— INTERVIEW WITH MR. FATOS BITINCKA, MINISTER OF TRANSPORT, GIVEN TO THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE NEWSPAPER “REPUBLIKA,” MR. PETRO DHIMITRI — — Mr. Minister, there is much talk about the transition to a market economy. Can you tell us what the transport sector is doing about this, or is there only talk in this sector too? — It is not only being talked about; we are taking action. We have held discussions with specialists from Hungary and Poland, countries that have passed through this stage, and have also studied the principal materials of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. On the basis of this experience, we have also defined our privatization strategy. — Specifically, please, what have you done? — First, in the taxi-service sector, around 93% of this activity has been privatized to date, and its full privatization will be completed by 10 September. Naturally, there have also been difficulties, especially the resistance by the administrations’ employees at the enterprises that were to be separated. Hesitation concerned possible executive compromises, particularly over prices, since the vehicles were bought with cash. And there are not just a few: there are more than 300 taxis. The goods-transport taxi vehicles have also been privatized; there are around 50 trucks. A good part of this inventory, around 300 units, has been transferred to agricultural cooperatives, commercial enterprises, cooperative enterprises, etc. — And what if they do not buy the vehicle they drive? — That belongs to the third phase, for which around 50 percent of the vehicles will remain. They will be leased to the very people who use them, until, after some time, the vehicle becomes entirely theirs. Also, this year the creation of transport cooperatives and joint-stock companies between the state and individuals with shares will begin, though this will be carried out on a larger scale next year. As for buses, with the exception of urban services and those that will serve to connect railway terminal stations with the cities of the country, which will remain state-owned, transport cooperatives will be formed with the rest. The vehicles will be bought directly or leased. This will begin this October and continue. Rail transport will remain state-owned, although annexes of that service may later also be privatized. In maritime transport, the first privatization processes have begun, such as leasing small ships and bringing in maritime vessels owned by Albanian or foreign owners, as in the case of the ferry to Sarandë, etc. At this time, the implementation of regulations and the setting of taxes are particularly important; we are working on this with the Ministry of Finance. — How is the ministry addressing the problem of increasing the number of buses, when we know what the state of the coffers is? — Under the credit extended to us by Italy, buses will begin arriving this September. They will complete the urban networks of Tirana and the districts. We think that within the year we will achieve a satisfactory solution. This does not mean that, because we will receive other buses, we will leave the old ones—that is, the existing ones—unused. As for railway cars, we will bring in around 70 more, which will improve this service compared with the current situation. They will not be new, like the buses, but they will be in good condition. It would be redundant to say that they must not be damaged, because we would only be harming ourselves. — After all that nearly 50-year-long isolation, is transport opening up to international relations? — Previously, we made agreements with the Nordic countries as well, while leaving the Balkans—which we are part of—on the “forgotten” route. To put an end to this mistaken practice, we held talks with Bulgaria about the West–East corridor, which is linked to the international TEM highway program. — Which highway do you mean, please? — It will run from Durrës to Macedonia. We are at the stage small-scale, the introduction of time, it is particularly important to enforce the regulations and set the taxes, on which we are working together with the Ministry of Finance. — What have you planned for the workers at the centralized mechanical bases? — We will urgently establish service points, so that for now most of them can be employed, because later, when the number of personal vehicles increases, they will certainly require even more servicing; thus mechanics may become the most sought-after workers for employment. — We are glad you have told us about this, but the condition of the trains and buses is desperate, to put it mildly. — This has happened because the necessary concern and care have not been shown for transport, and so its needs were never met. That is why today our transport vehicles are in the condition you can see. In addition, the damage done to them by citizens has been unjustified; it has been uncivilized, wholly undemocratic behavior that has caused us serious harm. Repairing one railway carriage set has cost us 1 million new lek. So far, we have repaired five. Along with the care of our staff and increased vigilance by law-enforcement personnel, citizens themselves must also maintain these vehicles so that they can travel in greater comfort. — How will we solve this, Mr. Mi— — Thank you, Mr. Fatos … even in this half-century of isolation.

