By Prof. Dr. Flamur Tartari
Memorie.al / Bajram Emiri are the doctor who founded Albanian Bacteriology on a scientific basis. He gave a lot to Albanian medicine and is among the first to do experiments on animals: (rabbits, mice, etc.). For the benefit of science among the requirements of the time determined by the Pasteur Institute of Paris, applying all the lessons and experience gained there, near the Pasteur Institute, where he specialized. Also in Durrës, Dr. Bajram worked hard in the fight against malaria, which was a big problem in this part of the country.
Who was Dr. Bajram Emir?
Bajram Iljaz Emiri was born in the city of Skopje on February 16. 1891, from an Albanian family. He finished primary and secondary school in the city of Skopje, which was inhabited by many Albanians. He started and finished his higher studies in Medicine at the University of Istanbul and then continued his specialization in Bacteriology in Paris, at the “Pastre” Institute, one of the oldest and best schools in the world.
There he met a well-known French bacteriologist, named Bernard Daude, who had gained experience in the African expeditions of the French and proposed to him to come to Albania for a while, to open the Institute of Bacteriology (which many scientists Albanians, such as Prof. Rifat Frashëri and Bilal Golemi, had done a lot in this direction, but not much supported by government bodies).
It was initially opened in Tirana a few years later, to help fight Malaria, but it was relocated to Durrës and in 1934, it was again transferred to Tirana, by order of the General Director of Health, Dr. Osman Jonuzit, in the building where the Faculty of Medicine is located today. Bajram Emiri was a doctor with many demands on himself and he mastered several foreign languages, very necessary to continue his profession as a doctor, with the data of foreign literature.
Knowing many foreign languages, such as: Turkish, Arabic, French, Italian, he had very progressive ideas for the time, especially as a patriot that he was, he wanted a great development of his country for medicine, like all of Europe, but also like many Albanians who studied in Istanbul in those years, who fought for the independence of Albania. With these progressive ideas, he became a member of the Nationalist Club of Istanbul and was one of its founders and the most ardent activists for the issue of Albania and its independence.
Bajrami Emiri dealt with the issue of the Albanian alphabet and in this direction, he wrote several articles at that time which were very necessary for gaining the rights of the Albanians and which were won on November 28, 1912. For this activity of his, he was expelled from the university in December 1912, without completing it, and expelled from Turkey, for his patriotic activity.
He returned to Albania to the Government of Vlora at the beginning of 1913 and by its decision, he was appointed assistant physician in Fier, together with Dr. Musa Ohrin. Later, in September 1914, he was appointed assistant physician at the Vlora hospital, where he served with passion and piety until 1919.
After many requests and with the help of many friends, mostly Albanians, who worked in Istanbul, in 1919, he was readmitted to the University of Medicine in the capital of the Ottoman Empire, where Bajram Emiri finished his studies and graduated as a doctor.
The return of Dr. Emir in Albania
In 1921, even though his whole family was already in Turkey, he returned to Albania, to contribute as an ardent patriot for his country, which had many needs for doctors. Dr. Bajrami already, (on 04.01.1921), works as a doctor in the hospital of Vlora and in 1922, he is appointed doctor of the Port of Saranda.
In 1929, Dr. Bajrami was elected a delegate, as a representative of Kosovo and Kukes in the Muslim Congress that took place in Tirana, where he personally supported the opening of Albanian schools in these areas. During the period of years; from 23.07.1924, until 14.09.1926, he was appointed second doctor at the Tirana Hospital, with the great help and support of the Director of the Hospital, the prominent doctor, Osman Jonuzit, surgeon and Founder of the Hospital, in 1920, in Tirana.
Dr. Bajrami immediately, even with the great help of prof. Rifat Frashërit, (at that time also as the General Director of Albanian Health), is urgently sent to Paris, near the “Pastër” Institute, to continue more in-depth doctoral studies in the field of bacteriology, with a state scholarship, which he attended from 16.09 .1926, until 31.03.1928.
He finished his studies excellently in Paris, where as the first goal, he had the application of experimental works on animals, studies, these very valuable for his scientific progress, throughout the time of working in years. After returning from Paris, on April 1, 1928, Bajram Emiri was appointed assistant director of the Bacteriological Laboratory, which was opened for the first time in our country (by decree No. 406, dated May 21, 1928), where he served with passion until on 31. 05.1930. As I stated above. At that time, his friend and friend of the Albanians, the French professor Bernard Daudy, was appointed as director.
In the “Pasteur” Institute, Dr. Bernard Daudy also met (when they were both doing their specialization) the Albanian doctor, Bajram Emir, who saw in this young doctor, a man with a great future. Therefore with the help of Dr. Rifat Frashëri and Dr. Osman Jonuz, without a doubt and with the approval of King Zog I, proposed to him to leave his job as an assistant at the “Pasteur” Institute and come to Albania to open the Central Bacteriological Laboratory, which did not exist in our country.
As a brave and benevolent man, to help a poor country like Albania at that time, he accepted this offer and in 1924, he came to Tirana, where the Albanian Bacteriological Institute was opened for the first time, with Bernard Daudy as director. , who was only 26 years old, but very capable, because as I described a little above, he refused to work further in different institutes in France, but out of a desire to work with his Albanian colleague, Bajram Emiri, came to his country, in Albania.
