“The whole world has talked about the events in Kosovo, even the USA and the radio” Voice of America “, which are our enemies, while the Soviet Union and Bulgaria…” / Enver Diary, May ‘81

Dashnor Kaloçi

Second part

Memorie.al/ Published some archival documents taken from the Central State Archive in Tirana (fund of the former Central Committee of the ALP), where the political diary of Enver Hoxha in the period March-May 1981, when the demonstrations and protests began of the people of Kosovo, who rose up to demand their legitimate rights and freedoms, just as the other nationalities and nations that made up the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had and enjoyed them. The entire political diary of the main leader of communist Albania, where he and the official Tirana of that time, closely followed the events of Kosovo and spoke openly in public, coming out openly in defense of our Kosovar brothers across the border who lived for centuries in the lands ethnic groups, who rose up to demand their legitimate rights and freedoms as the other nationalities and nations of Yugoslavia at the time had and enjoyed, and accusing official Belgrade of the discriminatory policies pursued by the Titoist regime until at that time against Kosovo and the entire Albanian population living under Yugoslavia, and also accusing the Kosovo leadership of being “pro-Titoist”, and “sold to the Belgrade leadership”. But contrary to what he said in words, he never did it with deeds and the attitude that official Tirana held towards the events of Kosovo in the spring of ’81, seems to have been just enough for the facade and only for public consumption in the international arena, as the regime Enver Hoxha’s communist regime from 1949, when official Tirana broke off relations with Marshal Tito’s Yugoslavia, until the end of the 1980s, pursued a policy towards Kosovars who came to Albania to escape the persecution of the Titoist regime. even more cruel to them, imprisoning, torturing and interning them, with the accusations of “UDB agents”!

“We must also make an analysis of the attitudes held by the various chancelleries, that is, to determine and recognize which ambassadors of the countries of the world, especially of the countries of Europe and in particular of those countries that have or that could have influence over the Yugoslav government, have been pro-us, against the actions of the Yugoslavs and have condemned them. Here let us not forget that there are also those who have been shown to be neutral. So far, we have seen that some newspapers have written more realistically in favor of the issue of the people of Kosovo and our position. Such are some newspapers and journalists of the Federal Republic of Germany, ie the West Germans, then come the Austrians. We do not even have diplomatic relations with West Germany, while relations with Austria are good. The Austrians hold this position because they have contradictions on minority issues with the Yugoslavs, while the West Germans do not. “Therefore, we have to judge why West Germany has a more realistic attitude towards Kosovo Albanians and towards Albania, which has always criticized it and is in disagreement with it.”

This is what the former main leader of communist Albania, Enver Hoxha, wrote in his diary of May 18, 1981, focusing on the events in Kosovo, which at that time was the Autonomous Province of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, where just a few months after the death of Marshal Josof Broz Tito (May 4, 1980), who ruled the country for almost 35 years from the end of World War II, in the Yugoslavia he left behind, internal unrest would begin. , such as the mass demonstrations and protests of the people of Kosovo who rose up to demand their legitimate rights and freedoms, just as the other nationalities and nations that made up the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had and enjoyed, to go as far as calls “Kosovo Republic”.

As we will see from these archival documents where the political diary of Enver Hoxha, the main leader of communist Albania and official Tirana, is located, they closely followed the events in Kosovo and spoke publicly, coming out openly in defense of our Kosovar brothers. across the border living for centuries in their ethnic lands and accusing official Belgrade of the discriminatory policy it had pursued until then towards Kosovo and the entire Albanian population living under Yugoslavia, and also accusing the Kosovo leadership of being “pro-Titoist”. “, And” sold to the leadership of Belgrade “.

But contrary to what he said in words, he never did it with deeds and the attitude that official Tirana maintained towards the events of Kosovo in the spring of ’81, seems to have been just enough for the facade and only for public consumption in the international arena, as the regime Enver Hoxha’s communist regime from 1949, when he broke off relations with Marshal Tito’s Yugoslavia, until the end of the 1980s, pursued an even more policy towards Kosovars who came to Albania to escape the persecution of the Tito regime savage against them, imprisoning, torturing and deporting them, with the accusations of “UDB agents”!

Likewise, although in the events of the spring of 1981 and onwards, official Tirana ostensibly supported the demonstrations of the people of Kosovo and their demands for a “Kosovo Republic”, Enver Hoxha would never want that to become a reality. because in a way, two Albanian states would be created, where Kosovo would become a factor and Albania under his leadership, would be defactorized in the international arena. In this context, immediately after those events, official Tirana intensified the persecution and violence against Kosovars who were in Albania, arresting and sentencing to prison some Kosovar intellectuals, such as: Selim Kelmendi, Estref Kelmendi, Shefqet Kelmendi, Naimk Lucin, etc., who were arrested in 1983, accused of: “attempting to assassinate the main leader of the Party, during his visit to the Museum” Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu “in Kruja in 1980”.

