The People’s Assembly ratified the “Framework Document of the Partnership for Peace” between Albania and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was signed on 23 February 1994 at NATO Headquarters by the President of the Republic, Sali Berisha. In the letter addressed to the People’s Assembly, President Berisha emphasizes that, by signing this document, Albania is taking an important step toward establishing new cooperative relations with the North Atlantic Alliance, as part of the process of our country’s full membership in this organization. Under the agreement, Albania will cooperate with NATO on defense planning and budgeting; ensuring and exercising democratic control over the armed forces; making available capabilities and readiness to contribute to United Nations or CSCE operations; training and maneuvers to develop capabilities for peacekeeping, search-and-rescue and humanitarian operations; and developing forces so that they are able to operate alongside those of NATO countries, as well as taking other measures that may be agreed upon later. The People’s Assembly then considered the draft law “On Medicines.” The draft law was approved in principle, article by article, and as a whole, by a majority of votes.

The terms “left” and “right” entered the political vocabulary a long time ago, initially referring simply to the seating of the parties in parliamentary chambers in relation to the presiding officer. Over time these terms acquired new content, which evolved and continues to evolve, sometimes also becoming the subject of speculation, especially concerning specific definitions such as “good” or “bad,” “progressive” or “regressive,” and so on. At times, this even reaches divisions of the kind that “people are left-wing because their heart is on the left”; and if we consider how many organs the human body has, who knows where we would end up if we linked political definitions to anatomical topography. There is no doubt that such identifications can in no way be either serious or absolute, in the sense that “the left” is always “good,” or “the right” is always “regressive,” or vice versa. Since these terms first gained acceptance, history has provided many examples of the multifaceted and complex political actions of parties, and even of fronts and coalitions from both sides. It is interesting that examples of cooperation between the sides can be found not only locally, but also nationally, even if that cooperation was temporary (without going beyond our borders, let us recall the Peza Conference). It is therefore meaningless, indeed demagogic, to identify the sides with “good” and “evil.” Such speculations reached their peak, even becoming national realities, in the periods preceding the establishment of totalitarian regimes and especially during their flourishing (if such a term can be used). Without even discussing the annihilation of fundamental human rights, the incorporation of violence into the system, the reduction of the legal system to a piece of plasticine in the hands of ruling cliques, and so on, it can be said without hesitation that totalitarian regimes resemble one another exactly like two drops of water, regardless of whether they are labelled “left-wing” or “right-wing.” Ironically, with its claim to “totality,” the Hitler dictatorship named its party the “National Socialist” Party—a pairing whose center of gravity was clearly on the left. Beyond these observations, which may seem merely formal, let us mention that Mussolini, one of the architects of “right-wing” totalitarianism, was shaped as a politician and nurtured the seeds of totalitarianism while a militant in a “left-wing” party. Moreover, could Enver’s “left-wing” dictatorship tolerate another left-wing party, for example a social-democratic party? In conclusion, we can say that totalitarian regimes are, in essence—I repeat, in essence—neither left-wing nor right-wing: they are TOTALITARIAN, and that is all. At most, one can say where they originated, that is, whether from the left or the right, because their internal development very quickly leads to a situation in which the terms themselves lose even their original historical meaning. In the one-party parliament, representatives (or puppets) of the same party sit on both sides of the presiding officer. The terms acquire their full meaning (now not only their original meaning) only in a democratic state; indeed, pluralist democracy presupposes pluralism through the existence of both sides. It is understood that, depending on a country’s historical development, its political spectrum may have a certain density or sparsity, understood both as the number of parties and as the electorate. This spectrum evolves and develops, and may sometimes even collapse before taking shape and rising again. In any case, it remains true that the political stability of a democratic country reflects the stability of its political spectrum and the mutual interaction of its sides. The concept of the “political center” is much more recent than “the left” and “the right.” As a designation, it is linked to a linguistic interpolation, that is, to a logical extension arising from the original meanings of the guiding terms. The same can be said of the “extreme.” From this have also emerged combined terms such as “center-left” and “center-right.” Clearly, such a thing was necessary to characterize a political spectrum that has historically developed, bringing to light the inadequacy of only two antonyms to express all the political shades that began to be brought into view. What is worth pointing out in this… (Continued on page 2) Arjan Starova. Bankanik, 20 [illegible] a verbal note by which the Greek side requests that the diplomatic staff of the Albanian embassy in Athens reduce its personnel by one more diplomat. We clarify that the current staff of the Albanian embassy in Athens consists of 5 diplomats. Mr. Starova informed the Greek ambassador, Mr. Caliqis, that, as counterpart, Mr. Papulias, on 3 May 1994 in Zurich. A few days ago I read on the front page of “Koha Jone” an article by Shqyrti Celes from Shkodra, in which the Minister of Public Order was vilified over a murder. When I opened the newspaper “Aleanca,” the very same article by the very same author occupied a prominent place. At first I thought I was looking at the newspaper KJ, so I looked again at the masthead. It was “Aleanca.” The next day, when I opened the newspaper “Zeri i Popullit,” I came across Shqyrti’s article on the front page again, accompanied by comments from the journalists. Thus, all three newspapers gave the same place in their papers to the same item and made the same insinuations about the head of the Ministry of Public Order. In any case, this is not about coming to the defense of the Minister of Public Order. The issue lies elsewhere: in the identical material and in the very same model with which the three aforementioned newspapers tailor their suits. To illustrate this phenomenon, we are publishing a montage facsimile in which all three newspapers, “ZP,” “Aleanca” and “KJ,” over a period of seven days play the same tune, in the same key, on the same note and with the same purpose—so that one might believe these three newspapers are run by the same engine. This montage could also have been made using full headlines, which differ not at all from one newspaper to another. The Observer

