a functional part of these organizations and is being organically integrated into Europe and the world. We Democrats promised you the establishment of order and calm; after a year, the change is quite evident. We promised the path of the market economy and privatization, and we are advancing along this path every day. The essence of our program is contained in one word—REFORM. Its progress and achievements are the progress and achievements of democracy. We Democrats today, in coalition with our allies, bear responsibility for the challenges of our time. We have undertaken to bring Albania into the free waters of liberty and prosperity, and this is not easy. Whereas a year ago the political battle was paramount, today the economic battle is paramount. No achievement of democracy to date can last if it is not accompanied by economic successes. Recognizing the changes and successes of economic reform in both city and countryside, it is entirely normal and necessary to stress that today in Albania the economy and foreign investment remain the greatest challenge, and we must move faster. We must create a new outlook, build a new mentality—that of success, enterprise, and economic gain. We must find ways to attract as much foreign investment as possible, to meet the competition and the demand for it. Let us not sit and lament the mistakes we made yesterday and the historic opportunities we lost, but strive to seize the new historic opportunity that has once again come into our hands. This is not so easy and requires great ability and energy; it requires the contribution of all Albanians wherever they may be; it requires dedication and criticism, the commitment and support of the nation’s most qualified forces; it requires the devotion and ability of all those who today hold the historic fate of democracy in their hands. It is a bitter fact that Albania’s greatest suffering and troubles have come from Albanians themselves; to see this, we need only look at recent decades. I want to take this opportunity to address those in the SP, asking them not to allow it to remind us more of yesterday than of today, and not to let the SP become, like the DP, a symbol of obstruction to national progress. Ladies and Gentlemen, This is the first anniversary of the victory of democracy. These are momentous days for all of us who are living through them. Let us all try together to do better; let us strive so that tomorrow those who come after us will say these were great times, when we laid the foundations of sound democracy and prosperity in Albania.

—One year of real life— We had grown tired of the strange things in Albanian life. We were tired of hollow enthusiasm, demagoguery and poverty, tears and outbursts. We were tired of the “angels” of Albanian Bolshevism; we were tired of everything, so much so that it seemed we would never again have the strength to rise. But the opposite happened. December 1990, February 1991, March 1992. Albanians were marching for democracy. For the first time in 48 years, they were given the opportunity to vote freely, and with an overwhelming vote they declared the overthrow of communism and the victory of democracy in Albania. The Democratic Party, the party of the right, of intellectuals and students, workers and popular hope, prevailed decisively. On 23 March, in the capital of the country, hundreds of thousands of tears of joy, cheers, ceremonial marches. This was the first day in [continues outside the frame] the history of 50 years on which Albanians celebrated, broke the rules in order to dare, and believed in their own survival. The first truly pluralist parliament was formed, the first democratic government. The first democratic president was elected... The democratic government inherited an extremely poor Albania. At that time, our country played the role of a table for Mediterranean corruption. Everything had been destroyed: 600 million dollars in debt, 72% of the population endured poverty on the money of 80% [unclear in source]. No serious investment, no privatization. The educational and cultural network was destroyed; the military system was still under communist ideology. The judicial bodies [continues on page 4]. [Another right-hand column] Albania. The Democratic Party, the party of December, On the 23rd [??], day in still under communist ideology. The judicial bodies Albania. The Democratic Party, the party of December, On the 23rd [??], day in still under communist ideology. The judicial bodies had no independent authority, [unclear] returned to the Albanian [unclear] the desire to work. Since [unclear] last year, the government has submitted the necessary draft laws [unclear] regulating administrative and cultural life, essential for every emancipated society. In the market economy, the value of the dollar was felt more strongly, while hundreds of thousands of private traders were encouraged by the state in their bold move toward a market economy. With legal safeguards, land was distributed and title deeds issued in the vast majority of the country’s regions. The former agricultural cooperatives remained a bad dream for the Albanian peasant, while the state [unclear] them the piles of loans taken during the years of transition. Prices for agricultural products were liberalized, which greatly helped our peasant. Every citizen was provided with bread, medical services, economic assistance and, above all, security (Continued on page 4). They almost did not exist, and public order was insecure... Hajdin Sejdia was hatching plans for public deception in the villas of the Blloku. A huge hole in the center of Tirana, a harsh warning about exchanges [unclear] for failing to respect the rule of law and the power of the free vote. Administrative reform. The democratic [government] dismantled the network of corrupt bureaucracy, appointed competent links... and economic [officials] equipped with specialists... capable and up to date. The competent government decision, the removal of the ... destructive [measure], restored ... the desire to work. Since ... last year, the government submitted ... the necessary draft laws ... regulating ... [text obscured/cut off]

