By SIMON MIRAKAJ
The tenth part
“Camps under the shadow of Tomorri, 44 years of internment”
– Memories –
Memorie.al / I put these memories down on paper after a long period of hesitation. This is probably because the subjects were always fresh in my mind, which followed me mercilessly during the years after the fall of communism. But there comes a moment – when time takes its course – and the images of horror and suffering, came fading to me – almost the suffering passed into oblivion. Then I decided to repeat the most impressive events – first in my mind – until they took the form of these narratives. As dim as these accounts may seem – they create the idea of the harsh reality and misery of the camps.
Continued from last issue
The arrest of Mojs and Lek Mirakaj, in Gradisht
After the Spaç revolt in 1973, arrests began throughout Albania, this wave of arrests also included internment camps, such as; Gradishta, Grabjani, Plugu, Savra, Çerma, Gjaza, and the city of Lushnje. Insecurity was present in every house of the internees. We went to work wearing winter and summer hoods, prepared for the cell, we greeted each other, because we didn’t know if we would return home. Our only defense was the prayer to God, so that we would not be harmed and give us strength.
When we returned from work, we received the news that Mojsi had been arrested in Gradishte. As usual, Mojsi was told: “You are arrested in the name of the people”! And they had handcuffed him. The “Jeep” of the Branch with the investigator Skënder Korrik and the operative of the area, Ajaz Ferraj, where the arrested Mojsi Mirakaj was in the middle, stop at the office of the People’s Council. They take Mojsi down with his hands tied, leave him there and go to check the house themselves.
Gina, Moses’s mother, who was trembling from this evil that she had found, said to him:
-“What did my son do to you, that you arrested him?! How did you not get fed up with our suffering”?
Dava, Mojsi’s wife, had also arrived at home. Moses was not upset for himself that he had been tied up, but he was upset for his wife, two small children and his mother.
How could she raise and educate the children?! Leka, Mojsi’s brother, had found out about Mojsi’s arrest, and he sets off faster for the sector, when he sees the car that was moving slowly, he approaches it, puts his head in the car window and addresses Mojsi:
– “Mojs, don’t be upset that you have me.” – The investigator and the Security operative at that moment took him and said:
-“The day will not be far away, when you too, Lek, will be put in jail”.
After the investigation, Mojsi did not accept the accusations drafted and compiled in the offices of the Security. They brought forth slanderous witnesses, whom Moses had never told them; “night or good day”. So the trial was formal. Their sentence was set on the day they were arrested.
Mojsi was sentenced to 10 years in prison, which he served in Ballsh.
Mojsi was arrested on 10.07.1979. Mojsi left this life, leaving us a great pain, he left two wonderful sons, Alban and Agustin, and a lady who, with a lot of sacrifice, raised and educated the two sons. Mojsi was an artist by nature, he was a peerless dancer, he was a painter, a sculptor and he had an absolute ear for music. These tendencies have been inherited by both sons who have created their own families and live in the USA.
After six months, Lek Mirakaj was also arrested, leaving his wife with three small children and his mother, who was old and tired of the hardships caused by the communist dictatorship. Leka, like Mojsi, did not worry about them, but the problem was how these heroine women would raise and educate their children. Those heroine women endured the pain and raised the children, working the hardest jobs and keeping the men in prison.
Leka went to the formal trial, after finishing the investigation with investigator Zamir Stefani, who told him:
– “Whether you accept or not, you will be sentenced to 10 years in prison.”
The court sentenced him to 10 years. Leka, after a year of working in the Spaçi mine, was transferred to the prison of Qaf-Bar, where in 1984, the Revolt broke out. Leka served his years in prison and returned to his family, where he found the children grown up. In 1991, the family immigrated to the USA. Unfortunately, she lost her daughter Magnola, the soul of her grandmother, from a serious incurable disease, leaving two daughters and her husband. Great pain for mother Loli, father Leka, sister Matilde, brother Erton. Today they live in Texas.
The dog and the bread ration. Halfway through 1982
It was late August and although it was morning, the sun had emptied its rays, giving off a scorching heat.
