From Agron Mema
– The rare testimony of the driver of the former head of the Internal Branch of Saranda, Sali Veliu, who was imprisoned with his two deputies, Panajot Barka and Sami Resuli-
Memorie.al / Sarandi Nikolla, former driver of the head of the Internal Affairs Branch of Saranda, Sali Veliu, tells about the sensational arrest in 1984 of the leaders of the Branch and the Headquarters of the Southern Border Battalion. The night of horror and the scary days that followed, come in this story, that even today, after so many years, its echo has not escaped from the memory of the people of Sarandjo, just as the good portrait of the former head of the Department of Works has not escaped of the interior, Sali Veliu, arrested four days after marrying his only daughter. Accusation, as a preparer of a coup against the state, because at the daughter’s wedding, he put appetizers with roasted heads on the table. What did this mean? For everyone, nothing, but for the state of the time, he said a lot: “Whose heads were the mayor and wedding guests eating”?!
Six senior officers end up in handcuffs as “enemies of the people”. In the confession of Sarand Nikolla, the former driver of the head of the Department of Internal Affairs of Saranda, the terrifying panorama of the siege of the Department by the forces of the Republic Guard, the meetings from midnight to dawn, the investigation and the layoffs unfolds.
The portraits of Kadri Hazbiu, Hekuran Isai and Zylyftar Ramizi come, as well as the futility and psychological terror of many actions of the Ministry of Interior at that time, especially after the purges with the suicide of Prime Minister Mehmet Shehu, etc.
Mr. Sarandi, thanking you for making this conversation possible, to shed light on one of the most sensational events of arrests, not only in Saranda, but also in Albania, first I am asking you, how many years did you work as a driver in the Branch of Internal Affairs of Saranda?
Thank you! But I won’t talk too much and don’t force me! I will tell only about that night. In the Department of Internal Affairs of Saranda, I worked for 20 years as a driver for its chairman.
Then what can you say about that event that has remained imprinted in the minds of the people of Saranda ?
Yes! When they were arrested, it was 1984, as I remember. We were all told to be at the Branch and there we stayed. You can’t do naze. Midnight was coming and there were no orders, we were used to such things, because we were also near the border and there could be an incident at the border; both for escape and violation, saboteurs. A doubt lingered, but it did not hold us.
The guesses expressed usually ended up behind the bars of the investigation. And today, I’m saying the doubt I had: “Like us, they keep us on standby and the president and the two vice presidents are not here?! Well, it will be a serious event, so they will be in a meeting with the First Secretary of the District Party Committee”, because they used to go there once, before any situation or arrest.
We didn’t talk. Midnight found us in these guesses, when two “IFA” vehicles (trucks) with guards and six “ARO” (Romanian vehicles, used by officials) with the Deputy Minister Zylyftar Ramizi and operatives of the Ministry arrive and stop in the yard of the branch. of the Interior. The guards surrounded the Internal Branch, while Zylyftari, without speaking at all, entered the office of the guard officer, whom he took out, with a single word: “Go away”! Keep only the NCO.
At the time Zylyftari was dealing with the non-commissioned officer, I asked my friends, drivers of Tirana, that; what is it?! They told me with raised shoulders that they were perverted: “First they ordered to Durrës, because there is an uprising, then to Lushnja, Fier, Gjirokastër and we ended up in Saranda. We know nothing! Yes, apparently, here is the wedding. That we did not stop in any city, despite being ordered to do so we were approaching the city, they said that the insurgents are further away, until we came here”!
As I showed above, the Deputy Minister of the Interior, Zylyftari, after dismissing the guard officer from duty, dealt with the non-commissioned officer, whom he ordered to notify the president and the two vice presidents, to appear in the emergency body. They were notified immediately. We were anxiously waiting for what would happen. Although we were used to it, each case still had its own strangeness. Absolute peace. Zylyftari’s eyes looked at all of us, who were still standing there. Meanwhile, the mayor, Sali Veliu, entered the gate.
Zylyftari came out of the guard officer’s office, which was next to the large outer gate and the mayor’s outstretched hand of welcome, addressed you with the words: “By order of the Prosecutor General, of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania, you are under arrest “! We were all stunned! They handcuffed him to one of the “AROs”. To tell you the truth, they brought tears to my eyes, the night helped me and they didn’t see me, because otherwise I was drunk. After a few minutes, the vice president, Panajot Barka, arrives. This same fate and words, like the chairman.
The Inner Branch seemed to shake all over, as if a 10-magnitude earthquake was about to flatten everything. And it really leveled everything. After a while, the other vice-president, Sami Resuli, comes, because they came according to the distance of the apartments on foot, they didn’t even let me take the president by car. He also ended up in handcuffs. They didn’t keep them anymore, they started urgently towards Tirana. The soldiers crackled their weapons. Fear everywhere. Two of the incoming “AROs” headed towards Livadhya, where the Command and Headquarters of the Border Battalion for the South was located. There they arrested the head of the Border Staff and a non-commissioned officer.
They told us to go home. As soon as we arrived, soldiers and policemen arrived and warned us to report back to the Branch. “Well, this job is for you!” I said. Like me, others also said, as they showed afterwards. I saw the children once more and left for the Branch. I no longer felt pain in myself, when I saw my wife and children, who were looking at me in amazement…! See, see! Moments of horror…! The soul hurt a lot, from the despair of the woman and the glass of the child’s eye?! Yes, I went to the branch. Many had gathered, and others were coming. Confused and scared. We were sitting at the gate of “St. Peter” and waiting whose name would be spoken…?! They brought us into the meeting room, where the deputy minister, Zylyftar Ramizi, came again and briefly communicated the names of the arrested. Just names, no motivation. An absolute silence and fear reigned in the hall. More, you couldn’t hear a fly! You can’t believe it, it’s true. He asked us all in turn.
