Regarding the Resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, there has been a shameful and false misinterpretation by the left-wing press, as well as attempts to distort it. CoE: Condition for free elections- dissolution of the illegal Committees Regarding the Resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE, there has been a shameful and false misinterpretation by the left-wing press, as well as attempts to distort it. For this purpose we are publishing the full text of the Resolution adopted and in a conversation with Mr. Vili Minarolli, Secretary for Public Relations of the Democratic Party of Albania and member of the Albanian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE about the session of the Assembly 1. The Assembly reaffirms its support for the coalition government on the basis of the “platform of national reconciliation” signed by the political leaders on 9 March 1997. It reapproves the points presented by the Government of National Reconciliation for a political solution to the crisis, in implementation of Recommendation 1316. It notes that the interval between the March 6-7 and April 4-5 1997 missions, the political climate in Tirana has changed, however with the condition that the conditions for free and fair elections are fulfilled. 2. The Assembly welcomes the rapid mobilization on 3 April 1997 of 6,000 multinational forces under Italian care to secure humanitarian aid, as requested by the Albanian government in accordance with the United Nations Security Council. The deployment of this force, under Italian command, aimed at psychological deterrence, maintaining order and opening the way for the restoration of normal life. This should be done as quickly as possible in this way of covering the country, but with the lowest possible cost and it cannot serve as a pretext for foreign troops in Albania. 3. The Assembly welcomes the 9 March agreement for the creation of the Government of National Reconciliation and speaks of the need for it to work toward organizing elections as soon as possible. 4. The Assembly calls on the political forces to engage in constructive dialogue among all political forces as the only way forward. The Assembly hopes that the encouragement and signing of an agreement by all political forces will pave the way for further reforms in the Constitution, which can form the basis for further reforms. 5. The Assembly notes with concern that irritations and fairness require: I. Freedom of movement and association throughout the country, II. Access for political forces to the media and on the basis of a reasonable agreement; III. Proper functioning of the central, regional and local electoral commissions; IV. Security throughout the country and the restoration of the legitimate authority and regional and local authority structures, issued by the regular elections of October 1996. The date of the “purpose” of 29 June should speed up progress to meet these requirements, and should be reviewed from the day progress is achieved. In this way the Assembly expresses concern about the proper conditions for the implementation of its Resolution No. 1114 (1997) and Recommendation 1312 (1997) on mediation of obligations and commitments in Albania. 6. The Assembly calls on the so-called “National Salvation Committees” which have illegally seized power in parts of the country, to allow the restoration of the normal functioning of the regional and local authorities emerging from the regular local elections and to hand over the weapons and authority, as a prerequisite for free and fair elections. 7. The Assembly welcomes the concrete efforts of the international institutions of Europe, especially those of Recommendation 1316, in the form of a “fact-finding mission” of the CoE and the European mission, as a significant contribution. 8. The OSCE is trying to play a more active coordinating role for all the international initiatives in accordance with the mission of the Austrian Chancellor Franz Vranitzky as Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairmanship. 9. The European Union is providing the most necessary assistance, in order to develop a coordinated financial program with the meeting of 7 March 1997 between the Dutch Foreign Minister Hans Van Mierlo, and the President of the EU, and the Special Mission of the European Union for the West (BEP) [?] will contribute further. 10. The Council of Europe, being convinced that in relation to these structures, for the preparation of elections and to receive requests for expertise; 11. Joint efforts should help the government to work more with one another and with the various bodies on the country’s crisis. 12. The Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe provide assistance to Albania (legislative and local elections, media reform, rule of law and respect for freedoms and human rights), aiming to prepare the conditions for Albania to emerge from the crisis and to help the government in the joint efforts of the international institutions of Europe. 13. Also organize the intergovernmental conference on the Albanian issue, with the participation of the United States. - We have just returned from the session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE. What can you tell us about the developments of this session? - The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe concluded its work on 25 April and now the Albanian delegation has returned home, together with the authentic documents that were dealt with in the Assembly concerning Albania. There is a lot of misinformation regarding the developments of the work of the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE and especially regarding the treatment given by the Parliamentary Assembly to the Albanian issue as a central problem in the voice of a special place in the session and they are committed to making available to anyone, news agency or newspaper, accurate authentic material from the Council of Europe on Albania, where Albania aid was dealt with there. The epicenter of the Albanian issue was the discussion of the resolution drafted by several rapporteurs entrusted by the Council of Europe such as Van der Linden, Kolumber, Rufu, who had visited Albania, gathered information and had presented to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, in the Committee on Legal Affairs a draft report and a draft resolution, which was adopted. - Did the Albanian delegation hold meetings with those interested in the situation in Albania? - The Albanian delegation had several quite important meetings with various members of the political groups of the Council of Europe, who were interested in hearing their opinion about developments in Albania, and learning the truths about what is happening in Albania. - Were the requests of the Albanians from political parties taken into account for solving the crisis? The Council of Europe does not operate on the basis of requests that a state or a state representative can make. It takes decisions on the basis of consensus and open political debate taking place in the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE. The CoE followed its own obligation regarding what happened in Albania in the major role that the Council of Europe should play in preventing the dramatic situation in Albania and at the same time raises with much hope its great commitment to play a central role in resolving the political and social crisis in Albania. There are good reasons for the CoE to play this role.

