You can’t keep following and being deceived along that path; is there any point in keeping your mind on your comrades? and is this difficult thing for you to bear? and this aim? and the threats to reason... [?] As long as the communism years were circulating, just as happened today with those oppositionists who are now trying to force new solutions. When some poor peasants could not defend their own sheepfolds, even the pashas could not defend their castles. In writing this truth seems bitter, but bitter is time itself. From the first months of change, although the people had great hopes, the old apparatus did not give up. ZP and all its machinery tried to preserve their positions by every means. Now that the old order is collapsing, some of the people who nourished it are trying to appear once again as saviors. In such a state, there can be no new deception. The people have seen, have endured, and have understood. Those who brought the country to this condition cannot now come out as the doctor of the wound they themselves opened. Those who for years were used to orders and fear now speak of democracy, but their words no longer convince. It took decades to understand that the truth can no longer be kept under lock and key. The more it is pushed down, the more forcefully it explodes. Albania can no longer move forward with a double language. One cannot promise freedom and keep the same old habit of command. ZP has remained like a body without breath, yet still moving out of habit. This movement no longer frightens anyone. Today’s time calls for courage, open speech, and responsibility. Whoever fears the light knows well what they have hidden. Whoever fears free choice knows well what the people will not forgive. Therefore, this ZP is like a dead strumpet. Let them no longer hold it up as a bogey in front of people’s eyes. Albania needs new life, not old shadows.

The newspaper “KD”, named, called, and baptized “ZP”, dated 9.9.1991, is linked to the rally in Tirana, not to the citizen movement, as is being speculated. Its aim is something entirely different: to frighten public opinion and preserve the old mechanisms. That is why the attacks on “Koha Jonë” are no coincidence. For those who do not know how to read the times, every free word seems like a danger. But free speech can no longer be stopped. This newspaper was launched to defend the truth and give voice to free thought. In that sense, it has entered a battle that is not only its own, but that of every citizen who no longer accepts fear. Today, when Albania stands on the brink of major changes, it is natural for the old forces to try to smear any independent initiative. “Koha Jonë” has been called all kinds of names, attacked, and distorted. But it is not a newspaper of slander; it is a newspaper of freedom of thought. It is not easy to write in a country where truth has been locked away for decades. It is not easy to speak when so many have become used to silence. Nevertheless, silence today is a fault. And free speech is a duty. We are against violence, against deception, and against the use of the press as a weapon against the people. We believe that real democracy is built through pluralism of ideas, free elections, and civic responsibility. “Koha Jonë” serves no clan, no secret group, and no manipulation. It serves the truth, the public, and democratic Albania. ALFONS ZENELI

SHOULDN’T WE HAVE A PARTY? Two unelected men meet each other in a café on the Vermut staircase. “How are you?” “Fine, and you?” “Me too...” In the end one asks: “So what will happen to this country?” The other: “Don’t worry, we’ll make a new party!” “A party with whom?” “With those who haven’t been left without a party!” Kristaqi said to Ylli: “If any comrade, association member, or delegate comes to me, don’t mix my party with social or with Marxism; I’ll handle it myself!” All three: “A first party...”

OPEN LETTER TO MR. SALI BERISHA I, who am writing to you, am a young man? 18 years old and grown, but not to be called Sa?at I saw in Kavajë in our country. For a moment it happened to me with hands that were dirtying something. Again not Agron Berishova; on the contrary, I saw gloomy and angry people. There was a great movement. I understood that something was changing. Before the harsh debates, I saw that many young people were waiting for a word of hope. You have become a symbol for them, which is why I am writing to you. We no longer want empty promises. We want an Albania where a person is not afraid to say what they think. I have seen firsthand how people wait anxiously for what will happen. Some have hope, some are afraid. But the majority want real change. That is why I am addressing you openly. Do not forget that words carry more weight when the country is tired. We need clarity, determination, and honesty. It is not enough to be against a regime; one must also be for a better future. Pashk Hadej

SATURDAY 1 FEBRUARY 1991 Daily No. 27 (178) 1 Lek