LDSH outside the DP alliances The DP betrayed by television ignorance It could also have been called the Congress of Greetings. Little was said from its podium, and many greetings were delivered. Many leaders of the Party in question replaced their speeches with greetings sent from beyond the border. TV, which blocked its most-watched hours and broadcast almost the entire Congress, aired the full speech of Mr. President and the speech of Mr. Tritan Shehu, and censored the speech of the Prime Minister. TV aired in full the greetings from Mr. Bushati and the leader of the Roma, and censored and distorted the greeting from Mr. Godo. It was clear that the cameras of the largest media institutions had particular preferences for the podium of the Assembly. Despite the many greetings, the DP National Assembly managed to hold elections and draft two resolutions. This Assembly ... Continued on p. 2

More than 1,000 witnesses and over 4,000 pages of documents make up his case file. The trial is expected to last about a year. In early May 1996, Ramiz Alia will stand trial, accused of genocide. It is reported that the investigation against him was completed yesterday and that the last communist president has been cleared of a considerable number of complaints. The 70 complaints against him, although filed by different people over different events, are based on the same accusation: Ramiz Alia’s orders caused tragedies like those caused by fascist regimes. In Albania, the areas and villages where families and individuals were interned were, in terms of their organization, similar to concentration camps. In the Alia trial, the number of witnesses is expected to exceed 1,000, and the documentary evidence is expected to run to more than 4,000 pages. The judges say that the Alia case is expected to be tried on its own and that the trial is expected to last more than a year. Although the prosecution has completed its investigations into some complaints, investigations into others will continue. The trial panel will be appointed by the Tirana Court, while Alia is represented by two lawyers. This is the second time Ramiz Alia has been tried since losing the presidency. In the first trial—which lasted four months—for embezzlement and illegal privileges, he was sentenced to 9 years in prison and was released in July were like concentration camps. In the Alia trial, the calculations put the number of witnesses at over 1,000, and the documents to be submitted as documentary evidence at case file is estimated to be the most voluminous ever placed at the disposal of a judicial panel. All those arrested for genocide will testify against Alia, beginning with Hekuran Isai. Former Prime Minister Adil Çarçani will also testify against Alia. Alia will be... months—he was sentenced to nine years in prison for abuses of office and illegal privileges, and was released in July 1995 because the classification of his criminal offense was revised when the new Criminal Code entered into force in June 1995. But less than six months later, more than 70 genocide complaints were brought against him and, after three questioning sessions at the prosecutor’s office, Alia was put in handcuffs on January 20, 1996. Bejdo Malo

The Turkish government has summoned all its ambassadors in the Balkan countries to Ankara for consultations and to provide guidance concerning the position of Turkish diplomacy on the issue of Kosovo. The issue of Kosovo and the tense situation prevailing there, Turkish diplomacy ... Continued on p. 2

Two more border crossings within three months The gate opens. The customs point at Muriqan, located 30 km from the city of Ulcinj and 12 km from the city of Shkodër, will connect Montenegro with Albania. The decision to increase the number of customs points, together with Hani i Hotit on Albania’s northwestern border, was made yesterday. Meanwhile, negotiations are nearing completion for the opening of a third customs point on the border with Montenegro. The first meeting between the experts was held on February 5, 1996, in Belgrade. Yesterday in Shkodër, the opening of the Muriqan customs point was definitively agreed, initially for the free passage of citizens and then of traders. The parties agreed that this customs point would be inaugurated on September 1, 1996. The meeting between the Albanian and Montenegrin customs authorities concluded, following talks that had begun in September 1995. The Albanian experts, who had objected to the Montenegrin side because it had not taken the Albanian side’s demands regarding the conditions for this customs point into account, were finally convinced. The Montenegrin side made the suggested changes, and at last a connection between Ulcinj and Shkodër has been established. Montenegro ALBANIA Map: Montenegro, ALBANIA

The National Bank of Greece obtains the first license to conduct private banking activity in Albania Albania’s first private bank is opening. Licensed by the Bank of Albania, and represented by a branch of the National Bank of Greece, it is the first private bank to open in Albania. Although licenses have also been granted to three other private banks, it seems that the banking market in Albania will be dominated by a foreign private bank. Licensed by the Bank of Albania in March of this year, the branch of the National Bank of Greece will focus its activity mainly on enterprises based in Albania, as well as on major foreign companies currently operating in our country. It is surprising that the Bank of Albania has created every facility for the development of trade and financial relations for a foreign private bank whose main objective is to attract deposits from Albanian emigrants—not only from Greece but also from other countries—when an Albanian company had previously submitted such a request. In the licensing sector, officials at the Bank of Albania explain: “From the outset, it is envisaged that this private bank will operate with a full range of activities, aiming to collect most of its capital from private clients. It is expected that this bank’s results will be to its advantage and to the detriment of Albanian companies, since it will not issue loans during its first years. The National Bank of Greece has 49.7 percent of its shares owned by the state, with the remainder owned by other enterprises and individuals; therefore, its opening in another country is being undertaken in order to... Continued on p. 3 1000 ONE THOUSAND LEKË Banknote: 1000 ONE THOUSAND LEKË

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