Mr. Tomorr Malasi, — How many chairmen of the pluralist People’s Councils in Tirana’s neighborhoods have been dismissed, which parties do they belong to, and for what reasons were they removed? — The opposition press is making a great deal of noise in order to seize power. The truth is manipulated; slanders and prefabricated phrases about the Socialists are concocted, without facts, only phrases, only slogans. But what is the truth? The truth is there for all to see. It is known how much power the opposition has here in Tirana and how much the Socialists have. In our neighborhood, number 22, specifically, the facts are in broad daylight. Since the Democratic Party’s candidate won a majority of the votes in the March 31 elections, after the Government of Stability was formed and executive power was divided, seven of the nine neighborhood councilors were given to the opposition. Four of these belong to the DP, while only two belong to the SP. So we ask: who holds power, the majority or the minority? Here in our neighborhood, speculation began with the appointment of the chairman of the pluralist Executive Committee, Mr. Petrit Mahmuti. In the appointment documents brought by the DP branch (under the agreement, the chairman is appointed by the party, not by the authorities), he was listed as a teacher with higher education. Had the other councilors not known him, and had we not known that he had only completed eight years of schooling, the DP branch would have passed off a bar of soap as cheese to the people of this neighborhood, as the saying goes. After this laughable move, the DP hastily appointed another councilor as neighborhood chairman, Mr. Sazan Gashi. But before the candidacy of the “professor” with only eight years of schooling had even been forgotten, and while the councilors elected by the DP had come to the neighborhood Executive Committee merely to put their names down, one of them, Mr. Hysen Daka, after spending two or three weeks on the Committee, seized another opportunity—since this term was often used in newspaper columns. And, in the interest of transparency, we will continue with other facts that point to outright corrupt dealings. Less than a month ago, the chairman of the Executive Committee of neighborhood 55 came to our neighborhood’s pluralist Executive Committee. His concern was this: our neighborhood had issued a housing authorization for neighborhood 24 to the citizen Fitim Mati, who, it is said, had been living in the home of our neighborhood chairman, Mr. Sazan Gashi, before receiving authorization for this house. So, a resident of Peshkopi is sheltered in the home of our neighborhood chairman, obtains authorization for another neighborhood without the councilors’ knowledge, and forcibly enters a citizen’s apartment, in building 27/3, whose owner is temporarily in Greece. Who issued the authorization? Not the Committee. We checked the documentation in the presence of one of the DP representatives on this committee. There was no such name in the decision, no copy of an authorization bearing Fitim Mati’s name. A few days later, the authorization was slipped into the file and his name added to the decision. The councilors’ signatures were also forged. The chairman, Mr. Sazan, admitted that he had put them in, but denied the forgery. He said nothing. During the examination of the documents, other forgeries were found as well, such as the exchange of a house without approval, etc. All this points to the shady dealings of chairman Sazan, whose name is often mentioned in the neighborhood in connection with other abuses of his office. It is known that he gathered things in his house and made me—why does he remain silent about the speculation involving the allocation of the new blocks? Why should a teacher have to come from Peshkopi and be employed for two or three months at one of Tirana’s schools, when there are hundreds of Tirana teachers who commute for years, not only to Tirana’s villages but also to the surrounding districts? And these are housing issues. It is well known—and “needs little comment”—that there are countless people in need waiting in line for housing. Yet when the DP “commits itself” to justice, its representatives in power exploit that power to engage in speculation. In fact, they act exactly as certain bureaucrats in the Party of Labour used to, invoking friendships and various connections. We say this because teacher Fitim Mati, having relatives on the DP Steering Committee in Peshkopi, took advantage of this opportunity to receive preferential treatment from DP representatives here in Tirana. Although the speculations by the chairmen of our neighborhood Executive Committees are so obvious, at a meeting about this matter, the chairman of the region’s pluralist Executive Committee, Mr. Dragush Buka, thought it appropriate to defend our neighborhood chairman, perhaps so that “the party would not be smeared.” Indeed, in the presence of five members of the DP branch in Tirana, the chairman of the DP section in neighborhood 22, Mr. Hysen Haxhia, after pouring out bile against the SP, as if it were responsible for the DP councilors’ speculation, called this affair something organized by the Socialists. How a scheme can be organized for a public official to profit as much as possible from his position is something only Mr. Hysen knows. We think this is part of the opposition’s propaganda practice, intended to cre— ...rapidly, the DP of schooling had even been forgotten, it was as if neighborhood Executive Committee only to engage in speculation. One of them, Mr. Hysen Daka, after spending[?] three weeks on the Committee, seized the opportunity, took advantage of the council’s authority and forged a document he needed for his own purposes. Apparently, with that, this councilor completed “the mission assigned to him by the Party” and left altogether, just as the other councilor, Mr. Mahmutaj, also disappeared without a trace. We are saying all this for the sake of transparency, so that residents of other neighborhoods where the DP has appointed such councilors may be informed, because in our neighborhood residents have learned about the tricks of some “democratic” councilors. We say