The first sessions of the IRI Conference with the parties concluded yesterday Still no agreement on the commissions and equal time on TV The first sessions of the IRI Conference with the parties concluded yesterday Political debates on TV. Simpler ballot papers Still no agreement on the commissions and equal time on TV From the IRI’s 2nd Conference Photo: Felix Bilani Representatives of the IRI called the conference with the seven main Albanian parties encouraging at yesterday’s press conference marking the close of the first sessions. Some of the IRI’s recommendations have been accepted by the PD, PS, PR, PBDNJ, PAD and PSD, and others have been discussed constructively. Thus, in accordance with the IRI’s second recommendation, our Ministry of the Interior is now working on a new law on rallies, which will be submitted to Parliament for approval in the near future. At the Conference there was a consensus, which the IRI strongly supported, that the law on rallies should guarantee Continued on p. 2

. The Expulsions and Internments Commission is heading to the Court of Cassation. Yesterday, the voluminous file of 3,500 pages containing the conclusions of the two trials against the former commission began its journey from the Tirana court to the Court of Cassation. “I am innocent,” it says in his appeal, “therefore I request acquittal from the Court of Cassation.” At the Court of Appeal, those tried, Aranit Cela, Rrapi Mino and Zylyftar Ramizi, achieved a victory with regard to the decision handed down by the Court of First Instance in Tirana. It is stated therein that both the finding of guilt and the sentence are unsupported by law. Aranit Cela and Rrapi Mino, who were sentenced to 25 years in prison each by the Court of Appeal, have also appealed against the finding of guilt and the sentence. According to Haxhi Lleshi’s lawyer, the defendant Haxhi Lleshi has also appealed against the finding of guilt—his appeal says, Tirana. These three defendants had their capital sentences replaced with much lighter sentences. But those who benefited even more from the Court of Appeal’s decision were the leaders of the Expulsions and Internments Commission, Haxhi Lleshi and Manush Myftiu, whose sentences were reduced from life imprisonment, bringing them closer to freedom. There were also reactions to the decision from the Association of the Politically Persecuted. Starting tomorrow, the head of the Court of Cassation, Avni Shehu, must set a date and appoint a panel of judges to hear the case against five senior officials of the former dictatorship. E. N.

Ferraris and Mediu: May 26 and the local elections The political situation in Albania is the issue the Italian Foreign Minister’s envoy, Luixhi Ferraris, wanted to hear Albanian politicians discuss. For this reason, Dini’s ambassador had a very busy day yesterday, spending it listening to the leaders of Albania’s parties and state. Among the main parties he received was the Republican Party, represented by its deputy chairman, Fatmir Mediu. “Mr Ferraris was interested in the Republican Party’s position on the current political situation,” the Republican Party’s number two said after the meeting. “We made our position on future political developments clear, in line with the Republican Party’s statement of May 28.” The Republicans then focused on the local elections. “We spoke to the Italian ambassador about the concrete discussions that have taken place in Albania on Continued on p. 2

A police officer was killed on Wednesday afternoon in Kosovo by automatic gunfire from several unidentified assailants, the official Tanjug news agency reported. Ejup Bajgora, an ethnic Albanian and member of the Serbian police, was killed as he was getting off a bus in his village, Donje Ljupce, near Podujevo, the agency added, without giving further details. Since Kosovo’s autonomy was revoked in 1989, very few Albanians have remained in the police force, which is controlled by the Serbs. On Tuesday night, going into Wednesday, one or more unidentified persons threw three bombs at a police post, in the vi- Continued on p. 4

From the IRI’s 2nd Conference Photo: Felix Bilani

Newspaper “REPUBLIKA,” “Sami Frashëri” Street, near “Petro Nini Luarasi” High School, Tirana, BTK Account No. 986/110 Tel/Fax 259 88