17 years’ imprisonment sought for the three accused The defense lawyers for Saliu, Tartari and Ahmeti will speak on Monday A stage of the trial is shown in the photo EDMOND LAÇI TIRANA — The trial of those accused in the “Arsidi Scandal” is nearing its conclusion. In its closing submissions, presented in court on Wednesday, the prosecution asked the Court to sentence the three defendants—Agron Saliu, Agim Tartari and Vilson Ahmeti—to a total of 17 years’ imprisonment. After the prosecutor Ilir Marko, representing the prosecution, read the submissions for 30 minutes, the defense lawyers requested three days to defend their clients. The defense was scheduled for 30 August. After that, only the decision of the Tirana Court is expected; it will finally determine the defendants’ guilt or innocence. The “Arsidi Scandal”, the subject of press coverage for months and also of debate in the Albanian Parliament, has finally made its way into the courtroom. Ahmeti, former Prime Minister of the Technical Government; Saliu, Director of the Commercial Bank; and Tartari, Deputy Director of that bank, left house arrest and prison cells to face the Prosecutor’s Office’s charge of “abuse of office.” The charge centers on the discounting of a bill worth 1.6 million dollars for French citizen Nikolas Arsidi. Whether the bill should have been discounted by the managers of the Commercial Bank was the main issue in almost every hearing held so far. The prosecution’s position—as also stated in prosecutor Marku’s closing submissions—is unequivocal: the bill should not have been discounted. The prosecution’s arguments are varied, the main one being that Saliu and Tartari’s actions had no basis in law. Prosecutor Marku went further, saying that the two defendants had acted knowingly. According to the prosecutor, the fact that the bill was held for about a month without being discounted, that the initial transaction was made without charging interest, and that Albania had not joined the International Convention on Negotiable Instruments make Saliu and Tartari’s actions suspicious and punishable. The case against former Prime Minister Ahmeti, according to the prosecution, rests on the fact that only the bill signed by him ended up in Arsidi’s hands. Although the final defense is scheduled for next Monday, the accused have taken a position against the charges. The experts’ supportive stance toward the discounting transaction makes the Court’s decision all the more interesting. The legality and illegality of discounting the 1.6-million-dollar bill are at issue. The first discounting of a bill by an Albanian bank has ended up in court. In any case, the 1.6 million dollars are no longer in Albania, regardless of the outcome of this trial. From the closing submissions Ilir Marko, prosecutor: “I request that the Court find the defendant Agron Saliu guilty of the criminal offense of abuse of office, in collaboration with the defendant Agim Tartari, and sentence him to 8 years’ imprisonment; That the defendant Agim Tartari be found guilty of the criminal offense of abuse of office, committed in collaboration with the defendant Agron Saliu, and sentenced to 7 years’ imprisonment; That the defendant Vilson Ahmeti be found guilty of committing the criminal offense of abuse of office, by creating a real possibility of serious consequences occurring, and sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment.” The prosecutor Marku, representing the prosecution, assured the court that “if we receive assistance from the Prosecutor’s Office later on, we may also hold other people accountable, who through their actions may have caused material damage to the state.” The accused Vilson Ahmeti: “The trial is a comedy. And so are the closing submissions.” Agim Tartari: “The closing submissions are absurd.” Agron Saliu: “Watch how this trial unfolds, and judge the closing submissions as well.” Pajtim Hoxha, Vilson Ahmeti’s lawyer: “The arguments made in the closing submissions about my client are unacceptable to me.” Përparim Sanxhaku, lawyer for Agron Saliu and Agim Tartari: “The closing submissions were unsupported by argument and highly contradictory.” Lawyer Sanxhaku and Hoxha both requested three days to prepare their clients’ defense. Kreshnik Spahiu, Chair of the Court Panel, ruled that the defendants’ defense would take place on 30 August.

