35 million ECU of EC aid blocked again New stop for aid The Greek veto returns Now the foreign ministers will discuss the issue TIRANA — Greece’s veto is once again blocking European Community aid to Albania. The EC representative from Athens — previously informed upon arrival at the first meeting — attended the latest meeting of the EC Council of Economic and Finance Ministers held yesterday in Luxembourg. The Greeks are thus “calling” for unanimity, the outcome of which has not yet been defined. It is now up to the EC Commission, which has decided to intervene by trying to find a formula that would eliminate the possibility of a veto. The reason for blocking the Albanian package of 35 million ECU, which the European Community had allocated as it had for many other Eastern countries for the balance of payments, was once again the same allegation: violation of the rights of the Greek minority. Greece continues to use this claim as an argument, while at the same time exploiting its position in the EC. A few days ago, Foreign Minister Papoulias himself stated to journalists at Athens airport that “as long as he is at the head of the EC he will use all its influence to impose sanctions on Albania”. Greece’s hard line does not seem to have found the necessary support in the other countries of the European Union, which not only voted in favor of aid to Albania, but also expressed, in a statement by the spokesperson for the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, both their surprise and their disapproval. Now the Economic Council has once again shifted the dispute directly between Athens and Tirana, giving it a first political dimension. Thus, after this second blockage, it will be the upcoming meeting of EC foreign ministers — scheduled for the coming days — that will examine this problem. In Monday’s veto, Greece also claimed that its Minister for European Affairs had said that it was not Greece that had blocked the aid but the European Union itself. This statement was rejected by the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which clarified that “the aid had previously been approved by all levels of the EC Commission and the European Parliament.” EC headquarters in Brussels

After mistreatment in Montenegro The Han i Hotit border crossing is closed A bilateral commission meets to review the situation that has arisen SHKODER — The Han i Hotit border crossing — located on the border dividing Albania and Montenegro — has been blocked. For five days no vehicles carrying passengers or goods have been allowed to pass through. According to a statement given to Gazeta Shqiptare by border police officers, the reason is the mistreatment of Albanian travelers and drivers by Yugoslav customs officers. In recent times, the Albanian border police have received numerous complaints from Albanian citizens about the theft of goods by Yugoslav customs officials as well as about the imposition of fines and penalties without basis. These repeated incidents have forced the Albanian side at the border to decide to block the Han i Hotit crossing until the situation returns to normal. There is still no information on the results of the talks that representatives of the two countries were to hold on 7 June. An.Ste

