About 3,000 followers of the former Albanian president, Mr Sali Berisha, staged a peaceful march through the centre of Tirana yesterday as heavily armed state security forces looked on.
The capital returned to a semblance of normality after two days of political protest and street violence in which at least three people were killed and 14 wounded.
Mr Berisha's Democratic Party followers obeyed his request to march from the party headquarters building in silence, with fingers raised in the victory sign, in honour of their party colleague, Mr Adem Hajdari, whose murder on Saturday was followed by the worst violence in Albania for 18 months.
Addressing the crowd from the balcony of his party headquarters before the procession set off, Mr Berisha denied charges by the government that Monday's violence had been an attempted coup by his supporters. "That is a fantasy," he said.
A large contingent of police was on duty in Skanderbeg square as the march took place but there was no attempt to enforce a ban imposed by the Interior Minister, Mr Perikli Teta.
Before and after the rally, Democratic Party supporters chanted "Hakmarrje! Hakmarrje!" (Revenge!) outside the headquarters building and demanded the resignation of the Prime Minister, Mr Fatos Nano, whom they blame for the murder of Mr Hajdari.
The Democrats showed no sign of being willing to comply with a government order to hand in their weapons. Many of Mr Berisha's supporters outside his headquarters openly carried rifles and they were also in possession of two tanks commandeered from troops on Monday.
Not all of those outside the party's headquarters were party members or Berisha supporters. Some said they were merely disgusted with the Socialist government of Mr Nano.
"The government used force yesterday to calm the situation and it's not possible to do that in Albania," said a 32-year-old teacher, who identified himself as a non-party member. "The government said Berisha and the people tried to stage a coup, but how is that possible? Nano controls the police and the army and there is no possibility of a coup in Albania without them."
Mr Teta said many people had been killed and wounded in Monday's fighting, but did not give a figure. "Most of the dead are from the police," he said.
On Monday the interior ministry said three people were killed and 14 injured.
With the police and army apparently back in firm control of Tirana, Albania's political leaders still must arrive at some understanding of how the country is to be governed without periodic descents into chaos.
Mr Nano, last seen in public in a television interview on Monday morning, was said by officials to be safe and back at work and to have no intention of resigning.
The European Union yesterday called on Albania to hold all-party talks to bring an end to violence and political tension in the country. The Austrian Foreign Minister, Mr Wolfgang Schussel, said all-party talks were the only way to end rioting and tension.
Russia also expressed concern at the latest violence and urged all political forces in the Balkan country to work together.