The People’s Assembly delegation, led by Mr. Selami, in Strasbourg At the debate held on February 3 in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on the massive violence and human rights violations in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, the head of the Albanian delegation, Mr. Eduard Selami, also took the floor. “The process of change,” he said, “which began in the 1980s, ended with the dismantling of the international structures based on ideological bipolarism. Unfortunately, in the Balkans, the vacuums created by the fall of communist ideology were replaced in some countries by nationalism. Thus, what is happening now in the former Yugoslavia is tragic and brings shame upon us, who are in this region. The situation, regardless of ethnicity, the killings, what we see and hear every day—the tragedy of Bosnia-Herzegovina—is a great challenge for Europe and its civilization. What is happening in the former Yugoslavia is a brutal violation of every principle on which the UN and the CSCE operate. The intolerable toll in terms of loss of human life and economic damage has made the situation in this region more difficult. “The situation in Kosovo,” Mr. Selami continued, “is extremely bad, and lately it has become increasingly tense and even more dangerous. Ethnic cleansing has now become normal practice. The expulsion of Albanians from their homes and the settling in them of Serbs who come from various parts of the former— (Continued on page 4) If this does not happen, the consequences may Applying two different standards to the same phenomenon is very dangerous. What is unacceptable in Somalia and Iraq must not be tolerated in Europe either. I will not focus on the similarities and differences between Milosheviç and Saddam: I will only draw your attention to the fact that the Serbian dictator is directly responsible for the most terrible tragedy in Europe since the Second World War. After bringing Kosovo under control, he launched open aggression against Croatia and Bosnia using the federal army and the totalitarian machinery under his control. He destroyed cities such as Vukovar, Dubrovnik and Sarajevo, set up concentration camps and carried out ethnic cleansing against every possible minority. Then, after declaring himself a war criminal, he was invited to Geneva on a goodwill mission. Unfortunately, the December elections seem to have given this dictator a degree of legality, but in no way legitimacy. I have no doubt that he is committed to creating a Greater Serbia. He will turn to Macedonia, where 30–40 percent of the population are Albanians, and to Kosovo, where 90 percent of the population are Albanian, as soon as he has his hands free in Bosnia and Kosovo. At this stage, the Albanian population is under threat. Remaining faithful to the Helsinki principles of not changing borders by force, I would stress that we will not tolerate such events either. Such events can very quickly turn into ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. I fear that in an all-out Balkan war,

