From DASHNOR KALOÇI
Part Six
Memorie.al / When not even three months had passed since the declaration of political pluralism in Albania and the country was on the verge of the first pluralist elections to be held after nearly 45 years of rule by the communist regime, led first by Enver Hoxha and then by his successor Ramiz Alia, on March 6, 1991, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Party of Labour of Albania, headed by the General Secretary Ramiz Alia, held a lengthy meeting. During this meeting, several recent key events were analyzed, alongside a retrospective of everything that had occurred over the previous year. Beginning with the events in Shkodër in January 1990 regarding the removal of Stalin’s bust, followed by those in Kavajë, the events of July 2nd when around 6,000 people entered foreign embassies in Tirana and left Albania; the linking of these events with the declaration of the Constitution of Kosovo on that same July 2nd; the “implication of the international reaction” led by the CIA, the French, and the Yugoslavs to destabilize Albania; the student youth protests in the “Student City” during December, which led to the declaration of political pluralism; the mass departures of Albanians from the country at the northwestern and southeastern borders towards Yugoslavia and Greece; the toppling of Enver Hoxha’s monument on February 20, 1991; the mass exodus of the first days of March 1991, when thousands of Albanian citizens seized ships in the country’s main ports and fled towards Italian shores; the risk of a repeat of the embassy incidents; and finally, the preparations for the first pluralist elections to be held on March 31, 1991, where, according to the Albanian embassy in Athens, the American ambassador there had refused an invitation to go to Boston, stating that: “events are expected to occur in Albania.”
Regarding these and other matters, this secret archival document (long since declassified), taken from the Central State Archive (the fund of the former Central Committee of the PPSH), contains the minutes of the Political Bureau meeting. In addition to Ramiz Alia’s report, which also addressed the Democratic Party and its two main leaders, Azem Hajdari and Sali Berisha, it includes all the discussions of the “comrades of the Bureau” and the secretaries of the Central Committee of the PPSH. For more on this and other matters, the document in question, published here for the first time with the corresponding facsimiles by Memorie.al, informs us.
Continued from the previous issue
ARCHIVAL DOCUMENT WITH THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE POLITICAL BUREAU OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE PPSH, MARCH 6, 1991
THE PARTY OF LABOUR OF ALBANIA Secretary
CENTRAL COMMITTEE
– General Sector –
M I N U T E S
OF THE MEETING OF THE POLITICAL BUREAU OF THE CC OF THE PARTY
March 6, 1991, 5:00 PM
The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the PPSH, at its meeting of March 6, 1991, discussed the events of recent days and the Letter to be delivered to the party base organizations. The meeting is chaired by Comrade Ramiz Alia, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party of Labour of Albania.
Participants are the members and candidate members of the Political Bureau, comrades: Adil Çarçani, Besnik Bekteshi, Hekuran Isai, Pali Miska, Vangjel Çërava, Xhelil Gjoni, Llambi Gegprifti, Niko Gjyzari, Xhemal Dymylja, as well as the secretaries of the Central Committee of the Party, comrades: Spiro Dede and Abdyl Backa. Comrade Kiço Mustaqi is absent due to justified reasons.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE MEETING
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: Today we gathered the comrades; we have also determined an agenda, with the tendency for one person to elaborate on one idea, and another on a different idea. We have taken the best specialists and we have agreed that they should start as early as tomorrow and finish by March 18. We will send veterans to the districts, influential people who work in Tirana. We have made the lists, we can add others as well, and have those all go to the districts.
I, Luan Qafëzezi said, am convinced that I will add a thousand votes to the Party from those who have wavered, because he has influence in the Berat area, just as others have influence in the areas they will go to. We must do what is possible with the forces we have. Meanwhile, we will also send the professors of the Party School to the districts to work on the materials they have prepared within the framework of elaborating the Party’s electoral program.
On our part, Comrade Abdyl has so far gone to Elbasan and Durrës, I myself will go to 6-7 districts, Comrade Xhelil is going, the comrades of the Political Bureau should go, as should the scientists, etc., so that it is felt that we have serious and numerous forces to work in this direction. We will do these things, while the district should do its own part.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: Have you assigned the comrades of the Political Bureau?
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: Some, and also the ministers.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: Assign the comrades as well, if they agree, to the districts.
