DOSSIER/ Capital punishment in Albania and the world: history, figures... To Die in the Name of the Law A journey among Albanian death-row prisoners “After one hour, ten minutes, thirty seconds, you will no longer be a human being.” Thus Prince Myshkin, in Dostoevsky’s The Idiot, describes the drama of a person sentenced to death. A drama the Russian writer himself knew well: he too was sentenced to be shot, and as he stood before the firing squad, moments before the end, he was told that his sentence had been annulled. This happened in 1849, yet the tragedy of the death penalty continues to provoke debate today. On page 3 INTERVIEW “How I lived for 7 months with death” On page 3 FILES The geography of executions On page 3 The Tepelena prison where those sentenced to life are locked up

The Tirana laboratory confirms AIDS strikes in Pogradec: 16th case discovered The affected person shows signs of the terrible disease POGRADEC - The deadly AIDS toll is rising. This time the macabre virus has struck in Pogradec, bringing the number of people affected by it to 16. Indeed, according to initial confirmations, the Pogradec case is more distressing: this is not a seropositive person, but someone suffering from AIDS. The person’s condition was discovered—identifying details have not yet been released—at Pogradec hospital, where the patient had been admitted to one of its wards for some time. On page 9 Pogradec

HISTORY Dispute over a million-dollar inheritance Eight lawyers against Zef Brozi in the case On page 9

The Prime Minister’s visit concludes TIRANA - “Relations with Malaysia are very good.” These were President Berisha’s words, although just a few minutes later it was seen...

SHKODËR - A railway incident has blocked travel from Shko- - A railway incident has blocked travel from Shko- dra to other parts of... for almost 24 hours.

Elbasan, Municipal Council decision If your family includes someone who has gone abroad as a refugee, then you are not eligible for social assistance. This is what was dec-

Cycling: the giant “tour” begins SHKODËR - Miles and miles on two wheels. The 52nd Tour of Albania cycling race has begun in Shkodër, a marathon that for years has attracted many; after another 11 seconds, he reached the finish - Second place - Shkodër cyclist Selim Çelmeta, whose stopwatch hand stopped at 42

TIRANA - “Relations with Malaysia are very good.” These were the words of President Berisha, followed a few minutes later by the words of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Bin Mohamed: “I witnessed your hospitality during my visit—two unofficial days—in Albania.” This is how Berisha and Mahatir began their discussion at yesterday’s press conference, before a crowd of microphones and tape recorders belonging to the Albanian and Malaysian press. The good relations between the two countries were illustrated by the answers given by the Albanian president and the prime minister who had come from Malaysia. Berisha stressed that “a number of distinguished businesspeople and entrepreneurs have come to Albania together with our friend the prime minister,” a fact that—given their interest in investing in Albania—could represent an opportunity to give the country a boost, both to its economy and to the very promising Albanian-Malaysian relations. Mahatir assured everyone at the press conference that the loan granted to Albania by Malaysia was the largest that could have been given: 20 million dollars. His government also has a project to build residential housing—as it recognizes the country’s significant housing problems—very soon, amounting to 1,000 apartments. Tourism, the mining industry and the electronics industry, as was also emphasized at the conference, will be the sectors with the greatest investment potential for Malaysians. Naturally, this is a country with fabulous wealth and at the peak of its development in these fields. “On international issues, too, Berisha and I have no differences of opinion,” Prime Minister Mahatir said. (ar. ça)

SHKODËR - A railway incident blocked travel from Shkodër to other parts of the country for almost 24 hours. A fault on the line at Milot—about 40 meters of damaged track—caused a train wagon to derail. The incident happened on Friday at 3:30 p.m. Fortunately, there were no passengers involved, only freight, so the incident resulted only in financial damage. On page 9

If you have a family member who has gone abroad as a refugee, you are not eligible for social assistance. If you have a family member who has gone abroad as a refugee, the Elbasan Municipal Council decided at its latest meeting, where it specifically considered the city’s most serious issue: unemployment, whose lists currently include 27,000 people. The measure was adopted to prevent various abuses that had been identified in the lists of people registered to receive social assistance. This was the proposal that sparked the most debate in the meeting room. On page 9

SHKODËR - Miles and miles on two wheels. The 52nd Tour of Albania has begun in Shkodër, a marathon that for years has attracted thousands of sports fans and turned them into passionate supporters of the athletes. SHKODËR - Albania attracted thousands of sports fans and turned them into passionate supporters of the athletes. Twenty-four cyclists are taking part in this Tour, representing the colors of the Vllaznia, Besëlidhja, Tirana, Besa and Apolonia teams. With the start of this giant “tour” across Albania, the first stage began yesterday: an individual 30-kilometer time trial. The Cycling Federation had chosen the Shkodër-Koplik-Shkodër route for the opening leg of the Tour. The fastest rider was Besnik Musai. He covered the Shkodër-Koplik-and-back route in 42 minutes and 40 seconds. Eleven seconds later, Shkodër cyclist Selim Çelmeta reached the finish in second place; the stopwatch stopped for him at 42 minutes and 51 seconds. Third place was again earned by a Vllaznia cyclist, who covered the Shkodër-Koplik-Shkodër route in 44 minutes and 40 seconds. Thus, after the first kilometers of the 52nd Tour of Albania, the first team standings have also been recorded. Tirana leads the team classification with 2 hours, 11 minutes and 30 seconds, followed by Vllaznia with 2 hours, 12 minutes and 22 seconds, and Apolonia in third place with 2 hours, 25 minutes and 19 seconds. Today the cyclists’ tour will run from Shkodër to Burrel, a distance of 108 kilometers. A long route that could also bring surprises... (ar. ça.)

KRUJË - It took only a quip from the presenter of the Tirana Estrada’s show in Krujë to spark a heated debate in the hall with the audience and lead to the show being suspended for several minutes. Seeing the audience at the Cultural Center where the show was being staged, which was made up only of men, the presenter wanted to make a joke to liven up the atmosphere: “I’m surprised I can’t see a single woman.” Instead of responding in the way she had expected, the men of Krujë interrupted her to answer angrily. For several minutes the show was interrupted, giving way to a debate between the hall and the stage. Only afterward did the male spectators decide to sit down again to watch the rest of the show. It continued, although only the first 20 minutes had been presented, during which folk songs were sung and the “Rit Folk” group performed. The presenter, Bashkim Kamza, greeted all of Krujë, saying that he was originally from that city. Because of the argument, the actors and musicians did not choose to continue the show “Variete ’95”; its fate seemed to have been sealed, as it would not be brought to a proper close. Having begun with conflicts and debate, it ended in the same way. A confrontation backstage took place specifically between the director of the Cultural Center and the director of the Estrada, who said they had brought the show to an end. They replied briefly to the director’s protests: “They’re expecting us in Vlorë for the next show.”