Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA), 96-12-17

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From: The Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA) Home Page at <http://www.telpress.it/ata>

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

CONTENTS

[01] HOUR OF PROTEST AGAINST SERB VIOLENCE IN PRISHTINE

[02] UNDERSTANDING REACHED BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND UITUA

[03] JUSTICE MINISTER MEETS DEPUTY PROSECUTOR GENERAL OF ITALIAN ANTI- MAFIA

[04] ALBANIAN - U.S. INVESTMENT CONTRACT SIGNED

[05] PRESS REVIEW

[06] ECONOMIC DEMANDS OF STUDENTS IN GJIROKASTRA FULFILLED

[07] FUTURE IS NOT BUILT ON HATRED BUT ON VALUES - RTV commentary

[08] KOSOVA PRESIDENT PROCLAIMED DOCTOR HONORIS CAUSA OF PARIS UNIVERSITY

[09] 700 CASES OF MUMPS DISEASE IN DURRESI DISTRICT

[10] YASSER ARAFAT TO VISIT ALBANIA

[11] COOPERATION BETWEEN ALBANIA AND JAPAN INCREASED

[12] GREEK FARMERS' STRIKE RENDERS MORE DIFFICULT IMPORTS AND MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE

[13] AN ITALIAN CITIZEN ARRESTED IN ALBANIA

[14] 78 OBJECTS OF ALBANIAN ART REPLACED IN NATIONAL HISTORIC MUSEUM

[15] ALBANIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN MEETS REPRESENTATIVE OF BRITISH CONSERVATIVE PARTY

[16] ALBANIAN POLICE ARRESTS TWO ITALIANS WHO HAD COMMITTED CRIMES IN TORINO

[01] HOUR OF PROTEST AGAINST SERB VIOLENCE IN PRISHTINE

The decision of launching the hour of protest was taken by the Communal Council for the Pristine Education at Monday's meeting with the school directors.

The criminal act of killing the teacher Fariz Blakcori last week, who was arrested and tortured to death by the Serb police, was condemned at the meeting. b.j/kled/lm/E

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[02] UNDERSTANDING REACHED BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND UITUA

"We agreed to renew the agreement we had with the trade union, first for the index of inflation, hence the increase of the wages according to the price rise for 25 articles, secondly for the possible and gradual increase of wages, thirdly, a greater guarantee also for minimal wage of private employees. We also set the dates of meetings of the National Council of Labour", said Premier Meksi.

One of the main achievements, as the chairman of the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania, Valer Xheka, said after the meeting, was the agreement reached on a division between the rise of wages for the effect of the price indexation and the wage increase.

In this framework, they agreed to have a rise in salaries within February, if possible.

Another point on which both parties came to terms was the setting of a minimal wage for the privately employed people.

"The private sector is completely unprotected towards the arbitrariness by employers and the recognition of a minimal wage in the system of the wages for the privately employed people is very important", said Xheka.

According to him, the agreement was achieved as a result of trade union fight and the two strikes held by the trade unions.

They also agreed in the meeting on other problems of the budgetary and non-budgetary sectors, as well as on the sector of education and health care. /kei/mt/xh/sh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[03] JUSTICE MINISTER MEETS DEPUTY PROSECUTOR GENERAL OF ITALIAN ANTI- MAFIA

They exchanged views on the ways of cooperation between the Albanian and Italian governments in the war against organised crime.

Peci expressed the will for a further cooperation in the war against arms, drug, and prostitution traffickers, who are responsible for killings, robberies, violations and other phenomena.

Maritati expressed readiness for cooperation in the war against crime and suggested the signing of a convention, an exchange of information as well as an organisation to fight and prevent crime. s.sh/kei/lm/sh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[04] ALBANIAN - U.S. INVESTMENT CONTRACT SIGNED

"This is the first step of our company's investment in Albania, other investment will follow," said Tad Skoczynski, president of Elba Inc., at a news conference on Monday.

The President of Albanian company Gjoka-2, Gjin Gjoka, said that the Import-Export Company, is concluding negotiations with another international company of tire production, to import automobile and lorry tires into Albania. kei/lm/z/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[05] PRESS REVIEW

Under the title "The Progress of democracy in Albania is very great", the paper reports on the meeting of the CE Juridical Commission in Paris which examined the report of Mr. Columberg on Albania's accomplishment of obligations and commitments to the CE".

"Understanding is reached between the government and the UITUA," the paper says regarding the meeting of the trade union and government representatives.

Zeri i Popullit entitles its editorial :"SP debates what is being done and what should be done". The paper also carries the article :"Albanian democracy needs an elite free of complexities". "Experts of the Italian Anti-Mafia in Tirana investigate joint tracks of the Italian and Albanian mafia," the paper says.

