In the eastern city hospital, suspected patients are increasing. Here too the blame lies with drinking water In Librazhd there are now 34 in hospital In the eastern city hospital, suspected patients are increasing. Here too the blame lies with drinking water The long march of cholera In Librazhd there are now 34 in hospital TIRANA — Cholera continues to extend its grip over Albania. The rise in the number of patients hospitalized in the hospitals of Kçova, Berat, the military hospital in Tirana and, most recently, also in Librazhd, is causing concern, along with more deaths. Meanwhile, laboratory results are adding to the number of fully confirmed cholera cases: the 27 people announced by the Ministry of Health on Tuesday have now been joined by others from the Military Hospital in Tirana. “Of the 37 patients hospitalized by 7 o’clock, speaking for Gazeta Shqiptare, the head of the infectious ward of this hospital — the results of the analyses carried out by our director show that 15 are cholera patients.” The alarming spread of the epidemic has gone hand in hand with the measures taken by the health authorities. In Kçova, a school dormitory has been cleared out and converted into a special ward, thus eliminating the need to transfer the patients to Berat. In the public municipality, the number is also growing, with specialist doctors from the Water Supply Service offering their help. In Berat, city assistant doctors have offered their help, while in Tirana Maria Neire, an epidemiology expert, has arrived from Geneva. Her visit, however, has been preceded by 15 leaflets explaining cholera and the measures that must be taken. Their translation has begun immediately, and then they will be distributed to the population. The alarm has also set other districts in motion. Everywhere the water distribution network is being chlorinated and other hygiene measures are being taken. In Fier, private firms have even volunteered their financial means. Meanwhile, factories that produce sparkling water or soft drinks in which water is used have been placed under testing and control. Ar. Me. A stand-off over the fearsome vibrio CARLO BOLLINO TIRANA — A strange stand-off in Europe over the cholera events in Albania. For days the press has been tragic, while other reports are almost banal. Between these two opposing positions stands the Minister of Health and the Albanian authorities, who, without creating alarm, blame the heedless movements of the public for what is happening. The first position is expressed by Italy, which links the history of the blockade in aid offered by the European Community to the easing of the damage, and on the seventh has shown itself ready to send people and equipment to Albania to deal with cholera. A gesture of peace, or an initiative taken to soften the terror of infection. Then there is Italy: that controversy is intertwined, and from the outset it has exploded over the cholera issue. The alarm is great, especially in Puglia, and it is again Italy that has sent expert advisers to Albania and exchanged continuous data. Meanwhile, among newspapers a battle has broken out between those who say cholera has been brought in from outside and those who, on the contrary, assure readers that the emergency is real and can be solved. And it is on the wave of this collective fear that excessive measures have been taken to frighten Albanian citizens even more. It seems cholera scares Italy more than Albania. Why? Finally, there is the WHO, which with insistence was the first organization to make accusations everywhere; yesterday it stressed to all of Europe that “the situation in Albania is not serious, and that no extraordinary measures are advised for the entry of Albanian citizens into the continent.” The stand-off is an ordinary one, high and low, and the movements want to know clearly what they want and what they are. A sick man in Librazhd, helped by his wife. On the map, the epidemic hotspots From Librazhd FATOS BAXHAKU Perhaps they had never imagined they would ever be infected by cholera. They had considered themselves far from the first center of the epidemic and therefore the news of the outbreak of the disease had caused them only sorrow for their relatives, but no obvious fear. But now here they are, urgently admitted to the small hospital of Librazhd, some of them even not natives of the town. The heaviest suspicions once again fall on the drinking-water pipes, which, instead of bringing life, seem to have brought the deadly vibrio. 34 people, all from the Librazhd district, had been admitted by Thursday lunchtime to the hospital in the small town on the banks of the Shkumbin. Although by that day only one of those affected, in tests carried out in Tirana, had confirmed the infection, the doctors are also worried about the condition of the other 30, many of whom are in a worrying state. The geography of the disease covers several areas of the district. Most of the sick are from Librazhd, but there are also people from Dorëzi in Prriska e Martaneshit, Cërrenik and Prrenjas. The small hospital built in 1913 — with a capacity of 120 beds — gives no impression from the outside, while inside you can hardly find an empty place. At one of its entrances — which is not guarded by anyone — at the moment of our arrival the ambulance was carrying the second patient, residents of the town, whose symptoms are already well known. A room used as a storage area for sanitary supplies has quickly been turned into a ward for the sick. Inside, the patients, some of their family members and nurses are together. Someone is lying on a bench close to the door, from where the groans of the sick can be heard. A situation that is certainly very human, although the doctor standing over an elderly man does not even have time to speak: “I am afraid for him,” he says as he moves from door to door. Most of the sick have been admitted to the infectious ward of the hospital. Here the isolation is more evident, so much so that the smell of chlorine immediately hits your nose as soon as you enter. The head of this ward, Dr. Liri Roman Minalla [?], tells Gazeta Shqiptare the story of the latest admissions. “It started on Tuesday evening with a 30-year-old woman from Librazhd,” says Minalla, “and then the number increased within 24 hours and later. I still cannot say anything definite. But it seems that the center of this outbreak is precisely the town of Librazhd. Most of the patients who were questioned are people who drank water or ate in the town. The two patients admitted today in the town and in Bërzesan are also from here. Now we need more disinfectant.” Minalla also describes the hospital’s isolation measures. “We have asked the police,” he says, “and this morning we will establish a rule in the hospital grounds.” The first questions about the origin of the vibrio are also beginning to arise. At the hospital we were told that the drinking-water pipeline has had some defects recently. In different areas of the city, water has mixed with sewage. Only now has the municipality started putting chlorine into the pipes. The degree of infection is also largely in the water. Not far from the hospital entrance a café continues to operate. There people drink some soft drinks, as family members who have just been with the patients do. Water continues to flow “cold” from the taps.

