At the invitation of the Baudouin Foundation, the Chairman of the DP Parliamentary Group, MP Ali Spahia, also took part in a seminar organized by the East-West Parliamentary Practice Project. His Majesty the King of the Belgians, Baudouin, paid a visit to the German-speaking Community, during which he also met with the seminar participants. At his meeting with MP Spahia, the King inquired about the political and economic situation in Albania. Mr. Spahia spoke to him about political stability and economic difficulties, as well as the results of economic reform. The King also inquired about the situation in the region, and particularly the situation in Kosovo. MP Spahia pointed out that Kosovo is militarily occupied by the Serbs and expressed great concern about the dangers posed by the increasingly troubling situation because of the killings, terror, and violation of all the rights of Albanians in Kosovo. In response to His Majesty’s questions about what percentage of the population in Kosovo is Albanian, MP Spahia pointed out that half of our nation lives in the former Yugoslavia and that in Kosovo around 90 percent of the population are Albanians. Therefore, Albania is deeply concerned about their fate and cannot in any way remain indifferent. The King highly praised Albania’s and President Berisha’s efforts to develop democracy and preserve peace and stability in the region. He also expressed himself in the warmest terms about the reception the Albanian people gave His Holiness Pope John Paul II on the occasion of his visit to Albania. ATA

On the afternoon of May 8 ..., DP chairman Mr. Eduard Selami held a press conference together with Messrs. Xh. Patti and Andrea Kol, from EDU (European Democratic Union). Although we published Mr. Selami’s opening speech at the conference in full in our previous issue, we are now giving the full account of the press conference. Taking the floor, Mr. Xh. Patti, Chairman of EDU’s First Commission, stressed that the Albanian Democratic Party is part of EDU. We are very pleased that Albania is successfully integrating into Europe, made possible by the qualitative changes that have taken place in this country since the establishment of democracy. This is reflected first of all in the protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms, the establishment of order, agricultural reform, the stabilization of the currency, and the decline of ... Questions from journalists. Asked, “Has the parliamentary crisis begun and, if so, how can it be overcome?”, Mr. Selami replied: “I think there is no parliamentary crisis at all. What we are seeing today is only a crisis among those who have plundered Albania. As long as the Socialist Party tries to destabilize things, the Democratic Party will not give it any consideration. We will move forward without wavering on the path of consolidating the national democratic spirit. But we think it is in the Socialist Party’s own interest to break away from its corrupt and conservative wing.” Asked, “Are we in favor of elections ...” ... in connection with the conflict in Bosnia and Kosovo, he replied that the international community would reimpose measures against Serbia. Mr. Selami, agreeing with Mr. Patti’s views, went on to say that measures against Serbia must be intensified urgently. “I think one solution—and this will be the only one—is armed intervention by multinational forces. This will be a complicated problem, but it will become even more complicated if the war spreads to Kosovo.” Asked to assess the situation in Albania, Mr. Xh. Patti replied: “The economic situation in Albania is difficult, but there is great encouragement. If the government continues to respect and implement the IMF program, this means that the country’s economy is recovering ... recovering quickly. The data available so far speak well to this point. I think Albania is very fortunate to have a government supported by the majority. The majority’s absolute support for this government is a great help for a Democratic Union. Albania, unlike other Eastern European countries, has great political stability. We greatly value this stability, and it obliges us to support the DP and its government even more.” Continuing this line of thought, Mr. A. Kol stressed that they would expand this cooperation in the future as well. “We have invited members of the DP to Germany; we have discussed relations between Germany and Albania. We have a foundation that helps all parties, adapting the communists. We will continue to provide our assistance in supporting the DP and democracy in Albania.” RD CORRESPONDENT -Press conference by Mr. E. SELAMI and Messrs. Xh. PATTI and A. KOL from the EDU delegation- is integrating successfully into Europe, and this has been evident first in the field of protecting fundamental human rights and freedoms, in establishing order, in agricultural reform, in stabilizing the currency, and in reducing inflation. This does not mean that nothing more remains to be done, since Albania has high unemployment and a difficult standard of living, but everything will be temporary, and I am very sure of this. Mr. Andrea Kol, Executive Secretary of EDU, explaining the nature of EDU’s composition, clarified that the European Democratic Union brings together center-right parties, democratic parties, and conservative parties. EDU is the largest union in Europe. Mr. Kol further stressed that our main goal is the fight against communism, while after its fall in Eastern Europe, the goal is the establishment of democratic structures. During these days spent in Albania, we saw that the PD is a party formed as a European party, a major party that is successfully continuing the establishment and consolidation of democracy in Albania. A question addressed to Mr. Xh. Pati concerning efforts to destabilize the situation in Albania; Mr. Xh. Pati will recover quickly. The data to date speak well in support of this argument. I think Albania is very fortunate because it has Union. We value this stability highly, and this obliges me to support the PD and its government even more. Continuing the thought, Mr. A. Kol stressed that we will further increase this cooperation in the future. We have invited members of the PD to Germany; we have discussed Germany–Albania relations. the PD and democracy in Albania. RD CORRESPONDENT” Question concerning the assessment by the current leaders of the Democratic Party and government regarding the construction and restructuring of villas [h?]. Question: What share does the PS have of the Albanian gold that it looted Asked, “Are we in favor of new early elections?” Mr. Selami replied that there is no fact or serious evidence pointing to this. But I can remind you that F. Nano himself, when asked about this issue, had said, “Yes, they are needed (new elections), as early as March 23.” I can therefore point out that this demand comes from certain social-communists who cannot accept this reality. As for the elections, they will take place only in 1996. Asked why there is no harmony or coalition between the PD and PS, Mr. Eduard Selami replied that as long as the PS is led by a conservative and corrupt person, there will never be a coalition. Asked whether the Nano corruption case had been referred to the courts, Mr. Selami replied that this presents no difficulty and, as far as I know, it was sent to the relevant authorities eight days ago. Here, things are clear. In the black ... [text cut off/unclear]

