Dashnor Kaloçi
Memorie.al publishes some archival documents which shed light on the unknown history of the protest of the American senator, Charles Kersten, who in 1953, through a resolution called on the US President not to recognize the communist government of Enver Hoxha in Albania. All the details of that letter where the well-known American politician accused the Tirana regime, which had violently suppressed any kind of opposition, carrying out arrests, imprisonments and mass shootings, as well as information for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana regarding the press of the anti-communist diaspora in the US issued by the “Free Albania” Committee…
The government of Enver Hoxha, as soon as it took power, first by force and then by rigged elections, has suppressed every opposition with arrests, imprisonments and shootings, is using brutal ways to eradicate every human and national feeling, has robbed private property , enslaved farmers and workers on state farms and factories, interned men, women, children, old and young in concentration camps in order to completely eradicate the Albanian race and its culture. Enver Hoxha is also poisoning the youth of Albania with an immoral doctrine and has wiped out most of the Catholic, Orthodox and Muslim clergy. “I therefore ask the President to order the American representatives to the United Nations to demand the withdrawal from Albania of the Russian organizers and the secret police, and all the agents of Soviet imperialism who have gathered there in order to disturb world peace.” This is stated, among other things, in one of the points of the resolution of the American senator Charles Kersten, presented before the US Senate in February 1953, where the American politician, after making a detailed analysis of the dictatorial regime of Enver Hoxha, formally called on the US President to formulate a stronger foreign policy so that America would not recognize the communist regime in Albania. What is further stated in the resolution of US Senator Kersten, how does he describe the situation in Albania and the crimes of the dictatorial regime of Enver Hoxha? How does he describe the policy pursued by the Soviet Union towards Albania at that time and what were the measures that, according to him, the American President should have taken to make the foreign policy towards the small communist country in the Balkans tougher? All this is discussed in a series of archival documents which reflect all the correspondence that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana has maintained with some of the Albanian embassies accredited in Western countries, which regularly informed him on the activity of reactionary emigration. Albanians in these countries, the press they issued and the speeches or protests of American diplomats against the policy of the communist government of Enver Hoxha. All these archival documents, which for years have been considered as “Top secret of special importance”, and memorie.al is publishing for its readers, are in the archives of the Albanian state and now they are declassified by relevant committees that have long worked enabling them to be open to scholars and the general public.
Senator Miller: “Enver cleared the deputies”
One of the information of the Albanian diplomats of our diplomatic missions accredited in the western countries, sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana, is the one entitled:
“EXCERPT FROM THE ALBANIAN PRESS OF WAR CRIMINALS DURING JANUARY AND FEBRUARY 1953”,
with subtitle:
“Full Messages and Statements from American Personalities”
(Archive of the MFA. Year 1953. File 291).
At the beginning of this information, the message of the American Admiral Miller, chairman of the “Free Europe” Committee, addressed to the Albanian people on the occasion of Christmas is given. Miller’s message, which was also one of the 96 members of the US Senate, was published by the newspaper “Albania” (body of the National Committee of Free Albania) in its January 1, 1953 issue. others say: “Dear Albanian listeners. Today, many of you join hundreds of millions of Christians around the world in celebrating the birth of Christ. I believe that this day, though many of you are forbidden to go to church, fills your hearts with joy, days of prayer for your deliverance. You are strong and you have with you the history of all mankind. There may be people among you who do not join us in today’s celebrations, because they have no God, because they are servants of Stalin. These must understand how bad things come from the East and the life of a bad man. Radio Free Europe is not a propaganda organization of any religious faith, but an organization that is entirely dedicated to the ideal that man should be able to live with freedom and good will. This is the message I send to Albanian friends for Christmas and I will never stop sending such messages. I am one of the 96 members of the US Senate. Many of them do not agree with what I am saying to you today, but of course regardless of the official policy of our government, they and I have the opportunity to openly express the principles in which we live. This is the basis of democratic governance. With the end of the war, elections were held in Albania, as well as in other countries and the governments of the Popular Front, formed by various parties, took the reins. But despite this the communists were not very pleased, until they had in their hands total power. No need to remind you of the fate of Eduard Benes or Jan Masarick. The purge of the members of the Albanian People’s Assembly by Enver Hoxha and his comrades is still fresh in your mind. Your dream of a national freedom, your hopes for an economic security, your