- A large rally in the city of Kukës - The hunger strike taking place in Kukës entered its 14th day. The health of those confined there is becoming increasingly critical. Yesterday, two more people were admitted to hospital, bringing the total there to 12, while all the other strikers are surviving on glucose, sugar water and various medications. The day before yesterday, the deputy head of the hunger strike, Besnik Oruçi, told us that MP Ridvan Peshkëpia met with us here in the strike hall. He supports the strikers and said that he would raise public awareness through the press and seek a meeting with the ambassador of the European Community to ask for help for the strikers. He also said that he stands with the other parliamentary groups, such as that of the PS, which support the demands of the hunger strikers. We spoke freely with him and once again set out our demands for the implementation of the President’s decree and the Government’s decision of May this year. The day before yesterday, the participants in the strike also sent a telegram to the President of the Republic, Mr. Sali Berisha, and to the Speaker of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly, Mr. Pjetër Arbnori. It said: “We, the hunger strikers in the district of Kukës, ask: are we in the territory of the Republic of Albania, to whose President and Government we gave our votes? Now our patience has run out. We request your position and an urgent meeting to discuss and resolve our demands as soon as possible.” Yesterday morning at 10, a rally was held in the square in front of the district’s Palace of Culture, attended also by residents of the flooded villages and townspeople in support of the hunger strikers’ demands. The number of participants was so large that Kukës has rarely, if ever, seen anything like it. They carried various banners and placards and chanted: “We want our lands back!” “Down with corruption!” and so on. The strike leadership also took part in the rally. Speakers included its chairman, Jahir Trota, deputy chairman Besnik Oruçi, secretary Fadil Shehu, and representatives of all the villages flooded by the construction of Lake Fierza. Their demand was that the flooded land be recognized as building land and that the compensation loan be paid in full, in cash, through the district bank. They do not want to take the loan for flooded homes, since they will build their houses themselves according to the development plans and the laws of the state. They insistently called for Government representatives to come to Kukës to talk with the strike representatives, as well as the MPs from this area. They also demanded that RTV report the real situation of the strike. It was stated here that the hunger-strike delegation bears no responsibility for whatever may happen after this rally. Yesterday, school pupils also did not attend classes. After the rally, its participants marched through the city streets. The rally was peaceful and there were no disturbances. «Zëri i Popullit» correspondent

(Observations and suggestions concerning the draft Criminal Code) ALBANIAN HELSINKI COMMITTEE It has become known that the draft Criminal Code has been submitted to the People’s Assembly for review and approval and is currently at the stage of consideration by its committees. The call by the Legal Affairs Committee to submit observations and proposals on the draft deserves recognition and a welcome. In this context, the Albanian Helsinki Committee, too, considers it necessary to raise several issues concerning the improvement of the draft. For Albanian society, which is engaged in multifaceted efforts to build a state governed by the rule of law, the adoption of a new Criminal Code is an event of great political and legal importance. The Code is directly concerned with the protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms and with the development of an effective fight against crime, both of which require the serious realization of these rights and freedoms. The new Code will mark a new stage in the development of democratic legislation, based on principles and concepts incompatible with the new order established in Albania. The Albanian Helsinki Committee is guided by its concern that the new Criminal Code should genuinely reflect democratic and humane principles; it therefore sets out the following observations and suggestions: 1. Public opinion, both domestic and international, is increasingly drawn to the debate over retaining or abolishing the death penalty. It is well known that broad opinion across Europe and the world continually calls for its abolition. From a purely humanitarian point of view, it would be desirable for such an extreme penalty to be removed from our legislation as well. However, taking into account the disturbing phenomenon of rising crime, and the fact that in practice such very serious crimes as murder, armed robbery and similar crimes against the country are encountered—and have even become more frequent—such a measure is considered premature. It could have serious consequences, among which the most dangerous for Albanian justice would be blood feuds and personal revenge. Nevertheless, we believe that new democratic legislation cannot be wholly insensitive to contemporary trends. For this reason, a reasonable measure would be to reconsider which categories of crime are punishable by death. We consider that the new Criminal Code should contain 11 cases of this kind. Capital punishment could be restricted to exceptional cases, to the minimum necessary for extremely serious crimes that pose a high social danger. This could be achieved by (Continued on page 2)

As has become known, the Third Committee of the United Nations General Assembly adopted these days a draft resolution on the human-rights situation in Kosovo. This committee recommended that the General Assembly adopt the resolution, which is expected to happen next week. The introduction and adoption of such a draft resolution by the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, with a strong possibility that it will also be adopted by the General Assembly itself, is an important international achievement in recognizing the struggle of the Albanian people in Kosovo to defend their human and national rights. Therefore, all Albanians on both sides of the border and wherever they live welcome this draft resolution and hope that it will soon become a UN resolution. Generations of Kosovars have worked and fought for this; some of them have also given their lives in demonstrations and protests against the violence inflicted by the Serbian occupier. Since March 1989, Kosovo’s constitutionally guaranteed autonomy was abolished by force of arms by the Yugoslav army. Almost the entire territory of Kosovo is occupied by Serbian army and police forces. The parliament and Government of Kosovo were dissolved; Pristina TV has not broadcast in Albanian for four years; a large number of Albanian-language newspapers were shut down; education, culture, the language and the health-care system in Kosovo have been—and continue to be—systematically attacked. More than 100,000 Albanian workers were dismissed from their jobs and replaced by Serbian settlers. Meanwhile, the police and army (Continued on page 4)

