— Interview with comrade Ilir Metaj, chairman of the Tirana FRES, given to our editor — Why did you put yourself forward as a candidate for the Socialist Party? — In fact, I didn’t put myself forward; the socialist intellectuals of Skrapar, and especially of the town of Poliçan, did. I had no choice but to confirm it. Naturally, I agreed to represent the PS because of its contemporary program and in the interests of the majority, of those thousands of honest people in its ranks. I believe that I will always represent what is genuinely socialist about the PS. And why in Skrapar? People who don’t know me well often ask me this question. I am from Skrapar, and I am honored to represent that dignified and democratic people. Some accuse Skrapar of being a conservative district; some even go so far as to want to surround it with barbed wire. Whoever prejudges Skrapar prejudges a part of their country’s history, while those who want to fence it in do not know history. When the moment called for it, the people of Skrapar stood up for their country, let alone for themselves. Nevertheless, Skrapar also voted in significant numbers for the former opposition, making a logical and credible change compared with previous elections. Perhaps its “fault” is that it did not “fly” from one extreme to the other, as some other districts did. Could the former opposition have won in Skrapar? The fact that the result was close shows that it could have won. Under the previous regime, Skrapar was one of the regions most disadvantaged economically. Likewise, the authorities’ abuse of its patriotism was disgusting. The opposition could have made its way into Skrapar very easily if it had shown more restraint in its attitude toward history, since the people of Skrapar are very sensitive about their connection to history. Do you think the PS could have lost the election? Of course the PS could have lost; that was understandable given the country’s political, economic and psychological situation. This result was more of a psychological choice, allowing people to free themselves from stress by giving the former opposition a try. Likewise, entering an election campaign in these conditions of economic acceleration, without promising anything concrete—as the PS did, while the former opposition made many concrete promises—made winning almost impossible. Nevertheless, the 25 percent share is unjustifiable and places the PS leaders, both centrally and locally, under responsibility. Whoever thinks this reflects the real balance of the electorate is fooling themselves. The promises will soon be confronted with harsh realities, and people will begin to “return” to earth and judge the political forces more realistically. What is FRES’s position under the new circumstances for the socialist alternative following the election? We are not responsible for the PS’s defeat, but for its future. For us, the Socialist Party begins today, under the new circumstances that have emerged. Today it is clear who is a true socialist—someone who joined the PS and FRES out of conviction—and who is a chameleon, a coward or a careerist. In this sense, the defeat helps us in the process of clarifying and consolidating our alternative. The Forum was created in a heated political situation and naturally threw itself into this campaign in support of the PS. Now the time has come for the Forum to focus more on itself, and to organize and consolidate further. The Assembly has now begun its work. What are your impressions of its start? Although the Assembly’s proceedings were opened by a victim of the dictatorship, Mr. Pjetër Arbnori, the television news report on the Assembly’s proceedings was, regrettably, opened by a persecutor of the dictatorship, Enver Hoxha’s personal correspondent, Mr. Alfons Gurashi, who has not forgotten his old trade of disinforming public opinion. Nevertheless, the people are aware of the ordinary political position adopted by the “depoliticized” RTV. As the youngest deputy in the People’s Assembly, what do you feel? I feel a very great responsibility, since I am the deputy for perhaps the most difficult constituency. That is why I distance myself from the unbreakable brotherhood of the People’s Assembly, in order to bring about the approval of the president and the government and unblock the state, legal and economic paralysis that has gripped the country for a long time. Only in this way can we begin to find solutions to the problems facing the whole country, and certainly my constituency as well. And finally: I want to thank those voters who voted for me, and greet the others who voted for the former opposition. … would have shown greater restraint in its attitude toward history. Because Albanians are very sensitive about their history. Do you think the PS could lose the election? That the PS could lose is, of course, understandable given the political, economic, and psychological situation in the country. This result was more of a psychological solution, so that people could free themselves from …

— In his speech, Mr. Spahia said, among other things: Pjetër Arbnori is one of the most distinguished figures of the Albanian democratic movement. The communist regime intended not to let him leave prison alive, because it considered him one of the most dangerous figures for monism in Albania. In the previous legislature he appeared as a man of great integrity and extraordinary sharpness of mind... Tomor Malasi is a distinguished intellectual..., an indefatigable fighter for the triumph of peace and democracy,... with an unbending character, who resolves matters with prudence, intelligence and perseverance... Nothing is said about Sh. Shaqir Vukaj that is worth quoting. So now we ask: what is left to say about the president? (The quotations are taken from the ATSH news report.)

