Special circular for the courts The President of the Court of Cassation calls for severe sentences. Controversy begins. EDMOND LAÇI TIRANA — “While crime in Albania is on the rise, sentencing policy has been lenient.” It is precisely on the basis of this fact — according to Zef Brozi, the new President of the Court of Cassation — that, as of 30 September 1993, an internal circular has been distributed to all District and Appeal Courts. It concerns sentences that should be harsher, the non-application of sentence reductions or suspended sentences, as well as the complete abolition of sentences involving rehabilitation through work. All these measures are already provided for in Albania’s Penal Code. The circular has provoked various and conflicting reactions in the Albanian justice system. It is not yet known whether it has begun to be implemented, especially since the circular appears to be couched in imperative terms. According to the circular, the reason for taking such a decision was the way cases had been tried over the past three years: “This has had a negative effect on the fight to prevent crime and has created an opinion that casts doubt on the honesty and objectivity of the courts,” Zef Brozi wrote in the circular. According to him, the measure was taken “to provide proper guidance on criminal policy and to increase people’s confidence in the administration of justice.” Here are the five main points mentioned in the circular. 1) MINIMUM OR SUSPENDED SENTENCES: “For crimes such as robbery, intentional homicide, sexual intercourse by force or with minors, the production and trafficking of drugs, carrying a weapon without a permit, violations of road traffic regulations, and other serious crimes, sentences must be severe. In no case involving such acts is there grounds to impose a minimum or suspended sentence.” 2) SENTENCE REDUCTIONS: “In no case should sentence reductions be applied within the limits provided by law. This is because many judges have abused this provision, unfairly favoring many dangerous criminals.” 3) SUSPENDED SENTENCES: “These are to be applied only to criminal misdemeanors and in no case to perpetrators who have committed crimes. Even when applied to criminal misdemeanors, the legal criteria must be observed rigorously.” 4) EARLY RELEASE ON PAROLE: “This decision is to be applied by the courts only when the perpetrators have been sentenced to less than three years’ imprisonment. Furthermore, early release on parole should not be applied to those convicted of murder.” 5) SENTENCES OF REHABILITATION THROUGH WORK: “Under current conditions, this is ineffective and unenforceable, and therefore there is no reason for the courts to apply it.” The Tirana Court

Conflicting positions emerged immediately after the circular was issued to the District and Appeal Courts. “The circular issued by the President of the Court of Cassation is unlawful,” lawyer Përparim Sanxhaku tells the Gazette. “This court is a judicial body and issues decisions on the uniformity of the law in the cases it examines. There may also be faulty provisions that obstruct justice, but it is exclusively up to Parliament to rectify them. I suggest that this circular be revoked immediately.” But the protagonist of this circular, Zef Brozi, President of the Court of Cassation, thinks differently: “The new circular is not a law, but guidance — based on the law — for the work of the courts. This is also recognized as international practice. It is understood that crime cannot be reduced by means of a circular, but we are seeking to discipline the courts. If this is achieved, opportunities for deals between lawyers and judges will also increase.”

No one will smoke in public places A bill is being drafted at the Ministry of Health FATOS BAXHAKU TIRANA — A tough anti-tobacco bill is being prepared by experts at the Ministry of Health. The bill provides for strict measures against the habit of smoking and aims primarily to significantly restrict it in public places and among young people. Experts are now working on the final draft of the bill, which will also be discussed with the other relevant ministries: first and foremost, the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Education. Under this bill, the sale of tobacco and its products to young people below a specified age is to be prohibited. The age has not yet been set, but will be between 16 and 18. If this bill is approved after many amendments, perhaps we will no longer see children and young people selling packets on the streets of our cities. One of its articles expressly prohibits the sale of cigarettes by young people and minors as well. The aim is also to significantly restrict the places where smoking is permitted. A much larger part of the bill will be devoted to this subject. The experts have also taken into account another bill currently under discussion, concerning consumer protection. Tobacco advertising will also be prohibited in all types of sporting activities. In fact, some time ago the Albanian Olympic Committee signed the IOC convention on banning tobacco advertising at international matches and sporting events. Under the measures in this bill, smokers will also find it harder to buy their daily cigarettes. A specific article provides for cigarette prices to rise above the rate of inflation. The nicotine and tar content will also comply with EC standards. Likewise, all tobacco imports will be labeled or stamped by Albanian inspection authorities. The aim is to keep these products under control. It is undoubtedly an ambitious bill, similar to equivalent laws in developed Western countries and in the more advanced countries of the East, such as Czechia or Hungary. But experts fear that when the bill becomes law, it may remain on paper unless public awareness of this issue is raised.

