The law on the fundamental rights and freedoms of man, discussed in the Albanian parliament over many sessions, revealed, among other things, political nervousness. It is not a question of the discussions by the left wing, for example the seriousness of Gramoz Ruçi, former Minister of the Interior, the oratory of Namik Dokle, former head of “Zëri i Popullit,” the rebuttals by Fatos Nano and Servet Pëllumbi, important members of the entirely old nomenklatura of the dictatorship, or even the discussions by Ndre Legisi and Ylli Bufi. These are not the people we mean, although they too have their worth. Just as the parliamentary group of the PSD has its inherent worth, I would say not so much for its “yes” vote on the law as for its wise discussions and seriousness. (And this is not only about the culture of MPs Laço, Gjinushi, Aliko…) Without doubt, the bitterest impression left by the discussion of this important draft law was the political nervousness of the moderate or independent MPs, as they are otherwise called. The substance of their discussions is not important. We are referring only to the moments of voting. After the discussions by the “Socialists,” which we followed on screen, Chairman Dokle announced a blank vote. The Socialists’ abstention was the wisest thing they did during the discussion and vote on this draft law. When a former Minister of State Security, a former first or second secretary of the PPSH, a former minister or prime minister during the dictatorship or in its final throes, casts a blank vote on the most fundamental law of a society, what could not have been expected, what could not have been imagined, was the three “no” votes cast by the moderate MPs (?!). Why should this have happened? The explanation for this emphatic “no” by the moderates is laughable in the face of the importance of the law and the Socialists’ “blank” vote. Of course, the moderate MPs’ political nervousness has its own reason. But that is not what we meant here, nor the fact that this political nervousness is expressed brutally by people who at least call themselves moderates. It seems that these “independent” or “moderate” MPs are (some of) the leaders of the newest party, “Democratic Alliance.” Can it be believed that they do not represent this political party in parliament? Can it be believed that these representative MPs’ political nervousness has nothing to do with the “Democratic Alliance” Party? Did the “independent” MPs consult their colleagues in the party’s highest leadership? For example, President Ceka… You should remember that throughout his political activity (which he interrupted of his own moderate volition some time ago), President Ceka has demonstrated “tolerance,” “understanding,” and a “humane and moderate” attitude, although even a foreign journalist, the Austrian Tessa Syskowitz, wrote in the weekly “Profil,” in her report titled “Why the Gun,” dated 23 March 1993: “When Neritan Ceka, after his two-hour conversation, full of anger and haste, leaves the very cold, smoke-filled café in Tirana’s Palace of Culture, only one thing is certain: someone here has lost a power struggle.” That is one opinion, let us say, of a foreign journalist, and nothing more. Our view is that political nervousness does not lead to power, even when you have been so close to it and have almost touched power with your hands… but it has slipped from your grasp… the new “Democratic Alliance.” Could it be believed that these people do not represent this political party in parliament? Could it be believed that the political nervousness of these

THE BALKANS: HISTORY AND LITERATURE INTERVIEW WITH ISMAIL KADARE ► Read on page 3 THE BALKANS: HISTORY AND LITERATURE INTERVIEW WITH ISMAIL KADARE ► Read on page 3

Prompted by the statement of the press spokesperson of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Andrea Papakostandinu, published in the “ANA” agency bulletin—a statement as speculative as it is malicious toward Albania—I present some thoughts concerning Albanian-Greek relations, which he prejudges. At present, the Republic of Albania and the Hellenic Republic are making joint efforts, in their mutual interest, to redefine these relations and bring them to the level desired by our two peoples, among the oldest in the Balkans. Unfortunately, and through no fault of the current policy of the democratic Albanian state or the political figures representing it, at certain points in their development these relations are being artificially strained or clouded, taking the form of tensions or overt or indirect diplomatic actions harmful to the Albanian state by certain official and unofficial circles in Greece. A concrete example is the statement by concerning the insinuation it makes about statements by the Albanian Foreign Minister, Alfred Serreqi, who, apart from defending national interests and seeking the genuine development of Albanian-Greek relations, has never shown the slightest tendency to exacerbate relations with its neighbors, let alone with Greece, as the aforementioned spokesperson hastily claims. We quote the Greek spokesperson’s statement verbatim: “According to press reports, Mr. Serreqi raised the Cham issue while delivering a speech at an official dinner at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna.” “The Chams are a group of Albanian-speakers who collaborated with the Italian and German fascist occupying forces in Greece during the Second World War. After liberation they sought refuge in Albania.” This is one of the most ordinary falsifications of the historical reality concerning the Cham tragedy. And this spokesperson goes on with his insinuation through an even more malicious statement against his Albanian counterparts and the head of Albanian diplomacy, Mr. Serreqi, when he says: “We have the impression on many occasions that Mr. Serreqi’s statements are not in line with the position expressed by Albania, particularly during this period, when many steps have been taken toward a closer rapprochement between the two countries.” Since these statements are made by an official spokesperson, this means that they express the views of certain Greek political circles. Therefore, one cannot remain silent and demand this approach from the Albanian side, while oneself not only speaking without any diplomatic etiquette and (continued on p. 4)