Films without translations and with Greek subtitles Specialists say: “This is contrary to the laws” ANDREA STEFANI TIRANA — This is a journey through Albanian cinemas. A sector that, like many others, has undergone changes in recent years. It is enough to look at the advertisements—placed in the most visible locations—to be convinced that 90 percent of the films shown on Albanian cinema screens deal with erotic themes, sex, violence and horror. An even greater proportion may consist of films which, contrary to all current legal provisions, are screened without an Albanian translation or translated into foreign languages, with Greek predominating. Specialists at “Albilmfilm” explain this content in cinemas, drawn from foreign films and especially from the genres of sex and violence, partly as the result of a thirst created by forty years of absolute censorship. But they see the main factor as a lack of funding. The only state enterprise involved in film distribution is “Albilm distributor”. Economically weak, it has so far been unable to withstand competition from private film traders. Across the country there are six cinemas and three or four companies licensed to distribute films. These are the ones circulating the largest volume of films, often used and bought at low prices—which can be as little as 100 dollars—whereas for an equivalent film one may have to pay 3,000 to 4,000 dollars. These traders prefer to sell films without translation or with subtitles in a foreign language rather than turn to “Albilm distribution” for subtitling (translation). “All this is contrary to the legislation in force, which prohibits the circulation of pornographic films.” The weakness of the enterprise means prohibits the circulation of pornographic films.” At the Culture Directorate of the Tirana Municipality, they emphasize the need for a specialized body that should monitor the implementation of state policy in this activity and have the right to issue licenses for the screening of films. They underline the need for state subsidies in this field. The specialists at “Albilmfilm” take a different view: “The funding problem in this activity can be solved only through foreign investment, carried out in the form of joint ventures.”

TIRANA — The 11-year prison sentence for Nexhmije Hoxha will remain in force. On Thursday, the Court of Cassation upheld the earlier ruling by the Court of Appeal. For Kino Buxheli, who was convicted in the same trial, the sentence was reduced from 4 to 3 years in prison. Enver Hoxha’s widow was not present in the courtroom when the ruling was read. This was the final level of the judicial system that could change Nexhmije Hoxha’s sentence. Now, perhaps, her request to serve her sentence in the women’s prison in Tirana may be granted. Hoxha’s widow is currently being held in Tirana Prison.

KAP SHTICE — An Albanian citizen who escaped in 1992 while serving a prison sentence has been extradited to Albania. He was identified in a Greek city through cooperation between the INTERPOL branches in Tirana and Athens. The prisoner from Kavalla, Vangjel Simaku, had managed to escape while being transferred from one prison to another. He jumped from the prison transport bus and sped away in another car. Simaku had been sentenced in 1986 after stealing a large sum from the savings bank in Rrogozhinë.

The young man from Vlora was arrested in Italy for murder TIRANA — This is a story the Gazette wrote about some time ago. It is the story of Gjon Fetahu, a refugee from Vlora who arrived clandestinely and is now imprisoned in Leçe for murder. From the Italian prison, he is asking the Gazette for help in a letter. “Please help me meet someone from the Albanian Embassy in Rome, so that I can clarify all my problems. I have sent many letters, but no reply has come so far,” writes the 23-year-old. And now he has many problems. He is confined in a foreign prison, with a serious crime weighing on him—which he himself admits—and with a language he understands very little. Instead of the word ergastolo—life imprisonment—he simply writes gastro. Gjon Fetahu’s story is similar to that of thousands of other Albanians who set out for the West in search of the “Italian dream”. He crossed into Italy on a small boat and, from June ’92 onward, wandered for a long time through the southern regions with his brother in search of work. He changed jobs two or three times and eventually found a steady position on the farm of the farmer Antonio Esposito. “I worked with all my strength and saved the money to send to my family. I ate only once a day.” Gjoni continued working in these conditions for five months, a period spent entirely doing hard labor and sleeping only a few hours under inhuman conditions. Then came the tragic incident—which has still not been fully clarified—in which Gjoni killed Antonio Esposito and his son Carmelo. Since then, for the Fetahu family in Vlora, who learned the news about their son from the Gazette, a period of anxiety, waiting and longing has begun, one that seems as though it will never end. “Who can help me meet my family?” is Gjon’s question from Leçe prison.

