At last the Albanian citizen felt free; without Lejfen’s ridiculous and enslaving uniform, outside the ranks and platoons of the Bolsheviks. He found himself in his newly expanded space, completely free and completely bewildered by the beauty of freedom. Now, neither in the newspaper nor in «ZP» is the freedom-killers’ deadly column, «let us keep communist morale high», published any longer. Everyone speaks as they wish and praises whomever they wish. The Albanian Pilate, the killer of peace, freedom and Christ, was brought down. The prosecutor who twisted the Albanian’s mind in the vice of the bed of mediocrity was overthrown. The Albanian, this unfortunate foot soldier at the end of the 20th century, is now permitted to welcome Mr. Baker, this Columbus who comes from the world of angels. And you, Mr. Baker, will have the good fortune to «discover», in the peaceful cosmos of a [unclear], a small and strange «planet» which, in vain, had been angry with peace until now, which had stubbornly and [unclear] resisted human freedom. And you will also discover Albanian faces on which the charm of happiness suits so well. Albania has no flowers, Mr. Baker; it has only a heart. The shores of Albanian flowers were laid waste and turned into countless bouquets for the ambassadors of hell: for Çuen Lai, for Raul Marko, for the phantom named Zhdanov Amazona, for Kazhmitjah Mihalli, chairman of a merry party of «Polish communism»... They came from the world of devils dressed in angels’ robes. From their eyes, as in fairy tales, came a mushroom-like fog. And in this fog Albania disappeared, and the world did not even see Albania. From their pornographic embraces with the dictator, in the shameful scenes of congresses, cynical sparks flashed which E. Hoxha, like a modern young man, called beacons. And beneath (Continued on page 2)

At long last, genuine hopes are also coming for Albania and its long-suffering people. In two days, the Secretary of the Department of State of the United States of America, the distinguished politician Mr. James Baker, will arrive in Tirana. It hardly needs saying that in Tirana, indeed throughout Albania, he will be received with open arms, warmly, and even with well-deserved enthusiasm. At all the most difficult moments, at every historical crossroads, and amid all the hardships Albania has faced, the warm hand of help and support from the United States of America has never been absent. How could an Albanian forget the decisive stance of the great American statesman, President Wilson, who after the First World War stood as a savior against the plans to partition Albania that were being devised? How could an Albanian forget the warm shelter that our Albanian brothers and their patriotic associations have found, and continue to find, on the soil of the United States of ... [continues, cut off at the bottom edge] ... In Yugoslavia, the rights of the Albanian population will depend on respect for the most elementary human rights, just as for all the other peoples of Yugoslavia. For all this, we say wholeheartedly: Thank you, America. We also say thank you, America, for the warm reception that American congressmen, senators and government officials gave to the two leaders of the Democratic Party of Albania, Dr. Professor Sali Berisha and Azem Hajdari. The chairman of the Democratic Party of Albania, Dr. Prof. Sali Berisha, went to America and spoke above all as an Albanian, in the name of Albania. He asked for American support for Albania; he asked for immediate American humanitarian aid for Albania; he asked for American support for Albania to be officially included in the institutions of European Security; he asked for American capital to be invested in Albania; he asked that the doors of all the world’s economic and political organizations be opened to Albania. And for one thing: so that we can recover. We are not ashamed, because the people are not to blame for Albania having been reduced to this state. The people are not to blame for the country being on the brink of famine and catastrophe. It is the hated one-party regime, the brutal 47-year Enverist dictatorship, its stubborn policy of complete isolation for the country and its people, and of extreme pleasures and luxuries for the small elite, that brought Albania to this point, to this shameful misery. James Baker is coming to Albania when something has begun to move in a positive direction. Despite the strong Enverist resistance, the first pluralist Parliament has managed to pass a package of fundamental laws meeting European humanitarian standards. Above all, organized workers’ resistance and the evolution of political forces brought about the birth of the current Government of National Stability, made up of and supported by all political forces. The Democratic Party contributed its capable people to this government. The fruits have yet to ... [continues, cut off at the bottom edge] ... The Foreign Minister of Italy, Xhani De Mikelis, came to Albania; so did the Foreign Minister of Germany, Hans Ditrich Gensher, whom the Albanian dictatorship insulted so gravely five years ago, when Germany had shown Albania such goodwill. Albania’s admission to the institutions of European Security is expected. Links with the European Common Market are expected. More aid is expected... Above all, the arrival is expected of the high representative of the United States of America, the Secretary of the Department of State, Mr. James Baker. Welcome, Mr. Baker; bread, salt and the heart of an Albanian.