Republika entitles its editorial:"Dayton - one year ago". "Rugova's policy is archaic", the paper says. Under the title :"The socialists have done much harm to us," the paper says that "The majority of the DAP Assembly, has said in its latest meeting that cooperation with socialists has negatively influenced in the electorate of the democratic Alliance Party.

Lajmi i Dites reports on the meeting of the CE Juridical Commission in Paris that according to the pronouncement of Columberg, the Albanian constitution "should be drafted by a pluralistic parliamentary commission, according to the law, and that the procedure should not be hasty".

"UITUA-Government agreement signed", is the title of an article in Sindikalisti regarding Monday's meeting of trade union and government representatives.

"The U.N General Assembly adopts resolution on Kosova", says the newspaper Rilindja.

"Should Prishtine trust in Belgrade?" is the title of today's editorial in newspaper Albania.

"Juridical commission of the CE Parliamentary Assembly adopts draft- resolution on Albania", says the newspaper under the title:"The constitution is drafted in parliament".

"Some 500 000 Albanians in VEFA", says newspaper Koha Jone citing the VEFA president as saying:"We intend to reduce returns but guarantee deposits". Under the title :"The ruling party and the opposition", the paper says that:"In essence our political tableau is graphical: On one side we have a ruling party, that has everything, on the other side we have an opposition which painfully and powerlessly follows what is happening".

"The U.S. mystery in Mejdani's suitcase", says "Dita Informacion" regarding the return of the socialist leaders from the U.S. The paper carries an interview with Premier Meksi under the title:"Banks better than usuries".

"Wage rise and shiled for inflation," says Gazeta Shqiptare regarding Monday's signing of the agreement between the trade Unions and the Government.

"Doctors today will respond to the judges on the life of a 22 year-old- girl from Burrel", the paper says. The doctors injected blood of another group to the girl, the paper explains. kled/lm/Z/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[06] ECONOMIC DEMANDS OF STUDENTS IN GJIROKASTRA FULFILLED

"The demands are correct and I promise that the problem of supply with drinking water will be solved immediately," told Asllani the students after they presented to him their economic requests related to the running water, the heating system, the quality of food, etc.

A cause for the student protest was a conflict on Dec. 8, 1996, in one of the dormitories of this university, between two groups of students, one of which had drank a considerable amount of alcoholic drinks. The arrival of two policemen called by the guard of the dormitory, and the control they made in the upper floors of the building, made a student, the one who was the main author of the quarrel on the fourth floor, throw himself from the building. The police control caused indignation and worry among the other students who were not involved in the event.

As a result of this, a meeting was held on December 10 in one of the halls of this university in which the students asked explanations by the police commissariat on the event and presented their economic requests. ssh/kei/xh/Z/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[07] FUTURE IS NOT BUILT ON HATRED BUT ON VALUES - RTV commentary

Recently, the avalanche of the active peaceful protest of Belgrade's students reached the largest proportions in the whole history of the democratic movement of Serbia. With their active powerful protest on the streets of Serbia, they show, one hand, that they have decided not to allow to be the most oppressed, dishonoured people of Europe, but through courage and protests to use all the potential of the peaceful protests to win their deserved freedoms and rights.

On the other hand, challenging the police regime, they kill the fear this regime has sown and inculcated in the oppressed human beings, emancipate their citizens and open the way towards regaining their deserved freedoms and rights. The number of the Serb citizens coming out of the shell of fear and conformism that the dictatorial regime of Miloshevic has shut them up is increasing with each passing hour and day, demonstrating together with the students.

The students' active demonstrations and protests and the democratic forces of Belgrade reaches the climax with Milosevic's invitation to the opposition for dialogue and his promises to accept an international investigation commission on the elections and the allowing by him of the Nish city to the opposition; This shows that for the Belgrade protesters the most ugliest facts of the big drama that the current Serb regime prepared for Serbia and the entire former Yugoslavia are not the annulment of their victory in the major cities of Serbia but the genocide in Bosnia and apartheid in Kosova, the destruction of the economy and the international complete isolation of Serbia. These are at the same time the major reasons for overthrowing this regime.

For the Belgrade students to accept as a solution to the problem the rerun of elections, means to try to leave in oblivion the massive graves in Bosnia, the ethnic cleansing and massive violations, international isolation and castigation of Serbia; to accept this for the Belgrade students means to legalise the country's governing by a leadership which is the main initiator and executer of the gravest crimes against humanity for the second half of this century in Europe.

