Czechs Airlift 51 Albanians; 5,000 Remain

Czechoslovakia arranged a freedom flight for 51 Albanians today, but more than 5,000 other Albanians remained packed in Western embassies in Tirana, trying to leave Europe’s last hard-line Communist country.

President Vaclav Havel of Czechoslovakia sent his personal aircraft to Tirana for 51 of the Albanians who rushed into foreign embassies last week in desperate attempts to flee the country.

In Prague, Deputy Foreign Minister Vojtech Wagner of Czechoslovakia said only one or two of the asylum-seekers wanted to remain in Czechoslovakia and the rest wanted to go to the United States or Australia.

About 3,000 Albanians seeking asylum were jammed behind the gates of the West German Embassy, where staffers tried to complete passport forms and find out where the Albanians wanted to go.

Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher promised that “those Albanians wishing to come to Germany will be welcomed,” the ministry said in Bonn.

The refugees overwhelmed the embassies, which have been unable to provide sufficient food and water. Sanitary conditions were bad in the most crowded embassies and Genscher termed the situation “intolerable.”

A baby girl was born to a refugee in the West German compound over the weekend, the Germans said.

The shaken Albanian leadership announced more government changes today, apparently in an attempt to reduce public dissatisfaction over shortages of food and other consumer items.

The Albanian Parliament fired the minister in charge of food production and the minister of light industry, and reassigned ministers of public services and domestic trade, the state ATA news agency reported.