38% of the 1994 budget will be allocated to social compensation for veterans Since the first year of the start of economic reforms in Albania, our country has faced the need to solve many social problems, especially those that were being created as a result of the shift from a centralized economy to a market economy. Thus, as a government and as a political force, in shaping the reform strategy we have given due attention to the social issue, so that through social policies and programs we can ease as much as possible the costs of reform for the most needy layers of the population, create the conditions for a gradual rise in their well-being and a more positive social climate, so that it does not become an obstacle on the road to economic reforms. On the other hand, the socialists continue to deal with social issues in a demagogic way, trying to exploit the unavoidable difficulties of the transition for narrow political purposes. This comes not only from a lack of responsibility, but also from an inability to understand that social issues are not solved with declarations, but with concrete policies and with an economy that produces. To this end, the government has undertaken a series of measures to compensate the most needy groups: pensioners, families receiving economic assistance, persons with disabilities, veterans, disabled workers, the unemployed, etc. This policy is based on the gradual growth of budget revenues and on their fairer distribution. In the 1994 budget, it is planned that 38% of total expenditures will go to social compensation. This clearly shows the human orientation of the democratic state. Our country's limited revenues do not allow us to work miracles, but they oblige us to be realistic and to set priorities. Social compensation will focus on protecting the purchasing power of the lowest pensions, increasing economic assistance for families in need, supporting persons with disabilities, and easing the consequences of unemployment in the hardest-hit areas. Alongside these measures, serious efforts are being made to develop the private economy, create new jobs, and stimulate agriculture and small business. Only in this way, in the longer term, will social issues receive more sustainable solutions. Our social program is not based on illusions or empty promises. It is based on the real possibilities of the Albanian economy and on the vision of a state that cares for the citizen without deceiving him. This is the essential difference between a human and realistic policy and a demagogic policy. Our citizens understand that reforms have a cost, but they demand justice, clarity and honesty. It is precisely these principles that the social policy of the democratic state seeks to follow.

Information and opinions on various issues Yesterday morning at the PDSH headquarters, the chairman of the Albanian Democratic Party, Mr. Eduard Selami, received members of the delegation of the Albanian Democratic Party, Mr. Sinoz Zhulali, a member of this Council, as well as the secretary for foreign relations, Mr. Ali Mucaj. Also present at the meeting were the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Alfred Serreqi, and the Minister of Economy, Aleksander Meksi[?]. PDSH Press and Information Department

From the press correspondence of the deputy chairman of the PS, Spartak Ngjela, for Friday From the press correspondence of the PS deputy chairman, Spartak Ngjela, for Friday The beginning of this press statement seems almost like an agreement with the theses of social democracy, or more precisely with modern theories of the left, but further on the head of this party declares that Albania still does not have the conditions for a modern social democracy. He begins with the phrase: "Albania is moving toward capitalism..." A. NDOJA Apparently he still has doubts about the progress of reforms in Albania and has not understood in what relation to the economy we stand. He has not understood that the left has accepted the building of a market economy and that this has blocked the path to socialism. A man like that, with such a limited economic culture, undertakes to make economic analysis!? Only here could such a thing happen. It is precisely this political force, called the PS, that has not managed to break free from the dogmas of Marxism. This political force has recently been relying on slogans with nationalist tones, through which the problems of the economy and social issues are clearly being neglected. Instead of concrete debates on economic reform, we are being served general theories, emphatic statements, political victimhood, and comparisons with no grounding in reality. Mr. Ngjela's statement continues with accusations against the government, claiming that it is avoiding the necessary reforms and producing poverty and injustice. But it is clear that in a country emerging from isolation and the planned economy, the costs of transition are inevitable. This does not justify mistakes, but neither does it allow them to be used to deny the transformation as a whole. You cannot say you are for Europe and at the same time deny the foundations of a market economy. You cannot demand pluralism and at the same time speak the language of the past. This is the main contradiction of this political force and that is why the public views these statements with suspicion. If the PS wants a serious debate, let it come forward with concrete alternatives: how does it imagine privatization, how does it imagine competition, how does it imagine the role of the state? Otherwise, everything remains at the level of paradoxes and declarations.

The political-subversive propaganda of "ZP" can reach the most absurd limits. It does so in the absence of real arguments. Anyone may defend Nano out of fairness or sympathy, but when the entire left-wing propaganda machine is put into his defense, then the question arises: who has a fly under the cap? The newspaper "Zeri i Popullit" tries to present every legal measure as an attack on the opposition, manipulating words and distorting facts. This is by now a well-known style of this newspaper, which continues to live according to the logic of political conflict from the past. Instead of distancing itself from its own mistakes and from the spirit of hatred, it chooses to make public moral judgments, while defending its leaders without any reservation. This harms not only political debate, but also the opposition itself, which needs a more modern and more responsible course. THE SHUSHOJ FLY! Former political prisoner

For the passenger transport company that wins the municipal tenders, the government leadership issues an order After posting, as a deadline for implementing the government order from the Prime Minister's office, the passenger transport company, “Bus Enterprise,” has come into the spotlight because of several new organizational measures. The order provides for a clearer system for licensing, technical inspection, and the responsibilities of private owners operating on urban and interurban lines. According to the document, municipalities will announce tenders for the most important lines, while the winners will be required to meet minimum standards of service, safety, and fares. There will also be more frequent checks on the technical condition of vehicles and on compliance with itineraries. The measures aim to avoid the chaos of recent years in public transport and to create a more regulated market where citizens receive better service. Some private owners have expressed reservations, asking for more clarification on the way the measures will be implemented. ASHA

From the press correspondence of the deputy chairman of the PS, Spartak Ngjela, for Friday From the press correspondence of the PS deputy chairman, Spartak Ngjela, for Friday In fact, the leader of the Socialists begins the statement by speaking about the need for a modern social democracy, but immediately afterward he contradicts himself by denying the conditions for it. This shows conceptual ambiguity and a lack of political coherence. The Socialists want to be both for the market and against it; both for pluralism and against the opponent; both for modernity and tied to old dogmas. These contradictions make their statement not only paradoxical but also unconvincing to public opinion. The Albanian citizen needs a serious opposition, not an opposition that makes statements for propaganda effect. That is why such declarations, instead of helping political debate, impoverish it. There is no doubt that reforms are accompanied by difficulties, but the solution is neither a return to the past nor vague rhetoric. The solution is modernization and political responsibility. A. NDOJA

They return to the homeland: Vullnetar Minxhi - Bashanr Sheshi - It is written that about a month ago, 80 Albanians were selected in Cyprus, who after a long period of emigration are seeking to return to Albania. Some of them come from families that left in different historical periods and have preserved ties with their country of origin. They express the desire to integrate into the economic and social life of the country, although they face difficulties with documentation and housing. Albanian institutions have promised that they will examine their cases and help in the return process. This development has been followed with interest by Albanian communities abroad and by their relatives in Albania. DIVNA HASA