Tense atmosphere after the controversy over the murder in Shkodër PD: “The Alliance on Trial” Ceka: “The Assembly must investigate” But the Helsinki Committee calls on the parties to be more careful SHKODER — The Albanian Helsinki Committee is urging political parties, public opinion and the mass media to show greater calm. The Democratic Party is promising a lawsuit against figures of the Democratic Alliance for defamation. And the Democratic Alliance replies that it is ready to appear before the judges and that, as soon as Parliament reconvenes, it will ask Parliament to establish a parliamentary commission of inquiry. The controversy that erupted after the death of Gjovalin Cekini, the 26-year-old worker, who was killed last Friday in Shkodër as he was leaving a meeting organized by the Democratic Alliance, is becoming increasingly heated. At the end of the press conference held Monday morning by "PAD", the party’s president, Neritan Ceka, reiterated the accusations made in the first hours after the murder of Gjovalin Cekini, whom he described as “a member of the Alliance” — Ceka specifies — from the March 1993? “As soon as Parliament reconvenes — he adds, speaking to Gazeta Shqiptare — we will ask for the establishment of an Inquiry Commission to hear all the witnesses to the crime. Many people were present, their names are known to the killers, but the event must be clarified to the end.” Although he admits that “the murder of Cekini was not premeditated, but they only wanted to stage a provocation that ended in tragedy, because the man who fired was drunk,” Ceka directly accuses “the party in power of having crossed with its entire machinery of crime and politics, just as it was meant to happen on July 1 in Sicily in 1950.” The response from the Democratic Party was immediate; it strongly backs the statements of PAD representatives and announces a complaint to the justice authorities: “We ask that the justice and state authorities have their say — reads a communiqué distributed by the PD — we publicly denounce the slanders and unfounded insinuations spread by the Democratic Alliance. For this, their authors must be held criminally responsible before justice. With their destabilizing calls, the governments and the services, and the immoral insinuations against the leader of the PD and the Albanian state, the leaders of PAD have deliberately and intentionally caused this murder.” Seeking to calm the heated climate as well, the Albanian Helsinki Committee intervened: “We call on the political parties, public opinion and the mass media to analyze the events calmly and soberly and to restrain passions that seriously risk compromising the progress of democratic processes in Albania and creating space for political crime. This Committee — the note concludes — denounces anti-criminal efforts and calls on state bodies to take the necessary and serious measures against organizations of a criminal character.”

Legislation Assembly: MPs to work on Monday TIRANE — The date for the start of work in the Albanian Parliament has been set. Through a notice sent to all parliamentary groups by the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, it is announced that the deputies must report for work at the beginning of next week. Thus — after being closed for only two days of this year — the Albanian Parliament will begin its legislative activity for 1994 on January 24. Along with the date for the resumption of work, a series of draft laws has also been distributed to the parliamentary groups, on the basis of which the Parliament’s work program will be built. Two other draft laws prepared during 1993 have been added to these. Thus — among other things — a draft law is already ready concerning several amendments to the Law on Political Parties; under this project, from now on the first registration will no longer require approval by the Ministry of Justice — the current issue — but only registration in the Court. Also on the program are two rather special draft laws, concerning the flexible regime for the Northeastern areas and others, and for guaranteeing investments between Albania and Slovenia.

Price reduced for urgent use Pesticide risk: 300 tons nearing expiry Durrës, only 170 tons have been sold in two years TIRANE — The pesticide problem is resurfacing. And once again, it is their expiry date that is causing concern. This time it concerns large quantities that have remained stuck in warehouses near Durrës. These pesticides — a total amount of about 470 tons — had arrived in Albania over the previous two years as credit from the World Bank, Italy and the European Community. To date, only more than 170 tons have been sold, while for the bulk of them — near the Agro-trade Enterprise of Durrës — the expiration date is approaching. “There are several reasons that led to this situation — Andre Mata, a specialist in the Environmental Protection Committee, tells Gazeta Shqiptare — some of them arrived after the season for their use had already passed, another part was intended for vineyards and orchards that have almost been destroyed — as well as because of the high selling price.” For two years these pesticides were sold at the purchase price. This was one of the main factors that caused them to be blocked. Now that the expiry date is approaching for a large part of these pesticides, the Government, on the proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture, decided to cut the selling price by 30 percent. This reduction, which could lead to a faster circulation of pesticides, may help avoid their blockage. Passing the expiry date, apart from the losses that would result from becoming unusable — and which Albania will have to bear — would then also require further expenses needed for their disposal. The problem of expired pesticides had appeared months earlier in Bajram Curri as well. They were discovered on Germany’s order after being found blocked at the train station. An alarm — issued by the German authorities — broke out after leakage from the wagons and spread onto the ground was noticed. The pesticide train stopped at the Albanian border

