Apparently President Berisha has locked away in a safe the oath he took when he was elected President of the Republic by Parliament. An oath is by no means an abstract, worthless formula, and its reading and repetition by the President is not merely a formal ritual. An oath is a great moral, political and legal-constitutional obligation. It is also a pledge and a word of honor, as well as a necessary moral and legal duty that carries serious moral, political and legal responsibilities. In a few words, that oath embodies the President’s duty and responsibility to become a symbol of the nation’s unity. This is undoubtedly one of the President’s most important duties, but unfortunately he has not only failed to work toward fulfilling it; he has gravely undermined it. President Berisha has consistently shown himself to be on the side of the membership of the Democratic Party alone. When the President gave an interview to a foreigner in which he described Albanian socialists as enemies, some people did not believe it, or considered it a misunderstanding in translation. There was even a denial from the President’s office. But the President’s public speeches, especially those before his supporters at DP forums, show that President Berisha has made hostility toward Albanian socialists and the PS his political concept and position. The latest evidence of this attitude is his statement at the recent DP conference in Tirana that a future victory by the Socialist Party would be national treason. This statement is unquestionably a grave and flagrant violation of the President’s political oath, the constitutional law and the status of the President. How can the President make such statements about the socialists, whose party has more than 100,000 members and a broad electorate that has openly demonstrated its size and determination to defend democracy and its institutions? How can he label Albanian socialists—who have been... (Continued on page 2) …longer through the summer, so that he can pass another law to keep Nano from being released. For our part, Mr. President, we wish you, “May you continue for a long time with your current monologues on TV.” This “delights” us immensely. The President of the PD reminds us of the speeches of the previous system, attacking enemies within the PD and enemies outside the PD. Please, Mr. President, tell us where and whom we have as friends? Be assured, Mr. President, that FRESSH and the PS are more united than ever before, and that we are ready, as always, for the next elections, with another certain victory. Our alternative is: justice, dignity, honesty, and not arbitrariness, chieftainism, or corruption.

