TODAY, THE TRIAL IN SHKODËR On pages 12–13

OVER THE LAW On page 2

Numerous disagreements between the country’s two leaders. The Deputy Prime Minister on the verge of resigning: I have no authority to act On page 3

Scandal in the isolation cells. Doctors uncover the violence . Beaten by police, he dies in hospital. Mystery surrounds the death of a man detained by the police. A 19-year-old accused of murder was rushed to hospital by uniformed officers in serious condition, with his eyes also covered. eyes closed. While the police consider the young man’s death natural, the doctors who performed resuscitation on the victim have reported signs of violence inflicted on the victim’s body. A special team from the Capital will solve the mystery of the 19-year-old who died in custody. Following allegations by the city hospital’s doctors, a group of prosecutors and doctors has begun investigating to establish the truth. On page 5

Andi Bejtja The political representative of the KLA, Adem Demaçi, concluded his diplomatic tour in Tiranë yesterday, where he met with all the leading figures in Albanian politics, coming away satisfied with all the meetings and noting, for the first time, complete coherence regarding the Kosovo issue. Demaçi arrives in Tiranë shortly after the Berisha-Majko meeting, which, it must be said, eased the political climate in Albania and also sent positive signals to Kosovo. Meanwhile, the Albanian Parliament had also done its duty by adopting a special resolution which clearly states that Albania recognizes the right of the Albanians of Kosovo. On the other hand, President Mejdani said yesterday that the American mediator, Kris Hill, should not remain merely a visiting ambassador, but should stay and work continuously on the ground, in order to make the dialogue more serious. This time Demaçi has no reason not to be satisfied with the mother country, since this is the most that can be done by a state that has gone through repeated crises and is obliged to respect several international conventions, the most important of which is the one prohibiting changes to borders. On page 4

Bank experts uncover the first clues in the mega-scandal $200,000 fraud uncovered Auditors robbed the “Populli” foundation An audit by experts from the Savings Bank has uncovered the fraudulent theft of $200,000 by employees of the “Populli” foundation branch, in collaboration with the auditors during the period when the foundations were frozen. During a detailed audit by the Savings Bank’s accounting experts at the former branch of the “Populli” foundation in the city of Elbasan, a discrepancy and a lack of coordination were noted between the amount of money recorded in the documentation and the monetary value that had been blocked... On page 6

“Albanians in Kosovo must continue to fight, because they cannot afford to choose a new catastrophe and fall prey to Belgrade’s political repression.” This is the latest statement by the American commander of NATO forces, Vesli Klark, in an interview given at the conclusion... On page 9

PURGES The Minister of Finance, Anastas Angjeli, dismisses the last officials left over from his predecessor, Malaj. The dismissals come immediately after the annual review of the tax administration, held in the final days of December, where the minister spoke in harsh terms about the work of the tax officials. On page 7