— The world helps us; we govern: desire and reality — The meeting of the Group of 24 has concluded. It comprises 12 countries of the European Community and 12 other countries that are more powerful economically and financially. This is undoubtedly one of the most exceptional and momentous events not only in the history of our democracy, but also in our history in general. This is the clearest and highest expression of the appreciation, respect and trust that the democratic world has for our country, for the DP and the other democratic forces, and for our first democratic government. It is also evidence of its desire, readiness and determination to help us pass through this transition phase with as little pain as possible, carry the reforms through to completion, recover and integrate ourselves into Europe with dignity. In this regard, the fact that the Group of 24, which throughout its history has regularly met in Brussels, Belgium, broke with this rule and tradition and, for the first time, privileged our Tirana is extremely expressive and significant. And this act takes place precisely at the height of the campaign the SP is waging in the country and abroad to portray the situation in the country as tense and unstable, with the plainly clear aim of frightening foreign investors and denigrating and sabotaging democracy. But the world, which for 47 years had the greatest laugh at the Don Quixotes and Sancho Panzas of Albanian communism and socialism, paid no heed whatsoever to the insults and complaints of the SP and “ZP”; it had complete confidence in RD and the democratic government, came and felt secure in our capital, with the will and goodwill to help even more. Naturally, the SP and “ZP” have been left bitter and furious by this magnificent, open challenge from the democratic world; they were beside themselves as their propaganda burst like a soap bubble—the claim that “the world will not help Albania,” that the world was supposedly burning with desire to see Fatos and his comrades back in power as soon as possible. When the nihilists, squanderers and faith-destroyers—the communist-socialists—were screaming almost hysterically that the world did not care about the DP and the democratic government, it was constantly increasing the total of financial and humanitarian aid for the poorest country not only in Europe, the country most brutally ravaged by the Enverian, communist-socialist dictatorship. In a short period, our country has received aid and loans amounting to 900 million dollars. That comes to 280 dollars per resident, a figure higher than for any other country in Eastern Europe. The Group of 24 meeting held in recent days will undoubtedly open the green light for further financial, raw-material, humanitarian and other aid to flow into Albania. All this will make our recovery and turning point easier and faster, with less pain; it will make the prediction of European and world experts a reality—that we will emerge from this protracted and torturous crisis in August 1993, that is, within a year. And let us not forget that other former socialist countries, which embarked on the path of reform years before us, are still years away from emerging from the crisis. The world’s optimism is not simply an expression of goodwill and sentiment, or an attempt to console us a little. It is entirely well-founded and realistic. ... for years ... in ... millions ... of the ... and finan... go...lar ... for ... until ... severe ... mit Mo... of pro... t main... ntries. (Continued on page 3)

