Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA), 98-02-15

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

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

CONTENTS

[01] Deputies of the Democratic Party in Albania organise armed gangs against government

[02] Albania's DP deputies organize armed gangs and armed opposition to the state authority

[03] Armed gang of DP deputies surrenders

[04] Event of Laç, fourteen people accompanied to Tirane police department

[05] Press review

[06] Former Interior Minister Ali Kazazi in police department of Tirane for the event in Lac

[07] Albanian youngster Vedat Veliu killed in Belgrade

[08] Close to ATA German former adviser blocks Agency network

[01] Deputies of the Democratic Party in Albania organise armed gangs against government

This event took place after a football match in the stadium of Shkodra city, where the DP deputy, Azem Hajdari, with a group of 20-30 armed people round him provoked the armed forces of local police.

Shkodra was also put under the pressure of armed terror of the DP militants even a month ago.

The police forces tried to isolate the armed gang, but they under the leadership of deputy Hajdari manifested their arms in the road. In a segment of Shkoder-Tirana road, the police forces managed to block the armed gang and paralyse their further actions. In the meantime four other DP deputies, Genc Pollo, Ylli Vejsiu, Shaban Memia and Pal Dajçi were added to the gang.

Interior minister, Neritan Ceka, who is closely following the operation, said for ATA at 02:30, that such an action is "an organisation of armed gangs and armed opposition to the authority of government".

Sources of the Interior Ministry said that the gang will be kept blocked during night, and in the morning will begin other operations to neutralise their further actions./fh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[02] Albania's DP deputies organize armed gangs and armed opposition to the state authority

In order that the operation of the armed gang be isolated and neutralized without any consequences, the police forces organized an operation outside the city of Shkoder, in the road leading to Lezhe.

But the armed group led by the DP deputy, by demonstrating their strength of arms and threatening the police, broke away the police roadblock and made for Tirane. The police forces set up another roadblock in the road which leads to the town of Lac in order to stop the march of the armed gang, the Interior Ministry report continues. In the mean time, the gang found itself encircled by police reinforcements coming from Lezha and Mirdita.

At about 10 p.m. last Saturday, two other deputies of the Democratic Party, Shaban Memia and Pal Dajci, joined the armed gang led by Azem Hajdari. After two hours, at about midnight, also Genc Pollo, deputy chairman of DP and chairman of the DP parliamentary group and DP deputy Ylli Vejsiu arrived in the area where the armed people was surrounded by police.

Sources of the Interior Ministry told ATA that at 2 a.m. on Sunday, that the armed people, led by the five deputies of the Democratic Party, did not respond to the call of police to surrender the arms.

The same sources also said that the group was encircled in a part of the road which posed no danger for the citizens roundabout and the position was such as not to allow the armed gang come out of the police encirclement.

The Minister of Home Affairs told the Albanian Telegraphic Agency at 2.40 a.m. that that act was "organized by armed gangs and was an armed opposition to the state authority."

The Interior Ministry told ATA that the police forces would continue to keep under full observation the gang until morning when they plan to start other operations.

This is the second time within 1998 when armed groups start provocations in Shkoder against police forces. The investigation for the event in Shkoder this January is not yet completed, but according to declarations by investigation groups, that act was led by the Democratic Party and its deputies with the aim of toppling the government through armed groups. The deputy, Azem Hajdari, has been mentioned as one of the organizers also of this terrorist act. Shaban Memia, DP deputy, former chairman of the Tirane DP branch, is the most accused of orders issued for the DP militants to be armed before the popular uprising in spring 1997. Genc Pollo, the most active man round former president Berisha, who left the post following the June 29, 1997 elections in Albania, presently DP deputy chairman, has carried out for a long time the role of the aide of the former president who now is DP leader and indicted by many people as the one who caused the tragedy of 1997 and the great number of killings in the south of Albania. Recently, Pollo is so much known of his resistance not to hand down the arms he had taken in the period of the people's revolt. xh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[03] Armed gang of DP deputies surrenders

The gang was forced by the police forces to be installed last evening in one of the narrowest segments of the Lezha-Tirane road for having provoked the local police forces in Shkoder and demonstrated their strength of arms against police in Lezhe.

