Tirana students boycott classes. Forum: No to Berisha’s second term Last night, the foreign ministers of the European Union decided to give Berisha and his embattled government another helping hand, contrary to the expectations and statements made by Brussels diplomats three days earlier. The meeting, which was expected to decide on calling for early elections, took a different course, channeling itself into the usual slogans that European institutions seem to have decided to use with Albania right to the end. The foreign ministers called for dialogue to continue and for aid to our country to continue, but limited themselves in their statements concerning sanctions against the Albanian government. They expressed support for “respecting the principles of democracy and beginning dialogue,” although it is unclear which principles are meant and what topic the dialogue should focus on. Nevertheless, it is understood that conditions have been set regarding the further provision of aid, consisting mainly of how the authorities will behave toward threatened political freedoms. Europe’s helping hand comes at a time when the current authorities find themselves alone in their tower. The Democratic Party has been completely abandoned by the political forces that supported it on 26 May last year and shared responsibility with it in the Meksi II government. A clear faction of individuals has emerged within the party, while the opposition, united in the Forum for Democracy and the Shkodër Right, is demanding the government’s resignation and the holding of early elections. The party in power is being battered by a wave of strikes and mass protests that have swept across the entire south and part of the north. Such a situation has led the idea of a political solution to attract an ever-growing number of forces. But while Albanians are making their choice about the state that governs them, the countries of Western Europe decided yesterday to keep playing a game with Berisha, whose cost to Albania remains to be seen in the future. In these circumstances, the hypothesis raised once again is that, in relation to our country, a power struggle is being played out between the US and Europe, a game in which some European states have decided to support the Democratic Party and Mr. Berisha. The Euro-American confrontation is something Western chanceries do not conceal, and it is not limited to the Albanian issue. Indeed, it is one of the most Western of such issues. The contradictions between the two sides over their stance toward Cuba are well known: the US wants a hardline policy toward Fidel Castro, which EU countries do not accept. The West has long been familiar with these problems, which stem from historical interests and the struggle for influence. To see the European trend in relation to developments in Albania, one need only look at the timing and manner of the invitation that Greek President Stefanopulos extended to Berisha. The Albanian leader’s visit to Athens is due to take place in May, which means that the president of Albania who goes there will be the new president, to be elected by parliament before 9 March. The Greek authorities may have known quite literally that the current president has a greater chance of winning the term, but, from a protocol standpoint, inviting a more official state... At a time when the president has received such a personal invitation just as his term is about to expire, it is nothing other than a diplomatic blunder. Europe’s position toward Albania is, in the end, proof of the lack of an alternative that foreign chanceries see in our country’s political class. It is not only Berisha’s and the governing party’s sins that are holding back the European Union’s aims. It is also the opposition’s marked weakness in establishing itself as the opponent of a party that no longer enjoys anyone’s support. Yet it seems that bringing it down from power will still require time and sacrifices from us all. K.J

During the hunger strike of the students of Vlorë Photo Reuters Following the statement on TV by the chief state auditor Blerim Çela, “Albania” and “Koha Jonë” The night before last and yesterday on TV, the chief state auditor, Blerim Çela, said, among other things, that the “Gjallica” company had also sponsored the newspapers “Java”, “Koha Jonë” and “Albania” in the form of advertising, implying that the dollars paid were very large sums. Since Mr. Çela felt compelled to mention the presidential newspaper “Albania” as well, one can imagine how many thousands of dollars “Albania” received under the guise of being the presidential paper. Meanwhile, “Gjallica” contracted with “Koha Jonë” to advertise its subsidiaries on the following dates: 20/04/1996, for the sum of 50,000 lekë. The advertisement was on behalf of the Vlorë salt factory; on 26/04/1996, for the sum of 600,000 lekë, for an advertisement on behalf of Adi Petrol Gjirokastër; on 15/06/1996, for the sum of 420,000 lekë, to advertise “Gjalllëça”. Total sum: 1,520,000 lekë, or 1,500 dollars, at a time when the editorial office pays the printing house nearly 200,000 dollars a month just to print the newspaper. Meanwhile, the figures for the newspapers “Albania” and “RD” exceed 50,000 dollars a year. The claim about the “KJ” newspaper is made to create a bad image, even though, as the largest Albanian newspaper, it received only a few dollars from “Gjalllëça”. Had it agreed on a different sum with “Koha Jonë”, the prosecutor’s office would surely have knocked on our newspaper’s door. But it is striking that while Çela was forced to admit that the Democratic Party had received 50,000 dollars in sponsorship, the facts show that the Democratic Party benefited 20 times more during the campaign of 26 May last year alone. It is enough to point out that “RD” journalist Edi Paloka alone received 31,000 dollars, MP Gëzim Zyla 10,000 dollars, former Democratic Party minister Osman Shehu over 2 million dollars, etc.—figures provided by Albanian Television. Later, the public will also learn the names of those holding rallies these days in northern Albania. THE EDITORIAL OFFICE During the hunger strike of the students of Vlorë — Photo Reuters