“When the Sigurimi operative told Afërdita; it is a shame that you work as a cleaner, because you are a very talented actress, come to my office so we can fix this job, she…”/The sad event (or: story) during the communist dictatorship

By Nga Reshat KRIPA

Part three

Memorie.al / Arbër stood in his corner in the hall, waiting for the arrival of the plane that would take him to another world, and he meditated. He meditated and dreamed about the path full of stinging nettles and thorns through which his life had passed. He recalled the worries that had accompanied him for years. He had many passions. He wanted to become a lawyer, journalist, doctor, engineer, artist, writer, or whatever else might be possible. But fate had condemned him not to reach any of his dreamed-of peaks. He encountered disappointment at every step of his life.

                                                           Continued from the previous issue

Before her eyes, the theater hall was no more. It had flown into her own world. Dimitri was no longer her partner. It seemed to her that he was Sokol, surrounded by a crowd of wolves, each trying to tear a piece from his body.

“Stop, stop!” she cried amidst the tears that flowed like a river. “Don’t take my Sokol!”

A hysterical laugh burst from her lips. The audience, standing up, thundered with ardent applause. Among them, the voice of a child was heard loudest. It was Arbër, cheering for his mother.

“Close the curtain!” Demir shouted, but no one heard him. The audience’s applause drowned out his voice. The First Secretary again signaled him to be silent.

Finally, the show ended. Crowds of spectators poured onto the stage to congratulate the director and the actors, and in particular, Olimbia. Bouquets of flowers were directed toward her. At this moment, Demir arrived, grabbed her by the arm, and pulled her off the stage. There, he was confronted by Andrea, who intervened and pulled her out of his hands.

“Let her go!” he said, “The success of this show is precisely this.” He brought her back to the front of the stage. The ovations were extraordinary and lasted for a long time.

“Thank you!” Afërdita said. “Thank you! You were the star of the show,” Andrea replied.

Together with her mother and Arbër, they set off for home. Andrea escorted them to the gate.

The Party Meeting: The Confrontation

The next day, a meeting was held at the Party Committee, led by the First Secretary of the District Party. The delegate from the capital was also present, as were all the party secretaries of the enterprises and schools in the district. There were also other invited cadres, including Andrea.

The topic was: the balance of work done in preparation for the celebration of the fortieth anniversary of independence. The main report was given by the First Secretary. He spoke for almost an hour about the work done, praising the leading cadres who had prepared the celebration, illustrating this with various examples. He did not mention the staging of the drama at all, deliberately keeping silent about it. In the end, he thanked the representative from Tirana for the assistance provided.

The discussions began. Demir was the first to rise: “Dear comrades,” he said. “I fully agree with everything the First Secretary raised, but I want to dwell on a point that was not mentioned in the report at all. I am referring to the show organized by the ‘Martyrs of Freedom’ school and personally by its director, comrade Andrea Goranxi, present in this meeting. I cannot understand how comrade Andrea assigned the main role to a de-classed person, whose husband died in prison, serving his deserved sentence as an enemy of the people. Precisely because of this, she was deprived of the right to practice her profession as a teacher. I think that today comrade Andrea must give us explanations for why he made this decision.”

Andrea rose from his seat and slowly headed to the podium where the discussions were held. He stood in silence for a few minutes and then began: “Allow me, esteemed comrades, to tell you my reasons for undertaking such an action. Ten years ago, on November 28, 1942, in the fire of the war for freedom, the director of the ‘Nana Skanderbeg’ school in the capital, the People’s Hero, Astrit Çeliku, organized the staging of this drama. He entrusted the main role, that of Olimbia, to Afërdita Ndreca, who would later take the surname Dauti, then a final-year student. The success was extraordinary, so much so that it infuriated the fascists. As a reprisal, they arrested Director Astrit and executed him. In memory of this event, I thought of repeating the performance of this drama. I thought that no one else could play this role better than comrade Afërditë, and I was not wrong. I add that she is an employee of our school, in the capacity of a cleaner, which she performs excellently without feeling or complaining. The success was extraordinary, and you all saw it. The ovations from the audience were endless.”

“But when she cried; ‘Don’t take my Sokol,’ what did she mean? Was she reminded of her husband, Sokol, who died in prison as an enemy of the people? Did she perhaps want to resurrect him?” Demir asked with a harsh voice from his seat.

“No, dear Demir, this is an epithet often used in our language to show the greatness of our heroes, and Afërdita used it to show the greatness of Dimitri.”

Demir fell silent. Andrea ended his speech with the words: “I am ready to answer before any decision you consider and make. I thank you for listening to me and forgive me for the time consumed.”

The meeting continued with several other discussions. Finally, the delegate from the capital took the floor, saying at the end of his speech: “Regarding the issue discussed here, let the competent bodies take action.” With that, the meeting ended.

