By Dashnor Kaloçi
Part Six
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., Memory. 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
THE DECISION OF THE HIGH COURT PRESIDED BY ARANIT ÇELA, SENT TO THE PRESIDIUM OF THE PEOPLE’S ASSEMBLY, ON THE CONVICTION OF THE “ENEMIAL GROUP” IN THE OIL SECTOR, HEADED BY FILIP NASHI, BEQIR ALIJA, KOÇO PLAKU, MILTO GJIKOPULLI, ETC.
RELATION
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA Tirana on 21.6.1976
SUPREME COURT
No.381
Presidium of the People’s Assembly
Tirana
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA
SUPREME COURT
No.12. Reg. Foundations
No.13 of the decision
DECISION
IN THE NAME OF THE PEOPLE
The Supreme Court of the People’s Republic of Albania composed of:
President of the session: Eleni Selenica, Ms. President of the Supreme Court
Acting Judge of the session: Mitat Goskova
Acting Judge of the session: Fehmi Legreta
Assisted by the Secretary Sadik Mema, with the participation of the Prosecutor Sotiraq Samara, Deputy the Prosecutor General, from 11-17.6.1976, examined in a closed court session, criminal case No. 12 concerning the defendants:
- FILIP NASHI: Son of Apostoli and Areti, born in 1923, born in the village of Sheper in the Gjirokastër District, resident in Fier, of poor peasant origin, of civil servant status, former director of the DPN, with higher education, married, has 5 children, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, not previously convicted, holds 7 decorations, the medals of Memory, Bravery, Liberation, the Order of Bravery, two Second Class Labor Orders, and the Second Class Flag Order, arrested on 25 March 1975.
- BEQIR ALIJA: son of Ali and Merjeme, born in 1927, born in Shkodra, resident in Fier, social origin middle-class merchant, social status clerk, former director of the Petroleum Institute, geological engineer by profession, with higher education, married, has two children, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, no previous convictions, holds the Second Class Labor Order, arrested on March 25, 1975.
- KOÇO PLAKU: son of Josif and Kostandinë, born in 1929, born in the village of Hoçisht in the Korça district, resident in Fier, social origin wealthy peasant, social status clerk, with the position of chief of the general cabinet at the Petroleum Institute in Fier, geological engineer by profession, with higher education, married, has two children, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, no previous convictions, holds two labor medals and the Third Class Labor Order, arrested on on March 25th. 1975.
- MILTO GJIKOPULLI: son of Vasili and Jorgji, born in 1938. Born in Dhërmi, Vlorë, resident in Fier, poor peasant by social origin, civil servant, geological engineer by profession at the Institute of Oil and Gas in Fier, with higher education, married, has two children, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, no previous convictions, holds the Second Class Labor Order, arrested on March 25, 1975.
- PROTOKO MURATI: son of Avni and Xhevrije, born in 1929, born in the village of Klos, Fier district, resident in Fier, wealthy peasant by social origin, civil servant, geological engineer by profession, head of the Geology sector in the Oil Industry, with higher education, married, no children, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, no previous convictions, holds two Second Class Work Orders and one Third Class Work Order, arrested on March 25, 1975.
- DHIMITËR STEFA: son of Nikolla and Vasillo, born in 1934, born in the village of Graxhdan in the district of Saranda, resident in Fier, of poor peasant origin, in social status as a clerk, by profession as a geological engineer, former head of the Kurvelesh group with Greek minority nationality, with Albanian citizenship, with higher education, married, no children, unorganized, no previous convictions, holds two Labor medals, arrested on April 27, 1975.
- JANI KONOMI: son of Agustin and Eleni, born in 1934, born in the village of Krongji in the district of Saranda, resident in Fier, of poor peasant origin, civil servant, by profession oil extraction engineer, by position former director of Oil Extraction at the General Directorate of Oil, with higher education, married, has one child, expelled from the Party as an enemy and saboteur, no previous convictions, holds two Third Class Labor Orders and a Labor Medal, arrested on April 17, 1975.
- NUREDIN SKRAPARI: son of Mentor and Xhevrija, born in 1943, born in £hatin Bubullime, Lushnja district, resident of Stalin City, by social origin wealthy peasant, considered a kulak, civil servant, by position geological engineer, with higher education, unmarried, unorganized, without decorations, convicted in 1974, to 20 years of deprivation of liberty, for the crime of agitation and propaganda against the people’s power, according to article 73/1 of K.P., arrested on March 28, 1975.
In collaboration with each other and with the conspirators, putschists, and traitors Baqir Balluku, Abdyl Këllezi, Koço Theodhosi, Piro Gusho, and Kiço Ngjela, committed the crime of sabotage in the Oil and Gas Industry, causing damage to the national economy of 891,866,800 ALL, a crime provided for by Article 72, in combination with Article 12 of the Criminal Code.
The defendants Filip Nashi, Beqir Alija, Koço Plaku, Protoko Murati, Milto Gjikopulli, Dhimitër Stefa, and Jani Konomi, also carried out agitation and propaganda against the popular government, committing the crime provided for by Article 73/I in combination with Article 12 of the Criminal Code
The defendants Koço Plaku and Milto Gjikopulli, committed the crime of treason against the Fatherland in the form of espionage, a crime provided for by Article 64 of the Criminal Code.
The defendants Filip Nashi and Beqir Alija have also committed the crime of abuse of official position, causing damage to the national economy of 6,329,200 ALL, a crime provided for by Article 199/II of the Criminal Code.
The court, after hearing the defendants’ defense, after reviewing the investigation materials, the evidence obtained during the trial, after hearing the Prosecutor’s claim, who requested that all defendants be found guilty and sentenced as follows: / Memorie.al