A GROUP OF VILLAS FOR ORPHANED CHILDREN IN TIRANA — 500 thousand dollars will be invested in the construction of 8 villas for orphaned children in Tirana. The project will be funded by the American foundation “Bethany International Servis” from Michigan. The group of villas, which will be built behind the Palace of Brigades, will be completed in two phases. ABOUT USD 25 MILLION IN LOANS FOR TRANSPORT — The People’s Assembly ratified a loan of 18 million dollars granted by the International Development Association and 8.7 million dollars from the Kuwait Fund. The entire loan will go toward developing transport, including technical assistance for the Ministry of Transport, the rehabilitation, completion and expansion of several major roads, as well as the provision of machinery and equipment for the Port of Durrës. RESTARTING WORK AT ENTERPRISES IS BEING ENCOURAGED — The EC has provided 18 ECU (about 23 million dollars) to encourage the resumption of production in Albanian industry. This amount consists of 30 thousand tons of raw materials and spare parts that have been provided, and continue to be provided, to various Albanian enterprises. Soon, the EC will present a project for the allocation of a further 5 million ECU to the Albanian economy. ORTHOPEDIC CENTER IN DURRËS IS BEING RESTRUCTURED — After about a year, under the care of Karl tas-të of Bari, the restructuring of the new orthopedic rehabilitation center for children in Durrës has been completed. In addition to assistance in equipping the hospital, Italian specialists also worked on restructuring the electrical network and plumbing and sanitation facilities. An inauguration ceremony was also held on this occasion.

TIRANA — (Uv. Za.) - Albania defeated Bulgaria 4–1 in football. The match, played in Tirana for the Championship of the Union of Ministries of Public Order of the Balkans, was the fifth for the Albanian forces, who have now reached a total of 4 points. Previously, they had lost in Bulgaria and Romania and drawn twice in Tirana against their Greek and Turkish counterparts. The goals for the Albanians were scored by Kurti (2), Dibra and Dhehari, while Vlladov scored for the visitors. Romania continues to lead the championship with 6 points. The Albanian team, coached by Nelsi Cobani, will play its next match in Greece on 10 November this year.

TIRANA — Compared with two years ago, demand for Albanian flags on the market has increased tenfold. Buyers are now not only Albanians from the diaspora, but also many foreign tourists arriving from various countries. This statement was made by master craftsman Kazazi, who runs the only workshop for embroidering flags and national costumes in Tirana. Purchases made by buyers have also increased. This phenomenon is apparently a result of the revival of the ancient Albanian tradition of holding weddings with national flags.

The court releases the two accused friends TIRANA — (Ed. La.) — The Tirana Court has sentenced the two teenagers who were detained a month ago while attempting to steal from the second floor of Hotel “Dajti.” Following an investigation by the Tirana Investigation Department, the day before yesterday Enkel Qerimi and Endrit Kopliku appeared before the court on the charge of “Appropriation of another person’s property, in complicity, in the amount of 100 lekë.” At the conclusion of the proceedings, the Court found the defendants guilty of appropriating another person’s property worth 100 lekë, but ruled that the offence had remained at the attempted stage, and sentenced them to one month’s imprisonment—the same period they had spent in pretrial detention—in Tirana Prison. During the trial, the prosecutor requested that the defendants be found guilty, a request accepted by the two accused teenagers as well. According to the charge, the matter concerned only a bottle of fernet, which they had attempted to take from one of the rooms on the second floor of Hotel “Dajti.” Experts had valued the bottle at 100 lekë. At this trial—which was held in open court—members of the hotel staff who had been present on the evening of the incident also testified. After the proceedings ended, Enkel Qerimi and Endrit Kopliku were released from Tirana Prison, in accordance with the Court’s ruling.

