“The next parliamentary elections will be held in May ’96,” the National Council of the PD decided yesterday,” independent sources reported yesterday, referring to the latest meeting of the highest democratic forum. It seems that the Party, which after November 6 found itself even more in the minority, sought to respond to the opposition’s pre-election campaign. Meanwhile, newspapers quote Sali Berisha as saying: “We only need 15 days of campaigning.” The great loser, not only politically, of the Popular Referendum, surprisingly seems to have handed over the powers to the slender body of the Party that did not recognize him in December ’90 as its chairman. Nowhere in the provisions is the setting of the election date defined as a competence of the National Council of the PD. But many said yesterday that Berisha has separated the Albanian presidency from the building where one is the party headquarters and the other the headquarters of the Albanian administration. Everything has taken the form of a party-state that will decide in March 1996 before the large mass of the Albanian electorate for a vote of confidence. But it seems that Berisha fears this new clash with the Albanians. The endless terror of November 6 forces Berisha and his party to delay as much as possible the new confrontation, which so far favors a major defeat. In any case, even if 40 days later - in May - the elections will be held. (continued on page 2)

At one of the socialist rallies in Tirana Although the head of the Kavajë district, Mr. Gazmend Noga, “guaranteed” order and calm at yesterday’s meeting of the socialists in Rrogozhinë, it must be said that he and the platoon he was openly commanding very quickly revealed themselves as provocateurs trying to sabotage the meeting. It has never been seen or heard in any place that claims to be building democracy for road hooligans to run the organization of the activity of a parliamentary party to the point of locking the main entrance door to members and sympathizers of the PS, as happened in Rrogozhinë. But even though under pressure we were starting the meeting organized with the party vice-chairman, comrade Servet Pëllumbi, said the chair of the PS for the Rrogozhinë area, Llazar Kondaqiu. Let them leave us free in our meetings and then Sali Berisha will see how much Kavajë and Rrogozhinë love their deputy. In the hall of the House of Culture there were hundreds of members and sympathizers of the PS, but also 18–20 SHIK members, who tried to provoke the disruption of the meeting, but to the misfortune of these people paid by the PD it turned out to be very enthusiastic. I greet you all on behalf of the General Steering Committee, Dr. Servet Pëllumbi told those present. Meanwhile he asked the SHIK members, who were staying in the hall in a completely unlawful manner, to leave. However, if they want, let them stay, (continued on page 3) Servet Pëllumbi: With the anti-genocide law, Berisha’s “democracy” is astonishing not only Europe, but also America. For us socialists, Fatos Nano, Gramoz Ruçi, Sabit Brokaj, etc., with or without ballot boxes, will be deputies of the people!

“We launched the campaign at exactly the right moment. We do not see the campaign as lasting 15 days, because we want to create the electoral map not only to know who will vote for us, but also to become acquainted with people’s problems in different areas, in order to flesh out our electoral platform,” Namik Dokle, deputy chairman and head of the socialist group, said yesterday at the pre-election meeting in Tirana. In a hall packed to capacity, Dokle, Ruka, Ulqini, Reçi, Shahollari launched the pre-election campaign in Tirana, breaking even that thin layer of propaganda alchemy that Berisha had created 24 hours earlier. Having arrived only 4 hours earlier from a tour in northern Albania - Pukë, Kukës, Has - the deputy chairman of the PSSH expressed his conviction yesterday that the PS will win the upcoming elections whenever Berisha announces them. (continued on page 3)

Within the framework of the development and raising to the highest level of relations between Albania and the USA, at the invitation of the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Albania, Safet Zhulali, the highest-ranking American military officer, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General John Shalikashvili, will visit Albania on 12 and 13 October. For this visit, this is the most important visit by a senior American military official since that of the Secretary of Defense, William Perry, last year. The American General Shalikashvili will take part on 12 October in the closing ceremony of the eighth joint Albanian-American exercise “Eagle Rescuer.” During his visit, the chief military adviser to President Clinton will have meetings and talks at the Ministry of Defense with its highest-ranking military officers and leaders, as well as with senior state authorities. * * * General John Shalikashvili is the thirteenth Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Department of Defense. He was appointed to this post by President Clinton on 25 October 1993 and serves as the chief military adviser to the President, the Secretary of Defense, and the U.S. National Security Council. Before being appointed to this post, he served as Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and simultaneously as Commander of the U.S. Forces in Europe. He was born on 27 June 1936 in Warsaw, Poland. He graduated from Bradley University in mechanical engineering and later earned a master’s degree in international affairs. He completed his military studies at the Naval Command and Staff College, as well as at the Army War College of the United States Army. He is married and has one son.

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