– “Simon! – The brigadier told me: – You will go to Godolesh, because there are a couple of fields of corn left, without irrigation”. I had become a master at watering, I was worried, when I watered, I wanted to get the water to every plant. I went home, took the bread bag, which I had prepared with a couple of fried peppers, two tomatoes, some cottage cheese and bread, I also took the water can, I put the halves of the boots on, the straw hat on my head, I took the shovel and is started
It was a short distance away about a km. half, the road was all dust that rose like a fog from the carts that passed loaded with alfalfa, while in winter, this road was impassable, and the mud was up to the waist. Only carts and tractors with chains passed, to pull trailers with corn or fertilizer.
I arrived at the workplace, took the bag of bread and the water can from my shoulder, there was no shadow. They had cut down all the poplars on the side of the road. I collected some corn leaves, covered the bread and water, took the shovel and opened the mouth where the water would pass to irrigate, there was a lot of water in the canal, but I returned as much as I could handle.
I raised the spout so the water wouldn’t splash over the side. The corn plot was 220 meters long, so it took an hour for the water to come to the top, but it had to be helped by clearing the line of weeds. The corn was close to ripening, the corn cobs had filled the grain well, every now and then I entered the water line, washed my face and refreshed myself with the water coming from behind me quickly, I also raised the water line little by little, so that the water don’t explode sideways. The watering had to start from the bottom, once I sat down to rest under the shade of the dense corn, but I can’t stay inside for long, because I’m out of breath.
I had taken off my bra, half boots, pants, I was in panties. The corn leaves rubbed my arms and burned me, as soon as I moved the corn stalks, they shook releasing a black powder that entered my mouth and, when I spat, the saliva came out black. I felt like I was working in a mine.
The corn plots were close to each other, when I went out to the end of the ditch to ambush the drainage ditch, I saw women cutting grass with hoes in the other plot, some threw down their hoes and jumped into the ditch to cool off, they threw themselves with all their clothes. I went back in, the water had reached the end of the line, so I started to open small mouths, I started to water, giving the right direction to the water, to take it to each corn plant.
I was tired, lunch was approaching, I set up the water so that I could rest for about an hour and there was no risk of flooding. I started to go to the bag and drink water, there was a little left in the can, it was warm, but I returned it, I left a little enough to eat the bread.
I look at the bag that was open and the bread outside with all the peppers and tomatoes on the ground.
“Who has business with him?” I said to myself, when I look a little further a dog, that when he saw me, he started to wag his tail, as if to tell me that; I ate it. I took a pleat to hit him. I raised my hand; he didn’t move but was looking at me, wagging his tail again. It seemed to me that he was saying to me:
“I’m sorry; I ate it because I was hungry…”!
I saw him, his ribs were counted, he was weak like me that am how it should be because he hadn’t left, but he had been waiting for me, and then I lowered the pleat and shot the water.
What should I do now?! I could barely stand due to hunger, the dog followed my movements. I went closer to him, he didn’t move, I started stroking him and I said:
-“Do you know that you ate my bread? I have been called an enemy by the black dictator since childhood, that’s why we asked you to leave because if they saw you with me, they would beat you, you don’t know that a friend of yours, called ‘Tartar’, who was with the prisoners of he had become friends with them, they sentenced him to hanging, as a member of the Spaç Revolt, so he ran away…”! He was staring at me, and I kept telling him to go…! The dog seems to have understood my prayer; he lowered his head and obeyed what I told him…!
He started and, from time to time, he turned his head to see me, until he ran away and was never seen again. What should I do? I entered the plot and opened an ear of corn, the grains were good for roasting, I went out on the street and started to collect dry dung and some branches, I filled my arm well and went deep into the plot, so that they wouldn’t see me, I took the lighter and lit it dry branches and on top of them, I put dry dung. I also lit a cigarette, plucked three ears of corn and put them to roast. I started to eat very hungry, I drank the water I had left. I went to see the irrigation water, everything was in order, I made an ambush in front of the line, I opened some small mouths, so that the water entered on both sides of the scolina.
