The chairman: “Europe recommends its approval in Parliament” CONSTITUTION / Controversy in the DP over the route for approving the draft Selami: We were left alone with the Referendum line And admits that Berisha challenged him TIRANA—Something has broken down in the Democratic Party’s top leadership. Berisha—and most of the party’s Presidium—has opposed the proposal by its chairman, Eduart Selami, to submit the draft Constitution to Parliament first. The proposal was intended to persuade the Prime Minister, who is also party chairman; this is the second time in a few days that a proposal by the chairman of the party in power has not been taken into account by the party’s senior bodies. Selami himself acknowledged this yesterday at a press conference, where he appeared with only the party spokesperson. “Only the President’s opinion, and also the opinion of most of the Presidium, was against this view,” Selami said. It seems Selami’s move was not made with the intention of backing down easily; he is determined to promote his position. “The party Presidium is not the highest authority that makes decisions,” he said. “That is the National Council, and of course I must bring this matter before the DP National Council.” The DP chairman, who is also head of the Albanian delegation to the Council of Europe, also explained why he had taken such a firm stance: “The Constitution today does not constitute ...” And admits that Berisha challenged him ...have been, who see no political reason for removing Parliament from the discussion of the Constitution, and therefore I defend this thesis.” Yesterday Selami answered journalists’ questions in a packed hall at the Palace of Congresses, where the presence of a large number of DP MPs was also notable, including some of its well-known figures such as Hajdari and Kopliku. Accompanied only by spokesperson Balla, Selami sought to explain his reiteration of the position that had left him almost alone in the face of criticism from most of his party’s Presidium the previous night. “We must understand whether there are no other forces in the political arena, neither among our allies nor among the parliamentary parties, nor among the parties outside Parliament; given also that in principle we agree that Parliament should not be excluded... I am proposing only a possibility.” Selami then tried to explain why he had reversed course. “I do not think there will be any kind of split,” he added. “As party chairman, I will do my utmost so that we, as the DP, go together not only to the Assembly, but also to the 1996 elections.” Eduart Selami (photo: H. Pustina)

TIRANA - As a heated debate has begun over the procedures for processing and ratifying the draft Constitution, contacts between the parties to establish the commission that will draft the proposal have stalled. The opposition has meanwhile announced that its draft is ready, but its move has been deemed invalid by the state authorities, who have insisted: “The commission must come from Parliament.”

BERAT - This is what remains of the bus that plunged down the Tërpan slope on Monday. These are the first photographs to arrive from the village near Berat, the site of the tragic accident that yesterday also claimed the 11th victim, one of the 40 injured. Dilaver Muçogllava, 55, died yesterday at around 11 o’clock, in the city hospital. But the condition of the others is, fortunately, not worsening, and many of the patients have now been declared out of danger. Berat—including the victims—declared yesterday a day of mourning. Meanwhile, further details of the tragedy have emerged, along with stories that seem unbelievable. Photographs with articles by EDMOND LAÇI on page 3 (photo: H. Pustina)

Reported yesterday to the Parliamentary Commission TIRANA - Positive signals from Albanian diplomacy toward Greece regarding the possibility of indirect dialogue. This was stated yesterday at a meeting of the Standing Parliamentary Commission on Foreign Affairs. It was Foreign Minister Alfred Serreqi himself who ...

Tirana, new routes The number of buses connecting Tirana with the districts will be increased. There are 140 buses that will provide transport for people in 18 districts of the country. According to the transport and telecommunications department at Tirana Municipality, a tender will be announced for this network of intercity routes, in which 18 companies will take part

SP: “We welcome Selami’s move” TIRANA - “We welcome the fact that the chairman of the Democratic Party, Selami, has also joined the position that we and several other opposition parties have supported for a long time.” TIRANA - “We welcome the fact that the chairman of the Democratic Party, Selami, has also joined the position that we and several other opposition parties have supported for a long time. Our party’s delegation in Brussels has also consistently argued, as has been recommended by the Democrats, that the Constitution should be ratified in Parliament.” Following chairman Selami’s statements yesterday, this was the position taken by one of the Socialists, Servet Pëllumbi. “Selami is now seeking to bring the party he leads together with the initiative of many opposition parties to restore Parliament’s legitimacy, and in this sense the step he has taken is important,” Pëllumbi added. Is there hope in your camp that Selami’s latest proposal will become the DP’s official position? “That depends on the internal political struggle within their ranks,” Pëllumbi replied. “But in any case, what matters is that apparently Selami is not alone, either in the National Council or in the parliamentary group. There are now many Democrats who do not want the upheavals within ‘Neshit’ to intensify, especially when it concerns something as important as the Constitution.”

This is how people say “Yes” to the Constitution “Parliament first, then the Referendum” TIRANA — Albania’s Constitution will have to pass through the Parliamentary Commission, Parliament itself and, finally, a Referendum in order to be approved. This is precisely the option that prevailed in the survey—the first on the Constitution since the Referendum—organized by the Association for Democratic Culture. Over the course of two months—December ’94–January ’95—activists from this independent organization surveyed more than 1,500 people of different ages and professions from all districts of the country. As the final results show—announced yesterday to Gazeta Shqiptare by Suela Sallavaci, the Press Secretary of the Association for Democratic Culture—45.9 percent of respondents were “entirely” in favor of voting when the Constitution is put to a Referendum at the end of the past year ’95. Meanwhile, 69.5 percent of them were recorded as receiving assistance. According to the survey, only 38 percent had voted “Yes” to the Constitution, while 15.7 percent had left blank the response corresponding to this answer. In any case, the most important part of the survey is to discover how many people support the way in which the Constitution could be approved. Of the four most likely options—the versions listed in the survey questionnaire—the option of sending the Constitution to the Parliamentary Commission, then to Parliament and finally approving it through a Referendum won by an absolute margin, with 49.8 percent. This rejected the other three options, each of which had been preferred by between 14 and 19 percent of respondents. An interesting fact is that, of the 1,500 people surveyed—64.58 percent of them men—33 percent were receiving assistance. Meanwhile, the largest share, 34.46 percent, had completed higher education. The oldest group consisted of people over 50, who made up about 30 percent of respondents.

