Forsaken Albania

By Artan Lame
Tirana, 1965. Comrade Enver Hoxha, glorious leader of the Party and people, together with top officials of our State and People’s Amy. From the left: Sadik Bekteshi, Spiro Moisiu, Kadri Hazbiu, Beqir Balluku, Enver Hoxha, Mehmet Shehu, Petrit Dume, Mihallaq Zi誳ti, Aranit ȥla. Note the steel like unity that predominates between them. You can see how their eyes shine with the utmost faith in one another, in Comrade Enver and in the Party.
Major General Sadik Bekteshi, partisan, founding member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Political Director of the People’s Army. At the end he was an enemy of the Party and people. During the war he had been imprisoned and exiled as a political prisoner, first of all in Naples and later on in Ventotene. True he managed to get out of the prison of the fascists after one year, but he did not escape being thrown into the prison of the Commander, where he was interned for twenty years, but at least he survived those years and died a free man in a democratic society in the making, two years ago.
Major General Spiro Moisiu (1900-1980), Career officer of the Army since the time of Ahmet Zog, then in Italy and later on in the Party. A General, Deputy, Chief of the General Staff. Although the victim of several knock-backs time after time, he managed to survive Enver Hoxha, dying from old age, only one year prior to the uncovering of the plot of Poly-agent Mehmet Shehu, during which the Commander would have found some kind of excuse to have had him backed up against the wall before a firing squad.
Kadri Hazbiu (1922-1983), partisan, Brigade Commander, general, Minister of the Interior for more than 20 years, MP, Minister of Defence and last but not least a sworn enemy of the Party and People. He was executed before a firing squad following a grueling eleven months of investigation conducted by the Prosecutor’s Office which the Commander knew how to do so well.
Colonel General Beqir Balluku (1917-1974), partisan, Brigade Commander, Division Commander, Three star General (the only one to reach this rank), Chief of Staff, MP, 22 years Minister of Defence, Deputy Prime Minister and finally sworn enemy of the Party and people. Executed by firing squad.
Mehmet Shehu (1913-1981), volunteer in the Civil War of Spain, Brigade Commander, General, Hero of the People, MP, Minister of Defence and for 27 years on end Prime Minister (held this post the longest). Only to be branded a spy on the pay rolls of many Secret Services and a sworn enemy of the Party and people. No one ever got to the bottom of whether he committed suicide or was shot, but I recall the version his son Bashkim delivered to the public back then of how his father died. He said, “Mehmet Shehu was forced to self inflict death.”
Lieutenant General Petrit Dume. Partisan, Brigade Commander, Division Commander, Hero of the People, MP, Graduate of two Soviet Academies, Chief of Staff for more than 10 years and last but not least, sworn enemy of the Party and people, and, to top it off, he was charged with “high treason.” Executed by firing squad in 1975.
Major General Mihallaq Zi誳hti, partisan, General, Deputy Minister of the Interior. In 1982, his brother Llambi Zi誳hti, Minister of Health was executed by firing squad and naturally Llambi was also imprisoned as an enemy.
One after the other, sentence was passed on all of these individuals by Aranit ȥla, who in the capacity of Chairman of the High Court, presided over their Court hearings. And how were they to know that this man, in civilian dress who sat, withdrawn at the end of the row would be the one to send them all to their deaths. Only the Commander went unscathed, and he lent more emphasis to his presence by hanging his own portrait above his head. It is quite a blessing that these gentlemen did not realize they were enemies because they may have joined forces and I dread to think what mischief they could have done to the Commander, who in the photo is alone amidst a pack of wolves. And the people, mind blown by the emergence of all these enemies, happily and blissfully sang, “Mehmet Shehu would have led us to the slaughter/ Saved by Enver and the Party, may they live for ever more.”
And this was going on in Europe, the Champion of Liberty, Prosperity and Civilization of the seventies and eighties, in the middle of Europe of the Treaties and Conventions on the Rights of Animals, and here were we still dragging Ministers and General before firing squads. Truly a tolerant people with traditions, you cannot deny it!!!
Whilst we are on the subject of tradition and so as not to upset tradition, Aranit Cela, who did not manage to serve time when his own party ruled the roost in Albania, did serve time in the time of the party of Sali Berisha.