This would be the greatest tragedy Serbia is experiencing not only for the end of this century, but also for the coming century. The movement of student youth of Belgrade for freedom and dignity which keeps intensifying with each passing day deserves a full support and will win above all because the students of Belgrade, with an admirable courage and in a profoundly civilized way, are facing a totalitarian regime responsible for the most monstrous genocide Europe has ever known after the World War Second. They do merit support and will come out triumphant, because in the streets and squares of their capital, of their country and Serbia, they are defending with courage and dignity those values which are sacred for everyone, for all the peoples who appreciate and honour the freedom. They deserve sympathy and will triumph because in their hearts, souls and shoulders they carry the future Serbia, the Serbia which wants to go towards Europe and that for the just cause they are defending and the dignified weapons they are using, they, who were left in oblivion until yesterday, have today won the moral support of the entire democratic opinion. Through their powerful, peaceful and anti-conformist protest, the students of Belgrade are stunning or disillusioning all the blind advocates of Milosevic in the world. Their march towards freedom is a powerful civilized call for all those rank and file citizens, officials of various radios or chancellories not to believe that Milosevic, until lately the main person responsible for the greatest catastrophe of our continent after the war, is transformed today into a peace-making President, into a man of peace. The Satan cannot change into an angel. The diabolic accusations of Milosevic that Albania and the Albanians are behind the demonstrators, were responded by the Serbian opposition with a minute silence for Feriz Blakcori, Albanian martyr teacher.

In fact this opposition may not have an acceptable scheme for a solution to the Kosova question, but the Albanians have it clear that it is confronting with dignity in order to go towards freedom and truth, to overthrow through peaceful means the most hateful dictatorship that Serbs have ever had, the regime, which with primitive nationalism, transformed the region into a place of the greatest massacres, plunged it into the fiercest struggle which claimed the lives of about a quarter of a million innocent people.

This opposition is confronting with the politicians-gravediggers of the biggest massive cemeteries in the Balkans history, the regime of mass violations produced by the mediaeval crime in modern times. It is courageously challenging on the Belgrade streets the most occupying, most barbarous, oppressive and discriminating regime that Albanians of Kosova have known during all their existence; this is the regime which used the tanks of violence, the tortures, mass imprisonments, killings of Albanian youths and is keeping Kosova under complete occupation.

With their powerful, active and peaceful protests, the Albanians of Kosova started some years ago their march by challenging snow, rain, frost, violence and tanks throughout Kosova, in support of the students of the Prishtina University and the strike of the miners underground. They were not only the first to uncover the totalitarian countenance of the Milosevic regime, but also proved that they were real masters of the peaceful means and demands, which shook all Europe and won its great admiration. Today too, as during all their history, they are convinced that their freedom and rights have not been and cannot be donated by anyone, the less so by the protests of the others on the streets of other capitals. The lost freedoms and rights should be gained and are won only through sacrifices, resistance and bravery, through an active and peaceful protest against the regime which denies them.

But in these moments they cannot but hail and side with the active protest and noble efforts of the Belgrade students to overthrow through democratic and peaceful means the last dictatorship of the Balkans and the entire Europe. The future is not built on hatred, but on values. The students of Belgrade will win. pas/lm/xh/z/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[08] KOSOVA PRESIDENT PROCLAIMED DOCTOR HONORIS CAUSA OF PARIS UNIVERSITY

This university did unanimously confer this title to Rugova for his work in the field of literary critique and for the political action in defence of the legitimate rights of the Albanians of Kosova, by applying the policy of peaceful resistance.

The report presented on this occasion said that intellectuals of the University Paris 8 Saint Denis, with the aspirations of tolerance and opening towards Europe, have always followed with interest the problem of the Albanians and the conflicts in other parts of former Yugoslavia.

"The lack of solidarity of the latter with the Albanians of Kosova have been a mystery to them for a long time," says the report.

The biography which accompanied the title considers Dr Rugova's policy a moral and concrete model of the possible coo-existence among various communities. "He is the pattern of a person who appeared late and was obliged to be involved in politics, but he became a brilliant and an extraordinary figure, his example is so valuable," writes his biography. pas/xh/e

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[09] 700 CASES OF MUMPS DISEASE IN DURRESI DISTRICT

According to the data of the city ambulance, the children, mainly males dominate the number of the infected.

The doctors confess that this epidemic is caused as a result of Parotitit virus. /s.sh/eva/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[10] YASSER ARAFAT TO VISIT ALBANIA

During his stay in Albania, Arafat will meet President Berisha. Both presidents will discuss on strengthening of friendship and intensification of bilateral relations.

President Arafat will also meet Albanian Speaker Pjeter Arbnori, Premier Meksi and other senior officials of the country. /s.sh/kei/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[11] COOPERATION BETWEEN ALBANIA AND JAPAN INCREASED

The agreement was signed Tuesday in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the Albanian Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister, Tritan Shehu and the Ambassador of Japan, resident in Wienne, Yushu Takashima.