The failure and collapse of totalitarian socialism were accompanied by anger, disillusionment and nostalgia. These three elements are inseparable from one another. Although they carried great weight, they did not cause social pessimism. Faith and hope for a better life are the active element that kept people moving. Indeed, this element served as the basis for support for and backing of democratic processes in Albania. This is also one of the fundamental reasons why people believed they had found a new political force that promised them democracy and freedom, even though it still had no well-argued and highly convincing program. It had not demonstrated any capacity. The demagoguery of the PD and its leaders set the tone for a rapid surge of faith, arising from the need to survive, to be saved, to move into a better social condition. This element of faith took concrete form in the now familiar reasoning: “Let’s give the PD a try.” I. The years 1992–1994 became years of a major test for the PD and for people’s faith that it would bring them a better life and a better solution. The power of demagoguery was exhausted in the face of factors more powerful than it, such as governing incompetence, government corruption, and the unjust way the PD chose to solve problems by dividing people into friends and enemies, those suitable for the PD and those unsuitable for it. The PD failed to place professional criticism and intellectual competence at the foundation of its work, instead creating political loyalty to the PD. The PD had led the process of destroying the system of totalitarian socialism. This truth turned into self-congratulation, which gave rise to its absolute faith in itself and fueled intellectual and state arrogance. The PD declared, defended and continues to defend with tooth and nail the idea that it holds a monopoly on the truth,

The main topic at Thursday afternoon’s meeting of the Socialist Party leadership was the Party’s program. Among other things, members called for the conditions in each district to be detailed in line with the program, as the main task after its publication, familiarization and discussion. The expanded and fully constituted economic commission was tasked with providing this kind of detailed interpretation, since, it was noted, we should not wait only for clarification from PS specialists at the center, but should also draw on and benefit from our many specialists, members and supporters at the party grassroots. The alternatives are clarified more effectively when concrete solutions are proposed for municipalities, areas and the district as a whole. It was a serious discussion that must continue as part of the effort to ensure that the electorate and the people become fully familiar with the Socialist Party program. THANAS DINO

- No results so far. The dead are not 10 but 9 - The organized search by our side for the victims who tragically lost their lives the day before yesterday in Lake Shkodër began yesterday morning. At around 9 o’clock, a helicopter from the Ministry of the Interior brought the Minister of the Interior, Mr. Musaraj, to Shkodër, according to a police employee. The team searching for the drowned includes, in addition to the divers, two rapid-intervention forces from Shkodër. The search began at around 11, after contact had first been made with the Montenegrin side, since the main operations had to be carried out in waters under its control. Despite the work carried out, however, by 1 p.m. there had been no news of any of the victims being found. A member of the rapid-intervention unit told us that the names of eight victims had been positively identified. The name of the ninth victim is still unknown. He added that, in addition to the four people who were reported to have survived the day before yesterday, it became known today that a fifth person, a 16-year-old boy, had also managed to save himself by swimming. So, according to him, nine people drowned, mostly young people. The source in question said that we cannot make the names public without an order. Although in the villages of Golem, Shtoj i Vjetër and Vrakë the victims are already known—the people who met this tragic end while trying to cope with the harsh economic conditions. MUSA KURTULAJ

On the eve of the elections for the new Bulgarian parliament on December 18, 1994 Sofia is experiencing days full of work and preparations for the holidays, but also difficult days filled with political discussions. The newspapers are writing; debates are being held on television with culture and tolerance. The various alternatives of the parties are being displayed, meetings are being organized with candidate-deputies, but not without asking one another: — So, will we win the elections on December 18? — Of course. — Who will you vote for? I am witness to dozens of encounters with ordinary people, candidate-deputies, and politicians of various ranks. Everyone has their own opinion, just as everyone has the right to cast their vote freely. The city of Sofia, and all the other cities, are decorated with banners, (Continued on page 4)

OBSERVATION Minister Musaraj, answering questions during an interpellation, without blushing or feeling any pangs of conscience, stated that the police had taken the position it deemed correct, as required by the Law, while carrying out its duties appropriately. What a disgrace! Is the minister telling the truth? (Continued on page 4)

Familiarity with the SP program is an extremely important aspect of the party’s work in the Durrës district. Not only members and supporters of this party, but others too, have the opportunity to learn about and realistically assess the alternative developed by the SP. This will make it possible for people to become aware of the paths and opportunities for development in our country, and especially in Durrës. Following the results of the November 6 referendum on the draft Constitution presented by Berisha, the SP electorate in this district has grown. Thorough analyses have been conducted throughout all the party structures, from the organizations up to the district level, identifying tasks for the future. Familiarity with the SP program enables the party to prepare for a possible election campaign on the basis of this program. Work has begun on planning how to elaborate it throughout all the party structures in the district. What is worth emphasizing is that there is room for, and work must be accelerated by, the committees operating under the steering committee for (Continued on page 4)

By Dr. Vasilika Kureta

From December 20 to December 20, 1994, contracts for the sale of the newspaper for 1995 will be signed. All legal entities and individuals who have previously had billing relations with the newspaper, as well as others who wish to begin this activity now, must appear at the editorial office within the dates stated above. Those interested must have: 1. An authorization from the Steering Committee of the Socialist Party in the relevant district, expressing its approval of entering into this contract. 2. The relevant license permitting the conduct of this kind of activity. 3. Bank confirmations proving that accounts with the newspaper have been settled up to the previous date. 4. Unsold newspapers held in stock. No contract will be signed if any one of these required documents is missing. THE EDITORIAL OFFICE

On Tuesday, December 20, 1994, at 10:00, a meeting of the KPD of the Socialist Party in this district will be held. On Tuesday, December 20, 1994, at 10:00, a meeting of the KPD of the Socialist Party in this district will be held on the topic: “Problems and tasks for Socialist representatives in local government at the present stage.” The SP deputies and the chairpersons of the district and municipal councils are invited to attend the meeting. In districts and municipalities where the SP does not have a majority, the heads of the Socialist councillors’ group are invited. The Presidency of the Socialist Party of Albania