Elbasan, cholera victims still Through the psychiatric wards where 300 other patients are at risk A man breathes his last before our eyes. The hygienic conditions are alarming Meanwhile the epidemic has also reached the city of Krujë, which until today had not been affected From Elbasan ARMAN MERO Between the beds of the endless wards, the worn benches of the canteen and the penetrating dampness, the victims of cholera loom frighteningly over the unlucky patients of the psychiatric hospital of Elbasan. The successive deaths and the many sick people have gripped everyone, including the healthy, with anxiety. The guard is the first to recoil when you try to go inside. "Do not enter, there is an infection." Meanwhile, behind the barred windows of the main hospital building, the permanent patients, amid laughter and insults, gesture: "Eat it, there is cholera here." At the door the nurses open protective masks, worn thin by use, while tears of tension run down their faces; the hospital has been in emergency for five days. A heavy suffocating cloud — a mixture of chlorine and the excrement of the sick — reigns everywhere. In the long corridors divided by five crowded rooms of the wards, some women — unfortunate souls, abandoned here with no hope — walk around dragging their large black socks, on which the number of the ward is roughly marked in oil paint. The sharp voice of a nurse orders them to go back to their rooms; because of this epidemic, they have even been forbidden to move around. They withdraw without understanding why — they do not want to understand that they are cholera patients — while in the first ward there are up to 10 women: a few days earlier, 6 others had lost their lives. They are part of the most degraded contingent — having been brought here since the age of 10 and for whom life has lost all meaning. These people only exist, and their hopeless existence will continue until death overtakes them. "This is their fate," a nurse tells us. "The doctors are sorry, but we are doing everything possible to save them." Above the sickrooms hang, with a worn-out cloth fastened to a nail, what stands like a gloomy sign. The nurses check from time to time. They are afraid the patient may pull the needle out of his arm and get up to move. Here, anything is possible. In one corner of the ward a woman has curled up, slapping herself and crying. It is not known why. Perhaps because of the pain of her companions' deaths? It may be so. In these people — women with childlike faces and brains bent by old age — the sparks of human feelings have not yet been extinguished. Suddenly they appear in an outburst and often end just as abruptly. Once they were like us, they rejoiced and suffered like all normal people, but one day — and they do not know what broke them. Here, a sick man, 55 years old, has just breathed his last before our eyes. Another bends over the now lifeless body of his roommate in room 11. He grins while crying, closes his eyelids, covers his face with the unwashed blanket. While he is dying himself, a patient a few meters away keeps his eyes fixed on a sick companion. He turns his head, smiles and says: "I am crazy." Meanwhile, from the corridor comes a desperate scream: "Hey, sisters. Cholera is entering us." ELBASAN — The psychiatry ward of Elbasan is in the crosshairs of cholera, which brings death. On Tuesday, the four deaths from Sunday and last Saturday were joined by 3 more, one on Monday and 2 on Tuesday morning. Doctors do not hide their fear that this is only the beginning and a third; 6 patients are in very serious condition and their lives now stand very close to death’s end. For the 350 patients filling the wards of this hospital, their preventive trap has begun. Meanwhile, analyses confirmed on Tuesday the presence of vibrio in two of the victims. The situation remains critical. "The situation is emergency," Sali Baca, director of Public Health for the district, told Gazeta Shqiptare — we are trying to contain the outbreak so it does not spread to the city." The Ministry of Health has also intervened to deal with the situation. On Tuesday, a consultation was held in the psychiatric ward of Elbasan between hospital doctors and specialists from the Ministry and the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology in the capital. During it, it was decided to immediately increase the number of nurses caring for the patients as well as specialist doctors, some of whom will come from Tirana. Meanwhile cholera has continued its march in Krujë. This time the city, until now untouched, has surrendered as well. Five first cases have been admitted to hospital, while the number of those confirmed by analyses — the sick in the villages — has reached 28 according to doctors. Ar. Me./M. Kl. A cholera patient (Photo A. Babani) This person has just died in building 11 of Elbasan hospital (Photo A. Babani) A cholera patient. This person has just died in building 11 of Elbasan hospital (Photo A. Babani)

The story of 13 victims ELBASAN — The successive deaths of cholera victims in the pediatric ward of Elbasan have increased disagreement between the health services and the municipal council of the city. At the center of it was the issue of preparing coffins. Initially neither side took responsibility. In the debate that took place only on Tuesday, the matter was resolved by taking on the verification of the first deaths in this hospital. The sudden and entirely unexpected outbreak of the epidemic caught the health institutions by surprise and almost completely unprepared. Worried about its extremely rapid spread, the issue of burying the dead was almost forgotten. It was the growing number of victims and the vibrio taking over the hospital morgue that reminded everyone that they had to be sent to their final resting place. But precisely for this reason the discussions began. The municipal enterprise that deals with coffin preparation — 2,500 lekë is the price for one — protested, saying it could not do this if it was not paid by someone. Most of the victims were lonely people or people abandoned by their families, and no one was interested in them. The complaint from the municipal enterprise put the city’s health leaders in difficulty — according to regulations the body must remain in the morgue no longer than 24 hours — and only on Tuesday morning did they find a solution to this problem. All expenses for those not claimed by relatives — up to the burial of 10 such cases — will now be covered by the Public Health Directorate of the district of Elbasan itself. Mentor Klika

