From DASHNOR KALOÇI
Part One
Memorie.al – The island of Sazan, surrounded mostly by rocky coastline and clear blue water, as well as Zvërnec with its monastery on the small island, the beach with sand dunes, the forest of tall pines, and its rich flora and fauna, which together constitute a rare natural beauty, have for several months been making headlines in the media and politics, not only in Albania but also on the international stage (due to a giant tourism project involving a complex of villas and resorts planned to be built by an American company). They seem not to have been places known only for their picturesque tourist landscape, but also for their underground wealth – such as gas and oil, otherwise known as “black gold.” Among other things, this is made known by an archival document from 1989, which contains the minutes of the meeting of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Party of Labor of Albania, chaired by Ramiz Alia, with the participation of Lenka Çuko, member of the Political Bureau and Secretary of the Central Committee, as well as Besnik Bekteshi, member of the Political Bureau and Minister of Industry, Mines, and Energy.
As we will see from the document in question, during the meeting of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the PLA (which were in fact working breakfasts that Ramiz Alia held at the Party House with his subordinates, members of the Bureau and secretaries of the Central Committee, which were recorded and transcribed), the Minister of Industry, Mines, and Energy, Besnik Bekteshi (considered one of the most prepared and professional figures in the Albanian government of that time), after giving a lengthy summary of his visit to the Tropojë district, speaking mainly about the mineral wealth of that area in the north-east of the country, also stopped to discuss the full range of issues in the sectors covered by his ministry, such as oil, gas, chromium, copper, coal, iron, energy, etc., in all districts of the country, from north to south.
Likewise, during that conversation, Minister Bekteshi (who, paradoxically, had long been followed and surveilled by the State Security Service as a potential agent of the Bulgarian Secret Services, where he had graduated) also dwelt on foreign companies – such as German-Western, Romanian, etc. – that had offered to explore for oil and gas in our country, mainly along the coast of Zvërnec and on the island of Sazan, where the first wells had been drilled to search for oil believed to lie deep beneath the sea.
In addition to Minister Bekteshi’s exposition, during that working meeting, Ramiz Alia informed them (Bekteshi and Lenka Çuko, who surprisingly speaks with considerable competence even on mining issues) about the meeting and discussions he had had those days in Tirana with João Amazonas (the chairman of the Marxist-Leninist Party of Brazil), with whom he had consulted on the problems of foreign companies that had offered to explore for oil and other mineral resources in our country. On this and other matters, the document in question – recently extracted from the Central State Archive (the fund of the former Central Committee of the PLA) and published for the first time by Memorie.al – informs us.
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE SECRETARIAT OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE PARTY OF LABOR OF ALBANIA, DATED 6 JUNE 1989, CHAIRED BY RAMIZ ALIA, WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF LENKA ÇUKO AND BESNIK BEKTESHI
MEETING
OF THE COMRADE SECRETARIES OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE PARTY
June 6, 1989
At this meeting, discussions were held on new discoveries in chromium; on the development of the Democratic Front conference in the Tropojë district; on communist militancy; on better specification of tasks and the problem of the mechanism of work and remuneration; on the progress of work in the oil and other mineral sectors; on the issue of risk-taking firms; on improving the working methods of the Ministry of Foreign Trade; on certain problems arising from the development of our country; and on various other issues.
The meeting is chaired by Comrade Ramiz Alia, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party. Participating in this meeting are Comrade Lenka Çuko, member of the Political Bureau and Secretary of the Central Committee; and Comrade Besnik Bekteshi, member of the Political Bureau and Minister of Industry, Mines, and Energy.
COMRADE BESNIK BEKTESHI: In the Tropojë district, the employees were mobilized to fulfill the assigned tasks. Great mobilization was seen especially among the geology workers and those of the exploration enterprise. For the Shkëlzen area, it remains a task that the ideas and issues that have emerged regarding the geological reserves hidden in this area should be put forward and specified.
I believe there will be no troubling problems here. During my visit to this district, I met with teams of miners, geologists, and cadres. I spoke to them generally about the decisions of the Political Bureau regarding the exploitation of our mineral capacities and the improvement of working conditions and wages for workers in this sector.