Pursuant to the law of 10.6.1992, “On elections to local government bodies,” and on the proposal of the Council of Ministers, the President of the Republic, Sali Berisha, issued a decree on 18 April under which elections for the councils and mayors of the communes of Graçan and Greshice in the Mallakastër district, as well as for the commune mayors in Libofshë in the Fier district, in Req in the Dibër district, and in Zall Herr in the Tirana district, will be held on 29 May 1994, Sunday. Elections for local government bodies in our country were held on 26 July 1992, while elections in the above-mentioned communes will be held again because, in the Mallakastër district, [text missing/unclear]; in the commune of Libofshë, its mayor has died; in Req, the mayor has resigned; and in Zall-Herr, the mayor is being prosecuted.

After meeting with Minister of Defense Safet Zhulali, General Oaks, commander-in-chief of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe, gave an interview to the press. Regarding cooperation between the American and Albanian air forces, General Oaks said that we support deepening it, in the sense that we will exchange ideas and reach agreement on how to train and administer them. Asked what position NATO would take following Butros Gali’s request for military intervention in Bosnia, he replied that there would be debate on this in the capitals of Alliance member countries and in Brussels, after which it would be seen how the Alliance would act in response. Asked whether NATO might use Albanian airports, General Oaks replied that he could not determine that at this time. “I know,” he continued, “that NATO forces are stationed in Italy and that there are six aircraft carriers, American and British, stationed in the Adriatic. In view of the current situation and the development of the conflict, we have considered the possibility of redistributing them into smaller units, taking airports into account.” Regarding the incidents on Albania’s northern and southern borders, General Oaks said that the world is concerned, and has been concerned for a year, about the situation in Kosovo, the condition of the Albanian population, and the development of the conflict from Bosnia to the south of the former Yugoslavia.

The Press Directorate of the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces that on 20.4.1994, at 12 o’clock, the Greek ambassador in Tirana, Mr. Caliquis, was received for a meeting by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arjan Starova. Mr. Starova informed the Greek ambassador, Mr. Caliquis, that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Alfred Serreqi, would meet his counterpart, Mr. Papulias, on 3 May 1994 in Zurich. Our ambassador in Athens, Mr. Hysen Çabej, was also summoned to the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the Deputy Director of the Balkan Political Directorate, Mr. Ralis, who handed him a verbal note in the Albanian embassy in Athens be reduced For his part, Mr. Hysen Çabej was obliged to explain the Albanian side’s position regarding the criminal act by the Greek commandos against the recruits’ training center in Peshkep and its personnel, informing him that this further escalation by the Greek side could lead to the application of reciprocity concerning the total number of Greek staff accredited throughout Albanian territory.