. The 24 major industrialized countries (G-24), which provide assistance to the new democracies in Central and Eastern Europe, met in Tirana on 22 July, outside their usual practice, at the invitation of the Albanian Government. International organizations also took part in the meeting, including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Council of Europe and the UN agency. The G-24 welcomed the program drawn up for the democratization of Albania. They expressed their satisfaction with the free conduct of the elections and with the fact that the democratic government has made considerable progress in establishing the new laws necessary for the functioning of a market economy. This is a major step forward. They encourage Albania to intensify these efforts in full accordance with human rights, the rule of law and the rights of national minorities. Broad and sustained popular support for economic reforms is decisive for attracting foreign aid and investment, which are essential to the development and support of the Albanian economy. The conclusions of the Group of 24 meeting: Albania faces two main problems: 1.) how to overcome the humanitarian and social problems caused by the collapse of the economy, and 2.) how to revive the economy and orient it toward a market economy. The main efforts to solve these problems must be made by Albania itself, but the G-24 recognizes the assistance it must provide to support these efforts. For this reason, the G-24 focused first and foremost on continuing to send humanitarian and emergency aid to help the Albanian people meet their food needs until the 1993 harvest. Agriculture, a particularly important sector in the Albanian economy, employs 65 percent of the workforce. The G-24 therefore welcomed the agricultural plan prepared by the Community’s PHARE program and the World Bank in cooperation with USAD, and expressed its readiness to find further ways of financing it. The G-24 will coordinate the aid operations outlined in this plan and regularly reassess food-aid needs. The collapse of the Albanian economy has been particularly severe in the industrial sectors. Financing from the EC and other foreign donors for MEÇU amounts to 20 million USD. A functioning transport system is essential to get other sectors of the economy operating, including the distribution of food supplies. The Albanian Government also stressed the importance of improving other basic infrastructure services, such as energy and water supply, in order to minimize the hardships faced by the population during the early stages of the economic transition. Technical-assistance programs are providing expertise for the effective operation of a market economy. The training of the administration, businesses and social partners in the field of the market economy, as well as postgraduate training to enable them to interpret at the conference, will be carried out by the G-24 and international organizations. Finally, the G-24 welcomed the constructive guidelines for the full restructuring of the Albanian economy, approved by the Albanian Government and international financial institutions, to determine the most effective use of G-24 aid for the reconstruction of the Albanian economy. Participants concluded that today Albania and its people ... Broad and continued popular support for economic reforms is crucial for attracting foreign aid as well as investment, which are essential for the development and support of the Albanian economy. The total aid provided so far by the G-24 as well as the World Bank amounts to USD 900 million (726 MECU), of which USD 600 million (480 MECU) has been donated and the remainder ...

FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCE OF THE DP CHAIRMAN, MR. EDUARD SELAMI Yesterday morning at 11:00, in the press room of the Palace of Congresses, the chairman of the DP, Mr. Eduard Selami, held a press conference for Albanian and foreign journalists in connection with the elections of 26 July. He was accompanied by the DP Secretary-General, Mr. Tomorr Dosti. Mr. Selami said that these elections are a continuation of those of 22 March; at the same time, they have the same character as the government’s first elections at the beginning of the year. “Our aim,” he went on to say, “is to preserve the victory of 22 March. We are consistent about the current difficulties; nevertheless, we are confident of victory,” Mr. Selami concluded. He then answered questions from journalists. Question: “Will you remain faithful this time as well to your previous vocabulary ...” “... in principle, we remain committed to that same alliance, which has now been left to the authority of the local branches, where such alliances have also been formed.” In response to a question from a journalist from HSI-NUA asking what percentage they expected to win, the DP chairman replied that he could not give figures, but they expected to preserve the result of 22 March. Asked whether, besides the SP, any other rival had emerged for the DP, the answer was that their political opponent would once again remain the SP. Finally, regarding the PSD and PR’s opposition to the law on enterprises, Mr. Selami replied that it was all natural given the position of those parties. At present there is also a contradiction arising from the privatization law. But I say that the law on enterprises is also a temporary law.

ELECTORAL MEETING IN VLORË WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF THE DP CHAIRMAN, MR. EDUARD SELAMI . The DP branch in Vlorë organized an electoral meeting on the evening of 20/7/1992 at the city’s sports palace and presented its candidate for mayor of Vlorë, Mr. Elham Sharra. The meeting was also attended by the DP chairman, Mr. Eduard Selami, and Messrs. Tomorr Dosti, DP secretary, and Leka Toto, member of the DP Governing Council. The meeting was opened by the chairman of DP-Vlorë, Mr. Roland Tafili, who then gave the floor to Mr. Selami. Among other things, the DP chairman emphasized that the victory of 22 March must be followed by victory on 26 July; only in this way will democracy finally triumph. “We must have confidence and, naturally, together we will achieve complete victory for a Democratic Albania,” Mr. Selami concluded. Afterwards, the DP candidate for mayor of the city of Vlorë, Mr. Elham Sharra, was also introduced. Those present at the meeting once again expressed their enthusiasm, confidence and strong support for the DP.