In the Tropojë district, Comrade Ramiz, it is essential to expand exploration and then exploitation of chromium ore. At Qafë Krollai, the drill has struck chromium ore, and also at Tëplan, the drill has struck chromium ore – this one of good quality, over 36 percent. Moreover, the face of the mountain where this mineral was discovered gives you the image of Pojska.
Geological exploration in this area had begun in 1957, and no trace of mineral had been found, while a year ago, with the new equipment we have acquired for surface geophysics, the geologists came upon a trail. The equipment showed variations – something was hidden underground. The drilling was repeated, and both drills working in the Tëplan area have struck rich chromium samples in four points.
Thirty years have passed since the first explorations in this area, but now we have discovered the mineral. Even then drillings were made, but when they hit over-normal pressures, they would not drill further, abandoning the search. I have the opinion, Comrade Ramiz that Tropojë and Kukës, given their mineral-bearing reserves, can no longer be left to the mercy of a relative plan or a plan that the district might design on its own.
If a few days ago we discussed the coal mine in Memaliaj and its expansion, I believe that for these chromium-bearing areas I mentioned, we should gain time by carrying out road opening works, gallery openings, even some capital works, because there is a fairly large reserve of chromium ore. As a ministry we will keep this at the center of attention, but this should be reflected in the perspective plan, such as for 1990, and especially in the next five-year plan.
In the Vllahinë area, the mineral-bearing layer reaches up to 3 million tons of chromium. Now I want to say a few words about work in general in our Ministry. The Political Bureau meeting was a great experience for all of us and set concrete tasks for us. Now we are all fighting to realize these tasks on all fronts.
We have also properly addressed the issue of special treatment in mines or geological centers with regard to plan fulfillment. In terms of further improving working conditions, quite good work is also being done. Often, funds allocated for improving working conditions have been wasted.
During my stay in the Tropojë district, I also visited agricultural cooperatives. I was at the Tëplan agricultural cooperative. Once there was a marsh here, but it has now been drained, yielding about 100 hectares of fertile land, which has been laid out and drained. Wheat and corn were planted on the former marsh. All indicators in this cooperative were good.
The leading comrades of this cooperative had some requests addressed to the Ministry of Agriculture, which would double yields. The people of Tropojë had named the reclaimed field of Tëplan “Tropojë’s Little Myzeqe.” The livestock sector also looked good. Fertility was good, as was the number of livestock.
In Tropojë, as everywhere in our country, the small flocks and herds were showing better results day by day. We discussed this problem concretely with several teams. After the district democratic front conference, in which I participated as a delegate, a water supply system was inaugurated in one village.
People wept with joy. Some elderly men told me that they had come from Lekbibaj to this village 25 years ago, but water is a great thing. In this village, I also visited several peasant homes. The houses were good, furnished, and they were in good economic condition. Shops were well stocked.
This year in Tropojë they have built greenhouses, and the people of Tropojë will be supplied with tomatoes and cucumbers from these greenhouses. Milk and cheese were sold in shops without ration coupons. Before May 15, they could not meet the district population’s demand for dairy products, so they also brought them from other districts. After May 15, they stopped supplying from other districts.
The moral-political state of the Tropojë district was very good, which is why the elections for the presidency of the district democratic front and the elections of delegates for the congress went very well. I was quite impressed that at the district conference, both the report and the discussions were prepared with a high level of political maturity.
Alongside the positive aspects and successes highlighted at the conference, there were also criticisms. This shows the healthy moral-political state of the district. They elected Ibrahim Dauti as Chairman of the District Democratic Front. Previously he had been secretary of the Party bureau in several agricultural cooperatives, and most recently editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Shkëlzeni.”
We considered electing Mehmet Rama as chairman, but he had become much burdened and his strength had failed him. We also followed the logic of the general orientation that there had been a secretary of the Party committee there. They spoke very well of the newly elected chairman, Ibrahim. They left Mehmet Rama as Vice-Chairman of the District Democratic Front.
