PD Chairman: “The President wants me dismissed” 11:40 p.m. The PD leader speaks immediately after the Constitution is rejected. “My differences with the President have been longstanding, but they increased after the Referendum” INTERVIEW 11:40 p.m. The PD leader speaks immediately after the rejection of the Constitution. “My differences with the President have been longstanding, but they increased after the Referendum” TIRANA - Selami failed to pass the National Council’s “test.” His proposal to approve the Constitution in Parliament did not prevail. The PD Council, whose meeting ended last night at 11:30 p.m., decided to urgently convene an Extraordinary Conference on March 5. Yesterday’s discussions opened another debate. In the middle of the meeting, Selami made another statement: “Berisha has called for an Extraordinary Conference, where he threatened to seek my dismissal.” But Selami’s latest statement was disputed at the end of the meeting by the PD Secretary-General, Tritan Shehu. “Berisha has not asked for anything of the sort,” Shehu told Gazeta Shqiptare at the end of the meeting. “The National Council unanimously decided to uphold its previous decision on the procedure for voting on the Constitution. The Extraordinary Conference will be convened because the issue is very important.” But late last night Selami again asserted: “Berisha expressed his proposal to dismiss me in his opening speech. The Extraordinary Conference will cover both matters: the Constitution and my position as party leader.” ARMAND MERO EDMOND LAÇI TIRANA - “The clashes between Berisha and me have been longstanding, but they have deepened further since the Referendum.” For the first time, the Chairman of the Democratic Party speaks about his differences with the President and the increasingly visible contradictions within the party he leads, adding: “In his opening speech, the President called for an Extraordinary Conference to be convened to decide on my dismissal as Chairman.” The split appears to be deep; nevertheless, Selami insists on his views and then voices concern about the future of his party, now that the elections are not far off. It is 11:40 p.m. The meeting ended only a few minutes ago. Selami, who left the Palace of Congresses quickly, first and alone, now tells Gazeta Shqiptare everything that happened there over the course of hours. His proposal to approve the Constitution in Parliament has once again been rejected. Most Council members sided with Berisha. Selami failed to secure a secret ballot. The confidence he had expressed after his defeat in the Presidium did not come to pass last night either. Now he will have to wait, though with almost no hope, for March 5. How do you assess the call for an Extraordinary Conference? “In my view, it was a politically mistaken move because it consumes the PD’s energies internally, while the 1996 elections will require a great deal of work. I think such a drain does not serve victory in ’96. But in any case, I hope and wish that we will win.” What will your position be at the Extraordinary Conference? Are you considering resigning? “I will not leave the PD. I have not yet decided what I will do. But I insist that this is a good opportunity to put the Chairman of the Party–Prime Minister arrangement into effect; I will not accept, and have never accepted, becoming Prime Minister.” Will the Conference decide on your dismissal or on the Constitution issue? “I think the conference will cover both. But it will certainly also discuss a new political position for the party.” What was the balance of forces at the Council meeting? “Naturally, there were also members who supported me. Unfortunately, there was no vote. The secret ballot, which is essential in this case, was not accepted.” Is the position against you a reflection of factions within the party? “I see it as a difficult moment, and I will not accept—I have never accepted—becoming Prime Minister.” disagreements of opinion and the clash between President Berisha and me. These...” “I am not in a position to say anything concrete now. But I hope everything will go well.” and an Extraordinary Conference that would decide on my dismissal as Chairman. The rift seems to be wide; nevertheless, Selami insists on his ideas and then expresses elections are not far off: “An extraordinary conference will weaken the PD’s energies. I hope we win, but I am worried about 1996.” Your first comment after the meeting? “I think something is wrong. Nevertheless, it is perfectly normal for there to be disagreements within a party. After all, the vote was secret. The confidence he had expressed after the meeting has not been borne out, since a secret ballot is essential. Now the decision will be final, perhaps with almost no hope at all, on March 5. you considering resigning? “I will not comment on this being a good opportunity to see whether this is a Party Chairman-Prime Minister. And, as is known, this arrangement effectively leaves me personally out of the picture. Because I...” Sali Berisha Eduart Selami

