BY BOBBIS MISAILIDES AND NATASHA TERLEXIS
VLORE, Albania - As the gate of the Italian warship Vittorio Veneto opened at 7:30 a.m. on April 24, another contingent of Italian troops marched into the port of this city. The Italian forces have established a military base here and raised the Italian flag in the port. About a dozen Albanians, mostly youth, were observing the arrival of the imperialist occupation forces.

"Why are they coming here," asked Alban Goci, 24, who worked in Greece as a construction worker for three years, as he watched the disembarkation. "If we ourselves cannot solve our own problems and establish order, why should they be able to?" The Italian, Greek, and other governments that are part of the intervention force have supported Albanian president Sali Berisha before, Goci noted. "If they just bring us food and medicines, it will be OK," he said, "but they are not here to help us."

The military occupation comes in response to the revolt of Albania's working people against the pro-capitalist Berisha regime. Under the guise of "humanitarian assistance," its aim is to quell the revolt, and deal a blow against the gains of the 1944-46 revolution in Albania, with the ultimate goal of restoring capitalism in that country.

Vlore, the hotbed of the revolt, is a central target. Imperialist troops now guard the entrance to the main port and have set up camps at the old port, the disused military airport, and the city's naval academy. Gen. Girolamo Giglio, the Italian commander in charge of operations, told reporters at a press conference that in Vlore there are now 570 Italian and 130 Greek soldiers along with 320 military vehicles, including tanks.

On the same day, two Greek warships landed in the port of Durres further north, with 400 soldiers and 90 military vehicles. Two Spanish and two Turkish ships had also arrived earlier. This brings the Italian-led intervention force to 5,500 of an expected 6,000 troops. Armed forces from France, Romania, Austria, and Denmark are also part of the operation.

The popular armed rebellion erupted in Albania in the beginning of February after the collapse of fraudulent investment schemes that the Berisha government had backed. This collapse, in which a third of Albania's population lost most of their life savings, came in the midst of a devastating economic crisis. With the revolt, the country's armed forces have been virtually dissolved and the police rendered ineffective, with many stations shut down or burned. Albania's jails were thrown open and courts function only in certain parts of the country. Almost every household in Albania now has weapons.

In the course of the rebellion, defense councils were born in city after city. They formed the National Front for the Salvation of the People, which now includes 28 such citizens committees. In the southern part of the country, particularly in Vlore, the front has functioned as a alternative government, both locally and in opposition to Berisha's government in Tirana.

The Socialist Party (SP) - which is the former ruling Communist Party - has joined Berisha's Democratic Party and seven others in a government of "National Reconciliation" under SP prime minister Bashkim Fino, in an attempt to forestall the overthrow of the Berisha government by revolutionary means.

In March preparations for imperialist intervention began. This was at the same time as a stalemate developed between the heterogeneous rebel committees, which hold virtually the entire south of the country, and the government in Tirana - with time ticking to the advantage of the counterrevolution.

Despite the rallying cry of most Albanians for his resignation, Berisha remains the president. He has organized vigilante gangs that terrorize the population. These gangs are made up of remnants of the dissolved army loyal to Berisha, agents of the secret police SHIK, and police officers that fled the rebel-held areas. Criminal elements have also instilled terror, uncertainty, loss of confidence, and frustration among working people and youth. These terrorist forces carry out indiscriminate assaults, killing many, and looting and burning banks, small shops, and houses.

"I lost all my money in the `pyramids,' " said Goci. "I had a car, and that was stolen by the gangs. Now I have nothing." The night before a relative, who is a truck driver, was robbed at gunpoint. "By myself I can't do anything," the young worker said, "but if all the people in Vlore got together, we could do something to stop them."

The daily terrorist assaults have been used by the state- controlled media here and by the international big-business press to paint a picture of "chaos and anarchy" in Albania to justify the imperialist occupation.

Relationship of forces shifts
The defense committees have so far been unable to adequately mobilize armed working people to defend themselves effectively in the cities against these constant attacks, as well as distribute food and medicine and carry out other tasks. The government in Tirana, with the weight of the imperialist military presence behind it, has taken further steps toward organizing its police forces with the collaboration of the rebels' citizens councils, and toward reestablishing its authority.

The entrance of the city of Sarande is now guarded by policemen, as well as civilians with automatic rifles. "There are now 83 policemen in the city," says Minella Bala, a leader of the local committee. He explained that the committee chose a new police chief, who went to Tirana to get properly appointed by the ministry of the interior. Many members of the recently reconstituted police have been cops before. Apparently one of the "bad apples" from the old police was rehired, says Bala, and when people saw him in uniform they "beat him up in the central square and took his pistol." No other police have been harmed. "People have Kalashnikovs, while the police don't even all have pistols," he said.