The armed group surrendered in early this morning, when all its members although armed, lost their hopes of winning over police. Then the armed gang members raised the "white" flag, and accompanied by police vehicles made for the commissariat of Tirane at about 5 a.m., reports for ATA say.

The first to leave the position of the gang were the DP deputies: Genc Pollo, Ylli Vejsiu, Pal Dajci and Shaban Memia, who were brought to Tirane. The gang members had left a lot of ammunition, bullets and cartridges in the place where they were stationed. The Interior Ministry has been informed that the six cars which were carrying the armed gang members were without regular documents or stolen vehicles.

Experts of the group of the Interior Ministry are now going to the spot. In the mean time, sources say that one of the gang members, first bodyguard of former President Berisha, Izet Haxhia, who is under home- arrest for illegal possession of arms by a court decision, did not observe the police encirclement and left to unknown direction. There are doubts that he has taken great values stolen in Tropoje these days, according to Interior Ministry sources.

Reports says that deputy Azem Hajdari, who led the armed group, has not accepted to leave the spot where he was installed together with the gang during the night. (continues) xh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[04] Event of Laç, fourteen people accompanied to Tirane police department

in the early morning hours of Sunday as a result of the Saturday event in Lac, official sources of the police department of Tirane told ATA.

The same sources report that together with the 14 people, also four vehicles of the gang are also in the police department of Tirane. Officials of this office said that "investigation has started about the fourteen people." das/xh/ (to be continued)

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[05] Press review

"Police surround Azem Hajdari in Milot," is one of the titles in Koha Jone referring to the event which started in late Saturday afternoon. DP deputy Azem Hajdari accompanied by 20 people, was returning from Shkoder after watching a football match there. A police roadblock in the entrance of Lezhe wanted to stop them for control, but they did not stop, by voicing their opposition through arms. Later they were blocked in the other roadblock in Milot. According to the same paper, Hile Lushi, chief of special forces in the Interior Ministry, when asked about the events in Lezhe and Milot, said that "it is Azem Hajdari with 30 people, among whom also some former bodyguards of ex-president Berisha, and some wanted by police. They are armed and do not allow police to control them. We have surrounded them and are waiting till they surrender..." After abortive efforts by Hajdari and his men to break the encirclement, the paper writes that the latest report from Lezhe, received at about 10.30 p.m. on Saturday, said that some DP deputies have also gone there. According to police, "they have called on the roundby people to take up arms and fight," while Hajdari has declared that he will not surrender." No reports have been received on how the events developed during the late night hours, but something is known that the situation in Milot has been rather tense and nobody could envisage how it will it develop, Koha Jone ends the article.

The newspaper Dita Informacion writes about this event under the title "Armed Hajdari encircled," and subtitle "With the DP deputy also about 30 armed people who do not obey the public order forces." "According to preliminary information in the Interior Ministry, it is presumed that the group who shot against police by provoking a conflict which would bring about consequences, is the same group which keeps accompanying Azem Hajdari and other DP leaders, and which had also provoked another conflict by offending the police director," writes of this event the newspaper Zeri i Popullit. While newspaper Shekulli carries an article about this event under the title "Bandits and DP deputies against police. Memia, Dajci, Pollo and Minarolli, calls for sympathizers."

While Rilindja Demokratike devoted an article to the above-mentioned event, under the title "Ambush for Azem Hajdari," and Albania "Bullets on Azem Hajdari." /s.sh/xh/ (to be continued)

Press (part 2)

The beginning of a penal case against Vehbi Alimucaj, president of VEFA company and the comment by Gramoz Pashko, advicer of economic affairs of PM, about the completion of the auditing in the former loan-taking firms by Deloitte & Touche have been covered by some of the Sunday papers.

"Malaj brings charges for Alimucaj" is the title of an article in Gazeta Shqiptare, which stresses that "Tirane Prosecutor's office after indictment of the Finance Minister, Arben Malaj, of "slanders" and violation of the auditing status of the Deloitte & Touche, has started inquiries." Three weeks ago Alimucaj said that "Malaj, in agreement with administrators of Deloitte & Touche, wants to make our company go bankrupt." This time, according to this paper, the Finance Minister has decided ...to send an indictment to the prosecutor's office and that "the Tirane Prosecutor's Office has started to complete, since last Friday, a dossier for Alimucaj."

