REALITIES AND ALTERNATIVES: By Dr. Serves Pëllumbi, Deputy Chairman of the Socialist Party There are events that carry many messages with them and, for this reason, become starting points for reflection; for making more productive «use» of other facts and events that are widely known and which, in this context, take on a current resonance. Among these I would single out the events in relations between the Democratic Party (PD) and the Association of Former Political Persecutees in the first half of August, as well as the exploitation of the tense situation in relations with Greece to provoke a kind of «new» movement toward nationalism, to replace the former anti-communism in the struggle against political opponents at home, particularly the socialists. Careful observation of the course of such events allows us not only to witness an unusual escalation of the country’s political life, but also to pose and analyze the questions: how and why did it happen here too, that a right-wing political force such as the PD should enter a deep crisis and gradually turn into a regressive and anti-democratic force? A time when many questions were being asked It was at such a time that pluralism was born in Albania and the Democratic Party was formed; the first o- (Continued on page 3)

NEARLY 55,000 PEOPLE FORCIBLY RETURNED FROM GREECE ARE ASKING TO BE GIVEN HOPE AND WORK IN THEIR OWN COUNTRY The government responds by speculating with stale comments about joint declarations and secret agreements Statement from the Ministry of [cut off] A reminder for the Ministry of Public Order... MACEDONIA, TOO, IS SENDING ALBANIANS BACK

Tomorrow in Tirana, the Italian foreign minister - Albanian officials must know what to ask for and how to ask for it. Italian Foreign Minister Dr. Antonio Martino will be in Tirana tomorrow for a one-day visit. The member of Prime Minister Berlusconi’s cabinet—which came to power after the latest elections and the victory of the coalition of three political forces, «Forza Italia», «National Alliance», «Lega Nord»—will arrive in Tirana at midday on Monday and leave on Tuesday morning. Official sources report that Mr. Martino will hold a series of meetings with Albanian officials: Foreign Minister Serreqi, Prime Minister Meksi, and finally President Berisha. The Italian foreign minister, the latest in a succession of foreign ministers from the European Community, finds Albania—as did his other colleagues— in an extremely difficult state during his visit. The crisis of confidence that has engulfed Albanians, resulting from the economic, political, social and constitutional crisis gripping official Tirana, has made one fixed thought present in Albanians’ minds: Leave Albania... Faced with growing waves of Albanian opposition and with people being turned back from Greece this time, another gateway connecting Albania with the 12 Europeans has come into play: Italy. On the eve of Mr. Martino’s visit to Tirana, the Italian media gave particular attention, under headlines such as «The naval battle with the poor», to the landing of around 1,000 Albanian clandestine migrants on the Italian coast, describing it as «the prelude to a major landing». The situation seems to be that of March 1991. Perhaps this is why Albanians regard Mr. Martino’s visit as another hope for them. How well-founded this hope is This is still unknown. But Albanians cannot forget and are not ungrateful for the humanitarian aid of neighboring Italy. It was the Italian people who took in thousands of Albanian refugees in March 1991. It was the Italian government that came to their aid and concluded very broad agreements with the Albanian governments led by Fatos Nano and Ylli Bufi. Their figures today raise Albanians’ hopes. Nano signed 113 billion lire in food aid and raw materials. Ylli Bufi signed another 240 billion in aid credits. But the «good times» of these agreements in relations between the two friendly countries did not last long: March 22, when Berisha came to power, led to an absurd cooling of relations. Berisha saw other flags in the background, but they always remained in the background. Relations with the Italians remained in Durrës, avoiding any worsening that Tirana might have risked. After the «ArsI-» scandal, the Italians (Continued on page 4) discovered that Tirana was not being [?] open and honest with them. The trial Tirana brought against socialist leader Nano—the prime minister at the time when relations between the two countries were flourishing—was not a trial against him alone! At that time Berisha, in an interview with the Italian newspaper «La Repubblica», described the Italian embassy as a friend of his enemies. But in any case, what matters is that Martino will be in Tirana tomorrow. Once again, hope will belong to the Albanian people, while official Tirana—the Berisha regime—uses and will use everything, even this latest visit, as a propaganda tool to tell Albanians: Look at the success of my government; everyone loves me. This is also because in relations (Continued on page 4)

