By Dashnor Kaloçi
Part Four
Memorie.al / From the end of November 1944, when he came to power, until his death in 1985, the communist dictator Enver Hoxha, wanting to resemble his idol, Joseph Visaranovic Stalin, and following his “path”, from time to time undertook purges in the top leadership of the Albanian People’s Liberation Army, which he began with Koci Xoxe (and his group) in 1948-49 and ended in 1981-82, with the so-called “Hostile Group of Mehmet Shehu and Kadri Hazbiu”. In this time interval of more than four decades (he began the purges in 1941), as is now known, he eliminated almost all the founders of the Albanian Communist Party, members of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Albanian People’s Party and the main leaders of the so-called “Anti-Fascist National Liberation War”, so much so that from 1960 until the collapse of the communist regime in 1990, only Pilo Peristeri had escaped prison or exile, enjoying the privileges of a lifelong candidate of the Political Bureau and the function of director of the “Enver Hoxha” Autotractor Combine!
But, unlike what he had done until the beginning of the 70s, where Enver Hoxha’s “sword” had mainly fallen on the senior leadership of the CPSU (Koci Xoxe, Kristo Themelko, Sotir Vullkanim Ramadan Çitaku, Tuk Jakova, Bedri Spahiu, Liri Gega, Gjin Marku, Koço Tashko, Liri Belishova, etc.), whom he had accused of “deviators of the Party line” and had condemned as “traitors and enemies of the people”, in the mid-70s, the dictator Enver Hoxha began to attack several members of the Politburo, who also held ministerial positions, such as Abdyl Këllezi and Koço Theodhosi, accusing them of being “saboteurs” of the Socialist Economy!
And just as he had done with Beqir Balluku, Petrit Dume and Hito Çako, (who were sentenced to death and shot), where to prove “their hostile activity”, Enver Hoxha sentenced to prison and exile a large group of senior officers, as well as the so-called “Saboteur Group of the Economy”, where in addition to Këllez and Theodhos, the two ministers Kiço Ngjela and Vasil Kati were also part, several senior officials of the Trade sector, directors and well-known specialists, such as Andrea Manço, Ahmet Jegeni, Bardhyl Frashëri etc., were also accused and sentenced, as well as of the Oil sector, such as; directors, engineers and well-known specialists, such as; Filip Nashi, Beqir Alija, Koço Plaku, Milto Gjikopulli, Protoko Murati, Dhimitër Stefa, Jani Konomi, Nuredin Skrapari, etc.
As we will see in the documents in question, the investigative process against the so-called “Saboteur Group of the Economy”, which was carried out by the Ministry of Interior and State Security, with fabricated accusations and evidence false or obtained under torture, etc., continued the Supreme Court of the People’s Republic of Albania headed by Aran Çela, “channeling” the accusations also from the “legal” side, to “confirm” what Enver Hoxha had said in the Plenums of the Central Committee of the Albanian People’s Party, against Abdyl Këllez, Koço Theodhos, Kiço Ngjela, Vasil Kati, etc.
As for all of the above, after the 90s, much has been said and written about all of them, both by members of those “groups”, their families, etc., etc., Memorie. al has obtained the archival documents of the Supreme Court of the People’s Republic of Albania of that time and the former Presidium of the People’s Assembly, where the “Hostile Group of the Economy”, “Trade” and “Oil” were examined, which see the light of day for the first time, documents which we are publishing together with the relevant photos and facsimiles.
In the first part and second of this series of articles, we are publishing documents concerning the former director of Makina-import, Andrea Manço, originally from the village of Boboshticë in Korça, whose brother Todo Manço, for years had served as chief engineer and director of the Bulqiza chrome mine, and also for several legislatures in a row as a deputy of the People’s Assembly, who when he passed away on November 6, 1974, was given a magnificent funeral ceremony, with homage in the center of the capital, where, in addition to Enver Hoxha, the entire senior leadership of the Albanian People’s Party, headed by Prime Minister Mehmet Shehu, participated. While Todo Manço, (“Hero of Socialist Labor”) would receive all these honors, his brother, Andrea, about two years later, would be tortured in the cells of the State Security and sentenced to death by firing squad, as an “enemy of the people” and “agent of the secret services” “foreign”, and his grave has not yet been found!
