— Instead of barricading themselves in Enverist bunkers, the SP leaders are seeking their lost armchairs — — The grave-diggers advertise themselves as architects — — Red devils hide their black souls behind masks of white angels — It is no surprise or revelation to say or prove that Enver Hoxha will persecute, torture and obstruct us for many years, perhaps for more than a decade. He left behind, over his grave, a party that has changed only its name, from PP to PS, and put on a new mask expressing unwavering loyalty to his name and deeds, to his theoretical and practical “baggage”—a legacy inherited from the Communist Party of 8 November 1941. It has inherited not only the deputies but also a large contingent of followers and fanatical nostalgics, to the point of madness, self-sacrifice, crime and national treason. He also left behind “ZP,” the newspaper that knows only how to lie and deceive, and that for 50 years advertised him as the most illustrious son of this nation, as its “father,” when in reality he was and will remain in history its most monstrous bastard, traitor, deceiver and destroyer. Old “ZP” also drags along some monstrous pups—“KJ,” “Aleanca,” “24 ore,” “Lajmetari,” “Kombi”... It infected them with its own vices and armed them with the arts of hypocrisy, demagoguery, deception, slander and gossip. Their headlines alone make it clear that they share a platform, a theoretical and practical “treasure” of demagoguery, a store of gossip, slander, insults and lies, a vocabulary and a common, incurable disease: hysteria against the DP, the President, Albania’s opening beyond the Balkan framework, and its integration into European and Islamic structures. The dollar-bearing dignitaries who have come to Albania bearing the gifts of the Meksi Government’s debts, as well as those involved in the thefts carried out according to a carefully planned scenario during 1989–1992 and in the highly profitable business still going on today, are the very people who complain most that they are suffering terribly in the age of democracy. They spew venom and bile everywhere, without the slightest restraint, against the President, the Government, the DP and the reform. But for democratic public opinion at home and abroad, one fundamental condition for the existence of a democratic party is its position on and support for reform, and its tolerance of the hardships it entails for the sake of a much better future. This is a test of the SP’s renewal and of its distancing itself from the adventurist, completely failed and anti-Albanian political and economic course of the PPSh. The hysterical anti-DP and anti-reform chorus does not even let the weak voices of those who have a right to cry out over the great hardships of this period be heard: the formerly persecuted, pensioners and workers whose wages are far too low for today’s high cost of living. Those complaining most today are the people who have become multimillionaires and who, under Enverist “socialism,” although living like dogs and not daring to voice their dissatisfaction even to themselves, would grow hoarse reciting that they were the happiest and freest people in the world, envied no one, and pitied the entire world proletariat, including the Swedish, Swiss, American, German and Japanese proletariat... Now that democracy has opened their mouths and eyes and truly made them free, it has also made them shameless enough to advertise themselves as unable to sleep or eat, not only in Albania but also abroad, where the party sends them, supposedly because of the hardships facing the countryside. But neither the farmer nor the village wants to hear them or believes them, because the farmer is now master of the land and is reaping the fruits of his own labour in abundance and at great profit. He can sell a piece of land for what would have taken a whole day’s work in an Enverist, Ramizist or Fatosist cooperative; build two- or three-storey villas; fill his home with major electrical appliances; and even buy a tractor, truck or car without a loan... We are living through a time of great paradoxes. The destroyers and arsonists of Albania, those who applauded as the Kosovo and Chameria tragedies ran with blood, and applauded Enver Hoxha’s and Ramiz Alia’s national treason, laughed as their ambassadors or missionaries perpetuated national division and separation. Today, they have the shamelessness to advertise themselves as standard-bearers and missionaries of national unity and unification. The rulers, executioners and lawyers who threw nearly half a million Albanians into prison, and barbarically persecuted another half-million of their family members, now advertise themselves in democracy as responsible toward their former victims, shedding tears over hardships that will not leave them for quite some time. They have become so blind and [The text begins mid-sentence at the top edge of the image.] a platform, a theoretical and practical “treasure”; they did not dare express their dissatisfaction even to themselves; a fund of demagoguery, gossip, insults and lies; a vocabulary; they freest people in the world, that they the Swedish, Swiss, American, German and Japanese... an incurable disease: hysteria against the DP, against the President, against European and Islamic structures. Very high-ranking personalities from the CSCE, the Council of Europe and NATO have come to Albania. The most powerful and serious foreign news agencies in the world have reported extensively on them, objectively assessing the high-quality and effective policy of the Democratic Government. But at “ZP,” its offspring in Tirana and its sister publications in Belgrade and Athens, they have been met with nervous hysteria, dismissed in a few words so as not to remain entirely silent, or misrepresented. Albania is very close to the day when it will be admitted to the Council of Europe and its Partnership for Peace status formalized. These would be not only great successes for our new diplomacy, but also passing marks awarded to Albania’s reform process and democracy. They would likewise be major defeats for the opposition’s politics and press, and would expose the entire chorus of its press owls as having falsely accused the DP and its allies of violating democracy, thereby demonstrating the innocence of the DP and its allies. Those who had time to prove themselves and conduct experiments and adventures for 50 years, who knew only failure, brought the country to its most difficult days and destroyed it more than all the invaders combined, are now so shameless and cynical that they ask the DP and the Democratic Government to turn Albania into Switzerland and Sweden in two years. Those sunk to their necks in the swamp of crime and corruption, who call E. Hoxha “father” and exalt his works and the “benefits” of his “socialism,” must be judged by history for everything they have destroyed in this country and among this people. They have doubled their shamelessness by advertising their innocence and accusing the democratic ambassadors of being responsible for the vices and ills of their communist and socialist protégés, while demanding that the DP and the Democratic Government turn Albania into Switzerland and Sweden in two years. Instead of bringing Enver Hoxha and Ramiz Alia before the court of history—those who built hydroelectric plants that produced enough for a single light bulb, a radio and an iron; who built water supply systems only on the pages of congress reports; who built one bunker for every Albanian family and left most of them ruined; who left people in apartments with rooms like stables; who left the country without highways, with roads full of potholes and mud—they call E. Hoxha “father” and glorify his works, the “good things” of his “socialism.” Those who designed and implemented collectivization and herd farming in the countryside, reducing the Albanian farmer to longing for a glass of milk, an egg, a shop selling fresh meat, while leaving the stomachs of their communist and socialist people with meat loaf as hard as a brick, now demand necks in the swamp of crime and corruption in this country and among this people. [Several lines are distorted and partly illegible.] This is Albania belonging to the Albanians, not to nostalgics for the hell of the past. It is true that it is the responsibility of Switzerland and Sweden in two years. [The end of the text in the main columns is cut off/overlaid by another article.]

