Congressman Don Klauzen handed over the flag that was raised over the U.S. Capitol Foreign Minister Alfred Serreqi received the American congressman Don Klauzen, his [possibly: wife], Mark Herli, and Mr. Anton Prenushi, who have brought aid worth about 500 thousand dollars to our country. It consists of medical equipment and supplies, various medicines, and agricultural seeds. Thanking his friends from the USA, the Albanian minister praised their concrete example of contributing to ease the difficult situation in which our country finds itself during this period of transition. On this occasion, Congressman Don Klauzen handed Minister Serreqi the American flag that was raised over the Capitol of the United States of America as a sign of sympathy and support for Albania. “The accompanying flag,” the certificate presented to the minister states, “was flown over the U.S. Capitol on 15 September 1992 at the request of the Honorable Congressman William Brunkfield. This flag was flown for Dr. Alfred Serreqi and our Albanian friends.”

The unrealistic assertion that everything in the country called Albania is enveloped in the darkness of the past and the winding threads of the future is a tragic assertion that stems from the philosophy of an eternal utopia for Albanians and their democratic fate. The people never singled out and criticized adventurers and dangerous types who, upon losing their political positions (which is entirely normal for a politician), line up only the coffin of death instead of the movement of human trust and the affirmation of its peaceful character, the affirmation of democracy’s values. [Handwritten note: “A. A., 10/10/1992”] …missionaries and true intellectuals and true socialists at the grassroots, who have made the victory of democracy and the victory of reform their historic mission, as a moral victory for the Albanian people, as the spiritual preparation of Albanians to undertake great national initiatives such as national reconciliation and unity. But why does «ZP» find darkness in every aspect of Albanian life, why does the communist vanguard of the Socialist Party see and produce only political tensions that undermine every bridge-building effort and spirit of reconciliation? In no way does this reflect the thinking of the Albanian people. …the structures of the old state, without building the structures of the new democratic state and putting them into operation, into action. And yet our state is precisely at this stage. That is why the people continually respond with irony and indifference to the impassioned calls of some socialist deputy or other orator for popular division. Nothing dramatic or divisive is happening anywhere in Albania, neither in the South nor in the North. A democratic neighbor naturally stands alongside the troubles of another socialist neighbor, at weddings and funerals, in good times and bad, and so it will always be. Neither politics nor religions have divided our people, and never will. Thus, the science of hatred exists only in the minds of some political adventurers in the Socialist Party, experienced as the loss of power, not in the psychology of the Albanian people, nor among the new democratic politicians and its statesmen. This is best demonstrated by the humane attitude of political prisoners and persecuted people toward their communist persecutors, along with hundreds of other arguments. Another fact should also be mentioned: no democratic state or government in the world has produced a science of hatred toward itself, whereas communist states had it in abundance. And it is here, and among their direct predecessors, that one must seek this tragic mechanism of pathological hatred for humanity as a whole—in other words, in uncontrolled socialist propaganda. Not in the democratic state, nor in the Albanian people, who have … first see how the draw for the winning tickets will be conducted. First, it wishes to inform participants and all interested parties that about 41 percent of the 300 thousand tickets have been sold. Accordingly, while maintaining the corresponding prizes in proportion to the number of tickets sold, the draw… …offers a prize to participants in the «RD» lottery… On this occasion, the editorial office apologizes to all the other participants for the delay, but it has always sought to act with fairness and accuracy. We wish all participants: May you be winners!

