Open letter to parliament DAZED AND ABANDONED — It is the time for collapse today, not for the promised shaking tomorrow — Honourable Members of Parliament! I am not writing this personal letter to any one of you at random; I am writing it insistently because I feel I must. I feel I have reached a moment when words must come not only from the mind, but also from the heart. Do you know what it means for a person, for a family, for an entire people, to lose hope? Do you know what it means to see every day that life is becoming harder, that bread is lacking, that children look their parents in the eye without knowing what to give them? I am not here to make rhetoric, nor to speak in slogans. I am here to say a bitter but great truth: the Albanian people are falling into the abyss of poverty and abandonment. Yes, I say it with full responsibility: today we are dazed and abandoned. Dazed by insecurity, by fear, by anxiety for tomorrow. Abandoned by those who should care for us, by those who should govern with a clear mind and a just hand. We do not need distant promises, beautiful words, or endless excuses. We need bread, work, order, justice. And these are needed today, not tomorrow. Today there are families that do not light a fire. There are old people who live on unaffordable medicines. There are young people who have nowhere to rely on except the road to emigration. There are workers waiting for their wages and receiving words. There are peasants who produce and cannot sell, or have nothing to sow with. There are cities numb, tired, deafened by the noise of crisis. And in this terrible situation, are we to be told that we must wait for the promised shaking of tomorrow? No. It is the time for collapse today. Parliament must not be a place for empty speeches, but for decisions. The government must not be a refuge for incompetence, but an instrument of salvation. If you do not feel the weight of this time, look at people’s faces in queues, in markets, in the streets. Look at mothers, look at pensioners, look at children. And then you will understand that time does not wait. If immediate measures are not taken today, tomorrow it will be too late. No miracle is required. What is required is responsibility, honesty, courage. What is required is not to play with people’s fate. What is required is that the state not be an empty name. What is required is that politics not be a marketplace of words, but a commitment to life. I address you as a citizen, as an ordinary person, but also as part of this suffering society. I address you to hear the silent cry of the people. It is stronger than any cheer. It is the voice of hunger, of shortage, of disappointment. Do not ignore it. Because today the country does not need promised shaking for tomorrow. It needs salvation today.

When journalist Ana went to Shkodër about fifteen days ago for the trial, with a video camera, recording tape, camera, and tape recorder, she confronted the defendants, prosecutors, judges, spectators, and dozens of police officers. She did something very simple and very necessary: she saw with her own eyes. But no one told her why in that small room, charged with a visible tension, there were so many eyes waiting not for justice, but for a sign of force. The Shkodër trial is not a regional matter, nor an event that can be closed with a dry report. It is a test for the state, for the law, for the citizen. It is a test of the way a society emerges from revenge, from chaos, from the collapse of authority. And precisely for that reason, the silence is heavy. So why is there silence? Why is there no open discussion about the procedure, the evidence, the pressure, the atmosphere? Why are citizens not given the right to know? Are we perhaps afraid of the truth? Or have we learned to shut our eyes whenever justice is put to the test? If so, then this silence is complicit. In the courtroom there were no shortage of the familiar faces of our collective emotions: anger, mistrust, thirst for punishment, suspicion. And in such an environment, the law must be clearer than ever. Otherwise, the trial turns into a spectacle, justice into improvisation, and the state into a spectator. Those who have been in Shkodër know well that the city does not need silence. It needs clarity. It needs to know what is happening in the name of the law. Because when public speech is absent, gossip flourishes. And gossip is the first enemy of justice. Therefore the question remains: why this silence about the Shkodër trial? Who benefits from it? Not the citizen, not the law, not the truth.