On May 9, ’93, Fatos Nano, in his capacity as chairman of the PS and MP for the Kuçova district, accompanied by S. Pellumbi, S. Brokaj, L. Hajdaraga, and the Zepist L. Rama, held a meeting with residents of Kuçova in the “18 Tetori” Cinema hall. Around 400 people had gathered there in all, mostly pensioners, members and supporters of the PS. The essence of the meeting was an election campaign to overthrow the democratic government and the President of the Republic. F. Nano described these figures not as symbols of the unity of the Albanian people, but as forces dividing them. Later in his speech, F. Nano called for an uprising, telling those present that today’s rulers would even take away their air if they did not rise up. With the shamelessness that characterizes him, Nano accused today’s leaders of the Democratic Party and government, without evidence, of building murderous structures. Asked what share the PS had in the Albanian gold plundered by the PPSH, he replied: “—This gold was spent on building hydroelectric power plants, roads, railways and bunkers, and they are needed to protect our heads ... that is, Fatos and company’s ...” The social-communist leader forgot to add ... also for building the Bloc, for the dictator’s extravagances and pleasures, and those of his entourage, who licked his boots. Anyway ... all the people know this. The meeting lasted two hours. Alongside the slogans “Long live Nano,” the newest slogan, “Long live Baba” (meaning E. H.), was also shouted. At the close of the meeting, he addressed the hall, asking them to organize another rally outside, in the town square, even though no prior permission for this had been obtained from the Public Order Directorate. We emphasize that Fatos Nano’s cunning provocations to incite new clashes between citizens and law-enforcement forces were answered by the latter with great restraint and calm. The same was true of his deliberate walks through the streets and his grandstanding in two cafés, inviting passers-by to applaud him and gather around him. Consequently, there was no incident whatsoever in the town or its outskirts. The brave Fatos and his zealous servants, on these pilgrimages, had five armed men as personal guards, paid for with the gold stolen from the people during 50 years of dictatorship. THE OBSERVER (Continued on page 4) -Fatos Nano, provocateur- -In Kuçovë there were no incidents- With the stubbornness that characterizes Nano, he accuses without evidence, he added ... also regarding the construction of the block, the Dictator’s outings and pleasures, and those of his entourage who fawned on him. Anyway... the whole people know these things. THE OBSERVER