Speech delivered by Mr. Bernhard Schweiger, director of a division at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, on the occasion of the signing of the Protocol on German-Albanian government talks with His Excellency, the Minister of Trade and Foreign Cooperation, Mr. Artan Hoxha, on 3 April 1993 in Tirana. Albania has returned to Europe. . On the path of democratic opening and reforms, Albania does not stand alone. In implementing their projects, they are creating jobs for the workforce and helping to reduce unemployment. This Protocol on German-Albanian government talks is a welcome document and an expression of practical solidarity between the German and Albanian peoples. It clearly demonstrates the German government’s support for democracy in Albania and for the course of reforms toward a dynamic market economy. Never before has there been such an extensive program of cooperation and assistance between Germany and Albania, amounting to approximately 60 million German marks. These are not general promises. The outcome of these talks is, moreover, a set of concrete programs that will soon be put into practice. They consist of credit assistance and consultancy for private agriculture, the establishment of agricultural trading units, and support for small and medium-sized enterprises. The drinking-water supply program will be extended to other towns as well. We will support various towns in implementing their projects, contributing to the employment of the workforce and the elimination of unemployment. A vocational education project has also been planned. Other programs are meanwhile being prepared by international institutions such as the World Bank, the IMF, the European Community, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, etc., or are close to being implemented. Germany is a member of these organizations and makes a substantial contribution to their financing, in addition to its direct bilateral assistance to Albania. It goes without saying that we use our influence in these institutions in the interests of friendly Albania. The future of Albanians is in their own country, in this new Albania that is integrating into Europe. Albanians should not have to seek their fortunes on foreign soil. I am pleased, Mr. Minister Hoxha, that together with you and our delegations I can present such a successful body of work. I thank you for your hospitality, also on behalf of my entire delegation.

. Until March 31, 1991, you, heads and employees of the Diplomatic Corps accredited in our country, were labeled by the communist regime as “saboteurs,” “smugglers,” “hotbeds of espionage linked to the CIA and FBI,” while after July 2 as “terrorists who wanted the destruction of the country”! In fact, the Albanian democratic forces will remind you of and mention your invaluable assistance in overthrowing the communist system. It was you who broke the half-century of isolation, and the dictatorship, in its final throes, added bars and concrete mixers to the residences and workplaces. It was you who sent off the first delegation of people from “an unknown planet” to Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, throughout the “accursed West.” From 1990–1993, three years have passed, and perhaps someone from the embassy staff has left for another diplomatic mission. Nevertheless, Albanian gratitude, people’s respect (continues on p. 4)

