There is an organizational principle in the Party. It is discipline within its ranks. Carrying out to the end the tasks set by a Party organization or forum is one of the most important aspects of Party discipline. That is why there is constant talk and insistent emphasis on decisions and checks on their implementation, on the need for these to be precise and clear, and, where possible, to involve all the communists and, as appropriate, the comrades on the forum. Always in this context: so that this work is done well, the aim is also to make organizational forms more agile and flexible, from the basic organization to the district plenum. Take, for example, what the plenum of the Tirana Party Committee has been putting into practice recently. It met on 23 July. Important decisions for Tirana were taken there. Just to recall them: a major drive to hand over 3,200 apartments by the end of the year; concrete solutions for employing the available workforce; radical improvements in supplies and services for the population; a turnaround in work discipline. These are neither few nor easy tasks. On the contrary. At the same time, Tirana is already feeling the positive effects of this work getting under way. Immediate measures were taken so that work could begin on a broad front. Problems with the material resources were resolved, and so on. Another point: in just these past few days, 2,400 people started work, somewhat more than the target. The situation in the market is better, service outlets have been expanded, and so on and so forth. It is clear: this means that Party bodies and organizations have been set in motion. But was it right to meet again? There was certainly reason to: what had these two weeks shown, what had been done and what had not? … There are more than one or two ways to check on the work. One of them is this review meeting, which the forum considers productive. Nevertheless, this is a special approach. It is unlike the forum’s other analyses; indeed, in such cases analysis takes up very little space. Something else is more evident: real tension, which is the result of intense daily activity, but also of the responsibility to report on matters that concern you. More can be done on this point. The aim is not to enhance the standing of a meeting, but to carry out the necessary «follow-up» today, tomorrow, day after day, so that the real significance of this major work is felt everywhere. The chairman of the district executive committee reported that the seven-month target for apartments had been met. Very good. But the fact is that in the five months ahead, three times as many must be handed over as were delivered in seven months. He says that work will be carried out on a mass scale to put up the structural frames, and that interior work will be done during rainy weather. Perhaps this is the best solution. Region 3 failed to deliver 98 apartments in July. August is even more packed. But the plenum did not accept the region executive committee chairman’s doubt that the target could be met, on the grounds that «not a single piece of pipe could be found». Well, then, we should just sit around, even though pipes can be found and can also be cast at the production plants, as is normally done. There is a particular pattern here: the executive committees have undertaken very little construction themselves. But one comrade’s remarks also included this: «The food combine’s water supply must not be interrupted. This bus is not enough for the oil. The bread factory must reach its planned reserve…» And more «musts». Hasn’t the time come to abandon this way of speaking once and for all and say: In these 15 days, this, that and the other thing were resolved? You have the authority, so you must act. A plenum review meeting needs precisely this kind of language, not a string of demands and tasks issued without assigning responsibility. The comrade responsible for municipal services «bombards» the meeting with a flood of figures. Then comes the intervention: — Have you studied the situation? — Yes, the situation and the needs. — And the available resources? — In detail, district by district. — Then, what are the needs and what resources are available? … This shrug does not suggest that the work has been studied very thoroughly. And yet this is elementary. Imagine not knowing elementary facts by heart… Or take another matter. A system of self-financing has begun in 16 enterprises, as well as in several trade and service units. But what are the basic organizations discussing about this? Do the communists fully understand it? What preparations are being made by the other enterprises? In other words, do the matters discussed and decided by the plenum reach the staffs and the people there—the workers, collectives and Party organizations—so that they can get to their feet, with greater awareness and a spirit of action? There are issues here, since absenteeism continues, quotas are not being met, and so on. So there is a great deal of work to be done by the Party organizations, state bodies, and by setting Party bodies and organizations in motion… entire structures, Party organizations, leaders, cadres and the communist masses. Nevertheless, this is only a beginning and cannot be more than that. The tasks are of much greater significance. Precisely for this reason, it is intolerable to make decisions today on work of this scale and then wait three months for the next regular meeting. That is why no more than 15 days passed before the plenum met again on 6 August and… …nor the doubts of the chairman of the regional executive committee, who thinks it is difficult to complete the task, arguing So should we just sit and wait, when pipes can be found and can also be delivered to the production bases, as is normally done? There is a particular issue here: the executive committees have set up headquarters for these construction projects. Yet it is not uncommon for some mortar mixers to be missing, and for the regions to clash with the district, lodging complaints. It seems as if all authority rests with the district, when that is not the case. The regions’ failure to take responsibility has consequences. There are difficulties, but the ministries, especially the Ministry of Construction, are also showing great readiness to help. For Tirana, this is a source of support. Let this… You have this view. It seemed HALIL LALAJ Other aspects of life? In other words, are the matters being discussed and decided by the plenum being brought more into the headquarters or into activities where the people, the collectives and the Party organizations are, so that they can rise to the challenge with devotion and a spirit of action? There are shortcomings here, since absences from work continue, targets are not met, and so on. There is, therefore, much and mass organizations. This calls for firm discipline, true Party discipline. The Party plenum for Tirana aims to impress this concern deeply on the consciousness of every member of the forum, and for it to be felt more broadly in every Party organization, among all communists, cadres and other employees of the capital.

