By Spyros Sideris

Founder of IBNA & AFP

Our journey began four years ago. That’s when the Independent Balkan News Agency (IBNA), against all odds, embarked on a lonely and difficult journey during a tumultuous period.

This was indeed a lonely road because IBNA was trying to do something which most thought was ludicrous; IBNA was going to bring the people of the Balkans together instead of driving them apart.

Just that alone was a challenging task since despite the fact these countries are quite naturally drawn together by so many cultural similarities they, nevertheless, traditionally even, choose to project their differences instead.

“It’s the Balkans here you know”, is what I heard wherever I went.

Here at IBNA we tried to inform the public without labels or obsessions or irredentist and nationalistic opinions.

We tried to introduce the Balkan countries to each other, to get them to know each other without exercising any type of politics.

This first small step which began four years ago has gone a long way and today the time has come for us to make another small step.

Today you have in your hands the first edition of the newspaper Albanian Free Press.

The newest member to IBNA’s growing family.

Slowly but certainly steadily we are moving away from nationalism and populism.

Our foundations are based on the basic principles of journalism: information not misinformation, journalistic ideology and respect to you, the reader, above all.

Because we believe that the well informed citizen is a priceless treasure for the state.

No doubt, this road will also be a difficult one, but all of us here at Albanian Free Press have the power, the will, the wish and the experience to change the media environment.

With that said, we invite you to enjoy this journey with us. You are our power and we will be your voice!