“More powers for the Audit Office” Request by 30 MPs concerning the State Audit Office They are seeking the right for the Head of the Audit Office to dismiss “officials who obstruct its work,” put pressure on banks, and oversee the state budget The building housing the State Audit Office TIRANA - Banks, the Ministry of Finance and other bodies are in the crosshairs of the State Audit Office. The latter is seeking to take a further step in the fight against corruption, financial abuses and damage to state property by expanding its powers. The powers that have been lacking in the body’s work to date would include taking measures against government officials who obstruct the work of the Audit Office; the right to suspend unlawful tenders; and the right to compel banks, in such cases, to withhold from private and state entities money obtained unlawfully, including money due to the state budget. All this is set out in a report submitted to Parliament and signed by 30 Democratic Party MPs, among whose signatures are those of the Head of the State Audit Office, Blerim Çela, and Deputy Speaker of Parliament Tomor Malasi. This report, in the form of a draft law, seeks several amendments to the law “On the State Audit Service.” The initiative followed an attempt by State Audit Office inspectors, several months ago, to inspect the Ministry of Finance, specifically its state-budget spending plan. At the time, the Head of the State Audit Office decided to back down, leaving his action unfinished. A strong audit from the outset has been called for, along with a law granting it the relevant authority and a clear scope of action. Under the current law on the State Audit Office, the latter has no right to audit the figures projected for the state budget. According to the report submitted by the MPs, the minister’s refusal prevented an audit of the state budget. Perhaps this is also one of the reasons why the aforementioned report calls for the Head of the State Audit Office to be granted the right—in cases where no criminal offence is involved—to immediately suspend from their jobs any officials who obstruct the work of the State Audit Office. Until now, the State Audit Office has been one of the weakest bodies, faced with directors at the Ministry of Finance and others. Nevertheless, they are still at work. Imposing fines when financial violations are uncovered is another power the MPs want the State Audit Office to have in the future. The MPs suggest that the very body that uncovers a violation should also impose the appropriate penalty. Moreover, in cases where we have received a complete amount of ...

The German president concluded his visit to Albania. Yesterday, honorary citizen of Kavaja On page 3

THE ATTACK BY THE “MASKED MEN” Armed robbers snatch two thousand dollars from the airline’s cashbox THE ATTACK BY THE “MASKED MEN” Tirana: “Adria Airways” robbed Armed robbers snatch two thousand dollars from the airline’s cashbox TIRANA - The “masked men” strike again. This time in the centre of the capital, at the offices of the “Adria Airways” airline agency. Two masked, armed robbers entered the agency premises and, after threatening the employees present with guns, carried out the now-familiar “job.” The sensational robbery was immediately confirmed—but without further details—and prompted the police to launch a pursuit. However, to date they have given the press no information, citing the secrecy of the investigation. Although the amount stolen remains uncertain, it is reported that a sum equivalent to around $2,000 was taken from the safe at “Adria Airways”’ Tirana office. The latest robbery by the “masked men” in the Albanian capital joins those carried out—in just the past few months—at the offices of the other airlines “Swissair,” “Iap” and, most recently, “Insig.” (e.l)

The Council of Ministers authorizes TIRANA - The 3,200 tons of biscuits imported from England as humanitarian aid for the population of Albania will no longer remain in the State Reserves warehouses. After receiving confirmations from several health and agriculture departments, as well as the relevant authorization from the Council of Ministers, the State Reserves Directorate has decided to sell the tons of biscuits for use as animal feed. Brought from England by a Russian ship and by trucks across the Greek border, the 3,200 tons of biscuits had raised suspicions among health inspectors and attracted considerable attention in the press because of their very early production dates—the packaging states 1960–64. It was a decision by the Ministry of Health that led to their being blocked as unfit for human consumption. After the biscuits had been transported along routes reserved for delivery to the country’s markets and shops, the State Reserves Directorate took a decision to resolve the problem, and received a response. The Council of Ministers ordered the sale of the “aged” biscuit consignment to state or private entities for use as livestock feed. Buyers were not slow to respond to the Directorate’s offer. The company Florhyen sh.p.k. has asked to buy 2,000 tons of these biscuits for use as poultry feed. “We have carried out the analyses,” its letter states, “and the results show that these biscuits can be consumed by poultry in general; in the same way [they can] be kept in the State Reserves warehouses. We are offering to buy them in quantities of 2.5–3 lekë per kilogram.” An.Ste.

TIRANA - Defense Minister Sazfullah will soon have the opportunity to meet his Pakistani counterpart. The news has been confirmed by official Pakistani sources, which announced that Tirana will be one of the three stops on this diplomatic and visiting tour by Atab Shahaban Meherani? Pakistan, Turkey, and Croatia and Bosnia are also to be included. The Pakistani minister has arrived in Sarajevo to celebrate Eid al-Fitr with the contingent of troops under his command, which forms part of the peacekeeping force sent by the United Nations. Around 3,000 peacekeepers from ISLA-bad are currently stationed in Bosnia—in Tuzla and elsewhere. Mëerani will stay in Tirana for three days, where he will hold talks with Zhulani and other Albanian ministry officials. Zhulani himself was in Pakistan last October.

Diplomacy TIRANA - Positive signals are arriving in Tirana from Athens ahead of Greek Foreign Minister Papulias’s visit to Albania. Another Greek minister, Finance Minister Cave Papadhopulos, said in an interview with the press that “after the limit of the tensions has been reached, the positions should come into possible contact at all appropriate levels” and “on matters of economic cooperation.” Papadhopulos’s comments regarding the problem of Albanian illegal migrants in Greece also seem promising. “We have made very substantial progress with the assistance [involving] the Albanians during this period,” Papadhopulos replied to journalists, “and, of course, also with regard to general communication with Greece.” The Greek minister identified the operation of three border-crossing points—Qafë Botës, Tre Urat and Pogon—as the first practical step toward restoring relations between the two countries.