- It will be a greater tragedy for the Albanian people if the International Community, in the name of human rights, allows the neo-Stalinists, helped by criminal gangs, to enter the ideology of political dissent and forcibly open the way to return to power. If this happens, exactly what the United States has sought to prevent, the spread of the Bosnian war into the Southern Balkans, will become a reality Exclusively for “The New York Times” and “RD” - It will be a greater tragedy for the Albanian people if the International Community, in the name of human rights, allows the neo-Stalinists, helped by criminal gangs, to enter the ideology of political dissent and forcibly open the way to return to power. If this happens, exactly what the United States has sought to prevent, the spread of the Bosnian war into the Southern Balkans, will become a reality By SHIRLEY A. CLOYES, former publisher of “Lawrence Hill Books”, and a well-known political analyst in the USA PAGE 3

A delegation of the European Parliament in Tirana New elections can and must be held within the deadline set in the 9 March Agreement, President Berisha stressed at the meeting with the delegation of the European Parliament headed by the Vice-President of this Parliament, Mr. Podesta New elections can and must be held within the deadline set in the 9 March Agreement, stressed President Berisha at the meeting with the delegation of the European Parliament headed by the Vice-President of this Parliament, Mr. Podesta President Berisha at the meeting held with a delegation of the European Parliament headed by the Vice-President of this Parliament, Podesta, stressed that Albania experienced an armed rebellion that failed, organized by former communists who did not reconcile themselves to the loss of power by the free vote. But despite the damage caused by the failed rebellion, I am convinced that its consequences are temporary and that Albanians will continue on the path of democracy and integration into Europe. In an interested meeting on holding free and fair elections, within the shortest possible timeframe, we think they can and must be held within the deadline set in the 9 March Agreement. Holding the elections within this deadline is vital for Albania, because without it the major projected reforms and European and international cooperation cannot move forward. Future elections should be conducted under the full monitoring of the CoE, OSCE, European Parliament and international institutions. Currently, the major obstacle that prevents the setting of the election date and is blocking the work of the Government of National Reconciliation in several districts in the south and the preparation of elections, are the armed committees, which the SP with the open alliance it signed on 28 March, declared as its armed wing and asked the Government of National Reconciliation to recognize them as a separate side. It was considered that the SP should denounce this alliance with these committees not only because it has violated the 9 March Agreement and because they block the work of the Government, but also because they damage the whole path of the Albanian political forces to follow the road of cooperation with the European Union, the CoE and OSCE, with which they are helping and are committed to resolve the crisis in Albania as quickly as possible. As for the Electoral Law, President Berisha stressed that the system cannot be a simplistic matter. During the rule of the former Albanian communists it was not voted on under either a fully majoritarian or a fully proportional system. This time we think that Albania must necessarily have a majoritarian system while the parties can satisfy their interests through pre-electoral alliances. In welcoming the European Parliament for its interest in supporting Albania in overcoming the crisis and as Italian MEPs, I express my welcome from Italy, to the Italian Government, and especially to your party “Forza Italia” and the other parties for their friendly feelings and for the continuous support they have given to Albania. Mr. Podesta, expressing the commitment of the European Parliament to contribute to the continuation of the democratization process led by the PD for the continuation of electoral development soon, hopeful for Albania. In both assessments, such a meeting, they will also go to Vlora, they will not declare themselves with the rebel committees and at the end of our mission in Albania we will submit reports in order to inform them as accurately as possible about the situation here.

On Sunday morning, the chairman of the PDSH, Mr. Tritan Shehu, received the delegation of the European Parliament, Mr. Podesta, Vice-President of this Parliament, and MEP Tocini PD is determined to respect the 9 March agreement On Sunday morning, the chairman of the PDSH, Mr. Tritan Shehu, received the delegation of the European Parliament, Mr. Podesta, Vice-President of this Parliament, and eurodeputy Tocini The chairman of the PDSH informed the MEPs about the current Albanian social and political situation, the real causes that brought about the national crisis. In retrospect, Mr. Shehu presented to the delegation of the European Parliament the great efforts and achievements of the PDSH during the years of its government, as well as the open steps it took to confront the phenomenon of pyramid schemes, despite the total lack of awareness beforehand of such an economic reality. The chairman of the PDSH reiterated in this meeting the determination of his party to remain faithful to the political agreement of 9 March and denounced as a violation of this declaration by the SP the signing of some illegal committees on 28 March. “The armed rebellion failed in Albania, now all that remains is the disbanding and disarmament of some illegal committees so that the necessary democratic environment is created to hold new elections. But the fact that the cooperation of the SP with these committees continues is also shown by the request made a few days ago by these committees for a proportional law, a request that appears as a continuation of their agreement of 28 March” - said Mr. Shehu. Regarding the elections, the preparations for them were also discussed at the meeting of the chairman of the PDSH with the MEPs, who assured the solidarity, support and understanding of the European Community for the democratic consolidation of the institutions of justice, public order and finance.

