- A pre-appeal trial in Tepelenë: political arithmetic (10 plus 3 equals 12) is stronger than simple arithmetic. - Albanian justice, chilled to the bone, cannot get out from under the "Bënçë" of the PD and its president. FATOS NANO IS NOT RELEASED, ALBANIAN POLITICS REMAINS SHACKLED IN BËNÇË - A pre-appeal trial in Tepelenë: political arithmetic (10 plus 3 equals 12) is stronger than simple arithmetic. - Albanian justice, chilled to the bone, cannot get out from under the "Bënçë" of the PD and its president. Early in the morning. The pressure that, through its many emissaries, has taken hold of the process held yesterday in SHSK(?) for the reassessment of the so-called "guilt" of the chairman of the Socialist Party, Fatos Nano, was one of fury. This fury also swept over the witnesses, some of whom, according to notes by the journalists present, found it difficult to recall truths they had stated only a few months earlier. It happened that some of them today denied what they had affirmed yesterday, before the investigators, in the police offices. Others, perhaps trying to hide the political pressure exerted on them, fell into obvious contradictions with their earlier statements. This picture speaks for itself. In any case, what stood out most clearly was the fact that there was no calm in the courtroom necessary for the administration of justice. On the contrary, everything seemed driven by political nervousness, by a rush to close the proceedings and not allow any breathing room for reason. Under these conditions, Mr. Nano's defense presented numerous arguments that called the foundations of the indictment into question, but these arguments were not heard with the seriousness required by law and justice. What was most clearly visible was the open attempt to give the proceedings a wholly political color. Instead of the court presenting the evidence, it seemed that a predetermined conviction was being sought. Instead of handling a criminal case according to the facts, there was an effort to keep a political opponent in prison. And this is, without doubt, the gravest core of this story. In this sense, yesterday it was not only Fatos Nano who was on trial. The independence of Albanian justice was also put to the test, along with its ability to break free from the tutelage of the executive power and the ruling party. And the test, at least from what could be seen, was not passed. Justice remained in the shadows, while politics sat on the judge's bench. (Continues on page 2)

TRANE Hostages in the strikers’ place of confinement - The National Association of the Persecuted and the Missing of Albania, after yesterday the Ministry of Agriculture and Water signed a memorandum, found itself in the same situation as 24 hours earlier. The envoys of the Speaker of the Assembly of Albania, as well as those of the Deputy Prime Minister, failed to do anything after a clear and stubborn statement from the strike headquarters. This article is illustrated precisely by the difference between the statements of the PS spokesperson, Fatos Klosi, and those of the strikers. According to the latter's leader, Mr. Luan Kodra, the strikers' resistance has not moved from its initial positions. He stated to "Zërin e Popullit" that none of the demands have been fulfilled and that others are trying to deceive them. The latter have made it known that for them SHIK continues to remain the main institution responsible for their hostage-taking. Also according to the strikers' leader, on SHIK's orders, several people who have nothing to do with this strike were brought by force and coercion to the confinement site, in order to create confusion and psychological pressure. Another serious fact has been the use of various means to keep the strikers isolated from public opinion and from the press. According to them, this shows that we are not dealing with an effort to solve the problem, but with a strategy to drag things out and physically and morally exhaust the participants. (Continues on page 2)

The keys to the Bënçë prison are in Tirana... - The second hope of the summit(?) Tepelenë, hundreds of meters away from the place where one of the most talked-about political trials since the 1990s is taking place, lies the Bënçë prison. The very name of this place has now become a symbol of political isolation and of a justice that seems to be commanded from afar. According to sources close to the defense, the key decisions about the fate of the defendants are not being made where they should be made, but in Tirana. This is why many say that the "keys" to the Bënçë prison are not in the hands of the local court, but in the offices of central politics. This metaphor was reinforced even more by yesterday's developments, where every move in the hearing seemed predetermined. The atmosphere, the contradictory testimonies, and the lack of willingness to examine the defense's claims impartially created the conviction that the course of the trial was being directed from outside the courtroom. If this is true, then the Bënçë case is not just a local or procedural matter. It becomes an indicator of a deeper illness of the Albanian state: the dependence of justice on politics. (Continues on page 2)

BULOJZE WHO IS "MILKING" THE CHROMIUM MINISTRY? The prefect of Lezhë, Çesk Pande, declares: — The company led by which 15 million lek. — The name of doors(?) in Agriculture of HTH. — In the village of Hasallë it was damaged. — In secret the minister's mother, his party and therefore the worker is being observed or exploited. Faced with the accusations made against the local administration and the business structures in the area, the prefect of Lezhë, Çesk Pande, has issued a statement denouncing what he calls the "milking" of the chromium ministry. According to him, suspicious financial schemes and unlawful interventions are burdening the activity of the enterprises in the sector. He mentions unjustified payments, hidden contracts, and administrative pressure that, according to him, are intended to extract millions of lek at the expense of the public interest. His statement also contains accusations of damage in certain areas and of the involvement of people connected to senior officials. According to Pande, the issue requires an immediate investigation and full transparency, since the consequences are not only economic, but also affect citizens' trust in the state. (Continues on page 2)

Comment from Dukagjini on the PP conference The economic and social problems of the area Today, in a time of as much as 1500-1 users after passing through a special mountainous area, always on the move somewhere, creates organization in the questions for the celebration. Years, in a broad way, there and for us and in times of living and rising in difficult stages, of tired oh; we ended up having to do with help, and only to push growth and work, which creates with a political area, and the economic time are not an economic solution. For the Dukagjini area, the main problems remain unemployment, the lack of infrastructure, and the great difficulties in marketing agricultural and livestock products. The residents of this area are asking for stronger state intervention and special development policies. The conference discussions also raised concerns about education, healthcare, and emigration, which is emptying the villages of young people. Participants emphasized that without a concrete strategy for the mountainous regions, any promise will remain formal. Many of them stressed that the social situation is worsening because of the lack of roads, electricity, and investments, making it impossible to keep the population in place. From SHKASHI[?]

PESHKOPI Under the name privatization - today the government riches the people... par la voiahur Among the government's economic "activities" in 1992-1995 is the auction sale of the flour factory in Peshkopi. Its buyer turns out to be a person unknown to the local public, while the enterprise's workers have been left without any guarantee regarding their jobs. From the denunciations received in the editorial office, it is learned that the procedures were carried out hastily and without transparency. The real value of the facility is suspected to be much higher than the price at which it was transferred into private ownership. This has fueled the conviction that privatization is being used as a cover for transferring public assets to individuals connected to power. Residents of the area see this as another example of the impoverishment of ordinary people in the name of reform. Instead of creating a market economy with fair rules, what is happening is the enrichment of a minority through the exploitation of the majority. (Continues on page 2)

ELBASAN The Prime Minister inaugurated the dismissal of 235 workers Feature— in his speech during the inauguration of the Ferrokromi 1 plant, Prime Minister Aleksandër Meksi praised the enterprise for the "efficiency" achieved. However, according to the workers, this efficiency has been built on the dismissal of 235 people. They described this as a bitter paradox of the transition: an official inauguration that in reality celebrates the loss of jobs for hundreds of families. According to them, modernization or restructuring cannot be measured only by production figures while disregarding the social cost. In the reactions gathered on the ground, the deep disappointment of the workers is striking; they say they have received no solution either for compensation or for their future employment prospects. (Continues on page 2)

Mëzor ndajregjan with timauo Albania vricnesa e voa. Continues on page 4

. — Do we know motives from the sufferings of others? ...

As many as Distributor in Bulqizë Ali JAFNA[?] worker (Continues on page 2)