Continued from the previous issue
REPORT OF THE SUPREME COURT PRESIDED BY ARANIT ÇELA, SENT TO THE PRESIDIUM OF THE PEOPLE’S ASSEMBLY, ON THE TRIAL PROCESS AGAINST THE “ENEMIAL GROUP” IN THE OIL SECTOR, PRESIDED BY FILIP NASHI, KOÇO PLAKU AND MILTO DJIKOPULLIN
REPORT
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA Tirana on 21.6.1976
SUPREME COURT
No.381
To the Presidium of the People’s Assembly.
Tirana.
Attached is Decision No. 13 dated 17.6.1976 of the Supreme Court of the People’s Republic of Albania, on the sentencing of the oil sabotage group, headed by Filip Nashi, as well as the relevant report, because the defendants Koço Plaku and Milto Gjikopulli were sentenced to death.
Chairman
Aranit Çela
From June 11-17, 1976, the oil sabotage group headed by the defendant Filip Nashi and composed of his associates, the defendants Beqir Alija, Koço Plaku, Milto Gjikopulli, Protoko Murati, Dhimitër Stefa, Jani Konomi, Nuredin Skrapari, was tried for the reason that in collaboration they had committed the crime of sabotage in the Oil and Gas Industry, provided for by article 72 of the Criminal Code, causing a damage estimated at 891,876,800 lekë.
They, (with the exception of the defendant Nuredin Skrapari) were also tried for the crime of agitation and propaganda against the popular government, provided for by article 73/I of the Criminal Code.
In addition, the defendants Koço Plaku and Milto Gjikopulli were also tried for the crime of treason against the Fatherland, in the form of espionage, provided for by Article 64 of the Criminal Code, because they were agents of Soviet intelligence and carried out the duties assigned by this intelligence, while the defendants Filip Nashi and Beqir Alija were also tried for the crime of abuse of official position, provided for by Article 199/II of the Criminal Code.
The trial concluded that:
The upper group completely sabotaged the implementation of the decision of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Party on oil, No. 154 dated 10.11.1967, the implementation of the decisions of the 6th Party Congress on the oil and gas sector, the conclusions of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Party on the oil and gas industry of 1970, as well as the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 38 dated 5-6.3.1970, issued specifically for oil and gas problems.
1.The court process confirmed that the sabotage activity was focused on these main directions:
1/ The sabotage group, from the initial stage of the study and discovery of oil and gas reserves, with the aim of leaving the country without reserves, opposed the basic requirements of the decision of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Party, No. 154, dated 10.11.1987, regarding the performance of the entire necessary complex of geological and geophysical works. Thus, during the years 1970-1975 alone, a large number of structures and wells were attacked and drilled, without being prepared with complex geological and geophysical works.
The expert report showed that out of 129 wells drilled in limestone and sandstone, 59 fell outside the structure, without hitting the limestone at all, 23 hit the object (limestone), but did not confirm the structure, 3 hit the limestone within the structure, but with major changes from the project, and only 7 wells fell into the structure.
2/ The defendants sabotaged the performance of geographical works, especially seismic ones, spreading with hostile intent their views that; “seismic works do not give us anything, we have found oil even without seismic” and opposing the scientific orientation of the Government, that; “without geophysical works, not a single well should be given”, their sabotaging slogan; “to gain time, jump with courage”.
The geographical works during the years 1970–1975 were systematically ignored and abandoned with premeditated criminal intent, i.e. with the aim of sabotage. Seismic works in 1975 were lower than their level in 1961, when the material base was quite strong.
3/ In order to deepen the sabotage in oil, the neocene structures were abandoned. Throughout the entire fifth five-year plan, the sabotage group has provided only 10 wells for oil exploration in the sandstones and when special geologists and oil companies have requested the attack of neocene structures in Kallm-Verri, Kolonjë, Arapaj, “Stalin City” and Kozarë, the defendants have ignored the opinions and proposals, but as early as 1968, at the meeting of the Scientific Council of the Institute, it was decided to finally leave the neocene zones, with the “pretext” that the wells in these zones have small debits and they want to find areas and wells with large debits.
