editorial Arian Çani Whenever we hear and write that “the Otranto tragedies were caused by the Italians,” our first reaction is “bastards, they’re always to blame.” Whenever we learn that the Greeks tore up passports and sent refugees back, we rush to say “the treacherous ones, this is how they have treated us throughout history...,” and so, little by little, it becomes firmly rooted in the minds of most Albanians that it is always those people, our foreign neighbors, who are to blame. This is how certain myths and opinions, often false and harmful to everyone, are built and take root in the minds of the people of this country. For more than three years—at least since the unrest of March ’97—speedboat drivers have been, and are still considered by an overwhelming majority of Albanians to be both people who break the law and indispensable in the difficult times we are living through... Continued on page 3

Dossier On pages 12-13

SALI LUSHA How I saved Fatos Nano Interview with Berisha’s former bodyguard. Lusha’s connections with politicians, izet Haxhinë... On page 2

Everything about “Corridor 8” The Americans at the Port of Durrës "Forget your Soviet friends" On page 16 Everything about "Corridor 8"

"The speedboat driver threw me into the middle of the sea" On page 3