From Kujtim BORIÇI
Memorie.al / Former senior soldier, Hetem Halili, was born in Senican, Permet, on 15.07.1934. He was orphaned as a child. He finished the 7-year school in Elbasan. Then he continued to the “Skënderbej” school and in 1954, he finished the United Officers School. He first served as an officer in Kavaje, and in the years 1955-1960, he was an officer on the island of Sazan. In the years 1960-1968, he was in charge of Youth at the Vlora Naval Base. In the years 1968-1969, he served in Fier and Lushnje, in the functions of deputy commissar of the Brigade. In the years 1969-1974, he was General Inspector in the Political Directorate of the Army under the Ministry of National Defense, while in the years 1974-1976, he served as the commissar of the First Assault Brigade in Tirana. In the period, 1976-1978, he completed the “Mehmet Shehu” Military Academy in Tirana, while in the years 1978-1983, he was on duty deputy secretary and commissar of the Burrell Corps. In the years 1983-1989, he served as commissar of the Librazhd Division. He also graduated from the University of Tirana, graduating in History-Geography, as well as the higher course of Philosophy at the High School. He was a member of the National Committee of Veterans of the Anti-Fascist National-Liberation War. He passed away in Tirana, on July 21, 2021, at the age of 87.
Mr. Halili, are you among the few living witnesses who testified in the trial against Beqir Balluku, Petri Duma and Hito Çako, accused and shot as traitors?
– Yes. I have testified in this trial, giving the evidence of that time. At that time (1974), I was an inspector in the Political Directorate of the Ministry of People’s Defense. It was a directorate of the Central Committee of the Labor Party of Albania, like all other directorates. He depended on the Central Committee and the ministry, from whom he received orders and was accountable to them.
Your time, function and duty in the Political Directorate of the Army?
– I was appointed to this institution in April 1970 and I left in December 1974…! The director was Hito Çako, the deputies were; Ziqiri Mero, for the General Sector and Ilo Prifti, for education. I served as a General Instructor in the Political Directorate of the Army. For the information going up to the Central Committee, there was a special order: It should not be more than three pages…! The care was not to tire Comrade Enver. The order was given by Hito Çako, but it was from the senior leaders of the Central Committee, that is, from the leaders of the time…!
You worked for 4-5 years with Hito Chako. What do you think about him, as your superior?
– My opinion is positive. He was a hard-working man, prepared for the military, he was smart, he cared about people, but he had a bad mouth…! It was not for a party worker…! He was a skilled soldier…! Being like that, he more or less brought a commanding spirit to the party, which was noticeable…!
Hito Çako, was one of the leaders of the army, accused of being a member of the “Hostile Group”, and as such, the party trial was held against you. When he was sentenced, what did you say?
– Something, it started before…! As early as 1971, a party organization was condemned as “anti-party”. It was in the Autotractors sector. A team from the Central Committee of the Party came…! They dealt with rumours, they tried to bring the Minister of Defense Beqir Ballukum into conflict with the Chief of the General Staff, Petrit Dumen.
So, where does the war against the “Generals” begin and where did this attack originate?
-Begins at the 12th Plenum of the Central Committee of PPSh, in the time period 1971-1972, after Enver Hoxha’s speech; “The homeland belongs to everyone and must be protected by everyone”.
Did Enver Hoxha have information from you, that is, from the Political Directorate?
– Yes, there was. And set concrete tasks…!
So, where does the fight among the heads of the Ministry of Defense start?
– Of course yes. Pursuant to the duties of the Plenum, Minister Beqir Balluku was tasked with making the material…! He charged Spiro Šalësi, Ernest Jakova, etc. It worked for almost two years, but nothing was coming to light…!
It has been said that; everything that led to the coup of the generals started in the Political Directorate of the Army in the Ministry of People’s Defense?
– In March of 1973, the Political Directorate made a report to the Central Committee, where it raised problems of non-functioning of the various departments and sectors in the army, which according to it, were numerous and it was difficult to coordinate the work…! And he made relevant proposals for measures and changes…! The material was made by Halim Ramohito and Hito Çako, but they kept it very secret…! They took it to Enver and he returned it, along with the notes and the relevant tasks…!
What did Enver Hoxha’s notes about this material contain?
– The essential. He, that is, Enveri, said: “They are not organizational issues, but deeper.” And I tasked Mehmet Shehu and Hysni Kapo: “Call the three of them, Beqir, Hito and Petrit, look at the situation and solve it…”! It was discussed, it was thought that the necessary conclusion was reached, and in the end, when they were about to leave the meeting, Petrit Dume says: “We have a principled disagreement with the Minister…”! The material was returned again. Alarm. They took the material, which was then called; “Black Materials”.
Something more concrete, about the conflict between the generals?
– Mehmet Shehu and Hysni Kapo directed all the work here. When this problem was discussed, for Beqir Balluk, the delegate Ramiz Alia came to the organization of the Party of the Political Directorate of the Army. I was present. It must be said that the group that made the material was called; “Kalemxhinj”, from the leadership…! Accordingly, Kalemxhinj were named Spiro Shalesi and Ernest Jakova…!
Where was Hito Chako at this time?
-He had become the Deputy Minister of Defense; Dilaver Poçi had come in his place. Hito was criticized. Ramiz Alia, made an essential remark. He took the magazine “July 10” and said; “This is how you do propaganda.” Only the generals were interviewed…! Their big pictures, one page, one, one, two, one third…! The other pictures were microscopic…! Ramizi said: “This is not propaganda! Bigger than Enver Hoxha and Mehmet Shehu, are you army generals”!? This is where the analysis took a turn, the re-analyses, which led to the determination of the “Hostile Group in the Army”…!
