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EDITORIAL By Agim BAÇI Ahrens, the current head of the OSCE, has taken a significant step back since replacing Daan Everts in the senior post overseeing Albania’s troubled political situation. Accused by the opposition, like his predecessor, of collaborating with those currently in power, Ahrens, a professional politician, was recently forced to acknowledge that the opposition was right about its demands concerning the Electoral Code. Backing down when you realize you have made a mistake is not a negative thing. Indeed, it should be welcomed. But when this is done by someone presented as a career diplomat, and one of importance to a cardinal process for Albanians, such as elections, then everything must be examined carefully. Ahrens’s mistake is no ordinary mistake, nor the mistake of a transient figure. His mistake is the mistake of an institution entrusted with responsibility for elections that could have a considerable impact on the future of Albanian life. His mistake is the mistake of a referee. And when the game slips out of the referee’s hands, teams already at fever pitch may go to extremes. It is not yet known whether Ahrens showed himself “well-disposed” toward the opposition’s demands, whether his superiors ordered him to do so, or whether he remembered his future career when he took that step back. The only thing becoming clear is that the autumn elections are at stake for him too. And if the local elections are also at stake for Ahrens, that means he can and must find ways to persuade the Socialists, who remind him of his stance during the passage of the Electoral Code through Parliament. If he cannot take this step, then let him accept that others should monitor the elections, so that they can enjoy greater consensus—a consensus that is essential to put right one of the most delicate aspects of Albanian life over the past ten years.

The “Avdyli” case / Investigation “drops a bombshell” The investigation into the “Avdyli” case has entered a new phase, while further information is being released from various sources within the Tirana Prosecutor’s Office. Yesterday, another fact became public. The e-mail submitted a day after Erjeta’s disappearance, sent on 31 March this year, is forged. Yet the e-mail was presented as the sole piece of evidence on which the assessment of the security measure for Dritan Avdyli was based, as well as the legal basis for opening the criminal case. Along with the complaint, the capital’s investigative authority initiated procedural actions. The file on Dritan Avdyli contains as evidence a conversation and several other testimonies... Page 7

Photo: Armando Babani

The death penalty is abolished Yesterday Parliament officially abolished the death penalty, accepting the implementation of Convention VI on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. One of the most important points, as described by the Socialists, was the ratification of this agreement, which will free Albania from its obligations toward Europe and its institutions. Zamira Çeka, chair of the Law Commission, commented on the acceptance of this agreement as one of the obligations our country has following its admission to the Council of Europe. Page 4

Stability Pact / Government gets a telling-off The Albanian government criticizes the donors. “I would like to draw your attention to the actions and work intended to be carried out to implement the projects in the ‘Quick Start’ package, part of the Stability Pact for Albania’s transport sector,” he said yesterday at a working meeting with donors on the progress of the Stability Pact projects. Page 11

Education Page 13

The site where Independence was signed is at risk Page 20

A shake-up in the ranks of the Criminal Police Page 5

After 48 hours in a cell, the Police release him Page 9