The government is torturing the displaced. The situation of the arrivals is dire, and their resettlement is extremely slow. Thousands sleep outdoors, without clothes and without food ON PAGE 2

Kosovo is still there and, as we all hope and believe, those driven out by Millosheviç’s massacres will soon return there; after crossing the thresholds of their homes, they will have time to choose their future leaders. The rush to proclaim oneself a leader now, while the fire has not yet been extinguished in the homes of those expelled from Kosovo, greatly compromises the mission of Thaqi’s new government. By Astrit PATOZI Now that it has become clear that the Rugova-Millosheviç meeting was a Serbian bluff, the only thing that remains in the memory of that vile episode is the indictment brought by those who rushed to condemn the “traitor.” At another time, the harsh reactions of the “patriots” seeking to crucify the President of Kosovo might have served the Albanian case, but in the dramatic situation engulfing the entire nation, one can say that nothing happened by chance. The same people who insisted on branding Rugova a traitor did not wait long: just one day after the Serbian television footage was broadcast, they announced Kosovo’s new government. They rushed to occupy the seats of a very weighty cabinet precisely when it was being fully demonstrated that the peace talks involving Rugova had been a constituent triangle, showing that they themselves had eagerly awaited such a moment. Those who have tried to remove Rugova from the saga of his misfortune do not seem far removed from Belgrade’s elation at having violently eliminated the central figure of Albanian politics in Kosovo, nor from those who “in fact preserved Rugova’s standing,” even though some of them are now themselves in power on a temporary mandate. By presenting Kosovo’s new government, several people claiming to represent the UÇK leadership have taken an imprudent step that severely discredits their past. We were the first to point out that, by finding Hamza alongside Rugova, they went against the current of the majority of Albanians who voted in Kosovo and who never believed for a moment in the affair of Rugova’s meeting with the UDB leader. Now that the space for Albanian voices and claims has burned away Belgrade’s “Rugova betrayal” card, those who were quick to insult the President of Kosovo are as reckless as the Russian foreign minister, who declared yesterday that Rugova had had a spontaneous meeting with Millosheviç after returning from Paris. This attempt by Moscow to make the Serbian state television report seem credible is, in fact, a shame not only for Millosheviç’s people, who concocted that game, but also for those Albanians who exploited it for their petty interests. Without dwelling too much on those politicians from parties involved in Albania, such as Ceka and Godo, the people trying to float above the sea of Albanian suffering are those who were enjoying themselves in the most luxurious hotel in Tirana while Kosovo was being ravaged by Serbian barbarity. The cabinet of the “Rogner fighters” What, then, has been said about Kosovo’s government, and what is it trying to resolve on this difficult day? The first paradox is that it was announced at the “Rogner” hotel by people who say they are leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army. How can it be that the UÇK leadership, appearing before journalists in Tirana without a blush, condemns those who, for one message or another reason, are actually remaining in Kosovo? In whose name do these ministers exercise this brief authority, when they have now taken power for themselves, while Kosovo burns and is reduced to ashes and they live in Tirana’s most luxurious hotel, or in the villa at the Dajti Hotel? Jakup Krasniqi, who belongs to one of the factions among the UÇK leaders represented in this same government, has two ways to justify himself and his comrades. He must either declare that the UÇK no longer exists in Kosovo and has been disbanded in Albania, or say that those Albanians who remain fighting the Serbs have no connection with their leaders abroad, who sit alongside the ministers. It would be unacceptable for UÇK leaders to play with the truth about their presence outside Prishtina and to accept having the enemy they set out to fight in front of them. For if their fighters face a single dilemma—whether to be in Kosovo or in Tirana’s most luxurious hotel—this will not be a decision that can resolve the war for them. Believing that fighters remain in Kosovo who have sacrificed, and are ready to sacrifice, their lives in the fight against the Serbian barbarians, even for Hashim Thaqi and his ministers, who have accepted him as their leader, logic leads one to think that no one would allow them to sit around making hotel money.

Military forces will enter Kosovo before Millosheviçi signs any agreement. NATO troops will also address the emergency needs of the displaced before their return to Kosovo

Berisha’s message on the occasion of the Catholic Easter holiday On the occasion of Easter, I extend my best wishes to all Albanian Catholic believers, to them and their families. Easter finds our nation in Kosovo at the mercy of the bombs and bullets of Serbian barbarians, hunger, disease, misery and cold. On all sides, the sirens of hunger, suffering, pain and sacrifice are sounding. These difficult and troubled days for the Albanian nation make the essential need for return, sacrifice and national solidarity, in the name of the highest national and human ideals, more urgent than ever. The Easter message is a message of love and understanding, of unshakable faith in God, in humanity, and in the future we deserve—for Albania and our nation. “Happy Easter, and many happy returns” Glory to God!

Thaqi’s cabinet, hastily formed, with serious consequences for the unity of the Albanian people of Kosovo Pollo: “The creation of a government cabinet in a hasty manner is unacceptable to us” ON PAGE 3

The Atlantic Alliance responds to the Thaqi pseudo-government ON PAGE 2

Political screening among those expelled from Kosovo ON PAGE 3

Slobodan Millosheviç together with the other leaders of the war ON PAGE 3

NATO strikes at the heart of Belgrade ON PAGE 7

ON PAGE 7

Tony Blair president Slobodan Millosheviç ON PAGE 7

Berisha welcomes NATO’s decision to send troops to Kosovo Following the announcement of NATO’s decision to send troops to Kosovo, the chairman of the Democratic Party, Prof. Dr. Sali Berisha, stated: “I welcome NATO’s decision to send ground troops to Kosovo, to stop genocide and ethnic cleansing as the only way to prevent the apocalypse threatening Kosovo and the entire Balkans. I am deeply convinced that with this historic decision NATO has served not only the ideal of ending genocide and ethnic cleansing, but also the goal of preventing destabilization and a widespread regional conflict, which the butcher of the Balkans was seeking. I welcome this NATO decision as a great act of support for the Albanian nation at a critical moment in its existence, and I hope and am convinced that Albanians will be eternally grateful to President Clinton and NATO.”

The situation for arrivals in the city of Elbasan is worsening ON PAGE 6

Armed soldiers in the field.

Year IX Of publication No. 76 (2197) SUNDAY 4 APRIL 1999 Price: 20 lekë 1000 lireta 250 drachmas

The Allies decide to return the displaced Albanians to their homes

If you wish to make a monetary contribution for the drugged children of Kosovo, you can send your donation to account number 34220/00/0376 at “Dardania Bank” in the name of the association: “The Children of Kosovo, Our Children”.

To help those expelled from Kosovo, the newspaper “Rilindja Demokratike” is making its pages available free of charge for various notices, such as requests and offers for accommodation, messages from arrivals from Kosovo to other members of their families, etc. You are welcome to contact the editorial office or get in touch through the telephone numbers provided: 303 29 and 323 55. THE EDITORIAL OFFICE

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