A phone call from a “ZP” official to the “RD” editorial office

An open challenge by the Euro-Socialists to the conservative leaders of the PS “No Marxists in our program”

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. Today Albania pays homage to freedom; Albania pays homage to its martyrs, its sons and daughters who gave their lives in the flower of their youth. Free of taboos and hypocrisy, the martyrs who so nobly gave their lives for the freedom of the country undoubtedly deserve our deepest respect. The Albanian spirit feels proud of its fallen in the fight against Nazifascism, turning them into a symbol and, even more, into a part of its national consciousness. In our consciousness they are a reminder of the price of freedom, and at the same time those wise young people, those young martyrs, show that the value of freedom is beyond price, and that life itself is meaningless without it. As eternal messengers of freedom, they are an immortal part of the nation, destined to be handed down to generations. Every one of them believed in the ideal of freedom. Today, more than half a century after their fall, Albania lives in the dimensions fall, Albania lives in the true dimensions of a democratic society, restoring their struggle and merits as never before. For today’s society, the work of those who fell represents a moral obligation to consolidate the principles of freedom and sends a message about its protection and development. Their dream, violated for nearly 50 years, is taking shape in its entirety, as people find themselves free, without the burden of hatred and revenge. For us, today’s Albanians, they are an example of unconditional love for the Homeland; they are the true Albanian patriots who fought for human values. They are also important components of that broad anti-fascist front. Little Albania, one of the countries that offered its life at the altar of freedom for twenty years, more than many other countries, did so with noble ideals for a free, democratic Albania. Albania will always stand with dignity among the anti-fascist countries. Its sons and daughters gave their lives for this honor. Free and democratic, as the martyrs wanted it to be, Albania will stand on 9 May, the day of victory over fascism. Its present and future generations embody the true spirit of the humane and national principles for which thousands gave their lives. Post-dictatorship Albania knows very well the value of freedom and the sacrifices made for it; therefore, it offers the fallen honor and fidelity to the spirit of freedom. No one can manipulate the martyrs; no one can appropriate their deeds to build up political capital; no one can humiliate them: they are only torches of freedom. No one can deny those who fell for freedom the honor and remembrance they are due today. Those who fell for freedom stand beside one another, as they had joined together and fought. The Hoxhaist dictatorship could not put their deserved recognition to use. Modern democracy will honor them forever as its martyrs. Let 5 May serve as a tribute to freedom. Those who fell for Albania belong to Albania. ILIRJANA A. BAJO

Yesterday—the final ceremony in honor of F. Konica, Prince of Albanian Culture Chronicle President Berisha, Rugova and other prominent figures from the state and culture pay tribute to the great Konica RUDINA XHUVANI The tribute to the giant of Albanian letters in his homeland entered its second day. After meetings with patriots and figures from the diaspora in the USA, scholarly symposia devoted to Konica’s multidimensional work, and the deeply moving farewell by dozens of his compatriots as his remains were brought from Forest Hill Cemetery to the homeland, yesterday morning the highest-ranking figures from the Albanian state and cultural life, as well as friends and admirers who value his invaluable contribution to the national cause, paid their respects beside his coffin. There were hundreds of Tirana residents, intellectuals, students and schoolchildren who (Continued on page 2)

. Honored clerics, Mr. Rugova, Your Excellencies, Messrs. Ambassadors, scholars and admirers of Faik Konica, friends and guests from all over—the foremost knight of freedom, the magician of the language, its foremost cultivator. Faik Konica, you have deserved and continue to deserve all these titles. I, [Photograph: President Berisha speaking, with men beside him.]

