Serious charges against the former president. He faces decades in prison The Ministry of Defense sues the opposition leader “Arms trafficking and the opening of depots during the spring, the main accusations” TIRANA - Berisha to stand trial soon? A criminal complaint was filed yesterday at the office of Prosecutor General Arben Rakipi. The Ministry of Defense has prepared a nine-page document in which it documents and substantiates orders issued by the country’s former president and carried out by Defense Minister Zhulali, as well as by part of the country’s highest military hierarchy, at the beginning of last year. There are two main charges that appear likely to weigh on the shoulders of the former Commander-in-Chief of the Albanian Army, Sali Berisha, as well as an entire circle of senior Albanian Army generals. Their actions and orders have undermined the country’s defensive capability and created the conditions for the intervention of foreign military forces”—acts described as anti-national and punishable under Article 211 of the Criminal Code. The other charge alleges serious physical injuries amounting to genocide and, consequently, criminal activity punishable under Article 73 of the Criminal Code. If proven by the Albanian justice system, these two offenses could mean that the country’s former president serves decades in prison. On page 9

The first envoys arrive in Tirana today. Meeting on the 22nd On page 3

FOOTBALL On pages 10–11

TIRANA

INTERVIEW / “But the invitation must be made official”

A 16-year-old is killed, a child is wounded

TIRANA Merchants live in fear of “fines” On page 9

SKRAPAR Wanted man who shot at police officer arrested On page 9

DURRËS New investigations into the phantom ship On page 9

INTERVIEW / “But the invitation must be made official” INTERVIEW / Athens’ step, a positive step TIRANA - Paskal Milo comments on the Greek proposal. “It is only an unofficial initiative,” the head of Albanian diplomacy said. Shortly after arriving from Skopje, Milo said that “we would examine it seriously if we received an official request,” but that, according to him, they would still “reflect at the appropriate time and moment.” Milo’s response, given in a diplomatic style, seems to lean more toward that of a potential mediator for a European country than toward Athens... On page 3

A 16-year-old is killed, a child is wounded Shkodër: Bullets rain down on a family SHKODËR - Bloodshed and horror in Shkodër: a burst of automatic gunfire kills a 16-year-old boy and seriously wounds his 10-year-old sister. The tragic incident occurred last night at 19:00 in a vegetable shop, when unidentified individuals fired endless bursts toward the shop. Inside were Ergi Koqshari, 16, who lost his life; Marina Koqshari, 10, his sister, who is in serious condition at Shkodër hospital; and Myrvet Mezini, 48. The two children had gone into the shop to buy something with their mother, but the gunfire turned everything into a tragedy. The motives for this horrific murder are still unclear. It is not known whether the attackers intended to hit someone who happened to be passing in front of the shop at that moment—the shop is located near Shkodër civil hospital—or whether it was a blood feud, possibly connected to the 16-year-old boy. The police immediately began carrying out a series of operations. The streets of Shkodër emptied early, and numerous shots were heard for about an hour. The shop is in one of the city’s outlying neighborhoods, but residents of nearby houses say its owners could not have been the target of the shooting. .m.end.

THE COMMISSIONER SPEAKS SHKODËR — “The explosive in the courtyard of the Shkodër police station was thrown by criminal police officers inside this station.” The statement comes from Shkodër police director Mithat Havari, who, after saying that only a firecracker exploded at the police station, tells “Gazeta Shqiptare” that the perpetrators of this act have now been identified. He then explains that the only way to achieve peace and order is to disarm the population. On page 9

HOW WILL IT BE RESOLVED? The airfield in a property dispute Controversy over an old story TIRANA — The aviation field is causing a dispute. Its former owners, the state, and the new owners appear to be the parties that have ended up in court and in other such proceedings. For some time, it seems to have been left to the justice system, which has yet to give a final answer. Tirana with or without an aviation field? The question was first raised back in ’94, when Gafur Luga, former chairman of the Property Restitution Commission, decided that it should cease to exist and that it should be given to the people claiming to be its former owners—the Xhepa and Karapici families—thus recognizing the 1918 decision and not the one from 1944. Later, Luga’s successor, Çollaku, went further in 1996 by recognizing other families as its owners as well. Faced with such an absurd situation, the judges must decide who owns this land. They were compensated by the Italian state in ’39, when it was decided that this aviation field would be established, and later, when it became state property, Kelmendi and then Brojka responded through legal channels. At this point the Albanian justice system intervened, freezing the endless succession of court cases and proceedings over Tirana’s aviation field. While the court of first instance ruled in ’94 in favor of the state, the Court of Cassation did not seem to share that view and transferred it in favor of the private owners. But the court of appeal went further, overturning that decision too and sending the case back. More than three years have passed since this case of stratospheric proportions was last heard in a court session, and it is not known where along the road it stands. The mystery deepens further when, at last, the parties themselves—old and new—appear, along with old and new ties involving their respective dealings with judges, prosecutors, enforcement officers, and lawyers who come and go from power, or who remain in it. Such a tortuous saga seems likely to continue for a long time, since this is a plot of land on which a lawyer, a judge, or even an enforcement officer newly arrived from the northern areas might see an opportunity to build a house. p.rë

A long list of those accused. Along with Berisha, 16 generals

A nine-page document has been ready for two days

GAZETTE TV GAZETA TV GA E SUNDAY, JANUARY 18 THROUGH SATURDAY, JANUARY 24, 1998 On pages 5–8 Brad Pitt’s love life The films, shows, and programs you can watch this week

AFTER THE RETURN Minister Milo On page 2