Dashnor Kaloçi
Second part
Memorie.al publishes a voluminous archival file issued by the institution of the Authority for Information of Former State Security Files, where there are hundreds of documents with the logo “Top secret” belonging to the former political prisoner, Xhavit Qesja, originally from the city of Kruja, whose family during the period of occupation of the country, 1939-1944, was closely associated with the Anti-Fascist Movement, being one of its main bases and made available all the wealth it had, as Xhavit was one of the first members of the Albanian Communist Party for the Kruja district, leading the Kruja-Ishëm partisan battalion and the 22nd Assault Brigade. Xhavit Qese’s political career after the end of the War, where he was appointed and served in senior positions in the Albanian Army, the apparatus of the Central Committee of the ALP, and several districts of the country, from where he was sent to study in the Soviet Union, where stayed until 1957, when he was announced to return to Albania urgently, after openly expressing his views in favor of the political line followed by the main Kremlin leader, Nikita Khrushchev, condemning the Stalin cult. Enver Hoxha’s conversation with Xhavit Qesen in his office in the Central Committee, where he sharply criticized him for the wrong views he had shown during his studies in Moscow, urging him to reflect and make self-criticism, but Xhavit rejected the suggestion of the first secretary of the Albanian Labor Party, which caused him to no longer be allowed to go to the Soviet Union to complete his studies, but to be sent to work as deputy chairman of the Elbasan Executive Committee, from where a year later, he was expelled from the Party and exiled to Zvërnec Island, where the communist regime kept isolated some of the former senior party and state cadres whom he had condemned for their anti-party views. Xhavit Qesë’s long ordeal and percussion from 1957 to 1990, where he spent a full 32 years in prison and internment, being one of the few convicts in Burrell Prison who went on long hunger strikes in protest of the treatment and savage attitude of the communist regime of Enver Hoxha towards him. The complete formative, investigative and judicial file in charge of Xhavit Qeses, which is published for the first time by Memorie.al, which contains the documents of the former State Security that reflect the prosecution and wiretapping against him, the reports of Security collaborators with nicknames their correspondence with the letters he sent to the highest party and state instances, as well as the top leaders of the ALP, until 1991 when he was released from prison!
Continued from the previous issue
Information report of 1957, where the collaborator of the State Security with the nickname “Skëndi”, tells about the conversations he had with Xhavit Qesen
Elbasan on 9/8/1957 Received from P.Po. Qerimi Series
Given by B.P. “Skëndi” No. ___
R e p o r t
The source informs that on 9/7/1957 Xhavit Qesja was in the office with whom they talked about construction issues and then family issues, Xhavit told him why he does not go to the beach with his whole family (his wife), that he is weak.
He replied that he had sent the boy to Pogradec in the camp; he could not go alone with his family because it was too much, he had asked and they had told him that the Durrës Hotels need 150 all for a bed on the floor.
Xhaviti answered that it is really very expensive, while the ministers go for free, we cannot go because we do not get an account. Then talking but Xhavit told him that it is foolish to ask you to carry out the plan, while the liquidator is not done and it is not your fault.
“Skëndi”
Report-information to the State Security Operational Worker, Captain Avni Mehmeti, regarding the testimonies given by the Security collaborator with the nickname “Consumption”, for the conversations made with Xhavit Qesen
Received from P.Op. Avni Mehmeti
Given by B.p. “Consumption”
Granted No. ___
R e p o r t
On 18 / VIII / 57 on Sunday at 14 o’clock in the afternoon, together with Xhavit Qesen, I was in the village of Draget in Dumre. In the conversation, Xheviti told me that you do not do cultured trade. I was right and they told us that we really suffer a lot in this regard. Our staff is not well prepared.
Xhavit told me that even in the Soviet Union there are such people in trade. I happen to go to a warehouse and ask a saleswoman how much a radio costs. She did not answer me, I spoke to her 3-4 times, and she was picking up a TV antenna and did not make a sound. In the end he told me that you do not have culture. I turned to you and told you in Albanian, eat the culture ……!
Elbasan on 19 / VIII / 1957 “Konsumi”
Report-information of the lieutenant colonel of the State Security, Shim Kolli, with the data of the Security collaborator with the nickname “Skëndi”, regarding the conversations made with Xhavit Qesen
Received from Lieutenant Colonel Shim Kolli
Given by B.p. “Skëndi”
Elbasan, on 19 / IX / 1957
R E P O R T:
He has cases and meets with Xhavit Qesen, but he does not say anything concrete. Only in a very subtle way does it hint that there are bureaucracy and people like positions and have become arrogant.
One day Xhavit said when he came from Moscow on a plane he saw me coming down and in the middle he heard him raise his hand, as when he was greeting a beggar and not one of his war comrades!
On the Tuesday after 17 / IX / 1957, he was in Xhavit’s office for work, they were listening to the radio, Xhavit with Angji Fabri, the radio music was over and at this time the radio started the discussion and was advertising a kind of special penicillin, but chatter said Xhaviti, these advertise penicillins, while the people become pieces to get a vial.
“Skëndi”
Received from Lieutenant Colonel Shim Kolli
Given by B.p. “Skëndi”
Dt.30 / 9/1957
R E P O R T
He met on the afternoon of September 29, 1957 with Xhavit Qesen at the Hunters’ Club around 6 pm, where after spending an hour there; they got up, walked for about 45 minutes, on the boulevard with Tahir Demi and Baki Kongoli on the boulevard and then parted with Xhavit and went to the cupboard of the House of Culture. They sat here and talking about various issues, the conversation turned to Xhavit’s return to Albania, Xhavit said that he had returned by boat by order of the Central Committee, because of his views convinced by fellow members of the Central Committee at that time in Moscow, as after Sul Baholli and Ismail Çaushi, around Poland and Gomulka and Yugoslavia.