I went back to the fire, turning the cobs, to roast them. There was one left uncooked, blowing on the fire, they were cooked and when I finished, I buried the corn stalks, I threw water on the fire to put it out, I also ate the two cobs, but I was thirsty for water. The can was no longer there, so I dived into the canal and washed, but it didn’t quench my thirst, I got out of the canal, took the can, and went to the irrigation line.
I put the kettle on top of the water, to drain it of the sludge; I lay down and started drinking the water on the kettle. On the line I watched the little worms that were swimming, they were small, they had nothing to do with me, the canal was well filled with water, and I lay down on the water line, looking at the blue sky, begging you not to show, for what he had seen. After I rested for a while, I started working again, after dinner I had finished watering the two fields and I returned home tired. Had to move fast to get to the appeal in time.
Denied school, Gjaze 1986
I was returning from work and approaching the house, when I turned my head to the left, I saw the “Jeep” with license plate LU 67-01, this was the car that took the arrested, and it was the car of the Internal Affairs Department of Lushnja. I hastened my steps.
Who knows who’s next turn today, may God save us and strengthen us, don’t worry, no matter what happens. I say to Sokol:
– “Pashe Gazi e Dega”.
-“I saw it too”, he said.
You didn’t see any movement on the road. The shadow of the trough had fallen and out of fear, everyone was huddled in the house, waiting for any news. Maybe they had no business with us. The appeal time was approaching.
We went to the destination, we all gathered there (we weren’t many), we, the two brothers, the brothers Dine, Sazani, Tomorri, Dinja, who was arrested and sentenced to 10 years in prison, was serving the prison in Spaç. Ded Gjon Markagjoni, Gjoni (grandson of Deda) Dom Mikel Koliqi, Xhevit Matjani and Xhevat Tarusha. While we were waiting for the person in charge of the appeal, we saw that the Head of the Branch, Kapllan Shehu, the operative with the person in charge of the appeal, was coming towards us, we did not see that they were accompanied by a policeman with a gun and this calmed us down a bit. As we looked at each other for courage, they arrived. The person in charge of the appeal, I read the names of everyone who answered: “Here”.
The operative made the presentation:
– “The Head of the Branch, Kapllan Shehu, has come to listen to you if you have any problems”.
They had added to our problems unfairly and now they ask you “what problems do you have”?! No one was talking.
“Hey, who’s in trouble?” – said the operative. At this moment, Sokoli (in a bold tone) says:
– “I have a problem”.
-“Who is this”? – addressed the operative, the President.
– “Sokol Pal Bib Mirakaj, the grandson of Col. Bib Mirakaj”!
While the President continued to ask who we were, and how much we were punished for, we had cast our gaze into the endless space, praying under our breath: “God give us strength, whatever happens so that we don’t get hurt.
At this moment, Sokoli broke the silence.
– “Mr. Chairman, my problem is this:
– My daughter has finished the eighth grade, in Gurrëz, which is 5 minutes away. I go to enroll him in high school and they don’t enroll me”. There was an agricultural secondary school in Gurrëz. The agricultural school was at zero level. If he continued school, he would escape the hard work of agriculture, as he would hardly be put to work if he was kept at home, because of his age…!
– “Mr. Chairman, my brother Simon and I have been given the opportunity to finish high school, while my daughter is being denied the right to continue high school”.
– The president, with a snake look, gave an answer that had not occurred to us.
– “The traitor Mehmet Shehu gave you the school, now there is no school for your daughter”.
– “O God, we had Mehmet Shehu as a friend, O God save us”!
-“Now you can leave…”, told us the person in charge who made the appeal.
We were forced to send my beloved granddaughter Ledien, in Shkodër, to my granddaughter Adriana, to continue high school. Thank God, he enrolled and finished high school there. While after two or three months, we heard that the head of Lushnja’s Internal Branch, Kapllan Shehu, was arrested, as the cousin of the criminal Mehmet Shehu.
P.S. Captain Shehu was ready to swear and swear that we were relatives of Mehmet Shehu! He forgot that the guillotine was ready for him from friends of the same ideal. Memorie.al
The next issue follows