President of the Republic Sali Berisha came to console the victims’ families After an intensive but unsuccessful search, and following the efforts of the local authorities and the democratic government—which should be emphasized were maximal—eight of those who drowned on May 1 were found. By the morning of May 4, seven of the victims had been recovered and were accompanied to the cemetery amid the grief of all Shkodra. Death, which had cut short the joy of a little street in the Kiras neighborhood, lined up seven coffins: six children and the unfortunate boatman. It was a true tragedy to see those little ones being accompanied to their graves, an unprecedented tragedy; hundreds of people had gone to the victims’ families to escort the drowned to their final resting place. After the rites were performed at the Kiras Mosque, the cortege, made up of hundreds of vehicles and accompanied all along its route by the sorrow and sympathy of the citizens of Shkodra and the whole country, headed for the city cemetery. On this day, they came to express their respect for their homeland, history, themselves and one another. Derguti, Pepa, etc., who joined the grief of the victims’ relatives during these days. Vermosh. At the home of Agim Medja, who was taken to the cemetery today along with his son, the President offered his condolences to the relatives, saying, “You must be strong; your loss is great, but ours is also very great. He brought honor to you...”

President Berisha consoles the Medja family over the loss of their loved ones, Agim and Durim Photos: A. Dhimitri

Honored clerics, Mr. Rugova, Your Excellencies, Messrs. Ambassadors, scholars and admirers of Faik Konica, friends and guests from all Albanian regions and the diaspora. admirers of Faik Konica, friends and guests from all Albanian regions and the diaspora. We have gathered today to pay tribute together to the patriot, writer and genius of Albania, Faik Konica, whom death did not bring here among us in Albania; immortality did. The foremost cultivator. Faik Konica, you have deserved all these things, and you deserve them still. I believe that your work, in its very being and essence, represents the character and truth of the Albanians—their history, language, ethnography, culture, prose, poetry, music, aesthetics and diplomacy. We honor the work, the history, ourselves and one another. Of all the giants of letters, Konica was the one who most accurately, clearly and openly showed Albanians the truth about their spirit, virtues, passions, vices, tendencies and gifts. This is precisely where one of the greatest values of his talent lies: it makes Albanians love, respect and value one another, and leads them to use the measure of reality to build their future. To those who might be offended by the harshness of his criticism, I would suggest that they judge him by his discoveries and great ideas, by his legacy—which we are fulfilling today—and not by the words that he himself called “cauldron words.” Faik Konica had many friends, Albanian Renaissance figures and giants of European letters. Tonight, here, Faik Konica will rest in peace beside the Frashëri brothers. These men, together with other patriots—Samiu, Kristoforidhi, Noli and Fishta—wrote and created the doctrine of Albanian identity, while Konica wrote its critique, which not only does not weaken that doctrine but, on the contrary, enhances its value and brings its immortality to light. But it seems that Konica truly did have his share of misfortune, though by chance it turned out fortunately. In his youth he was sentenced to death, but he escaped, and this was a blessing for the Albanian nation. Years later, the dictatorship declared Konica’s work heretical, and for more than 50 years he remained a maligned giant. But those who thought they could remove Konica from the pantheon of distinguished Albanian men and leave him in the midst of oblivion were gravely mistaken. They themselves fell under a stain of shame, while you, undeterred, were victorious like Fishta: for 50 years you did not go to foreign soil, but to free soil, never forgetting your legacy. And you returned greater, more triumphant. Death did not bring you back to Albania; immortality did. Welcome back to your beloved soil. Honoring him today, students, intellectuals, writers, poets, workers, farmers, citizens, diplomats, sculptors, painters, musicologists, his friends and representatives of all Albanian regions and of our scattered kin have come here. Many have immersed themselves in his work; others have studied it and written articles about Konica’s life and work. Writers admire Konica’s style; linguists, his cultivation and elevation of Albanian; diplomats and politicians, his wisdom, finesse and flexibility—but above all, his profoundly Western orientation. Painters and sculptors have been drawn to his elegance, noble features, and intelligent, penetrating writing. Even more studies have been written, and will be written, about Konica and his work, because he and his work belong to immortality. During his lifetime and afterward, Faik Konica deserved all the appreciation, praise and congratulations of his contemporaries and other giants, who called him the foremost knight of freedom and of the language, its foremost cultivator. Therefore, to remind your compatriots of who you are, you are and will remain the Prince of Albanian Culture. Albanians will honor and love you for as long as they speak their mother tongue, the greatest truth of their existence. Albanians will love and honor Konica for as long as they wish to honor their nation and Skanderbeg’s flag, the truest and most precious symbol of the Albanians. They honor and cherish the true values of their Western civilization, the authentic civilization of the Albanian nation. At the age of 22, in the magazine Albania—the first Albanian encyclopedia of its kind, which Konica published in Brussels, today’s capital of Europe—he demonstrated to Albania and Europe the Western values of Albanian civilization, of which his work is and will remain a living monument. Albanians will honor and love Konica for as long as they love and honor themselves.