On Saturday afternoon, Mr. Tritan Shehu held a meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr. Fino, at the latter’s request in his capacity as discussed in relation to the preparations being made for the upcoming elections and the real situation in the country. Chairman of the PDSH, Tritan Shehu meets with Prime Minister Fino The government must create a democratic environment for the elections On Saturday afternoon, Mr. Tritan Shehu held a meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr. Fino, at the latter’s request in his capacity as discussed in relation to the preparations being made for the upcoming elections and the real situation in the country. Mr. Shehu once again expressed to Mr. Fino the determination of the PD to respect the election deadline set by the 9 March agreement, reiterating the government’s commitment to create a democratic environment for free and fair elections. The other issue was the discussion of the electoral law for the elections. Mr. Shehu again expressed the determination in the previous view on the majoritarian law, which ensures stable governance in Albania. He told the Prime Minister that yesterday’s declaration by the illegal committees generally regarding the proportional electoral system, shows that it is a continuation of the 28 March a greement with the SP and those committees, an agreement that apparently is also expanding to other opposition groups. It was agreed that discussions on the Electoral Law should continue at the level of experts and political forces on various details of the Electoral Law. Both sides expressed the determination for reciprocal cooperation to achieve this agreement, a point of the 9 March agreement. continues, page 3

Yesterday the chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly received the delegation of the European Parliament headed by the Vice-President of this Parliament, Mr. Guido Podesta. Yesterday the chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly received the delegation of the European Parliament headed by the Vice-President of this Parliament, Mr. Guido Podesta. The mission of this delegation, which this year after Podesta was to get to know closely the situation in Albania, the efforts that the legitimate Albanian institutions are making to solve the political crisis and to further encourage the spirit of sincere dialogue in order to overcome the problems faced today by Albania. They were also interested in the law on the upcoming elections, the continuation of dialogue and the implementation of the agreement, which today in the formation of the government of national reconciliation and assured Mr. Arbnori that the European Parliament would give him and it full support for the support of Albanian democracy. For his part, Mr. Arbnori gave an overview of the current situation in Albania with all its component elements. He stressed that as a result of the action and restraint of the democratic forces and of the people, Albania avoided the real danger of a civil war where this happens in some other states “committees” that are not legitimate in some parts of the country. “Democracy cannot be established by the barrel of a gun” - continued Arbnori. “We are determined to hold free, fair and just elections and we insist that they be held under complete and honest monitoring by international organizations, when a great role we expect the Council of Europe and the European Parliament to play. But,” underscored Mr. Arbnori, continuing, elections cannot be truly free unless the rebel committees, supported by a certain political force, are disbanded, which seek to avoid through armed violence the centralization of local power. He also stressed the role of the international peace force as a powerful psychological and concrete factor with defined humanitarian aims and as a factor in accelerating the establishment of peace and order, which will contribute to stabilizing the situation and restoring trust among people. As for the question of the deputy, Mr. Arbnori about the law that will be applied for the upcoming elections in Albania, the Albanian parliament speaker stressed that the majoritarian law compared with the proportional one is more suitable for the situation Albania is going through, as well as the existence of a kind of democratic law is not of the kind more about its content than about the correct implementation of it. The meeting took place in a sincere and friendly atmosphere.

On Sunday, President Berisha held a working meeting with Prime Minister Fino, in which members of his cabinet took part, Finance Minister Malaj and Interior Minister Çelo, as well as the Governor of the Central Bank, Qafoku Tusha, and the Director of the Commercial Bank, Bedi Çollaku In three unpaid districts Wages will be distributed next week On Sunday, President Berisha held a working meeting with Prime Minister Fino, in which members of his cabinet took part, Finance Minister Malaj and Interior Minister Çelo, as well as the Governor of the Central Bank, Qafoku Tusha, and the Director of the Commercial Bank, Bedi Çollaku At this meeting President Berisha asked that the governing system as soon as possible from several districts of the country because of the difficult situation and many families’ headman not to distribute wages to public employees. Prime Minister Fino and Minister Malaj informed President Berisha of the difficulties that had prevented the emergency distribution of wages and informed him of the measures taken by the Government in this regard, the wages of current workers in three districts have been distributed and throughout the country. The meeting concluded that all necessary measures would be taken to carry out the distribution of wages in all three unpaid districts within the coming week.