— The G-24 meeting in Tirana made a serious commitment to implementing reform. — One of the reasons we came to your country is the fact that your country is going through a serious situation and the government and the President have ... On Wednesday morning and afternoon, the Group of 24 continued its work at the Palace of Congresses in Tirana. At 18:00, it prepared a press statement, which was distributed to the journalists present in the hall. Meanwhile, the Director-General for External Relations of the G-24, Mr. Cadieux, and our Minister of Finance, Genc Ruli, held a press conference. “It is an exceptional occasion for us to hold the G-24 meeting in the capital of one of the countries to which we provide aid,” Mr. Cadieux told journalists. The Group of 24 is one of the powerful groupings, and we generally hold our meetings in Brussels. “We have come to Tirana,” he continued, “first because we were invited here and, secondly, because your country is in a serious situation. Another reason is that the President and the Government have made a serious commitment to reform. The EC Commission is represented here by coordinators who have met with senior government officials and the President, who, as you have also seen, are committed to continuing economic reform. “Since you will face difficulties in this process, the European Council will help you overcome them,” he said. “I would not call this merely aid, but also cooperation. As part of this mutual commitment, we have brought around 900 million dollars in various forms. This is the largest per-capita assistance (200 dollars), compared with what we have given to the countries of Eastern and Central Europe and the Baltic states. We are close in cultural terms, we share the same civilization, and we therefore have a heavy responsibility to help Albania. “During the discussions at this meeting,” he said, “we spoke about food aid, the balance of payments, the supply of raw materials and spare parts, etc. With regard to agricultural production and efforts to restart industrial production, we saw that good work has been done. The Government, together with the IMF, has identified the path of reform, which is truly harsh. But we will help you get through it as easily as possible. We have experts here who have meticulously and accurately identified your needs, and assistance to meet them will continue until the 1993 harvest. We will appeal to the Council of Ministers of the 12 to cover half of this need, and I hope we will achieve that. “We are following the democratic changes in your country and know that the population is going through, and will continue to go through, difficulties,” he continued. “But we also spoke with representatives of the trade union, etc., and saw that you are working together with us to overcome these difficulties.” Mr. Genc Ruli then spoke and, on behalf of the Albanian Government, described this G-24 meeting in Tirana as an event. “Without a doubt, it is aid and support for us,” he said. “In this way, this nation is shown that, in this difficult period, it has true friends in the international community. We value their generosity,” Mr. Ruli said, “and thank them for continuing to provide us with this assistance. It is very important not only that the EC countries are committed to helping us until the 1993 harvest, but also that they are committed to supporting the development of agriculture, as set out in the study by the IMF and the World Bank. “Continued assistance with raw materials and spare parts to get the enterprises operating ... (Continued on page 4) ...other forms of financing. The G-24 will coordinate the aid operations set out industrial sectors. Financing from the EC and other donors has been welcomed, especially in this regard, as has the short-term plan (project) to reactivate those enterprises considered to have strong long-term competitive potential. ... interpretation at the conference is G-24 welcomed the constructive guidelines for the complete restructuring of the Albanian economy, adopted by the Albanian Government and the international financial institutions, as well as the EC Commission. Comprehensive cooperation will continue within the framework of the G-24, in close cooperation with the institutions of Wood Bretton.

BY VOTING FOR THE DP CANDIDATES, YOU VOTE FOR THE STRENGTHENING OF DEMOCRACY, FOR A GUARANTEED FUTURE FOR ALBANIA AND FOR YOURSELF! — LET US SHOW ONCE AGAIN, AS ON 22 MARCH, OUR MATURITY AND DETERMINATION TO MOVE FORWARD ON THE ROAD TO DEMOCRACY! — WITH OUR VOTES, LET US BLOCK THE ROAD TO THE RESTORATION OF SOCIAL-COMMUNISM, WHICH KILLED ALBANIA AND DRAINED THE LIFE FROM US! — VOTERS, BE ALERT; DO NOT BE DECEIVED BY THE DANGEROUS WORDS AND PROMISES OF THE COMMUNIST-SOCIALISTS. THEY WANT POWER AT THE LOCAL LEVEL ONLY IN ORDER TO PREVENT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF DEMOCRACY.

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