Recently, there has been an escalation in the anti-Albanian policy and propaganda noise of the circles in Belgrade. On the one hand, one cannot fail to notice the unprecedented activity of certain pro-Serbian elements who, in order to improve their bosses’ pre-election image, rushed one after another to Belgrade for dialogue. On this occasion, however, we were reminded that the Planet, Blaçat, Imamet, Cekat or Çupët e Ternovcat, in the most favourable interpretation, represent only themselves and those who incite and pay them, and no central Albanian political force—and so far there is no great cause for concern. But immediately after these acts of understanding with what Belgrade calls “honest Albanians”—the Albanians who have sold out—Milošević warns of the great danger supposedly threatening Macedonia from the Albanian bogeyman, that is, Albanian separatism, in whose name he keeps Kosovo occupied. And to prove this fratricidal danger, this time, rather than creating another Illyriad or Dardaniad as he did two years ago—because those efforts failed—he did not have to do so. Instead, he brought out of the secret archives a 1991 trap, organized, filmed and archived by agents of the secret service of the former Yugoslav People’s Army, with the collaboration of their agents in Albania and Macedonia, to use it at a suitable time as evidence of Albanian separatist activity. This trap was brought out of the archives precisely two days after the danger supposedly threatening Macedonia from Albanian separatism was announced. At a broader level, this noise aims to justify a further escalation of the conflict in the region, the “brotherly” annexation of Macedonia by Belgrade, and the creation of a Greater Serbia by invoking the “dangerous” Albanian factor. Why is Milošević bringing out of the archives today an event staged three years ago, and what is the purpose of all the noise surrounding it? The noise and smoke screen from Belgrade, echoed by the media in Macedonia, alleging espionage, civil war or an uprising instigated by Albanian paramilitaries—whose numbers are said to range from 300 to 20,000, and whose lists consist of innocent people and were drawn up in secret offices—aim immediately to smear the Albanian factor as a force for stability in Macedonia and the region, and somehow improve the image of the dictator, on the eve of elections, as an aggressor in the Balkans, and possibly help ease the international sanctions against him. Greater Serbia by invoking the “dangerous” Albanian factor. But once again, this is an occasion to call on the Government of Macedonia to put an end to the persecution of Albanians and not to fall into such traps. We warn that those who play with Macedonia are playing with peace and stability in the Balkans, just as those who seek to destabilize the region by manipulating the Albanian factor are playing with the fire of a Balkan war; any attempt to manipulate or incite Albanians, now or in the future, will fail. prove. prove.

Recently, the PD and the Albanian Government have made major achievements in opening up the country and integrating Albania into Europe, in ensuring the rule of law and consolidating institutions and democracy, in making undeniable progress on economic reform, and in waging an uncompromising fight against corruption of every kind. Likewise, as it promised during the election campaigns, the PD is fighting corruption and crime with a magnifying glass in hand. It appears that precisely for this reason, the extreme-left press, working in close cooperation with corrupt elements and friends of the Albanian communist regime abroad, has embarked on a campaign of vile slander against the PD and its Government. At the head of this campaign are Deputy Alessi and his friends, former employees and Italian diplomats in Tirana, ZP, and former State Security collaborators employed in various mass media. Behind them are hidden certain forces that wanted to enrich themselves while Albania remained a corrupt, manipulated country, governed according to their appetites. Publicly denouncing before the courts and public opinion both the vile slanders and the motives behind them, the PD spokesperson, in connection with the statements by Italian deputy Alessi and the known collaborator of the Lazri Institute, which were quickly published in ZP, declares as follows: 1. According to documents held by the Government of Albania, Nikolla Arsidi was brought into Albania by Fatos Nano, former Prime Minister of the PPSH, who is now accused of corruption amounting to 9 million dollars. 2. Nikolla Arsidi was appointed negotiator for the foreign debt by Vilson Ahmeti, Prime Minister of the PPSH Government, and all financial transactions connected with the Arsidi scandal took place before the PD came to power. 3. All the illegal acts and financial irregularities in this scandal, the product of cooperation and corruption between the last PPSH Government and certain mafia circles, as well as all the people implicated in the scandal, were denounced before the court by the democratic Government. 4. As for the financing of the PD, about which the Hoxha-recognition debt is making insinuations, Alesi has been granted a loan by a citizen from financial borrowing, doubtful or illegal [?]: all funding for the PD election campaign was provided in accordance with all Albanian legislation, without any legal violation. The PD’s accounts have been and remain open to any state or foreign audit, and, specifically, ongoing inspections by the labour governments and the democratic Government have clearly demonstrated its records and propriety. Others will soon have to answer before the courts for hundreds of thousands of dollars stolen from the State Bank of Albania. Finally, we stress that we do not know whether deputy Alesi represents the Italian Tangentopoli, corruption in the Hoxha family, or some other force, nor is that of great importance; but his irresponsible statements and positions make the following clear: 1. He is an accomplice in the Arsidi scandal and crime, since, as he himself states, he possesses the original documents relating to this crime. This means that either someone deposited them with him to cover up the crime, or he fabricated them for his own purposes. 2. With his uproar, he aims to help his close friends, corrupt figures in the joint Albanian and Italian governments, who apparently lined their own pockets—and perhaps those of others—with 9 million dollars embezzled from the generous aid given by the Italian people to the Albanian people. 3. The uproar raised by Alesi and those hiding behind him is intended to attack the PD as the principal political force that exposed and continues to expose corruption among Albanian and Italian officials, and that seeks to cut the roots of Tangentopoli in Albania; the PD is building a strong democratic state, fully aligned with national interests and contemporary international standards, in which other countries will have a worthy partner, rather than an Albania trampled underfoot by Alessi and his friends.