Speech by President Sali Berisha at the discussion “The Balkan Crisis”..., held at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on January 30, 1993 Ladies and gentlemen, For Albania, this discussion is the most important of the entire World Economic Forum. During these nine months of freedom, we have achieved some progress in our economic reform, as the IMF confirmed only five days ago, when we concluded the second step of our agreement with it. During this time we brought the monthly inflation rate down from 15 percent to 3.5 percent. Agricultural production has increased substantially, while the decline in industrial production has been halted. We privatized the land and began privatizing houses and apartments, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises. The Albanian currency remained stable. What we would most like is to be able to focus on economic development and on integrating our country into Europe. In everyday language, when we speak of Europe, this means the European Community. There is no doubt that the EC is central to the history, politics and economy of our continent. But there is also no doubt that the concept of Europe extends beyond the Twelve; despite different levels and rates of development, the rest of Europe deserves to be treated according to the same principles of peace and security. Former Yugoslavia shows that if this does not happen, the consequences can be incalculable. In this tragic country, the universal right to human existence is being violated; Europe is witnessing the triumph of barbarism, inhumanity, mass killings, rape, mutilation and ethnic cleansing. Applying two different standards to the same phenomenon is extremely dangerous. What is intolerable in Somalia and Iraq must not be tolerated here. I think that the Republic of Macedonia’s independence and integrity should be recognized and guaranteed by the United Nations and NATO, and that this country should be declared a multinational state of equal citizens. The existence of an independent and guaranteed Macedonia is a condition for long-term peace in the Balkans. In fact, behind some of the concerns being raised about this country lie events and old, nostalgic, imperial ambitions dating from antiquity through to the beginning of this century. In Kosovo, where more than 90 percent of the population is Albanian, I would propose that it be placed immediately under the control of the United Nations or NATO, in order to prevent the outbreak of conflict. Preventive diplomacy proved effective in stopping the war in Croatia and Bosnia. Now the international community has its last chance to prevent the war from spreading through preventive action. Although the UN saw fit to establish its supervision over Krajina and Slavonia, which were under Croatian sovereignty and had not been autonomous units, why should this not be done for Kosovo, which under the 1974 Constitution was an integral part of the Yugoslav Federation and whose Autonomous Province of Kosovo had been chaired twice by Albanian representatives? Subsequently, a solution should be reached through dialogue to reopen the Albanian-language schools closed by the Serbian authorities, to establish local self-government in Kosovo and, finally, to resolve the question of political status in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, the CSCE agreements, and respect for the national and human rights of the Albanians. It is quite clear that, in resolving the problem of education, as well as many other issues in the former Yugoslavia, the UN faces difficult and complicated tasks. Many people think that a UN Task Force is necessary, but many examples from the Yugoslav war show that such units would take a long time to become effective. NATO is already present and has all the qualities needed to carry out these tasks. I believe that the concrete commitment of the North Atlantic Alliance must be considered seriously. Ladies and gentlemen, Serbian aggression will continue, and there will be no peace in the Balkans as long as Milosheviçi remains in power, basking in victory. Never in human history have dictators who felt victorious given up using violence. The only way to help Serbia’s democratic forces and change the situation is to make the dictator’s leaders feel psychologically defeated. This can be achieved, first, by lifting the arms embargo on Bosnia; I am very encouraged by the fact that the Clinton administration will consider this issue a priority. Second, the best instrument is to reduce the Serbian military machine through selective air strikes. Otherwise, the Balkan Saddam will continue to deceive others in Geneva, and the Balkan crisis will not be contained. (ATSH)

The socialist newspaper “24 Orë,” in its 1993 issue No. 2, prints in large letters one of its sensational announcements: Qazim Gjonaj is vacationing in Macedonia. This announcement is a lie, a public slander made with a specific purpose by the publishers of the “serious” newspaper “24 Orë.” I have rarely read this newspaper, but I have often read in other newspapers rebuttals of its articles, which shows that this is not the first time it has published such lies. The publication of a slander in such a newspaper does not upset me. There is nothing wrong with going on vacation in other places. Democracy made this possibility available to us, and we are all indebted to it. Earlier, in a time now far in the past, it was unthinkable to take a vacation abroad. But the truth is exactly the opposite of what is stated in the “24 Orë” announcement. It is a lie and, as such, should not be believed. To clarify public opinion regarding the insinuations made in that article, I am compelled to state once again that, as a judge, I was assigned the Shkodër case for trial on July 4, 1991, by the former President of the Supreme Court, Kleanthi Koçi, just a few days after I began working at the Supreme Court. I am at peace in my conscience because, during the trial of this case, I committed no wrongdoing or violation of the law, and we tried the case as a judicial panel objectively, according to our legal convictions. As for the justice and accuracy of that decision— (Continued on page 4)

The delegation of the People’s Assembly of the Republic of Albania, led by Mr. Eduard Selami, which is participating in the proceedings of the 44th session (fourth part) of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, has held various meetings with parliamentarians and senior officials of the Council of Europe. In the discussion with Mr. Pluh, rapporteur on Albania for the Committee of Member States of the Council of Europe, the difficult economic situation in Albania was discussed, as well as the assistance and support of the Council of Europe in helping Albania obtain member-country status in the Council of Europe as soon as possible. The Albanian delegation also took part in a meeting of the Council of Europe’s Committee on Economic Affairs and Development. At this meeting, the minutes of the Committee’s meeting in Tirana in December 1992 were discussed. The report submitted on Albania concerning its economic and financial situation was also discussed. A motion for a resolution was also presented at the meeting (Continued on page 2)

At the invitation of Cien Ci Cen, State Councillor and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, Alfred Serreqi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Albania, will make an official visit to China from 12 to 15 February 1993.

