30 children of political VIPs are being educated in the West. Page 17

. Albania continues to groan under the burden of a difficult economic life and the total crisis afflicting the state. For their part, the prime minister and members of the cabinet give the impression, with a lethargic haste, that they are sitting for a while on the benches from which the Government is punished—but what good is punishment when its consequences fall on the backs of the people? Beware: Rus is destabilizing Shkodra, investing especially today in Milošević. Anyone who destabilizes the country seriously harms the national cause. Neither more nor less, that political force opposes the war in Kosovo—[text cut off]—the seats they occupy. In plain language, they look like guests at an inn, staying the night and then, after taking whatever they can, fleeing as fast as their legs can carry them. To create the impression that everything in Albania is normal, the ministers and the exhausted prime minister go off and waste away at the beaches. The people vent their anger because there is no water; the state shouts, as if to say: leave the Government alone, it has work to do... The people of Laç have been losing patience for more than two months, waiting in vain for the monster to release the water source. Instead of solving people’s problems, the local authorities engage in politics, following the Party’s instructions to clash with the central government. And lately they are nowhere to be seen in their offices, abandoning the monitoring of destabilization. Shkodra is seething and warning of a storm, while the government pretends not to hear. Tomorrow, Shkodra may… …llit. Be warned: whoever destabilizes Shkodër, especially today, is working for Milošević. Whoever destabilizes the country seriously harms the national cause. That political force is, no more and no less, opposed to the war in Kosovo. Ultimately, Albania is directly part of the war; it is the war’s rear area, and its destruction and destabilization take the rear area out of the fighting. Can a Party that comes to the occupier’s aid represent a national ideal? And can a Government that goes off to relax at the beach while the bomb is at war be called responsible? Tirana groans under the weight of its troubles, but the people in power merely quarrel and play word games. Who benefits from empty debate when the people’s problems remain unsolved? Mr. Nano’s Government has got on its horse backwards and seems to be moving through a web, having failed to drink the people’s toast. The people are going in one direction, the government is moving in another. And judging by the signs, a meeting between the People and the Government will be impossible. D. Greca

Where is the Government’s head?

Opposition newspapers protest: We want a free press. Police set up an ambush in Tirana at night, patrol the blue cordon. Police raid nightclubs. 37-year-old hangs himself. Peshkëpia file: three investigators in Italy. Page 2

Reportage from the place where you can touch the war

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The Kavajë footballer, the Germans’ favorite. Monika Zguro tells of her chance Page 16

“The Girl of Valievë,” “When Fate Makes Fun” — stories by Petro Marko “Letter from the Night,” a poetic cycle by Ibrahim Kadriu “The Portrait,” S. Temali, etc. Pp. 11–14

The “Zela” complex, a success in Italy Private television stations at risk Albanian and Greek archaeologists in Korçë P. 19

PR: The DP’s participation in the Constitution, a political act The alibis of fundamentalism Majko: The confidence vote for Nano, a crisis trap in the PS Pages 3–4

Strange event: nude over graves Flames lick at Sheqeras Page 7