The moment of reckoning for the aid scandal TIRANA — (p. re) — After six months of fierce controversy and two months in prison, the hour of truth has come for Fatos Nano. At least, the truth of Justice. The Tirana Court has officially closed the investigation and has transferred [the case] to a page of the file on the aid scandal for the Court, which must now pass judgment. In the coming days, Sokrat Plaka, Robert Gjini and Hasan Hallkja will appear in court alongside Fatos Nano; all are accused of having illegally authorized aid offered by the Italian Government in the summer of 1991. Many other defendants are also involved in the same case — including former President Ramiz Alia — but investigations into their cases will continue. The news previously reported by “Gazeta” on Friday morning, according to which the Nano case was now moving quickly, has received official confirmation. Before the judges, prosecutor Fatos Dervishi will present the evidence gathered during these months against Nano and the other defendants who disbursed Italian aid in 1991. It is up to the judges to determine whether the accusations are well-founded or not. The first suspicions about irregularities in aid arriving from Italy during that dramatic period of transition were raised by an Albanian journalist, Dashnor Kaloçoni, who wrote in the newspaper “Sindikatë” that the goods arriving in Albania were of lower value and quality than declared in customs documents. Then the State Control Commission began a more thorough investigation and, in April of last year, explained the irregularities that had been committed before Parliament. The “case” was passed to the Prosecutor's Office, which on 30 July ordered the arrest of Fatos Nano and, in the following days, that of the other defendants. But let us look at the positions of the four defendants. FATOS NANO — At the time of these events, he was Prime Minister. The Prosecutor's Office considers him guilty of abuse of office and falsification of documents, crimes committed in connection with the provision of eight and a half billion lire in aid. He has always declared himself innocent and a victim of a political conspiracy. He is in prison. SOKRAT PLAKA — At the time, he was Deputy Foreign Minister. The charge is abuse of office in collaboration with Nano. He has always declared himself innocent. He is currently in prison. ROBERT IRAKI GJINI — At the time, he was a senior official in the Ministry of Internal Trade, and later Minister of Foreign Trade. He is accused of abuse of office, not in collaboration with Nano. He was responsible for monitoring the unloading of the aid in Durrës. He has always declared himself innocent. He is currently a defendant. HASAN HALLKJA — He was an official in the Ministry of Foreign Trade. He was to maintain contact with the Italian company “Lavent.Co.” for the supply of the cargo involved in the case, worth ten billion. currently in prison. The trial date has not yet been set, but it will certainly take place within October.

Sport Bari's first goal, scored by Barone from a penalty The Albanian championship matches on page 3 Culture and events on page 2

TIRANA — “Albania is an example that can also be followed by other countries in the treatment of minorities.” This is what President Berisha declared at the high-level meeting that opened in Vienna on October 8. Berisha explained that in Albania, minorities, and specifically the Greek minority, enjoy all the rights and freedoms that ensure the strengthening of their ethnic identity, and that the deterioration of relations between the two countries — especially between Albanians and members of the minority — is in the interests of certain Greek circles that want tensions in the region to increase.

SHKODËR — (Ar. Ça.) — Another murder in Shkodër. At around 7:30, Eftali Sterkaj, 67, was found with her throat cut in her home. The victim lived with her nephew and his wife. The perpetrators of this appalling crime are not yet known. The murder is believed to have been committed for trivial motives. Only 5,000 lek were found in the house, stolen, along with traces indicating that the murderer did not come from outside. The police, who went to the scene immediately after being alerted by a nearby resident, have now opened an investigation.

A relative majority for Papandreu’s party in the election The voting result changed the situation in Parliament A relative majority for Papandreu’s party in the election Greece: The Socialists return to power The voting result changed the situation in Parliament ATHENS — Andreas Papandreu, 74, secured victory in the legislative elections in Greece. According to figures cited by the Minister of the Interior, Papandreu’s Greek Socialist Party (Pasok) won a relative majority of 45.84 percent, approximately more than the conservatives of New Democracy, who reached 41.82 percent. The conservative party thus lost its relative majority and the ability to govern, after three years and six months. Following the election result, Pasok can count on 160–166 of the 300 seats in the Greek Parliament, compared with New Democracy. In the previous legislature, Pasok had 122 seats, compared with New Democracy’s 160. The conservative party lost the election by the same percentage-point margin as the Socialists’ loss in 1989: 4.20. The “Political Spring” party of Mitsotakis’s [?]tar, Antonis Samaras, which has suffered losses on other occasions, put the conservative New Democracy party in third place in Parliament, with 4.64 percent. The Communist-Leninist party “KKE,” which ran in opposition to the pro-Communist movement “Coalition,” also won the chance to enter Parliament, reaching 4.5 percent. The environmentalists, independents and other smaller parties are leaving Parliament. Election day for the renewal of Parliament ended shortly before sunset without significant incidents. Incidents did, in fact, occur on Saturday night outside the headquarters of the two majority parties, New Democracy and Pasok. One person is in serious condition after suffering gunshot wounds among Pasok supporters. During the day, stones were thrown at the cars of [?] supporters of the two parties. The outgoing Prime Minister Mitsotakis, 76, after voting in the Kallithea district, along the coast of Athens, said that Greece “cannot go back” to socialist government but must, in fact, continue a phase of progress with the right remaining in power. Leader of the Socialist Party, Papandreu