and the citizens of all Shkodra and the country, [he] headed toward the city cemetery. On this day, to express their sympathy and stand by the victims’ families, local government officials and officials from districts neighboring Shkodra had come. Also present, as the victims were being taken to the cemetery, were authorities from Tirana: Minister of Defense Safet Zhulali, Deputy Minister of the Interior Sabri Jacaj, PD Secretary General Tritan Shehu, PD Chairman Ali Spahia, and deputies Hajdari, Luli, Osja. Luli, Osja. Sali Berisha, accompanied by his wife. Local government representatives were also present on these visits. During his visits to the families, the President expressed his condolences and stressed that “the victims of the tragedy at Lake Shkodra were mourned today not only by Shkodra but by all of Albania, from Konispol to ...”. At around 3 p.m., President of the Republic Sali Berisha arrived to offer his condolences to the victims’ families, ...”. At the cemetery relatives, saying, “You must stay strong; your loss is great, but ours is very great too. He honored you and all of Albania. He died a hero, because he could have brought his own children ashore ten times over if he had wanted to.” As for the family of the other little boy, Dhitan Halili, who had still not been found, the President offered the relatives his special condolences. While the President was making his visits, another victim was found, Artan Kraja, 14, and thus all nine victims of the disaster had been found. It should be emphasized that both the Shkodra branch of the PD and the local government made a total, all-out effort to find the bodies and support the victims’ families. The Municipality of Shkodra gave the victims’ families 140 thousand lek, within its means, to help them. It should also be noted that the work of Shkodra’s fishermen, who were assisted by divers ranging from Pasha-Liman, made it possible to find the bodies. The entire people of Shkodra have joined the victims’ families in their grief. ILIR SECI “RD” correspondent, Shkodra [Photograph: President Berisha and family members beside the coffin.]

These days, a Greek economic delegation headed by Mr. Nikos Afendoulidis is visiting our country. “We are in Albania to gather information through the meetings we will hold, so that we can specify the sectors for our cooperation,” explains Mr. Nikos Afendoulidis. “Albania is an open country and is developing rapidly. We wish to cooperate and intend to put this into practice soon,” he further explains. The delegation held a series of meetings with Prime Minister Meksi, the two Deputy Prime Ministers Vrioni and Shehi, the Secretary of State for Economic Relations with Foreign Countries, Selim Belortaja, and others. RD correspondent

At the Kraja family home. At the head of the room stand the relatives of little Retan, who has just been found. Mrs. Liri Berisha also shares in their grief.

Lezhë: -66 ha of land available to villagers who have come from the district of Pukë Tirana: -More than 24 million dollars available to borrowers for the development of agro-industry Tropojë: -Optimism about the future is based on real resources READ ON PAGE 2: INTERVIEW WITH MR. HASAN HALILI

President Berisha expressed to Mr. Scaglione his confidence in the successful activity of this Fund, which is headed by a competent person with a reputation in American and international business circles. He also expressed his gratitude to the U.S. Government for establishing this Fund, which will contribute greatly to the development of economic ties between Albania and the United States and will help the Albanian economy. Mr. Scaglione expressed his commitment, and that of the other Board members, to achieving success in Albania and supporting successful initiatives to create jobs. He also said that he was optimistic about the Fund’s future and its prospects for activity. They then discussed the areas of the economy in which the Fund could become active. The Albanian-American Enterprise Fund was first announced during the visit to Tirana by U.S. Ambassador Richard Kessilian and United Nations Security Council representative Ms. Albright, and was announced by President Clinton on February 28, 1995. The Fund is worth 30 million dollars and aims to develop the private sector in Albania. Press and Information Office of the President