The former president’s lawyer expects him to be released from his cell today Today, following Parliament’s approval yesterday, the new legal provisions come into force, benefiting dozens of convicts One day in pre-trial detention is now considered equivalent to one and a half days in prison. Lawyer Koçi explains: “My client gets a one-year reduction. So he is free.” TIRANA - “Perhaps today Ramiz Alia is free.” His lawyer Kleanthi Koçi is convinced of this, referring to the entry into force today, June 1, of Albania’s new Criminal Code: a document which, among other things, will release dozens of convicts from Albanian prison cells. Koçi is sure of what he says. Laçi and Mero on page 3 Chairman Qazim Gjoni speaks “This is how the Court changes under the new Criminal Code” On page 3

“Grami” drowns two children; lightning strikes three others Report / Hours of terror in a village in Pogradec POGRADEC - Hours of terror on Monday afternoon in Pogradec and Korçë. The raging storm hit several villages in these areas, causing casualties: 2 children suffocated to death, 4 others were struck by lightning—one died while the others survived—and a large number of livestock perished. In the face of these chilling figures caused by nature’s caprices, the other damage to homes, trees and cultivated land seems very small. The real horror took place in the village of Laktesh: a remote mountainous area about 70 kilometers from Pogradec. The storm here was not ordinary, and the phenomenon that struck resembled the medieval legends in which the wrath of the Gods appears in the strangest forms. Elsa Koçiu on page 5

Shehi speaks Minister Shehi TIRANA - In the year 2000 Albania will have European infrastructure. Meanwhile, public investment during this decade is expected to amount to thousands of dollars, one third of which will be covered by the state budget. This was said yesterday by Dashamir Shehi, Minister of Construction and Tourism, at a press conference. On page 5

“We don’t want to take an exam” Lawsuit against the Ministry of Justice TIRANA - The final test for Albanian lawyers. Today, a group of lawyers representing the National Bar Association will appear before the judges of the Constitutional Court, who must examine a lawsuit filed against the Ministry of Justice. The main complaint naturally concerns the qualifying examination—provided for in the law governing the practice of the legal profession—while this point, along with other provisions dealing with the examination, is now being challenged for removal from the law. On page 3

Yesterday’s meeting On page 3

The champions brought to their knees Yesterday at “Qemal Stafa,” a brawl broke out on the pitch TIRANA: The grand final of the Albanian Cup in football brought the season to a close. Although there were no goals, the excitement was endless. Tirana had hoped to win trophies in a single season. After dominating the championship, which has just ended, the Tirana team, despite being tipped as favorites, failed to win the Albanian Cup. This time the people of Durrës triumphed in this long contest. It is Teuta’s first Albanian Cup and the second trophy the team has won within a year. After Ballgjini, it was coach Koka’s turn to win a trophy. Tension, nerves and mass brawling marked the 120 minutes at Tirana’s national “Qemal Stafa” stadium. On page 5 A view of the mass brawl between players (photo: H. Pustina)

Montenegro holds 85,000 liters SHKODËR - New strategies by fuel smugglers in Albania and Montenegro. This time, after the many blows police have dealt Albanian traffickers, their colleagues on the other side of the border have come up with the latest “invention”: a Montenegrin tank, at a place called Ura e Samahari, has been put into a huge floating fuel-storage unit, the first of its kind, capable of holding 85,000 liters of diesel. Thus, while police on the Albanian shores of Lake Shkodër have apprehended many fuel smugglers, the Montenegrins have gained another new point for siphoning fuel. The Montenegrin operation is using this super-tank, which has reportedly been filled by at least 19 tanker trucks carrying oil. With around 83–90 thousand liters, powerful pump motors have been installed nearby to transfer the collected fuel into vehicles and onward toward Belgrade. The giant tanker—positioned at Ura e Samahari, the central point where all quantities of oil, gasoline or kerosene arriving from Shkodër and Montenegro are collected—is easily visible on the water: it is seventy meters long, and a tank recently constructed there had already exceeded a capacity of 40,000 liters. “They didn’t even know that a makeshift tank could withstand a long period in the water. Legally, therefore, it would remain only a collection point for fuel. However, this latest hypothesis seems less likely. This is because the movement of the other tanks and of the Albanian vessels has been increasingly curtailed as a result of frequent police checks and seizures; only last week a number of traffickers’ vehicles—including a boat fitted onto a truck—were intercepted at points along the lake while unloading oil destined for Montenegro. Ylli Pata

Around 100 people in Tirana suffer this fate every day Further irregularities in Social Security documents TIRANA - Privatization vouchers are encountering yet another obstacle on their way into Albanian pensioners’ pockets. Now the capital’s pensioners are the first to be placed on the lists to receive all the vouchers they are entitled to. At the Social Security Directorate, the entries on pension lists contain inaccuracies. Meanwhile, pensioners have been trying to collect their vouchers, but the Social Security Directorate is responsible for the problems. This makes it difficult for the person concerned to receive the vouchers, and the process of distributing them to eligible people is quite complicated—so much so that even when people come in person to provide information about their case, the necessary assistance cannot be given. Meanwhile, those affected by the errors in the lists receive no benefit. Names and details have either been mixed up or entered on different lines, which can cause problems when determining eligibility. These are errors in the registers and lists of the General Directorate of Social Security.

Temporary licenses for vendors The Albanian Helsinki Committee congratulates the authorities TIRANA - Saturday is also the final day for newspaper vendors in the capital to obtain municipal licenses. The news was confirmed to the Albanian Gazette by Bujar Çela, Head of the Culture Section at Tirana Municipality. All private newspaper vendors have been notified that their licenses will be valid until June 7. Newspaper vendors say that the extension gives them enough time, unless the Municipality cancels it today. Here are the private sales agencies and their beneficiaries. In Tirana, Korçë, Ersekë, Pogradec, Korçë, Shkodër, Fier, Vlorë, Mallakastër, Tepelenë, Përmet, Gjirokastër, Sarandë, Lushnjë, Berat and Kuçovë, starting today, June 1, the Albanian Gazette will be distributed by private agencies alongside the Postal Service. There will be no change in the method of payment. FOR SALES AGENCIES: The private agencies selling the newspaper in Tirana, Berat, Gramsh, Librazhd, Korçë, Gjirokastër, Elbasan, Fier, Vlorë, Mallakastër, Tepelenë, Përmet, Delvinë, Sarandë, Lushnjë, Berat and Kuçovë are hereby confirmed. Starting today, June 1, the Albanian Gazette will be distributed by private agencies alongside the Postal Service. There will be no change in the method of payment.

So far, it is short 160,000 dollars Elbasan Mentor Kikia on page 5

“Is the Italian Mafia of Puglia also present in Albania?” On page 2