Yesterday morning, the People’s Assembly continued its work in a plenary session. Opening the session, the chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, Skënder Islami, said that normally and logically, after the work in the commissions, we should begin reviewing and approving the decrees. But the parliamentary groups and the Council of Ministers have proposed that we first discuss the situation and the measures taken to overcome the situation created by the strikes. On this basis, it was proposed, and we, as the Presidium, decided to hold this plenary session. At the beginning, the floor was given to the chairman of the Council of Ministers, deputy Fatos Nano, who reported on the work done by the Council of Ministers to address the employees’ demands and the measures to normalize the grave state of the economy caused by the strikes. The government emerging from the first pluralist parliament only two weeks ago is aware of the difficult situation, Fatos Nano said, among other things. Although it is not responsible for the mistakes and problems accumulated over the years, it took on a heavy burden to stabilize the country’s socio-economic situation and set it on new paths of development. But three days after receiving the vote of confidence, strikes began that affected and paralyzed key sectors of the economy. In the days that followed, the Government tried to do everything within its power to find realistic solutions to the problems of emerging from the crisis, while also meeting the demands of the striking workers. The first and principal step in the Government’s program was to complete the study for wage and price reform, which had begun before the strikes started. Its implementation constitutes the basic direction of the entire reform of the market economy. Even after these measures were announced, for which public information and clarification have begun and will continue, the strikes did not stop, despite a downward trend. Around 130,000 employees are currently taking part in them. The strike has created major economic and social problems not only for the sectors it has affected, but also for other sectors of the economy and people’s lives. According to rough estimates, the economic damage caused so far is valued at around 150 million lekë. In the difficult circumstances in which the government began its work, it faced numerous and often ultimatum-like demands from many workplaces and groups of employees for wage and pension increases and improvements to working and living conditions. It has now become clear, he further emphasized, that certain elements in the leadership of the independent trade unions and on strike organizing committees are abusing the workers’ legitimate economic demands and exploiting them for political purposes, to paralyze the state and create social tensions that lead to the disruption of the people’s unity. At a time when all political forces have publicly expressed support for restoring order and ensuring the functioning of the rule of law, the Government is facing numerous illegal actions. In some districts and sectors, trade union leaders, contrary to their status and in a speculative manner, have taken upon themselves duties or functions that belong to the state administration. These actions have also been encouraged by bureaucracy that has built up over the years. Particularly in view of current developments in the region and surrounding areas, where they are destabilized centralized in 150 million lekë. At the session that began at 21:40, the chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly said that the parliamentary groups, together with the other political forces and in consultation with the President, had agreed to draft a communiqué concerning the current situation in the country. It states: In order to emerge from the grave situation in which the entire country finds itself, the parliamentary groups and political parties, in consultation with the President, are (Continued on page 2)

- SHKODËR - Even on 29 May, the 14th day of the strike, the situation in the city of Shkodër continues to be extremely tense. Almost paralyzed. Alongside the general strike, the concern of all the citizens of Shkodër has focused on the hunger strike that a group of trade unionists has been conducting for two days in the building of the district’s independent trade unions. According to the interview with Ferdinand Temali and other local information outlets, the strikers refuse to meet with any representatives of government bodies, political and social organizations, the press, etc. They are also not disclosing the number of people taking part in the strike. According to the aforementioned statement, the strikers are employees from various enterprises, workers and intellectuals, arts and culture workers, etc. They have declared that they are determined to continue the strike until all the demands submitted to the Government on 9 April of this year are met. Many other trade unionists are also standing in solidarity outside the independent trade unions’ building; they were not allowed by the organizing committee to join the hunger strike. Yesterday morning, various trade union groups and workers held spontaneous rallies in support of the hunger strikers, chanting various slogans such as “We will win,” “The Party of Labour must resign,” “The Government must resign,” etc. From a conversation at the executive committee of the district KP with secretary Esma Ulqinaku, we learned that all necessary measures had been taken to provide the strikers with appropriate medical assistance in a timely manner and to address other matters relating to safeguarding their lives. A medical team has also been assigned to be with the strikers. Likewise, according to preliminary discussions, all demands that could be resolved at district level have been resolved for the independent trade unions; when the Government resolves them, they consider them partial and unacceptable. We believe that, regardless of the strikers’ demands, officials of the district administration and economic enterprises should be allowed to meet with them, so as to see their condition at close hand and help find appropriate ways to unblock the situation. BEDRI ISLAMI