desire for an individual freedom, are all destined to be fulfilled in the not-too-distant future. Millions of Americans are deeply aware of the fact that tyranny over Albania is a threat to freedom and democracy around the world. “Today, the American people look with great regret at the suffering of the Albanian people and hope that Albania will finally return to the Committee of Free Nations.” But did Kersten’s message affect the US attitude towards Albania? This message given to the US Senate in January 1953, seems to have had a significant impact on US policy towards the communist regime of Enver Hoxha. This is clear from the fact that, after that period, the US government significantly increased funding for the “Free Albania” Committee, as well as those of various groups of Albanians in the anti-communist diaspora in the West, who were trained in bases of Italy, Greece, Germany and Malta to land in Albania. This time coincides with the launching in Albania of the groups of Hamit Matjani, Halil Branica, Zenel Shehu, etc., who, as it is known, were caught by the State Security and for this defeat (by many analysts who have been dealing for years with history and events of the Cold War), the finger has been pointed over the betrayal committed by Kim Philby. And the most important thing that the communist regime in Tirana did at that time after the protests and the resolution of Senator Kersten, was the closure of the Tepelena internment camp, which is most likely thought to have come exactly from the pressure exerted by the US government. to official Tirana in relation to the suppression of human rights and freedoms, this was taken as a concrete example the terrible camp of Tepelena where dozens of internees lost their lives.
Senator Kersten’s resolution before the US Senate
After Senator Miller’s message, on the fourth page of information for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana, the diplomats of the Albanian embassy accredited in one of the western countries, give the full resolution of US Senator Josep Charles Kersten, entitled: “On the freedom of Albania “, who presented it to the US Senate. In that message, among others, Senator Kersten wrote: “The Soviet Union has destroyed the opportunities for freedom and independence of Albania, which it should have gained since the end of the Second World War, and has put Albania under the yoke and control of a communist government, the puppet of the Kremlin. This regime has tried with false promises to secure its recognition by America and England. The government of Enver Hoxha, as soon as it took power, first by force and then by rigged elections, has suppressed every opposition with arrests, imprisonments and shootings, is using brutal ways to eradicate every human and national feeling, has robbed private property , enslaved farmers and workers on state farms and factories, interned men, women, children, old and young in concentration camps in order to completely eradicate the Albanian race and its culture. Enver Hoxha is also poisoning the youth of Albania with an immoral doctrine and has wiped out most of the Catholic, Orthodox and Muslim clergy. Tragic mistakes have been made against Albania by the policies of some free states, including America, because at one time a sincere cooperation with the Communists was hoped for. Today we are convinced and it has been proven that Communism in Albania is a tool of conspiracy in the hands of international communism and endangers international peace. Therefore: I urge this House of Representatives to decide that the United States Congress should reunite with the historical and traditional friendship the American people with the Albanian people, who have common aspirations for freedom, democracy and justice. I ask this Congress to express the unwavering conviction of the American people that the Albanian people have the right to govern with their full consent, through free elections, and that no other nation can forcibly separate them from their land. nor to hold Albanian land by force. I ask the United States Senate to express the conviction of the American people that the Albanian people have the right to enjoy the fundamental rights of liberty for which they have been thrown into centuries of war; among these rights we count the following:
- The right of the peasantry to own the land, to work as it pleases and to dispose of its fruits at will.
- The right of workers to freely choose the type of work and to benefit from their wages, as well as to set their own working hours through free unions.
- The right of intellectuals to freely create scientific and artistic actions through educational, scientific and cultural institutes independent of the state.
- The right to belief, speech, expression and freedom of the press. In addition, to help the Albanian people, the President of the United States is pleased to:
- To formulate a stronger new foreign policy, in order not to recognize the communist regime in Albania.
- To blame the communist regime of Russia as an aggressor, a regime that has violated the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter and international relations by enslaving Albania.
- The President should order the American representatives at the United Nations to demand the withdrawal from Albania of the Russian organizers and the secret police and all the agents of Soviet imperialism who have gathered there in order to disturb world peace.
- To demand that free elections be held in Albania under the supervision of the United Nations after a preparatory period. To give the Albanian people the opportunity to dispel the communist terror, so that peace and freedom can be restored there “. / Memorie.al
Continues tomorrow