INDIA, BUS PLUNGES INTO RIVER, AT LEAST 50 DEAD — At least fifty passengers on an open bus have died after the vehicle left the road and plunged into a river. The accident, reported by the Indian news agency PTI, occurred near Patnes (in eastern India). GERMANY, CLOUD OF NITROGEN OXIDE — A cloud of nitrogen oxide and hydrochloric acid escaped from a warehouse of dye materials that caught fire in Göttinga, in Lower Saxony, poisoning 14 people. The incident occurred last night for reasons that are still unknown. “FACE TRANSPLANT,” NOW POSSIBLE — The time has come for face transplantation: an English surgeon is ready to perform the first operation after ten years of study. “The idea of transferring an entire person's face to another came to me when I saw one of my patients, who had been disfigured by an accident and agreed to leave the house only wearing a mask,” said doctor James Frame of St. Andrew’s Hospital in Billercay, Essex. POLICEMAN ARRESTED FOR DEMANDING MONEY NOT TO ISSUE A FINE — He had asked for and agreed on a payment with the driver of a vehicle, proposing that the driver pay him more in exchange for overlooking a traffic violation. After an investigation, he was caught with 500,000 lire: Giovanni Caurcello, a port policeman in Brindizi, was exposed and arrested by the carabinieri. He was followed in the Luccese area and caught in Scorrano as he was leaving the driver's home. Luigi Pesceca, 60, from Lecce, had received half a million lire: Carluccio allegedly took a cut, charged with receiving money.

DURRËS — A major road blockade, the first to occur so far in Albania. A road blockade lasting six hours, with hundreds of cars and trucks forced into an endless wait. The blockade was caused by an accident between a truck and a tanker loaded with petrol. The incident occurred on the road between Durrës and Kavajë. Many cars tried to avoid the wait by driving along the beach, but things got even worse, as they became stuck in the sand. A crane from Operation “Pellicano” was brought in to solve the problem; after several hours, it managed to move the two heavy vehicles off the road, allowing traffic to flow again.

ITALIAN PERSONALITIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SHKODËR — Yesterday afternoon, the Cultural Center of the “Luigj Gurakuqi” University of Shkodër opened a socio-legal-economic meeting, which will continue until 22 October. What makes this meeting special is that nine leading figures from contemporary Italian science and politics will give presentations, including Professor Ugo De Siervo, chair of Constitutional Law at the University of Florence, and other distinguished names such as Professor Piero Tani, Doctor Carlo Casini, Professor Giovanni Galoni, and many others. NEW EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES IN DELVINË — Construction has begun on the Economic Education Center and the new building for the city's Education Directorate in Delvinë. The funds for this project were allocated by the Government, while the work will be carried out by a private construction company. Other educational support facilities will also be built alongside these buildings in the district. SYMPOSIUM ON ORAL DISEASES HELD IN TIRANA — A symposium was held on the topic “Diseases of the mouth, their treatment and prevention.” The symposium, made possible by the joint pharmaceutical products company “Ital-Farm,” was held at the premises of the International Center of Culture in Tirana. Dr. Franco Brena of the University of Milan in Italy gave several presentations on the protection against and prevention of oral diseases, as well as new surgical and treatment techniques for these conditions. A DISCOTHEQUE FOR CHILDREN IN PATOS — The discotheque to open at the Children's Cultural Center in Patos will be exclusively for children. Oil companies in the city will fund its establishment; it is the first of its kind in our country. “SOROS” FOUNDATION EXPANDS ITS ACTIVITIES IN ALBANIA — The activities of the “Soros” Foundation in Albania will expand further into various fields. A sum of 300,000 dollars has been allocated for the University of Tirana alone, while publication of a number of well-known books on a variety of subjects is being planned. In addition, 120,000 dollars have been allocated to establish the Albanian Institute of Medical Sciences. “FLAMURTARI” FOOTBALL CLUB HAS NO PERMANENT SPONSOR — The “Flamurtari” football team has been sponsored many times, but never by a fixed, permanent company. The funding provided so far has aimed to improve the quality of the team and serve the interests of the footballers from Vlora. The current list of “Flamurtari” sponsors includes “kolombo Bea,” the Italian-Albanian joint venture, the Salt Enterprise, the Port of Vlora, the “Blerimi” unit, and other private individuals or entities.