On the afternoon of 4 May, at 4:50 p.m., the President of the Republic of Albania, Sali Berisha, departed on a working visit to Brussels, Strasbourg and Rome. The President of the Republic, Mr. Sali Berisha, accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Alfred Serreqi, met with the President of the Commission of the European Community, Mr. Zhak Delor, as well as with the President of the European Parliament, Mr. Egon Klepsh. Also present at these meetings was the Chairman of the European Parliamentary Commission for Albania, Romania and Bulgaria, Mr. Aleksandër Langer. At these meetings, the senior figures of the European Community congratulated the President on his high office and on the Democratic Party's decisive victory in the 22 March elections. Afterwards, Mr. Berisha gave an overview of developments in Albania and stressed that Albania, as a special case because of the brutality of the dictatorship, needs substantial support and assistance. The Comu- The Comu- are and technical assistance, as well as the need for temporary and seasonal emigration. He also spoke about the rights of the Albanian people in Yugoslavia, stressing the support that the community should provide for the legitimate rights of Albanians in the former Yugoslavia. For their part, Messrs. Delor and Klepsh stressed that they considered it right to treat the Albanians as a special case and promised financial, economic and technical support from the European Community for Albania. The appropriate decisions for Albania will be taken at the next meeting. At the end of the visit, Mr. Zhak Delor awarded Mr. Berisha the «Europe» medal for his merits in integrating Albania into its continent. Afterwards, Mr. Berisha met with Belgium's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Vili Klajt. Meanwhile, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Serreqi, was received at NATO headquarters by NATO Deputy Secretary General Amedeo de Frankis, who was performing the duties of the Secretary General. The meeting addressed Albania's participation in NATO's Coordinating Council. Mr. Amedeo said that a letter on this issue had also arrived from the Albanian Prime Minister, Mr. Aleksandër Meksi, and that they had distributed it to the participating countries and would then make the appropriate decision.

The next morning, the President of the Republic of Albania, Sali Berisha, and the other members of the delegation began their political activities at the Council of Europe. At 10:00, Mr. Berisha went to the European Parliament, the headquarters of the Coun- the Palace of Europe, headquarters of the Council of Europe, where he was warmly welcomed at the entrance by the President of the Parliamentary Assembly, Mr. Martinez, by the president of the committee of ministers' deputies, Mr. More, by Ms. Lahumier, Secretary General, and others. A meeting then took place in the President's office between the Albanian Head of State, Mr. Berisha, and the President of the Parliamentary Assembly, Mr. Martinez. At 10:30, Mr. Martinez informed the European parliamentarians at the General Assembly that, in the session which had just begun, those present would be joined by the President of the Republic of Albania, Mr. Sali Berisha. «I have the honour,» Mr. Martinez said, «to give the floor to the first Albanian president following free elections in this country.» Taking the floor to applause, Mr. Berisha said, among other things: I take this opportunity to express my greatest pleasure at the honour you have done me by inviting me to Strasbourg, the city of freedom, which embodies the unity of Europe. It is a great honour for me, he continued, to speak before the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which embraces and symbolizes the future political unity of our Community. I am speaking, among others, before parliamentarians constituted as representatives of one of Europe's oldest peoples, who only a month ago, through free elections, definitively chose the path of democracy. Mr. Berisha went on to give an overview of developments in Albania in the 1990s, since the establishment of Albania's history, as years of transformation, vua... …of great victory. Communism has undoubtedly been one of the most tragic political, economic and social experiences known to humanity. It was characterized by oppression, brutality and lies. It brought the destruction of culture and the economy to the land of the Albanians. From a beautiful country, Albania was turned into a land of bunkers, hungry children, people deprived of human care, exodus, anarchy and organized crime. I said all this, Mr. Berisha continued, to show you that the victories of freedom and the building of democracy presuppose two moments of action: the destructive moment and, at the same time, the constructive one. We destroyed communism after having been martyred. This is the destructive moment. What remains for us now is to give continuity to our democracy; this is the constructive moment. The outcome of this undertaking is decisive for our future. I hope and believe that Albanians have understood that work and commitment are essential conditions for building a democratic system and state. In the political field, in building the state administration, things are different. That is why today we appeal to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, to all the democracies in Europe and the world, to help and encourage Albania on its path to freedom and democracy. Later, Mr. Berisha spoke about the priorities for the development of the Albanian democratic state, emphasizing that the ultimate goal is to build a democratic state in which the human dimension is the principal dimension of politics. The Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Council itself have helped the democratic forces during the transition phase, but now their assistance is essential for us, and we hope that it …be more substantial. The building of a democratic Albanian state is undoubtedly in Europe’s interest. Then the Albanian President emphasized in his speech that the main enemy of democracy in Albania today is the legacy of the dictatorship we have known. He also pointed to the economic difficulties, declining industrial output, the difficult situation in agriculture and transport, rising inflation, falling incomes, and spoke about the absurd 80-percent law. Taking this situation into account, he stressed, we are convinced that “shock therapy” is not what can establish financial stability and radically liberalize the Albanian economy. That is why we are asking the Group of 24 to grant us humanitarian and food assistance until production becomes sufficient for the people; we are asking for technical and financial assistance and organized emigration. In his speech, Mr. Berisha also spoke about the Albanian question as a whole, drawing attention to the apartheid policy pursued by the communist dictator Milosheviç toward Albanians in Macedonia. We believe that the crisis in Yugoslavia cannot be resolved without recognizing the rights of Albanians in Kosovo. We are also in favor, he continued, of the independence of the Republic of Macedonia, but it must respect all the freedoms and rights of the Albanians living there. In conclusion, Mr. Berisha said that we want Albania to join Europe. This is why they knocked today at its doors in Strasbourg. After this speech, Mr. Berisha answered the many different questions put to him by the parliamentarians present at this session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and met with several notable figures.