COMRADE ABDYL BACKA:I was in Elbasan and Durrës. With the sincerity and seriousness that our Party has regarding the program, people listened a lot, and they were among the most diverse. Why they don’t speak, they said.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: These days in Tirana I have met with over 100 secretaries of base organizations. Why doesn’t anyone come to speak to us in the enterprises? – They said – the Party committees of the regions do not exist, no one calls us. With this I do not mean to say that the comrades of the Party Committee of the Tirana District are not working. Ismail Lleshi, for example, holds two or three meetings a day. And Comrade Robert (secretary of the Party Committee of the University of Tirana) has also held meetings.
But they do not complain about Tirana as much as about the regions that do not go to the enterprises, where the members of the Democratic Party are constantly present. We organize the meetings more in the party committees, whereas the workers say why anyone doesn’t come to us in the enterprise. As they (the Democratic Party) do propaganda, so should the Party of Labour do it too? Let them come, they give us strength. At least 5-6 people have told me this.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI:Tirana also needs our help, because the Party committees of the Tirana regions are not able to handle this work on their own, involving also cadres from the intelligentsia, the University, etc.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: I have had two meetings with the intelligentsia. I told Fatri Sinani to gather them, whenever he wants, including the university professors. We have arranged to meet tomorrow with the professors of the Higher Agricultural Institute. I will go together with Ismail Lleshi.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI: But I think about this work somewhat differently: Comrade Foto, Comrade Pirro Kondi, Nasi Lera, Dritëro Agolli, Namik Dokle and other plenum members from the intelligentsia should go and meet with the intelligentsia and the youth, to draw them to our side.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: Very true, this should be done and we will do it.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI: I have sent all the sector heads of the Central Committee to Tirana to help, because the Tirana regions today need all of us.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: Let us not forget that we have the style of hierarchical meetings: I speak with you, you speak with the heads, and the heads speak with the instructors, the instructors with the secretaries, the secretaries with the organizations. Has this style changed? Certainly it has changed.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI: I say that it has changed.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: I fully agree that it has changed, but in a large part of the Party, I have the impression that it has not changed.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI: When I went as First Secretary in Tirana, the situation there was very serious. Therefore, at the plenum meeting of the Party Committee, which Comrade Adil also attended, we raised three issues: strengthening Party work in the district, work with the youth, because a detachment of the Party from the youth was noticed, and the issue of justice against favoritism and other things. Tirana cannot be handled so easily, where such weaknesses had accumulated for years.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: Alongside this, we must do everything possible to improve the market, to secure raw materials, and especially to start foreign investments.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA:Foreign investments cannot start in this state we are in.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: Regarding the Letter, I read it and, to tell the truth, I liked it. It may need some combing, some expressions may be removed, such as “the only socialist country,” etc., but in general it seemed good to me. It explains the events that occurred and at the same time sets tasks for the engagement of communists in the election campaign and in other issues.
I do not agree that a Plenum of the Central Committee of the Party should be convened for the Letter, because it is not necessary. Effectively, it is a plenum that does not exist, it practically does not function, 60 or 70 percent of its composition are pensioners. As for the central commission for the preparation of the next congress, it seems like a very good thing to me.
We should create this commission as soon as possible, announce it publicly, have as many young elements as possible in it, especially from the ranks of the intelligentsia who have authority. And from the elderly we should also include some, because this commission will influence the neutralization of various currents for division within the Party.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA:There is no doubt that the observations of the comrades that the Letter should be corrected and adjusted are correct. What Besnik said can also be added, that the Letter should also speak about the recent phenomena that have occurred. The issue that remains for discussion is: should the Plenum be convened or not?
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI: What did the Plenum give us? – People will say.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: In fact, the previous Plenum did not leave a good impression on people. And this plenum would hardly give anything worthwhile. Now we will enter the election campaign. This plenum could do one thing, if we agree to convene it: to examine the need for renewal of the Party and to approve the creation of the organizing group for the congress.
COMRADE XHELIL GJONI:The base will again accuse us of not asking them. I have met secretaries of Party committees and told them: can you set up an organizing commission for the congress preparations with the best people in the districts? They gave me some names. If we were to take this list down to the base for approval, let them take it and remove whomever they want. This is more democratic.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA:So the conclusion is that we should refine this Letter, add the things mentioned here, formulate the list, which we can glance over in the Political Bureau if you agree, and send it down to the base. The problem of the day, I think, is stabilizing the created situation, unblocking it, especially in Durrës, as well as in some other cities. The measures we have decided on, we will take. For the rest, life will teach us what to do. The matter of Hekuran, Pali, and Besnik has been left hanging a bit. All these events happened to us and it remained unfinished. What variants are there for this matter?
