By Dashnor Kaloçi
Second part
Memorie.al / In mid-October 1982, just a few days after the arrest of former Minister of the Interior Kadri Hazbiu and his deputy, Feçor Shehu, former Director of State Security, (who from 1980 to 82, also held the position of Minister of Internal Affairs), according to the orders of Enver Hoxha, given to Hekuran Isai, the secretary of the Central Committee of PPSH, who was assigned the position of Minister of Internal Affairs, in February of that year, a ‘Special Group’ was immediately created, under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which would deal with: “the clarification of the hostile and agentic activity of Kadri Hazbiu’s group and his connections with the police agent Mehmet Shehu”.
At the head of that special group, which would be under the direct authority of the Minister of the Interior, Hekuran Isai was appointed the Director of State Security, Zylyftar Ramizi, who also held the post of Deputy Minister of Interior Affairs, and as his assistants were Hasan Ulqinaku and Enver Zeneli, both high officials of the State Security.
Immediately upon taking office, the ‘Special Group’ started work, where in addition to the investigative process against Kadri Hazbiu and Feçor Shehu, as well as other members of that “hostile group”, (including Nesti Nase, the former Minister of Labor of Foreign Affairs, Llambi Ziçishti, former Minister of Health, Mihallaq Ziçishti, former Major-General and Deputy Minister of the Interior, Llambi Peçini, former head of the Security and Physical Security sector of the senior leadership of the ALP, Fiqret Shehu , the wife of former Prime Minister Mehmet Shehu, with her two sons, Skenderi and Bashkimi, Elham Gjika, former head of the Tirana Investigation, Kristofor Martiro, former investigator who was involved in the investigation against Beqir Balluku, Gani Kodra, ex- head of the Security and Physical Security sector of the senior leadership of the APS, etc.), that group was also involved in opening the study of files for a number of former cadres and senior officials of the former leadership of the APS- party and state members, who from 1945 onwards were sentenced to prison or suffered in exile.
This was done to “discover and discredit the hostile activity of the agent group of Kadri Hazbiu and the poly-agent Mehmet Shehu”, and some of Enver Hoxha’s former closest associates, former members of Political Bureau of the Minister, as; Liri Belishova, Bedri Spahiu, Pandi Kristo, Kristo Themelko, Nesti Kerenxhi, Zoi Themeli, Gjin Marku, Maqo Çomo, etc. In this context, a large part of them who were interned, were arrested, another part was called to the investigator to testify, others were sent written questions, to testify on what they were asked for, etc.
Liri Belishovës, former member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of PPSH, (for propaganda, art and culture), who was interned since 1961 (while her husband, Maqo Çomo, was in Burrel prison), in December 1982 and January 1983, two letters were sent to her by the ‘Special Group’,
Under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, where some accusations and some questions were compiled, for her to answer in writing.
From the document in question, these letters to Liri Belishova coincide with a very difficult situation for her family, as she had just lost her only daughter (Drita Çomo, 20 years old, died of a serious illness in the Tirana Sanatorium) , where she was pressured, threatening her with arrest.
For more, it is known from this archival document that we are publishing below, which was extracted from a voluminous file of the Archive of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, (now part of the fund of the Authority for the Information of Files of the former Security of State), which is published for the first time by Memorie.al
Continues from last issue
THE SECRET DOCUMENT OF THE FIRST DIRECTORATE OF STATE INSURANCE, WITH THE FREE LETTER TO LIRI BELISHOVA, AS A RESPONSE TO THE ACCUSES MADE AGAINST HER BY THE OPERATIONAL GROUP UNDER THE MINISTRY OF INTERIOR AFFAIRS, “FOR DISCOVERING THE HOSTILE ACTIVITIES OF THE KADRI HAZBIUT AND MEHMET SHEHUT GROUP “
SECRET
Single specimens
Tirana, on 6.6.1983
ANSWERS TO THE ACCUSATION AND QUESTIONS
- – My attitude towards the Soviet Union and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union,
I have never talked against them with the Soviets, neither before nor after Stalin’s death, neither alone nor with Maqo. Nor for the implementation of the decisions of the 20th Congress in Albania. After every conversation that I have been given the opportunity to do, I have announced sh. Enver and there is nothing he does not know.
In the conversation with Suslov, I took a fair stand and told him that the issue of Koci Xoxe cannot be separated from the Yugoslavs, because he was their agent, fought for the union of Albania with Yugoslavia, for the unification of the army, etc. .
I have also expressed this opinion. Enver also in the Bureau. My position, regarding the disputes in the communist movement in the summer of 1960, has been extensively analyzed by the Party and appropriate measures have been taken – there is no need to describe it here, there is nothing new. But I want to specify three things that recently, are not being said as they happened!
1.- The Soviet adviser, I and sh. Gogo Nushi, we have not gone to the Albanian embassy – to the Soviet embassy, neither alone nor with any friends.
Why did we decide to call them? The Chinese, after talking at length about their differences with the Soviets, told us that they would not come to the Bucharest meeting.
Together with Comrade Gogo, as communists, this thing worried us – if the Chinese did not come, a situation could be created in it, like the one with Yugoslavia in 1949.
The detailed report for Comrade Enver, you are late until you arrive in Tirana. Even the radiograms, as they came and went, were delayed – since our embassy did not have a direct connection with Tirana, but through our embassy in Moscow. But the meeting was going to take place and we called the Soviet adviser.