MARSHALLA AND ... ISHALLA Rome. On a beautiful day in early May, this good news was confirmed: the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the Albanian embassy that some further food aid would be provided. 10 thousand tons of sugar, 5 thousand tons of rice, 8 thousand tons of oil and 6 thousand tons of cheese. There are also cigarette filters, cocoa butter and salami materials waiting to be transported. To complete the picture, there is also a news item from Trieste. There, 35 tractors, acid batteries and brick varnish are waiting to be transported. But why aren't the goods being collected? Because, or what? FROM ROME TO ROVENA – Two bits of news in one day – After hearing this news, the Turkish word MARSHALLA comes to mind. Praise be to God that we have a generous country like Italy as our neighbour. Thank you to the Italian government and people! The same day. Another Italian city: Rovena. A port city on the Adriatic coast. A piece of news from there also reaches the Albanian embassy. Under the credit extended by Italy, goods for Albania have been purchased from various companies. They have been warehoused and are waiting for days and weeks to be transported to Albania: 1) Chicken feed, 650 tons 2) Meat meal, 800 tons 3) Phosphates, 400 tons. 4) Window glass, 100 thousand m² In Rome, the Albanian embassy is holding discussions with the Italian authorities about this problem. Albania. received at NATO headquarters by NATO's Deputy Secretary General, NATO's Deputy Secretary General. Our ships going to Italian ports are apparently being used to transport private vehicles! A market-economy logic turned upside down: state resources are used for private transport!? After this «hartam haber», another Turkish word comes to mind: ISHALLA, with Allah's help may we change the minds of our captains and company directors, because in circumstances where the credits allocated have still not been put to use, it is not morally right to ask for new loans! There is no reason to show Christian mercy to bureaucrats and speculators, that whole breed of scoundrels trying to profit from the people's poverty. MITRO ÇELA

The PSSH spokesperson published yesterday in its mouthpiece, «Zëri i Popullit», the note «We accept nothing from the PSSH», which said: «Only the representative of the Yugoslav embassy refused to take it, declaring, “We accept no material from the Socialist Party of Albania.”» It seems that the Serbo-Slav embassy in Tirana has also understood that its 50-year-old, visible and invisible ties with the PP compromise it here, so that it «will accept nothing from the PSSH»; or perhaps it has had so much of your announcements that it no longer needs them. How good for the neighbour and the Albanian cause! How bad for the PSSH, the de jure heir of the PP, which still has not given up its predecessor's old flirtations. Otherwise, why would it send its parliamentary group's complaint against the amendment to the law «On Labour Relations»? From whom is it seeking justice? From the representative of Slobodan Milošević in Tirana? A French proverb says, «Whoever exculpates himself accuses himself»! THE OBSERVER

On Thursday afternoon, at the invitation of Norway's Conservative Party, the Chairman of the Democratic Party of Albania, Mr. Eduart Selami, departed on a working visit. During this visit he will take part in this party's national convention, to be held from 8 to 10 May. It is also planned that during this visit he will meet with representatives of the Swedish Moderate Party and the Conservative Party of Denmark.