The committee of Sarande has been ceding its authority to the previously elected organs of local government. "The prefect of our area had been on the committee here from the beginning," Bala noted, "so our committee was never entirely `illegal.' It's undemocratic to appoint a new administration as in Vlore."

Bala maintained that "all of Europe and the whole world" recognizes the government and the local authorities, so "who are we to hold out." He explained that he himself is also considering resigning from the committee, as others have done, to make way for restoring the previous city officials. "Europe has its own reasons for intervening - they are afraid of a wider Balkan war. But we cannot keep order now and someone has to. The armies here will help us go to elections.

"We accomplished a great deal so far," Bala evaluated. "We have kicked out the SHIK [secret police] and the Sigurimi [security forces]. Only one person was killed [in the movement], and that was from a stray bullet.

"We brought Berisha to his knees and then served him up on the table. We handed him over to the opposition parties to finish the job. But they didn't! We have taken this as far as we can. The elections must now take place where surely Berisha will lose. Then he will stand trial and we will have a chance to find out what happened to our money and get some of it back."

The experience was somewhat different in Vlore. There Albert Shyti, a central leader of the Committee for the Salvation of Vlore and a former immigrant worker in Greece, explained that the local authorities loyal to Berisha had been replaced by the committee. Posts were allotted by the committee to the various opposition parties. "We tried to do on a local level what was done nationally," he explained, adding that the committee works closely with this newly constituted local government. A top priority is putting together the police force again, with salaries paid by the central government. These moves are part of reinforcing the Fino government - something that committee leaders see as necessary in order to move to elections and in that way get rid of Berisha.

"We had enough of killings and the attacks by the criminals," said Elidon, a young worker. "We want peace and order to return to Albania; we don't want the foreign forces to help Berisha but to bring peace and order," he said, reflecting the sentiment of many workers and youth Militant reporters talked to as they gathered for the rally at Vlore's main square organized daily by the committee.

Welcome and warning for troops
Three days into the arrival of imperialist troops on their soil, the belief was widespread, although not universal, among rank-and-file fighters, as well as leaders of the committees we spoke to, that foreign military forces would be a help in establishing order and ensuring fair elections this summer.

Albert Shyti described the events leading up to the arrival of the multinational force and the stance of the committee. Before the bulk of the troops arrived in Vlore, Gen. Giglio asked to meet with "up to 10 leaders of the committee" along with the mayor to discuss the deployment. When the first troops arrived in Vlore on April 21, he and others from the committee led between 4,000 and 5,000 people from the morning rally to the port to "welcome the foreign soldiers in Greek and Italian," said Shyti. "We don't think this is an intervention. Five thousand or 10,000 foreign troops can't fight the whole armed population of Albania. We have warned Fino's government and the foreigners not to make the mistake of supporting Berisha," he continued.

It was the committee, Shyti said, that showed the military command where to set up camp. Giglio promised the committee leaders that the occupation forces will keep "a neutral position between the rebels and Berisha." According to Shyti, the imperialist forces "will help bring peace and order" by guarding the main thoroughfares, the port and the airport. This will "guarantee that elections will take place on June 29 as scheduled. Berisha will go, through democratic means," Shyti said. The newly elected government will compensate working people for the money lost in the pyramid schemes. Working people "will never give up their arms until Berisha goes," Shyti told us.

Shyti and others in the committee have called on the people of Vlore to be on the alert and retain armed defense units against any possible attacks by Berisha's forces. In fact, though many more uniformed police are visible in the streets and roads, they are generally accompanied by armed civilians. Sporadic gunfire continues to be heard during the night, the same as before the arrival of the troops three days ago.

"We have guaranteed that we will not harm the soldiers," stated Luftari Petosiati, head of the committee in Vlore. "It is very possible that Berisha will attempt a provocation against the soldiers. Then foreign troops will be caught in the middle. He may attack the troops to create an excuse to attack us."

Humanitarian aid is a pretext
On this visit to Albania, Militant reporters saw dozens of trucks carrying goods creating a traffic jam at the border crossing from Greece. This commercial traffic is a very different picture from the deserted road we crossed three weeks ago. Commercial activity is on a comeback, with many shops and street markets functioning, carrying basic food stuffs and clothes - although the prices have gone up and money is scarce. Red Cross sources have reported no violence against them in providing food and medicine to several hospitals and institutions around the country. Yet, one of the main pretexts the imperialists use for sending their occupation force into Albania is "to secure distribution of humanitarian aid."