And all this was done to lower the reputation of Kosovars and Kosovo in the eyes of the Albanians of the homeland. However, these remain the object of analysis that are not the subject of this article, where we are publishing only the political diary of Enver Hoxha, which he has kept in that period of time, which Memorie.al since March of this year, continues to publish in full in some issues of the historical dossier section.

Followed by the last number

Enver Hoxha’s political diary on the events of demonstrations and protests of the people of Kosovo in the spring of 1981

FRIDAY 22 MAY 1981

WE SHOULD WORK FOR THE INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC OPINION TO BE IN FAVOR OF THE KOSOVO ISSUE

In this way we take a diplomatic action to resolve this issue in our favor, namely in favor of Kosovo, which is in its right. In doing so, we do not just stand by the articles we have published and think that these articles supposedly support everyone without exception, ostensibly all the world press supports them. But we distinguish which press is more in our favor, since we know that not all the world press, without exception, is in our favor. There are also newspapers that are not in our favor, but that in this case concluded that our position is right. So, our enemy says that you are right and this enemy has great influence in Yugoslavia, has given it the first loan, has accepted 700 to 800 thousand workers, most of whom are Albanians, working and living in Germany. Therefore, we should not wait too long and see what they will say and what we will say, for the article to do its job, for the Yugoslavs and others to do their job and then act one way or another. Jo.

I say that this work constitutes a special objective of our diplomacy towards the Federal Republic of Germany. We can do the same with Turkey, but the Turks do not drink much water in Yugoslavia, they have no influence there. France does not speak. The press of this country says that there is an order from the government to be “impartial”! Greece both speaks and does not speak in our favor. In Greece those who speak, even those who have influence, do so because they do not want Yugoslavia to fall apart. Even in the United States, people speak in our favor, but we do not address them. The German Chancellor Schmid can tell the United States of America what is happening in Yugoslavia with Kosovo and Kosovars, and express their opinion that this is not right. We are a little closer to the Austrian government, we can take this step, but in a different way, because the Austrians do not have the influence of the West Germans in Yugoslavia and, in addition, they have the problem of the national minority with Yugoslavia. I am coming back to the issue that one of our ambassadors should talk, get in touch with one of the ambassadors of the Federal Republic of Germany. But the plan of this conversation must be drafted wisely, why I consider this action as a diplomatic attempt aimed at weakening Serbian chauvinism.

We choose West Germany as a country that has the potential to influence the Yugoslav leadership, but we do not know how much it will influence. Our goal, which aims at establishing peaceful stability in Europe, is to get the Federal Republic of Germany, which has economic interests in Yugoslavia and is against the Soviets, to exercise its influence over this country in connection with these events. But in what direction to influence? For Kosovo to become a republic? It should never occur to us that this would be done by West Germany. However, it may occur to us that this tells Yugoslav leaders to reduce bloodshed in Kosovo, not to strain relations with Albania as well. This will be positive for us and a weakening of the position of Serbian chauvinists. We think that, if the Federal Republic of Germany intervenes in this matter, it will do so in those regions where its word is most likely to be heard, namely Slovenes and Croats and not Serbs. So, its pressure on the Serbs, if it can be done, will be done indirectly, that is, it will be exercised by the Slovenes and the Croats. Yes, the issue depends on the Kosovars themselves.

If they will continue their demand in various but continuous forms for the republic, then in addition to the pressure from us, why will we respond to the measures that Serbs can take against Kosovars, the pressure that will be put against the Yugoslavs from international opinion and especially, if we succeed, even from West Germany, this will force other leaders, from different parts of Yugoslavia, to seek to consider this issue. What to consider? To make Kosovo a republic? No, this will be the last point, but to make Kosovo a more important element, much more important, a hundred times more important than what is now under the subordination of Serbia. Even after considering this issue, Kosovo can still remain under Serbia, but economically it will be helped more, the national and educational issues in Kosovo will be looked at more correctly and thus will gradually come all other issues. Therefore, this problem should be considered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from now on, then we decide when this mishap should be done. But this step must be taken in such a way that the German ambassador understands why we are telling him. Also let him know that we are saying this to him without any purpose, although he will understand that we are aiming at something, so we raise this issue with him. The diplomatic fact of presenting this problem is of great importance here.