In the first announcement on the state of order and peace, the number of victims of the armed conflict in the northeastern city of Shkodër was given as 4. In the second announcement by the Ministry of Public Order, also concerning the Shkodër conflict, that number was changed to 8–9 dead. According to this ministry, the event happened on 16 May, whereas according to others it was on the 17th. There is confusion about the place, the time, the circumstances, and the consequences. At a time when the public needs more than ever accuracy, transparency, and responsibility, the inconsistency of the figures and dates brings not only uncertainty but also doubt. Doubt about the institutions, about the seriousness of official communication, about the state’s ability to handle serious situations. Is it acceptable that in such a serious matter, where human lives have been lost, official announcements should fluctuate so much? Is it normal for public opinion not to know which version to believe? When the state itself appears unclear, the citizen feels unprotected and deceived. This is not simply a lapse, a technical error, or a rush. It is about trust. And trust is built with accurate truths, measured communication, and respect for the public. Otherwise, every subsequent statement loses its weight. Therefore the question is justified: which one should we believe? The first, the second, or neither? Until things are stated clearly, this question will remain open.

On 18 and 19 May in Rome, the secretary for external relations of the Socialist Party of Albania, Mr. Servet Pëllumbi, held a series of meetings with representatives of Italian and European socialist and social-democratic parties. The talks focused on bilateral relations, experience of democratic transformations, the situation in Albania, and possibilities for further political cooperation. During these meetings, the need was emphasized to deepen contacts between the European left-wing forces and the Socialist Party of Albania. Support was expressed for the role of the SPA in Albanian political life and for its efforts to consolidate democracy and the rule of law. The Albanian delegation also held working meetings with representatives of other political and social organizations, where recent developments in the country and Albania’s European perspective were discussed. These meetings represent another step in the expansion of the international relations of the Socialist Party of Albania and in strengthening its presence in European political dialogue.

Mr. Spiro Deda reports with concern from the Elbasan district about the dire situation of orphans and pensioners in several areas, where the lack of social support is pushing people to the edge of survival. He calls for urgent intervention from state bodies and local authorities to ensure housing, financial assistance, and job opportunities for those who have no support at all. According to him, many orphans have been left to the mercy of fate, while many pensioners, despite their advanced age, are forced to seek work in order to make ends meet. This situation, he stresses, is unacceptable for a society that aims to be humane and democratic.

— The Albanian Deputy Foreign Minister states upon arrival at the KBSë — The Deputy Foreign Minister of Albania declared upon his arrival at the KBSë that our country cannot accept hasty or irresponsible solutions to the issue of Albanians in Kosovo. He stressed that any formula must take into account the legitimate rights of the Albanian population and international standards. According to him, stability in the region is closely linked to the fair treatment of the Kosovo issue and to guaranteeing the political, national, and human rights of Albanians there. Albania, he added, will continue to maintain a clear and responsible position in international forums. The statement comes at a sensitive diplomatic moment, as developments in the former Yugoslavia are drawing the attention of European chancelleries and international organizations.

Concerns raised for at least two weeks about the situation of teachers in towns and remote areas are now taking on broader dimensions. Teachers complain about unpaid salaries, transportation difficulties, poor housing conditions, and the lack of institutional recognition. In many cases, teachers must cover expenses from minimal incomes, while some of them are thinking of leaving the profession. This directly harms the quality of education in areas that were already suffering from a lack of infrastructure. Educational institutions and local authorities must respond immediately to prevent this situation from worsening. Education cannot be sustained on the teacher’s endless sacrifice.

— Broken coalition government, coalition work, and teaching, jump to the DSP — — ???[?] if work with education does not continue — Ko Keka: "Do we continue school or not?" — — Bad year(?) for education and the head of household[?], but teachers must receive their wages — (Headlines on page 2) The situation in pre-university and university education is moving toward an escalation of social conflict. Teachers are demanding back pay, better conditions, and clarity on education policies. The strike is being presented as the last resort to draw the government’s attention to the serious situation.

On 19 May 1992, at 10:00, the executive committee of the Independent Education Union (SPA) of the Shkodër district meets for the second time. At the end of the meeting, and after consultations with teachers from the city and district schools, it was decided to begin a general strike of teachers. Schools of all categories will take part in the strike. The demands concern wages, economic conditions, and the resolution of the problems weighing on education. (Continues on page 3)

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