— Agreement on the use of this aid signed in Washington — TIRANA, 4 February — The Japanese Government has allocated 55,500,000 Japanese yen (around 400,000 dollars) for reforming the education system in Albania. These days, the relevant agreement on the use of this aid was signed at the World Bank in Washington. Under the agreement, technical assistance is envisaged for the planning and management of education, as well as material resources for the rehabilitation and maintenance of schools in our country. (ATSH)

People in Albania were very pleased when they heard the news that a man from Kosovo named Hajdin Sejdia had a powerful Bank with a name that sounded impressive. But they were even more pleased when they saw that he had opened a big hole in the middle of Tirana. Even to this day, people are astonished when they pass by and see that hole. Everyone is delighted and wonders what great tree will be planted there and what size its fruit will be. It seems that with such fruits, he and people like him seek to reconcile the money stolen from the Albanian people during communist rule with the money that will be made from nonexistent capital: This was the first hole dug in Albanian soil and, God willing, may those who seek to bury our hopes for democracy in order to save their social-communist past be buried there... But as if this hole were not enough, the so-called distinguished academician Rexhep Qosja comes here to us and tries to dig another big hole in our spirits, a hole so large that it can hide the broken bones of Albanians from Preveza to Tivar. The bones that Enverism planted in the communist concentration camps. It is quite likely that academician Qosja has this feeling, for it would not have been possible to dig this second hole so deep, and it is quite likely that the two of them, with the Tartari fellow, would not be able to sell so many skeletons; so they hurry off, unappointed, to seek help. The most wonderful thing for a little Albanian—but to make the task easier for them, I would say that Qosja and Tartari would do well to become vice-chairmen, with Mr. Aha at the head, or... Wouldn’t it be better if Mrs. Hoxha led them!... I think that with Mrs. Hoxha at the helm they would have better luck selling the skeletons of the massacred, and afterwards they would manage to achieve reconciliation in the offices of SHIK, Bre, how happy those pseudo-intellectuals will be after that reconciliation—those whom Enver Hoxha so carefully raised by planting them in the files of the State Security Service. And Albania now, with those two big holes and such Albanian sons tripping it up, looks smaller and stares in amazement from the side of the road where these people have cornered it. KASEM TREBESHINA

June 27, 1992, coincided with the inauguration of the Family Planning Project in our country, a project organized by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) and the Ministry of Health. The purpose of the activity organized at that time was to develop a family-planning plan for Albania, followed by a corresponding health service. To this end, a working group was established within the Ministry of Health, headed by F. Pllodari. Considerable work has already been carried out over a period of seven months within the framework of this project. In this connection, a meeting was held starting on February 3 in the conference room at the UNDP Office in Tirana, attended by: Mr. Marchal, the United Nations Resident Representative in Albania; Mr. Eef Nass, UNFPA Program Officer; Dr. Pierotti, Regional Adviser—

— A resounding no and many merits — Tito led and brought to its final triumph the National Liberation War of the peoples of Yugoslavia—there is a great historical merit for all time. Tito led and brought to its final triumph the war that overthrew the monarchy, opening the way for the triumph of socialism—there is another great merit in history; Tito said NO to Stalin at a time when Stalin’s power seemed to know no bounds—there is another great merit in history; Tito led us along the paths of socialist self-management, equality, brotherhood and unity, and the coexistence of nations and nationalities—there is another extraordinary historical merit; Tito championed the great idea that resists pressure from the Great Powers, known today as the idea of non-alignment—another merit so great, so decisive in world history. (Taken from the newspaper “Rilindja,” dated 11.5.1980)

The Opera and Ballet Theatre is staging Xh. Verdi’s opera “Traviata” tonight at 6 p.m. Tenor Kastriot Tusha performs the role of Alfredo for the first time; soprano Marjana Leka performs Violetta, and baritone Agim Durro performs Germont. Conductor: Ermir Kranja.