In addition, articles should be prepared by our professors and professors to refute the accusations made by the Yugoslavs. Our Radio-Television should also reject the accusations made by Radio-Television of Prishtina. These should be, in other words, answers of a high scientific level and should be done, even as soon as possible. We will follow these carefully, to see the reaction that these confusions will cause, as we will follow the reaction of the third article of “Voice of the People”, which we are following every day and which we will still see. better in the coming days. We now see that Serbian propaganda has lowered its feathers. There was talk once only four days ago, but what happened was something unargued, straw and now as much as this “straw” is becoming “ash”, because Serbian propaganda has no basis to attack us. Therefore, I think that we should find another important moment, to use in this issue a weapon given to us by the Soviet-Bulgarians. When the whole world talked about the events in Kosovo, even the United States of America and the Voice of America radio, which are our enemies, they even spoke neutrally, the Soviets and the Bulgarians did not speak. Taking advantage of this attitude of the Soviet-Bulgarians, we will also address them with a strong article where we will point out why they did not talk about these important events that took place in Kosovo and we will tell them You did not speak for several reasons: that you want quarrels to develop between the peoples of Yugoslavia and Albania, from which you take advantage of yourself, but you are wrong. We will discuss with each other, we will find things with each other, while against you we will be united, therefore you will not gain anything from such an attitude. The other reason for this attitude is that you want us to quarrel, in order to weaken the situation in both Yugoslavia and Albania, with the aim that, at the moment it seems convenient to you, you can attack us and to find us weakened.

But even in this matter you are wrong, that you will not achieve this goal, because we will be strong. A third reason is that you within Yugoslavia have your elements operating in the directions we mentioned above. Who these are, it is not up to us Albanians to find out, it is up to the Yugoslav government to find out who are working under the mat in your favor to achieve the goal we said above. Whereas in our country, in Albania, you have no basis of support, because we have liquidated everything in your favor in time. Such an article, prepared and published at the right time, I think will be very useful to give understanding to both the world opinion and the Yugoslavs, that Albanians are determined to resist an attack against Albania and the Republic the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and both of these countries, in such an eventuality, will be together. The last offensive we will make, if with the celebrations of the Treaty of St. Stephen the Bulgarians will take their borders to Albania, then we must immediately decide to terminate the Treaty we have with Bulgaria and this will to be the roof. If the Bulgarians do not talk about the borders of Albania, we will not talk either. The Bulgarian-Albanian Treaty is dead for us, let the Serbian chauvinists be afraid of it if they want, if they harass the Albanians, we have forever violated the Treaty with Bulgaria, just as we violated the Warsaw Pact 13 years ago.

SATURDAY 23 MAY 1981

PROVOCATION OF THE YUGOSLAV EMBASSY

This evening the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana made a provocation. The ambassador announced that at 9:17 pm on the terrace of the embassy kitchen two bomb blasts occurred. He requested that representatives from our Ministry of Foreign Affairs go to the scene and allowed experts from ours to participate in the investigation. Investigations began and will continue tomorrow, the day.

SUNDAY 24 MAY 1981

WE WILL SUCCESSFULLY FACE THE PROVOCATIONS OF REVISION ENEMIES

Our experts’ investigations into the explosion that took place last night at the Yugoslav embassy continue. They are made in the presence of the staff of diplomats and technicians of the Yugoslav embassy itself. The first findings confirm that the explosion should not have been caused by the bomb, as claimed by the Yugoslav ambassador, but by two dynamite “plumes”, the explosion of which had caused the scratching of the asphalt of the roof 1 cm. and the fall of a small piece of kitchen plaster. The kitchen is inside the yard 14 meters away from the perimeter wall of the embassy, ​​2 m. high. On both sides of the embassy building stand police guards, who have not seen any movement on the street, but have heard the explosion. So, the expertise, which continues the work, proves that it is not about bombing. We believe that the objects that exploded were set by the Yugoslavs themselves to accuse us that, while “attacking their embassy here in Tirana”, we are the cause of everything that is happening in Kosovo. Their hostile intentions are clear. The Yugoslav Ambassador protested today, May 24, at our Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Our deputy minister rejected the protest as very hasty while the expertise they requested themselves continues to work. We will reject the protest of the Yugoslavs even if the possibility of throwing explosives from abroad is confirmed one percent, because even the one who may have done so can be nothing but an agent of the Yugoslavs, the Soviets or the Bulgarians. . We will successfully face any of their provocations. These savage enemies have done against Albania all their lives these savage enemies of our country and our people.

WEDNESDAY 27 MAY 1981

RESPONSE TO THE PROTESTS OF THE YUGOSLAV REVISIONISTS

(Notes on the answer to be given by a representative of our Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Yugoslav ambassador in response to the Yugoslav protest of 27.5.1981, made in Belgrade to our ambassador Sokrat Plaka).

