THE INDEPENDENT BANK With green cards in their hands, the members of Parliament voted for the Bank’s independence. Thank God! At last we have a modern law that definitively keeps the Bank away from the Government. The law establishes a barrier between the issuance of money for the interests of the market and for the interests of the “political market.” This means Parliament has legislated the depoliticization of money. Which model was followed? The one most “dear to the heart” of the majority of specialists: the German Central Bank. And they are right. The independence of the Bundesbank has become a myth. But even myths… Well, there are cases when politicians seize the independence of banks. That is what happened with the Bundesbank, too. In fact, only once in half a century… But it happened. That is why we must be careful. Vigilant. The lesson: Gentlemen bankers, Mr. Governor! Preserve the Bank’s independence. No more and no less: within the bounds of the law! It was that famous summer when the two Germanies were to be united. Chancellor Kohl, for political reasons, demanded that one West German mark be exchanged for one East German mark. This was absurd. The President of the Bundesbank, Helmut Schle[z]inger, proposed an exchange rate of one to two. That was reality. But political logic prevailed over financial logic. Kohl’s option won. The Bundesbank’s independence was compromised. We repeat: the independence of the most powerful bank in the world was compromised. As the months passed, Kohl’s fatal mistake became clear, because one currency had been converted not in the interests of the market but in the interests of the “political market.” But let us not concern ourselves with Germany; let us return to Albania. We now have a law that guarantees the Bank’s independence. In metaphorical terms, it can now be called “the guardian of the currency.” But will bankers be able to withstand politicians’ pressure? The law says—Yes. Experience says—NO. For half a century Albania had no Bank. At most, it had a cash office for paying wages. The Government and the Bank were one and the same. Is it easy to forget this tradition? Of course not. We are dealing with a new banking culture, and culture is hard to learn. It is hard to establish. When a specialist said that the Bank does not conduct social policy, but only monetary policy, some members of Parliament were electrified. During the debates, there were also members of Parliament in ministerial positions who called for the Bank’s independence to be curtailed even before the law had been passed. In practice, the pressure to wrest independence from the Bank, even though it has been established by law, will be stronger. Politicians and ministers prefer a Bank with limited independence, because it is easier for them to cover the budget deficit by issuing money and causing inflation than to find revenue to balance spending. The transition from a socialist economy to a market economy requires a convertible currency. Convertibility requires a depoliticized currency. Without these two conditions, Albania’s economic reforms have little chance of success. A country like ours, overwhelmed by inflation and chaos, cannot emerge from crisis with a currency submerged in the principle of the “political market.” MITRO ÇELA

The President of the United States of America, Xhorxh Bush, has sent this congratulatory telegram to the Prime Minister, Aleksandër Meksi. Please accept my congratulations on your appointment as Prime Minister of Albania. As you were appointed leader of your country’s first Democratic Government in 50 years, the American people joined me in recognizing Albania’s great progress toward building a democratic society and a free-market economy. I look forward to working together with you and President Berisha to ensure that Albania continues its historic transformation during the challenging period ahead. Sincerely, XHORXH BUSH

On Thursday, 30 April, at the “13 Shtatori” cinema in Berat, PD Chairman Mr. Eduart Selami and its Secretary, Mr. Tomorr Dosti, held a meeting with PD members and supporters and residents of the city. The meeting was opened by the chairman of the PD branch, MP Agron Musaraj. At the beginning of his speech, Mr. Eduart spoke about the historic victory of 22 March, the greatest in all of Euro-East, which marks a clear political step, firmly in favor of democracy, the West and progress. This victory was rightly regarded, both inside and outside the country, as the beginning of Albania’s rebirth, but this process has only just begun. “This meeting, which we are holding one month after the elections,” Mr. Selami went on to say, “is significant because it shows that we did not appear before you simply to obtain votes and power, but to show that we are bearers of your message, which you gave us on 22 March; bearers of the unrealized national ideals of the Albanian nation; bearers of a bright future that we have only just begun.” On this path of… In Albania they talk about reforms, but the reform that legal and economic. We want a far-reaching reform, at the fastest possible pace. The success of our efforts, which at this time is also linked to the success of Albania itself, depends on the depth and pace of this reform. Looking at our social reality, and also at the experience of the Eastern countries that have embarked on this path, we must take swift measures to avert social paralysis, Mr. Eduart Selami went on to stress. Communism has died only in its old form, but it still poses a danger to Albania in other forms; it poses the danger of paralysis and of blocking its progress. We must put an end to the old way, the old dictatorial apparatus—

THERE IS NO ROOM FOR HESITATION AND DELAY . Having begun, there is no room for hesitation, no room for delay; we must move as quickly as possible, because there are many problems and challenges. All political forces in Albania speak of reforms, but the reform we presented to you during the election campaign, and for which you gave us your vote of confidence, is comprehensive—political, legal and economic. We want profound reform, carried out at the fastest possible pace. The success of our undertaking, and our future too, depend on the depth and pace of this reform. We want to build a new state governed by law and put an end to the paradoxical situation in which the victory of 22 March is being administered by the old state bureaucracy. At present, the most dangerous threat to democracy comes from political and economic corruption. Economic corruption is equivalent to neocommunism, because it seeks to preserve old privileges under new conditions. Mr. Selami then answered questions from those present, which were mainly related to the problems of reforming the country’s governance. In his speech, Mr. Tomorr Dosti emphasized the need to understand deeply and to carry out properly and resolutely the PD’s duties under current conditions, which often run counter to the will of the people. “We, as the PD,” he stressed, “are against every kind of sick radicalism, but we are determined to carry the democratic revolution through to the end. At the foundation of the new order we seek to build, we have placed humaneness, morality, law, tolerance and love.” RD correspondent

