, located at the core of interpersonal relations, was also born the diplomacy. This is my viewpoint issued from the studies of human knowledge and from my experience. Anyone can also make opponency for its accuracy; however, I insist that the events happened more or less this way, regardless of the period when diplomacy became the main code of interstate relations. Diplomacy by many people is understood simply as an interstate issue and that’s all, but I say it is much more, it is a long process, part of inter-human culture that continually smoothes it and keeps in the parameters of harmony and peace that God has given to his creatures with the model of Paradise.
So, to be a diplomat, according to me, means to be a proponent of Peace, otherwise you are and remain a piece of official that have usurped this feature from your state just for personal privileges. And such a thief official doesn’t care for real diplomacy, doesn’t sacrifice for it, but for his interests may even cause war instead of peace. And such are a good part of today diplomats, irresponsible officials for authority that was given and which they misuse from the ignorance as well as from spiritual wickedness changing the tables of dialogue with the so-called diplomatic incidents, peace with war. Because it is known that where diplomacy ends, war begins. Someone probably doesn’t agree with this way of my reasoning. I have to bring arguments to convince him. For me, not only philosophers, ideologists and theologians, but also artists and all the creators of those values that are called art and literature, are diplomats, ambassadors of culture of a people in front of their cultures. Let’s turn back to antiquity, there where the first treasures of human cultures are. It is known that all wise people bow with respect toward the ancient and modern art, also to the naive and primitive one. All the people all fascinated toward the creations of popular epos, sagas, myths and legends, moreover toward the works of Homer, Iliad of Odyssey or Aeneid of Virgil or many other works of later authors, who with their talent and flair have humbled many kings and emperors. Are not these creators of artistic values a model of ambassador that should be taken as an example in inter-human and interstate relations? For me yes. An example: In the years of communist period that we experienced, our dictatorial country didn’t have diplomatic relations with many western countries like USA etc., however, noone could stop me that secretly find the radio waves “The voice of America” (Zëri i Amerikës), or of BBC and listen with pleasure the music of Beatles, Madonna, Michael Jackson, and many other singers. I didn’t know English and despite this fact, I felt fascinated by their art. Not only me. Many other of my contemporaries. Although our dictatorial state had forbidden the arrival of these diplomats in Albania, we lived secretly with the values of art of these artists, so, with the greatness of these ambassadors of world culture. They were spiritually among us, regardless that dictatorship had forbidden their existence and physical presence.
So, every creator, every artist, author of books, films, music, pictures and sculptures is in itself a born diplomat, an ambassador of the culture of its people toward the world culture. In all the times the flairs of these artist diplomats have mitigated the cruelty of dictators, have triumphed over the tyrannous ignorance with the diplomacy of artistic values and have changed the course of wars toward the tables of peace. Be an artist and for sure you become a diplomat… be a man of knowledge, appropriate the theory “middle gold”, respect and don’t despise, harm people and certainly you have learned to behave as a diplomat! So, it is so easy and simple: Love the culture of your people, also love the cultures of other countries and willy-nilly you are involved in diplomacy! And this is not only my thought, but also my activity. Loving Albanian culture, promoting its values, creating new values with my talent and flair as a journalist and writer, facing the values of art and literature of my people with the values of culture of other people, I gradually learned how to become a diplomat. So, with much creative work in many years of my life, I became ambassador of Albanian culture, as Ismail Kadare, our writer with world values. Someone might oppose that my viewpoint for diplomacy is rather naive. Only politicians and states between them can make diplomacy, piffle of this nature. Instead, I can tell you and argue that all Albanian diplomats all together haven’t done the half of the work that the distinguished writer Ismail Kadare has done with his work for the internationalization of the Albanian issue in the world. Ultimately, without elongated too much, I can tell you that the writer Ismail Kadare, as many personalities of art, world literature and culture, is the ambassador model that represents Albania with dignity. I walk in his footsteps, therefore I see myself in the ranks of diplomats and ambassadors of Peace. I am its missionary and warrior. I am part of the World Earthly Paradise, just as God has commanded!
Dr. Shefki Hysa