The government directs cigarette smuggling in Albania. Ceka and Legisi, the two men who miraculously protect the smuggling trucks and ships ON PAGE 4

Ceka and Legisi choose the Shkumbin to divide the zones of influence The police: property of the people of Mirditë ON PAGE 4

. Albanians are paying the price for their government. Farnesina confirms postponement, for at least three months, of the conference of EU foreign ministers. General Vinçani: Attacks on military depots and the seizure of weapons were directed via Sabit Brokaj’s mobile phone. Yesterday, the West dealt a deadly blow to the efforts of the government installed by Albania’s former communists to present itself as acceptable in the chancelleries of Europe. Yesterday Fatos Nano climbed the steps of the plane taking him to Vienna, as news broke of the serious postponement, for at least several months, of the second Rome conference on Albania, which had been scheduled to take place in the second half of this month. BBC Radio cited a source at the Farnesina yesterday, who confirmed the news, putting Albania’s prospects of receiving international aid off until the Greek calends. A very lengthy postponement of the Rome conference automatically means that the conference of European Union donor countries, scheduled to be held in Brussels, will be left until much later. Meanwhile, another radio station widely listened to in Albania finally wiped the smiles off Nano and his entourage of government officials, clearly disqualifying their first attempt to obtain even a cool international greeting. Although nobody has included the Albanian prime minister in the pilgrimage that began yesterday, Voice of America broadcast, in two of its news bulletins yesterday, an extensive interview with General Vinçani, former Deputy Chief of the General Staff, who named all the protagonists and culprits behind the army’s destruction—the very same people who are responsible for what happened to Albania and who have now come to power. In a thorough and detailed analysis, General Vinçani declared over the airwaves from Washington that the current minister, who is directing the purges of military personnel and the return to the army’s leadership of contingents of Enverists and State Security operatives, is one of those who directed the rebellion that devastated the country and the army, causing thousands of casualties. The general, educated in the West and forced to leave Albania after severe pressure and physical violence, said yesterday that the dreadful orders for attacks on military units and the looting of weapons were issued from Sabit Brokaj’s mobile phone—one of the main factors behind the chaotic state into which the country plunged and the many casualties that accompanied it. The West’s clear messages, delivered on the very day Fatos Nano travelled to the chancelleries of the West, amount to a decisive “no” to his aggressive policy and his efforts to use his administration to install a new dictatorship in Albania. This firm stance comes after serious warnings that have repeatedly fallen on deaf ears within the government currently running Albania. Yesterday the West showed those who came to power with Kalashnikovs that the violation of Albanians’ freedoms and the opposition’s voice will never be tolerated, nor will the arrogance, cynicism and malice of a government that brought Europe’s Mandela, Pieter Arbnori, to the brink of death. Yesterday the West showed that it does not forgive those who brought Albanian justice to its knees, those seeking to rebuild the State Security apparatus and once again steer the Albanian army toward concepts, people and methods more Stalinist than those of the Warsaw Pact. The postponement of the Rome Conference is bad news for all Albanians, who were awaiting a green light from Europe for the recovery of their country. The citizens of this country are thus paying for the grave failings and irresponsibility of their rulers, from the very first days of the government that emerged from the rigged elections of 29 June. They have no answer for the hands Europe is extending to help develop the country, while their leaders continue to drive their own vehicles and once again pass contemptuously by the chancelleries of the West. Nano is going to Brussels to meet NATO leaders, even as General Vinçani’s grave accusations mark him as the man chiefly responsible for burying the army. He arrived in Vienna yesterday while Arbnori’s life, placed under pressure by the current rulers, remains in extremely critical condition. Yesterday the West showed Nano and his followers that a government seeking to restore communism in Albania will have a very short life. The Second Rome Conference is postponed. International aid for Albania is now a year away. Vinçani points the finger at those who destroyed the army and burned the country. Arbnori’s health remains critical.

A special VOA interview. General Vinçani testifies about the events that shook Albania

I do not know of any legal or organizational prerogative that could prevent any free human being from defecting from the Marxist theory of seizing power by force, from abandoning efforts to rebuild an army as a weapon of the dictatorship of the proletariat. Having concluded that the new Socialist political leadership was no different from the primitive Albanian attitude of sharply dividing people into friends or enemies, I thought I had no choice but to make way for a classic Stalinist, or for the first Minister of War who was a doctor in the history of the regime. All those military personnel, regardless of rank or position, who were not or are not sympathizers of the PS are being eliminated or will be removed. Special report on page 2 General Vinçani accuses [unclear: e gjallë e krimit komunist]

Arbnori is suffering from a rise in temperature to 40 degrees During the day yesterday, the doctors kept the patient under strict observation to identify the cause of the high fever, which was accompanied by severe pain. Treatment was intensive and under the doctor’s supervision and care. Late in the evening, a drop in temperature was observed. The doctors stopped the IV fluids, although he has started eating, but only very light food by mouth. ON PAGE 3

October 1 — the law exempting financial and commercial supplies from Value Added Tax is repealed Bread, water, electricity, housing, heating gas, medicines, telephone, postal services, fuels and technology, all subject to VAT ON PAGE 5

At the invitation of YU (Youth Union) of the CDU and Chancellor Kohl , an FRPD delegation led by its chairman, Artrim Krasniqi, will make an official visit to Germany from September 15 to 24, 1997. During their stay in Germany, the FRPD delegation will hold official meetings with the Ministers of Youth and Education and a state secretary in Chancellor Kohl’s cabinet, Members of the European Parliament, and senior officials of the parliament of the Land of Thuringia, including the prime minister, the speaker of the parliament, a member of the government, etc. The visit’s schedule also includes an official visit to the European Parliament and the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. At these senior political institutions, meetings will be held with the heads of committees on human rights, youth, etc., as well as with Members of the European Parliament. This visit is another expression of the fruitful cooperation that the FRPD has with its European partners and a further indication of the deepening of this cooperation.

The governing majority rejects the EC’s recommendations ON PAGE 3