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Albanian Times, April 7, 1996
CONTENTS
[1] Democrats Call to Prevent Return of Former Communists
[2] Tirana and Athens Boost Trade
[3] Tirana to Install New Public Phones
[4] Serb Police Bans Albanian Weekly in Prishtina
[1] Democrats Call to Prevent Return of Former Communists
TIRANA, April 6 - The newly elected chairman of the Democratic Party called
on the Albanian electorate to prevent former communists from returning to
power. Tritan Shehu, 47, said the party convention which ended on Friday,
has confirmed the "Union for Democracy" an alliance between right-wing and
centrist parties aimed at foiling the attempts of the opposition Socialists
to win this year's general elections. A number of small rightist parties and
political associations have promised to join. "The Democratic Party,
convinced in its victory, is ready for alleances, cooperation and
compromises with these forces, it is open for post-election coalitions with
them," Shehu told a news conference on Saturday. "There is no doubt we'll
win more than 50 percent. This is shown by our achievements, our
alternatives for the future, as well as the support of the people and
Europe," Shehu said. The Socialists have predicted a victory of opposition
forces by more than 50 percent in the coming elections. The Socialist Party
held its own convention late last month promising market reforms, jobs and
tax reliefs for farmers. President Berisha will open consultations with the
political parties to decide on the date of the elections, which are widely
expected to be held in early summer. (Albanian Times)
[2] Tirana and Athens Boost Trade
TIRANA, April 6 - Albanian and Greek trade organizations were expected to
sign an agreement in Tirana to boost economic ties between the two countries
as a follow-up to a friendship treaty concluded between the two Balkan
neighbors last March. The accord between Tirana Chamber of Commerce and
Industry and Athens Chamber of Commerce for Small and Medium Businesses will
enable the implementation of several E-U programs, and will provide further
guarantees for Greek investments in Albania. According to visiting Greek
businessmen, the cooperation aims not only at promoting trade but also at
increasing investments in Albania. Representatives from more than two dozen
Greek businesses are visiting Tirana in an effort to establish contacts with
their Albanian counterparts. Tirana will be the site of the upcoming Greek
Week, a major event bringing together businessmen from Greece and Albania.
(Albanian Times)
[3] Tirana to Install New Public Phones
TIRANA, April 6 - New telephone booth may soon be dotting Tirana landscape.
The Albanian Telecom and the Greek firm Intracom have plans to install 190
telephone booths in Tirana and expect to expand their project in other
districts. As a first step, 15 new booths will be installed in central
Tirana, according to the Albanian radio. Tirana and a number of Albanian
cities have direct access to the global telephone network, but overall
connections are poor and the system often breaks downs. Improving
telecommunications is seen as a top priority by the government in its
efforts to rebuild the nation's infrastucture. (Albanian Times, Radio
Tirana)
[4] Serb Police Bans Albanian Weekly in Prishtina
BELGRADE, April 6 - Serbian Police in Kosova have ordered to stop Albanian
language weekly Koha from printing, Beta News Agency reported from Belgrade.
Six policemen in Prishtina have ordered Koha publishers to submit
manuscripts before sending them to print. Koha magazine was founded two
years ago and has been registered with Serbian Ministry of Information.
(Albanian Times)
The material was reprinted with permission of AlbAmerica Trade & Consulting
International. For more information on ATCI and the Albanian Times, please
Copyright (c) ATCI, 1996
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