Italy—a natural partner for Albania The visit of Italian Foreign Minister Mr. Martino is considered important both for bilateral relations and at the regional level, also in light of certain positions and visions expressed by the Italian government regarding the Balkans. We have considered Italy a natural gateway for our integration into Europe, and this will once again have significance during this visit. We have been, and remain, grateful to friendly Italy for everything it has done for us Albanians, particularly at the beginning of the democratic processes. I would like the talks in Tirana to be constructive and concrete, with clear short- and long-term cooperation plans in priority areas, including significant investment. We must know what we are asking for and how to ask for it, and establish general formulas and approaches. We need a partnership founded on dignity. As far as I know, some earlier agreements and projects have remained pending. There have also been views that relations have a «cold» atmosphere and are frozen. But there have also been statements by both sides at official levels that everything is going wonderfully. If so, then I hope Mr. Martino’s visit will also serve to establish open and concrete visions and principles in the friendly relations between the two friendly countries. BASHKIM ZENELI, Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Policy of the People’s Assembly

Shkodër The fratricidal gunfire of blood feuds continues to claim lives. Two people were killed and one wounded the day before yesterday morning in the village of Mushan, in the commune of Dajç. Those killed were brothers Bahri and Vehbi Gramshi, aged 34 and 35 respectively, and the wounded man was their cousin. The funeral took place yesterday at 9:00. The story of this massacre began in August last year, when the brother of Bahri and Vehbi, Gëzim Gramshi, killed two fellow villagers, Sadik and Daut Kokaj. Within that period, in a confrontation with police forces, [he] remained… [?] (Continued on page 2)

Shkodër …what [?] question is answered with diffi… [?]culty by an inspector and director… [?] of education in this district. Last year more than 700 pupils from the… [?] level of education, having completed their… [?] studies, left school. This year, judging by the registration trend so far, there is a tendency to return to school, says the inspector in question. But the school buildings themselves remain a concern. There is a shortage of glass panes, doors and windows; desks, tables and teaching materials are also lacking. It is very difficult, following the closure of several village secondary schools, to group pupils into 15 multi-grade classes. H… [?]owever, their proper operation under this organizational arrangement absolutely requires special care to provide them with the necessary material resources, not forgetting the dormitories. For the inspector, the way schoolbooks are distributed is also a worrying problem. Textbooks have arrived and continue to arrive, u… [?]nlike in previous years, when some distribution took place before the schools closed. T… [?]hey used to be delivered within a specified w… [?]eek; now the money must be paid first and the books collected afterwards. This has put teachers in a difficult position, since, given the conditions they face in the district, it is very hard for them to go from village to village today to collect money from pupils. The inspector says that under this system a considerable number of pupils will start classes without textbooks. MUSA KURTULAJ

A reminder to the Ministry of Public Order... The spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Order reports on RTV almost every night the number of Albanians sent back from Greece, and rightly so, since not only the attention of Albanians but surely that of all European public opinion has turned toward our neighbors… [?]. But now, at the same time, Albanians temporarily employed in Macedonia are also being forcibly sent back from there (naturally with the same brutality and force, and in the same way). They are from the villages of Librazhd, Prespa, Elbasan, Pogradec, Dibër and Korçë. By way of illustration, we mention one of the most recent cases, when Macedonian police forcibly entered the home of Sami Halili in Xhepçisht - Tetovo Municipality to forcibly take away the 6 Albanians employed there. The dispute between the police and the homeowner, who did not want to hand over the Albanians, became so heated that it turned into a scuffle. The two policemen first called for reinforcements. The house and almost the entire village were surrounded. But the homeowner still did not hand over the Albanians. He telephoned the chairman of the parliamentary group, MP Muhamet Halili, who also did not take long to arrive. The MP’s intervention calmed things down and stopped… [?] the violence that had begun; the 6 Albanians temporarily employed in Macedonia did not end up in the police station. But what was not done that day was done the next day, and continues to be done today. In just one day, more than 100 Albanians were forcibly removed from this village and the surrounding area. Yesterday…[?] Perhaps the spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Order ought to speak about these people too?

