A new criminal police force is created Legal changes. Special units in barracks TIRANE — War on crime and terrorism in the army. Under an amendment adopted in parliament to the law on the National Intelligence Service in the armed forces, special units will now be created to operate within the ranks of the army to prevent and detect criminal activity and the trafficking of weapons and various strategic materials. Thus, specialized forces will now begin to be organized and deployed, and they will be integrated into the sector of the military criminal police. This police force will extend its activities throughout the entire Albanian army. It will be able to carry out effective surveillance and investigations in order to uncover and prosecute any criminal or terrorist act, whether individual or organized. However, the scope of this police force’s duties will not be limited strictly to the army itself, but it will also act when military personnel carry out or organize such criminal activities outside it. The creation of criminal police units will also help prevent the spread of dangerous trafficking and drugs within the army. If possible, even in Albania this is not without precedent. In investigative files there are no shortage of such cases, where in recent years army weapons warehouses or depots have fallen victim to raids and thefts of various military materials - weapons, tanks, substances or grenades. The organization and activation of these 'counter-terrorism' structures is a highly important element in the overall fight against crime and terrorism in Albania as well. All the more so when it is known that everywhere the army is the focal point where all the efforts of elements from the world of evil converge. And all this is by no means accidental: besides military equipment and strategic combat materiel, for which organized crime has an endless appetite, army specialists and technicians are always among the most sought-after by the bloody world of terror.

A cultural embargo is being discussed Invitation from Montenegro: “Our ministers should meet” TIRANE — Montenegro wants to improve relations with Albania, at least where it believes this will be easier: on the cultural front. A formal letter containing the proposal of the small mountain republic was recently delivered to the Albanian embassy in Belgrade. The two culture ministers of our countries should meet in Podgorica and discuss common issues. Hundreds of kilometers away, at the headquarters of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, much the same issue was discussed, though on a broader level. The 42 member states of the Council of Europe’s Culture Committee also discussed the request submitted by Serbia and Montenegro to lift the cultural and sports embargo and to admit them to this European cultural forum. The Albanian representative on this committee, Yljet Aliçka[?], Director of the Directorate of Foreign Relations at the Ministry of Culture, opposed this request. 'We oppose lifting the cultural embargo against Serbia and Montenegro,' Aliçka said in Strasbourg, 'in order to prevent the loss of the cultural and artistic rights of the Albanian population in Kosovo as well as the strengthening of nonexistent identities and the national cultural consciousness of this region.' Now it is up to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to make a decision on the request of the republics of the Yugoslav Federation. However, the prevailing view is that the embargo should be eased, at least on the cultural front, and many states have already said through various channels that culture and the relations based on it are a factor that can serve peace just as much as tedious diplomatic negotiations. Europe will also have to take into account the position of Culture Minister Raymond Weber, who said he would convey our stance to the Committee of Ministers, Aliçka said. Albania has long since suspended cultural relations with the Yugoslav Federation. The only official activity was a boxing exchange held some time ago in Shkodër and with the Montenegrins. That event—also broadcast by Albanian television—was later followed by a warning from the commission attached to Yugoslavia, which reminded Albanian authorities that boxers are still forbidden to face each other, since boxing itself was a serious violation of the cultural and sports embargo with the neighboring country. After that, greater caution was shown in subsequent proposed events across Albania’s northern border, until this latest reply arrived, the Albanian response to which has not yet been made public. Fatos Baxhaku

2 p.m., Tirana-Partizani Today in the capital “derby” of the year TVSH returns to live broadcasts of Albanian Football Championship matches • The white-and-blues go “against” tradition. Hope remains even though Miloti and Gallo are missing • “Partizani” without Simaku is aiming for the top. An anti-traditional blue lineup on the field Articles on page 3

GJIROKASTER — Greek television reception problems have reached Gjirokastër. For the past few days, programs from Greece’s largest private channel, 'Antena 1' — first received at 10:00 a.m. — have appeared clearly on the screens of homes in Gjirokastër and the surrounding villages. This has all been made possible by a mobile repeater installed by the Municipality. In this way, 'Antena 1' joins other satellite channels that have been installed for some time (J.X.)

CHOLERA/ An EU commission in Tirana “Hygiene is good” Will exports resume? TIRANE — The export ban on seafood and fruits and vegetables imposed on Albania by the European Union after the cholera epidemic may be lifted when the veterinary commission evaluates the results of an inspection carried out in Albania today by an EU commission. The commission, headed by Erik Pudel, checked the hygiene conditions of five facilities (in Kavajë and Durrës) where seafood and agricultural products intended for export are processed. According to official sources, the outcome of the inspection is, in any case, 'highly positive'. In practical terms, the European technicians have judged Albanian compliance with hygiene and health standards to be very good, which would allow products to be exported without any risk. Brussels must choose between two options: to lift the export ban only for some products (while keeping it in place for others) or to reopen exports completely but impose new hygiene and health standards on Albania. The World Health Organization has also said it agrees with the lifting of the export ban.