TIRANA - Three ancient works stolen from Apollonia in Fier on September 10, ’91 have returned to their homeland after nearly four years. Last night, the ancient marble sculptures arrived at Rinas airport aboard a plane from Germany: the Head of Heracles, the Body of a Young Man and the Portrait of Nepunësit (pictured). All three archaeological objects had been discovered by the German police in Munich at the end of ’93, while Greek suspects were attempting to sell them for 1 million marks. The testimony of an Albanian archaeologist in the proceedings held there against the Greek citizens established, with documents, the Albanian authenticity of these works, ultimately convincing Interpol in Germany to extradite them to Albania. (Ed.La.) Antiquities return

INSIDE Minister Cikuli volunteers to donate blood At the head of an initiative yesterday On page 3 Construction of the water supply system to begin in Tirana On page 3

Vlora, police searching VLORA - An axe swung at a teacher’s head, and a student is now being sought by the police. It happened on Tuesday in Vlora, at the Music High School. Music teacher Vilaj Diamanti narrowly escaped a blow suddenly swung at him by one of the school’s students, A.T., 18, from Vlora. It seems the incident stemmed from a heated argument between the two the previous day. It is said that the teacher had demanded more respect from a group of students sitting on the school steps; A.T. was among them. The following day, the offended student waited for the teacher as he climbed the stairs and struck him hard with an axe. The teenager is now wanted by the police. St.Ma.

Librazhd, tragedy narrowly averted LIBRAZHD - “I loved you, but you left me”—with these words a man from Librazhd attacked his fiancée in a shocking incident on July 27. A young woman from Miraka was brutally stabbed by her former fiancé, A.C. It seems that only luck prevented the serious incident from turning into a tragedy. Fortunately, the knife wound was dealt with in time thanks to the immediate intervention of the medical staff at Librazhd hospital, where F.K. is now admitted. The former fiancé had felt “mortally wounded” by the young woman’s decision to leave him and become engaged to someone else. He then took a shortcut through the two mountain villages to reach his former fiancée’s home. There have been serious efforts this Sunday to bring the two families together. To get a better understanding of the incident, several people have volunteered to obtain information from the police. A.C. has fled; all searches have so far been fruitless. Ta.Ma.

BERAT - A tragic accident has claimed the lives of two young men. - A tragic accident has claimed the lives of two young men, who were riding together. One of the young men apparently lost control, causing the deaths of the two, Arlian Jakollari, 22, and Klodian Stavri, 16, near Ura Vajgurore. Riding on a motorcycle last week, they were reportedly speeding along the main road on their way home. At one point, they suddenly lost control and collided with a car. Ha.Ta.

From a repentant foreign woman TIRANA - His name was Xhaku and he was 30; he died a few weeks ago near the Army Ensemble in Tirana, alone, impoverished by cold and hunger. The owner of a restaurant in the capital announced his death in a public letter. She tells of a tragedy that, sadly, is not unique: another homeless person has died on the streets of Tirana. Dear Xhaku, I am writing to you now that you have left me, [text unclear] who were with you, and when you wandered around our place. The last time I saw you it was cold and we were shivering, half-asleep. In that way, you became a familiar face in the city, alone on the street. I helped you so much to warm up, and we were with you. I would see you, help you to ... (the rest of the letter is difficult to read) I ask you to forgive me, please forgive me, but I did not [text unclear]. I thought of doing more, but I could not. I have become ... (the rest of the text is illegible) Another article on page 3

Slanted reality TIRANA - “Am I or am I not the Count of Mamurras?”—the question that, strangely, keeps being put to the media. Reality slanted “Am I or am I not the Count of Mamurras?” TIRANA - “Am I or am I not the Count of Mamurras?”—the question that, strangely, keeps being put to the media by the Ministry of Culture concerning an association protected by a colleague. Strange characters, candidates for an obsession, aristocrats and historians, or even ordinary people who have taken over this...? Their aim is to realize childhood dreams, now with a keen interest in Albania in buying an obsolete title. Some of them have already fallen for it and bought these titles. The latest letter has arrived from an English colonel from Chester. The story of the titles and aristocratic mysteries of feudal families who bore such titles, which had been driven out of the new Albania following the Ottoman conquest, actually began in England last summer. There, a lord had the idea, with the help of an association established in Albania, of selling for $2,000 obsolete titles of centuries-old Albanian nobility, which did not last long because the then Minister of Culture, Anagnosti, ordered the association to be dissolved. But some of the new “nobles” had already begun boasting about the titles they had bought. Hence the question many people are asking: “Should I call myself the Count of Mamurras or not?” (I.b.)

YESTERDAY IN ALBANIA Yesterday, Speaker of Parliament Pjetër Arbnori received a delegation from Romania’s Constitutional Court, headed by the renowned professor Antoni Iorgovan. Both sides expressed support for useful cooperation between the two countries, which share a history of development and suffering under the communist regime. The killing of Luigi Gurakuqi commemorated The 70th anniversary of the death of the distinguished patriot Luigi Gurakuqi was commemorated yesterday at the University of Shkodra. The university’s rector, Prof. Govalin Kolombi, praised the extraordinary role Gurakuqi played in signing the Çerkez memorandums, at the National Assembly of Vlora, and in the outstanding development of European diplomatic relations in London, Paris and Rome.