The Constitutional Court president’s home blown up After Shkodër, an attempted rebellion in Kukës / Gjinushi blocked by an armed group Page 3

BY GAVROSH LEVONJA Although the new government’s program presented to parliament had set out a significant improvement in public order as a goal, despite the commitment of the new minister Koçi, the period so far has shown that very little—if anything at all—has been done in this regard. Without mobilizing the commitment of police personnel in the fight against crime, it cannot be said that any success has been achieved. The events in Shkodër and Kukës, and the attack on Constitutional Court president Abdiu, are perhaps the gravest challenge facing those in charge of public order. This is because the public-order authorities were unable to prevent an armed group from attacking and “taking over” the most important government institutions in the northern city. It is a well-known fact, particularly given the experience of recent years, that whenever the state decides to act, reactions from groups whose interests are affected are difficult to avoid. Such scenarios have accompanied almost all kinds of protests, from those concerning opposition to the execution of an unpopular police commissioner to the arrest of a person influential in various circles of the city. It seems that those in charge of public order, first and foremost those at the center, have disregarded this experience, which, after all, may also be considered professional engagement. As stated in the official announcement, the arrests were made in an effort to avert unrest planned for the day of the 22 November referendum. By the simplest logic, the group of people due to take action on 22 November could hardly fail to react after the arrest of those suspected of leading the organization of the 22 November unrest. In this way, those directing the operation to arrest the organizers of the 22 November unrest should have been prepared for this kind of reaction. The arrests should therefore have been accompanied by other security measures to ensure the protection of important government institutions. Since this was not done, what happened happened. The other point is that, after what happened in Shkodër, in a repetition of the same pattern, perhaps on an even larger scale, it also took place on the day of ...

Special forces patrolling the streets of Shkodër yesterday morning Photo REUTERS Special forces patrolling the streets of Shkodër yesterday morning. Photo REUTERS

The Prime Minister: “Criminal charges against the author of the document granting 30 railcars free of charge” The Ministry of Transport rejects the tender. The government attacks “Koha Jonë” Pages 4–5 The “Meta” tender is cancelled. Yesterday, the Minister of Public Works and Transport, Ingrid Shuli, refused to put her signature on an illegal tender—which, among other things, should not even have existed. Shuli herself declined to comment on the reasons that compelled her to cancel the tender and said that we could obtain the full information from this ministry’s press spokesperson.

Late-night news from the center of Tirana Following press debates over the “Meta-Monika” tender, in which the media have openly accused the Deputy Prime Minister of awarding a tender involving his wife’s company “Piaza,” Ilir Meta had summoned the railway director for dinner yesterday evening; his wife Monika and Ndre Legisi, a senior PS official and member of parliament, were also dining there. Monika, as the photo manager of the newspaper “Koha Jonë,” ... Had gone inside to take a photograph ... Monika got up and ordered her husband’s guards to throw the photojournalist out. The guards behaved properly, while Monika shouted her orders: “No photographs. Don’t let him!” After this incident, the senior officials at the restaurant set off ...

The tragedy of a family in Shtërmen, Elbasan, following the departure for prostitution of the mother of two children It may seem unbelievable, but there is a bitter, age-old truth, just as many other things in the village have remained untouched by the metropolis. After arguing with her husband the previous night over the cow, a 25-year-old woman begins with such incidents, but this time ...