The Albanian parliament approved here on Thursday amendments to Articles 64 and 68 of the country's constitution that enable elections with open lists of candidates and remove the right of political parties to compete in elections through coalitions.The vote in the 140-seat parliament was 106 in favour and 10 against.Addressing the assembly, Prime Minister Edi Rama defended the amendments, saying that the vote "means being on the right side of history and strengthening democracy in the country."In a message addressed to the international community, Rama said that the Albanian parliament and government are sovereign entities, and that it is up to Albania to choose to change its constitution and electoral system without the involvement of anyone else."Our friends and partners must hear that this is a decision of the Albanian parliament and it's up to us what we do with the electoral system. It is a decision that we do not have to share either with the American ambassador or the European Union ambassador," Rama said.Reacting to Thursday's vote, President Ilir Meta called the approval of the amendments "unconstitutional and unacceptable.""The violent change of the constitution killed the consensual agreements of Jan. 14 and June 5, which enabled an inclusive process and outcome, blowing therefore established trust between the parties, social peace and the European integration process of Albania," Meta said."The president...will always be on duty protecting the constitution, the unalienable rights and will of citizens to take their destiny in their hands," Meta added.Earlier, representatives of the international community in Albania had warned that discussions about the proposed constitutional amendments must be inclusive.The main opposition Democratic Party and other opposition parties, whose MPs have resigned from their seats since the beginning of 2019, have strongly opposed the proposed amendments, arguing that the Socialist majority was making a unilateral decision.The previous electoral system in Albania was a proportional regional one with closed candidate lists. Enditem