For the CSCE TIRANE — President Berisha will leave for Budapest tomorrow. In the Hungarian capital, Berisha will take part in an important CSCE meeting attended by the heads of state of the organization’s member countries. During his stay in Budapest, the Balkans and Albania’s relations with Greece are expected to be some of the main points of Berisha’s speech in Budapest.

The goods were at risk TIRANE — Not only goods but also the storage areas for them have recently become the subject of strict checks by the Financial Police. And it was the experts of that service who blocked one of the refrigerated storage warehouses from use altogether; it was a facility with a capacity of more than 50 tons of goods in freezer no. 3 of the enterprise[?]. During the inspection it was found that the cold room was generally unsafe for use, was worn out and had seriously damaged lighting, which in fact threatened to cause the goods stored there to deteriorate and spoil. Meanwhile, things were completely different, in terms of speed and the specialists of the Financial Police, during the parallel inspection carried out in freezer no. 2 in Yzberisht. Everything there was found to be within the required standards.

Six injured Patos: “Rambo” in action FIER — A bloody record has been set in recent days in Patos. One person injured 6 people within 20 minutes. Patos’s 'Rambo' has been detained by law enforcement, while the victims of his 'record' are being treated in hospital. One of them — 17-year-old E. P., a resident of Patos — is in worse condition than the others. Apart from the fact that the incident took place on one of the city’s streets on Tuesday and that the perpetrator of the shootings is a 24-year-old, no other details could be obtained from the Patos Police Commissariat, which confirmed the serious news. The event also recalls for people the phenomena that in many places have created an additional problem for public order and those who defend it: the conflict between groups of young people. (E.M.)

Tirana, paid workers will be assigned TIRANE — The squares in front of the apartment blocks in the capital will be cleaner. An initiative by the Municipal Sector of the Tirana Municipality — announced at the latest meeting of the Municipal Council — has taken on the task of improving matters by assigning workers specifically for this purpose. Initially, funds collected from the annual cleaning tax paid by citizens will be used for this. The privatization of waste removal by the Italian company Nuova Ecologia — which began in mid-December — has changed the old workshops, which did not burn sufficiently together with the waste dumped between the apartment blocks, within the framework of the Cleaning and Greening Enterprise. In this way, today they are somehow flowing toward a more mentioned month the cases when interventions by garages or shops had also created a cleanliness problem. The entry into force of the law on co-ownership in housing now means that Tirana residents are no longer obliged to think about it but only to take care of the part of which they are owners. (d.p.)

CURSIVE REALITY TIRANE — Some veterans and 'deserters' heard the meanings of the disputed words for the first time from the radios and the rehearsed parade, symbol of this army initiative in Tirana and of the figurative figure who wished to separate itself not only in meaning and value. And it was precisely on the eve of the parade, organized in honor of the anniversary of liberation, the corresponding and prolonged moment. The decorations stood waiting for the order — blocked, some of them with their chests adorned with medals, to polish the army[?], and some veterans before the thirty soldiers. Immediately memories were taken by the beautiful opponents in the proper way as once more in war. It was a way to parade against their wound, with government and everything. Would it have been better to abandon the parade? Was the army necessary? But no, they were linked. Many found that from the showcase, as in the disagreements of non-acceptance, where the order and the army were demanded. And from a little everywhere could be achieved this consolidation — the abundance of flowers, musical marches and flags of military and cultural emblems. But that continues to seem until when it reopened old wounds...

The foundation provides 15 million USD TIRANE — To study death. This is the initiative undertaken by the American billionaire of Hungarian origin George Soros, who will make 15 million dollars available to create special research. He is dedicating it to 'the culture of death.' The entire study will last for a period of 3 years. The subjects that will be at the center of the researchers’ work concern traditions related to mourning, the infrastructures surrounding death and the role played by the artistic community in such cases. The study will be financed by one of Soros’s well-known organizations: the 'Open Society Institute', a branch of which also operates in Albania. So far, Soros was known for his activity in the field of studies on the problems of Eastern Europe. He has never hidden his interest in the issues that troubled the transition period of the countries of the former communist bloc toward a market economy.

Help for the mentally ill A three-day conference in Tirana examined the possibilities and launched a project for the development of psychological and social rehabilitation in Albania. The project will be financed by the Danish government through the 'Meku' association. Death on the tracks A 20-year-old man lost his life near Fushë-Krujë after the motorcycle he was riding collided fatally with the train on the Fier-Ballis line. The 17-year-old passenger is in serious condition in the hospital in Fieri[?]. Deaths by suicide Two suicides were recorded within a few days in the villages of Lezha. A 20-year-old woman poisoned herself on Monday in Trovolojë; the most likely cause is believed to be the killing of her fiancé a few days earlier. Her fiancé had been killed by chance while fishing at sea. The next day a woman hanged herself in a house in Manat. In this case the police are not yet investigating, nor the motives for the suicide.

An Albanian child is run over by a car after landing in Italy His mother is in serious condition in hospital ON PAGE 2 Europe finances Macedonia with 23 million ECU For fuel and food ON PAGE 2

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