Delayed appointments At the personnel directorate of the Ministry of Education, we learned of a fact that gives one pause for thought: in the northeastern areas of the country, 33 fewer staff members have been appointed than planned. These figures vary from district to district, with more in some and fewer in others. Thus, in the district of Kukës, 12 teachers in various subjects have not been appointed; in Pukë, 10; in Mirditë, 5; and so on in the districts of Librazhd, Mat and Peshkopi. In addition, the youth organizations have made recommendations concerning a further 67 students who, for one reason or another, should not go to the districts where they have been appointed, mainly in the northeastern area. Without wishing to make predictions, it is reasonable to think that some of them may also fail to report for work at their assigned posts, at least by 1 September. This will further increase the number of jobs left unfilled by qualified staff. As we can see, this situation is by no means normal, and we are faced with a problem that has two sides: on the one hand, the districts mentioned above will have a shortage of teachers, while in Tirana the number of teachers awaiting placement will increase. At the personnel section of the executive committee of the Tirana district People’s Council, we met Zhuljeta Riska, an employee of the section. She tells us that demand for teachers in the Tirana district is very low. There are very few awaiting placement. Only married women may be kept on the waiting list, not young women or men. This is the picture of this year’s appointments. At the Ministry of Education they describe a lengthy procedure: they arranged for the various recommendations on appointments to be made at the first meetings of the youth organizations. But none of them was taken into account at the second meetings. The senior officials of this ministry provided information to the youth committees of UT «Enver Hoxha» and those of the Higher Pedagogical Institutes in Gjirokastër, Elbasan and Shkodër. The outcome? Nothing again. The situation remained as it was at the outset, with people saying, «That’s what the rule decided». To analyze this problem, it is necessary to return once again to the meetings of the youth organizations, a democratic and fair measure that blocks favoritism and various forms of interference and enhances the standing and influence of the youth. This measure was welcomed enthusiastically by all university students. Could there perhaps be some truth in the rumors that, as some people put it, the youth is not sufficiently emancipated to handle such a step? Numerous facts show that this is not the case, but the opposite. The weakness lies elsewhere: in the poor work of some youth leadership bodies and in the fact that these meetings were not properly organized in some instances. In the organization of the youth of the Albanian language and literature department, for example, not one of the four students who were to be appointed in Pukë was appointed. A teaching post at the Higher Pedagogical Institute of Gjirokastër was left vacant, while high-achieving students from Vlora are appointed in Tirana and lower-achieving students from Tirana are left without appointments, on standby. Don’t we have a case of an appointment being made where it was not needed? Members of this organization included the leaders of the faculty and university youth committees… (Continued on page 3)

