Too many heaters, the network can’t cope KESH specialists: “Problems with electricity again” □ New transformers will soon be installed in Tirana □ “But investment alone cannot solve this issue” TIRANA — It will once again be a dark winter for Albanians this year. The cold, as before, will these months too be accompanied by countless blackouts. Moreover, there are still problems for the time being concerning fuel. It is the specialists of the Albanian Energy Corporation (KESH) themselves who confirm this critical situation. “Electricity will continue to be used to meet all the needs of the population; mainly for heating and cooking,” they explain to Gazeta Shqiptare, “the situation will never improve.” According to KESH, it is necessary to find the right alternative to reduce the amount of energy used for heating. But at present these alternatives practically do not exist in Albania. Firewood, the only means that can be used for heating now that household appliances have flooded Albanian homes, is still in insufficient supply. The arrival of wood — as happened in previous years — is still more a matter of a market that does not exist. However, attempts to ease this situation will not be lacking. Specialists from KESH’s Energy Distribution office speak of new investments that are expected to be made soon. Thus, by the end of November at least 6 large power transformers will arrive in Tirana. Their installation is expected to increase the network’s capacity and at the same time strengthen its readiness in emergencies. Likewise, this winter, although only in the first months of 1995, the restructuring of the capital’s network, begun in the summer of last year, could start. This is an investment that has been financially supported by funds from the Italian government but which had been blocked after the completion of its first phase, which covered only some areas of the capital. Under this project, existing medium-voltage cable blocks will be replaced with new, more powerful cables. But investment still remains unable to meet needs. The specialists again explain that these can only improve the population’s electricity supply situation, but in no way will they be able to solve it once and for all. Apparently, for residents too, heating, cooking, and battery-powered lamps will remain the most frequent companions of the Albanian family’s winter life. Armand Mero

Meters that can’t “steal” electricity TIRANA — New measures to control the use of electricity. To put an end to the many thefts, the Albanian Energy Corporation has decided to use new tools. In addition to the numerous sanctions and fines imposed by inspectors, new meters will soon be put into use; these cannot be modified and exclude any possibility of tampering by users. According to KESH specialists, these meters — which will replace the current ones — are made in Turkey and are expected to arrive at the end of November. Theft from the network is now one of the most difficult problems facing KESH. During the past year alone, nearly 600 million kilowatt-hours of stolen electricity were calculated, causing a loss estimated at 18 million dollars. A figure that in the overwhelming majority of cases has not been recovered. From the fines imposed by the Electric Police, only 1.3 million dollars have been collected. It was precisely these alarming figures that forced KESH specialists to draw up, recently, a draft law that provides for a drastic increase in the tariffs and fines to be applied to household users and other users in the event of violations. These tariffs will range — calculated according to the damage caused — from 3,000 lek to 100,000 lek. In some cases, criminal proceedings are also foreseen. a. m.

Referendum: time is passing, problems remain Privatised polling stations: but where will the ballot boxes be placed? The number of voters has been determined. But the Central Commission will announce it only 48 hours before 6 November TIRANA — The process toward the referendum is approaching the finish line. A race that even now, 4 days before the vote, is still accompanied by many efforts and difficulties. Political parties are caught up in an unstoppable whirlwind of rallies throughout Albania, while the Central Commission is still gathering on one side and the other the parties’ objections to various issues. In a direction different from that of the political forces, but likewise surrounded by endless difficulties and problems, is the activity of the Tirana Central Referendum Commission. The journey undertaken through districts and localities to explain the necessary procedures, phone calls with complaints, requests and questions from polling stations, is becoming the final burden of this commission, which is trying to settle everything definitively by Sunday. Some of them: Polling stations It seems that privatization is also one of the consequences of organizing the referendum. Many of those that until yesterday were fixed places where people went to vote — former clubs or meeting halls — have now been privatized. In many areas these locations have not yet been determined and people do not know where the ballot boxes will be on Sunday. The number of these polling stations has been determined, but it has not been made public until Monday evening. The number of voters The Central Commission has now received the number of people who will go to vote, but no figure has been given to the press until Monday. It will be announced only 48 hours in advance — explain the members of this Commission — because there may be changes that could later be misinterpreted. Voter lists Their compilation is not yet complete. But problems are also appearing where these lists have been posted. In many areas different people cannot find their names. Such cases have also been verified in Tirana, where some members of an entire building entrance are missing. Ar. Me. Words from the rallies SALI BERISHA, President of the Republic “Communism had sentenced Albania to death and we drove it out. The Constitution is the greatest social pact that Albanians have signed in all times; it is an act of nationwide reconciliation. Let us all vote, regardless of political beliefs, and say YES to the Constitution.” TRITAN SHEHU, Secretary General of the PD “Let us all vote with our hands for the Constitution. By voting for it, we have voted for the year 2000.” PS “To approve the Constitution, the President aims to bypass the legitimate body, Parliament.” ALMA TAFAJ, Vice-President of the Euro-Socialist Youth Forum “I call on all Euro-socialists in the country to vote for the Constitution.” PJETER ARBNORI, Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly “We must support the Constitution, because it belongs to the whole people and not to one party. We thank all the socialists who have supported us.” ARBEN IMAMI, Deputy Chairman of the PAD “The Constitution presented to us is the worst possible version.” SABRI GOD0, Chairman of the PR “The referendum is a direct form of democracy, based on the principle: one person, one vote.” SKËNDER GJINUSHI, Chairman of the PSD “The draft Constitution is not for the wastebasket; there are many points in it that need to be discussed. Let us take the draft Constitution to Parliament.” GEGE TUSHAJ, Chairman of the PSD in the Mat district “The Social Democratic electorate understands it; it will say YES to the Constitution.”