James Edison Baker comes from a family of the upper bourgeoisie of Houston, Texas. After graduating from Princeton University, he worked at a law office for 18 months in Hous- ... [text cut off at bottom] ... «should be supported». For every American, the most readily understood foreign-policy issue is relations with the USSR. On this issue, Baker received great assistance from Gorbachev’s perestroika policy, which had begun during President Reagan’s time. Baker’s achievement was that, within the framework of the disarmament process, he secured the removal of short-range missiles and made it conditional on cuts to the conventional arsenal and the withdrawal of some Soviet troops from Eastern Europe. In the broad campaign against drugs, a special place was occupied by the swift military resolution of the Panama problem, with the capture of General Noriega, a trafficker. The most important problem for the USA was the difficult situation in the Middle East created after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait. It was a credit to American diplomacy, and naturally to Baker, that the coalition with Arab forces was maintained during the liberation of Kuwait, while keeping Israel away from the conflict. The Israeli government was asked not to annex [text cut off at bottom] the occupied territories, to halt the establishment of Jewish settlements there, and to seek solutions in those territories. After the Iron Curtain fell in Eastern Europe and democratic processes unfolded in those countries, the USA, renowned for its sensitivity to human rights and democracy issues, has been providing substantial assistance, in cooperation with the EEC, to save the reforms through economic aid and the institutionalization of democracy within the framework of the CSCE. With the establishment of pluralism in Albania, interest from the USA and its diplomacy increased considerably. The clearest evidence of this is the establishment of diplomatic relations between the USA and Albania, as well as Mr. Baker’s visit to Albania. SOKOL KIKA

— Huper reports — Academics Rexhep Qosja and Mark Krasniqi, Mr. Mahmut Bakalli, the distinguished historian Kristo Frashëri from Tirana, Abdi Baleta, secretary of the Forum for Human Rights in Albania, and Frrok Çupi, editor-in-chief of «RD», from Tirana, were in Washington in recent days during their stay in the USA, where they were received at the U.S. Department of State and at the Freedom Foundation of the U.S. Congress, Radio-Croatia reports. At the U.S. Department of State they were received by Mr. Huper, one of the senior officials of the U.S. Department of State and, at the same time, the official responsible for Southeast European affairs. On this occasion, Mr. Huper gave the Albanians assurances regarding the situation in Kosovo and Albania. Mr. Huper said that the USA would soon provide aid to Albania so that it could overcome the grave social and economic situation in which it finds itself. Regarding Kosovo, he emphasized the determination of the United States of America to protect the human rights of Albanians in Kosovo and Yugoslavia. In response to Mr. Huper’s view that U.S. policy would continue to focus solely on protecting the human rights of Albanians, academic Rexhep Qosja replied: «The Albanian people of Kosovo expect more from the USA. Our fate, threatened by Serbia, cannot be protected solely through the protection of human rights».