Generally, Eastern Europe and, in particular, Albania have not known to date an ideology more destructive to the human universe than Enverian communist dogmatism. Like every dogma, if not in the most barbaric way, it sacrificed the human soul, its cult of freedom, faith, besa: the existence of its race with tangible boundaries toward reason, free rivalry, and the transmission of humane feeling throughout the world. Stalinist dogmatism, known as communism, exploited in the cruelest way a human ideal which, for the world, would have been far better never to have appeared than to have appeared in the monstrous form that reigned in Eastern Europe for half a century. In Albania, at all nine congresses of the PPSH (today PS), the project was laid out—or rather, Enver Hoxha undertook—to establish an absurd communism, far from every communal ideal, surrounded by poverty, misery, existence, quarrels, purges in power, imaginary betrayals, the leveling of property, democratic centralism, social experiments, and the violation of the universal rights of free human beings. In this way, these could by no means have been nine historic congresses (the tenth marked its end), as the party bureaucracy called them, but simply nine circles of Enver Hoxha’s hell (as Dante Aligeri might have called them), which maimed our people and brought them out of there either dead in prisons, or blinded, standardized, withered, crippled, or in the form of the so-called new man, bent to fit the wretched paragraphs that violated every noble ideal of the Albanian European soul. Therefore, the purpose of our article, dear readers, is to reveal one of the nine circles of hell, to uncover the tragedy of souls, an untouchable world for communist morality. Our Lord, help us carry out our mission, as we apologize to the reader for the boundless gloom. Chronicle of Hell At the entrance to hell, against a rocky backdrop surrounded by barbed wire, beneath an iron gate, we saw a man condemned to hard labor, or, as ... told us ... of hell, who begged us to leave him anonymous for everything he would tell us while accompanying us. Thus we entered the kingdom of hell, or his domain, through a dusk that had fallen over this hidden world of betrayed souls. Our guide, walking ahead of us, informed us that we had entered the first circle of hell. This circle, the Dictator—or, as they liked to call him, the Architect—had designed in seven days, as could be clearly seen from the dates carved in large letters on the face of hell: 2–8 November 1948. This circle marked the first severing of this state from the world, from humanity; at least, all the chronicles compiled in the kingdom of hell acknowledge this fact. Here, amid the half-darkness, a wind was blowing, which would later become a volcano and which the souls called “the wind of the class struggle,” and which prevented most souls from rising. A little farther on, when we asked what those shadows were, digging pits in the desert with such diligence, we were told that they were the former great landowners, the wealthy merchants, whose property had been taken from them in that world, and who were still being interrogated even after death, their skeletons being struck with a long whip over their exposed bones about their connections with the enemies of the state, etc., etc. The Architect was clever and generous. In this circle he had reserved a place for many distinguished intellectuals, renowned writers, artists, and scientists. The chroniclers had discovered that the Dictator hated the intelligentsia, especially those who opposed his project for hell. These wretches, chained in several dreadful cellars, showed the wounds that were continually opened on them; red devils would rush up behind them, make them burst into tears, and strike them with a black scourge. In one corner of hell, surrounded by high walls, ready at any moment to pounce on the Dictator’s opponents, hung the souls of those who had raised their voices for Kosovo, for the lands occupied in Yugoslavia, for Cameria, etc. They were patriotic fighters, commanders, famous and great military figures, and children who had cried, “Kosovo is our land.” They were beaten constantly, a large stone hung around their necks, and they were forced to sing the song “Long Live Unity and Brotherhood” or “Long Live Tito!”—songs the Dictator liked the whole people to sing. A little farther on, in a pit filled with boiling water, where some black, dwarf-like people constantly fed the fire—the fire they called “the fire of the revolution”—right in the middle of that infernal din, Sejfulla Maleshova appeared to us as if in a dream. He refused to say anything to us, because he had been burning for years

man condemned to hard labor, or, as ... told us ... us, because he had been burning for years (Continued on page 4)

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