1. We reject with indignation your repeated and baseless protests.
2. We have never attacked and will not attack the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana. Everything in this regard is slander and fabrication on your part and is done with predetermined intentions that do not scare us at all.
3. We gave you our answer to what happened to you in the annex of your embassy and we do not move a single comma from our statement, why it is investigated, checked and factualized.
4. As far as the Vienna Convention is concerned, we do not need anyone to mention it to us, because we know and apply it accurately, we have implemented it and we will apply it to the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana, so we ask you to apply it to the Albanian embassy in Belgrade.
5. We agree that your experts should come, if you wish, to investigate for themselves the event in the country, provided that in this expertise that you will do for yourself, our experts who were called by your embassy should also assist, as also your ambassador in Tirana together with the advisor, who assisted when our expertise was done. From our side the expertise is complete, photographed and filmed.
6. There are three articles of “Voice of the People”, 33 can be made. This issue is in the competence of the Central Committee of the Albanian Labor Party and not ours. We emphasize for the thousandth time that we have neither interfered nor will we interfere in the internal affairs of Yugoslavia. We will always defend the rights of our Albanian brothers, when these are so brutally violated, until they are drowned in blood.
7. As for the tales of Hani i Hotit and a balloon released in the sky of Tirana on the day of May Day and that allegedly arrived in the sky of Struga, I do not even want to mention them, because they are very funny.

SATURDAY, MAY 30, 1981

TO OVERCOME THE DIFFICULTIES THAT THE YUGOSLAVS ARE GETING US TO TRADE

Given the strained relations with Yugoslavia, the Yugoslav chauvinists will put a thousand obstacles in the way of our trade with them, as well as our transit goods passing through Yugoslavia to Austria and Central Europe. From now on they are creating a thousand artificial obstacles for us with road transport. The summer potatoes that we bring through Yugoslavia are breaking down in Montenegro. For these reasons I recommended to the friends of the Government to anticipate and take the necessary measures as soon as possible, such as:

1. Talk to the Italians about the location of the ferry Durrës-Bari, which they have proposed themselves.
2. Make the decision as soon as possible to build the high voltage line Elbasan-Kapshtica, in order to sell electricity to Greece. The Greeks beg for this.
3. Predict the opening of Kakavija. The opening of this border point has important political and economic meaning. The placement of the ferry with Italy, the sale of electricity to Greece and the opening of Kakavija, will show the Yugoslav chauvinists that their pressures and blackmails in trade do not drink water with us. They will be harmed in this area as well and will no longer have the opportunity to propagate about the “favors” they do to us by “buying us electricity, chrome”, etc., these much sought-after items that we sell not during the day, but even at night, as they say the word. I recommended to my friends that our foreign trade do the same with agricultural products. With the opening of Kakavija, Ioannina, Preveza, Arta and the whole of Southern Epirus, they can buy our products, because they are cheaper.

SUNDAY 31 MAY 1981

ON THE EVENT OF THE YUGOSLAV EMBASSY IN TIRANA

Response to the Belgrade newspaper “Politika” Notes-Thesis

1. On May 26, 1981, you published an article full of fabrications, slander and shameless distortions about what happened to you at the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana. There was nothing political in that article except a typical Yugoslav State Security (UDB) publication. So “Politika” reflected in it the policy of Serbian Chief of Police Herljevic.
2. Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs has officially stated to you that we implement the Vienna Convention, etc., etc., while you write the exact opposite in your press. We say that we have neither attacked nor will ever attack the Yugoslav embassy. In the article it is written quite the opposite. We say we will protect the Yugoslav embassy, ​​just as we ask you to protect ours in Belgrade. (For these arguments to quote excerpts from Tanjug and “Politika”). We presented to you the official report of our experts requested by your embassy. (It should be noted how “Politika” rejects this document, before the Yugoslav side sent its experts that we allowed to come).
3. All this tragic intrigue in the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana we want to emphasize that it was hatched and carried out in the absence of the head of the State Secretariat of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Mr. Verhovec. Someone else moved the threads. It is clear and well-known that Yugoslav Chief of Police Herljevic was the first to publicly accuse the Albanian Embassy in Belgrade, as well as our embassies in other parts of the world, and finally accused the Socialist People’s Republic of Albania of inciting unrest in Kosovo. The world opinion and the chancelleries of the world did not eat this great lie of the Yugoslavs. This terrible tragedy of Kosovo, the real causes of which were analyzed by anyone and revealed the causes of this tragedy called genocide, badly discredited Tito’s Yugoslavia and pointed out its dangerousness.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Yugoslavia implicated almost all the Yugoslav leadership in this great film and made the issue transnational for the whole Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. This Serbian conspiracy against Kosovo, against the Socialist Federal Republic. of Yugoslavia and against the Socialist People’s Republic of Albania no Yugoslav leader was brave enough to condemn him except the youth and intelligence of Kosovo, who were immediately imprisoned. In this very dangerous plot for the future of the Yugoslav Federation, the Kosovars and the Socialist People’s Republic of Albania not only defended their rights, but were the only ones who also defended the unity of the Yugoslav Federation. /Memorie.al

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