"Arben Malaj has charged Alimucaj of slandering against him in an interview in the press, in which Alimucaj has accused Malaj of cooperating with the foreign administrators' company to make VEFA go bankrupt," writes Koha Jone, adding that "the chief of the company had denied this fact, but now the prosecutor's office has started a penal case against him."

Koha Jone also writes of the comment by Gramoz Pashko, economic adviser of the Prime Minister, in a weekly news conference, about the completion of the auditing in the loan-taking firms by Deloitte & Touche. "All the firms which have borrowed money from the people, are on the eve of bankruptcy," said Gramoz Pashko. Now the second stage of the transparence of the pyramid-investment schemes will start. Pashko declared that "the government will defend the interests of the creditors and for this a number of measures will be adopted."

"The proportion between the assets and the debt is 1 to 6," said Pashko, according to Gazeta Shqiptare," based on a report by Deloitte & Touche." He also said that "now it has been proven that Alimucaj had no chances to pay the creditors and moreover, he had no more the right to administer his company."

"VEFA continues 'the odyssey' of unjustified expenses," is the title of an article in Dita Informacion devoted to this issue, citing Pashko that "A neutral company has proved that Alimucaj cannot defend his creditors."

While Rilindja Demokratike carries an article entitled "Pashko like Nano, promises the money to be paid by the pyramid investment firms."

One of the Sunday newspapers writes of the robbery in the bank of Tropoje, in first morning hours of Saturday.

"Masked people take the key of the Bank: They steal 60 million lek," is the title of an article in Gazeta Shqiptare about this robbery. The operation lasted about 5 hours and ended without any armed confrontation. After describing the steps undertaken by the robbers, the same paper writes that 'the bank was being guarded by only one guard, who, although was armed, could do nothing to protect the bank."

According to the guard who was tied up to a pillar, "at 2 a.m., four armed and masked people, after threatening the guard no to give any signal, started to work to open the bank." On the same day, sources of the Interior Ministry confirm the arrest of five suspects for the robbery in the bank. Also the director of the bank has been arrested suspected to have collaborated in the robbery, the same paper writes.

Dita Informacion writes of this event under the title "Director of the bank, 'involved' in the robbery," while Shekulli stressed that police has been informed very late about the robbery at midnight. "Bank of Tropoje stolen," is the title of an article on this event in newspaper Albania, which adds that the "director of the bank has been taken hostage." /s.sh/das/xh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[06] Former Interior Minister Ali Kazazi in police department of Tirane for the event in Lac

According to sources in the police department, one of the fourteen was Kazazi, member of the leading forums of the Democratic Party of Albania.

In the Government of National Reconciliation, Kazazi had at the beginning the post of the State Defence Secretary and later, after Belul Celo resigned from the post of the Interior Minister, Kazazi was named instead. /das/xh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[07] Albanian youngster Vedat Veliu killed in Belgrade

The Council for the Defence of the Human Rights declares in its monthly report also of three Albanians killed and five wounded by Serbian forces during January this year in Kosove. /b.j./das/xh/

Albanian Telegraphic Agency

[08] Close to ATA German former adviser blocks Agency network

With the termination of his two year contract signed in the context of the CIM Program, Muller cut financial relations with ATA without observing other obligatory points of the contract. On the basis of the CIM regulation and the agreement reached between ATA and Mr Muller, the material basis, brought together with the former German adviser two years ago, should remain a property of the Albanian Agency. "Contrary to these agreements, Hans Muller not only took all the equipment which would from now on belong to ATA, but he ruined for two successive times the agency network installation," the letter of ATA to the German Ambassador says. Thus Muller interrupted for some time the ATA broadcast for subscribers in and outside Albania with the equipment he pulled out from the network.

The letter notes that during his two-year stay in Albania, Muller has paid none of his financial obligations towards the Agency, an amount estimated at 500 000 lek.

ATA asks the German Ambassador in Tirane to influence so that the property taken by the former adviser be returned to ATA and that Muller pay all financial duties. ATA will also inform the CIM Centre of this unprecedented act. /das/xh/

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

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