Part Two
Memorie.al / Prof. Neki Babamusta, originally from Kavajë and residing in the USA for years, a well-known writer in the field of journalism and also a highly recognized historian in the Diaspora and Albanian territories, who recounts in this interview his early relationship with America, but not only…! He also tells how his family saved a Jewish family in 1943, as well as several Italian soldiers who had deserted from the war front…! In his long narrative, Prof. Babamusta also tells us about one of the most difficult situations he went through in life, that of 1954, when he was only 17 years old and served as a teacher in Pezë. There, he had to intervene between two armed groups of the same clan, where one side belonged to Babë Myslym, and the other side to his brother, Shyqëri, who had been killed in the War! We will learn about these and others, such as the event in March 1992, when the first American Ambassador to Albania, Mr. Ryerson, visited Kavajë and his life was endangered by a plot of communist extremists, in this long interview in two parts.
Continued from the previous issue
In June 1972, an old friend of the “Cani” Clan, Mr. Rexhep Muzhaqi (85 years old), a combat comrade of the patriot Ramazan Cani, came to visit by chance.
I was visiting my in-laws, at my fiancée’s house in Peqin. Mr. Rexhep looked at me with surprise and asked: “Which clan are you from in Kavajë?” After I told him my origin, with tears in his eyes, he stood up, hugged me, and said: “God’s work!?… How people come together”?!
This elderly man, with the manly nobility of an Albanian, told me about the connection between the two clans, the fighting friendship, and the cooperation in trade. He spoke highly emotionally and began to recount real historical events from the activity of the insurgent band of Ramazan Cani, of which he himself had been a member.
Ramazan Cani’s band fought for the freedom of the nation against the Turks and Serbs, for the protection of the poor against the feudal lords, and for the opening of Albanian schools. He was proud of Ramazan because his family and clan had saved him from his enemy.
In the guest rooms of the two clans, the Nation’s patriots were received with generosity and pride: Ismail Qemali, Bajram Curri, Avdi Bej Toptani, Aqif Pasha Elbasani, the brothers Myslim and Shqyqyri Peza, the Biçaku brothers, Avni Rustemi, Mustafa Gjinishi, Dr. Must Cara, Hamdi Frashëri, the brothers Bajram and Qamil Xhani.
During the National Liberation War (1941-’44), partisans, officers of the English Kingdom, political and religious figures from Europe and the USA, the Ambassador of England Dr. David Landsman with his wife (on April 11, 2003), the military attaché of the English Kingdom at the English Embassy in Tirana, Mark D. Vickers (2003 & 2004), etc., were welcomed.
With the start of democratic processes in the 1990s, the doors of the two clans were reopened to those persecuted by the dictatorship and patriots, and to simple citizens with whom the ideal of Democracy united us.
As a family, we have served as a host to many American, Swiss, German, Italian, etc., students who came with cultural or religious programs to Albania.
On March 15, 1992, the first American Ambassador, Ryerson, and his wife, came for a magnificent rally in Kavajë, accompanied by Mr. Sali Berisha, at the opening of the rally for the beginnings of democracy. How did you manage to organize their reception at your patriotic association “Bajram Xhani”? What did you discuss there?
December 4, 1922 – December 4, 2012, was the 90th anniversary of Albanian-American Diplomatic Relations. On December 20, 2012, at the “Voice of America,” on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations, the former American Ambassador Mr. William Ryerson, reaffirmed the strengthening of democracy: “If you don’t want history to repeat itself, don’t let it repeat itself.”
The news of the arrival of the first American Ambassador, Mr. Ryerson, in Kavajë, for a rally in the anti-communist city on March 15, 1992, accompanied by the former head of the opposition, Mr. Sali Berisha, was communicated four days earlier and spread quickly.
Notices came from Tirana to take care of the security of the high-ranking American diplomat and that the rally should be magnificent. We received word that there were plans from communist forces to sabotage the rally and endanger the lives of the invited personalities. For security, the “Bajram Xhani” Association proposed that the rally not be organized in the city center where a podium was set up for the event, but rather be held at the balcony of the City Polyclinic.
The “Bajram Xhani” Patriotic Association took precautionary measures to strengthen the security and success of the rally, engaging 100 political persecuted individuals, patriots, association members, and volunteers from the populace. 1000 small Albanian and American flags were prepared.
The Association stationed guards in shifts within 24 hours at the city square and in front of the Polyclinic, to guard the object and prevent incidents. The rally was realized successfully, and the communist plot failed.
The rally, with 20,000 participants from the city and villages of Kavajë, was magnificent with the slogan: “We want Albania like America.” The central square of Kavajë, proposed by the “Bajram Xhani” Patriotic Association, was named “America Square.” My daughter welcomed Ambassador Ryerson and presented him with the history of the American School, a large artistic Albanian copper vase, and a bouquet of flowers.
