. President Ramiz Alia and the government call the workers’ demands justified, but... A mere figure of speech! Then why, if they are justified, did you let them spin out for so long and become a tangled rope?! And now that the economic failure of the Party of Labour is finally acknowledged, they are seeking to manipulate these justified demands. First of all with the so-called 50 percent wage increase, and then with threats over the strikers’ illegal actions. But to do justice to the workers and...

At last, after nearly half a century of selfless work to build the new society and ensure prosperity and well-being for everyone, it has become clear that the heroic working class gained nothing from its self-sacrificing mobilization. It remained the most exploited class and the one that enjoyed the fewest benefits. Except for the Party and state apparatchiks, who became the true owners of the workers’ lives. But even patience has its limits. That is why the Independent Trade Unions’ call for a general strike met with unanimous moral approval throughout Albania, especially in the big cities, where the working class is largest and most skilled. President Ramiz Alia and the government of Mr. Fatos Nano called the workers’ demands justified. justified, did they leave them to Labour is finally acknowledged, they seek to reduce [workers] to this social and economic condition—and this is supposedly lawful?! Under what international code is such prolonged exploitation of workers provided for, without giving them even the most basic means of a civilized life? And a solution is found, like a eureka of ancient Greece. Immediately (as though the government’s pockets were not empty), a 50 percent wage increase was approved. Of course, this is an important victory, if it were an honest increase. But the Party of Labour, through its government, has signed off on a new deception of the working class and all the employees of our country with this approval. For on the very days it announced this good news, it also announced price increases—or liberalization. Thus, besides the 50 percent, the worker will receive an additional 260 lek to compensate for rising prices. But does this trick by the Communists leave the worker better or worse off? Let us give just one simple example. A worker earning 600 lek a month, with the increase proposed today, will have a wage of 1,160 lek. If meat costs 40 lek per kilo, how much can this worker buy? With a wage of 1,160 lek, this worker can buy only 29 kg of meat. That is 1 kg less than the amount he can afford to buy today with his wage. Please, gentlemen of the red government, where is the 50 percent wage increase you keep talking about? The same can be said of pasta and other products, not to mention by-products, because the prices of all of them will rise. So, with this 50 percent increase, the worker loses rather than gains, and life in the next six months will become even harder. That is why they are no longer deceived by these tactics and original “studies” meant merely to tide things over. And while this “prosperity” plan is being presented to the workers, the countryside has not even been considered. Never mind—the countryside gave its votes to the Party of Labour, and now it is of no use to it for another four years. A government and a party like this can no longer enjoy sympathy or be cheered. There is only one way: the people must refuse to be used for experiments, because there have been quite enough. And the working class is showing this refusal with courage and awareness through its strike.

With great urgency, and even nervously, one PP deputy insisted that the general strike be discussed in Parliament. It was discussed, perhaps for more than an hour, until this matter was included on the agenda as well. The concern was, of course, justified and natural, although Parliament could not solve the problem. Mr. Nano also called for an appeal to be made to end the strike. In other words, he sought emergency help in the face of such a heavy blow against his new government, which had not yet been properly baptized. But the occupation interrupted this discussion. We returned to the chamber thinking that debate would begin not only on the strike, as the Communist deputies wanted, but also on the causes that had led to it, as the Democrats wanted. But, surprisingly, Mr. Xhelil Gjoni asked that the matter not be discussed, because it could not be resolved in Parliament?! Then all those “brave men” who had insisted so eagerly and forcefully withdrew like drowned hens in the face of this request, which was also endorsed by several other speakers. And the “flesh” matter was suddenly closed, like a deflating balloon. The question arises: How did events unfold during the recess, so that everyone backed down immediately afterwards? Why did Mr. Xhelil Gjoni remain silent throughout that debate and, after the vote had been held, rise to annul a normal procedure? It stands to reason that during the recess some force outside Parliament, some all-powerful figure over the Party of Labour deputies, issued a firm order that the strike issue not be discussed. And they, frightened and obedient, immediately backed down, just as their party leader ordered them. And the puppet deputies retreated outright—a typical parliamentary fiasco that exposes the truth about their “independence.” As if that were not enough, a second fiasco took place that same night. The author—or rather, the executor—of the order from the hand that remains in the shadows was the chairman, Kastriot Islami. Overstepping his authority, he decided to “adjourn” Parliament, although by law only the President has that right(!) Or was Mr. Kastriot Islami so competent that he could do as he pleased? That is unclear. Could it be that he is so arrogant and incapable that he exceeds the powers granted to him by his office?! Both cannot be true, because he is a scientist and has capacity. But... let this stand alongside the many other actions of our life this year, when one can sense that a hand is at work, only it remains far from the scene of events, away from responsibility and direct discredit. The opposition protested forcefully; among its deputies, Mr. Sali Berisha raised his voice, but... what do the authors of the fiasco care about that voice or the regulations they approve there and then revoke there, without a vote?! And because the pressure was great, it was decided that Parliament be adjourned immediately, with only the chairmen of parliamentary committees working on Monday. Later it was decided that the session would resume on the 22nd, but without any notice Parliament was adjourned again(!?) Well done, Mr. Kastriot Islami—you are showing us that you are like Lala Kros of old, who used to say: “I decide it myself and I stamp it myself,” although he neither decided nor stamped anything himself. GURI DHIMO

