On pages 10-11

INTERVIEW / For the first time, the former Chief of the Court of Cassation speaks from the USA TIRANA - “I was forced to leave Albania and now I live as a political asylum seeker in Boston, in the USA.” Zef Brozi, the controversial former president of the Court of Cassation, has lived since 1995 with his wife Diana and Peng, “the most beautiful girl in the world,” as he calls her, in the dormitories of Boston University, where he is also completing a master’s degree in “American Law.” He studies 12 to 14 hours a day, but “family is my most important commitment. My 19-month-old daughter is the one who brings Diana and me so much happiness.” He has integrated into American life with great determination and effort. “Life here is serious work,” he says, “not hours and hours in cafés and wastefulness as in Albania. I have completed a course of study in this year that I would wish for every Albanian student. It is a daily examination. And I think Albania greatly needs these schools, which are the true foundation of a serious state.” Speaking by telephone, after a long period of silence with the press, Brozi recounts the story of his departure from Albania, his disagreements with Berisha and the government of the time, the role of the American embassy in his “home,” as well as his views on what is currently happening in Albania and Kosovo. On page 15

Nano asks NATO for help: 35,000 people at risk TIRANA - Nano sounds the alarm at a meeting of the Security Policy Committee. “There are 70 mined depots with two thousand tons of ammunition in very poor technical condition; if they explode, they will endanger the lives of 35,000 residents in the surrounding area.” This is what the Albanian Prime Minister declared, while the government’s troubles are far from over. According to Nano’s spokesman, Ben Blushi, there is another risk at around 30 depots stretching from Kruja to the North, where there have been 2-3 attempts to steal weapons. “The Prime Minister ordered that strict measures be taken to guard them,” Blushi told “Gazeta Shqiptare,” adding that “after the first warning to those who attempt to steal weapons, strict action will be taken,” which implies the immediate use of firearms by the security forces. On page 3

Qamill Buxhelli Once, the leaders of Rome took pleasure in watching the gladiators play the scholars. Today, the leaders of Belgrade, with Millosheviç at their head, are clapping and enjoying themselves as they watch our “enlightened” politicians, after “unsheathing their daggers” [R. Qosja] and “sharpening their claws” [D. Agolli], gouge each other’s eyes out. With mottos like the Nazi-era “Morte tua, vita mia” and the fascist slogan “Molti nemici, molto onore.” Their speeches, debates, articles and interviews often bring to mind that… game of sport, where gladiators in a ring of mud try to see who can knock the other down harder and shove his head as far… God worked for 6 days to build the world and rested on the seventh. We Albanians were not so fortunate. We had no Sunday. We had none because in the seventh year we found ourselves without a government, without a state, without an army, without police, without customs—allah-allah, without prisons… Sisyphus’s heavy, very heavy, knee… the coalition government struggles to push it to the top of the mountain. Wouldn’t it be more sensible, instead of putting stones in the wheels of this process, for which the whole world is helping us—especially at this tragic moment when the Kosovo question has exploded—as the ancient Greeks used to do during the Olympics? To sit down and do nothing, to set aside temporarily… More sensible and more patriotic in these circumstances would be to put away temporarily the “daggers” and “claws,” hang them on the coat racks of party cloaks, and for our politicians, our statesmen, as our friends and well-wishers around the world insist, under the slogan “One nation, one position”—not just in words, but with full commitment—to set aside resentments and join forces to successfully confront Serbian aggression. Wouldn’t it benefit the nation and, especially, martyred Kosovo at this moment, for our politicians, our political class, to recall the history of Winston Churchill, the No. 1 enemy of communism, who, when his country faced the Nazi threat, publicly declared: “I will not change even a comma of what I have said against communism, but the time has come to extend a hand to Stalin and give Hitlerite aggression the appropriate response.” Isn’t this the historic moment for our politicians, our political class as a whole, to draw the necessary lessons from the prophetic words of American President Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country.” This unity, this national and pan-national commitment would be the best response to Greater Serbian aggression. This does not at all mean that parties, associations, etc., should lose their identity. The point is that they should rise to the occasion; the extraordinary situation requires, at least to get through this critical moment, immediate political solutions. Division, hostility and instability serve only Millosheviç and his supporters. Let us not forget that after Famine, Death, War and Epidemics, division has been and remains the fifth horseman of the Apocalypse. “You cannot be called a true politician if you lack patience and cannot contain your hatred for your political opponent when the national interest is at stake,” Stendali said. If this does not happen, the consequences will be tragic; one day the distant war will be repeated… looking at the days we are living through with a hand to my forehead, I will not be surprised at all if we hear that in Uganda there are…? being shelled, from 120 to 140 villages…

KOSOVO AT THE BLACK SEA SUMMIT Paskal Milo The Summit of Heads of State and Government of the countries participating in the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Initiative had been scheduled two months earlier, when the foreign ministers of the countries in this initiative met, primarily to sign the Charter transforming this Initiative into the Organization of Black Sea Economic Cooperation. There, Ahen… The agenda for this meeting provided for nothing other than a brief presentation of each country’s views on this matter and each respective country’s commitment to respect this Charter. We, before… Continued on page 3