The spokesman of the Foreign Ministry confirmed that on the same day they also signed the Accord for the unredeemable financing of some 3 million dollars from the Japanese government on the project "Support for the increase of the agricultural production in Albania". /s.sh/eva/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[12] GREEK FARMERS' STRIKE RENDERS MORE DIFFICULT IMPORTS AND MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE

"The price of citrus in Tirana market of fruits and vegetables has increased during these weeks as a result of lack of abundance we used to have in this time of holidays", said the chief of the trade directory in Tirana Municipality, Ylli Sejdini.

This problem is faced in most of the Albanian cities, because Tirana is the main supplying center and in such conditions their markets of fruits and vegetables are very poor.

The strike of Greek farmers, which has blocked the main highways, grows difficulties in the return of Albanian emigrants in their homeland to celebrate Christmas and the New Year with their families.

"We don't know yet whether we will come home or no, because the streets are blocked and we don't have enough money to travel by air", said a refugee in Athens during a conversation over the phone.

The traffic of travelers has also decreased as a result of closing of consular offices opened in Albania, in Tirana and Gjirokastra, because their employees have also gone on strike.

It is found a kind of way out with the imports through the Corfu way.

The farmers' strike has caused the decrease of Drachmas in the exchange market of Tirana, because the money dealers do not buy it, it is of no interest for the moment. /kei/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[13] AN ITALIAN CITIZEN ARRESTED IN ALBANIA

The court of Kurbini district, Northern Albania, arrested Tuesday the Italian citizen Roberto Magnani, intercepted Sunday by the police forces of this district.

Magnani is accused of keeping arms without permission, attempt for murder and rejection of police forces.

In the first legal proceeding, the accused Magnani partly accepted the charge, saying that it is 4 months that he travels the way Albania-Italy and vice-versa and he had bought in Durresi a machine gun of "Zastava" type.

On December 15, Magnani entered with an arm the house of Hoti family in Miloti town, and as he confessed himself before the judges "has asked for explanations regarding some material claims towards the sons of this family".

The accused Magnani said that he had taken the lady of the house hostage for two hours, by threatening her aiming not to kill, but as a mean of pressure.

The defence accepted that all the rights and laws are respected towards its clients, based on Albanian laws and there has been no maltreatment by the police forces. /s.sh/kei/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[14] 78 OBJECTS OF ALBANIAN ART REPLACED IN NATIONAL HISTORIC MUSEUM

In the ceremony organized Tuesday in the National Historic Museum, attending also Minister of Culture, Youth and Woman Teodor Laco, painters, journalists and other guests, the director of the Museum, Vilson Kuri talked about the value of these works, which are replaced on the boards of this museum after a 5-year exhibition outside the country in several countries of Europe, according to a state contract.

The objects belong mainly to the period of antiquity and the early Middle Ages. Masterpieces such as Dea of Butrinti, which belongs to the school of the famous Praxitel, the head of goddess Artemis, the bust of Philosopher or other statutes found in Apolonia, Durres, Bylis, Antigonea, etc, belonging to the IV century till III before Christ, are already exhibited on the boards of the museum.

These works of art represent some of the most beautiful elements of the Mediterranean antique culture.

Two months ago were replaced on the boards of the National Historic Museum in Tirana the epitaph of Gllavenica belonging to the year 1373 and four icons of Onufri and Selenica, unique objects of the national Museum, which were robbed from the grounds of this museum on February 1994. At the same time, in October was also presented one of the masterpieces of the Albanian iconography, that of Saint Mary, after the restoration done in the studios of Louvre in Paris. /s.sh/kei/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[15] ALBANIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN MEETS REPRESENTATIVE OF BRITISH CONSERVATIVE PARTY

Shehu and Stewart analysed during the meeting the progress of cooperation between two parties, not only at the bilateral level, but also at the European multilateral plan, in the framework of the European Democratic Union, presenting the most efficacious ways and forms to enlarge this cooperation n the future.

Shehu considered as very important the support of the British Conservative Party and suggested the exchange of electoral and political institutional experience as the best way of this cooperation.

At the end of the meeting, Stewart put forward the idea of drafting a detailed agenda of the relations between both parties for the coming year and guaranteed the continuous support of the the British Conservative Party for the Albanian Democratic Party and its reforming policies in all fields. /s.sh/kei/mt/k

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[16] ALBANIAN POLICE ARRESTS TWO ITALIANS WHO HAD COMMITTED CRIMES IN TORINO

This was made possible from the cooperation of Interpol Tirana and Interpol Roma.

Cella and Quaglia, after the criminal act, had entered Albania with falsified identity documents and had taken shelter for about three months in an apartment of "Siri Kodra" street, in Tirana.

Albanian police forces found in their residence the falsified identity documents, an amount of money and other materials which throw light upon their criminal activity. /kei/mt/k

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