- The DP and PS are having difficulty holding rallies. The DP cannot gather people, while the police obstruct the PS - The police declare: “We don’t have enough forces” to ensure the safety of socialist rallies. Can the President hear how numerous the socialists are? It would be entirely normal for a DP branch in a district, following the President’s speech in recent days, to hold a rally explaining the tasks arising from that speech. Likewise, it would be entirely normal for the PS branch in the same district, in view of the authorities’ unjust stance on resolving the Nano case, to organize a rally of socialist supporters in the same square the day after the DP rally. Of course, these things may not happen. There are several reasons why they do not. First, the DP cannot now gather people for a rally: it is so far removed from its electorate, and people are so disappointed by its governance. Where are the DP’s huge, noisy rallies? They have been forgotten, because the electorate has turned its back on this party. Things are different with the PS. Socialists cannot gather—or gather only amid incidents and even confrontations with the police—because today’s police state refuses to accept their real strength, expressed through such large-scale, lawful activities. Look at what happened the day before yesterday in Korçë. The socialists applied through legal channels to organize a rally and, knowing that the police state would not give them a square, accepted even an indoor hall in this August heat. But no, says the police state: we cannot give you the hall either—even though people have already begun gathering for the rally. The police’s argument for this change of position appears to be the strongest possible: “We don’t have enough forces.” Does the police really lack the forces to ensure the safety of a socialist rally whose participants have not caused even the slightest provocation? The reason is clear: the police will sabotage the rallies at any cost. But that is not the main point, because, by respecting the law, remaining completely peaceful and wholly civil, the socialists know how to express their protest. What is striking about the phrase “We don’t have enough forces” is that it deals a heavy blow to the police state itself, headed by the head of state, Mr. Berisha. Why? Because behind this police stance, expressed in just three words, the fact is plain: the socialists and their supporters in Korçë are so numerous that the police apparently do not have enough force to maintain order at their lawful rally. Yet Mr. Berisha himself has previously spoken of the Socialist Party as if it were in an incurable crisis, a force without an electorate, without a program or alternatives, and consequently without any prospects. What can we say after this? Berisha cannot get his own branches of power, which he has under his thumb, to agree with one another! As for the police being concerned about maintaining order when socialists gather, its chiefs and those who give them orders from above need not worry at all. Since the Socialist Party appeared on the scene, it has held many meetings and rallies, some of them magnificent, but the socialists have never committed a single act of disorder. This is because the socialists respect the state and the law; they respect democracy itself. So the police need not go to PS rallies at all, and those rallies would be more orderly than ever. The police go to PS rallies to protect them, as they say, from possible provocation. Nevertheless, provocations do occur. In this respect, it is extremely dangerous for democracy when the police and provocateurs join forces to “protect” socialist rallies. This is the harshest form of the police state’s manifestation: it bares its teeth and says, “I will not allow you to do what the law allows you to do.” A police state is a state that stands against the law, regardless of the democratic masks it may wear. It is troubling that such police measures to oppose the socialists’ planned rallies have come immediately after Mr. Berisha’s speech at the Tirana DP conference. The speech was permeated throughout by the maintenance of political tension in the country, intended to divert attention from the major issues of the day. This tense situation finds concrete expression in those implementing the anti-opposition program devised by the police-state leadership: the police, which takes the most unjust actions at its disposal—not only canceling rally permits, not only placing cities under lockdown, not only sending policemen into the streets to beat people with rubber batons, but also declaring in advance that it will always act this way toward the opposition to the DP, even though this opposition is illegal. The police actions in Korçë and Poggradec and its efforts to cancel the socialists’ lawful rallies in these two cities (reports of the same scenario are also coming from Prrenjasi) may also be seen as a kind of “dress rehearsal” for the police’s conduct in the election campaign that is just around the corner. On this occasion, we want to tell the highest authorities that they bear responsibility for the police’s involvement in the country’s political life. Its position, on the face of it, is the most ordinary imaginable: the forces to guarantee the socialists’ rally, when they have not caused even the slightest provocation? The reason lies elsewhere. The police will sabotage the socialists’ rally in Tirana. Actions and deceive their authors and frighten no one. Other speakers called for the release of Fatos Nano, whose innocence has been fully proven, and also for the annulment of the laws of July 26 and 28, and an end to the policy of revenge and escalation of tensions. At the rally, strong protest was voiced against the President’s unconstitutional, divisive role, expressed in his speech at the Tirana PD Conference. At the end, the rally stressed that the socialists are prepared to face any situation, and are responsible and ready for the coming elections and their victory. The rally also adopted a protest addressed to the President, calling on him to abandon the policy of division that is escalating the situation, to release Fatos Nano, and to put an end to the policy of searches targeting the PPSH and the opposition as a whole.

Statement by the FRESSH spokesperson Thanking yesterday’s RD for the space it devoted to the statements and leaders of FRESSH concerning the vulgar attacks that Mr. Sali Berisha directed at FRESSH at the DP conference for Tirana, the FRESSH spokesperson said: Just as the history of the PPSH and the history of the PDSH cannot be the history of Albania, all of Enver Hoxha’s efforts, as well as Sali Berisha’s, to make history by decree and decorations have failed. They will pass from “history” into jokes. - The messages of tolerance and understanding that FRESSH has addressed to other political forces and youth forums will continue in the future, with the confidence that the cave-dweller mentality with which FRESSH was met is an insignificant minority in Albanian society. - RD and the DP should know very well that FRESSH leaders are not appointed by the PPSH, let alone by the DP and the President. They are elected by FRESSH’s governing forums. But if the DP or President Berisha have any objections, they can submit them in writing, rather than through SHIK telephones. Respectfully, The FRESSH spokesperson

(Protest rally in Ersekë) On Thursday, August 10, hundreds of members and supporters of the Socialist Party in Ersekë gathered for a protest rally in one of the city’s squares. The protest focused on the antidemocratic laws passed by the DP majority and the antidemocratic policies being pursued by Sali Berisha. In his opening remarks, the chairman of the PS in the district, Sotir Kokeri, emphasized: “Through his recent actions, S. Berisha is openly manifesting anti-humanism, anti-Europeanism, revenge and a desire for retaliation against the opposition. Actions and policies of this kind deceive their authors and frighten nobody.”