- GJIROKASTËR - As they also tell us at the executive committee of the district KP, during these first three days of the week work has proceeded normally at enterprises in the Gjirokastër district. Last week there were signs of strikes, and several strikes lasting a few hours or a day took place, at the construction enterprise, the agricultural machinery plant, the wood-processing enterprise and the metal plant. The enterprise directorates, the departments of the administration and the executive committee of the district KP, including their senior officials, sat down and had calm discussions with the workers. Meetings were also held with the independent trade unions of the enterprises and the district. Demands that could be resolved immediately were resolved; concrete and realistic deadlines were set for the others. In cases of illegal strikes, complaints were also filed with the competent judicial authorities. Is the situation calm, or has the strike stopped? Is what was discussed and continues to be discussed strikebreaking, or democratic dialogue? We believe that the working class itself, which lives through and understands the country’s grave situation and its own interests, wants to resolve problems democratically, in keeping with the great national interests. But the democratic language adopted by the economic and government bodies, down to the enterprise level, also matters. People are being given support; their demands are not treated with indifference, but are acknowledged, and efforts are being made to resolve them. Nevertheless, the workers’ morale is weighed down, and a sense of despair is growing. Two thousand workers are being paid 80 percent of their wages; many enterprises lack imported and domestic raw materials, such as cement, iron, timber, oil for agricultural machinery, etc. Shortages are beginning to show up in food products as well. All this must be given the utmost attention. THANAS DINO

- LIBRAZHD - These days, as a five-month period is coming to a close, it would be natural to provide even a simple report on how much has been produced and how much has been spent at enterprises, then at district level and more broadly. But the numerous shortages of raw materials, and now, most recently, the strike, are known to have what kind of results. Nevertheless, some people feel these consequences more, others less. At the executive committee of the Librazhd district KP, for example, we learned that total industrial production for the five-month period is expected to exceed 92 percent, while the export plan has already been surpassed. Meanwhile, there are enterprises such as the chrome-mining enterprise that have achieved 110 percent of their five-month target. After one day of striking, the miners too have now returned to work, but stockpiles at the mineral collection sites include around 100,000 tons of ferrochrome and 5,000 tons of chrome. The continuation of the strike at certain enterprises in Librazhd, even though there are no strikes here, has left them idle because of a lack of raw materials. These shortages are particularly affecting the construction enterprise, the wood-processing enterprise, the trading enterprise, etc. GJERGJ POLISI

- KORÇË - According to the information available to the executive committee of the Korçë district KP, this is the 14th day in a row that the economic enterprises of this city have been paralyzed by the workers’ strike. The situation is becoming more worrying by the day. It is true that in recent days the line operating with a foreign company at the knitwear combine and at Hotel «Iliria» has begun operating; work has resumed on the lines and in the factories of the food enterprises, partly at the second furnace of the Mborje Drenovë mine, in the towns of Maliq and Bilisht, etc. But the situation at the other enterprises is extremely worrying. The TEC and the freight park have visibly ground to a halt. Because of the lack of steam and electricity from the TEC, several important enterprises are not operating. Transport on the Korçë-Guri i Kuq route and to the various areas of the district has been interrupted. Village schools are not holding classes regularly because teachers are absent. Due to a lack of solar fuel, the furnaces at the glass factory risk suffering serious breakdowns. The situation has been made even worse by the hunger strikes that have also begun here. At midday on 28 May, around 20 miners from the transport section of the Mborje Drenovë mine began a hunger strike. The strikers’ demands are the fulfillment of the 17 points in the petition sent to the government by the independent trade unions. Also yesterday, around 10 o’clock, a group whose number is unknown entered the premises of the building near the Museum of Medieval Art, where they are conducting a hunger strike. The health authorities have taken measures to monitor the strikers’ health during this strike. Likewise, during the night leading into 28 May 1991, break-ins were carried out at a city savings bank, a club belonging to NTUS and two grocery shops. The security forces are continuing their work to clarify the matter. To bring the strikes to an end and resume work, the executive committee of the district KP and the Labour Party committee have held meetings and talks with workers and representatives of the independent trade unions, but despite all this, the results have been limited. In these difficult circumstances, calling on people to return to work so that vital sectors of the economy are not left to be destroyed does not mean opposing the workers’ legitimate demands; on the contrary, it means supporting their interests.

On 29 May 1991, at around 10:00, various people, mostly young, gathered at several points in Skënderbej Square in Tirana. At a certain moment, as if directed by an invisible hand, they burst into shouts, raising various destabilizing slogans and calling for the overthrow of the government. A little later, other people joined the crowd, after which it began moving toward the corner of the Palace of Culture. The security forces blocked the road and called on them to disperse, because the Construction rally. When the security forces intervened to disperse them, with [unclear], the crowd responded by throwing stones, bricks, marble slabs and other hard objects. Then [unclear] broke and smashed the windows, display cases, club and other premises on the first floor of the Palace of Culture. They smashed the windows of the Executive Committee, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Construction. They set fire to the “Sahat” bar and burned the club and buffet of the Ministry of Public Order. Three police “Ifa” vehicles were also burned, as was a fire engine that had arrived to put them out, and a passenger car belonging to the district Executive Committee. Thirty-five members of the security forces were injured by stones, knives and hard objects; five of them have been admitted to hospital and their health condition is guarded. Other people have not presented themselves at hospitals for treatment.