COMRADE PALI MISKA: This issue, Comrade Ramiz, coincides with my reaching retirement age. I can be engaged in Party work, but regarding state duties, I have reached the age. Not that I am lazy, not that I am tired, but I think it is no longer appropriate. Even that little authority we have left, let us preserve it rather than ruin it completely.
I say this with sincerity. I am eternally grateful to the Party, to Comrade Enver, to you; I remain always loyal to the Party. And I think I should no longer be in the Political Bureau. I say with an open heart that whether well or badly we have worked, we have come this far, now I have no claims whatsoever.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: And Hekuran has also presented it as a problem, it seems to me. I had thought once that he could help us here at the Central Committee.
COMRADE HEKURAN ISAI: I have nothing to do here.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: What if Comrade Hekuran was either near the Government, or near the Central Committee, to resolve hot spots?
COMRADE HEKURAN ISAI: No, what is that?
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: I personally would be for Comrade Pali to deal only with vegetables and spring planting, in assistance to the Ministry of Agriculture.
COMRADE PALI MISKA: No, no. I am not lazy about work, but the time for these things has passed now.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: I say this regarding the vacuum that has been created, because the Party withdrew from economic problems and the power remained as it was. I think Comrade Pali could help in this direction.
COMRADE VANGJEL ÇERAVA:The time for advisors is gone now. The worker or the cooperative member asks you for fuel to work, he does not need advisors.
COMRADE PALI MISKA: There is a whole apparatus of the ministry for these matters.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: Both of you have physical effectiveness. Now we are in the electoral campaign and you can be engaged, within the framework of contacts with the people, in certain districts.
COMRADE PALI MISKA: For the election campaign, we will go wherever there is a need.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: And what about Besnik, how will it be done?
COMRADE ABDYL BACKA: There was a thought about the directorate for foreign cooperation, in the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy.
COMRADE VANGJEL ÇERAVA: No, there is no reason for him to stay in his own department.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: No, there is no work there.
COMRADE BESNIK BEKTESHI: I am an engineer, it’s no problem.
COMRADE PALI MISKA: And our candidacy for deputies should be looked at so that it is removed. I say this sincerely.
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: These comrades are looking at it.
COMRADE ADIL ÇARÇANI: Those candidacies should be reviewed.
COMRADE HEKURAN ISAI: And I am retiring with 60 or 70 percent, whatever it comes to. Retirement, for me and for all comrades, is a delicate moment, but circumstances are such that we must retire. This is good for both the Party and us. We will do Party work in the neighborhood with the people at all times.
COMRADE PALI MISKA: In the neighborhood, like everyone else, we will work. Since we got into this matter, I would say that our salary of 7,000 old lek will be it, because we do not even take the one thousand lek of the War bonus, to make it 8,000 lek. Therefore, I think this should be looked at.
COMRADE HEKURAN ISAI: And another thing: I have 40 years and eight months of work. If I were a worker in Cërrik, I would have bought the refrigerator, the washing machine, the furniture, etc., like all my worker comrades I have today. I went as First Secretary in Librazhd, then in Peshkopi, and finally the Party brought me to Tirana, where the residential building had its own furnishings. I left my belongings in the house I was living in, they rotted away.
Now the employee from the reception directorate comes and tells me that these furnishings in the house I live in, you will pay for them at the initial price. I do not have a single spoon or fork of my own. If I have money in the bank, the Party has the right to tell me, dear comrade, you have saved your money, so buy what you need. I do not have money in the bank. Therefore, I ask that these furnishings be paid for in installments or through a loan.
COMRADE ABDYL BACKA: Comrade Adil and I have discussed that these furnishings should be paid for in installments, valuing them according to their current condition.
COMRADE VANGJEL ÇERAVA: I think it is time to set when we will hold elections within the Party, even the congress. The public opinion is waiting for this to happen.
COMRADE SPIRO DEDE: We will set this immediately after the elections for deputies in the People’s Assembly.
(And the other comrades say that this issue will be considered after the elections.) / Memorie.al
HEAD OF THE GENERAL SECTOR
Marika Baka
Transcribed the material: K. Çupa
Edited and checked: M. Nelaj
Typed in two copies: N. Xhaxho
Date: June 23, 1991
