The DP chairman erases Tropojë from his campaign plans On Tuesday, the major showdown between the two leaders in the troubled areas of the North page 3

BY FERDINAND XHAFERRI The two major parties have almost completed the first round of contact with their militants. Meanwhile, it can be said that enough material has been gathered to offer opinions on the negative effects of the campaign and how it might proceed from here. The most striking elements observed can be set out as follows. First, the political leadership, defined by the Nano-Berisha duo, has done an excellent job of fulfilling the obligation left by the Mother Party. That is, in most municipalities and communes, the outdated incubator of the Party of Labour has been put back to work and has produced candidates. It is clear that Nano had the greater obligation, or the quantitative aspect, while Berisha, by covering Tirana and the places Nano left vacant, can be said to have mastered the quality of this process. Second, it is quite clear that not only has everything been taken in hand by the two main leaders, but they have once again failed to set aside rhetoric that incites violence and fuels tension. While Berisha has stayed within his traditional style, something distinctive has happened with Nano. Just 10 days of campaigning have been enough to wipe out the nearly three-year investment he made in presenting himself as a moderate. His appearance in this campaign has proved beyond doubt that it was all false. In other words, Mr Nano remains the same as far as his alliance with conflict is concerned, with the sole difference from Berisha being that, in calm situations, his self-restraint system works better at curbing language that incites violence. Based on the above, opinions can be formed about how this campaign will progress. The atmosphere created seems likely to significantly increase abstention. Although Nano and Berisha do not miss a day without urging voters to vote, their political aggression is one of the main reasons to stay away from the ballot boxes. Moreover, the dominance of the campaign by the two big players is leaving no room for the small parties to play a role. In the conditions of a normal campaign, given the past and present of the two major parties, the United Right, the Republicans or the Democratic Alliance would have the opportunity to claim a considerable share of the electoral pie. But the deafening differences between the two big parties leave voters no room to take in the somewhat appealing tunes of the small parties. Thus, the small parties seem destined, undeservedly, to remain small, at the same levels as before. Last, but most importantly, the line of violence that the duo is trying to convey is not expected to succeed. Ultimately, it must be clarified that this is not a conflict between Nano and Berisha, but their shared policy of creating tension. This kind of politics has harmed Albanians considerably, just as it has been an exhausting lesson in teaching them not to be used again. So this time, if they continue down this path, the only losers will be Nano and Berisha, and no one else. Through their political conduct, they are also burning their very last chance to remain in politics in a normal way. We should bear in mind that the times and the challenges facing Albania and the Region are turning everything around. The future will not only refuse to accept, but will no longer tolerate politicians who claim to be a factor only under the pressure of destabilization.

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Nano and Rama yesterday at the QNK meeting Photo: P. ILO Nano and Rama yesterday at the QNK meeting. Photo: P. ILO

Beaten savagely, they end up in hospital page 9