For about an hour, the “protesters” threatened the blue uniforms Crowd Attacks the Police Commissioner: “I will kill anyone who sets foot in the Police Station” Fear in Berat: 300 people vandalize the building; firecrackers, grenades and bursts of gunfire into the air Residents of the Vakëf neighborhood demanded the release of the ten people detained by police the previous day Havari: “I want to separate the people from the gangs, but yesterday even children could have been hurt; the situation was serious” BERAT - The police station is attacked. 300 people, including women and children, burst through the door and demanded the release of ten people detained from the Vakëf neighborhood. Explosions of firecrackers and grenades, as well as long bursts of automatic gunfire, provided the backdrop to the protest. Police Chief Havari declared that he would kill anyone trying to force their way into the station’s premises, while always distinguishing between the people and the gangs. The attack took place in the afternoon, but those surrounding the station issued an ultimatum on Friday, saying they would return after a few hours. In fact, by evening the situation had calmed, but fear still remained. And Havari has dismissed two area inspectors for involvement in criminal activity. On page 5

On page 3 In the photo: Dramatic scenes yesterday at the Port of Durrës. The ferries have brought the second group of “undesirables” to Albania (Photo: REUTERS)

The draw is set: Germany and Brazil face no problems The composition of all the groups that will lead to the world football celebration, one by one. The Italians are half satisfied. They face Cameroon, Chile and Austria On page 6

Yesterday before the press

Following the agreements signed yesterday

TIRANA Police fine property owners along the Lana On page 5

LEZHË 300 families threaten to go on hunger strike On page 5

Yesterday, before the press TIRANA - “Arapi is speculating with VEFA.” Vehbi Alimuçaj says it is absolutely not true that the value of VEFA’s properties has been multiplied 10–15 times. “Our properties have been appraised by specialists and registered in court in accordance with all the rules.” For Alimuçaj, this is a continuation of the campaign by certain government factions whose aim is to bankrupt VEFA. On the government’s “black list” of those who do not want VEFA, Alimuçaj named Finance Minister Malaj first, followed by Minister Apostoli, who apparently insulted the company semishutëresenën? [sic] on a private radio station. Alimuçaj accused those currently in power, without naming names, of continuing to withdraw money from VEFA by taking advantage of court rulings. On page 3

After the agreements signed yesterday TIRANA - A boom in agreements between Tirana and Skopje. The seven agreements signed yesterday during the visit of Macedonian Foreign Minister Hanhxinski seem to have opened a new page in relations between the two Balkan countries. But dialogue has been fragile when the fate of the Albanian community in the neighboring country has come between the Albanian and Macedonian sides. “The University of Tetovo is illegal,” the foreign minister declared yesterday, seeking to close the discussion on the matter. Milo was more cautious, saying that a new window is opening in relations between the two countries. Whether this is a window or a door will become clear with Nano’s visit to Skopje, expected in January. On page 2

YESTERDAY: ANNIVERSARY OF THE PTT SERVICE The Post Office celebrates its birthday The “Sons of Hermes” turn 85 TIRANA — Although it may seem strange, the sons of Hermes—the herald god—arrived in Albania as early as 1912. Yesterday, the PTT service in Albania celebrated the 85th anniversary of its founding. Only a few days younger than the independence of the country to which it belongs, this service might perhaps also be called the oldest among the public services currently operating in Albania. Eager to communicate with one another and with the world, Albanians embraced the old invention of the telegraph and telephone without reservation, and did not abandon it in the years that followed. Only five days had passed since November 28 of the memorable year 1912 when the Vlora government’s program included the concept of a “Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs.” In the thinking of the time, this term must surely have caused the same reaction that the creation today of a Ministry of Electronics might provoke. Having just broken free from five centuries of Ottoman obscurantism, Albania was thus beginning its ambitious journey toward the promised land called Europe. During the First World War and the other seemingly minor wars with its neighbors, in its efforts to preserve its territorial integrity, Albania lost and regained its postal, telegraph and telephone communications network several times, just as it did its independence. This direct connection between the vital PTT service and the nation’s good and bad times is at once strange and meaningful. It cannot be said that PTT experienced its most glorious days during the years of the Albanian monarchy. According to historical figures, Albania had only 68 PTT offices, or approximately one office for every 15,000 inhabitants. Nevertheless, Albania’s accession in 1922 to the International Telecommunication Union and the Universal Postal Union—the two largest organizations in this field—can be considered an achievement. Then came the years of the fashion for repainting telephone poles and stringing cables indiscriminately, regardless of religion, region or ideology. After the war, this was corrected through a policy for PTT that enabled countless achievements, including the construction of main trunk lines in every direction and the connection of all the Republic’s villages by telephone. In any case, despite the continual ups and downs dictated by a variety of factors, the Albanian Post and all its technical branches managed to make it to their 85th birthday—a milestone that, for a public service, means reaching maturity.

On page 8

POLL

TIRANA - The pearl of antiquity, Butrint, has been included in UNESCO’s “List of 25 Names” as one of the world’s most endangered cultural treasures. As ATSH reports, UNESCO registered new sites as world heritage sites in danger: three in Africa and one in Europe, the latter being precisely Butrint in Albania. Because it had long remained exposed to people’s anger during the period of the March unrest, Butrint could not be forgotten by the world’s largest organization protecting cultural values. The Ksamil Peninsula, although endowed with fairy-tale beauty, failed to plant even a little compassion in the hearts of those who, during the terrible months of unrest, spared neither the heart of ancient Illyrian culture, Butrint. Known in antiquity for a long time as the capital of Epirus, today Butrint has nothing to substantiate this apart from its Greek-style theatre and a few other ruins nearby. All of this is solely due to the theft from the museum of the ancient city in March. This was the reason UNESCO perhaps proved more vigilant than the Albanian state itself in taking under its protection one of the rare works of world cultural architecture.

POLL “Smuggling, the evil of today’s Government” On page 4