He was born in Ioannina in 1929. He completed his studies at the Military Preparatory School and at the secondary schools of Pogoniani, Ioannina and Athens. He graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Athens and pursued postgraduate studies in Milan, Munich and Cologne. He defended his doctoral dissertation in Private International Law at the University of Cologne. He took part in the National Resistance against the German occupiers in the Epirus region in 1943–1944. During the dictatorship of the colonels (1967–1974), he distinguished himself in organizing resistance against the military junta, serving as Secretary of the Executive Committee for Europe of the Democratic Socialist Union. He worked as a regular contributor to the Greek-language programme of Doice Veles. He has been a member of PASOK’s Central Committee since December 1974. He was a member of many organizations and of the Committee programme of Doice Veles. Following the elections of 10 October 1993, Mr Papulias once again took up the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs in the PASOK Government and began his duties with the tour of Balkan capitals that started and runs from 7 to 13 November 1993. The Greek Foreign Minister will be in Tirana on 12–13-11-1993. As is well known, during his time as Greece’s Foreign Minister in 1985–1989, thanks to his personal contribution, Greek-Albanian relations improved very significantly: border crossing points between the two countries were opened, the absurd state-of-war law dating from 1940 was abolished, and exchanges between the two countries increased, particularly people-to-people exchanges. With regard to good-neighbourly Albanian-Greek relations, Mr Papulias has adhered to the well-known principle that minorities are bridges bringing peoples closer together, and has tried to put this policy into practice. His visit to Tirana is expected to give a positive impetus to the strained relations between our two countries following the incidents at the border. It is also expected that the official regulation of the status of Albanian economic migrants in Greece will be discussed. the Epirus region. During the period of the colonels’ dictatorship in the Socialist Democratic program of Radio since December 1974. He was a member of many PASOK coordinating bodies as well as Secretary of the Party’s International Relations Committee from 1975 to 1985. He has been elected a PASOK MP for the prefecture of Ioannina from 1977 to the present. During 1981–1984 he was Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs; in 1984–1985 he was Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs. In the Ecumenical Government (1989–1990) he carried out the duties of the Albanian minister, played with the fire of a Balkan war, and that every attempt to… in the Socialist Democratic Union.

MALESI E MADHE — The Democratic Party’s programme is at the heart of its work, and therefore we will not allow people to join it with the aim of turning it either to the left or to the right, said Pjetër Arbnori, Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, at the 11th plenary meeting of the PD branch for the district of Malësi e Madhe. Attending were section chairmen and secretaries, municipal chairmen, and the area’s deputy, Dodë Çapja. MALESI E MADHE — “The Democratic Party’s programme is at the heart of its work, and therefore we will not allow people to join it with the aim of turning it either to the left or to the right,” said Pjetër Arbnori, Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, at the 11th plenary meeting of the PD branch for the district of Malësi e Madhe. Attending were section chairmen and secretaries, municipal chairmen, and the area’s deputy, Dodë Çapja. Speaking about the preparations under way for the PD’s Second National Congress, Mr Arbnori stressed the need to further strengthen the party and its leading figures. In this regard, he emphasized the need to strengthen the party with new members and to increase the number of intellectuals in the PD’s ranks. “The new democratic state,” Mr Arbnori said, “cannot be run empirically. We need educated, competent people, specialists and democrats.” In this respect, he praised the work of the PD branch in the district, which has managed to attract a large number of the district’s intellectuals. In his speech, Mr Arbnori paid particular attention to relations between the governing committees of the PD branches and local government. “The party and local government are like the two wings of one body,” he said. “If both wings do not work, nothing can go well. Failure to cooperate is detrimental to both sides.” As the most important problem requiring greater commitment to resolve by local government and the PD sections, Mr Arbnori identified the slow pace of land distribution in the district of Malësi e Madhe. He announced at the meeting that the People’s Assembly would pass three important laws: the law on local budgets, the law on local taxes, and the law on local assets—laws that will enable local government to attract resources and function better. (ATSH)