— POGRADEC — The Eurosocialist Forum of the Pogradec district has been and remains present in Albania’s democratic developments. It respects these developments regardless of who claims authorship of them. To make its contribution to these processes as practical as possible, it has positioned itself alongside the most active force (the Socialist Party). Seeing that its program expresses and corresponds to the program and ideals of Eurosocialist youth, it not only respects it but has also worked, and will continue to work especially hard, to strengthen the ranks of Eurosocialist youth and the Socialist Party by bringing in new members. On this basis, our Forum will make a concrete contribution to strengthening the Socialist Party in the district. The facts show that Eurosocialist youth in the district is growing stronger and becoming more consolidated day by day. Socialist convictions have become dominant among our young people. This has meant that around 30 more will soon be admitted. The Eurosocialist Forum of our district will establish its own organizations in the villages, independent of the existing Socialist Party organizations. Cooperation between these two youth-party bodies will strengthen the Socialist Party in the district even further. AUREL DUKA Chairman of the Eurosocialist Forum of the district, Pogradec

For true democracy to become consolidated and advance, honest, capable and dedicated people, true patriots, must be elected to lead the country and its state institutions. The post-election period following March 22, alongside the many problems awaiting solutions, also carries within it a thousand questions which, more than curiosity, express a desire. They express the goodwill to see the most capable, most honest and most dedicated people leading the country and the many tasks before us. There are reasons for this. We are all witnesses to the very serious consequences caused by mediocrity rising to the top of the pyramid of the party-state. We still vividly remember how incapable people became senior officials, people for whom Albania was no bigger than the courtyard of their own home. The consequences are well known. No comment is needed. But what about today, in the age of democracy? Which people are being chosen to lead us? Are they capable of bringing us out of the difficult situation we are in? Anyone can guess the answers to these questions simply by learning the name of the person elected. One of the first questions people asked, not only in the first days of Parliament’s meeting but even earlier, was who would be elected to head the People’s Assembly. Who would be chosen in place of Kastriot Islami, Aleksandër Meksi and Lush Për-pali? The new Parliament itself gave the answer: through the mechanism of voting, Pjetër Arbnori was elected chairman, and Tomorr Malasi and Shaqir Vukaj deputy chairmen. These are three names familiar to public opinion. They were also deputies in the previous Parliament. Pjetër Arbnori, 62, distinguished for his anti-communist activity, was elected chairman. According to yesterday’s “RD,” he began his anti-communist activity while still at secondary school. After completing higher studies in Literature and Philology, Mr. Arbnori was arrested in the spring of 1961 because, according to “RD,” he and other comrades had formed a social-democratic organization. He was sentenced to death, a sentence commuted to 25 years in prison. While serving his sentence, he was given an additional 10-year sentence, making a total of 29 years in prison; he emerged only when the winds of pluralist democracy began to blow. His sentence, of course, also embodied the practices and mentality of monism, of the party-state. From the time the Democratic Party was founded, he was also chairman of its branch in the district of Shkodër. Tomorr Malasi, former chairman of the Pluralist Executive Committee of the Tirana district from the establishment of the Government of Stability until shortly before the elections, was elected deputy speaker of the Albanian Parliament. He is 61 years old and is a mechanical engineer by profession. “RD” presents him as a man of broad technical and cultural horizons and great honesty, persecuted during the dictatorship because, after graduating from university, he worked as an engineer at the Gjegjan mine, the Metallurgical Combine and the NM Mines. He was also a PD deputy in the previous legislature of the People’s Assembly, where he made a significant contribution to consolidating democracy and resolving the many problems of the residents of the area he represented and of the whole city of Tirana, where he served as chairman. After he was appointed head of the pluralist Executive Committee, Tirana became cleaner, and the population’s supplies became more stable, etc. Shaqir Vukaj is the other deputy speaker of the People’s Assembly, nominated by the Socialist Party; he is a chemical engineer by profession. He is not presented as having been persecuted by the dictatorship, although he also worked in Kurbnesh, Mirditë. He worked for a long time in branches of the food industry and served in our representations abroad. Since April of last year, he had been elected chairman of the Socialist Party’s Steering Committee for the Shkodër district. He was also a deputy for the Shkodër district during the previous legislature. The Presidium of the People’s Assembly has been elected. It has begun its work. Although it includes no lawyer or genuine politician, let us hope it will quickly overcome its amateurism in this difficult role. We wish the new Presidium success in its work, so that it may lead the Albanian Parliament with competence and democratic culture, ensuring that it does not become a worthless debating hall but instead passes democratic laws for the benefit of the people of Albania. Other questions await answers. Who will be the Head of State? Who will be the new Prime Minister, the person who will lead economic reform and get the country out of the crisis into which we have sunk? Who will the new ministers be? Let us await Parliament’s decisions. What matters is that Albania and democracy need honest, capable people who are free of unhealthy passions. The people need true Albanians who know how to speak to them in an Albanian way, for the common good. There are plenty of such people, as long as there is a willingness to choose the best. LUAN M. RAMA

By Decision No. 21, dated April 6, 1992, the Pluralist Executive Committee of the Durrës district approved the proposal of the Command of the Durrës Naval Military Base and, pursuant to People’s Assembly Decree No. 4199, dated 9.1.1988, declared the officer of the Naval Military Base, First Lieutenant Hail Veli Latifi, a Martyr of the Fatherland, with the following citation: “Always characterized by dedication to his work and distinguished by a strong sense of duty, with a love of the Fatherland and democracy, he fell after being fatally struck by a criminal hand while on his way to his unit, at a time when the Command had granted him leave to stay by his sick child.”