Fear, the law, discrimination and the fight against AIDS The first interview with an Albanian gay man EDMOND LAÇI TIRANA — “We ask that Albanian public opinion understand us!” This is the appeal of a member — the only one — of a society that is illegal in Albania and that chooses to identify itself. These are the words of a young homosexual man. They are asking to repeal an old law that condemned them and to go before the Albanian Parliament for their rights, even though — according to the laws at the time — they risk up to ten years in prison for engaging in such activity. “We cannot remain silent — but at the same time, officially we have formed an association,” one of the seven members of the leadership of the “Gay Albania” association told Gazeta Shqiptare in a somewhat distinctive voice, “because Albanian law still punishes our activity, so we are forced to remain anonymous.” Thus, for the first time in Albania, the newsroom has interviewed a person — highly despised in public opinion and far from traditional morality — who has found the courage to introduce himself and speak. It is true that many people call it a disease, but what exists in every human being is instinct. Only in us this instinct always has the premises to develop.” Do you feel outside reality and burdened by the contempt of others? “That is exactly where our duty begins. We are sure that not only we, but also public opinion, would not accept that suffering of the soul be punished, as if it were, for example, a criminal.” “To what extent, or as an individual in your society, do you think about women in relation to others?” “Although we are more attracted to men, this does not mean that we hate women. In fact, we have some female friends and spouses with whom we like to talk and spend time, and we also argue that homosexuals’ feelings toward women are innocent, because they accompany the natural form of a man. And then homosexuals also like women.” And men? “We hate above all violence, sex through violence, hypocrisy and servility to self-interest.” Homosexuals are accused of being carriers and transmitters of the terrible disease AIDS. Isn’t this one more reason against you? “On the contrary. One of the main aims of our association is also to support the fight against the spread of AIDS. At the same time, we think that as an association we should carry out activities by requesting medical testing against AIDS.” How did the idea of creating the “Gay Albania” association arise? “Everything began after a piece — written by a homosexual, now on the association’s leadership — in the youth newspaper ‘Play Boy’. Some people came around, and today we have an association with around 50 members. But we are not that few. According to studies carried out by non-governmental organizations operating in Albania, there are thousands and hundreds of active homosexuals, not to mention the passive ones. The association’s leadership should be strengthened, and we have many membership requests from foreigners who are currently working and living in Albania.” Do you operate within the country or abroad? “Right now we are still in the early stages. I think we have a functioning secretary, but that will depend a lot on financial resources and on the help we receive from homosexual organizations from different countries around the world. There is democracy for every problem that is discussed, but the association is open not only to 18-year-olds, but also to unmarried people.” You said your activity has been deemed punishable. How many “martyrs” do you have in the association? “The number is not important, but it is true that many of us were imprisoned by the regime simply because we were homosexuals. In the association we also have people who have experienced the terrible prisons of Spaç and Burrel.” And married homosexuals? “We make no exception in our association. Of course, we have married members, just as we also have many bachelors.” Have you found support abroad? “We have just returned from a seminar that the EC — through EUROCASO — held on the problem of preventing AIDS with non-governmental organizations from the East. So far we have established links with all similar associations in Central and Eastern Europe, not to mention individual people interested in our association’s activity from all over the world. In Albania we have links with the non-governmental organizations ‘Aksion Plus’ and ‘Opsa’, who have also shown themselves willing to help us, of course in the areas where the interest is mutual.” What are the future plans? “The main thing is to bring about the repeal of the old law and the approval of another one that will respect us and allow us to carry out our activity legally. We are broad-minded and feel strong, because we represent not only a sport, art, culture and science, but also a political position. One of our nearer plans is the celebration — at the end of June — of International Homosexuals’ Day. Our rights in Albania — as in the whole world — also begin with the celebration of a day.” Press and taboo Homosexuality in Albania — but in fact not only in Albania — is a major taboo. We thought long and hard before deciding to publish this interview, because a subject of this kind could offend general morality. In Europe even today the problems of homosexuals are being discussed, and although such debate has been going on for many years, not in England, not in France, not in Germany. It would have seemed even more difficult to choose. But to speak, and to discuss — when one respects others and everyone — cannot offend anyone. Today things are changing. Homosexuality is still a crime, but we are convinced that people’s mentality has evolved to the point where it is capable of facing clearly what is one of many realities of the country, without pointless scandal. To hear the opinions of people who live differently from us is, on the contrary, no small thing — a precious opportunity, not only for intellectuals, for rare reflection. To read and to listen does not mean to support it. (c.b.)

From the latest government meeting The creation of the department for the economy is decided TIRANA — Among the many and highly important documents approved at the latest meeting of the Council of Ministers, the draft law “On the migration number” stands out; it will serve the proper functioning of the social security and health care systems. To prevent damage to forest assets, the Government also discussed and approved another draft law, “On some amendments to the Law on Forests and the Forest Service Police”; “The creation of the Department of Economic Development and Coordination of Foreign Assistance” is the content of another approved draft decision. Another draft decision was also approved for the acceptance of humanitarian aid — 10 million ECU — that the European Community has approved for Albania. It will be used for rebuilding schools, rehabilitating and integrating former political prisoners into society, reconstructing prisons, as well as supporting local humanitarian projects. The meeting also decided to sell abroad some pesticides that arrived as aid or as a loan.

Fier An Austrian becomes honorary citizen FIER — An Austrian doctor, Norbert Payer, has been declared an “Honorary Citizen” of Fier. On Monday, in a special ceremony during which four new rooms were inaugurated in the city hospital, the mayor, Sotiraq Aleksi, presented Payer with the awarded title. Payer — who has been in Fier for several months — has worked together with another group of Austrian doctors to share experience and cooperate with Albanian doctors. Within the framework of aid from the Austrian Government, they also brought and installed a series of modern equipment in some of the rooms of the Fier city hospital. En. My.