Tension between Tirana and Skopje Kumanovo, Albanian graves desecrated TIRANA—New signs of ethnic tension in Macedonia. The day before yesterday evening, according to a report issued by Macedonian state radio itself, 30 Muslim graves were desecrated in Kumanovo, a town about 30 kilometres northeast of Skopje. Although those responsible for this incident have not been identified, the event is considered an act of intolerance that could further escalate ethnic violence in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Meanwhile, yesterday at midday in the Albanian capital, thousands of students from the University of Tirana protested against the violence inflicted by the Macedonian authorities on Albanians in Tetovo. The students also called for the Albanian University of Tetovo to be opened and adequately funded by the Macedonian state itself. The tense situation between ethnic groups has also drawn the attention of international institutions. It was Max van der Stoel himself, the CSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, who mediated in an effort to prevent further escalation of the unrest that began last Friday, when an Albanian was killed and 20 others wounded in Tetovo on the occasion of the inauguration of the Albanian University. The senior CSCE official met yesterday with Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov in Skopje, specifically to discuss the serious incidents that took place because the Albanian university was closed by the Albanian university. Van der Stoel stated that “all these problems must be examined within the framework of compliance with a law on higher education institutions.” In connection with the incident, the Macedonian police... arrested four people, as well as the rector of the University of Tetovo, Fadil Sulejmani.

Juve increases its lead over Parma. Another away win for Bari Loses 0–4 in Rome to Lazio Tirana remains alone at the top. Wins 1–0 in Shkodër as well A new Guinness record in Lezhë. One man alone can beat “Besëlidhja” These and more sports on page 3

For week 23 of Totofutboll, the amount available to winners was 3,297,640 lekë. There were 70 winning columns with 13 points, each of which, subject to any possible deduction, receives 28,265 lekë. There were 1,185 winning columns with 12 1,113 lekë.

DURRËS - “Every cloud has a silver lining.” This old saying of the people has once again proved apt in the case of the collapse of the damaged road at Sukth. A layer of asphalt had made it impossible for vehicles travelling the Durrës-Tirana route to pass over it. But what was a breakdown for drivers was perceived quite differently by a resident of the village of Koxhas. It was a business opportunity not to be missed. And that is what he did. Unable to continue by various vehicles—cars, trucks, tractors—they began turning left onto the road that passes through the village of Koxhas and from there to Durrës. And from Shijak to Durrës. But something extraordinary happened in Koxhas. A quickly erected wooden “roadblock” prevented vehicles from passing freely. The authority there was the owner of a plot of land across which part of the road in question runs. “Pay to pass” was the demand that astonished everyone. Nevertheless, everyone accepted this unusual demand as legitimate. No one dared—or crossed the Koxhas roadblock—without paying the landowner 50 lekë. Thus, perhaps, a unique case in the world: a villager collecting taxes from drivers.

ELBASAN - For three days now, a quarter of Elbasan—the northeastern part of the city—has been in darkness. A serious fault at one of the city’s substations appears to be the cause of the blackout. People have thus begun equipping themselves with candles, while workers from the Electric Utility have begun the battle to fix the fault. The location has now been identified: it is in one of the central high-voltage cables. According to electricity specialists, the serious outage occurred because of an unbearable load on the grid. m.k.