Greek and Italian consular visas and stamps found on him TIRANE — (fa. ba.) “Police in Vlorë have arrested a young man who forged stamps and fake passports. A large number of forged passports and many stamps from Italian and Greek consulates were found on him.” This was announced on Wednesday through official information channels; the news is not new. In Tirana, the police are successfully carrying out an operation against the trade in forged passports, which appears to have become a very large-scale business. What is unusual in this case is the undeniable talent of this young man, who is also in poor health following a serious fight in which he was involved. Forging passports is undoubtedly a punishable act, but no one can say that it is an easy task. The general public does not know the details of his life, but it was surely a life marked by hardship and violence; proof of this is the deep scars he bears on his body. Now, like many others who have broken the law, he is behind bars in the police cells. Perhaps things will now be seen differently, and the other direction his life and talent could have taken—one that was not against society—would have been very useful to him. Photograph of forged passports and documents.

Tomorrow, readers of Gazeta Shqiptare will receive, free of charge, the calendar for the new Albanian football championship. It will be accompanied by complete information about all the participating teams. In other words, all the matches, line-ups, changes and objectives will be in readers’ hands with that day’s Gazeta.

EDMOND HAJDERI Stratospheric ozone is formed when short-wavelength radiation acts on the oxygen molecule, breaking it into two oxygen atoms; each atom then combines with an oxygen molecule, thus forming ozone. In general, ozone’s role in the breakdown of oxygen proceeds through breakdown processes similar to those involved in its formation. This is not always so: if the ozone molecule disrupts this balance, it can lead to ozone depletion. Various studies have shown that in Antarctica and, to a greater extent, in the Arctic, low temperatures break down the catalytic chlorine compounds, thereby displacing nitrogen oxides, which remain alongside them in the process. Nitrogen oxides freeze together with water molecules, forming small particles that make up the so-called polar stratospheric clouds. These positively affect the development of chemical reactions that release chlorine from compounds such as hydrochloric acid (HCl) and chlorine nitrate (ClNO3), which would otherwise not react with ozone. Even if the release of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) into the atmosphere were completely eliminated today, the chemical reactions that lead to the breakdown of stratospheric ozone would continue for a long time. This is because CFCs remain in the atmosphere for a very long time and would therefore continue to spread into the stratosphere from the tropospheric “reservoirs.” Another negative consequence of their long lifetime is the photochemical formation of ozone (nitrogen oxide + hydrocarbons + solar radiation). This term refers to a mixture of polluting gases that forms in the lower layers of the atmosphere when solar radiation acts on compounds such as nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons released by vehicle engines. This leads to the formation of P.A.N. (peroxyacetyl nitrate) and ozone. The direct effect of the former harms plants, while ozone is toxic to animal organisms and is a leading cause of eye irritation. In addition, as oxidizing agents, they act on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, turning them into carcinogenic agents, which are now present everywhere in urban centers. In other words, ozone, which is so important for neutralizing ultraviolet radiation in the stratosphere (where around 90% of atmospheric ozone accumulates), becomes a problem when present in high concentrations near the Earth’s surface. In conclusion, we can briefly say that upsetting the natural balance and the relationships between various chemical elements and compounds has a negative effect on life processes, and that if this continues at the current pace, the consequences will become even more evident in the future. Life and the Environment

MORE HUMANITARIAN AID ARRIVES IN DURRËS — A total of 2,500 tons of humanitarian aid has recently arrived at the Port of Durrës. The aid was brought by the American ship “Spirin”. According to the source, it is to be distributed by five different humanitarian organizations operating in Albania. The crew of the American ship numbered 50, including women and children volunteers. Most of this aid, around 80 percent, consists of medical supplies; 10 percent is food, and the rest is clothing for children. ASSOCIATION FOR DEMOCRATIC CULTURE CALLS FOR TOLERANCE, UNDERSTANDING AND TRANSPARENCY — “May the Association’s activities be supported by these principles: tolerance, understanding and transparency.” These were the words of the chairman of the Association for Democratic Culture during a press conference. The independent, non-partisan association had deployed more than 2,000 volunteer observers for the 22 March elections, and another 2,000 for the 26 July elections. SARANDA INTERCITY TRANSPORT COMPANY, BUILDING ON THE INITIATIVE OF PRIVATE PASSENGER-TRANSPORT DRIVERS IN SARANDA, ESTABLISHES THE COMPANY “Transbutrinti”. According to the company’s managers, there are no longer route interruptions as there were previously, when these routes were operated privately by individual drivers. Today, the company provides passenger services on routes to Tirana, Përmet, Korçë, Fier and many other cities.

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