[Photograph fragment at the top with people, no legible text.] WE HAVE TAKEN IT UPON OURSELVES TO BRING ALBANIA INTO THE WATERS OF FREEDOM AND WELL-BEING “THAT ALBANIA MAY BECOME...” Speech delivered by the Chairman of the DP, Mr. Eduard Selami, on the occasion of the first anniversary of the victory of democracy. Esteemed participants, Ladies and gentlemen, It is a great honor that I have [??] the floor to greet you on this first anniversary of the victory of democracy in Albania. It is a great pleasure to [??] gather together to commemorate those unforgettable days. A full year ago, on the most anxious evening along the road that [??] Albania, a year ago the voices of democracy [??] victory, and a year ago Albanians, after all those great efforts, turned the course of their fate. On March 22, the Democratic Revolution in Albania took its greatest step forward—the peaceful overthrow, through the free vote, of the Continent’s most savage communist dictatorship. This was the third time in this century that Albanians had tried to establish democracy, and time was showing that this time there would be no turning back. Ladies and gentlemen, We democrats began the struggle against communism with the conviction and perseverance that the only path for our country was the path to the future. The only way to make Albania, to make this country steadfast, is to have faith that it has a [??] democratic. We Albanians have taken it upon ourselves [??] for the future and for our young people. For us, Albania is clothed, indeed more clothed than we thought at first. We promised that Albanians would be free, that we would build a state governed by law and enter the path of a market economy—not because it is the easiest, but because it is the only path to social progress. We did not promise golden flowers and paradise, but those fundamental things that are the promise of democracy and which Jefferson so beautifully expressed in the triad “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” The promises of March 22 are on their way to being fulfilled. We promised a change from the most qualified communists, and this process is taking place every day. Our philosophy has been to part with the past peacefully. This is not simple, because the passions and understandable extremes after 47 years of suffering and hardship had to give way to reason and tolerance. From its very beginnings, the DP made the slogan of national reconciliation its own, as a natural and necessary process, not as a façade to conceal the crimes of the past. A peaceful break with the past and the establishment of democracy have been the foundation of national reconciliation. After one year, you see, President Berisha, as Chairman of the DP, declared a peaceful break with the past and national reconciliation on the basis of justice and shared responsibility, saying that this is in practice on its way to being achieved—not in the way the communists wanted, those who divided and split the people while they were still alive through class warfare, but on the basis of freedom and justice guaranteed by the rule of law and democracy. This ongoing process is one of the most important indicators and the greatest sociopolitical step of democracy. This is everyone’s contribution, but first and foremost, I would say, that of those who suffered directly and were persecuted in prisons and concentration camps. Social reconciliation in this country, the progress of democracy and the existing political stability owe a great deal to this segment of the population. Their tolerance and humanity deserve the honor and respect of all the Albanian people. We promised to institutionalize freedom in a state governed by law, and to sanctify free speech and free thought. Freedom of speech and expression, freedom of religion and conscience, freedom of assembly and the right to equal protection before the law—these inalienable rights are guaranteed, or are in the process of being legally and constitutionally guaranteed. We promised to open Albania up and integrate it with the world, to bring its long isolation to an end, to pursue a national and open foreign policy, and to receive assistance from and cooperate with the world. And after one year, it is much easier to see how that long isolation is being overcome. It is also easy to see (except for those who do not want to see) that Albania is more open than ever before and more exposed to the world and its connections, and that it is being helped and supported by international organizations and institutions. The visits of numerous dignitaries to Albania, including the visit the Pope will make soon, are a direct indication of this. With each passing day Albania is becoming easier; it to give way to reason and tolerance. to have faith that it has a [??] democratic.

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