We talked briefly about what the Soviets had told us – I about mine and Gogo about his, and told him our opinion that he should intervene to persuade the Chinese to come to the meeting, or else the meeting should be postponed.
We made a mistake, because we had to ask the Party Leadership first. But we did not act as agents. Even the Plenum of the Central Committee called it just a mistake.
To understand it correctly, one must look at the situation and how it was thought 23 years ago. I could bring here some facts and explanations that ease my responsibility.
But I am dwelling on the fact that the advisor is called together with Mr. Gogo and other members of the delegation agreed. Before I came to Beijing, sh. Gogo had talked with the Chairman of the Soviet delegation about what the Chinese had told him about the disputes with the Soviets (the Chinese were doing this with all the delegations that had gone to Beijing for the meeting of the World Federation of Trade Unions), had sent and our ambassador, to talk to the Soviet ambassador.
These, I do not say that Gogo is dead, because these have been filed in the Bureau and are known by the friends who were with Gogo – I tell them that my case should not be seen as a strange act that could only be done by an agent , if it is valued correctly.
If I had been an agent of the Soviets, I would have acted differently, I would have given them a copy of the detailed report that we prepared for us. Enver.
There was no need to call the Soviet ambassador to our embassy. I only met Kozlov during the dinner that was served for Comrade Haxhi and where all the members of the delegation were present.
3.- We did not give the two letters that my friend Enver sent to the Soviets. In both letters, it was written that they were for me only and that after I read them, I would destroy them. And so I did. If I were a Soviet agent, I would have done it differently: they could have taken photocopies.
Besides, what did these letters matter to the Soviets? They talked about the attitude of our delegation, at the meeting in Bucharest the Soviets knew this) and I was instructed not to speak.
To dwell on all the issues is pointless, because they were all told to me and I answered those 23 years ago. The party analyzed my case and I was given capital punishment, I was expelled.
Although my case was purely a Party case, it was also examined in the state way and I was exiled. This is the biggest tragedy of my life.
Now let’s see if I did anything, after the punishment for which I should be arrested and punished? No. During the 23 years, I have stood as I said, as if I were to be cut with scissors; I do not raise my hand against the Party.
After the sentence, I put an end to political life; I lived exiled in complete isolation, with my troubles. I have not carried out any activity against the State Party and I have not violated any legal norms.
We have had no contact with functionaries of the Soviet embassy or any other embassy, nor any interests of different persons in me, or in Maqo (Questions 20-22).
The endless series of misfortunes, the work to support the family and especially the last terrible misfortune, the death of my only daughter, have aged me and destroyed my health.
As a conclusion:
The accusation is unfair and there is no basis for my case to be raised again after 23 years, for me to be arrested and punished.
There are no facts and evidence for this, and there cannot be, as long as we have not done anything against the State Party, we have not violated any legal norm of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania.
Different things have been said and can be said about me, like about any other person, but these are verified, sifted. And my case has been reviewed several times and nothing has been left unsaid.
It was extensively reviewed after Nako’s suicide, in the period of the 8th Plenum; then nothing was left unsaid against me, the Yugoslavs of Koci Xoxe, they left no stone unturned.
In the 11th Plenum and the meetings after it, my case was analyzed again – the unjust things were rejected and I was told what the Party considered to be right.
After the events of the summer of 1960 related to the disputes in the communist movement, my case was examined by the Party and the state and I was sentenced to expulsion and exile.
Even in 1970, after I wrote to my friend Enver, my case was taken into consideration and it was decided to create lighter punishment conditions for me, removing me from the mountains of Progonat, where I lived for 10 years, and bringing me to Cërrik.
So, these facts of my life, the Party has known and judged, and new facts, there is not and cannot be. Therefore it is not fair to raise my case again after 23 years.
Of course, the war is complicated and for me, as I said above, I have worked for so many years under the direct leadership of sh. Enver, I have been near sh. Nexhmije, since the beginning of the war, I have fought and cooperated with more comrades, who were and are in the leadership of the Party and the state.
They know my life and I very well, they know how determined I was how I fought and worked. Finally, you cannot punish a person with opinions.
On the other hand, there may be things that, although they do not constitute a criminal offense, the Party and the state consider them harmful.
But here, we go to another field. Marxism-Leninism teaches us and sh. Enver said that; the issues should be separated, those related to the Party, from those that should be pursued administratively and from those that should be pursued in the criminal way.
In the same way and for the fact that everything has a measure, that one should not exaggerate, because the measure of the unity of opposites. During 23 years, no one has talked to me, I have not been reprimanded.
And finally, as I said above, I am not a danger to the Party and the state, I am not causing any trouble, I am not doing anything against them.
I live like an old mother, poisoned with my troubles, completely isolated. For 23 years, no harm has come to the State Party from me.
Liri Belishova
HANDWRITTEN NOTE OF THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF INTERIOR AFFAIRS AND THE DIRECTOR OF STATE INSURANCE, ZYLYFTAR RAMIZI, IN THE LETTER WITH ANSWERS TO LIRI BELISHOVA
Ugly, hostile, revisionist, anti-party, lying, we have other facts for you. Memorie.al
Zylyftar Ramizi