On 29.8.1991, the branch of the Republican Party in the district of Pukë organized a meeting with representatives of the district’s political parties. Representatives of movements and parties took part in the meeting… this committee, which is trying in offices. On 6.9.1991, the first conference of the branch was held in support of the petition that the medical staff had sent to the government and the People’s Assembly. The doctors spoke at the rally. Qeverishku, P. Karagjozi, etc.

district’s political parties. Representatives of the PS, PR, PSD, and Agrarian Party took part (the DP and PE had also been invited, but did not come). The meeting analyzed the district’s economic situation, the regressive factors, and possibilities for improving the situation. At the conclusion, a request was made to the chairman of the district executive committee to organize a face-to-face meeting among members of the executive committee, the financial police, law-enforcement bodies, and the land commission, in order to present a true picture of the situation and establish responsibility for the shortcomings identified, so as to put in… On 6.9.1991, the first conference of the Peqin branch was held. Also present as a delegate was Mr. Çerçiz Mingomata, member of the ARP Steering Committee and head of the foreign sector. The report was delivered by the chairman of the Peqin Republican Party branch, Mr. Bardhyl Gjata. There were many questions and discussions. At the end, elections were held. Mr. Bardhyl Gjata was re-elected chairman, and Mr. Agim Dervishi was elected secretary. Yesterday morning, opposite the administration of the “Frederik Shiroka” surgical hospital in Tirana, the hospital’s BSP organized a rally sent to the government and the People’s Assembly. Doctors V. Qereshniku, P. Karagozi, E. Haxhi, N. Kota, Y. Ziqishti, etc., spoke at the rally. The doctors who spoke emphasized the need to provide even the most basic working conditions, because hospitals lack even scalpels. The situation has reached the point where even emergency assistance cannot be provided to patients. Almost all the speakers raised concerns about the staff’s job insecurity, called for calm to be restored in the wards, and demanded that the points in the petition be fulfilled. The rally took place without interrupting work and in accordance with the rules. Correspondent of “Republika”

Party… Vilfried Bohm and Klaus Buhler, gentlemen of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the German Parliament and members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, visited the Republican Party headquarters. They were accompanied by Mr. Vangjush Capo, deputy chairman of the Republican Party. The visitors were given a detailed briefing on the problems and difficulties our country faces today, and on the Republican Party’s program and tasks. They were also informed about cooperation between the Republican Party and the PSD as genuine opposition parties in their struggle to eradicate monism and secure the final victory of democracy. The issue of the Republic of Kosovo and the situation in Yugoslavia in general were also discussed, as was the Republican Party’s position on these problems. For their part, the German friends spoke about the support and assistance the German government has provided and will provide to the Albanian people and to the democratization of the country. They stressed that they would contribute in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe so that other European countries and its various bodies would provide greater assistance to Albania. At the end, they praised the Republican Party’s activities and thanked it for the information they had received concerning the issues discussed. The meeting was very friendly and valuable to both sides. Correspondent of “Republika” cash in hand. And they are not few, but more than 300 taxi cars. The privatization of the vehicles used to transport goods was also carried out; these include around 50 trucks. We transferred a large part of the inventory, around 300 items, to agricultural cooperatives, trade enterprises, municipal enterprises, mining-industry enterprises, etc., so that they could perform their duties better. We used two methods: direct sale or transfer of the vehicle. Our aim is that, by decentralizing the transport vehicles, both the efficiency of their use and the care taken in maintaining them will increase. Thus, for transporting timber from the forest to collection points, the transfer of transport to the relevant technology is under way, by handing the vehicles over to forestry enterprises. So far, around 220 trucks have been transferred for this activity. Passenger transport in several centers, such as Mëzez, the Elbasan metallurgical complex, Berat, and others, has also been transferred to the relevant enterprises. Around 70 buses have been transferred, and this process is continuing. We will continue this for a specified portion of the vehicles in our inventory. — What about the sale of private vehicles? — As another phase, we will now begin selling some vehicles to the private sector on the market, to meet supply needs. It is important to emphasize that these vehicles will be sold to the very individuals who use them today, provided, of course, that they wish to become their owners. Around 200 vehicles will be sold. — What will happen with those drivers who do not have enough money to buy one, and PSD as a genuine opposition party, in their struggle to eradicate monism and bring about the final triumph was PR’s position on these issues. For their part, the German guests briefed us on of the country. They stressed that they would make their contribution that other European countries and its various bodies would also help Albania more. At the end, they praised PR’s work and thanked us for the information they had received regarding for both sides.

