What does constitutional law say? THE JURISTS SPEAK: It is being considered that the Constitution will be approved by a constitutional assembly, which will be decreed by the president. What is your opinion? ARTICLE 16. The People’s Assembly has the following main powers: 2. It approves and amends the Constitution and laws,... Draft amendments to this law may be submitted by the President of the Republic of Albania, the Council of Ministers, or one quarter of the deputies. ARTICLE 43. Amendments are approved by the People’s Assembly by a majority of two thirds of all deputies. From Law No. 7491, dated 29. 4. 1991, THE JURISTS SPEAK: It is being considered that the Constitution will be approved by a constitutional assembly, which will be decreed by the president. What is your opinion? A Constituent Assembly elected by the people Dr. FEHMI ABDIU, deputy Under the law “On the Main Constitutional Provisions,” the only body competent to approve the new Constitution is the People’s Assembly. Apart from that body, by amending the constitutional law, it has the right to delegate this authority to another body, namely the Constituent Assembly. To do this, Parliament would do well to proceed only by amending the constitutional law, both because of the importance of the issue and because it would thereby acknowledge that it is an institution with a significant inability to fulfill this mission. But this task can in no way be carried out except by a Constituent Assembly elected by the people. All political forces must therefore be involved, because the Constitution must be made for the entire people and not for one or two parties. I would call any other solution, outside a Constituent Assembly elected by the people, a national misfortune. “A Constituent Assembly by presidential decree, approved by Parliament as an ordinary law” ZEF BROZI, President of the Court of Cassation: “Regarding the method of approving the Constitution through a Constituent Assembly, and the way the Constituent Assembly is established and composed: I believe this can be done by presidential decree, which would undoubtedly be submitted to Parliament. I believe that proceeding through the ordinary route, with an ordinary law on the technical aspects, composition, and method of establishing the Assembly, would also be entirely lawful. Of course, the current constitutional provisions state that a Constitution approved by two thirds of Parliament is adopted as an ordinary law; but under the current Constitution, where there is a conflict of interests and will in Parliament, I am convinced that if the matter is left to Parliament, either it may not be approved because the necessary two-thirds majority will not be achieved, or a constitution will be produced that does not meet the demands of the times or what our country needs today: a contemporary, modern, and as effective as possible constitution that perfectly balances the powers and provides constitutional solutions to the problems of our time: A democratic Constitution approved...

- According to BI BI SI. - The BI BI SI correspondent in Athens reports an immediate reaction by Greek Foreign Minister Papulias after the prosecutor made his closing statement at the trial against five members of the minority in Tirana. According to this source, Papulias warned that [if they are sentenced]. But, according to unidentified diplomatic sources, it is thought that the international community will do something to prevent Albanian-Greek relations from deteriorating further. They linked this prospect to the fact that the prosecutor in Tirana sought a sentence of less than five years, [they] are reviewing the articles of the Penal Code, and [there is] a reluctance to say anything definitive in Athens. According to this source, something is expected to be done by Germany, which currently holds the EU presidency.

- According to BI BI SI. - Radio Bi Bi Si from Macedonia again reported a shameful act that insulted the Albanian flag at the Poetry Festival in Struga, where a discolored and torn flag had been used. In connection with this anti-Albanian insult, the poet Agim Shehu had refused to appear. According to this source, Albanian diplomats in Skopje had still not commented on this anti-Albanian gesture. Similar incidents had also occurred at the autumn poetry festival in Struga, with Albanian symbols being burned and insulted.

TIRANA What had been the activation of the alarm equipment, which urgently summoned the police, ended in “much ado about nothing.” But while the bank employees dismiss Monday’s incident as an ordinary bank alarm, many of the passersby who witnessed it may have recalled with concern the case in Peshkopi, where the robbery had caught them off guard at the bank. In any case, on Monday the alarm system worked to the utmost and, although this time it was “activated” at its most sensitive setting, it at least issued a serious warning; ...

Prof. LUAN OMARI, member of the Academy of Sciences of Albania and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Recently, the view has emerged that the new Constitution should be approved by a Constituent Assembly. In itself, this view is entirely acceptable. In modern contemporary history, from the French Revolution onward, there have been many cases of constitutions being approved by special assemblies formed expressly for this purpose. In the contemporary period, in France in 1946, a Constituent Assembly was elected twice in succession, until the draft constitution was accepted by the entire population in a referendum. In Italy, on 2 June 1946, alongside the nationwide referendum to determine the form of the state—republic or monarchy—a Constituent Assembly was also elected; it approved the Italian Constitution, promulgated in December 1947 and brought into force after this assembly, and elections for Parliament were held in 1948. There are also cases in which, after completing the task of approving the constitution, the constituent assembly is not dissolved but becomes an ordinary legislative body, as happened in Albania after the Constitution was approved by the Constituent Assembly in 1946. For these reasons, I say that the proposal for a Constituent Assembly may be considered justified. But this does not mean that our Parliament is not legally empowered to approve the Constitution. Point 2 of Article 16 of the law “On the Main Constitutional Provisions” expressly states that “the People’s Assembly approves and amends the Constitution and the laws.” This is clear and leaves no room for interpretation. It is true that Article 44 of the aforementioned law provides that the draft Constitution is to be drawn up by a special commission appointed by the People’s Assembly, and that the commission’s response and the deadline for submitting the draft are set by a separate decision of the Assembly itself; it does not mention the approval of the Constitution. But this is explained by the fact that Article 16 considers this one of the main powers of the People’s Assembly, which encompasses the matter in its entirety, while Article 44 is a transitional provision dealing only with the preparation of the draft of this new Constitution. Naturally, Parliament, as a constitutional and legislative body, can amend the law on the main constitutional provisions and remove from itself its main powers (Continued on page 4)

