Even before beginning, I must say that we do not have a constitution. We have a package of laws, an inheritance from the previous parliament—the same parliament that wrote and stamped the land law and many other laws for us. Since we do not have a constitution but a package of laws, an educated person might think that the papers in this package can get mixed up in the hands of whoever holds them, and happen to be read differently. Only in this way can President Berisha’s statement at the press conference of 30 December 1992 be understood, when he said that calling for new elections is unconstitutional and anti-democratic. First, I want to know in which article of the package of laws anything of the sort is written. If the package has such a definition, then it must be the only one in the world. (We have held many world records in the past.) Second, I want to know what will happen to those states in the West and the East that hold early elections when they find themselves in a tight spot. For now, with our president’s statement, these states stand accused of violating the constitution and democracy. Personally, I am against new elections at the present time. More time should be given to parliament and the government. Nine months is not much, especially when the inherited situation was a complete catastrophe. On this point I agree with Mr Berisha. But if this parliament and this government do not get the country out of the crisis, no President can take away my right to call for new elections, for the simple reason that I am not here to keep the President, deputies and ministers in their seats. I put them there with my free vote and can remove them today, tomorrow, or after four years, again by free vote. Otherwise, I could not possibly say that I live in a democratic country; I would have to say that I live in a country where the people serve the government. The President called careerists and destabilizers those who call, or might call, for free elections. You may indeed be careerists. I do not dispute that at all; in fact, I say that on this point too I agree with the President. In my view, whoever pushes this issue of elections is driven more by party interests, and that includes personal career ambitions. But calling them “destabilizers” raises a fundamental question. Does stability necessarily presuppose that we remain in power? In that case, democracy itself is destabilized, because if you give yourself the right to be the only democrat, then you have denied democracy. In wishing to defend the President, I say that he based his argument on the elections of 22 March 1992, to say that the people had cast their vote and whoever… and that anyone who challenges that vote now is rising against democracy. Quite right. But on 31 March 1991, the people voted for the communist majority. Did they have the right to say that they would govern for four years and that early elections would be anti-democratic and unconstitutional? If that had happened, we would have been finished as a state and as a nation. Here we come back to what we said above: if you recognize only yourself as having the right to call for elections, if you say that by receiving the vote you have settled the matter for four years, then you have opposed democracy and the constitution. The President said casually that those four or five people calling for destabilization could be put in their place. Not just four or five, but even a thousand people can be put in their place if they set out to destabilize democracy, violate the laws, or rise violently against the majority. But that has nothing whatsoever to do with calling for new elections, with exercising the free vote. On the surface, it seems as though the President said: right and truth belong only to me, to my party. But right and truth must be debated before they are accepted as such. That is why elections are held, at four-year intervals or even early, when the people demand them. Only the free vote decides who should govern. The President and everyone else must never… h...

On 31 December, Italian television reported the drowning of ten Albanians near the coast of Brindisi.

On 31 December, Italian television reported the drowning of ten Albanians near the coast of Brindisi. They had set out in a fishing boat to enter Italy illegally. Who were these people who locked the doors of their homes on the last day of the year? We will find out in the days to come. Our television reported how things had gone with the owners of restaurants and commercial firms. The presenter spoke briefly and dryly, saying that perhaps the Albanians had been thrown into the sea by the Greek vessel, as though they had been dumped overboard like sacks of sand. Italian television, by contrast, began all of that day’s broadcasts with the grim news of the drowning of ten of our own, accompanied by noble and humane words. It was said that around 25 December there had been another attempt at an exodus in Durrës and Vlorë. Television said nothing, because unpleasant news is not broadcast—or something is said here and there, just to add a little salt. But let us return to the exodus, which is no longer open and mass-scale, but takes place secretly and in small numbers, as it did with the slave ships off the coast of Africa. In Sarandë there is an agency that arranges clandestine emigration. Prices may vary, but it is believed that, at best, getting across the sea costs 200000 drachmas. The head of the “agency” may be a young man from Sarandë who has a house in town but has been living in the tourist hotels for several months. They cannot get him out of there because he does not disturb the peace enough for the police to be called. Besides, he is on friendly terms with the police. This does not happen only in Sarandë. The homes of the organizers of emigration are found in Vlorë and Durrës, with Italian-Albanian correspondents in Bari, “especially in Brindisi.” These slave traders… [?] in large profits with m… [?]

A reminder to the panel of judges that will try NEXHMIJE HOXHA

Tomorrow Nexhmije Hoxha, the widow of the dictator Enver Hoxha, will stand trial—the woman who wielded unlimited power for half a century, a power that even the wives of the greatest kings and tyrants did not and have not wielded. Tomorrow, in the courtroom, the well-known Kino Buxheli will also be alongside Lady Nexhmije. This means that the trial will generally deal with economic abuses. In view of this fact, we would remind the panel of judges that Kino Buxheli need not be part of this trial. Rather, Nexhmije Hoxha should first be tried for the great political crime, for the genocide and the unending persecution of an entire people. This is the greatest crime ever committed against this people. There is no doubt that a substantial part of the blame rests on the dictator’s wife. This is precisely why Nexhmije Hoxha and her gang must be tried. After that trial, if it is considered necessary, Kino Buxheli too can be called into the courtroom. This is the only way to bring to light the half-century of abuse they inflicted on an entire people.