In the Tropojë district, both in agricultural economies and in economic enterprises, people were mobilized to fulfill their tasks. The enterprises in Tropojë had taken the initiative to help villages in raising nurseries and kindergartens. This initiative reduced investment funds and also helped the village to establish kindergartens and nurseries as quickly as possible.
The people of Tropojë had a desire, and they gave me a message to convey to you, Comrade Ramiz, that you should pay a visit to this district. “We will invite Comrade Ramiz ourselves,” they told me, “but you convey our desire to him.” They said, “We will multiply our forces and will fulfill the tasks that the Party has assigned us, so that we may welcome Comrade Ramiz with open faces and with good results.”
COMRADE RAMIZ ALIA: As you know, the Tirana district has taken the initiative to increase economic efficiency. Would it not be right for us to use 20 percent of the additional income to improve workers’ living conditions and to save funds intended for expanded reproduction? I think yes. At the current stage of the country’s socialist development, as was also said at the last meeting of the Secretariat of the Central Committee, Party organizations as well as mass organizations must tackle key problems more vigorously.
Party leadership at all levels is not done with words, but with concrete action. Is this how the entire Party acts? I say no. Let me argue my point. In the newspaper “Tirana,” there was an article about small flocks. The Bureau of the District Party Committee, it said among other things, after examining the problems related to the development of small flocks, oriented the basic organizations on how to act to achieve good results.
After this, the Party bureaus of the agricultural cooperatives met and determined the paths and measures to be taken for work with small flocks. This is all very general in discussion. To be concrete, I would say that the basic Party organization, based on the Party directive for the development and consolidation of small flocks, should assign concrete tasks to communists. But even this, in my opinion, is not complete.
The basic organization should demand from communists that, within a certain period, they account for the fulfillment of the task before it and before the masses. In this way, the basic Party organization would exercise control over the implementation of tasks. For work to go well in the basic Party organization, there must be debate, results must be highlighted, but the causes of non-fulfillment must not be covered up.
The better the obstacles and difficulties are brought to light, the greater the struggle to eliminate them. If the basic organization does not nourish this militant spirit in communists, the Party organizations will atrophy, and tasks will remain on paper. For the fulfillment of tasks, the persistence of the basic organization and the militancy of communists are crucial.
The basic Party organization must make it clear to every communist that your existence in the Party depends on the fulfillment of the task assigned to you. The communist who fulfills the task should be praised, while the one who neglects it does not deserve to be in the Party ranks. Communist militancy outside work and without accountability for the task does not exist and cannot exist. A communist is one who fulfills the task assigned to him and helps comrades overcome difficulties so that they too move forward.
If this spirit exists among communists, it means that the leadership of the basic Party organization is collegial. The better specification of tasks increases the personal responsibility of the communist and strengthens control. Party control, which differs from that exercised by state organs, must be concrete. Every communist account for the task assigned to him before the basic organization. In state organs, it is different.
That employee (whether a manager, specialist, or simple worker) who does not implement a task that has the character of an order or a normative rule with legal force is liable even criminally. In the Party, there are other norms. The basic Party organization demands accountability from communists as militants. Every communist must understand militancy well – this is the main call that the Party is making today.
Militancy will drive the communist to work and fight, to be in the vanguard. The tasks that the Party sets in the economic plan are simultaneously tasks of the state power; they have a dual value. Plan fulfillment is a duty, and then the responsibility of the employee, of the communist, is even greater, and in this case the implementation of tasks takes on a legal character.
COMRADE BESNIK BEKTESHI: Right after the Political Bureau meeting on the problems of mineral reserves and especially oil, we assigned responsible people and communists to work on these fronts so that the decision taken would be implemented in the best possible way. We have not limited this issue only to the chromium sector.
We also have ideas for improving work organization and defining concrete competencies. One of the ways that stimulates work and affects the increase of productivity and production is the improvement of the form of remuneration.
In the chromium sector, the new form of remuneration has given results and stimulates the miner not only in increasing the quantity of chromium extracted but also in terms of mineral quality. For the extraction of rich chromium, other forms of remuneration have been used, which are better organized. The opinion I will express here, which I have also expressed in a government meeting, is related to the 90 percent of the salary of cadres. Memorie.al
To be continued in the next issue