TIRANA — Positive signals from Albanian diplomacy toward Greece regarding the possibility of a new dialogue. This was stated yesterday at a meeting of the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs. TIRANA — of a new Standing Parliamentary Committee who, reporting to the committee, said: “We are open to dialogue and believe in the goodwill of both countries in finding solutions.” “Albania has been and remains in favor of dialogue with Greece,” the head of Albanian diplomacy added. “We believe in positive developments in relations between the two countries.” Relations between Albania and Greece have gone through many ups and downs in recent years. Tensions reached their peak last year, when five Albanian citizens of Greek origin were arrested and convicted by the Albanian justice system on charges of spying in favor of foreign intelligence services and possessing [weapons] without a permit. Foreign Minister Serreqi

Since yesterday, residents of Krujë have been able to watch five foreign channels on their television screens. The equipment installed on the roof of the post office operates within a radius of 25 kilometers. It was bought in Italy, and around 15,000 dollars were spent on its installation. Elbasan, “free water” There are 3,500 families in the city of Elbasan who have not paid their water bills for two years. The amount they owe the water utility is around 14 million lekë. The utility has decided that if residents do not pay for the water supplied to their homes after February 28, they will be required to pay five times the amount owed. Otherwise, their drinking-water supply will be cut off completely.

The killers of two currency exchangers arrested SHKODËR — The killers of two currency exchangers from the city were caught yesterday [unclear: drejtk]. — The killers of two currency exchangers from the city were caught yesterday [unclear: drejtk]. The two groups had committed two crimes and carried out an attack in Shkodër; one [group/person] had been traveling to Malësia e Madhe on the Mjaltit road with various industrial goods. Members of the two families involved were Çuma, Rrok, Pllani, Tom Pllani, Nikollë Cali, Ded Cali and their two fellow villagers—the brothers Prengë and Gjarq? Pllani. Cali and Bardhok Pllani organized the tragic killing of the currency exchangers Tare Kastriati and Faqmir Dushi.

A curious reality TIRANA — “Soldiers are supposed to guard, not ruin the flower bed?” A complaint by the army against the Directorate of Public Services at the Ministry of Construction: it concerns the guards who are stationed near Parliament. It is a complaint that could delay the billing for the building of this institution, concerning the areas where soldiers on duty are posted. Although at first glance it appears to involve the military structure of the Guard [unclear: struk-?], the conflict that has arisen is in fact an environmental one, which becomes clear only when one considers that the Parliament building is protected by a green area. [text in the column beside the photo] during the sessions. “The soldiers block the paths through the flower beds,” officials from the Ministry’s Public Services Department explained to Gazeta Shqiptare. “As a result, people are forced to walk over the grass-covered area, trampling it. Because of this alone, the part of the flower bed that remains has also been completely destroyed.” So what would the solution be? It seems quite simple and far removed from bureaucratic procedures. “The soldiers need only move back two steps,” the Ministry proposes. “They themselves can stand on the grass, while people pass normally along the flower-bed path.” The seat of the Albanian Parliament

Fier, after 6 months now in the orphanage FIER — The mystery surrounding six-month-old Ina, abandoned by her parents and raised in the maternity ward of the city of Fier, has been resolved. At last, the Court has decided her future. It deemed the demands of the Vlora orphanage excessive; the institution had refused to accept little Ina because she did not have paternity documents. In a final ruling at a trial held a few days ago, it was decided that Ina should be transferred to Vlora. But while the six-month-old girl is being sent to the orphanage by the hospital doctors themselves, her mother was another infant [sentence unclear in the source]. She is a woman from Ballsh who abandoned her newborn daughter in a hospital bed.

Mystery surrounding the murder. Police make arrests KORÇË — A mysterious murder in a village in Korçë. Yesterday morning, in Gjenc-? madhi, the body of a brutally murdered man was found. After identification, the victim was found to be the body of C. Lule, a farmer in his forties. After Lule was killed, his body was thrown into the flames. Police discovered his corpse half-charred. The reasons for this crime have not yet been clarified. According to initial information, Lule was not a person involved in any suspicious activity or hostile crimes. Law-enforcement forces, who immediately opened an investigation into the incident, promptly detained several people for questioning. By evening, the motive and circumstances that led to the murder had still not been established.

FIER — It began as a simple altercation but nearly ended in tragedy. Two young men of the same age—18—from the village of Sheqishtë, fought each other until they were bloody. The causes have not yet been determined. The police have merely described them as “for trivial reasons.” Both 18-year-olds pulled out white scissors and struck mercilessly. One of them was taken to Fier hospital in serious condition. (e-m)

a) only by Referendum 18.4% b) only in Parliament 14.3% c) approved by the Parliamentary Commission and by Referendum 19.6% d) approved by the Parliamentary Commission, by Parliament and finally by Referendum 49.8% The survey by the independent association This is how people say “Yes” to the Constitution

The Year ’94 The Deficit in Albania: 13 Billion Lekë Only 2 Percent Financed by the World On page 3