Basic goods for sale in the markets of towns such as Sarande and Gjirokaster come from Greece. In Sarande, Bala explained, "we don't have a lack of food. Medicine, yes, we need." So far he says that the city has received 26 tons of food and 8 tons of fuel. In his opinion "help will not be able to come without the troops - only half of it would ever make it."

"It's not that we are a hungry people," responded Elidon to the question of the need for humanitarian aid in Vlore. The view of many people at the morning rally was that the most important thing was for the port to reopen and normal commerce to resume with Italy, the most vital trade link for Vlore. They expected the foreign troops to prioritize this.

The aid is to be distributed through commercial routes, explained Bala. "The baker will get the flour at a cheap price, like 200 leke, and sell it at a small profit, say 250 leke for example, enough to get paid for his labor." Meanwhile, commercial exploitation of what aid has already been given is reported. A woman from one of the villages bordering Greece, who did not give her name, said that the baker there had gotten the sacks of flour which came in as aid for free and sold bread for 700 leke.

Workers determined to oust Berisha
On April 24 around 10,000 people gathered here for the day's rally at 10:30 a.m. sharp. People had begun to gather earlier. There was no sign of the occupation troops, who have not yet set up patrols beyond the guarding of the port entrance.

There was no mention of their presence in the brief speech by the representative of the Vlore committee either. Edmond Tahirai called on the parties in the government to get tougher with Berisha and kick "the people's enemies" out of the government. "Even if one citizen of Vlore remains alive, he too will fight against Berisha," Tahirai declared. The chants of "Down with Berisha" did not seem to stop.

A speaker then announced that in "a historic moment for Vlore" Leka Zog, the son of the former king of Albania, would address the city. Wanting to make its position clear, the committee representatives left, taking the sound system with them. Zog's feeble attempts to make a speech using a bullhorn were resoundingly rejected with shouts of "Down with Leka" and "Hang Berisha." The Albanian president supports a referendum on the return of the monarchy.

"Leka's father left with all of Albania's gold," said Robert, a young worker, referring to the monarch's flight in 1939, before the invasion of Albania by Italian forces. "Berisha took all our money, and now Leka's son is back to take what is left!" Greece's Mega TV channel showed a rally of about 5,000 the next day in Shkoder, however, which was supportive of the former king's son.

The spirited rally in Vlore showed working people's determination to continue to fight until Berisha resigns and they are compensated for the money they lost. No one doubts that people will keep their arms at least until that time comes. Many trust the Fino government and its call for foreign imperialist intervention. "Every night there are one to three people killed," said Mrs. Diamante, who runs a cafe in the front part of her house. She spent several years as a domestic worker in Greece. "Berisha still wants to fight us, to drink the blood of the people. But we have confidence in Fino and the foreign troops." She is hoping for an SP victory in the elections.

A few people who had worked in Italy as immigrants and been deported went so far as to support annexation of the Vlore area into Italy. "We haven't accomplished anything by ourselves," said Robert. "Why not be part of a powerful, rich country like Italy, and be Italian?"

Most, though, expressed reserve and cautious optimism. Fotis Coulari, who worked in Greece as a furniture worker, said that the intervening powers were spending 6 million ECU to bring their armies here, while "the aid they promise us is 3 million ECU. If they come so that elections can take place they are accepted because Berisha will lose. If they support Berisha they will receive our bullets."

"Greece and Italy came here not to aid us but to steal," said Trifon, who had been a waiter on the Greek island of Mytelene. "If they give us food aid it's OK. If they support Berisha then it will be war."

Dimitri Streto, who spent three months in jail for campaigning for the Human Rights Union in the local elections last year that were rigged by Berisha, said that Greek, Italian, and other imperialist troops have come to Albania to "defend their own interests and not to guarantee that fair elections take place." He is a member of the Greek minority from the village of Arta outside of Vlore. His views were not popular with other rally participants.

Meanwhile on April 24, the European Parliament passed a resolution that leaves the door open for the postponement of the June 29 elections. One of the reasons given for the possible postponement is if the local governments that were seated after Berisha's fraudulent elections in 1996 are not restored.

The rebel's 28 committees, meeting in Vlore, continue to take initiatives to put pressure for the resignation of Berisha. Shyti reported that they were meeting April 25 to plan rallies and marches across Albania May 1 to demand the ousting of Berisha.  
 
 
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