Five points to protect the accused What the new Code of Criminal Procedure means for people EDMOND LAÇI TIRANA — Albania is taking another step forward toward Europe. This time in the field of freedoms and human rights. The protagonist is Parliament, where work on part of the new Code of Criminal Procedure has recently been brought to a close. In Tirana, the new Code will now be joined by, and will have to coexist—until it is completed—with the other laws approved under Community legislation. “The changes became necessary to correct assessments and regimes in favor of the state, but contrary to human freedoms and rights.” This was said after the changes by chief [text garbled] Hajdari — the individual will now be favored more. There are five main changes. DETENTION — The detention period will be reduced from 72 hours to 48. To ensure that citizens receive the protections they deserve, these provisions also include a special clause that for years would have prevented the torture of innocent people and intellectuals: “No one may be detained without sufficient evidence,” states a new article, which repeals the old one, which said that “detention is carried out on the basis of suspicions.” DEFENSE LAWYER — The defense lawyer will have the right to participate in preliminary investigations, from the moment a person is detained, arrested, or appears after being summoned to face criminal responsibility. The lawyer will now have the right to communicate freely and privately with the accused, with no other person present. FREE LAWYER — The prosecutor and the court will be obliged to provide the accused with a lawyer—when necessary—free of charge as well. RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED — Every accused person will be informed immediately and in detail of the charge, and will also be made aware of the right to request witnesses and to refuse to give explanations. HOME SEARCH — It has been established that every search of a home now requires a judge’s authorization. But what do lawyers think? Some are pessimistic: “The problem is that we have an amendment which does not anticipate [unclear] and which anyone will find difficult to obtain,” says lawyer Firmin Sannakhtu, expressing doubt—even before implementation has begun—that these changes will be enforced. “The new articles envisaged in Parliament’s final approval,” lawyer Sanxhaku continues, “surpass those of some other countries as well.” In any case, Albanian citizens now have something more. And not just anything, but something they have lacked for a very long time: a Code of Criminal Procedure that protects them. Thus, despite some understandable fears, there is optimism among judges: “Everywhere, laws are enforced by people,” says Gjonkati, the prosecutor of Korçë, “[unclear phrase] against a citizen does not at all mean that the law is bad. What remains is the law in general, not the person who enforces it.”

TIRANA — “Bashkim Gazidede, head of the National Intelligence Service, has carried out a coup against me, because my constitutional rights are being violated by the executive branch. That is why I will demand his removal”: this was the sensational and serious statement made by Azem Hajdari, DP deputy and chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Defense, Public Order and SHIK, who reacted after the official’s remarks published in the newspaper «Bashkimi». Hajdari [text garbled] regarding his surveillance. “I have strong evidence showing that SHIK has been spying on me for six months,” Hajdari continued, “but of course it is not my job to publish it in the newspaper.” Azem Hajdari is determined to go further: “The legal course I will take is to submit a proposal to the Council of Ministers — within my powers — and then to the Council of Ministers through the President — because it is normal for them to order Bashkim Gazidede’s dismissal.” It is not yet known whether Hajdari’s proposal will be taken into consideration, since SHIK head Gazidede has categorically denied the accusation.

The government approves the project for the new airport SHKODËR, TWO PEOPLE DIE IN MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS ON THE SAME ROAD IN TWO DAYS — Two fatal accidents on “Tëphanë” Road in Shkodër. Two people died in motorcycle accidents over two days. On the first day, the victim was 24-year-old Vjollca Xhelaj, from the village of Berdicë e Madhe, who was traveling with Enver Dani at the time of the accident. He is currently in hospital in serious condition. A day later, at the same place, 26-year-old Besnik Dashaj, who was riding a motorcycle, collided with a car. The severe impact led to his death the following day in Shkodër hospital. Sources in the city’s traffic police say the two fatal accidents were caused by the high speed at which the motorcyclists were traveling. TIRANA, THE INDEPENDENT EDUCATION UNION DECIDES TO END THE STRIKE — The National Council of the Independent Education Union decided to end the boycott of examinations. The union has asked the Ministry of Education to ensure that, by the time the secondary-school examination period arrives, all teachers’ demands submitted to the Ministry are met simultaneously according to a funding plan. The union has decided to boycott the start of the 1993–94 school year if this agreement is not reached. AID FROM BRAZILIAN JOURNALISTS FOR THE “JAVË” NEWSPAPER IN GJIROKASTËR — The Regional Association of Journalists of Brazilicata in Italy has sent paper and other assistance materials to the editorial office of the newspaper “Javë” in Gjirokastër. For some time, the newspaper had been appealing for immediate help to overcome its financial difficulties. The act by the journalists of Brazilicata comes immediately after the establishment of initial contacts between Gjirokastër and Brazilicata, towns in the Italian region. DURRËS, CHICKEN FARM BUILT BY AN ITALIAN COMPANY — The reconstruction of the chicken farm located on the outskirts of Durrës cost around 2 million 340 thousand dollars. For several months, 35 Albanian workers, led by Italian technicians from an Italian company, worked to restore the farm to an efficient operating condition. The farm has capacity for 30,000 hens and 55 [unclear] chicks. The renovation phase has now also been completed, as a result of which it will produce the necessary feed for the poultry. The runway of Tirana airport, where work to completely repair it will begin shortly