ROLAND GJOZA It was startling because he had lived abroad, in Egypt. Many young men from the South stayed in Greece. The Penelopes and Odysseuses had changed their homeland. The hotel was empty, with a double night, outside and inside, in the rooms. There was no receptionist anywhere. He was drinking in the tavern. And you had to take it kindly, because no one else could sleep in the hotel. Late, when we were too tired to talk, the first one came and ana na da? The others seemed to be sleeping in another hotel. When we were kissing where they slept, ana said: “They’re bringing trouble down on me.” The next day we found out what that expression meant. “At night the Greeks come in a line; they pay well, with drachmas in hand. You’re a group of flirts like me...” With a knife, all three. To engrave in the mind, no longer as a pandemic, that the National Liberation War was more of a civil war, where an Albanian sees an Albanian and Albania, like Saturn, devoured its own children. Only because of a foretold sin, the Garden of Eden was left without Eve and Adam. God punish! We travel farther down, to the far south, and take a semicircular route toward the Riviera. Shen Vasi. The prison is [unclear]... The ruins and watchtowers are far too few to film. Still, if there are no guards and barbed wire, the barracks could be turned into homes. On the doors, it was written in black paint that they had been occupied by so-and-so. A part of the prison that withstood the demolitions is being populated by newcomers from arid areas. Always an hour away from the desert, but there, or as far as [unclear], there are plantations of olive trees and citrus fruit. Along the road stand solitary churches. White, with their own place, icons and oil lamps. There you can kneel and pray. But why is it written in Greek? Why is it written in Greek? Why is it written in Greek? ... The first sin Lukovë, Piqeras, Qeparo, Borsh, Himarë—I say the names in case I forget a village—but they were all magnificent, as if built from pockets of silver coins, carved with faces and stones, some closer, nearer to Greek, others farther from God. But in every village square, almost every blessed square, as warm and intimate as a grandmother, on the facades of the [unclear] there was writing in Greek. Oh God, where am I? Someone had scraped off some paint, but the Greek letters were stronger; they stood out and squeezed the heart. Someone, when they saw our car’s license plate, shouted: “Down with Tirana!” No, I still don’t want to believe it; it’s a passing delusion, unless I were to call it the second sin. Then I met a dignified old woman and mentioned a woman’s name to her. —Ah, the lady from Tirana? Well, when we found out she was coming, we painted our houses. And when she arrived, we had bottles of oil and baskets of oranges and olives ready. She brought a big trunk. She gave us women’s underwear, and it seemed to us that she was giving us a part of the world. She had a sister in France, and that seemed like a big deal to us. Her sister here, because of her, protected [unclear], poor thing. What a sight! —But now, she doesn’t come anymore? —She comes, of course? Whenever she comes and whenever she leaves. We have [unclear] in Greece. We lack nothing. —You don’t lack anything at home? —Well, only the mountain. We take to the roads whenever we feel like it, kiss travelers’ feet and [unclear] your children, speak Greek with their [unclear] language, and they let us be. —But why do you kiss their feet? —Because they won’t let us be. —But why do you speak Greek to them? —Because they won’t let us be. —And wherever we go down and stop to drink water at a spring, then they write in Greek. Let’s open Greek schools. let us be. am I? I am not a nationalist, nor do I want to be; in fact, I like Greece very much. It really is a fairytale country that I have not yet seen, though I have read its tragedies and its great poets. It is simple logic. Not everything wonderful can be Greek alone: look, then, Albania too has blessed places, more than fairytale-like, but they are my places, where I was born, foreign sir, where my cradle and my grave are. As we take the cleared road to Porto Palermo, we meet an Italian. He has filled half his car with food. He takes out a map and points to the places he is traveling to. —I’ve been wandering around here for four days. —The roads are bad, I tell him. —No, six make me chew. I’ve been roaming around these parts for four days and can’t leave. I’m trapped, as if in a net. —Aren’t you afraid to be alone? —No. He looks surprised by our question. “I always wander alone like this. But here they make me stay for a long time, because the things I see in the morning seem to me in the evening as if I’m seeing them for the first time.” We part from the Italians and it seems we are entering the tropics. The engine grows sluggish; it feels the need to curl up and hide in its shell. The sudden appearance of an Indian or Tarzan himself would not seem at all extraordinary to us. In a small café filled with the sweet music of Greek smiles, the bartender served only for drachmas. I repeat: was left without Eve and Adam. We were a film crew. There’s nothing better than a film crew. There’s no waiting anywhere. Even a little fear would arise. Provocations and misunderstandings were not excluded. We arrived in Gjirokastër at an unfortunate hour, when the light reflected from the stone rooftops gives the city the hallucinatory appearance of an antique shop tiled over in a single night of terror. The city’s high school, “Olsi Lico Francëz,” that’s what they told us. Silence and solitude. Stone and fairytale have much solitude and are generally called abandonment. The bazaar people had published them, fifteen great [unclear] of intellectuals. Before dawn. In a kind of [unclear] we would read well, with a faded impression of how they pronounced the names, so tightly had the [unclear] been packed, still with all the roofs (metal?) ... be sleeping in another hotel. As we were pushing flirts like me...” (he used local Greek and Macedonian expressions that did not [unclear]—only Greek music). The next day we washed up in Libohovë. Stone villages on faded slopes and open fields, almost as if bent over from one side of the road. In two villages in the area, not a single parking lot with cars. In Libohovë there are beautiful graves with teeth, as in every other place in Albania. Thirty-something bases [unclear]. With lists, first ...