This has been one of those rare occasions when the editorial office has found it difficult to decide. In this controversy, two well-known figures of contemporary Albanian culture face one another. Spartak Pecani, Director of the National Cinematography Center, speaks harshly about the newly appointed Minister of Culture, Edi Rama. It would be better for the two of them to sit down and talk about the problems of Albanian cinema. One of the two has taken up his pen and written the piece that we have decided to publish today. The editorial office of Gazeta Shqiptare believes this is a problem between people of culture and should be treated as such. In any case, it considers the views expressed by the author of this article to be entirely personal. Spartak Pecani Who is Canjupit for-… Cinematographic. Put differently, this human and creative-office category is capable of becoming the servant not of some, but of all masters, for as long as it considers them powerful and in authority and possesses an unquestionable ability to save as much as it can through its humility and servility. If one day they sense that they are being removed from the throne—and this is no prophecy—I will say without hesitation that, after a short time, when they sense your administrative downfall approaching, these applauders in the boxes will be the first to sell you out, appearing as enemies, as heralds of your worthlessness. In any case, with this phenomenon so interesting and so complex, where social, moral, political, economic and human phenomena are strangely intertwined… as in the Nazi creed molto onore”. Their words, debates, articles and interviews often remind you of that young Ilion of sport, where opponents in a ring of mud try, each one harder than the other, to sink deeper into life, [fitrin?] and push one another’s heads as far down into the mud as possible. What is paradoxical is that this mad “duel” is fought “in the name of the nation,” in the name of “the people,” and, finally, in the name of “our Kosovar brothers.” And all this—the people don’t swallow the soup for the devil—is to score “points” with the electorate, for “political cosmetics,” as the saying goes: “The village is burning and the [k…?] is dancing.” No, I love the Kosovars very much (and I love the Çam people very much too). “But you don’t love them at all; I’m helping them, while you don’t care.” “Oh, my dear! No, I’m like that, I’m like this!” TK-communist, I’m a crocodile! You’re a Greek-lover! I’m a Serb-lover! You send Ramiz, I send “God”!… Listening to them brings to mind Noli’s words, written almost 100 years ago: “We must understand that we are not fighting the Serbs as individuals, but their ideas”—that is, their alternatives and viewpoints. But with us, “the ball goes bang and Muço goes flying.” Gunshots ring out in the corridors of Parliament. Is this power, clinging to the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, being pushed forward? You’d think we were not in a pluralist system, but in the time of Fascism, when Parliament ruled… “Either you’re with us in everything and on every matter, or you’re against us” in everything! “You get health, I get the spoils.” At a time when war is knocking at the border, when “Hannibal is at the gates,” what is the wisest thing to do: drive away investors, bring Parliament to a halt, call a general strike, hold early elections, refuse to hand over the weapons, postpone the adoption of the Constitution to the “Greek calends,” and, above all, overthrow the government! It doesn’t matter that the whole world supports it for its role in the Kosovo issue and in the region alongside Kosovo… Nobody thinks that the coalition government is standing on the devil’s feet, 24-carat in every field. It has its weaknesses and shortcomings, which have been pointed out by friends around the world who support it and by others who do not… It is trying hard to put them right. But is it logical to throw out the nine-month-old government along with the “government’s shortcomings”? Is it logical to demand investigations in circumstances when you arrive at the location of a [vehicle?]…? isn’t any of these… in its proper place… … [huir?] of Culture, announced in one of the most important programmes on our state television, particularly the path it proposes for interpreting cine…?ography, which is lethal to Albanian film art. In my view, this anti-cine…?matographic platform of the new Minister of Culture, which demonstrates a total lack of understanding of the complex problems of our present-day cinematographic reality, has been built on supplications, gossip and dubious creators, particularly as regards their human qualities—creators whose dignity has been battered over time and who are capable of bending over backwards and fawning on anyone newly installed on the throne, and so on. I say this with conviction because, both fortunately and unfortunately, I have come to know this category of [xhelatinoxe?] personally during the few months since I was appointed to such a position as head of the National Center interpreting cine…?matography, months since I was appointed head of the National Center of Cinematography. Simply as a filmmaker, as a film director, I have felt this to be necessary and problematic. The complicated nature of Albanian cinematography, sincere thoughts now … in the face of amnesties, these gallery applauders oracles, as heralds of your lack of merit. In any case, I will find another occasion to speak about this highly interesting and complex phenomenon, in which social, moral, political and economic developments, vices, unstable character, etc., etc., are strangely intertwined, naming specific people, types and characters whom I know very well—not for a week or a year, but for years on end, a whole lifetime. I know their whole way of life on the visible stage of life, but also behind the scenes, in its secret intrigues. In my position as be necessary and problematic.

Hajdari: They want to kill Nano TIRANA - Hajdari warns Fatos Nano again. “I have reliable information that he is at risk,” the senior Democratic official said yesterday. The leader of Dhejtor has clarified once again that he himself was not seeking to put the Prime Minister at risk, but that other sources were, which he could not disclose. On page 16

The side of the terrorist act that has not been brought to light TIRANA - Was the bomb placed at the “Vefa” supermarket the work of the Italian Mafia? “Revenge” had no hand in this crime,” prosecutors from the investigative team have stated. The biggest accusation weighing on the so-called “Revenge for Justice” should not be maintained, according to the prosecutors. There is no complete proof that they were responsible. While the case remains open, senior officials of the central prosecutorial body have stated that “although the case may go to trial with this charge, we will investigate the earlier theories as well.” They are referring to two leads that were mentioned immediately after February 26, 1996, but then forgotten. One was the possibility of an attack carried out by Serbian intelligence, and perhaps also revenge by Alimucaj’s dubious partners across the Adriatic. The prosecutors on the investigative team will be free to present the charges brought some time ago. They themselves will support everything with evidence. Meanwhile, the trial may fail if the judges see that officers of the secret services or the Ministry of Public Order have been flagrantly changed in the case file. On page 4

WORLD CUP ENCYCLOPEDIA / Today, installments No. 6, 7 and 8

GAZETA e Shkodrës Road tragedy: Two dead, three injured On page 6 GAZETA e Vlorës Kosovo victims set off clandestinely for Italy On page 7 GAZETA e Durrësit High temperatures: SOS for food sold on the streets On page 8