Suspicion over two victims from the area A woman from Drenovica loses her life From Berat ARMAND MERO Suspicion over two victims from the area Berat, more deaths at the city hospital A woman from Drenovica loses her life From Berat ARMAND MERO Cholera strikes at life again. On Wednesday evening, one more person was added to the toll of victims of this epidemic, which for more than a week has cast a veil of fear over Albania. And this time it is once again someone from Kçova — considered the epicenter of the disaster — but from Drenovica, a village near Fier that so far has registered around 40 suspected cases. The elderly woman, Farushe Daja, 73, had been admitted in a short time without being able to receive the necessary medical assistance at the Berat hospital. The merciless disease did not give the specialists even the slightest chance to fight it. Daja was urgently admitted to the Berat hospital at around 7:00 p.m. with the same symptoms that have already caused fear in everyone: diarrhea and vomiting. In a very serious condition — perhaps also made worse by her age and the other illnesses from which she had previously suffered — she was placed under the immediate care of the infectious-disease specialists. Unfortunately, death came very quickly. Death proved stronger, and within 30 minutes it had taken the woman’s life. Just one day after her, “in the infectious diseases ward,” according to Daja’s official record, lives were lost. Although this time the specialists say that the cause was not cholera but the other illnesses from which the two victims suffered: R. H., 83, from Drenovica, and another 50-year-old diabetic man. For some time now the number of patients hospitalized has continued to rise. The struggle with death continues.

For “illegal possession of weapons” TIRANA — The “Omonia” case returns to the stage once again. And another of its figures will go before the Tirana court today. However, this time, Kostaq Cavo — described as having been arrested on 19 April of this year — is not accused, unlike his colleagues who only a few days earlier had been sentenced together to 35 years in prison by the Tirana court. Because the investigation against Cavo has ruled out precisely the most serious charge, that of “treason against the fatherland, in the form of carrying out the orders of foreign intelligence services”, leaving only “illegal possession of weapons” in place. Thus, under this charge, the last “Omonia” member among those detained during the operation by public order authorities at the end of April this year will also appear before the judges this morning. According to the then announcement by the Ministry of Public Order, “surprise checks were organized following information about illegal possession of weapons as well as subversive activity.” And precisely in that announcement — dated 20 April ’94 — “among the 11 arrested from Vlora, Bulqiza, Pogradec, Shkodra, Tirana and Has, the names also appeared of some minorities, figures of their organization ‘Omonia.’” That same day, five people were arrested in Delvina — Kosta Miçuli, Piro Kondi, Panajot Marto, Pandeli Gazel and Kosta Cavo — and it was said that “one of them had been found with an unlicensed weapon,” alluding precisely to Cavo. Nevertheless, no explanation has been given even for the fact that, while being investigated in Tirana for “subversive activity,” the name of Kostaq Cavo still appears, and later the investigations against him were separated out, only to be closed with the charge of “illegal possession of weapons.” Thus the “sixth” member of “Omonia” also goes before the court, the one for whom the Greek press had spoken for days before the trial of the five. In any case, the final charge, like the defendant’s argument for innocence in the crime of “treason against the fatherland” in the form of carrying out the orders of foreign intelligence services,” has remained a strong argument for Greece and Albania, which had been accused of mounting a political trial against the minorities of “Omonia.” Together with Cavo, and in light of the Albanian political circumstances and only after this year, the Ministry of Public Order had included the statement that all Albanian citizens, regardless of nationality, are obliged to comply with the laws of the Albanian state.” The law likewise prohibits being armed without a permit. Ultimately it will be the court that proves everything, including for the last accused figure of “Omonia”. (e.l)