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The suspicions of Mehmet Shehu’s son He speaks from abroad and acknowledges his parent’s guilt The reasons for his death are concealed in the mysterious message found beside the former prime minister’s body FATOS BAXHAKU TIRANA — The mystery of Mehmet Shehu’s death conceals a letter he left in the final moments of his life. This letter, discovered beside his body by [text garbled] in December 1981, has not been made public to this day, and it is not known where it is. Today, 12 years later, the son of the former Albanian prime minister, Bashkim Shehu, in an interview with our newspaper voices a suspicion concerning former President Ramiz Alia himself, at that time one of the leading figures of the Hoxha regime. “Ramiz Alia has the note that was beside the body at the time of death. It contains a message that foretold all the major events that would happen later. Even then, when no one was forcing him, he continued to call my father a foreign agent. Alia must certainly have looked for my father’s final letter, but I have not managed to find it. Alia must surely have it.” Bashkim Shehu’s account is also confirmed by one of Alia’s closest associates, a former member of the Political Bureau who is currently in prison. He does not wish to be identified, but says: “The letter was found and is currently with Ramiz Alia.” “He told the newspaper.” The conversation with Bashkim Shehu takes place by telephone from Budapest, where Bashkim recently settled. It focuses on the discussion generated by his book “Fajit.” “L’automne de la peur” (Autumn of Fear), published by the “Fayard” publishing house in Paris. In the book, he describes the three months of terror that followed for his family after his brother Skënder became engaged to a girl from a family of anti-communist origin. After years of research and reflection on the fate of his parents and family, Bashkim Shehu addresses the public on all the questions that continue to trouble it. There has been much discussion about your father’s death. Many people say he was killed, while others believe it was suicide. What is the truth? “I cannot yet rule out either possibility. There are facts in favor of both one and the other. So I cannot express myself definitively, especially since this concerns my father’s death. But for me, whether it was murder or suicide makes no difference, because it is purely a technical matter concerning those who made the decision. For me, the real crime of the dictatorship was the political elimination of my father, regardless of how it was carried out.” Are you saying that you will find your father’s grave? “I have conducted searches and will continue to do so. One of the former criminal-investigation experts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs at the time, today the well-known writer Neshat Tozaj, once told me that he had accompanied him on the day he was taken to that place, but he had refused. If Neshat does not agree, I think they must certainly have found someone else who agreed to carry out this macabre task.” In the book, you describe several episodes in which Enver Hoxha, during “the three months of fear,” showed a softer side toward your father and your family. Can you give us any further details? “For me, the fact is that this was a game played by Enver Hoxha. He wanted to present the whole plot being carried out against my father as criticism coming from the other members of the Political Bureau. In fact, as far as I know, he was the one directing the whole thing. In fact, I do not think they can prove that what happened had anything to do with criticism of Nexhat Hoxha and his dictatorship.” Have you managed to find your parents’ documents? “My father’s [documents] were in libraries and archives, but even though they were there, they were not found; I intend to deny that. As for the victims of the dictatorship, especially now that I have come to know them more closely, I believe the pain is profound. They deserve the greatest respect.”