Secondary education, as a vital link in our education system, plays an important role in preparing the younger generation for life and production. The rapid developments in this type of education require that, alongside raising the level of the concrete ideas embodied in its content, the level of understanding and the measures to be taken by our entire public, by state bodies and, in particular, by the production and social-cultural sectors, also be raised with regard to students’ practical and vocational training. In this respect, particularly in recent years, significant progress has been made in the relevant legislation. In its practical implementation—in the work of education bodies at the central and local levels, ministries, executive committees, economic enterprises, and so on—there is a better understanding of how to plan for students as a workforce for productive work and vocational practice in large-scale production. This is achieved more effectively through the approval of schedules for these activities by enterprises and executive committees, and through the establishment of joint school-enterprise contracts. From year to year, the overall indicators for students’ participation in work have been increasing. Thus, for the 1989 calendar year, planned revenues from this activity were achieved nationwide at a rate of around 85 percent. A great deal of work was needed to get this far. (Continued on page 3)

— Interview with comrade Makbule Çeço, director of the Directorate of Higher Education at the Ministry of Education. — Recently, the issue of correspondence students has often been raised, along with the changes to be made to the existing system. What is the purpose of these changes? Now a very large number of students are being given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities and level of preparation, since all candidates who have completed secondary school … … in general education and with a grade of 7.5 or higher have the right to enter the correspondence-study system, regardless of whether or not they are employed. Previously, on the basis of the plan given to the district executive committee, candidates who were employed were selected, naturally on the basis of their average grades. But many candidates met these criteria and were left… … In addition, broader opportunities have been created with regard to the type of secondary-school specialization completed by candidates for whom the system that does not require leaving their jobs is not available. Thus, for example, candidates from vocational schools—specifically, candidates from technical programs—have the right to enroll and sit the entrance examinations for the Faculty of Economics and the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, or candi- many candidates met these criteria and were left without consideration because there were no places in the plan. Under the new procedure, selection no longer starts from the plan. In particular… … candidates wishing candidates who have completed secondary education in economics are entitled to… (Continued on page 3) since all candidates who completed secondary school with a grade of 8 or higher in all categories of schools, or who graduated from the new-system secondary school, are submitted to the admissions committee. These were candidates in employment, selected on the basis of their average grades, of course. But many candidates met these criteria and were left unconsidered because there were no places available. quota plan. In addition… … the problem of attracting correspondence students is being addressed, as are the changes to be made in the corresponding system. What is the purpose of this change? the admissions committee…