—Meeting of Mr. Tomorr Dosti, Deputy Chairman of the DPA, with residents of Cërrik— On Wednesday, the Deputy Chairman of the DPA, Mr. Tomorr Dosti, together with Deputy Minister of Agriculture Mr. Myslim Osmani, representatives of the Ministry of Construction, local government officials, and the area’s deputy, went to the Cërrik area, where they first held a meeting with residents of the Mollas commune. The residents raised a number of long-standing concerns, including the supply of drinking water, road connections to the villages of Topojan and Dragot, paving the main road, and a request that the Government set prices for plowing land and chemical fertilizer, as well as raise the purchase price for tobacco. Of particular note for this commune was the arrival of an Italian Catholic mission, which had provided assistance in resolving and repairing the area’s hospital, supplying drinking water, and so on. In the afternoon, an open meeting with the residents of Cërrik was held in the city cinema hall. Mr. Bajram Gjoni outlined the difficulties facing the city of Cërrik, given its particular characteristics. It is worth quoting the mayor: “The city of Cërrik was established in 1952 by the workforce of the Oil Processing Plant, the TEC [Thermal Power Plant], the NB agricultural enterprises, etc., and today has approximately 13,000 residents in around 3,600 families. There is not a single production enterprise in this city, and as a result the number of unemployed people is 2,500. All the production enterprises have closed because, under the new market-economy conditions, they are not profitable. “Although the private sector is showing signs of life, it is still weak because of the lack of investment. To date, this sector has therefore operated only in trade and services, employing around 450 people. “A separate problem is the lack of housing for residents. The city municipality has approximately 400 registered homeless families. In addition, the roofs of some existing buildings constructed 40 years ago have deteriorated, and around 30 apartment blocks have been identified as having roofs ‘at risk of collapse.’ Seven apartment blocks, whose construction by various enterprises reached only the second floor, from now on don’t have? [continues] These were some of the concerns raised by the mayor of Cërrik, who asked the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Local Government, and the Ministry of Construction to give the city priority treatment. For his part, Mr. Tomorr Dosti thanked the many participants for attending the meeting and explained to them the advantages of today’s democratic order. “You,” Mr. Dosti said, “do indeed face difficulties today for which we are not to blame, but you must understand that the present is vastly different from the past. We,” he continued, “have gained the most precious thing, that which was denied to us for so many years—the right to free speech. It was the Democratic Party that achieved national reconciliation, the reconciliation that the former regime disgraced with its infamous class warfare. The Democratic Party,” Mr. Dosti stressed, “is for people who are needed by Albania, regardless of whether they were persecuted or were ordinary communists who committed no crimes.” A question-and-answer session followed. Prepared by: ZEF LLESHI

At its most recent meeting, the Council of Ministers approved a fund of 100 million lek in foreign currency for the production or purchase of 700,000 new passports for travel abroad. According to specialists, the current passport for travel abroad has caused numerous problems, since its low technical production standards have led to widespread counterfeiting. In addition, the suspension of this passport in foreign countries damages the image of our state. The request to produce or purchase new passports dates back to 1999, and has been repeatedly postponed because of financial problems. The 700,000 new passports will be produced or purchased for 100 million lek, which is the initial amount for a tender to be organized for this purpose.

In a statement issued to the press, the Ministry of Public Order announced that in recent days, on the basis of information at its disposal and in accordance with the law, it carried out surprise inspections in several districts of the country concerning unlicensed weapons possession, drugs, and unconstitutional criminal activities. During the inspections, the statement says, the following citizens were arrested for unlicensed weapons possession: Roland Kamberi from Vlora, Agron Muça from Bilisht, Fatik Mokrari from Pogradec, Françesk Kola from Shkodra, Bajram Bodeni from Tirana, Sefer Sidiku from Has, Bardhyl Sulejmani from Tirana, Kostaq Cayo from Delvina, Kosta Qirjako, Theodhor Bezhani and Irakli Sirmo from Gjirokastra. The aforementioned detainees were found in possession of pistols, automatic weapons, double-barreled shotguns, knives, and various types of ammunition. During these inspections, a large quantity of unconstitutional documentation was found and seized. It proves Greek expansionist and annexationist aims toward Albania and Albanian territories, as well as blatant Greek efforts to Hellenize the lands of southern Albania. The Ministry of Public Order announced that these materials were handed over to the competent authorities for further investigation and assessment.

BY READING A NEWSPAPER, ONE LEARNS HOW MUCH

ORGAN OF THE SOCIALIST PARTY OF ALBANIA Tuesday, no. 65? [illegible] Thursday, 20 January 1994 No. 11 6240 Price: 1 lek WILL ALBANIA BECOME PALERMO? THE ALLIANCE 3 CURRENT AFFAIRS ALBANIA WILL NOT BECOME PALERMO — NOT A SINGLE STEP BACK New zone 3 Politics/Economy Albania cannot become Palermo