I said Xhavit, I considered both the position of Gomulka and Tito to be right and I agree with the position held by the Soviet Union and China, also on the situation in Hungary I do not agree that this was created by the Yugoslavs and foreign intervention, but by the unjust direction, especially by Rakoshi who created unbearable situations for the Hungarian people, who rightly revolted. It is another matter that in this case, the reaction benefited because of our weaknesses.
When I was leaving for Tirana, I told our ambassador in Moscow, Comrade Mihal Prifti, why I was leaving by steamer and not by plane, until I had to return to Moscow, that I had two exams to take and that I went to Tirana only to clarify. Mihali told me: better by steam, than by plane, the Yugoslavs would provoke me, so he did not want to.
When I told him that friends from the Central Committee had come from there (from Belgrade) and that no one was disturbing them, he replied that it was good for us to do as the Central Committee of the Party tells us, that he knew better. I left by boat because they were afraid that I would not stay in Belgrade, while I did this if I wanted to, and in Moscow, going to the Yugoslav legation.
In the secretariat of the Central Committee where I was called, I was told that on the issues I had discussed and insisted on giving up, such as Poland, Yugoslavia, etc. Telling me that Gomulka is a Buharinist, etc. I replied that: I do not give up my conviction and I informed them exactly, reading “Pravda”, and “Zhenminzhibao”, they replied that I should only act as “Voice of the People” says and not otherwise, raising me some other issues that had been raised by Sul Baholli and Ismail Çaushi, said that they were unfair and made me a basket-elozhes and nevertheless took me to Elbasan.
I begged the secretariat comrades to allow me to continue school in the Soviet Union, as well as the state school, but they did not accept, I told them that they did not act correctly, if they returned me, if they did not let me continue school.
To strengthen his opinion I continue: Principality is the main issue where the priorities of the Party and each of its members are needed, if they are to be consistent in their path and not start only from purely personal interests for position and career issues.
Yugoslavia continued Xhavit, it is a socialist country that is guided by the principles of Marxism-Leninism, he told him, but in our country they complicate it unjustly, they talk about Koçi Xoxen who has committed so many crimes, as if he were a hero.
You told Xhavit you hear only one bell, what is being said by us, if you knew that of the Yugoslav side, I would think differently. You say that in the time of Koçi there was terror and murder, why is there not less imprisonment and murder now, is it not why there is less imprisonment and murder now, is it right to imprison so many people, Tuk , Bedri and the murder of Liri Gega with Dali Ndreu, which he says were caught at the border while fleeing, while they were captured and killed in Tirana, only because they knew many secrets of the party, which the current leadership does not know convenient to go out in the square.
For Bedri and Tuk, why are they in prison? Just for the fact that they had the courage to tell the truth. Tuk’s remarks in the plenum of the Central Committee of the Party, where he laughed and I was called, were right. He spoke about the photos of people placed in the museum, he said that Enver was appointed leader of the Party, not because he had rare qualities, not because he was the leader of the Korça group, why he was not, but only because he was without confusing them in group set-ups.
The meeting was then held behind closed doors. Bedri did not speak in the Plenum, as it seems he would have spoken later, but I found out that when he had spoken loudly, Mehmeti had told him, that you only know how to shout.
As far as our relations with Yugoslavia are concerned, these are not good, because our leadership does not accept that accepting it means recognizing the mistakes made so far. The thing is, people are afraid of losing the positions they hold.
Leaving this conversation, it came to anecdotes and jokes, and then Zef Malaj himself was silenced. Zefa Malaj, said Xheviti, was summoned to court and asked about his biography, he replied: “I was imprisoned in the time of Zog, imprisoned in the time of fascism and imprisoned in the time of socialism!”You have something else to say,” the judge told him. No, Zefi answered, put me better inside, because I am better there than outside “.
“Skëndi”
Elbasan, 30.IX.1957
Report-information of the Operational Worker, Captain Abdyl Vogli, with the data of the Security Associate with the nickname “Sword of Justice”, regarding the surveillance and prosecution of Xhavit Qeses
Taken from P.op. Cap. Abdyl Vogli
Given by B.p. “Sword of Justice”
Dt. 7.11.1957
Report dated 7.11.1957
The source stated that from October 28 or 29, 1957, I do not remember exactly, Xhavit Qesja came to the city of Durrës, who through his brother (Xhaferr Qeses), requested a meeting with Peço Kagjini. At the time Xhafa announced, Peço was in a meeting with the heads of the sections, who asked for ten minutes of leave and went out into the corridor of the Committee, but what they talked about, the source has no information. It is worth mentioning that Xhafa, when he invited Peço, said that at 9 o’clock, Xhavit will leave, so he asked to meet with Peço K në, in fact, Xhavit left Durrës two days later.
The source has ascertained that Peço K…. in the city of Durrës has established these connections with various persons of the city, such as Aleks K…, in the Trade Unions and his brother Koço K… in N.Sh.FMO, who is expelled from the Party and the source does not know longer for the expulsion of him from the Party.
“Shpata e drejtësisë”
Task:
B.p. was given the task, to pay more attention to the character of the connections with Koço K. and the reason of the latter, why he was expelled from the Party. Also any other contacts that Peço K të can get with different people, such as the case of Xhavit Qeses.
Operating measures:
This data should be printed in three copies, one to be sent to the Branch of Internal Affairs of Elbasan Region (since Xhavit Qesja is working there), and one copy to be sent to Branch II and one to be placed in the Peço file.
To be registered in the Koço K kont contingent, as an element excluded from the Party. Memorie.al
Operational Workshop
Cap. Abdyl Vogli
The next issue follows