With votes in favour from the Socialists and Social Democrats, as well as abstentions and a few votes for and against from the PD group, the existing law on the division of land remains in force. The Association of Former Owners had submitted to Parliament a draft law signed by 20,000 voters, in accordance with the law, but this draft law was not approved by Parliament. In statements by the chairmen of the PS, PSD and PD parliamentary groups, it was said that adopting a new law would cause social problems. The Agriculture Committee, too, supported the existing law, with 7 votes in favour and 3 against. In his remarks, the chairman of the PD parliamentary group, Ali Spahia, stressed, among other things, that the existing law had to be implemented and that afterwards more suitable methods should be selected to compensate former owners as quickly and satisfactorily as possible. RD correspondent

The 55th anniversary of the death of the founder of modern Turkey and great friend of the Albanian people, Mustafa Qemal Ataturku, was commemorated at midday on 10 November in a commemorative session organized by the Institute of History at the Army Cultural Centre in the capital. The Minister of Defence, Safet Zhulali, the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey in Tirana, Metin Ornekol, and deputies were also in attendance; both wings could not make anything go well. Non-cooperation is detrimental to both sides. (Continued on page 4)

Official talks are being held between the Albanian government delegation and the government delegation of the United Arab Emirates . On November 8, in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, official talks were held between the Albanian government delegation, headed by Bashkim Kopliku, Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Albania, whose members also included Abdyl Xhaja, Minister of Mineral and Energy Resources; Ilir Manushi, Minister of Construction; Dylber Vrioni, Governor of the Bank of Albania; and the government delegation of the United Arab Emirates, headed by the Deputy Prime Minister, His Highness, (Continued on page 4) Let this be withdrawn. The lists of which are made up of innocent people and were compiled in secret offices; it immediately seeks to smear both sides, and nothing can go well. Non-cooperation is to the detriment of both parties.

For several months, the PS leadership clique, through its emissaries and meetings, has been working intensively, with doubled forces (even outside working hours), to internationalize the Nano case, seeking to stir up and set in unpredictable motion public opinion. For several months, the PS leadership clique, through its emissaries and meetings, has been working intensively, with doubled forces (even outside working hours), to internationalize the Nano case, seeking to stir up and set in unpredictable motion public opinion, which has been turned into an instrument of manipulation, while at the same time doing a disservice to the country’s justice system and political institutions in relation to the leaders of the Albanian opposition. In pursuit of this grotesque mission, they began sending hundreds of letters and telegrams to chanceries, forums and various international organizations in defense of the Nano case; then, at home, neither the petitions nor the letters nor the threats to crack skulls got them anywhere. A pack of [unclear] Dokle followers, equipped as well with black diplomatic bags, are going up and down the airport runways at Rinas every day (they have dollars even for the devil and the devil’s son) and are knocking on the doors of every international forum or institution, from the Assembly of the European Parliament to the head of the Prizren community. It is said that the latter has gone on a hunger strike until Nano is released.) And here, look, autumn too is fading amid this “socialist” climate of protests, complaint letters and petitions with 700,000 signatures invented by Nano’s referendum. Dokle, Kukuvelim—the sole demand is Nano’s release without trial. Why without trial? Why the fear of a trial? Is there an Albanian family from that period of dictatorship’s spectacles that did not go before a court, even for the most honest of proceedings? (And often without a defense lawyer!) (Continued on page 4)

The Press Office of the Greek Embassy in Tirana informs the Albanian mass media that on 13.11.1993 at 12:30, at the International Press Center in the Palace of Congresses, following the conclusion of the talks, there will be a joint press conference by the Greek Foreign Minister, Mr. Karolos Papulias, and his Albanian counterpart, Mr. Alfrer Sereqi. CHRISTOS FAILADIS Press Counselor

Mr. Rexhep Uka, Minister for Local Government Affairs at the Council of Ministers, refutes the news published in the newspaper “Zëri i popullit” on 7.11.1993 concerning the plots of land he owns. This deliberate and tendentious slander is also refuted by the certificate issued following an inspection of the registers of the Mortgage Office, which confirms that no land plot is registered in Mr. Uka’s name.