this for the opposition press too, in the interests of transparency ... ... [text unclear] ... Let us add[?] that as well, such as the transfer the shady dealings of chairman Sazan, whose name is also of his office. It is known that he gathered in his house the aid allocated by “Caritas” for our neighborhood; he also kept 18 food portions from the aid as the chairman’s reserve, and not only the neighborhood residents but even his subordinate councilors never found out where this aid went. There is a great deal of noise about aid, a great deal of gossip. Many pages are also written about housing. Thousands of families in Tirana are in indescribable distress and wait with great hope to be given shelter. The DP sounded the trumpets about expropriating the homes of the blockmen, after pouring out bile against the SP, as though it were to blame for the DP councilors’ speculation, and called this a “coup” organized by the Socialists. Only Mr. Hysen knows how a coup can be organized so that a person in power may profit as much as possible from his position. We, meanwhile, to create as much confusion as possible and cover the traces of corruption. This slander was so outrageous that, on hearing Mr. Hysen, another DP member, the representative we know as our own, Mr. Arben Ahmetlliu, unable to tolerate the hypocrisy, replied to him: “If all DP members are as dishonest as you, I’ll tear up my membership card.” AGIM BYLYKU SHAQELOIM SALIA Councilors in neighborhood 22, Tirana

— Democratic changes in our country are recognized. — The day before yesterday, talks were held in Brussels on the Trade Agreement and Trade and Economic Cooperation between the Albanian delegation, headed by the Minister of Economic Relations with Foreign Countries, Ylli Cabiri, and the delegation of the Commission of the European Community, headed by John Maslin, the director responsible for Albania in the Directorate-General for External Relations. Representatives of the Presidency, the Council and the EC Secretariat, as well as representatives of the EC’s 12 member states, also took part in the plenary session. Albanian Minister Ylli Cabiri presented the current situation in Albania and the efforts being made to consolidate achievements on the path to democracy and a market economy, and to establish the rule of law. He provided explanations concerning the March 22 elections, the electoral law and the opportunities available to the Greek minority to be represented in the new pluralist parliament. This afternoon, the heads of the delegations from both sides initialled the agreement on trade and trade and economic cooperation between the Republic of Albania and the European Economic Community. This agreement, which represents a historic moment in our country’s relations with the EC, recognizes the changes made in Albania in the democratic process and in relations between the two sides, which will contribute to achieving the objective of an associate membership agreement at the appropriate time and once the necessary conditions have been created. This framework agreement paves the way for specific agreements in various areas of trade and economic cooperation, such as industry, mining, agriculture, transport, etc. It provides that the parties will grant each other most-favoured-nation treatment, that the EC will assist Albania in acceding to international organizations and conventions, etc. (ATSH)

— Vice-chairman of the Forum for the Protection of Human Rights in Albania, special adviser to the Greek archbishop, Anastasios — In the endless flood of statements made every day by political parties, trade unions, associations, etc., the latest statement by the Forum for the Protection of Human Rights seems to have drawn the greatest attention from public opinion. It concerns the Forum’s denunciation of the movement to change the elections rules, which excludes “OMON” as an electoral subject. This statement was received with surprise by ordinary people as well as by relevant specialists. Former MPs at meetings with the public and groups of legal experts in the press call it “completely unfounded and a source of unnecessary concern.” The Albanian political association “Çamëria,” in a statement broadcast on television on 17.2.02, expresses outrage that this organization calling itself a forum, which does not protect the national rights of Albanians, does not deserve such a name. This forum, the statement emphasized, has not said a word in defense of the legitimate rights of the Cham population in Albania and Greece. As I recall, the Forum also took a clear position regarding the Assembly’s support for national reconciliation and unity. I would not be making these arguments and rebuttals here. But by chance, on a page in my notebook, I read a note I had written some time ago. In the ATSH news bulletin dated February 1 (at the time of the SH, read. “ N[?] Popa has been appointed special secretary for Albanian and social affairs to the Archbishop of Albania, Anastasios.” At the time, this fact had struck me a little, enough for me to jot it down in my notebook, without considering it further. This time, as soon as I read the note in my notebook, I remembered that this special adviser to the (Greek) archbishop of the Albanian Autocephalous Church is also in Albania. I recalled several suspicious statements made recently by this adviser, in which [text unclear] and the map of Northern Epirus was presented to the city of Greece, as well as church documents in the Greek language. Then there was the Forum’s latest statement on the OMONIA issue. Faced with this multitude of numerous, frequent facts, badly entangled with one another, one cannot help but become suspicious and ask: How is it possible for the in Albania to become the special adviser to a Greek archbishop? What are Albanian associations supposed to write about a foreign archbishop? Why is the Albanian Forum for the Protection of Human Rights in Albania not concerned with defending Albanians’ national rights, but with issues (absurdly) involving the Albanian parliament, while serving[?] ...? What does he do when[?] ...? What does he do when[?] ...? This party ...? We live in a time of doubts, but also and doubts!