Here he found Albanian hospitality and King Zog, with the proposal of Dr. Rifat Frashëri and Dr. Osman Jonuzit and now Dr. Bajram Emir, who was appointed deputy general director first, after opening the Institute in Tirana, which was then temporarily transferred to Durrës, until it was built according to the requirements of the time, (with laboratories and animal rooms), for conducting experiments many, according to what they had learned at the “Pure” Institute of Paris, in France.
This new, modern building for the time, started work in 1934 (the building where the Faculty of Medicine is today) and this young French scientist started working there, together with the Albanian scientist, Dr. Bajram Emiri, who today has been completely forgotten, as the founder of Albanian Bacteriology.
In this open laboratory, since it was in Durrës, both of these doctors began to work hard, where the basis was the preparation of some of the most necessary vaccines for the time, in our country. The French doctor stayed in our country for six years and together with dr. Bajram, gave a hop to the research of this branch, where Dr. Bilal Golemi who had specialized in the “Pasteur” Institute.
When Dr. Bernard Daundy finished his mission and left Albania, received many thanks, not only from prominent local doctors, but also from King Zogu I Parë, for the great contribution he gave to our country in those years.
With his proposal and that of many doctors, others, such as: Dr. Rifat Frashëri, Dr. Osman Jonuzi, Dr. Jani Basho, Dr. S. Pojani, Dr. Ismail Tartari, Dr. Sabri Tefiku, Dr. Jorgji Theodhosi, etc., as director of the Bacteriological Laboratory, Dr. Bajram Emiri, who remained in that position until the country was invaded by Benito Mussolini’s Fascist Italy.
Dr. Bernard Daundy, after returning to France, was assigned as a doctor in Ethiopia, in the construction of the Franco-Ethiopian railway. There during his free time, with the approval of the French government, he built a small laboratory, where he made many experiments for the preparation of the vaccine (anti-viper), against the bite of snakes.
But as the history of World Medicine has shown, doctors and medical personnel are the first victims who suffer during experimental work, for the benefit of humanity…! Even Dr. Daundy, was bitten by a dangerous snake and died on April 16, 1934, when he was only 36 years old and was considered a scientist with a great future, not only for France, but for all of humanity.
And the Government of France on April 30, 1934, gave him the highest title, that of “Knight and Legion of Honor”, of France. Even the Albanian press, in addition to the world press, writes a lot about this “hero” of medicine, who, among other things, made a great contribution to the benefit of Albanian science and medicine.
Bernard Daudy who was also the teacher dr. Bajrami in those years of his study in Paris. This French professor was at the same time very skilled in the profession and stayed for almost 2 years with a contract giving a great help in the progress and development of Albanian bacteriology in those years in his work in Durrës, which was later transferred to Tirana.
Director of the Central Bacteriological Laboratory in Tirana
From 1.06.1930, until 1939, Dr. Bajram Iljaz Emiri is appointed and serves as director of the Central Bacteriology Laboratory in Tirana. In 1939, the Laboratory was divided into two parts; in the Antibiotic and Clinical Laboratory. He was appointed Director of the Antirabic Laboratory until 1944.
After the end of the war and the arrival of the communists in power at the end of ’44, he continued to work, until 1954, at the age of 64, where he then retired at his own request, because he was too tired in the colossal work done over the years, under very difficult conditions.
But because of his great experience and knowledge, high consciousness, he always came out very successfully, in experimental research on animals, etc. The very photos we have speak of this very great scientific work, 80 years ago in Albania that he, with his studies, managed to make the rabies vaccine in Tirana, in his laboratory! This was a very big achievement for our country in those years…!
His close collaborators were initially Dr. Bilal Golemi, who helped with medical materials and tools, while later, Dr. Luigj Benusi, who had just finished specializing in Microbiology in Italy, in 1938. Luigj Benusi later became one of the founders of modern Albanian Microbiology.
From the diary and notes of Dr. Benus, we read some brief data of Bajram Emir’s activity: “In 1913, he went through the villages of Fier and did vaccination and diagnosis of smallpox. He worked for the discovery of many cases of Diphtheria, especially in 1915, together with Dr. Ali Mihalin, in the district of Vlora.
In 1928, for the smallpox disease which was very widespread in those years, they vaccinated Dr. Bajram Emiri and Dr. Luigj Benusi, the entire population of Tepelena (the city and villages.)
He worked hard on Rabies disease. He documented every case and for years he diagnosed and produced the rabies vaccine himself, also doing experiments, where in some cases he even endangered himself (he was an unreachable doctor, in various experiments on animals)” .
All this great personal experience he, together with Dr. Zef Kakarriqin, has written a material of 50 pages, about Rabies disease, entitled: “Rabies disease and its situation in Albania”. Since 1924, he was a Member of the Scientific Council of Health.
Our eminent physician. Dr. Bajram Emiri, who turns out to be forgotten, like many other doctors (that I have mentioned in various writings and books), and this is a very big mistake, for the evidence of the values and history of Albanian Medicine, from on the part of the governing bodies of the country, who, in my opinion, not only do not know them, but are also indifferent and negligent, they are not interested, and they do not ask about the past of Albanian Medicine, etc.!
Dr. Emir gave a lot to Albanian science over the years, especially the field of Bacteriology studies, which for me can rightly be called; “Founder of Albanian Bacteriology”. His work and work show that it should not be forgotten, because Albanian Medicine also occupies an important place in the history of our nation, of Albania, where this outstanding doctor belongs, as he really was, Dr. Bajram Iljaz Emiri. Memorie.al