On May 8, World Red Cross Day was marked around the world. The Red Cross, this charitable and humanitarian organization, has devoted its activities to the service of humanity for decades. The services provided by this organization in all four corners of the world—in Africa, Asia and Latin America—are well known. In times of war and mass illness, Red Cross personnel have always been there. “Everywhere and for everyone” is this organization’s motto. After a long interruption, the Albanian Red Cross, too, began active work to help people without support and to ease, at least somewhat, the hardship of our people, exhausted by 50 years. We wish this humanitarian organization success, thanking it for everything it has done for the Albanian people.

At last, our esteemed parliament, after a mature discussion, decided that the open files should be closed and the closed files should be opened after 300 years. do not mean the files of politicians and members of parliament, but those of workers and peasants. These files hide things inside, and it is not right for them to be kept closed. As for politicians’ files, they can be opened after three hundred years, so that the politician has time to reflect and engage in sincere self-criticism. If the holder of a file was a voluntary spy and, for personal needs (a packet of cigarettes and coffee), received twenty new lek, or more, from the dear internal affairs authorities as a reward, depending on the importance of the information, then this parliament, without hesitation, should take a strict stance against him after 300 years, even to the point of expelling him from the Assembly or digging up his bones from Kombinati or Shishtufina! Therefore, it is in the interest of every politician, minister or senior official not to blush 300 years from now or feel ashamed before himself and his comrades, but to confess openly and sincerely before his party. For it is known that whoever comes clean before it about the sins he has committed is forgiven and has no reason not to be promoted: On the other hand, every politician is given the opportunity, within this short three-hundred-year period, to clean his file of unnecessary material, of character references, autobiographies and the more outlandish items, leaving unchanged in the file only his first and last name, as well as his father’s name. There is no reason for the informant’s pseudonym to remain in the file. The files of the road inspectorate should be opened immediately, thereby giving every driver and vehicle operator the opportunity to see how many times he has violated traffic rules, how many times he has driven drunk, and how many times he has collided with a poplar along the road. No politician who has committed even the slightest violation of the traffic code should have to stop being a politician or be deprived of the right to speak in parliament. Exempt from this rule! are only those members of parliament who have never said anything in parliament up to now, for their own personal reasons. That is all for today. The discussion remains open for the next issue.

On May 6, at 3:15 p.m., Ismail Kadare and Mrs. Elena Kadare arrived in our country—and in their own country. At Rinas Airport, both vice-chairmen of the PP, Mr. Arben Imami and Mr. Azem Hajdari, the Minister of Culture, Mr. Dhimitër Anagnosti, the Minister of Education, Mr. Ylli Vejsiu, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Genc Ruli, and other members of the government had come to welcome them. Writers and artists, distinguished intellectuals, friends and close associates and well-wishers of Kadare, representatives of political parties and associations, and representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Tirana had also come to welcome them. As we express in a forthcoming interview, we are giving our readers everything we managed to capture in those emotional moments for both sides from the answers I. Kadare gave to questions from local and foreign journalists. Question: What do you think about the coming period, representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Tirana. Answer: It is undoubtedly the most beautiful period of my entire life, despite the many difficulties it has gone through and still has to go through. The Albanian people have begun another life. They must become aware that a different, new life has begun. Question: What is your opinion of Albania’s future? Answer: There is complete hope. I support Albanian democratization without any reservations. I support without

Tirana. Question: What do you think about the period… (Continued on page 2)

…of great victory. Communism has undoubtedly been one of the most tragic political, economic and social experiences known to humanity.

…be more substantial. The building of a democratic Albanian state is undoubtedly in Europe’s interest.

Humor At last, our esteemed parliament, after a mature discussion, decided that the open files should be closed and the closed files should be opened after 300 years. This historic act is being carried out for the good of the nation and the people. We are publishing in full the draft decision currently being prepared and expected to be approved at the Assembly’s upcoming sessions; When we talk about files, we do not mean politicians’ files

On May 7, during his visit to Italy, President of the Republic Sali Berisha paid an official visit to the Holy See, where he was received by His Holiness Pope John Paul II. In response to the Pope’s warm greetings and … respect, President Berisha expressed his pleasure that he was making this official visit to the Holy See, which has been an extraordinary and powerful spiritual and moral support for the Albanian people and Albania. Then Mr. Berisha and His Holiness held a one-on-one conversation. Afterwards, Mr. Berisha introduced to the Pope … (Continued on page 4)