TIRANA: “I greatly appreciate your considerable efforts to resolve the crisis in Bosnia,” President Berisha told Lord Owen and Mr. Stoltenberg, “but the failure of these efforts proves that the option of dividing Bosnia is not an unsuccessful option for ending the war; as it continues, the war is aggravating the confrontation, deepening the crisis in the Balkans, increasing insecurity in the region, and exacerbating contradictions and disagreements within the international community.” TIRANA: “I greatly appreciate your considerable efforts to resolve the crisis in Bosnia,” President Berisha told Lord Owen and Mr. Stoltenberg, “but the failure of these efforts proves that the option of dividing Bosnia is not an unsuccessful option for ending the war; as it continues, the war is aggravating the confrontation, deepening the crisis in the Balkans, increasing insecurity in the region, and exacerbating contradictions and disagreements within the international community. Therefore, I think,” President Berisha continued, “that this option must be replaced with another, one that accords with the international laws and rules on which the peace and security of every state are based, and that does not compensate or reward the aggressor. Only an option based on this principle can succeed, end at the international level the chain of mediation efforts and inter-bloc practices, and compel the warring factions to reach an agreement and the aggressor to withdraw.” “But besides Bosnia,” Berisha stressed, “Kosovo remains another major problem in the Balkan crisis. In this context, a meeting between Belgrade and Kosovo’s legitimate representative, Mr. Rugova, would be welcome and useful, always within the framework of the peace process. It would also be particularly valuable if the European Union’s documents, alongside a solution to the problem of Bosnia, set out a ‘modus vivendi’ for Kosovo as well. As for lifting the embargo on the Serbs, it must necessarily be linked to resolving this problem, because any easing of the embargo carries the risk that the Balkan conflict will shift south.” The President went on to list several matters: Albania’s relations with Macedonia are on the right track. We have been and remain in favour of close cooperation with Macedonia. The matter of the smuggled weapons is an old affair, with which the democratic Albanian government has no connection, and the Albanian government has all the necessary documents to prove this. Meanwhile, we have welcomed the Macedonian government’s decision to hold a population census soon. There are also signs of progress in our relations with Montenegro, the President concluded. Taking the floor, Lord Owen outlined the negotiators’ efforts to find a solution acceptable to all parties. He considered peace a necessity for the region and for Albania. “This is the moment,” he stressed, “for the problem of Kosovo to be placed on the negotiating table as part of this crisis.” As part of the overall effort to find a solution, Lord Owen and Mr. Stoltenberg raised the need for a regional conference, with the participation of all countries affected by this crisis, whether near or far. President Berisha expressed support for such a regional meeting within the framework of the Geneva Conference and stressed that Albania is, and will always remain, open to dialogue and interested in contributing to peace and stability in the region. ATA

