Rexhep Mejdani on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Rexhep Qemal Meidani (; born 17 August 1944) is an
Grand Cross with Chain of the 
Knight Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King Tomislav ("For outstanding contribution to the promotion of friendship and development co-operation between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Albania." – 4 April 2001)
* Honorary Degree Recipient from The
Albanian
Albanian may refer to:
*Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular:
**Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans
**Albanian language
**Albanian culture
**Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
, professor, diplomat and politician. Meidani was the president of Albania
The president of Albania (), officially the president of the Republic of Albania (), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the Albanian Armed Forces, military and the representative of the unity of the Albanian people.
The president sets ...
from 1997 to 2002, and the second to be elected after the first multi-party elections in 1991.
Education and work in academia
Meidani earned a degree in physics from the Faculty of Natural Sciences at theUniversity of Tirana
The University of Tirana (, abbreviated UT) is a public university located at the central borough of Tirana 10 in Tirana, Albania. It was established as the State University of Tirana (SUT) in 1957 through merging of five existing institutes ...
in 1966. He completed postgraduate studies at the University of Caen
The University of Caen Normandy (French: ''Université de Caen Normandie''), also known as Unicaen, is a public university in Caen, France.
History
The institution was founded in 1432 by John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, the first rector ...
in France in 1974. He also holds PhD
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...
s from the University of Paris XI and the University of Tirana.
From 1966 to 1996, Meidani held various roles at the University of Tirana, including professor, department chair, and later, dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences. During this period, he authored numerous studies, books, and articles, both within and outside of Albania. Alongside Eqrem Cabej
Ekrem is a Turkish form of the Arabic given name Akram, meaning "kind", "generous", or "benevolent." Sometimes rendered Eqrem in Albania. Notable people with these names include:
Ekrem
* Ekrem Akurgal (1911–2002), Turkish archaeologist
* Ek ...
and Nelson Cabej, he is recognized as one of the prominent academics in the country.
Political career
Meidani's political career began in the 1990s. He assumed the role of the chair of the Central Election Commission during the inaugural multiparty elections in 1991 and was a member of the Presidential Council in the same year. From 1992 to 1996, he actively participated in civil society, serving as the chair of the Board of the Albanian Center of Human Rights from 1994 to 1996. Joining theSocialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
in 1996, Meidani was elected its Secretary General from 1996 to 1997.
Following his election to the Albanian Assembly
The Parliament of Albania () or Kuvendi is the unicameral representative body of the citizens of the Republic of Albania; it is Albania's legislature. The Parliament is composed of no less than 140 members elected to a four-year term on the basi ...
in the parliamentary elections of June 1997, Meidani became a member of parliament. Subsequently, after the left coalition, led by the Socialist Party, emerged victorious in the elections, he was proposed by the SP and, on 24 July 1997, was elected as the President of Albania
The president of Albania (), officially the president of the Republic of Albania (), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the Albanian Armed Forces, military and the representative of the unity of the Albanian people.
The president sets ...
by the Albanian Assembly. He held the office until 2002, with Petrit Ago
Petrit Ago is the former General Director of Customs of Albania and former head of Tirana taxation office. As customs director, he replaced in his new position Ardian Maci. Ago vowed to stick to the pledge of Ministry of Finance in fighting contra ...
as his counsellor.
In the 2005 Socialist Party Leadership Convention, convened to select a successor to Fatos Nano, Meidani faced defeat at the hands of the present Chairman of the Socialist Party, Edi Rama
Edi Rama (born Edvin Kristaq Rama; 4 July 1964) is an Albanian politician, artist and writer who has been serving as the 33rd and incumbent prime minister of Albania since 2013 and chairman of the Socialist Party of Albania since 2005. He was M ...
.
Meidani is a member of the Club of Madrid
Club de Madrid is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit organization created to promote democracy and change in the international community. It is composed of 127 regular members from 74 countries, including 5 Nobel Peace Prize laureates and 2 ...
.
Honours
* Grand Cross with Chain of the Order of the Star of Romania
The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the Order of Michael the Brave. It is the oldest Order of Romania. It is awarded by the Preside ...
(1999)
* Knight Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King Tomislav ("For outstanding contribution to the promotion of friendship and development co-operation between the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of Albania." – 4 April 2001)
* Honorary Degree Recipient from The American University of Rome
The American University of Rome (commonly referred to as AUR) is a degree-granting American university in Rome, Italy. AUR is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education in the United States and is recognized by the Italian Min ...
See also
*Politics of Albania
Albania is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic, in which the president of Albania is the head of state and the prime minister of Albania is the head of government in a multi-party system. The executive power is exercised by the G ...
* President of Albania
The president of Albania (), officially the president of the Republic of Albania (), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the Albanian Armed Forces, military and the representative of the unity of the Albanian people.
The president sets ...
* Presidents of Albania
This is a list of Head of state, heads of state of Albania who have served since the Albanian Declaration of Independence, Declaration of Independence of 1912.
Since the Fall of communism in Albania, collapse of the communist regime in 1991, th ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meidani, Rexhep 1944 births Living people Albanian Sunni Muslims Politicians from Tirana University of Tirana alumni University of Caen Normandy alumni Albanian physicists Electoral commissioners of Albania Presidents of Albania Recipients of the Order of the Star of Romania Albanian socialists 20th-century Albanian scientists 21st-century Albanian scientists 20th-century Albanian politicians 21st-century Albanian politicians 20th-century presidents in Europe