Comrade Fatos Nano’s meeting in Berat On Monday, amid great enthusiasm, at around 11:30, Comrade Fatos Nano, chairman of the Socialist Party of Albania, came to the “13 Shtatori” cinema in our city and held a discussion with the Socialist supporters from Berat and their sympathizers. The waving of the national flag and the prolonged ovations of those in the hall—“The SP will win,” “Victory is ours,” “Victory, victory,” etc.—made the start of the meeting very emotional. “I came to meet you, amid this great enthusiasm,” Comrade Fatos Nano said at the outset, “because in such difficult circumstances it is necessary for us to talk together in order to overcome all the problems facing Berat and all of Albania. Your thousand-year-old city, like all of Albania, has hundreds of intellectuals who will contribute honorably to building the roads and opportunities needed to overcome the major problems of the present. We are currently faced with many unknowns, with one system that we have abandoned and another that we want to build. More than ever today, people should believe in one another, talk together and bring the country out of the chaos and insecurity gripping it. The Socialist Party, as a real and active force, freed from prejudices and partisan passions, supports an alternative that will integrate us honorably into the wider European processes. Our party’s program is a program of savings and of the unprivileged; we look to their future and the security of their families. The differences between the parties’ programs today are generally on paper, whereas tomorrow they will be real and will determine what is good and bad in our work and what our party defends. Let us discuss these programs with our brothers and decide the future of our children, based on the state they support. I have been shaped throughout this period, and my aspirations and yours have been fulfilled; let us not label and manipulate slogans, as the opposition does. True European democracy develops without passions; it develops vigorously, but through the logic of argument and by providing solutions to accumulated problems or those that have become evident and are before us. Speaking about the market economy, Comrade Fatos Nano stressed that we want Albanians to become owners first. Albanians in the cities and countryside deserve more than foreigners to receive what they have sweated for over these years, which, as we can see, were years of an isolationist and unresponsive policy and economy. The democratic socialist alternative our party puts forward is an opportunity to change the situation. European experience and assistance on this issue will not be lacking at any moment, because, as we can see, we will have our place in this United Europe, which will soon become reality. In the European experience, right-wing forces are the legitimate forces of the wealthy, who aspire to and defend their interests. The fuss around them today is an illusion that we must distinguish clearly from the reality of the unprivileged, and a tangible reality for all those who were privileged with property and wealth in the past; there is nothing wrong with them campaigning politically to win, since we are now in a pluralist system and democracy presupposes this. “There is a certain slowdown at this moment of transformation,” Comrade Fatos Nano continued, “but no one should be left behind or abandoned—not the intellectual, the pensioner, the worker or the farmer. The important thing is to understand clearly that our party is the only one that supports its allies in Europe and defends their interests. And the socialist forces in Europe are stronger than ours in this poor country. in this poor country. in this poor country. in this poor country. ...” for establishing it through democratic means; it is the standard-bearer of a just solution to the national question. It has chosen this path with full awareness and is determined to see it through to the end. It must not be forgotten, much less denied, the strength of the SP and its role “... Albanians, you have now found the genuine forces that are interested in helping you get out of this situation. You yourselves cannot agree with one another about who is to blame for this people’s plight; the people will judge. False claims that everything will come to us from the world, provided the opposition wins, are not only shameful but insulting to our hardworking and suffering people. The enlightened minds of this nation, at home and abroad, will not be won over as they should be by certain forces in Albania. These are forces concerned with dead souls, not with real solutions that would help Albania in these difficult times. The urgent task of the day is our renewal, national reconciliation and, after that, the reunification of this nation. Other actions must not be undertaken blindly, but with an approach that respects everyone’s rights and is implemented according to legal rules. The elections must be conducted with democratic culture, every citizen must vote for true democracy, and ultimately the final result is uncertain for all political forces, trade unions and associations. Albania needs security...’ Then, for about four hours, Comrade Fatos Nano answered the many questions put to him by SP members and supporters and opposition comrades. It should be stressed that, with rare exceptions, the questions and answers were in keeping with democratic norms... Among other things, the hall does not reflect the characteristic and distinctive culture of Berat, which ...