Yesterday, Saturday, 15 June, at around 13:15, in one of the halls of Hotel «Dajti», the chairman of the Albanian Democratic Party, Prof. Dr. Sali Berisha, met the Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany, Hans Ditrik Gensher. Dr. Berisha, after welcoming the German guest, told him that his first visit, as well as that of Mr. Shtraus, had been of particular historical importance for Albanian-German relations. The representative from Yugoslavia, as well as the democratic forces of Albania before them, clearly understood their democratic message, just as they clearly understood the role and mission of this visit during this important period for democratic developments in our country. Dr. Berisha then spoke to him about the role of the Albanian opposition, and particularly the Democratic Party, in the country’s democratic development. Although the Albanian opposition emerged in Albania only a year and a half ago, while opposition parties had existed for 50 years in other Eastern European countries, despite the great difficulties it encountered from its very beginnings, it agreed to take part in the 31 March elections in order to avert civil war, which was being incited by conservative and reactionary forces seeking to halt the democratic processes. Time proved that this decision was the right one, and it became a historic victory for the Albanian people, because for the first time in 47 years Albania had a pluralist parliament. (Continued on page 2)

— Interview with Dritëro Agolli, given to our newspaper’s editor, Filip Çakuli — Question: How did you first come to know America? Answer: When I was a child in the village, I often heard my parents and other adults compare everything good with America. And when we asked for something that could not be provided, they would tell us: “What do you think this is, America?” So America was imagined by our parents as a rich, prosperous and free country, and we too grew up with this image of America. Question: — And then America turned into a bogeyman that wouldn’t leave us in peace... Answer: — The truth is, it didn’t weigh on us as much as I made it out to. In America we saw not only the devil himself, but also the devil and his son, the sworn enemy of our people. Through his books and speeches, Enver was persuading us that America was not only our enemy, but the enemy of all the peoples of the world, so we had to fight it together and separately, to leave it without name or trace. Thank goodness we attacked it only with words, because if it had occurred to Enver to attack it militarily, what would the poor people of America have gone through! Question: — Why did Enver Hoxha hate America so much? (Continued on page 2)

— Views of Prof. Stefanac Pollo, Prof. Shaban Demiraj, and Azem Hajdari, member of the PD Steering Committee, on the eve of Mr. James Baker’s visit to our country, given to journalist Mehëll Tanushi. — Mr. Baker’s arrival in our country is undoubtedly the most important event in the history of Albania–USA relations, which inspire great hopes among our people. How do you assess this visit? STEFANAQ POLLO: — The world’s greatest power, with its outstanding democratic traditions, is sending its envoy to our country with a message of friendship and cooperation. We welcome this historic step and take this opportunity to express our profound gratitude. We consider this visit a high recognition of our pluralist democracy. We are certain it will serve to unblock and strengthen relations between our small people and the great American nation, which has enjoyed and continues to enjoy the great respect of our people. It is truly a happy fate for Albanians to have the opportunity to befriend the country that has given so much to world civilization, the country that is a second homeland for half a million of our compatriots, who keep their longing alive (Continued on page 3) that since the First World War has been a savior in the face of the plans to dismember Albania that were being plotted. How can an Albanian forget the warm refuge States? How can we ever forget the aid provided by the Allies, and especially by the United States of America, during the Liberation War? How can we forget UNRA’s humanitarian aid? Moreover, how can we disregard the fact that, despite the Communist denunciations of America, America proved so generous and was one of the few among the world’s parliaments and governments to strongly support respect for all the rights of the Albanian people of Kosovo. Indeed, the American representative was the only official who made the unequivocal statement that relations with Yugoslavia [source text is garbled here: “humanitarian ame-rikane për Shqipërinë”], called for American support for Albania’s official inclusion in European Security organizations, called for American capital to be invested in Albania, and called for Albania’s doors to be opened to all the world’s economic and political organizations. For all these requests, not only understanding but also the full support and commitment of the American Congress, Senate and Government were forthcoming, as was the support of the Albanian community in the United States of America, which has contributed so much to this position. Mr. James Baker’s current visit to Tirana is the fullest confirmation of all the goodwill America has shown toward Albania, and of its readiness to extend a hand and help us get back on our feet. Yes, we are not ashamed to say it: we need help.