Fewer grams TIRANA — Another fraud in commercial activity denounced by the Financial Police. This time the object of unfair gain was baking soda. Its retail packages — usually 100 grams — contained less soda than what was stated on the label. And it was discovered to be a widespread phenomenon in several towns. Following this complaint, the units of the Financial Police issued 100 fines totaling 98,310 lekë. Meanwhile, 4,500 packets, or around 250 kilograms of baking soda, were seized. (a.s.)

The Greek Military Court decides TIRANA — The Greek colonel Thoma Vraka, who in August had violated Albanian airspace, has been removed from active military service and at the same time demoted. TIRANA — The Greek colonel Thoma Vraka, who in August had violated Albanian airspace and had flown over the Albanian government aircraft in disregard of minority demands, has been removed from active military service and at the same time demoted. Vrakas, 42, commander of a civil air base, on 21 August supplied an Albanian state aircraft over Saranda and Vlora. In messages dropped from the aircraft, among other things, he demanded the removal of Albanian President Berisha. This act, which further sharpened the climate of relations between the two neighboring states, was taken up by the Greek Military Court. And it was this court that accused Vraka of an attack on relations with a foreign state, abuse of command post, and reckless disregard. The former colonel, during the trial while free, had declared that “with an airplane he defended the fatherland.” All this came after the conviction that five leaders of the Greek minority in Albania had received from the Albanian court, accused of espionage activity and illegal possession of weapons.

CURSIVE REALITY MIRDITË — A tragedy, but also a miracle, were both present in a serious road accident that took place a few days earlier in the well-known area of the district of Mirditë. From the scale of the tragedy it was clear — from the shocking condition that the miracle was, that a vehicle with a cow inside had been involved, apparently thrown into a ravine from a height of 100 meters. The accident victims were travelling in one vehicle and suffered the most serious injuries, while in another case involving the cow, the truck had slipped into the ravine. Witnesses tell us that within a few moments of the crash, they were shaken by the bloody scene, with 4 of the victims having already died. But while everyone was stunned by one unusual fact: the cow, completely unharmed — as if it had not fallen from 100 meters above — was peacefully eating grass a few metres from the place where the injured lay. Witnesses called it a “miracle” and said that if the event had pleased it, it was because the great tragedy had turned out not to have happened at all.

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"THOSE WHO POSSESS UNLICENSED GUNS AND SHOTGUNS MUST HAND THEM OVER VOLUNTARILY TO THE RELEVANT AUTHORITIES" — This is an appeal by Interior Minister Agron Musaraj, who during a meeting with representatives of the local authorities of the Gjirokastra district asked that all long guns and other unlicensed weapons be handed over voluntarily so that no citizens confront the law. This appeal comes immediately after the trial of 5 Albanian citizens of Greek nationality, during which it was noted that hunting weapons had been given as gifts to some minorities. DUKAGJIN, ANOTHER BELL IS MYSTERIOUSLY STOLEN FROM RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS — With the inscription “Gift from the Holy See to the Church of the Abbot of Dukagjin,” a bell weighing 45 kilograms was mysteriously stolen recently from the church. Known to everyone as a work of art, this bell is one of the first objects involved in art theft. Meanwhile, the security forces have begun searching to identify the perpetrators. FLOWERS, THE SYMBOL OF PEACE, ON THE EVE OF THE START OF THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR — An original exhibition organized by the Albanian Cultural Association of Flora and Fauna invites visitors to its premises in Tirana to admire many natural themes. On the eve of the new school year it takes on special significance by conveying a message of peace to all children. The first exhibition of its kind, it will be followed from New York and by 8 from Macedonia, where many children and countries from Europe will take part.