The Republican Party is following developments in the countryside with particular concern. The government decision of 21. 4. 1991, which grants a peasant family up to 4 dynym of land and the right to keep livestock without limit, has created confusion and uncertainty in the countryside about what lies ahead. In many regions of the country, particularly in hilly and mountainous areas with little land, cooperatives are breaking up. Most peasants have taken their livestock and are seeking the old land boundaries. Former landowners are insisting that roads, homes and other economic buildings be moved, and that some be demolished, seriously damaging the interests of the new units. These actions have provoked confusion and disagreements, leading to serious disputes and clashes that undermine understanding in the countryside and beyond. In recent days, the situation has become even worse. There are forces seeking to compel peasants to return their livestock to the cooperative. In response, peasants are demolishing barns or slaughtering their livestock. Dissatisfaction has reached a peak following the announcement that peasants will not receive the additional 260 lek to compensate for increases in the prices of certain everyday goods. This announcement has driven them to organized protests. In view of this situation, the Republican Party appeals to the government and the peasantry: — No one but the peasants themselves should become masters of their property. — Peasants should be treated like all other citizens, with the right to the additional 260 lek recognized in the event of price increases for everyday goods. — Livestock taken by peasants should not be returned to the cooperative, and no pressure should be put on them to do so. Any injustices that may have been committed should be put right by the peasants themselves. — Let us protect our livestock as the apple of our eye, and condemn the mass slaughtering observed in some areas out of fear that the animals will be taken back. — In the process of dismantling the cooperative system—a system that does not accord with the wishes of our peasantry and that drove the countryside into unprecedented poverty—let understanding, reason and respect for one another prevail. Let us turn away from force and condemn it. Class warfare divided us for 46 years; enough is enough. The founding committee of the PRSH

During the 18:00 broadcast on 24 May, Television aired, a day late, a report on the conference of the Republican Party branch in Tepelenë. By distorting the context of the speech I gave at that conference, the Television announcer emphasized that the Republican Party disagrees with the Democratic Party regarding the buying and selling of land in the countryside, something that would lead to the return of the beys. What else? The aim pursued by the Television editor is clear. At the Tepelenë conference, as well as the following day in Gjirokastër and everywhere else, I emphasized that the Republican Party stands in the front ranks of the opposition in bringing down the Party of Labour’s 46-year-old harsh monopoly. In this effort, the RP views the large Democratic Party as an ally. But for an opposition to be democratic, it must also be pluralist. The fact that we are on a common front on the key issue of achieving democracy does not prevent us from explaining our differences on some points of our economic programs. Each opposition party has, and should have, its own view on how to move from a centralized economy to a market economy. The editor did not say a word about any of this, which was the subject of the conference. He only sought insistently to extract something indirect that suited his tastes. But the editor and the masters above him are rubbing their hands in vain if they believe that such tricks can cause any kind of trouble within the opposition. Perhaps there was no need to offer explanations about something like this, especially since the 20:00 broadcast made a correction, but it is not the first time that the operators and editors of “depoliticized” Television have seized opportunities for films, contents and montages that are off the mark. In any case, viewers have been accustomed to this technique ever since Television was founded. To mute or edit applause, find the most “meaningful” angles, play with light and shadow, and so on—we have always watched such things with amusement. But it seems rather surprising that they insist on using the same technique today. Television pretends to be “depoliticized.”

The general strike of Albanian workers has entered its 6th day. This is an unprecedented event in our national history and perhaps in world history. More than 300,000 desperate people continue tenaciously to defend their demands, which, ironically, everyone considers just and simple, because they are demands that [the government] does not take the trouble to resolve promptly. Just as the workers’ persistence is unavoidable, so too are the government’s and the state leadership’s evasions, manipulations, pressure and indifference. At the meeting on 22.5.1991 with a group of oil workers, the President stepped outside his position as head of state and made clear insinuations that behind the economic demands (which, according to him, the government is resolving) lay other aims, and that someone else stood behind the BSPSh. These statements were made in an unfair outburst, because all the anti-people forces immediately exploited them, from the government to the trade-union confederation (the Professional Union, in a rotten political climate), which was represented in this matter by the voice of one of the most notorious bodies, the press office. Taking advantage of the fact that RTSH has been and remains an assassination weapon in the hands of the government, these forces turned it against the workers to frighten and threaten them and, unable to... (continued on page 4)

We, the staff of the newspaper printing house, who joined the general strike on 16 May, declare that we remain fully in solidarity with all the demands presented by the organizing committee of the general strike, on behalf of all the mothers, sisters and brothers on strike throughout Albania. The founding committee of the Independent Trade Unions insisted from the outset that we continue publishing the newspapers. In response to this justified request, and given that: First, because the newspapers have not been published, our domestic public has remained insufficiently informed about the development of historic events throughout the country. Second, we believe Albanian Radio and Television reports events one-sidedly. Third, since history needs these developments to be documented, we decided that our people would work to publish all the newspapers and other press organs. We reiterate that we feel fully part of the strike, that we will not withdraw, and that we will not back down from our just demands. We consider this action we are taking an even greater show of support for the strike, so that the truth may be learned through the press. As a sign of solidarity, we will declare a one-hour strike from 9 to 10. We are distributing this declaration to Albanian Radio and Television, ATSH and all other press organs, and request that they publish it. THE STAFF OF THE NEWSPAPER PRINTING HOUSE Tirana, 25.5.1991