Perhaps last night many television stations around the world showed that ugly image of the center of our beloved capital. The Palace of Culture with its broken windows, and even a fire engine burning in front of this palace. The boulevard strewn with stones and broken slabs with which demonstrators violently attacked the law-enforcement forces. Sections of ministry buildings damaged, two shops looted, a car and a pile of furniture and equipment burned in the middle of the street. “All these things being destroyed, everything being burned and laid waste, do not weigh at all on the bureaucracy, but on our backs, on the backs of the people. So what have these people got against the people?” said a worker there in the square, trying to ... ... destroyed ... to fall ... Tirana yesterday, and all the destructive acts we have experienced during this year. Those thousands of Tirana residents who took part in the demonstration then appealed to themselves for calm and understanding. They also had Kosovo in mind, the fate of ... (Continued on page 3)

— DURRËS — According to data held by the executive committee of the district People’s Council, around 11,000 workers have been involved across the district. Losses in industrial production so far exceed 5 million lekë. Work continues at several enterprises in the health-services, trade, and public-supply sectors, etc. On May 28, several engine drivers from the Railway Directorate began a hunger strike. They entered the railway station in protest against the failure to meet the demands they had made back in January, as well as the 17-point demands announced by the BSPSH. They are not allowing anyone to enter there. They demand that all their requests be resolved before they resume work.

(JOINT ALBANIAN-ENGLISH COMMUNIQUÉ) The Government of the Republic of Albania and the Government of the United Kingdom, guided by their desire to develop relations between the two countries on the basis of equality, non-interference and mutual respect, agreed to restore diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level, effective May 29, 1991. The two parties agreed that on June 7, 1991, their respective delegations would meet to discuss the resolution of the outstanding issues between the two countries. The two parties also agreed to develop and promote cooperation and exchanges between the two countries in the economic, trade, cultural, technical, scientific and other fields.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Albania, Muhamet Kapllani, was received in the evening by ... the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary, Geza Jeszenszki. (ATSH)

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Albania, Muhamet Kapllani, yesterday received the delegation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, headed by Deputy Secretary-General E. Megalokonomu, at a meeting held in a friendly atmosphere. Muhamet Kapllani, yesterday received the delegation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, headed by Deputy Secretary-General E. Megalokonomu, at a meeting held in a friendly atmosphere. Welcoming the delegation’s visit, the Albanian foreign minister stressed the importance of continuing and deepening political dialogue as a prerequisite for developing stable relations between our two countries. He spoke about the comprehensive political, economic, social and other reforms undertaken in our country, which create a new outlook for our bilateral relations and will provide impetus for future cooperation in various fields. The minister also discussed the positive processes unfolding in Europe, where old balances have been disrupted and new ones are emerging, and where the complexity of events calls for greater political realism. This is particularly necessary in our region, where, despite positive processes, developments involving destabilizing factors have been observed, and where stability has an impact not only on the Balkan Peninsula but also at the European level. The Deputy Secretary-General of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, E. Megalokonomu, described the delegation’s visit to Albania as positive and fruitful and expressed the Greek government’s willingness to develop comprehensive relations with Albania. He noted that the Greek government attaches particular importance to Albanian-Greek relations, both bilaterally and in the Balkan context. (ATSH)

Yesterday, the first meeting of the health ministers of the Balkan states concluded in Istanbul. The meeting was held in a constructive atmosphere. The ministers exchanged views on ways to expand multilateral cooperation in healthcare among the countries of the region. They underlined the importance of this cooperation as part of the process of European integration, and stressed that effective cooperation in the health sector would at the same time help establish closer relations and greater mutual understanding among the Balkan countries. The ministers agreed to expand cooperation in the fields of health education, preventive healthcare, the production of medicines, protecting health from environmental pollution, therapeutic exchange, etc. They also stressed the need for exchanges and contacts among healthcare personnel at medical facilities, in order to ensure cooperation in the areas of documentation, scientific research and the sharing of experience through seminars, conferences and meetings. At the conclusion, a joint communiqué was adopted. The participants agreed that the next meeting of health ministers would be held in Athens in the first half of 1992; that at least two meetings a year of senior officials from the Ministries of Health would be held in Turkey; and that a meeting of the expert group on medicines would be held during 1991, while a meeting of experts on medicine would be held in Bulgaria. (Continued on page 4)