President Clinton meets with President Rugova The media have reported ... The media have already reported on the meeting between the President of the United States, Mr. Clinton, and the President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mr. Rugova. During the meeting he held at the Hilton hotel in Washington with the President of the Republic of Kosovo, Ibrahim Rugova, U.S. President Clinton once again reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to a preventive policy toward Kosovo. He stressed that he was aware of Kosovo’s problem and concerned about the grave situation there. On this occasion, he told President Rugova that the United States would remain committed to a preventive policy on the Kosovo issue. For his part, U.S. Vice President Al Gor, after expressing his appreciation for Dr. Rugova’s peaceful policy and describing him as a man of peace from Kosovo, stressed that the Albanians of Kosovo should continue their policy of non-violence—a policy that, the U.S. Vice President emphasized, has prevented bloodshed in that part of the Balkans. The Clinton–Rugova meeting is of historic importance for Kosovo. It (Continued on page 4)

“After the very successful visit to our country by the American delegation led by Mr. Kruzel, and following participation in the Partnership for Peace cooperation programme, with the aim of continuing the North Atlantic Alliance, I am pleased to welcome you,” U.S. Ambassador Hill told Defence Minister Safet Zhulali, who was receiving him in the presence of [text unclear] at the Ministry of Defence, according to a statement sent by the ministry’s spokesperson. Mr. Zhulali, after praising the very good relations between the United States and Albania, expressed his commitment to raising them to a higher level. “The United States’ initiative, encouragement and support for Albania,” Mr. Zhulali said, adding that the “Marshall” Ambassador was present as part of this outreach. U.S. Ambassador Hill, after expressing his satisfaction with the achievements of democratic development, said that the United States would help Albania move forward and grow stronger. In this context, we will also help with the further democratization of the Armed Forces. For this purpose, he said, Albanian military officers will study at the “Marshall” Center. Colonel Bejhart explained the outline of the five-month course, where officers from our army will also be trained. They will become familiar with the best practices of the armed forces of democratic countries and with civilian control of the Armed Forces, making it possible for our army to integrate as soon as possible into democratic society. Meanwhile, he said, Albania will be treated as a special case and will be given priority in the response. The meeting, held in a warm and very friendly atmosphere, was also attended by the United States’ military attaché in Tirana, Colonel Steven Buçi. ATA

For days, some SP figures and “ZP” spokespeople had been talking about something “frightening,” a “terrible” document that was supposedly coming from Europe and that would, in no time, cause the European leaders to intervene on the “Nano affair.” Cornillon’s letter contains something more, but it has nothing to do with the headlines “ZP” printed in giant letters: “Immediate release of Nano from prison.” The chairman of the SP, in prison. A few days earlier, “ZP” and “KI” had reported that the “frightening” document had arrived by fax at the SP’s office and was being translated by “more capable” specialists, so that it could be published as soon as possible and Albanians would learn that Europe was going to free Nano. At last, the “terrible” document was published and occupied the whole front page of “ZP” (with headlines). But, much to the disappointment of those eagerly awaiting it, “ZP”’s front page was just one of its usual bluffs. It is true that it may be compared with Fatos Nano, a necessary condition for Albania to be admitted to the family of nations in particular. Moreover, Cornillon’s letter or “decision” requested fuller information about the “Fatos Nano affair, family of civilized nations.” [Continued on page 2]

MR. PIERRE CORNILLON, SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION, WRITES TO MR. PJETER ARBNORI: The Committee first asked me to thank you most warmly for providing your comments and observations on the allegations sent and for seeing to it that other competent Albanian authorities provided information on this matter. Members of the Committee read with interest the last part of your letter of 18 January. They wished to stress to you, however, that the Committee’s intervention does not constitute support for the cause or dealings of the MP concerned or a condemnation of the authorities of the country in question; its concern is the regularity of the procedures applied to the person concerned and respect for universally recognized human rights principles. Thanking you in advance for your kind co-operation, I remain, Yours sincerely, Pierre Cornillon Secretary General Below we give the translation into Albanian First of all, the Committee asked me to thank you warmly for providing us with your comments and point of view, and for turning to the other competent authorities and providing us with information on this matter. The Committee members read with great interest, in particular, also wished to stress to you cause or matters relating to the Member of Parliament, nor condemnation of the authorities of the country in question; it concerns and respect for the universally recognized principles for the Protection of Human Rights.