“No to the disruption of opposition rallies” TIRANA — Yesterday’s actions by several groups of people who tried to intervene violently in the meetings of opposition parties with the aim of disrupting these rallies and the referendum procedures are a reprehensible act. It is the Albanian Helsinki Committee which denounces, in a statement, the clashes and incidents that have taken place in recent days during the rallies of the opposition forces. According to this Committee, these acts “constitute a dangerous precedent for the normal development of the country’s life.” The criticism is also directed at “the other side, which reacts in an unprovoked manner, further inflaming tensions and steering the debate toward uncontrolled accusations and even violent confrontation.” The television is not left out either, “whose stance — according to the Committee — risks amplifying these situations.” The statement also stresses that the right to assemble belongs to all political forces and that it is the duty of the competent authorities to guarantee and take the necessary measures so that this right is respected. is requested.

Festival at Tirana’s Odeon TIRANA — “The International Days of Chamber New Music” is the festival that will begin today in Tirana and continue for 6 consecutive days. Organized by the Albanian section of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM), the festival, in addition to participation, includes all the countries of the concept. Each evening during the festival will present works by musical authors from five countries: Germany, Romania, Switzerland, Austria, and Albania. It involves the participation of instrumentalists and ensembles of a high artistic level. They will perform works, many of them for the first time in our country, and in some cases — though rare — works by the distinguished composer Arvo Pärt, as well as works composed especially for this festival. The concerts will be held in the Odeon hall, one day for the music of each represented country. Before each concert, a conference on the music of the represented country will be held in the hall of the Academy of Arts, together with descriptions of the composers’ profiles. Distinguished composers such as the German Gerhard Stabler, the Romanian Anatol Vieru, the Austrian Herbert Lauermann, and the Albanian composer Ligor Balla will thus be presented. These composers, as well as many of the instrumentalists, are known for various awards not only in their own countries but also in different international events. For the organization of this festival — the first of its kind in the history of musical events in Albania — the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, the Municipality of Tirana, the “Soros” and “Koln” foundations, as well as the representations of the embassies of the participating countries in Albania, have also contributed.

YESTERDAY IN ALBANIA The President of the Court of Cassation, Zef Brozi, received the American ambassador to Albania, Jozef Lake. Alongside an overview of the organization of the judicial system, Brozi also highlighted the many material difficulties inherited from the past. For his part, Ambassador Lake, in addition to showing interest in many issues, expressed readiness to provide concrete assistance. A new exchange center in Tirana A new international transit exchange center has just been inaugurated in Tirana. The center — a gift from the Swiss government — cost 4 million francs and is an integral part of a master plan for the development of telecommunications in Albania. Prime Minister Meksi was also present at the inauguration ceremony.

Judges announce the verdict “Customs scandal”: five remain in prison A woman is charged Trial begins for the Greek man killed in Tirana TIRANA — The story of the Greek trader, killed in Albania on the afternoon of 1 June '94, comes to an end in the Tirana Court. Before the Trial Panel appeared the 43-year-old Jorgjica Morina, accused of “intentional murder, with the aim of revenge.” There were other charges — read out by prosecutor Puka — that weighed on the so-called wonderful investigations carried out by the officers of Police Precinct No. 2 of the capital. It was precisely these investigators who, after the crime, and only on a piece of wall painted with lime, discovered the murderer Dhuvës — and had followed the story from the next day until it finally came before the judges. (e. l.) TIRANA — Five of the eight defendants in the “customs scandal” trial remain in prison. This was decided by the Tirana Court — at midday on Monday — which found guilty and sentenced the Lebanese merchant and the seven Albanian customs officers to nearly ten years in prison altogether. There are also Vicki Bricolli, Hani i Diamantit, while the other customs officers still have several months to serve to complete the sentences handed down to them, ranging from 9 to 18 months. As in the prosecutor’s request, the harshest sentence was handed to the Lebanese cigarette trader “Cooper”. The prison term is 16 years, plus a civil penalty, which ultimately amounted to 200,000 dollars. Thus ends the first “brain” of the “customs scandal”, because, as was also confirmed in the trial, “investigations will continue for about 15 other people”. (e. l.)

I undress, but I’m not paid: let the elderly threaten GJIROKASTER — “Either the payment, or we will astonish you a second time.” This is the threat made by a group of elderly people, former models, to the administration of the Art Lyceum. They posed for a whole year in the studio of young painters in exchange for a sum of money provided by the Lyceum’s own management. But although no major complaint has been made, they still have not been paid for the work done. “We are in a difficult economic situation and we even struggle to provide bread,” the dissatisfied ones said — “so this year too we have agreed, but we have decided to wait until they pay us for the work of the previous year.”

Dispute over the Aegean Sea Soon the intervention of the Turkish fleet ON PAGE 2 The story of people without freedom, complaints about food A trip to Kavaja prison ON PAGE 3

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