NJAZI JAHO, jurist. It would be good for this issue to be discussed beforehand at a round table involving all political parties, not only those represented in Parliament, but in our view the body that would make the decision should be the People’s Assembly itself. If the idea of approving the draft Constitution by a Constituent Assembly were accepted, the corresponding amendments would have to be made to the law “On the Main Constitutional Provisions.” The People’s Assembly itself could make these amendments. Today’s Parliament may have its strengths and weaknesses, but its role and powers are established by law: They cannot be delegated to another body without its consent. Consequently, it is understood that no other body can exercise the powers that belong exclusively to Parliament. But some say: The President of the Republic has the right to issue decrees of an individual nature as well as decrees of a normative nature; so why should he not also have the power to issue a decree setting the criteria for approving the Constitution by the Constituent Assembly and the composition of that Assembly? I would answer: Yes, it is true that he as well as decrees of a normative nature; under point 19 of Article 28 of the law “On the Main Constitutional Provisions,” they must be submitted to the People’s Assembly for approval. The law has not given the President any power to determine and decide which body will approve the Constitution and what that body’s composition will be (for example, that of the Constituent Assembly). Consequently, this matter cannot be resolved by decree: (Taken from “Dita informacion,” 28 August 1994)

The night before last, at midnight, a Bulgarian driver traveling from the north toward Tirana in a van was stopped near Skutaj in the district of Laç, threatened with weapons, savagely beaten, and robbed by a group of people who have not yet been identified. A source at the Laç police station confirms that, according to the Bulgarian driver himself, a group of five masked men armed with automatic weapons stepped in front of him. As soon as he stopped the vehicle, one of the five blocked his way and threatened him with an automatic weapon; the others struck him in the face, tore his clothes, and finally, as a “reward,” demanded that he hand over his money. The driver stated that they robbed him of 2,000 marks and 1,000 dollars. Then they left the driver in that “freedom” and fled in an unknown direction. The driver immediately notified the law-enforcement authorities, who began searching for the perpetrators of this attack, but so far the terrorist group has not been identified. This is not the first time such attacks and robberies have taken place in these very areas. Several times, “special” groups in the areas of Milot, Dvana, and Skuraj have set up such ambushes, particularly for emigrants passing through who are traveling to their homes in the northern regions, and for foreign drivers traveling in these parts, beating and robbing them. At least, as Albanians, we should remember a longstanding tradition: welcoming guests into our homes with our own bread—truly shameful.

- The studio of the People’s Sculptor Odise Paskali has been robbed. According to Florina Paskali, among other things, the original bust of Skënderbeu and Odise Paskali’s death mask are missing. What makes this incident painful and shocking is that the studio has been turned into accommodation for the homeless. ** - The swans driven away for the winter by Russia on July 25 go on to live another life. One of them, aged 10, is from the village of Dukagjin. Me Përcolli

... in eight houses where 12 families lived, there was serious damage, * * - “Elektroplast”, the largest Greek newspaper, in its coverage, among other things, condemns the debate over Albanian refugees from Greece. * * * - At Durrës port, ships have unloaded in recent days: the “Sino”, with 1,000 tons of beer; the “Marlboro”, with 1,000 tons of urea; and 1,410 tons of oil are being unloaded from the ship “Skopelos”. These are problems

... the theme “25 years of free Libya”. * * - Our scouts, representatives of the youth organization “Besa Skaut-Albania”, recently took part in a series of international activities held in Athens within the framework of the UN program for environmental protection. * * * - The Albania-Libya Friendship Association is organizing an event today in the hall of the Academy of Sciences on the subject of

- The football stadium in Durrës is being given the name of one of the distinguished footballers, former captain and goalkeeper of the Durrës team “Niko Dovana”. * * - “I did not receive decorations from the dictatorship for my political convictions,” Kurt Kola declares in an interview with “Koha Jonë”. * * * - A ninth-grader from Shkodra. According to the

- By order of the municipal council, intoxicated people will not be served in the city’s private establishments. * * - “Karitas”, a Swiss organization, is investing 40,000 dollars in a bakery in Kallmet, Lezhë, whose construction has begun and is expected to be completed in October this year. * * * - In three of the pharmacies in the city of Lezhë, batches of adulterated medicines being sold to

innovative citizens. * * - The Association for the Preservation and Protection of the Environment is protesting the destruction of forest plants. According to the association, all the forests near roads and “shtatarave” (30,000–80,000 hectares) are being cut down, and in the lowland areas there are no standing trees left. * * * - The coffin of the Albanian emigrant Kadri Shaban Plaku was brought from Corfu. He comes from Farka, Tirana, and works as an accident adjuster.