AFTER MAJKO’S VISIT On page 2

ON KOSOVO On page 3

AN ITALIAN NEWSPAPER ACCUSES THE ALBANIAN GOVERNMENT OVER THE RELEASE OF THE “BOSS” OF VLORA Zani in Rome for the Holidays But Myrteza Çausi speaks from his cell... On page 5

On page

The village in Shkodër decides to take the law into its own hands The elders gather: “The state always lets them go; we’ll do things differently” “The thieves have ‘made our lives miserable,’ but now we know how to get rid of them: we’ll kill them. The weakness of the state is driving us to take the law into our own hands.” This is what the elders of the villages in Dajç Municipality have decided, following the many thefts that increasingly threaten their homes. But it was not only the weakness of the state; the negligence and disregard of the local authorities and law-enforcement bodies have also brought the laws of Lekë Dukagjini back to Shkodër once again. On page 16

Mirosh Sako Of all the Eastern European countries entering the democratic orbit this decade, only Albania has undergone unforeseen upheavals, with consequences even for the fate of the national cause itself. One might say that it is difficult to find another region on the old continent where the past projects recurring dramas into the future. Perhaps, therefore, we would like the Majko-Berisha meeting to be associated with the writer’s wish for a call to revive lost nobility. It must perhaps be admitted, though with some pain for certain groups, that the moderate wing of the PS once again showed itself to be freer and to have greater civic courage in facing a highly burdened public opinion. Certainly, what enabled this was the institutionalization that has been taking place for some time now, following liberation from doctrine; in my view, this is the PS’s second victory on the road to reform, after distancing itself from a missionary-type party. On the other hand, there is the reflection of diversity of opinion, which the press likes to portray as a split into clans, but which its leader, Nano, has unequivocally characterized as follows: “Party unity is not what interests us.” This position is giving it ever greater opportunities to act more flexibly and respond more quickly to Albanian political reality. At this time, no one should overlook the demographic advantage enjoyed by the Albanian left; otherwise, they would be making a mistake in calculating their party’s prospects in the elections. Perhaps we should expect 1999 to bring further reform processes in the PS, which would result in the return of those who were lost, who came from below and above. On the other hand, the idea that there was a group of moderates within the PD who would bring about this development through the Majko-Berisha meeting proved not to be a realistic idea, but rather one constructed by the media. As expected, Berisha took the role of moderator in this instance as well. This showed that the fundamental problem in the PD is not a division between moderates and conservatives, but the existence of a group of conformists; indeed, we would say that it is the most incoherent part of the party and harmful to its own future. By institutionalizing the possibility of meetings with particular groups or forces within a party, as he did with the meeting with the Majko-Meta group, Berisha did not harm the PS; instead, he created room and gave it new experience in how to handle new developments and the crises that arise over time, by alternating different groups within it, in order to preserve continuity of governance[?] and governance. Meanwhile, the so-called moderates did not demonstrate this capacity. Continued on page 4