Two million head are too many. The ecologist fears catastrophe/ A cautious appeal to protect the forests Two million head are too many. The ecologist fears catastrophe/ “Get the goats out of Albania” A cautious appeal to protect the forests ANDREA STEFANI TIRANA — “Two million goats are the No. 1 destructive factor for Albania’s forests. They cause 80 percent of the damage to them, while 20 percent has been caused by the terraces built in the past, as well as the indiscriminate logging that has become frequent in recent times.” This is what Italian ecologist Franco Marzocchi tells the newspaper. He has completed two years as head of forests in Albania and expresses concern about the damage to the living environment—of which forests are an important part. And, in the difficult task of an ecologist deciding how to protect it, a large part of the problem lies with the goats, he says: “Get the goats out of Albania,” or find another way. From a historical point of view, Marzocchi’s hypothesis seems well-founded and credible across much of Albania’s terrain, and anyone who knows the country is familiar with the destructive behavior of these docile, unassuming animals, which are always hungry. After trampling the saplings, they leave the slopes ruined, with the plants uprooted; these, in turn, expose the layers of soil and reveal the rocks. Marzocchi fears precisely the acceleration of such an ecological catastrophe in Albania: “The damage can be seen with the naked eye,” he said. “At the vantage point at Qafë-Thanë, you can compare the Macedonian forest, which rises to around 10 meters, with the Albanian one, which is less than a meter tall. The cause is precisely these goats, which eat all the shoots.” For ecologist Marzocchi, the coexistence of goats and forests is impossible. “In most European countries, a policy of reducing this species has been pursued so that the forests can recover; the same should be done in Albania. After the goats are removed, it will take 10 years for the forests to grow back. During this time, financial compensation should be provided to compensate rural people who depend on goats for their livelihood.” Because the forests are being excessively damaged, there’s no problem! Let’s get back to the goats.

FIER — The skeleton of a victim of the regime discovered after 40 years FIER/ The skeleton of a victim of the regime discovered after 40 years He insulted Stalin’s moustache; Hoxha had him massacred He was an intellectual from Shkodra FIER — (Su. Bo.) — The soil of Fier continues to yield the bones of opponents of communism. The latest—after the discovery of the Kabashi cousins, who had worked for the CIA years earlier and had wanted to overthrow the regime—is the Shkodran Zef Shuk Nënshati. The victim was “executed” 40 years ago, at the age of 42, under the monstrous Article 1 on “agitation and propaganda,” although no such document appears in the records of any of the relevant authorities. What is more, the victim has now been found massacred, without hands or feet. This time Stalin had killed directly in Kërçovë, in Albania: the accusation against Nënshati had been based solely on a remark he made about the moustache of the Georgian dictator. “After 40 days of interrogation in dark cells,” the victim’s son recounts of those days, “instead of my father, they brought us news of his death.” Then came years of uncertainty for the family, who passed by the unmarked grave without knowing that their loved one lay there. The discovery of Nënshati’s remains—he was a graduate in engineering and a defender of four foreign caves—came about thanks to the memory of Kol Kalemi, a longtime employee of the Christian cemetery in the city of Fier. Zef Shuk Nënshati is now among the victims whose skeletons bear witness to the crimes of Albania’s communist system, committed over more than 40 years. The earth has now begun to give up its secrets not only in Fier, but everywhere. Many mysteries are being cleared up, mysteries covered not only by forgetfulness, but also by earth. Photograph of a stone/monument bearing the inscription “TONIGHT ...”

Yesterday in Albania Balkan police officers Success in the market Court releases two friends accused INSIDE

Somalia is beginning to frighten Americans A real shock over the marines killed ON PAGE 2 First concert tour by Opera artists 85 orchestra musicians head for Italy ON PAGE 3