AID IN WHEAT FROM ABROAD CONTINUES TO ARRIVE — 7,536 tons of humanitarian wheat have arrived at the Port of Durrës and unloading of the cargo has begun. This shipment of wheat is aid to the people of Albania from the European Community. Meanwhile, also at the Port of Durrës, the ship "Karinza" is being unloaded with several thousand bags of fertilizer. IN LAC, LANDOWNERS ASK FOR RENT FROM THE SHOPS — Two agencies for the sale of lyqe[?], apartments and a cafj left their owners, removing claims made by the landowners on whose land the shops were built. The latter have asked the owners of the shops to pay a rent of at least 5 dollars per square meter. Based on the average size of the shops, their owners would have to pay the landowners an average rent of around 200 dollars per month each month. Such problems have also arisen for some time and require attention in the existing laws. THE PRIVATE BREAD AND BISCUIT FACTORIES SOLVE THE MAIN PROBLEMS OF THE POPULATION — There are seven private electric firms, two in Polican and five in Çorovodë, which produce bread and biscuits as well as some other food products. People throughout Albania see this as a complete answer to the population’s demand for bread. The possibility of allowing private firms to also engage in the production of electricity is mentioned here. IN BURREL THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYED PEOPLE IS INCREASING — The Agriculture Section in Mat, 20 private firms as well as 90 people in the district of Mat who carry out trade activities continue their work. Ten foresters in the district of Mat and another 1,500 people with various food products are working similarly in the stock of the enterprise and company. This is the number of people registered in the district tax office branch, while there are also many others who carry out private activity without being registered in this branch.

Government “War on those who cut trees” TIRANE — War on those who cut trees. A draft law that strengthens administrative sanctions against offenses in forests is also being discussed at the latest meeting of the Council of Ministers. Approval was also decided for an amendment to the urban planning law, which will regulate the problems of issuing building permits by eliminating abuses. In response to the urgent problems of water supply for the population, the decision was taken to create the Central Water Supply Commission and similar commissions for four and nine municipalities. Among other things, a decision was also included aimed at speeding up the distribution of securities for compensation of former owners and former political persecuted persons.

Press Office blames the Road Police Arbnori’s car crashes The vehicle is seriously damaged KRUJE — Only a precise maneuver by the driver prevented the accident from having any consequences for Pjetër Arbnori, Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, and his family. On Sunday, while Arbnori’s car was traveling from Shkodër to Tiranë, at the Thumana bend, a tractor loaded with wood and cut without a deadline[?] blocked the road. The accident seriously damaged the Chairman’s car, especially in the front part. Immediately after this accident, the Press Office of the People’s Assembly — through a public notice — blamed the Police for the collision, since it should have escorted Arbnori. “It is only apparent that the reports have been distorted intentionally — it was written in this notice — in order to hide the responsibility of the Road Police.” After this accident, the Press Office also made known that Arbnori’s driver traveling by the district police car — apart from those from Lezhë — “to testify and quickly[?] is completely absent.” The notice also criticized the violation of the Republic Guard’s regulations, whose car must always escort Pjetër Arbnori, Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly. Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, Pjetër Arbnori

RTSH sells videocassettes with Albanian film productions Albafilm and Television quarrel over films Director Beci demands copyright TIRANE — A dispute has begun between Radio Television and AlbaFilm. Copyright has become so heated that it has put these two state institutions against each other. The cause is the sale by RTSH of several videocassettes with Albanian films. Most of them are productions of the former Kinostudio, Albafilm, which is asking to have authorship recognized over them. The wrangling continues over Albanian films and the home-video market in shops in the center of the capital. What is at stake here — it is claimed — is AlbaFilm. Then a text in the newspaper, written in English, warns buyers that “the registered rights in the name of the concerned party belong only to the owner and any action will be carried out ...” In a statement to Gazeta Shqiptare, the director of AlbaFilm, Kujtim Beci, says that in “Albafilm” there is a copyright problem that must be respected.” And while AlbaFilm — being the only producer of films in Albania — is asking that authorship also be recognized for the films made by the former Kinostudio, RTSH declares that they now belong to it. “Kinostudio has no films” — Skënder Hupçapaj, the Director General of RTSH, tells Gazeta Shqiptare — “it sold them all to Television!” “We sold nothing to Television,” Beci replies. Kinostudio, according to the completion rules 1? in time, has shown only for 11 months. Meanwhile, a special procedure for the export/broadcast of Albanian films on Television. For each such film that it shows, it must pay AlbaFilm no less than 45 thousand lek. This is also one of the reasons why Albanian productions are rarely seen on our screens. Television does not have the financial means to pay that much for broadcasting. Ar.Me.

The peasants of Milot ask for another embankment “Save us from flooding” The river threatens 100 hectares of farmland LAC — Representatives of 113 families from Mbrojt-Milot and Fushë-Milot have blocked the start of work to repair the new embankment from the flooding of the banks of the Mat River last year, which had caused the flooding of 1,000 hectares. Their insistence on not allowing the Lezhë Drainage Enterprise’s equipment to begin excavation work has been so great that the intervention of law enforcement mediators was required. The result? Four peasants — who had been kept detained for only a few hours and novlak[?] — and 14 hours of patience. On the basis of this, they claim that the damaged area by erosion — and which this enterprise requires to be remedied? — is located farther from the riverbank. The peasants are worried because, according to them, the implementation of this project, unprotected and at the mercy of the waters of the river, would leave around 100 hectares of land, 30 hectares of trees and dozens of houses at risk. In a petition addressed to several high government authorities, they have proposed implementing another project in which the embankment would be built along the riverbank. This would make it possible not only to protect the 100 hectares at risk but also to gain another 100 hectares. The peasants also requested that specialists be sent to the site to better verify the technical flaws of this project. As. St.

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