Thursday, 8 August, 13:45. A rattling begins against the office windowpane. A thunderclap breaks the sultry quiet. Suddenly, the rain starts. Steady, gentle. A relief. Meanwhile, we think of making a joke with Kicon, the stenographer at «Zëri». — The clippings you collected about the drought have gone up in smoke! — we tell him. — I’ll save them for the day after tomorrow! — he replies, convinced by experience that there is no room for euphoria. The drought has had widespread effects everywhere. These days, the soft-drink trade has been doing a roaring business. People have had many conversations with doctors about raising children well, and caring for those with high blood pressure or heart conditions… The sun scorches, and more people have gone to the beaches. Questions, too, have become very popular. Livestock have gone down to the riverbanks, near the springs. People have been cutting back on sleep. Balconies and windowsills are full of people. Work productivity has fallen. The Hydrometeorological Institute has recorded record-high temperatures and record-low rainfall, as well as low water levels in springs and rivers. We have seen Fier on television, Koma- nin, and whispered about it quite a bit. …After all this, it is perfectly natural to rejoice like a child at the long-awaited rain that fell. It is quite normal to walk in the rain wearing summer clothes. When you have waited a long time for something, you love it all the more. Even when it «burns» your articles, even when it catches you out in the street without an umbrella, even when it forces you to leave the beach. …Three hours after the first drops, that is, at 17:00, we called 262-62 to ask for help getting information from the districts. Marica Tojani, the supervisor of the second shift, and all the district switchboard operators connected us to the whole country within 20 minutes. — The switchboard operator in Erështën, Bardha Gega: — It isn’t raining right now. Earlier, 13 mm fell. — Klementina Geci, Tropojë: — What do you mean, what fell? We’re delighted! — The Lezhë switchboard operator, amid the commotion: — It’s pouring in Shkodër. Here, it’s nothing but sunshine! Ah! We forgot Tirana. Nimete Zahja at the synoptic service gives us this figure: by 17:00, 17 mm of rain. And the reports continue: — In Kukës and Pukë: quite a lot of rain. — In Elbasan and Peshkopi: it is still raining. — In Durrës, in Fier… it hasn’t rained (perhaps it will during the night): «August and a fur coat,» as the saying goes. But the people also have another saying: If the grapes darken on the vine, the rain is on its way. Whether we like it or not, we are waiting for it. But not idly. The truth is that much-awaited rain can even make you feel giddy. But only for a moment. Just as that intoxication comes, so it must pass, in a few moments. Sometimes a little rain can also lull you to sleep, make you let your guard down, leave you bewildered. But we must not forget the water in the hydroelectric reservoirs and artificial irrigation lakes, the crops and livestock, the water systems of towns and villages; we must not forget that water is life for everyone. When we think of the central task forces and the district task forces, of all that struggle and work against the prolonged drought, the rain that fell is only a little—not nearly enough to let us pull our hats down over our eyes. We still have a great deal of work to do to withstand the prolonged drought. There is work to be done in Fier and Durrës, in Sarandë and Lezhë. But those who have been fortunate and know better have work to do, too. Because sometimes drought punishes most those who forget about it! AVDUL DUIE

The Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania, Comrade Ramiz Alia, sent the following congratulatory telegram to the President of the Republic of Ecuador, Rodrigo Borja Cevallos: «On the occasion of your national holiday, the anniversary of the Proclamation of Ecuador’s Independence, on behalf of the Albanian people, the Presidium of the People’s Assembly and myself, I send you, Mr. President, my sincere greetings, together with my best wishes for the happiness and prosperity of the friendly Ecuadorian people.» (ATA)

In the district of Fier, the organization of the Democratic Front, in response to the new tasks set by the latest plenums of the Party’s Central Committee and the instructions of Comrade Ramiz Alia, has launched its activities for the atheist and revolutionary education of the masses. (Continued on page 3)

Oroshi. Like green waves, it seems to rise in successive billows from the Fan River to the peaks of Mount Shejt. Here, time has made its mark on history; Oroshi stands as a symbol of Mirdita. Mashterkor is the first village, followed by Gryka e Oroshit, Bulhari, Ndërshenë and Nënshenjtë. Each has beauty and history of its own, all coming together and viewed in the flow of life. First, you stop in Mashterkor. The whole village has beautiful, traditional and distinctive houses. We cross to the other side of the river over a suspension bridge. We find ourselves among the family of Pal Tuci, a descendant of the Spaç mine. It is midday and he is not there, but Prëna Tuci, his wife, is a worthy hostess. A mother of eight children, full of energy and kindness, she makes hospitality seem entirely natural. In the large, comfortable guest room, the youngest son, Gjovalin, talks with us. He has done brilliantly in sixth grade. He likes mathematics very much. He loves the history of his homeland and listens with interest to what is said. Prëna, this healthy and hearty hostess, finds time to talk. She is happy with the life they lead there. “They gave me an early pension last year because I had many children. They have grown up now and are working. They have their own joys, but I also help them every day,” says Prëna, delighting in her grandson and, at times, her granddaughter, whose lovely names are Gëzim and Genta. She speaks simply about village life. “People have never been more content than they are now. There has never been a better life,” she says wholeheartedly. The others, too, think this, along with the young people. It is not only schooling that has brought development to this area (this year the 90th anniversary of Orosh School was celebrated, and the area has three eight-year schools). Orosh commune— (Continued on page 3)

In the bookshop in the city of Tepelenë, readers are immediately introduced to the new publications. (Photo: N. Xhufka)