Nano with his family and the SP, Berisha with his two granddaughters and the DP, Gjinushi complain about prices! Pages 2, 3

Recently, a BBC journalist has had the audacity to write a bad book about Albania and Albanians, and has come up with the title “The accursed Mountains” (The Cursed Mountains). This journalist, already overwhelmed by disgust toward Albanians before setting foot on the land inhabited by “wild people” (as he writes), comes to Korçë and meets a certain Albanian named Gabriel. This Gabriel— with his touchy pride and ignorance—takes the foreign journalist by the hand and takes him to a village in Pogradec. From the foreigner’s descriptions, the village of Lin comes to mind. Our Gabriel says to the foreigner: “Would you like a couple of young girls from this village tonight?” (according to the book). The foreigner, despite being pathologically disgusted by Albanians, replies to Gabriel: “You make a habit of doing this; we don’t?!” “Well, they’re Albanians, and anything goes with them,” says the Albanian from Korçë. “You do this in your own family too?” the BBC journalist asks. “Well, why not?” the Albanian named Gabriel muttered... There are many inhabitants of this country who have taken to the fashion of insulting themselves. It is a serious and absurd epidemic. People just returned from abroad, just released from prison, just freed by the Amnesty, just declared wanted, just emerged from the building with the container trucks, just discharged from the hospital in a bloody state, just left the restaurant where they celebrated with the famous—the lot of them, including this category—shout that “the country is beyond saving, Albanians are bad.” Even this category dares to say these things. But those who fall outside this category, yet are influenced by them, “are wild people of this kind”—what, one wonders, can they say? The same thing, too, but with one more justification: they themselves are not to blame. In this case, the worst has happened: perpetrators and victims have become entangled in the same philosophy—an accusation against themselves. 2001 is approaching under such a sorrowful burden: We are bad! In fact, for at least ten years we have been waiting for a day when we can convince ourselves that “we can change,” while almost everyone watches and waits for the boom to come; almost everyone keeps looking to see when it will happen. Both protagonists and spectators, everyone is waiting. Everyone is still stuck in a “... everyone is waiting. Everyone is still stuck in a ...” for someone else to “bring the cup of sunshine.” They boast and everyone complains. (Continued on page 4)

Page 7

by Filip Çakuli Nino Ginali Nino Vitali Among other things:

Among other things: ➢ The American ambassador’s coffee and press commentary ➢ There are more ministers in the madhouse than outside it ➢ My life went by in doubt Pages 20–23

The first issue of the newspaper “Koha Jonë” for the New Year 2001 will come out on January 4, so all “KJ” employees must report to work on January 3. “KJ” EDITORIAL OFFICE