From this, everyone in this country should understand that democracy in Albania has not been, and is not, merely an electoral promise. It has always taken shape from the day the democratic government took the situation in hand, by establishing order and calm. Bringing people into a state governed by law and securing its presence in society was the government’s first imperative duty toward the fate of the citizen. But many impatient minds, seeking to dominate the left-wing press … Gentlemen, the communists in Albania did not come from another planet; they share the same fate as our fellow villagers and fellow citizens, all of them Albanians. Therefore, by establishing the democratic state and challenging the communist system, we did not rise up against ourselves or against Albanians, but against the demon of communist hatred, from which, regrettably, someone in the socialist camp has still not been freed. And if someone is looking for such demons, they can find them in the Enverist wing of the PS. This is so because Albanians, whether Democrats or Socialists, have faith in the democratic state and the new social order, which restored their moral, spiritual, and material dignity. It gave them back freedom of speech, belief, movement, and free productive initiative; it brought them back into the great European family, where they belong. The Albanian people, trusting the democratic state and democracy and seeing economic reform as their only alternative, are making every sacrifice for it, and this is the first sign of their democratic culture and commitment to democracy. For our people have understood that democracy in Albania is not merely a promise, and that the new democratic state takes a relatively long time to integrate Albania into European and world political and economic forums and institutions, without which there can be no reform, development, or future prospects. And our people have rightly appreciated this, as well as the assistance Albania has received from Europe, the IMF, and other international institutions of an economic, financial, or cultural nature. Our people have understood that no state can begin operating at full capacity in even a single year, without… …among them humanity as a whole, that is, in the Albanian people, who have demonstrated stability and civilized courage, while … [passage unclear] …their needs, casting aside history, and thirsting to regain power. Therefore, the message from Kadare to the PS—that «under these circumstances it would be appropriate for the Albanian socialist opposition not only to purge itself of its most reactionary element, not only to carry out a process of consolidation and purification, but also not to aspire to the left of power in Albania. This is in the nation’s interest. For this reason, the socialist opposition should have the courage to proclaim this publicly» (Zëri i Rinisë, dated 3.10.1992)—would reduce political tension and bring public understanding of the Socialists, while preserving their position as an opposition. For in the conditions of a political struggle that is indistinguishable in the press from an election campaign, there can naturally be no understanding, and consequently no normal development of democratic processes. Instead of spending their energy building and operating the state, the Democrats have to wage a political struggle imposed by the Socialists. This tires the intellectual mind, demoralizes the people, and damages the historical outlook. MUJË BUÇPAPAJ …the day after the taking and the situation by the democratic government, with the restoration of order in this peace. The entry of people into a state governed by law and its presence in society have been the first duty of every government since they control the large socialist press and, in particular, the parliamentary microphones, are trying to create the impression, as it were, that the Albanian people are divided, that the gulf that has opened up between Democrats and Socialists is irreparable, and that the people turn against one another out of hatred. And worst of all, those orators remind Albanians of the machinery of hatred, the old codes built on revenge. No, gentlemen, the Albanian people, having paid a high price under dictatorship and amid the absence of its terror, welcomed democracy with dignity, welcoming democratic government with a national wedding celebration. Albanians are courageous people, who have regarded everything that is theirs as sacred, have valued and continue to value it, even while accepting threats. And this phenomenon has its own causes, or rather, it has a national [unclear] that they seek to bring about, also given the fact that in the past, for centuries, its state, as can be seen in this present-day [unclear], always [unclear] its quality in Kosovo and in the state institutions. Impatience with democracy, with democratic government, is expressed today among the people, but among certain Socialist parliamentarians, certain leaders of the PS party, and their emissaries…

LONDON — Ibrahim Rugova, chairman of the Democratic League of Kosovo, is taking part in the regular conference of the Conservative Party (the party in power) of Great Britain, which is being held today in Brighton. Ibrahim Rugova answered several questions from the BBC. Asked by the journalist what he expects from this party, Ibrahim Rugova said: “I expect greater support from this party.” BBC: “Are you also expecting formal recognition?” Rugova: “That is our request. I want Kosovo to be neutral, open between Albania and Serbia, two countries in which Kosovo has interests. I hope this will be achieved.” BBC: “There is much talk in Great Britain about the danger of the war spreading from Bosnia-Herzegovina to Kosovo. But I cannot understand this, because the Serbs there have the government. So why could Kosovo be endangered by the spread of the war?” Rugova: “In my view, there are two or three factors. Albanians have suffered for years, and particularly during the last two years, under terrible repression. So far, we have been successful with this policy, but one day it is possible that the people will revolt. “The second factor is the struggle for power among political parties in Serbia. And in this struggle for power, Milosheviçi and the others started with Kosovo, and only for this reason could Milosheviçi play his last card in order to survive. “Then there is a desire to provoke a widespread conflict, in which the Albanian question in Kosovo would be eliminated. These factors are therefore important. If the world and Europe do not tell the Serbs and that regime ‘stop’ or ‘halt,’ then it is possible that they will move toward Kosovo.”