The first two days of 1993, the mad N of the chief affair, unlike everyone else, made some strange visits to the former block apartments. At the first meetings, she prepared the dance, that Jeho... and made it a mixture of grand words. Then the phrase began circulating: “Come out, do you know? Where are you celebrating? The Block has no ...” These little shadows coming and going, I’ve seen every day, things from the memories before... Sulo too, Nexhmije too... Even if you tried to get them out of here, I and the Tirana association would clear these unoccupied apartments out. But if you want, I’ll even give you capitalist passports for America. You can all become American citizens. You can also join the Association of the Politically Persecuted. The boast—10 million persecuted Albanians! Block wheel! Come out, come on out—Happy Old Year and New Year!” For the first three days of this week, the mad N was in front of the Academy of Sciences, collecting opinions and signatures to determine the ten greatest intellectuals of 1992. The collection of opinions and signatures continues. THE CHRONICLER

Two or three months ago, in France, at a friend’s place, I heard a few wise words from a stranger, words that stood out from the monotonous conversation. I looked at him with admiration. He was about 45 years old. After that he hardly spoke at all. Perhaps that was what made me think of him as a wise man, regardless of his clothes, regardless of the expression on his face. But that impression did not last long. In the evening, I read his words in an article in a party newspaper. I felt sorry for him. This incident came back to me several times over the past few days. First, on 29 November, at the President’s press conference. Then while following the “Opinions” segment on television, and whenever people tried to mention the good or bad things about this year. 1992 has come to an end. You can find 1001 good things about this year, and just as many bad ones. You can talk about a rise in the standard of living, an improvement in the diet, a reduction in the number of crimes, about thousands of washing machines, color TVs, refrigerators, etc., that have entered our homes, but these can in no way be called achievements or successes. Even if we had not had these things this year, they would have arrived one day. The important thing is that people have begun to think differently... people have started to put their minds to work. That is the most important thing. People like the one in the opening lines of this article are few. Today children do not think with their mother’s or kindergarten teacher’s minds, or with their teachers’... It is fortunate that Albania is a country with a young population, and soon it will begin to think differently... about itself first of all, and we will talk less about others. We began this during 1992. Above all, thinking differently will take time; it will take work...

In the previous issue we reported that around 50000 signatures had been collected. In recent days we have been informed that the signing of the petition continues to increase: 1. Shkaku - 1000, 2. Vëzaki - 1003, 3. Durrësi - 4000, 4. Elbasani - 2000, 5. Malësia e Madhe - 4000, 6. Tirana - 8000, 7. Peqini - 1000, 8. Gramshi - 1000. So far around 73000 signatures have been collected. The petition is being signed at PR branches in the districts. THE COMMISSION

Statement by the Albanian Orthodox Archdiocese of America regarding the draft law before parliament on religious communities and organizations in Albania. We believe that religious freedom and its free exercise are a God-given right. We affirm the individual’s right to pray to God in our Albanian lands, without obstacles that overwhelm a person, deny them spiritual life supported by the divine, and distort the purpose of life, which is knowing God. At the same time, the question arises: is it appropriate to use the American rules of the First Amendment in a country like Albania, a newly formed democracy, under unstable circumstances and with very difficult economic conditions? In this situation, a careful examination of the circumstances and needs should take into consideration why there are various kinds of different entanglements there among Italy, Switzerland, Greece, and Spain, each of which has constitutional mechanisms for the free expression of religion and, at the same time, the free expression of belief. These countries have experienced various historical entanglements and abuses, from one country to another. As for the draft law before the Albanian parliament concerning church leaders, we are continuing our discussions with you carefully. We affirm, with some reservation, that a law stipulating that leaders should be local, citizens of the state in which they live, is a just law, and that this law is based on canonical and historical spiritual values. This state must be respected firmly, so that sound governance of Albania’s religious communities may be preserved. When considering this draft law, we must remember the abuses carried out in Albania, both governmental and economic in structure, beginning with the Ottomans, through the terrible communist regime, and up to the present day, as our Nation’s new democracy is being rebuilt. With this in mind, Albania has an extraordinary duty to protect its traditional forms of culture and its identity, remaining faithful to the country’s rich history, which has suffered so much until recently. This point is of primary importance in keeping Albania a Nation in the full sense of the word. God does not reveal Himself all at once, but over time, and while all peoples are part of His plan throughout the history of salvation, we must properly understand the contemporary situation of this small but spiritually fruitful Nation... as it tries to confidently define its place in the world. Signed, with great respect, - ARTHUR LIOTIN [??]