Yesterday the leader of the Democrats did not allow anyone from the DP to pay their respects at Colonel Zylftari’s coffin The leader of the DP, like Enver Hoxha in the past, draws his sword against the international organizations that are in Tirana to ensure political normality page 4 Terror against crime honor for Zylftari Elidon Hyseni, brother of the massacred student, makes an unusual request to Rakipi

Yesterday, the highest authorities of the country took part in the tribute to Colonel Zylftarín, paying the greatest honors to this martyr who fell to criminals’ bullets. Like most Albanians, his relatives, and those who had worked with the martyr Arben Zylftarí at various times, the eyes of the highest head of the Albanian State, too, were not without tears expressing deep sorrow. But tears and tributes to the figure of Colonel Zylftari, accompanied by words and promises that the law will act without mercy, etc., may be said to be far too little if the response of the state mechanisms were to amount to only this. Prime Minister Meta, speaking at the funeral ceremony, solemnly promised that in the future the hand of the state would strike very hard against criminals of every kind. But that blow should have begun yesterday. It would, in a way, also have been the most meaningful tribute to the former chief of police of Shkodra, Zylftarí, and at the same time the first concrete signal to criminals to think carefully if they decide to raise a hand against law-enforcement officers. On other occasions, too, when police officers have lost their lives, funeral ceremonies have turned into demonstrations in the fight against crime, where presidents, prime ministers and other officials have harshly threatened criminals, promising a fierce and merciless fight against the contingents that endanger the normal lives of citizens. This is what happened when police officers were brutally killed in Ballsh, Berat and elsewhere. But, unfortunately, everything has remained within the bounds of words, or the state’s response has been only a flash in the pan, once again leaving the initiative in the hands of criminals. Now that the time has come to give crime and criminals the response they deserve, a serious commitment is expected from all state structures engaged in the fight against the criminal underworld. People, who until now have had little hope, once again place their hopes in this, and await a signal from the government that everything, as Prime Minister Meta himself promised yesterday, will change radically. Such a signal should have been given yesterday, precisely by informing Albanians of the capture of this or that number of criminals and the dismantling of the gangs that until now have felt victorious in their duel with the state.

Pages 2–3 Ceremony honoring Colonel Zylftari Photo: P. ILO

Elidon Hyseni, brother of the massacred student, makes an unusual request to Rakipi request to Rakipi “Make me an investigator so I can find Kozeta’s killer” “At least let us find out who killed our girl”—this is the anguish in his and his family’s hearts. And it seems his son will fulfill this wish; he has only recently received his diploma page 8