What other problems did these analyzes raise?
-For books translated from Russian. Three books had been translated. The first was the book; “Psychology and the Soldier”, by the English colonel Coople. The second was a book about Albanians, but instead of the heroes of the Soviet Union, the names of Albanians were put, copies…! And a translation for the youth, for the Komsomol, which was only translated, but not distributed…! These books were published by Hito Çtako. The truth is that Hito sent these books that were being anathema to Enver, Mehmet, Hysni Kapo and Ramiz Ali…! But they, as if in silence, said that; “we have read them, but we didn’t know they were translated”.
What else did Ramiz Alia say about books?
– Yes. A working group should be set up, study them, analyze them, inform the Central Committee and take measures…! This deepened and brought about the division of the generals…! In September, in the speech given by Enver Hoxha, he called Hito Çakon; “Living revisionist and recitivist”…! Discussions were held throughout the army…!
What was characteristic of these analyzes that led to the conviction and firing of the generals?
– It is a painful fact. The soldiers attacked each other, hoping to bear as little responsibility as possible…! But you know, that didn’t work…! After the analyzes that were done for Beqir Balluku and his small group, where a number of problems emerged, Enver Hoxha gave a speech. Thus, for Petrit Dume, Enveri said: “You, Petrit Dume, loved the army, but you loved it as you wanted it, not as the party wanted it”, for Hito Çakon he said: “You are a living revisionist and recidivist”! …In fact, few thought of the acceleration of events in this way…! It went into analysis far back in time, Hito Çako was accused, that in 1947 and 1948, he was on the side of Koçi Xoxes…!
How did Hito Çako react to these accusations that were raised in the plenum?
-He got into trouble. They all turned to you and asked: “Why didn’t you say this, why did you express this to the Party…”?! While the biggest storm would erupt in the Party’s assets that were held in Durrës…! It was attended by 7 members of the Political Bureau, Mehmet Shehu, Hysni Kapo, Adil Çarçani, Ramiz Alia, Kadri Hazbiu, etc…!
Were you active in Durrës and what will separate you from that active one?
– Yes. The senior military men were pitted against each other. By the way, Muhamet Prodani said to Petri Dumas: “Even today, I don’t understand if you, Petri, were with the Theses of Popular Military Art or with the ‘Sliding Theory'”?!…Hito Cako himself, after he did self-criticism, says Hysni Kapo: “On this matter, I have talked with you, you know this problem”!Hysni Kapo took the microphone and said: “You came, you presented something, but we haven’t clarified it”…! This is where the situation gets tense…! Mehmet Shehu intervenes immediately and harshly…!
What was Mehmet Shehu’s intervention?
-Mehmet Shehu grabbed the microphone and said: “You Hito Çako, don’t try to avoid, mix others in this activity that smells bad against the Party, the Army and the interests of the country…”! The analysis continued with mutual accusations and counter-accusations. In fact, I was impressed that those people he had been closest to, helped and knew each other, spoke more and more passionately about Hito Chako…! I got the impression that in order to save them, they were putting each other in…! Although the materials had read a good part of them….! In this analysis, General Dilaver Poçi also discussed…! Some even fainted…!
Faced with the accusations, who reacted with dignity among the accused generals?
– Halim Ramohito discussed better, Mehmet Shehu also noted this discussion of his. After Durrës, the analysis continued in all the country’s corpora…! I remember that one issue discussed was the division in the relationship between the Party committees in the Army, with the Party Committees of the districts…!
What was the result of these analyses?
-I said above that Beqir Balluku had been arrested, but the “Put Group” in the Army had not yet been fully defined. At the end of the analysis, it was decided by the Central Committee that the Corps commissars should also be members of the district Party Committees, as well as one of the secretaries of the district Party Committees, should be a member of the Corps Party Committee in the army…! Another measure was the massive recruitment of cadres from the district, with or without education, to the Party forums in the Army.
Where did the conclusions of the national analysis go?
– They were sent to us in the Political Directorate of the Army. They were gathered there and sent to the Central Committee of the ALP…! With this work, the Military Sector that was led by Gafur Çuçi, and that depended on Hysniu Kapo…!
What did colleagues and management accuses Hito Çako of?
-Hito Cako, was criticized as if he wanted to surround and destroy the Party committees, but in fact, the “Hito siege” had to do with the fact that in the event of aggression, the forces deployed would ensure the life of the Party committees, until their displacement, in case of aggression…! Someone criticized him: “You Hito Cako, you kept officers in the army who were married to Russian women”?
What was Hito Cako’s reaction?
-Hito reacted immediately. He said: “There was no orientation to remove them; we could not take actions on our own, without a directive from the Party.” After Hito reacted, the critic Pepe Kantozi, a Jew, an officer within the Ministry of Defense, remained for a moment. Then he said: “I think so”! And Hito replied: “That’s what you think, Jew, let me eat it and for that reason, because I have other bigger things to eat, and because it doesn’t lift weight…”!
Why did Enver Hoxha say that; “A Central Committee of the Party has been created in the Army”?
– Earlier I affirmed that in the Army, there were six members of the Central Committee of the PPSh. This is because the problems the Army had were discussed once with these six members, then they went to the Central Committee. The members of the Central Committee in the Army were Beqir Balluku, Petrit Dume, Hito Çako, Sadik Begteshi, Halim Ramohito and Dilaver Poçi…! Memorie.al