THE “SOCIALISTS” BOYCOTT PARLIAMENT The great Pushkin wrote in one of his poems: “On the ruins of autocracy we shall write our names.” He was referring to the overthrow of a system. It cannot be called an overthrow if you leave in charge the very people who served that system; indeed, even within a system, when another party wins, it appoints all the ministers. In other words, the governing apparatus is changed, without anyone even thinking that in the USA and other Western states there is class warfare. But that phrase suits the socialist deputies, many of them former communists and former members of the PPSh, because they themselves were protagonists of class warfare. We remind them that class warfare was “invented” by the dictatorships they claim to represent. It consists of imprisonment, murder, inhuman torture, internment and dismissal from work. But that is not all: appointments to jobs, “appointments in the state and everywhere”—only on the basis of party affiliation and fictitious rates and abuse. As a result of this dictatorial and utterly undemocratic policy, our ministries and many central institutions are filled with such loyalists of the former PPSH. Their ability was never considered. Take a look at the staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the former Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Security service, and many other ministries, all the way to the Academy of Sciences. In leadership and in the best positions are the right-hand men of the PPSH, now formally socialists without party cards. Should things continue this way? Therefore, the amendment to the law proposed by the Government—to transfer these people according to their profession, to a lower post, or, if that is not possible, to social assistance—is not class warfare. No, never! It expresses the people’s wish, expressed through their vote, for the system and structure of our society to change. Ultimately, those who were put in positions of leadership without qualification tests or personal merit, but because of their background, will be removed from those positions. No one is sending them to prison, as you did, gentlemen socialists; they are not even being condemned. No one is forcing them to change, or transferring them under the false pretext of rotation, which was a broom used to get rid of anyone, anywhere, who was to be purged. This is an open and honest proposal, made in the name of the people and in their interests: to put in other positions the loyalists of the dictatorship, the former protagonists of class warfare and “victorious socialism.” Our “socialists” are behaving like indifferent Europeans, because their narrow interests have been touched, because the transfers could or will affect their family and social circles too. Thus, Thursday’s session in our Parliament was marked by heated debates among the former communists, who, in protest, also left the chamber. (!) They also wanted to abuse the word “people,” even though ordinary people—those without communist party affiliation—were never promoted even to the posts of brigade leader or director of ordinary enterprises, let alone to ambassador, minister or deputy minister, or head of various central departments. Even at the Academy of Sciences, at its summit, a group of communists gathered, who, even during the democratic process, seem to have sought in the library nothing but “the people’s zeal.” Democracy, in the name of the people and for the people, rightly calls for the restructuring of the red pyramid, so that it does not meet the fate of Noli’s government, which left in place the same hierarchy of autocratic officials, who undermined it in every possible way.

On Sunday, May 3, the Prime Minister of Greece, Mr. K. Micotaqis, will come to our country for a friendly working visit. A group of experts and specialists in various fields will also arrive with Mr. Micotaqis. During his one-day visit to Albania, the Greek Prime Minister will meet with the President of the Republic of Albania, Mr. Sali Berisha, and the Prime Minister, Aleksandër Meksi. Meetings will also be held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Albania and at other ministries.

Brothers and sisters, fellow trade unionists, May Day, this day marked in the history of working people throughout the world, finds Albania this year in an extremely difficult economic situation, but also reborn after half a century of brutal communist dictatorship. Albanian workers, indeed the most oppressed and exploited on the entire continent, come to this day conscious of the vital strength of fraternal unity. For the first time in the country’s history, they have encountered an organization that truly defends their interests: the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania. With last month’s general strike, they brought the agony of the totalitarian system to an end, creating room for social justice. They have now seriously committed themselves to overcoming the crisis with as little pain as possible, to democratizing labor legislation and respecting fundamental human rights, particularly in the trade-union field. This year’s May Day, far from parades and pompous speeches, is a celebration of the warmth radiated by joined hands clasped firmly together. It is a celebration of faith in a better future, in which the will of Albanian workers, peasants and intellectuals will be respected and their labor duly rewarded. Guided by these humane aims, the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania has fought, and will continue to fight, for the protection and gradual improvement of living standards and for the fulfillment of the just demands of Albanian workers, the overwhelming majority of whom

To His Excellency, Mr. Sali Berisha, President of the Republic of Albania Dear Mr. President: Please accept once again my warmest congratulations on your victory over a dictatorship and your well-deserved success in the Albanian parliamentary elections. This was an important victory, not only for you and your party, but also for democracy and the establishment of the rule of law in the Balkans and in the new Europe. Albania has joined the other countries of Central and Eastern Europe in choosing the path of historic change. There is no need for me to tell you about the great responsibilities the Albanian people have entrusted to you. The United States of America are pleased that you are moving quickly to meet the major challenges ahead. We understand what these challenges and difficulties mean for your citizens, but the Albanian people and the peoples of the rest of the region will benefit from your success. The United States of America attach great importance to your success. We are prepared to help you by continuing our assistance for your efforts to reform the country. I personally wish to inform you that we are ready to announce an additional aid package of 35 million dollars, including a 23-million-dollar agricultural development program, a 10-million-dollar Food and Development program, and 2 million dollars in technical and humanitarian assistance. As you know, since August we have delivered 26 million dollars in aid to Albania. In addition, I am pleased that we recently engaged with the new government in discussions concerning requests for Jackson-Vanik waivers, as well as a bilateral trade agreement, in order to normalize U.S.-Albanian economic relations as quickly as possible. I hope we can also move quickly toward granting Albania most-favored-nation status. Toward the end of May, I will send Deputy Secretary Lorens Igleberger, coordinator of U.S. assistance for (Continued on page 4)

We are there... We will not give up Kosovo We are there... We will not give up Kosovo (FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCE ON TV)