From the Italians, a No to the parties; on Sunday another wall falls in Europe (c. bo.) — After East Germany, another wall has fallen in Italy: that of the traditional parties. In Sunday’s electoral system, voting took place in municipalities including Milan and Casarino for mayoral elections; the traditional party system suffered a defeat. The Socialist Party, rejected by the left in the Tangentopoli elections, was finally brought down at the polls; until a few months ago it had been a powerful force in government, but today it is an opposition party. In Milan there was a “No” vote for the traditional parties. Christian Democracy declined; its longstanding leader, Mino Martinazzoli, was re-elected [text garbled]. The Italians say No to the parties Another wall falls in Europe on Sunday “Our Italians manage to [text garbled] my people.” This is the spectacle of an armed revolt that, many times in recent months, the leaders of the Lega Nord have stirred up in order to push uncertain voters to the polls. Clearly, it is not a sign of true democracy. Achille Occhetto’s Democratic Party of the Left (PDS) managed to achieve good results, above all in central Italy. And the party that gained ground was Communist Refoundation (in Milan it won 1.1 percent, even two points more than Christian Democracy), the far-left formation born from the dissolution of the PCI in [text garbled]. Here is the political signal: in Italy, as things change, traditional parties of the center are losing votes and disappearing, while the left and right are advancing. A wave of party rule. The question now is what the new democracy will be. “Is it true, how much do we have?!” But the opposition parties won the elections. Above all, La Lega triumphed. La Lega came out ahead, winning 40 percent and, further changing the political landscape, will take a share [text garbled]; previously it had obtained a much more significant result in the 1990 elections. In Milan there was a general vote, while the allies and most determined political leaders will return to power to be elected. “The Lega’s Christian Democrat candidate intervened in the counting of the ballots.” (And the left-wing blocs) for the representatives of the others. “We will not win; we have fallen like a…” (text damaged).

Soon, in “Gazeta Shqiptare,” you will find free space for your classified advertisements. Send us your message, up to 15 words, to one of our addresses: In Tirana: Bajram Curri Street, 370. In Bari: Viale Scipione l'Africano, 264. State in your message what you are looking for or offering, your name and address. Letters from across the sea In 1942–43 we had a brother in Italy; he worked at the Albanian Embassy with a [text unclear] Kosilian. During the war we had no way to communicate. On December 3, 1944, as he was returning home from work from Jëna Shteti Levante, he disappeared. Çlajvari had an accident. In the middle of the road there was a moving truck that swerved. Lutit was on a motorcycle. The weather was very bad and he crashed, suffering a severe head injury. He died after several days of agony, with [text unclear]. The family learned of the circumstances and was supposed to receive compensation of 3,200,000 lire, of which 1,000,000 was for the lawyer and 1,400,000 was to go to the family. We gave it to the prosecutor within 12 days; he lived nearby, in the same place where our dear brother lived, in Chiavari, Genoa. Corso Dante, via Devoto No. 9. Meanwhile, [text garbled] wrote to us that [text garbled] had been deposited, but in fact this was not true, because later he wrote that he had kept the money and would give us 12 percent, whereas we had asked the prosecutor to deposit it in the bank. Since then he has repeatedly asked about the money without sending a single cent. So we sent a legal letter to Federico Ferri and provided proof through [text garbled], a commissioner in Trieste. [Text garbled] began paying us 15,000 lire a month and continued for three months, for a total of 45,000 lire. But since the Albanian prosecutor’s office would not allow it [text garbled], who was killed by the communist regime, and because payment was made as [text garbled], he no longer kept in touch with us. Through this letter we ask you to help us. (Rrok Radoja — “Bajram Curri” Street 355 — Tirana) These lines are from Angellino, who lives in Pale, Bari. During the July exodus I met an Albanian named Ibrahim Prifti. We met on the bus [text garbled] and I asked him to help us with work and getting out, but he refused because he wanted to go with Malineson to join a [text garbled]. Later he returned to Albania. Regarding the documents, [text garbled] from Milan. Since then I have not done anything about it or anything else, but I still hope [text garbled]. Last year I [text garbled] and waited for them. Please give my name and address in Tirana. My address is: V: Cavaliere Ndero, Palermo. (Sergio Angelillo, BARI Palesse) Do you have a relative, a friend or a loved one across the sea? Would you like to reach them with a greeting, a message or simply a wish? This space is yours: use it; they will read it. If you are in Italy, you can write to this address: GAZETA SHQIPTARE, Viale Scipione l'Africano 264, 70100 Bari. If you live in Albania, you can write to this address: GAZETA SHQIPTARE, Rruga Bajram Curri, 370, Tirana.