Mad N., with her now familiar voice, taking advantage of the crowd gathered at the seven-year-old in front of the Palace of Culture, tried to sway, at least somewhat, the political views of the individuals gathered for other business. She said: “The changes in the government cabinet were a surprise only to the Socialist Party, because it thought the changes should be made by itself. The ministers relieved of their duties have become enthusiastic about the alignment of their interests with the interests of the people. The newly appointed ones are assigned the work and stripped of the right to criticize others. Meanwhile Namik Dokle is preparing a motion of no confidence and a rejoinder to Minister Musaraj. Osman Shehu thinks Kukësi is not very far away and that the tourism establishment there should get to work. Let the ‘no vacancies’ signs disappear from hotels, let traffic lights be installed in the streets, and let the forest police stop interfering with traffic. Writers should declare their works pro-communist, and those formerly convicted by the communist party-state caste will establish their own party under the initials PKSH-2. This is being done to raise the hopes of old Marxist-Leninists around the world, whose Enver scholarship has disappeared; meanwhile Dulla’s works will be collected to fill Ajdin’s hole. Who can figure out who the shiberabela is, who won the money, and who got the losses. The communist general’s daughter cannot be a discovery of generals, even though she is my colleague. Another cabinet reshuffle is not expected at all by those who will be affected; this is the great [unclear] that they think they have introduced into the Democratic Party, along with uninterrupted [unclear] and conditions. It became clear that the war in Bosnia showed that Europe lives by another calendar, the calendar of colonial wars. The Serbs are asking forgiveness in Bosnia; the suns of the Council of Europe are very high, except that they are not [unclear]. Honorable gentlemen, do not make me speak any more; observe who is caught and my forgiveness reaches [unclear], or [unclear] with me and I will cheer. A cadre / PS / from the Labor Party has stolen your rice, even your sugar. You might think I don’t know, but that doesn’t mean the government is [unclear]. It has been understood when to keep quiet, when to [unclear] the hall, [unclear] a great national [unclear] and not because of my courage...” THE CHRONICLER

We were a film crew. There’s nothing better than a film crew. There’s no waiting anywhere. Even a little fear would arise. Provocations and misunderstandings were not excluded.

: On 15 April, at 10:00, the National Council of the Republican Party will meet. The branches are to review the report presented to the Steering Committee by the chairman, Mr. Sabri Godo, which was sent to the districts several days ago. The meeting will begin directly with the discussions, as announced in a separate letter earlier; three delegates from each branch will attend. The meeting will be held in the hall of the National History Museum. Organization Department

… of Education, and is assigned another duty. Article 4. Mr. Osman Shehu is relieved of his duty as Minister of Tourism and is assigned another duty

Pursuant to Article 28, point 7, of Law 7491, dated 29.4.1991, “On the Main Constitutional Provisions,” upon the proposal of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers I HEREBY DECREE Article 1: Mr. Bashkim Likoçaj is relieved of his duties as Minister of Public Order and remains Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, charged with matters concerning economic reform. Article 2: Mr. Rexhep Uka is relieved of his duties as Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers and Minister of Agriculture and Food and is appointed Minister without Portfolio for matters concerning local government. Article 3: Mr. Ylli Vejsiu is relieved of his duties as Minister of Education and of his duties as Minister of Tourism and assigned another duty. Article 5: Mr. Agron Musaraj is appointed Minister of Public Order. Article 6: Mr. Petrit Kalakula is appointed Minister of Agriculture and Food. Article 7: Mr. Xhezair Teliti is appointed Minister of Education. Article 8: Mr. Edmond Spaho is appointed Minister of Tourism. Article 9: This decree shall enter into force immediately. Tirana, 6.4.1993 Decree No.: 508 THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC SALI BERISHA