“An Italian fishing boat saw them...” VLORE - Another mystery at sea. Once again, an Italian “dream” was involved: seven days ago, it had lost track of two young men from Vlore aboard a speedboat, heading toward unknown adventures. According to the missing men’s relatives, three days after they set off—on the following afternoon—the Italian fishing boat “Europa” reportedly informed the Albanian port authorities of the danger still facing a speedboat located about 8–9 miles from the Albanian island of Sazan. This report, along with the lack of any further news, led the young men’s relatives to appeal last night, seven days after the speedboat set off, for information about their loved ones’ fate. But while in Vlore reports continue to come in about Pirro Trifoni, 34, and Meleq Arapi, 24, on the other side of the sea the Italian authorities say: “We have not verified anything of the sort,” officials at the port authorities in Bari, Brindisi and Lecce told Gazeta Shqiptare last night. In any case, this confirmation was accompanied by another assurance: in recent days, there have been no tragedies along the Italian coast. (e.l)

The trial of the wife’s killer has begun. Xhevahir Bahja, 34, has taken the defendant’s seat, accused of killing his 27-year-old wife after an argument. The incident occurred in June last year. In Xibrakë, near Cërrik, some villagers had found the young woman’s mutilated body in a small pond.

A major landslide has frightened residents of the well-known “Manalat” neighborhood in the old part of Gjirokastër. It caused nearly 50 meters of road to slide down about 30 meters over the precipice. Fortunately, the landslide did not damage any buildings, but it once again exposed the weakness of the structures in this area. The risk of collapses has increased considerably following the cutting down of several trees in “Manalat”.

Two 18-year-old youths are facing trial at the Tirana court on the serious charges of murder and theft, to receive their sentence. According to the prosecution, E.S. and A.G. were responsible for a murder. The two young men and the victim had been accomplices in the theft of 4,000 dollars from the car of a man from Shkodër.

Police make peace between two villages KRUJË - Tragedy was averted at the very last moment. Two villages had become enemies over the placement of a fence and the division of a shared plot of land. This happened in Krujë only a short while ago. Residents of Mafsheq erected a barricade, which greatly angered their neighbors. “The fence was put up on their land by Vinjolli’s people,” were our brothers’ words; therefore they wanted it torn down, but meanwhile other neighbors in Krujë tried to stop the major dispute with people they considered their brothers. The problem escalated into a serious confrontation. The police of Krujë became involved, but a solution came only through a simple police officer, who acted as mediator between the two sides. “Bafthi-Kurti” became embroiled in a dispute over the matter of a simple fence. We are told that earlier a group of people had gathered, and someone managed to [unclear] the local residents and persuade everyone to sit down for talks. Mu. Ar.

At the Border KORÇË - An Albanian has been wounded near the Greek border. He is 24-year-old L. Shima from Rrapozhitha, who, according to the Albanian side, was wounded by Greek soldiers near the village of Vidohovë in Devoll. The incident occurred when Shima, together with a group of other Albanians, wanted to cross the border. They were only ten meters away from it when the Greek soldiers fired their weapons at them, causing him to be wounded. According to the latest Greek sources, a new incursion was made into Albanian territory, and after wounding one of them—Iliri—they dragged him away near the border.

The Economy in the Spotlight They spoke for almost an hour at Famezina ROME - The foreign ministers of Italy and Albania met, something that had not happened for a year and a half. Yesterday, the Albanian minister Sereqi arrived at Famezina, where he spoke with his Italian counterpart, Susanna Agnelli. Seated on opposite sides of the long table, the two representatives of the two respective countries discussed for nearly an hour the political relations, and especially the economic relations, linking Albania with Italy. “I want to thank the Italian government for its reception,” Serreqi said, “for giving me the opportunity for this conversation on the occasion of my visit to Italy. This is further proof of the attention Italy has always shown toward Albania and of the mission it has carried out in our country.” Praising the positive work of the Albanian-Albanian commission, Serreqi said he was pleased with the political support Italy is giving Albania in its efforts to integrate into Europe. Susanna Agnelli agreed, stressing “the pleasure of having been able at this meeting to express Italy’s great sympathy for Albania, and that everything possible will be done to ensure Albania integrates into Europe as soon as possible.” Meanwhile, the pressing issue of Albanian refugees in Italy was not discussed at the meeting. Cristina Capretti

The famous opera for the first time in April On page 2

Thousands of young people at a concert in the city center. Success for the band from Tirana On page 2