Statement by the FRESSH Elbasan Steering Committee At its meeting on August 12, 1995, the FRESSH Elbasan Steering Committee, after reviewing FRESSH’s work in the district and the current political situation, reiterates: FRESSH is convinced of and committed to the left-wing alternative. Its presentations are worthy of the politics of the future. We, as FRESSH, do not prevent others from being right-wing. We thank the President for his high-spirited and expressive tone and for his involvement in organizing FRESSH. The more you forgive yours, the more our ranks grow. While there are still political prisoners in Albania, as in the case of the deputy and PS chairman, Fatos Nano, who was to be prayed for... The President of

The day before yesterday, a protest rally of the socialists of this city was held at the Prenjas Cultural Palace. The deputy chairman of the Socialist Party and chairman of its Parliamentary Group, Namik Dokle, also took part. Gathered at this rally, they joined their voices with those of all Socialist Party members and supporters, and those of thousands of other Albanians who are seeking freedom and human rights, and an end to the violation of human rights and the political freedoms of the opposition. “We are protesting,” said Haki Tahirllari, chairman of the Socialist Party for the Librazhd district, in his speech, “because today’s government, instead of dealing with the people’s problems, has installed political revenge, from Bënça down to the smallest cells of Albanian society.” (Continued on page 4)

It has been only 10 days since the major political and organizational campaign to replace party documents began. In fact, it is taking on the character of a complex undertaking, with many activities serving to strengthen the party and consolidate its organizational structures. The operational plan of the Vlora Socialist Party leadership for organizing the campaign is being implemented very well. So far, testing has been completed in 17 party organizations in the city. Meanwhile, work has begun in the communes of Kotë, Brat, Orikum, etc. The preparation of the documents has created a new atmosphere. Party meetings are being held without issuing notices and without members being absent. There has been a considerable increase in applications to join. Implementation of the statute’s democratic principles prevents any manifestation of factionalism or anarchy. Thanks to the concept of freedoms and rights that creates democratic space within the Socialist Party, its members are fully engaged in carrying out the tasks set by the leadership. Hundreds of Socialist Party activists come and go every day at the party headquarters. Dozens of activists are working to complete and distribute the documentation as accurately as possible. GEZIM TUSHE

The National Privatization Agency has filed suit against the five owners of the bread factory, privatized in 1993 by decision of the local board. The suit accuses the board of having acted outside the rules: it should have determined the form of privatization, not divided the facilities into parts and other things; moreover, people without the experience of the person who paid 10 percent of the value were added to the privatization. The NPA has issued authorization to its Gjirokastër branch to represent it, but the court has not taken this into consideration and has demanded that the documentation be submitted and that the Agency itself appear in the proceedings. The proceedings began on Friday. And this is happening for the first time. The first time the board, this owner of “democratic goods,” will sit in the dock. We will report what this proceeding brings to light. We will also report if others follow. TH. DINO

Have you read RD, Mr. Tirana Prosecutor? And you, Mr. Prosecutor General? - What will you do about this call to terrorism by an SHIK employee? - Are they familiar with Article 226 of the Criminal Code? ... “around, under communist rule, it would be considered an occupation of Albania, and we would fight it by every means at our disposal,” says the occupier, because the PPSH, now the PS, throughout its long rule treated Albanians like a barbaric occupier. This was manifested in the destruction of our nation’s material and spiritual values, as well as in their physical elimination. “RD,” August 6, 1995

space it devotes to statements by several FRESSH leaders takes this opportunity to reply to the remaining Decemberists in the DP: FRESSH is the most organized forum in the country and enjoys more international support than any other, so the arguments put forward by President Berisha have no merit. - FRESSH does not attack or denigrate others; on the contrary, it appreciates and supports them when they achieve something beneficial to themselves and the country. This has also been the case with President Berisha. - But when President Berisha does not wake up and sees himself dreaming with his eyes open about the so-called FRESSH drama, we will consider it a lack of respect and solidarity not to respond to someone who is going through a genuine drama—one that no longer weighs only on him personally, but on the country’s political life.

At the request of the workers of the Refrigerator, we demand that the following requests be met: 1. No worker should be left without wages until the full trial concerning the privatization of the Refrigerator has concluded. 2. The privatization of the Refrigerator should proceed through the joint-stock enterprise process, so that everyone can gain something. 3. No worker should be dismissed until the full trial concerning the privatization of Refrigerator No. 3 has concluded. The strike will continue until our three trade-union demands have been met. From the strike committee XHEMAL KURTI Chairman of the Refrigerator No. 3 Trade Union