The Sigurimi Operative’s Offer

The days that followed remained calm. Everyone carried out their daily work. It seemed as if nothing had happened. But the secret channels continued to operate.

One day, Resuli, once a school friend of Sokol’s and now a State Security operative, passing by her, addressed her in a calm voice that expressed warmth: “Good work.”

Afërdita looked him in the eye, surprised. A shiver ran through her body. Nevertheless, out of politeness, she replied in the same way: “May you have good things, thank you!”

Resuli stopped and continued in the same manner: “I saw your performance, and you excelled in the role you played, and to tell you the truth, I feel sorry that you are a school cleaner when you should be a great artist.”

Afërdita felt as if she had the face of a hypocrite before her eyes, or even worse, that of a bloodthirsty man. “I have chosen my profession now,” she replied. “These are the broom and the bucket. I have no greater claims.”

“You are mistaken,” Resuli insisted. “That choice was given to you by life’s circumstances, but they are within your power to fix. If you want, come to my office one day, and let’s discuss the way to fix this.”

Resuli said no more and left, with a smile on his lips that implied many things.

“The hypocrite,” Afërdita said to her, “he thinks I will forget his crime.” She repeated his words and was convinced that something else was hidden behind them. An inner voice told her that going to his office would be her moral ruin. This suspicion was further fueled by the fact that he was the person who had arrested Sokol. That evening, she discussed it with her mother. She also expressed a divided opinion.

“Today, my daughter,” she said, “we live in a strange world. We are surrounded by people whom we do not know if they are angels or devils. Only God knows this. I don’t know what to tell you. Act as your conscience tells you.”

A few days later, she met Resuli face-to-face again. “Have you thought about it?” he said. Afërdita did not answer him. She thought of discussing it with Andrea and went to his office. She knew he was the last to leave the school. “What good news brings you?” he asked with a smile. “I am facing a great dilemma,” she told him.

She told him about Resuli’s proposal. Andrea listened attentively. After thinking for a few minutes, he continued: “I am in the same dilemma. I don’t believe I will be the director of this school anymore, and I don’t know where they will send me. This is the Albania we live in.”

In fact, Andrea had been summoned several times to the Party Committee to be pressured about why he had promoted someone who was condemned to work as a cleaner. But no action had been taken against him until now. Nevertheless, he did not tell this to Afërdita. “If you listen to me,” he finally said, “don’t go.”

Afërdita decided. The hesitations and illusions had vanished.

The Consequences

The day the school year ended finally arrived. Director Andrea organized a ceremony for the occasion, where report cards were distributed. All the excellent students, by class, were praised and honored with certificates of honor. Among them were Arbër and Petrit.

Afërdita was returning home. Suddenly, without realizing where he came from, Resuli appeared. “I want to talk to you,” he said. She guessed what he wanted to talk about, but she was now clear about the stance she would take. She had decided this ever since she talked to Andrea.

“Honestly, as an old friend of Sokol’s, I feel bad that a woman of your level continues to work as a simple cleaner when you should be a renowned teacher or an excellent actress.”

Afërdita felt disgust for the words he expressed. “And then?” she interrupted.

“I think a mistake was made in your case, due to some short-sighted person who did not know how to act with you, as well as some other circumstances, conditioned by the positioning of an individual under the conditions created in our country.”

“And then?” Afërdita repeated.

“I think this should be corrected. Our country today needs cadres like you. But to make this correction, you must contribute.”

“And then?” Afërdita said, for the third time.

“You must show that you are ready to help in the political line that our country follows. Today there are still people who, in one way or another, try to prevent the progress of socialist society, and we must expose them. We must show them their place. You can help us in this direction. I am waiting.”

“Like what?”

“Well, by talking to one person or another, gauging their opinions, and if someone speaks against it, denounce them. This way you will contribute to their elimination, and along with them, their failed ideology. Our goal is the creation of the new man, with the new principles of socialist society.”

The silence after this speech lasted long. Afërdita, looking him in the eye, addressed him:

“You have the wrong address. Excuse me, but I must leave.”

“Have you thought carefully?” Resuli threatened. The tone of his voice had now changed. It was the tone of a man who is used to giving orders to others.

“Completely,” was the answer?

They parted without saying goodbye.

Afërdita returned home and locked herself in her room. She wanted to calm the nerves that had been frayed by the debate with Resuli. This was noticed by her mother, who followed her, and when she saw her looking thoughtful, she said: “Daughter, what is troubling you?”

“My conscience,” was the answer. “And why?” “Because I cannot find the path I should follow.”

Her mother looked her straight in the eye and solemnly recited the verses… [The text continues with her mother’s uplifting words and Afërdita’s resolve to find the strength to continue living for her son.]

The “new tune” was heard in September, with the beginning of the new school year.

Andrea had been dismissed as director and appointed a teacher in a seven-year school, while Afërdita had been transferred to the city’s agricultural enterprise. Memorie.al

                                                       To be continued in the next issue