These days, a delegation from the North Atlantic Assembly visited the Ministry of Foreign Trade. The Minister of Foreign Trade, Artan Hoxha, briefed the delegation members on the conditions for development and the difficulties facing our country because of shortages of goods, commercial infrastructure, transport, and currency convertibility, as well as on the measures taken to fully liberalize prices and ease trade restrictions. The delegation members asked about the main lines of the IMF’s policy in Albania, the possibility of meeting IMF requirements on time, the reform process and the difficulties in implementing it, etc.

The editorial office of Rilindja Demokratike announces in this issue to all participants in the «RD» lottery that it offers a prize… to the number sold, the winners! After the winning numbers are drawn, our newspaper will publish the winning numbers and their prizes in several issues. On this occasion, the editorial office apologizes to all participants and other interested parties be winners!

THE EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY INFORMS: From 5 to 7 October 1992, the second session of the … was held in Tirana, in accordance with the Agreement on Cultural Cooperation between Germany and Albania… From 5 to 7 October 1992, the second session of the … was held in Tirana, in accordance with the 1988 Agreement on Cultural Cooperation between Germany and Albania. (Continued on page 4)

THE WRITER ISMAIL KADARE: On the evening of October 6, the distinguished writer Ismail Kadare told Fatmir Elezi, a journalist with the Albanian Telegraphic Agency, that the interview by Italian journalist Angela Vird of the Italian News Agency ANSA… On the evening of October 6, the distinguished writer Ismail Kadare told Fatmir Elezi, a journalist with the Albanian Telegraphic Agency, that the interview by Italian journalist Angela Vird of the Italian News Agency ANSA, published in the ATSH bulletin and printed in the newspaper «Zëri i Rinisë», is nothing other than an unrestrained interpretation by this individual, given in recent days… …newspaper «Zëri i Rinisë». The well-known writer went on to explain: I had only one conversation with Ms. Angela, from which it could not be inferred what she commented in the interview given to the ANSA Agency. (ATSH) THE EDITORIAL BOARD OF «RD»: On September 8, an article was published in the newspaper «RD» concerning the meeting of the foreign ministers of the Balkan countries, held on October 24, 1990, in Tirana. The article also states: «Attention has been drawn by curiosity, But…» In Paris, Ismail Kadare is seeking political asylum. I am sorry, but that is how it seems. Regardless of him, perhaps someone needed this. The editorial board must clarify that it is by no means its view that the departure of our distinguished writer, Mr. Ismail Kadare, from his Homeland at that time, and his seeking political asylum in France, served—even indirectly—certain antidemocratic political forces in power. It was and remains fully convinced that, through this action, compelled by dictatorial circumstances, Mr. Kadare, a friend of the «RD» Editorial Board, made another valuable contribution in the service of democracy.

1. During the period from September 21 to October 4, 1992, in accordance with the Italian-Albanian intergovernmental agreement, «PELIKANI» transported the following goods to various districts: - wheat: 11,125 tons - flour: 863 tons - powdered milk: 220 tons - miscellaneous goods: 70 tons - and covered more than 348,847 kilometers. 2. At the Durrës Polyclinic and the Vlorë hospital, the «Pelikan» medical team carried out 2,245 medical examinations and procedures. 3. The helicopter unit logged 33 flight hours. This activity stands out in particular because of the return to Albania of Mr. Dodon Seli Mimeza, discharged on October 4 from the Polispitali of Bari, where he had been admitted since May 13 with the diagnosis «gunshot wound»,