A control officer spoke harshly to him: “What about you?! Couldn’t you catch those two girls who ran away? From the Neck of Muzina, if you catch them, that’s it! Or do you eat a lot of watermelon, you like the desert, huh?! Another Operative Worker of the city told him: “I’ll put you in jail too, you fool!” You think you’re beautiful and you don’t have your mind on work.” And indeed, after three days, Qazim was arrested and imprisoned. Ramizi didn’t mean it, no! This is the sensational story of their arrest. A terrible arrest. Not even Kadri Hazbiu was arrested like that…!
Of great interest to the reader is what you told us, but can we continue a little? How was the arrest of the President and the two main bosses received by the employees of the Branch?
I said something above. I didn’t keep anything. A very shameful arrest was made. An arrest, which had never happened for the Internal Affairs Branch, not only in Saranda, to be surrounded by the forces of the Republic Guard and its leaders arrested in that way! They could call them to a meeting at the Ministry and arrest them. Two hundred forces, and at that time… with all those tools and operatives of the Ministry of the Interior?!
Today, do you believe in the charge that was thrown on the arrestees we mentioned?
The truth is that in our hearts, we didn’t believe it. Be silent, fear…! Sali Veliu was a very good chairman, a popular father. Even the two vice-presidents, Panajoti and Samiu, were very nice. We were surprised how this man, who was very regular at work and in society, ended up in handcuffs! I’m thinking, since the Malkastrians and the purges haven’t finished yet, by the side of Mehmet Shehu…!
You, were you called to the investigator?
Yes Yes! We were asked a lot. Let it go…! Finally, we were also fired. I don’t talk about that!
You told me that you worked for 20 years as a driver for the head of the Department of Internal Affairs. Did you ever travel with the interior minister?
Yes! I traveled twice with Kadri Hazbi and once with Hekuran Isai. Kadri seemed like a very good person. You did not have a very bad impression of that man. He was regular and punctual, in behavior and words. I traveled with him, once to Konispol and once to Vlora.
Along the way, both times, he did not ask any provocative questions. He was a prudent man. With Hekurani, I traveled only once, to Himare. This one was also very wise and good. Yes, I can say, in my opinion, that if you compare them, he is better than Kadri…!
Why?
(You don’t give explanations for this question…?!)
Well, what do you think, is it really an enemy, Kadri Hazbiu?
I do not know! How to say… clans… elbows… armchair… power…! I don’t have enough school to judge and give an accurate opinion in response to your question. We didn’t even understand then why and how they were put in prison, because even the thought led to prison. Let me talk if I wanted to! Today there are various comments and documents that can clarify the truth.
Any other memories you keep with the chairman?
There are many! I have all of them unrelated to work. He didn’t talk in the car at all. The only memory with work, and the most bitter, is his arrest. I also spoke above. He was a good man. He didn’t take anything as a gift or a bribe. (from those agricultural and livestock products at the time.) He even told me that with me and for me, don’t take anything! Although with a small salary and, with many expenses, he was a good and orderly man, Sali Veliu.
Do you have a family memory?
Yes, that he is also related to the arrest. Sali Veliu performed the girl’s wedding and immediately after four days, he was arrested.
Didn’t you have any motive from the wedding, the arrest?!
No! Before the wedding, he sent me to the refrigerator of the Delvina slaughterhouse (southern slaughterhouse) and I took lamb heads to serve roasted to all the guests. I also got meat. I paid the money and gave him the bill. We took them all to the “Bistrica” Bar-Restaurant, to cook them, because the wedding took place there.
He had a very good wedding, because he had an only daughter. You are right to ask that even in the investigator, we were asked: -“Why did the mayor do the wedding, with a lamb’s head”?! Who knows where their minds were going…?!
After all this, did you feel that you could also be arrested as the mayor’s driver, already accused as an enemy and coup plotter?!
After that, I was fired from my job as the mayor’s driver and assigned to the city’s fire department. This department also depended on the Department of Internal Affairs. For months, I was scared. I didn’t even talk to my friends. Let them also not sit and talk with me. We were very careful. Even today I wonder how I didn’t end up in handcuffs…?!
It’s time for big purges. Even once you had coffee, with one of the “enemies” labeled, the question mark turned into shackles. Even today I thank fate for saving me. But since the situations precipitated and flowed differently very quickly, we escaped.
Today, 40 years after the event, how do you judge the action of that time?
Too bad! An arrest that never happened at that time! Many hostile groups, members of the Political Bureau and the Council of Ministers were arrested, what about this type of arrest, no, no, I have not seen it, don’t close my eyes. We did not understand, why in that way…?! The chairman was also a member of the Bureau of the Party Committee of the district and so simple, that he met with co-operatives and ordinary people, whoever wanted to meet him.
It was massive. He did not participate in the arrests. He was not an aggressive person. Even when they were arrested, his face was red and he never spoke to them. He behaved well with colleagues and subordinates. I was very regular: office-work-home! He didn’t go to parties and clubs, no! After their arrest, stricter rules were put in place and a fear radiated everywhere, on every face of employees of the Department of Internal Affairs in Saranda. Actions were also carried out, which even today have a bitter taste in the public opinion of Saranda. Yes, they are gone…! I believe you are satisfied with what I told you? Memorie.al
Thank you!