Elbasan 4 villagers injured in the market ELBASAN — Four villagers from Shushica, who were selling their products in the large market of Elbasan, were injured by bursts of gunfire from a vehicle. “The villagers were victims of a ‘clash’ between rival mafia-style groups,” the Elbasan police commissioner explained to Gazeta Shqiptare. According to eyewitnesses, everything happened in front of a large crowd, when from the open window of a car an automatic weapon fired a burst of bullets. Immediately after the four innocent villagers were wounded, the law-enforcement authorities identified the real perpetrators of this terror, who are now being pursued. (Me.K.L)

Cursive reality Shkodër, what on earth did they have against the bridge? KOPLIK — The bridge of the village of Kamicë in Koplik, or rather what is left of it, has long since become an impassable obstacle for any vehicle carrying fuel that tries to cross it. It is the inhabitants of the four villages in the northwest of the district who, when the customs officer system was set up and directed toward an evident outlet — but whose functioning is the envy of even the customs officers in the mud — handle it. Anyone who wants to cross with a load of fuel must unload it at the side of the bridge, and it is the villagers who, in return for a modest reward, take responsibility for transporting it across. Thus a curious and unusual episode was born. It was born from the equally unusual and much-talked-about fuel smuggling with the mafia and contraband, which began in Albania with the muddy border that separates illegal trade from Montenegro. Remembering illegal trade, but quite fertile for what was forced upon them, it also sparked the economic interests of these villagers in making the bridge profitable. Seeing that “money” had been left nearby (almost money at hand), they thought: “Why shouldn’t we profit too?” Clearly, the residents immediately understood the strategic position of their village, Kamicë. And they decided to respond. The first act was the dismantling of the old bridge, in the troubled mind of a film character: “What on earth did they have against the bridge?” Without a doubt, that character would never have believed that the villagers could destroy the village bridge for their own interests. But with the bridge — when the bridge has been repaired — the villagers undertook a more moderate operation. In front of it, an axletree passes under careful watch, not beneath the mud-covered heap. And no one can cross it without paying the village “tax.” An.Se.

Tragic end for a 17-year-old girl He tried to commit suicide and died in hospital TIRANA — The agony of the young girl from Tirana who had tried to take her own life lasted more than a week. The 17-year-old — initials omitted out of respect for the family, so we do not mention her name — had unfortunately gone from a tragic gesture to another. The pills she took unfortunately exhausted not only the doctors’ great efforts but also life itself. The girl — according to the news published by Gazeta Shqiptare a few days earlier — had made the fatal decision after an argument with her family. And the substance she used, 4 colchicine tablets, a medicine used for bone diseases, was just as harsh as the decision itself. It made it impossible for the doctors — in the intensive care unit — who accompanied the girl’s struggle with death at every moment to save her. But their intervention was also powerless. The young girl has now said goodbye to a world she had only just begun to know. Ar. Me.

An EC expert group conducts a study in Macedonia Population census by ethnic groups ON PAGE 2 With the hot season, allergies appear Seasonal cold from different pollens ON PAGE 3

THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ALLIES’ LANDING IN NORMANDY IS ALSO COMMEMORATED IN ALBANIA Tirana also gave resonance to the events — organized by the Faculty of Foreign Languages and the American Cultural Center — marking the 50th anniversary of the Allies’ landing in Normandy. Many presentations recalling the moment of the Nazis’ expulsion from Europe — a war that caused 24,000 [ ? ] dead and wounded — were linked to the Albanian history of the Allies’ arrival. It refers to the year 1943 and the first arrival of British officers in Albania, an event that was later accompanied by dictator Hoxha’s opposition to a joint war by the Allies and the Albanian partisans. DURRESI CHOOSES ITS WIDER [?] FOR HOUSING [?] The Durres Municipality proposed the expansion of the city’s housing area. Through a study, a new construction zone has now been identified, suitable for 100 apartments. Initially, it was thought that this plan would be reserved for 200 homeless families as well as those with inadequate housing. At the same time, plans were made for sewer installation and for another road, accompanied by possible facilities for citizens. ELBASAN DEMITIZES TREE-CHOPPING IN THE FORESTS, BUT NOT THE CUTTING OF GOVORAS “As is also noted in the latest report of the Forest Police in Elbasan, during six months, as of the first quarter of ’94 for grazing trees, only 20 forest damage cases have been realized, and 8/95? detections of these destroyers. In addition to this phenomenon — which is a cause of forest damage — there are [ ? ] also the people who are involved, who have to take responsibility for the value of the damage.