We have been living in an era of democracy and pluralism for almost a year. Everyone knows this by now, with the exception of the apparatus of the Academy of Sciences, which remains a markedly conservative institution with no sign of renewal. Albanian science can no longer endure the cage of bureaucratism that has stifled it for decades, the leaden decay of the monist academic structure, and the directing control of certain officials who have taken over leadership as if by deed of ownership and perhaps want to bequeath it to their children. There are undoubtedly also honest scientists of good repute in the Academy, but its leadership is conservative to the core. It is totally contaminated by the old ideology, despite the democratic slogans it occasionally uses. To convince readers, we will provide facts and observations. Our Institute of History has for years fought against bureaucratic obstacles and the excessively lordly mentality of the apparatus, but in the past our voice was a voice in the wilderness. The gentlemen were… Now the apparatus officials’ anti-democratic practices are no longer tolerable. A short while ago, at the institute… the apparatus sent for review the new statute of the Academy (nota bene, not the draft statute), as well as a document containing stereotyped instructions for scientific work. The scientists had already seen the draft statute and made many comments calling for the complete removal of the bureaucratic structure. But their comments were thrown into the wastebasket. The statute presented to us is, in spirit and content, completely old, archaic, ideological, moth-eaten. The Academy is to approve it urgently. This alarmed and angered our historians, who held an expanded meeting with the heads of departments at the directorate and then in the departments. They sharply criticized the Academy of Sciences apparatus and the statute it is serving up to us. Everyone pointed out that the statute had been drafted by an entirely unknown authority that is trying at all costs to preserve the status quo. The statute was drafted on the Stalinist models of Eastern countries. What immediately stands out when one reads it is the identification of the apparatus with the entire Academy—that is, of the bureaucratic structure with the scientific institutes. The institutes, which are its foundations and vertical pillars… are mentioned very little and only in passing near the end. How can this be explained? Negligence or ignorance? No. It is explained by bureaucratic cunning, which has here reached perfection. The arrangement has been made to legalize the Academy’s bureaucratic status, to make the apparatus as a whole the head of Zeus, and to defy democratic rules. Scientists understand clearly that the Academy of Sciences cannot be identified with its governing apparatus. A multitude of scientific institutions, with extensive activity over many years and a highly significant contribution, make up the Academy. The Institutes of History and Linguistics hold an important place among the Academy’s institutes; their work is now recognized at home and abroad. How can all this activity be ignored? The Academy’s apparatus considers itself a super-authority and has assumed powers and prerogatives that do not belong to it. By what right? Is he nursing a grudge because he is a director within the government? Under the statute, it makes the rules in every sphere; it has the right to create and distribute insti… VIRON KOKA Doctor of Historical Sciences (Continued on page 4) A back appears sinful and whisper…ia-de…-true…re, but… Albania…ocracy stands for fi…sazh that itself… dissol…state…occupied and… are…occupied…ation…to be… is…workers…hoist symbol…

joint declaration of the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and the Social Democratic Party of Albania Party of Albania support the European initiative to convene the Hague Conference, whose purpose is to examine the serious Yugoslav crisis and take concrete steps to resolve it through democratic dialogue and peaceful means and methods. As an integral part of the democratic processes that have swept Eastern Europe and our entire continent, as it reconceives its future, this conference expresses Europe’s willingness and concrete commitment to put an end to conflicts in Yugoslavia and to democratically resolve its other problems, which affect the integration of Yugoslavia and the whole Balkans into the new democratic Europe. Party expect this Conference to invite and hear the voice of the legitimate representative of the Republic of Kosovo as well. This is not a formal act. The Albanians in Yugoslavia constitute a population that ranks third, with a history, language, culture, and spiritual constitution entirely distinct from those of the Slavic peoples, to whom they are attached in terms of membership. Throughout the period of coexistence in Yugoslavia, the Albanians generally, and Kosovo in particular, have experienced and continue to experience the oppression of barbaric Serbian nationalism and the indifference of the highest federal circles. These truths are now known throughout the world. Only anti-Albanian and anti-democratic forces can deny and ignore them. The armed tension hotspots that erupted recently in Slovenia and Croatia helped bring to light once again, and beyond dispute, the truths expressed by Albanians living in their own territories in Yugoslavia about the danger of Serbian hegemonism and nationalism. These hotspots rightly drew the attention of European and world democratic public opinion. But while Slovenia and Croatia became the scene of limited and joint fighting, Kosovo has been completely occupied by Serb chauvinists for 10 years. And if armed conflict has not yet erupted in Kosovo, this is entirely due to the democratic spirit of the people of Kosovo and their belief that Europe will justly resolve the Albanian question in Yugoslavia by peaceful means. Party of Albania, as the principal forces of genuine opposition, address the Hague Conference with respect and confidence and once again express their conviction that there can be no democratic resolution of the Yugoslav problem, and no assurance of lasting peace and stability in the Balkans and Europe, without a definitive resolution of the just Albanian question in Yugoslavia. Tirana, 11.9.1991 DEMOCRATIC PARTY REPUBLICAN PARTY SOCIAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY