The world’s number-two leader was in Albania yesterday, amid flowers and Albanian enthusiasm At last, Tirana finds the friend it lost 55 years ago The world’s number-two leader was in Albania yesterday, amid flowers and Albanian enthusiasm The Englishman Blair, this Great Albanian At last, Tirana finds the friend it lost 55 years ago

Spartak Poçi, the man who will replace the dismissed Petro Koçi at the head of the public order ministry, takes up this sensitive position after the unsuccessful experience of three ministers from the “Alliance for the State” coalition. Specifically, progress in restoring security in the country over these past two years has been negligible, and it can be said that the public order structures, despite the dedication and abilities of most of their staff, have been powerless to rein in crime. Yet before taking their seats as ministers of Public Order, they were the first to enumerate on their fingertips all the reasons for the failures to establish order, swearing that they would be able to put things right. But, given the recurrence of this negative phenomenon among Poçi’s predecessors, one gets the impression that none of them took care to consider the mistakes made before. Thus, none of the public order ministers managed to break the ties and compromises between the criminal underworld and some state administration officials, with the exception of the Ceka-Legisi duo, who nevertheless did as much as could be done at that complicated time. Regarding the failure of his predecessors to keep their promises, it must be acknowledged that there was also no commitment to take on the challenge of confronting organized crime. This was also connected to the criteria used to appoint public order officials in various places, where, more than staff members’ abilities, order and morality—or rather, more than their abilities, morality and past—what determined appointments was their ties to senior officials accused of abuses and relations with dubious circles. But now, with Poçi’s appointment as Minister of Public Order, people hope not to be disappointed. And, for that hope to become reality, the new minister must lead with an “iron hand” in every respect. First of all, he must put an end to police appointments based on mafia clans, clearing the way for professionals and honest people. But this is also bound up with the struggle to destroy once and for all the ties between various sections of the administration, including the public order sector, and the mafia. To this end, he will have the assistance of foreign experts, particularly a secret NATO structure, who are in the final stages of drawing up a list of influential people linked to mafia circles. Secondly, he must wage the battle against crime on the ground, where the intensive deployment of “Anti-Crime” is decisive. And as far as this is concerned, it is no sin to disregard a democratic norm if, for criminals, it could amount to a lifeline. Anti-Crime is the best remedy for wiping the super-criminals from the face of the earth; even when they are eliminated, the justice system lets them go because they pay millions and millions of lekë. Put simply, otherwise the “lice of crime” will cover everyone in darkness. Therefore, Minister Spartak Poçi can also enter history through this door: Anti-Crime.

Today in the PS parliamentary group 13:04 Ruçi Dizdari Sherifi Lupe Brace Fino Malaj Legisi Islami Ullini Koçi Poçi This is how the socialists establish public order

Today, among other things, in “Koha Jonë” you will read: Tank warfare begins at the border page 12 Meidani signs today, accepts Koçi’s resignation page 7 Police stop a train carrying stolen diesel fuel page 18 American report: 225,000 men missing in Kosovo page 11

How the KLA gets its dollars page 2 Blair: The EU and NATO are Albania’s future page 5 Mariza Linos’s “bomb” pacifier page 17 Coalition leaders on changes in government: Life goes on page 7

The 10 best Albanian actresses selected page 28 People’s Theatre: “From a stormy sea to a stinking swamp” page 21 Prime Minister Blair meets the KLA in Tirana page 2 Rugova and Thaçi moving toward reconciliation page 2