Arben Rakipi, the new prosecutor of the Republic. Governor Tusha, the cover-up for “Arsidi”. Meidani’s car, accident at midnight Page 3

By Gavrosh Levonja The most important news of the past few hours was the entry of police forces into Vlorë, which had fallen under the control of armed gangs shortly after the outbreak of the revolt against the pyramid schemes. Having been protectors of citizens’ lives, it seems that, somewhat belatedly, the mission of some armed groups degenerated. Thus, after the pyramid schemes, the people of Vlorë were forced to fall victim also to armed men who, besides their lives, seized whatever the pyramid-scheme counters had not already swallowed up. As long as Berisha had no intention of leaving the presidential seat, police forces, including special units, were unable to enter the martyred city, because the people of Vlorë feared everything that came from the capital, always mindful of Berisha’s treachery. But after he left, at a time when life was beginning to return to normal in Tirana and other cities thanks to the change in the political balance, the people of Vlorë again saw themselves neglected, and had every reason to think that no one was giving them a thought. That was why the people of Vlorë welcomed the police special forces with flowers when they arrived in the city on Sunday evening. Unlike during the Berisha era, immediately after the ALBAS soldiers had left, the special troops who came to Vlorë after seven months were welcomed in the city as saviors. Only a few days earlier, Mr. Legisi had said: “Vlorë cannot be conquered, but it can be embraced.” The operation launched in Vlorë to save the city—which had overthrown Berisha’s regime—from the threats posed by armed gangs is of decisive importance for restoring order throughout the country. It appears that the leaders of the Ministry of the Interior understand clearly that if Vlorë is brought back to normal, it will be much easier to restore normality throughout the country. By now, everyone knows that everything that led to the long-awaited changes began in Vlorë. Not only was the largest coastal city in the south the first to spark the revolt against Berisha’s regime, but throughout that period its metastases spread through all the structures of the state. It is therefore entirely logical that Vlorë should also be of primary importance in the reverse process. If the central government restores normal life to the city, so that its residents can walk freely in the streets and the activities of local government bodies and all individual enterprises are safeguarded, then there is every chance that this will happen in the other cities too, which, at least in part, are currently outside the government’s control. Each passing day makes the state’s presence in this city more essential. On the other hand, the state itself recognizes that restoring order in Vlorë is decisive for its own future. The fact that the day before yesterday Berisha warned of organizing and leading revolts, including in the South, needs no comment in this regard. So, in a way, we are dealing with a symbiosis: Vlorë needs the hand of the state just as much as the new government needs to subdue the people of Vlorë.

Zani with the children of the Çole neighborhood

It had set out from Brindisi; intercepted in Velipojë Page 7

Chief of Police Bare: We will not pacify the rebellious city Page 11

Donors recommend liquidating the two banks Page 7