4/ Wanting to create the opinion that; are “working” to discover oil and gas resource sites, that they are “fighting” to accomplish the tasks of the five-year plan, that they are “putting into practice” the Party’s orientations, to boldly move into new structures, away from existing resource sites, the saboteur group led by Filip Nashi and his associates, in flagrant violation of the principle of moving from the known to the unknown, with the aim of sabotage, dispersed and scattered in many regions of the country, without the necessary preparation, without complex geological-geophysical studies.
The court process confirmed that the concentrations in the regions of Shushica, Prishta, Nën-Shkodra, Bistrovica, Osmanzezë-Rabije, Kozan, in the regions around existing resource sites (Visokë, Ballsh, Gorisht) and the concentration in the Saranda region, were all done in flagrant violation of the principle of moving from the known to the unknown, to deepen sabotage in the oil and gas industry, to close the country’s prospects for oil.
The biggest sabotage was the concentration in the Saranda area, where Filip Nashi even came up with the slogan; “whoever hesitates in the issue of the Saranda Vurg is a saboteur”. In this area, in flagrant violation of all technical and scientific rules, three stages were combined at the same time; Search – discovery – exploitation, which led to the concentration of a large number of probes, aggregates and human forces, creating an unbridled euphoria in order to deceive the working class, the Party and the Government.
The defendant Filip Nashi claimed that he and Beqir Alija, for the concentration in Vurg, were “the initiators, programmers, instigators and leaders of all the work that has been done in this region”!
5/ The court process proved that with the same hostile purpose, leaving the country without gas and sabotaging its prospects, the defendants of the saboteur group limited the exploration to the low pre-Adriatic area, Panaja-Divjaka, deliberately avoiding the gas-bearing structures of Seman, Kryevidhi, Durrës and Bisht Palla, as well as completely ignoring the exploration in the Tirana-Ishëm depression and other shallow and medium-sized areas.
The history of gas exploration in the Durrës structure after 1965 and especially after 1970 is one of the typical examples of sabotage work. For this sabotage, the defendants Filip Nashi, Beqir Alija, Koço Plaku and Milto Gjikopulli stated that, through various machinations, but with the aim of sabotage, the gas exploration works were not carried out, postponing them from one year to the next, allegedly because we are not prepared and do not have experience.
6/ The court process confirmed that the defendants, with the aim of sabotage, acted in violation of point 8, Chapter II of the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 38, dated 5-6 March 1970, which categorically prohibits the removal of the drilling brigade from the well, without completing its full acquisition.
In the opening, acquisition and study of productive layers in oil and gas wells, they used high pressure gradient calculations, thus allowing the use of washing fluids heavy with grass and clay, and resulting in the plugging of the wells and the release of a large amount of oil and gas into the layer. The defendants have ignored the legitimate demands and the occasional concerns of the workers and the relevant enterprises regarding this problem.
7/ With the aim of leaving the country without oil and gas, after sabotaging the development perspective of the Oil and Gas Industry, the defendants widely extended their sabotage activity to the liquidation of existing resource deposits, exploiting them in the most equitable manner. It was proven that the sabotage aimed at the exploitation of existing resource deposits was carried out by external enemies, as well as in the field of exploration.
From the defendants Filip Nashi and Jani Konomi, the method recommended by the Hungarian “specialist”, the so-called friend of Albania, has been spread among specialists and implemented. The limestone springs have been exploited with large depressions, supposedly to increase production, while in fact this method of exploitation has led to the blockage and liquidation of the wells and springs.
Both the limestone springs and those newly discovered in Patos and Marinzë have been exploited with overload and in a barbaric manner. It has reached the point where even the observation wells, which are the “eyes of the underground” and which serve to control the advancement of the water-oil contact, have been put into use. By removing these wells, the springs have been left without the necessary control. Intensifying methods have not been applied to put the stopped and barren wells into operation. / Memorie.al
To be continued in the next issue