Meeting at the Presidency TIRANA — The first step has been taken toward an agreement between the parties for the creation of the new commission that will take on the burden of preparing the new draft Constitution. Yesterday afternoon Parliament discussed precisely this delicate issue. The first step was taken on Monday afternoon. The Presidium of the People's Assembly had taken the first steps in organizing the new commission. Here too the problem arose — now for the second time — of the commission’s composition. The chairman of the Socialist parliamentary group, Namik Dokle, had requested that the commission include at most members of the political forces that on 6 November had expressed support for No. On behalf of the PD, Ali Spahia had requested that the commission preserve the same proportions as the parties have in Parliament. After many debates and on the proposal of Chairman Arbnori, an agreement was finally reached: the commission should be composed of 8 PD deputies, 4 from PS, 2 from PSD, 1 from PP, 1 from PDMNJ, 1 from PAD and 2 from PPD. The agreement seems to have left all sides satisfied. The commission should take decisions by consensus or, when this is impossible, by a two-thirds majority vote. With the composition proposed by Arbnori, none of the political forces — now including those that are not officially recognized as proper parliamentary groups — can take decisions on its own. "It has not yet been definitively decided," PS Deputy Speaker Servet Pëllumbi told Gazeta Shqiptare on Tuesday, "but with what was discussed at the Presidium of the People's Assembly we are now close to the right compromise." On Monday President Berisha also spoke again about the flaws of 6 November. While emphasizing the activity of PD, Berisha publicly stated that he had no criticism, implying that the No victory was due in some measure also to the shortcomings of the "state and party structures." Berisha called on the PD leadership bodies to begin considering alliances, once again excluding the socialists as a possible target of any alliance.

Discussion in the Territorial Regulation Council Shkodër plans protective measures Discussion in the Territorial Regulation Council Illegal construction is causing concern Shkodër plans protective measures SHKODER — The fight against illegal construction in Shkodër will be intensified. This has been the goal of the latest measures studied by the district’s Territorial Regulation Council. Here there are as many as 70 such constructions that have seriously damaged urban planning, vehicle movement and much else. In the latest meeting of the Territorial Regulation Council of the municipality, which dealt with the examination of these problems, the members decided on immediate measures that will change the current situation. The open squares set aside for organized construction have now been occupied by premises and shops. Thus, these unauthorized buildings have taken out of use the purpose for which they were planned and approved. The solution to this problem seems to have been made more difficult by another, perhaps equally delicate, issue: the lack of investment in the city. With these investments absent, the Municipality should not undertake unplanned works for large buildings and structures. As a result, various individuals who have built capital, local buildings and shops by occupying them for several years have taken over the greater part of Shkodër’s sidewalks, which will focus conditions for Shkodër, which will remain a closed prospect of residence. But the delay in investments has now been joined by the issue of eliminating illegal structures.

The man is arrested by police VLORË — A fierce quarrel over a woman. This was apparently the reason for the murder of the 22-year-old G.D. on Monday. The incident took place in Selenicë. In the small town it caused shock among the people who knew both sides. Under the charge of murder "for weak motives" is now A.L., 35 years old. According to the police, the author of the tragic murder has been identified. The exact circumstances of the event and the dynamics of the Selenicë incident have not yet been established. From the first data A.L. declared that the victim had "been harassing his wife" for a long time. According to these statements, the latest incident is also linked to this. A.L. tried to catch the victim, and in the ensuing struggle the shot of A.L.’s hunting weapon was heard and G.D. remained dead on the spot. Thus a crime of passion has sent the defendant to the cells of the Vlorë police station, where he must now face the accusation of premeditated murder and the reasons for this event. The investigative group has immediately begun its work, but there is almost no doubt left about responsibility for the murder. A.L. will now have to face a severe long prison sentence. Perhaps for a long time. According to the police, the author of the tragic murder has been identified. Sta. Ma.

Initiative of the city municipality Gjirokastra GJIROKASTER — The municipality of Gjirokastra is the initiator of a special undertaking: increasing the green area in the city. Based on the impression that in times when in cities there is calm and decline there remains a settlement transformed by industry, this industry and old construction. These days around 1,000 new pits will be opened in Gjirokastër to be used for planting new trees, mainly on the city’s central streets and the stone ones! Especially during the days when school pupils from the city will also take part in this action. (r. k.)

YESTERDAY IN ALBANIA The court found that he had engaged in smuggling, and now the trader will serve an eight-month prison sentence. The defendant E. N. has been sentenced to 8 months of imprisonment. An announcement was officially made by the official news agency. The decision was handed down in the name of the Tirana Court, according to which, during the trial proceedings, it turned out that the defendant had carried out in Macedonia of the former Yugoslavia. Later the trader and the buyer in the production portico, V. N., presented false documents, thereby preparing two mols and calculating the assigned taxes. This act is only a prison matter for the Financial Police. In the end the trader will also have to pay a sum of money which, according to the court, he had obtained unlawfully. Tirana, a new urban area is planned In the capital there is an urban development project for 1,000 inhabitants. The study for the creation of this area was approved by the Tirana Territorial Regulation Council. This decision will provide housing for 700 homeless families and 1,001 inhabitants in this area near Arbëria. The buildings will be mainly for young artisans and will be located in the northern part of Tirana. The project has been completed, as have the children’s spaces.

Many victims KUKES — Traffic accidents on the roads of Kukës have increased. Now the small eastern city is trying to approach, if not the painful record, then the one for the highest number of victims in road accidents among the smaller districts of Albania. According to the latest reports from the official news agency — referring to local administrative data — only in the last five months, from May to November, this sad balance has been recorded in the district: six people killed and 11 injured in 11 road accidents. If in the first period at least 6 accidents had already been recorded in which 7 people lost their lives and nine others were injured.

Serbian offensive continues NATO confirms the embargo ON PAGE 2 “Constitution” of foods, fines for offenders ON PAGE 3