Your opinion: Should those who committed abuses during the establishment of pluralist democracy be held accountable before the law? Some time ago, through the press, I published an article about those people we used to call “socialists,” whom our “socialist” society produced in abundance as party and state officials (senior, middle-ranking and “junior”), mercelogë, shopkeepers and bartenders, diplomats, teachers, fare collectors, etc. The article recounted a highly revealing incident from the life of the reformist Turkish president Ataturku. He was reportedly told, with concern, that a senior general-staff officer in charge of logistics was using a large house beyond his means. “Let him enjoy it!” the president reportedly said, as though he had been given some ordinary piece of news. Some time later, his aides once again brought the matter to his attention. “Let him enjoy it!” the president said again, adding, “Just let me know when he finishes building it!” One day Ataturku went to visit the logistics officer’s newly built house. He brought along economists and construction specialists. “Enjoy your new house!” the president said to the homeowner. “You’ve made it very large!” the president added. The logistics officer nodded. “And expensive, by the looks of it,” Ataturku continued. Then a very difficult dialogue took place between the officer and the reformist president—a simple, practical inquiry conducted in full view of everyone. “How many years have you been working?” “How much are you able to save in a month?” “Did you inherit anything from your parents or your wife’s parents?” Every question seemed like an earthquake to the logistics officer, shaking the very foundations of his house, since he had not thought about how he would get out of it when he took up that job. And when the questions were over and the answers had been gathered, the reformist president said the following prophetic words firmly, (To be continued on page 3)

Parliamentary reflections Is there a parliament today? No. How can that be, given the situation Albania is in? It was Sunday, wasn’t it? The co-chairs we were talking with, although one of them had campaigned before the elections for the opposition to be given a role, reacted to the slow start of Parliament’s proceedings with a kind of “response.” If it were up to us, who are outside Albania and know how much work this country and all its people must do to reach Europe, we would work not only on Sunday, not only during the day, but at night too; we would have… …for the problems that await us, and for a bit of humor. As if this Parliament had completed all its work and put everything in order except the matter of the symbols. We were not overcome by this sense of spectacle. And just when no one can make out what was said or what is being done, a break is called. A half-hour break turns into an hour, then two hours. And so on. Sometimes, too, the proceedings are cancelled and postponed until the afternoon, until tomorrow… It happens. Many deputies have taken government portfolios. It happens. It happens that they are unprepared. It happens that this time they were elected… It happens that the blame lies with the chair… …empty, because now there is no one to turn on. Or perhaps the fault lies with the Socialist Party’s parliamentary group, which is a minority and cannot be attacked because it is now in opposition. Or perhaps the parliamentarians are afraid of transparency. The television has decided that some sessions need not be broadcast, even in the late hours. There is a strong possibility that this Parliament will go through all the laws passed by the previous Parliament once again, one by one (for several months). And then we will ask, “Where is it?”—to prepare the Parliament “…”? One deputy called for comparisons with the previous Parliament to stop, saying this was not the place for them. Fair enough. Nevertheless, the viewers in this country who follow Parliament and its proceedings—whether they like it or not—are proud of it. In fact, they have already begun shaking their heads. MEHMETI KOLA

The Chairman of the Socialist Party of Albania, Fatos Nano, has departed for Greece to take part in the conference entitled “Europe and the Mediterranean in the New World Situation,” organized by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Forum Foundation (based in Switzerland). to take part in the conference entitled “Europe and the Mediterranean in the New World Situation,” organized by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Forum Foundation (based in Switzerland). Senior representatives of the governments of Mediterranean countries and several European organizations, as well as prominent figures from these countries, will take part in the conference. The conference will address the issues concerning the relationship between trade in goods and the Mediterranean countries, security issues in the … Mediterranean region, and the possibilities for global cooperation.

relatively high. The law cited on television applied to a time when the entire economy was in the hands of the state. Now, as a private individual, you pay what you owe to it, in full. The demand for free copies of newspapers or books is a completely illogical form of confiscation. Just as it is illogical that the neighborhood libraries in Tirana have been kept closed for so long. At least there. We don’t know why Radio Tirana is taking so long, but in Shkodër a strict rule has been established. If you ask Radio Shkodra to broadcast a song, you have to deposit in its cashbox the extraordinarily “modest” sum of 50 lek (!!!). So, dear Shkodran song lover, with 40 songs, instead of ordering them, you’d be better off buying a tape recorder, a 2,000-lek cassette player, and … getting closer to the music program—… requests. You respected dilettantes of the market economy! Have you thought of sending any percentage of the 50-lek notes you collect “for free” to the poets, composers, or, after all, the singer, whose sweat keeps your program going, while they still haven’t bought a tape recorder?