Ambassador Ryerson thanked the family and the daughter with a sweet smile, responding: “With the victory of Democracy, the paths of knowledge and education towards the USA will open for the children of Albania”! After the rally, the Ambassador was received at the city hall, where we were invited, along with other persecuted individuals and patriots.
Dik Cani (my wife’s uncle, former Vice Chairman of the Resistance Front, a political persecuted individual, sentenced to 101 years of political imprisonment) met the ambassador after the rally and said these words with tears in his eyes: “We were left in the hands of the executioner without support.
I will never forget the terrible tortures of the dictatorship during my imprisonment. This is because I, with my cousins, friends, and patriots throughout Albania, swore an oath to overthrow communism in cooperation with the Anglo-American intelligence.”
During the years 1991-’96, Washington donated 236 million dollars in economic aid to Albania, making it the second largest economic donor to Albania, after Italy.
On April 11, 2003, the former Ambassador of the United Kingdom, Mr. David Landsman, visited your home with his wife for a friendly visit. What was the common message of this friendly and impressive experience?
In mid-March 2003, Ambassador Landsman was invited for a discussion on a show on Albanian Radio-Television. During the show, the English Ambassador, among other things, congratulated the Babamusta family on behalf of the English government, for the friendship and continuity of support between our two nations.
On April 11, 2003, the English Ambassador and his wife honored us with a special visit of friendship to our home. The Ambassador conveyed the message of congratulations on behalf of the English government, for the continuity and strengthening of the long-standing relations between England and Albania.
The generous welcome, as is our Albanian custom, made a great impression on the Ambassador and his wife. During the conversation, we spoke about the possibility of tourism and investment in Albania by the English government in cooperation with the Albanian government.
I also expressed my opinion to the Ambassador about cooperation, to twin Kavajë with London. The Ambassador expressed his desire and interest in restoring the ancient Castle of Turra, near the village of ‘Domën,’ on the Adriatic coast.
What is your cooperation with the Albanian Diaspora? What is your concept of the nation, the government, political parties, and democracy in our country?
In 1999 and 2003, we continued our work in the USA where we as a family had extraordinary support from the American people, from US congressmen and senators, such as Senator Tom Harkin, Congressman John Kline, etc. The very high values of American democracy were the motivation for the continuation of our work.
In Detroit, USA, where we lived as a family for a year, we connected with the Albanian-American Radio “Alba” (1999). Through that radio, we spread the democratic values of our nation, of the Martyrs of Democracy, as well as the heroic struggle of the brothers of Kosovo against the Serbian genocide.
In the United States, we learned about the solidarity towards the Albanian nation and the help that the American people have given and continue to give to it. With the direct support of the USA, led by former President George Bush, Albania was admitted to NATO, visas were lifted, etc., as a result of positive changes.
During the years of transition, the Albanian political class and the Albanian people, with their wisdom and democratic culture, have paved the way very quickly to gain the status of a candidate country for the European Union. This is because with its economic resources and political values, it deserves to enter the EU as soon as possible.
What is your message for the future of Kosovo, Chameria, and the Albanian nation?
The heroic and freedom-loving people of Kosovo, led by Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi, within a short period eliminated the scars of war, and the economy has entered the path of progress. For these merits, the European Union should remove visas for Kosovo for free movement in Europe and quickly give the green light for integration into the European Union.
With the Agreement of April 19, 2013, the political class of Kosovo, its people, and its government showed the world and the West that the Albanians of Kosovo, although victims of Serbian aggression, know how to forgive for the sake of peace and good neighborliness between Serbia, Kosovo, and the region. Albanians living in their own territories in Macedonia, united, must insist on the implementation of the Ohrid Agreement (August 2001) and feel masters of their hearths.
For the Albanians of Chameria (an ethnic region of the Albanian nation), their human rights must be internationally recognized, the property of their ancestors must be returned, and they must be given the right to visit their ancestral lands.
Based on international agreements, Albanians in Montenegro and the Preševo Valley must be given all rights, just as Serbian minorities in Mitrovica have been given. The Albanian nation must follow the path of the National Renaissance figures to preserve the language, customs, traditions, and national identity, so as not to be assimilated. Today, over 10-12 million Albanians live in the Albanian territories.
Wars killed and exterminated us – we should be a nation with a population of 30 million today. The political class of our nation must work for the fastest possible economic development to eliminate the plague of emigration once and for all, because today, of the 45 million refugees worldwide, 3 million are Albanian.
National unification, this dream of the National Renaissance figures, must enter the blood of every Albanian. Today, internal and international conditions do not allow such a thing because it risks disrupting the balance in the Balkans. A major principle for our nation is integration into the European Union. / Memorie.al