...And for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Not long ago, during a television program by the Albanian-language editorial department in Skopje, a listener from Tetovo asked Mr. Xheladin Murati, Deputy Speaker of the Macedonian Parliament: “Does the Republic of Albania have an embassy in Skopje or not?” Mr. Xheladin Murati, greatly surprised (Continued on page 4)

PERMET — A DANGER TO PEOPLE PERMET A DANGER TO PEOPLE It has become an annual custom for people sick with anthrax (Antrax) and melene (brucellosis) to be admitted to hospital in Përmet at this time of year. A few years ago, this fate befell the villagers of Sukë and Petran, the people of Tolar, while this year it is the people of Katundisht. What about tomorrow? The statistics look bleak and stem from the inability of veterinarians employed in the village to fully carry out preventive measures for livestock. For the other veterinarians in this district, this duty remains optional. This situation poses a danger to citizens who consume meat and other livestock products that have not been inspected. LLAZI PRILLO

TIRANA — ROBBERY AND ... SILENCE TIRANA ROBBERY AND ... SILENCE A citizen from Shkodër came to the newsroom, not with his belongings, which he had set off with from a city kiosk. After getting off at the train station, he found himself in the hands of robbers and was soon robbed of everything he had: his bag with around 20 thousand lekë, his passport from abroad, and even the clothes on his body. “This act of adventurers does not surprise me as much,” said the unfortunate man, “as the indifference of the police officers at Police Station No. 3.” Not a single question, not a single action from them to find the culprits—only an inquiry about accommodating… [?] me at the station and sending me on to Shkodër the next day. Correspondent of «Zëri i Popullit» HAS The Socialist councillors walked out of the Has district council meeting in protest against unlawful privatizations and the granting of loans through ineffective and non-transparent procedures. On these issues, they have requested a face-to-face meeting with the district chairman, the prefect and the minister of local government. We await a response. G. MAZREKU

Albanian-Greek relations are undoubtedly experiencing the deepest crisis of recent years. The Albanian government, respecting the full independence of the judicial branch and not associating any of the proceedings against the five Albanian citizens with the Greek conspiracy accused of espionage and maintaining agents, has stood by the Greek minority in Albania. Long ago, through diplomatic channels and publicly, it asked the Greek government that the judicial proceedings be conducted without noise or heated emotions, and that they not condition or affect relations between the two states. But the Greek government, wishing to mask the criminal actions of its police, has made the opposite accusation. It should be emphasized that the injured party is the Albanian side. The acts of the secret police, military circles and unofficial Greek circles violate Albania’s sovereignty. They include the introduction and mass distribution of firearms in the minority area, an operation financed, organized and carried out by the Greek secret terrorist organization and its origins… . This serious act is a fundamental breach of international agreements and of the many agreements signed long ago by the Greek government. The Albanian government has protested and denounced the activities of this operation and the harm done to the greater part of the minority.

TODAY IN THE SUPPLEMENT: Interview with Dr. KASTRIOT ISLAMI

- Economic contraction in Albania? [?] … in April… [?] and the institutions… [?] … declares… [?] - Consequence of … [?] in Shkodër… [?] - In Shkodër, 5 smugglers are sentenced… [?]… - … in pr… [?]…

… is awaiting the proposal made for the third time for the minister to take the title: “District…” - In Shkodër, 5 smugglers are sentenced… [?] - … at a council meeting… [?]…

- 16 families in the village of Selitë, Laç, continue to wander between the offices of the Commune and the District Council; they have been given no means and only one… [?], while the land … [?] - The newspaper «Javë» reported that «… [?]»… Greek pilot Thoma Vraka, abused… [?] in … [?]

- Alarm in Tirana over water… [?]. Breaks in the distribution network’s pipes have caused disruptions, including the mixing of channels carrying drinking water. Advice from DHEP… [?] jupi about the water… [?] - More than 32 million lekë in irregular loans with an explanatory change; this decision of the council… [?]… - Unwanted advertising! In Saranda… [?]

- The people of Shkodër deku… [?] the production of beer made in their city for the first time at the factory of… [?] in this city, on the initiative of the «Guraj» company. - Albanian Egyptians are not Egyp… [?]… their origins are in Asia, India. - … lu… [?]«the trade of shame». In pl… [?]… - An elderly woman who had died and a child who was seriously injured became victims in recent days of a road accident on «H. Tamasi» Street in Tirana. - Dispute and disagreements over the privatization of the Plastmasit plant in Lushnjë. AKP is calling for an auction, while the independent union is cooperating. - 26 million lekë unpaid by subscribers, state and private entities… [?]…