STATEMENT by the spokesperson of the Socialist Party of Albania — Prejudices harm democracy, Mr. Bukoshi! — Information sources have led us, with regret, to observe that well-known political and state figures from Kosovo are placing themselves directly at the service of the Democratic Party in its election campaign. Evidence of this includes statements by the chairman of the Kosovo League, Dr. Ibrahım Rugovës, Adem Demaçi, etc., to which the Socialist Party has responded publicly. But on February 16, 1992, Radio “Croatia” broadcast excerpts from a statement by Dr. Bujar Bukoshit, head of the Kosovo government, who said: “We hope and believe that the people will vote for the democratic opposition, at whose head is the Socialist Party of Albania,” and went on to say that “we have offered, and continue to offer, our full support for the victory of the democratic opposition.” It is clear that the Socialist Party of Albania does not prejudge anyone on the basis of their convictions, including Albanian figures from Kosovo. But to frame the issue as Mr. Bukoshi does—to say that the Democratic Party’s victory means the destruction of the victory of democracy and, even more, of the Albanian nation—is not only completely wrong, but also unacceptable for a senior official state representative. Democracy, in Albania as everywhere else, belongs to the people and certainly not just to one party or group of parties. Identifying democracy solely with the Democratic Party harms democracy itself... This would make the Socialist Party out to be an anti-democratic political force and, consequently, an anti-national one! Is it not clear that the Socialist Party of Albania? Not only that. The Socialist Party has also unreservedly supported the Kosovo issue. You know that, ever since its founding Congress, the SP has openly and firmly declared its position on the legitimate rights of our Albanian brothers in Kosovo and other regions of the former Yugoslavia, while making no prejudgment as to which political force or figure in Kosovo might resolve the issue best. So why should the head of the government of the Republic of Kosovo express prejudices about political forces in Albania, and precisely at this point in the election campaign? Let the political forces in Albania demonstrate their own abilities in this campaign, not with the help of others, whether ambassadors, MPs, senators, party officials or government officials! Such statements undermine the peace and Albania’s progress along the road to democracy, at a time when true patriots are working and striving by every means to extinguish the conflicts that exist. In meetings you have had with Socialist Party leaders, you have not expressed prejudices. We would hope that your reputation among genuinely democratic public opinion in Albania will not be tarnished by statements of this kind. We must not forget, let alone deny, the strength and role of the SP in the process of democratization and in the national question: the voice and aspirations of its 120,000 members, its entire electorate and its supporters. The Socialist Party is an uncompromising fighter for democracy and for establishing it through democratic means

Uriah Heep on television Unusual interview. A character who speaks the language of an official. An official masked by the self-awareness of a character. Uriah Heep. He cannot rub his hands together in front of the camera, but maintains a dignified bearing. Tested in discussions and interviews recently. Able to present himself as balanced, to accuse, to back down. A privileged interview in which to declare his innocence. There are no facts. The best defense is attack. Only other people are accused. Corruption or anti-corruption? An insult to journalists and beyond. Clear as anything, they say. I remember a phrase from a writer friend of mine: “We are the only country in the world where a minister who steals gives an interview on television. ‘The new public millionaires imprisoned’...” The poor journalist. Tomorrow he will face the poor in the street, the lost and nameless. A sentimental film, but without art. Heavy-handed imagination. There are no facts; it is merely spread out in order to make them disappear. People who pretend and are bought. It is not hard to find partners. You can meet them in the street, in economic affairs and on television. The combustible Uriah Heep. Tersani and Cordelia of the solem...