Dashnor Kaloçi
Second part
Memorie.al publishes an archival document issued by the Central State Archive (fund of the former Central Committee of the ALP), which belongs to March 30, 1973, which contains the minutes of the meeting between Enver Hoxha and Hysni Kapos, with Fadil Paçrami, who at that time was the secretary of the Party Committee of the Tirana district (covering art, culture and propaganda), a meeting which took place at Paçrami’s own request, after the harsh accusations leveled against him by the ‘leader party leader ‘, in a speech delivered on 15 and 16 March of that year in the apparatus of the Central Committee of the ALP, where he for the first time criticized the 11th Song Festival on Radio-Television, making serious accusations against Todi Lubonja and Fadil Paçrami, as: “the main culprits and perpetrators, who with their actions had allowed and spread a liberal spirit in art and culture”!
“Let us speak openly, you, Fadil, have put in various cultural institutions of the capital a series of cadres, who hold contemptuous and disregarding attitudes towards the rules and discipline of the Party, towards the forums and its authority. I speak on the basis of the data extracted from what you yourself have said, you have protected these people. It is not you who said to the comrades of the Ministry of Education and Culture: “What do you want that you go for control in Kinostudio or in the Opera and Ballet Theater? Why do you interfere in these issues?! You said that these are not lines in your work, but dots become lines. It is precisely these attitudes that you hold that pose a danger. If you round up the issues in this way, if you do not explain them honestly and sincerely, but speak in an academic tone even before me, that the Party has charged me with the duty of First Secretary of its Central Committee, you certainly have difficult to correct. You dismiss the theorist and think you can talk theoretically, if you do not round things up. I was also told that in a meeting you threw “big” ideas, in which a big ideological mess stands out “. This is how Enver Hoxha addressed, among others, the secretary of the Tirana Party Committee, Fadil Paçrami, during a meeting with him on March 30, 1973, where the secretary of the Central Committee of the ALP, Hysni Kapo, was also present ( which in party ranks covered the organs of the ‘Dictatorship of the Proletariat’), a meeting which was requested by Paçrami himself, after Enver Hoxha’s speech held in the apparatus of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly on January 7 of that year, just a few days after the Festival of 11 of the Song on Radio-Television as well as the speech held on March 15 and 16 of the same year at the meeting of the Central Committee of the ALP, (on the topic: “The fight against liberal attitudes in art and culture and their impact in the life of the country ”), where Enver Hoxha for the first time criticized the 11th Festival and made harsh accusations against Fadil Paçrami and Todi Lubonja, making them guilty and the main responsible for that festival, etc. Regarding these and others, we know this archival document which contains the minutes of the meeting of Enver Hoxha and Hysni Kapos with Fadil Paçrami held on March 30, 1973, which Memorie.al publishes in full and for the first time first.
Continues from the last number
Minutes of the conversation between Enver Hoxha and Hysni Kapos with Fadil Paçrami, on March 30, 1973
COMRADE HYSNI KAPO: Comrade Ramiz Alia spoke at the meeting of the Writers ‘and Artists’ League in July, doing the work you should have done. What did you do as a cultural and artistic director in Tirana?
FADIL PAÇRAMI: I have thought of helping the Writers and Artists League to the end, although this is not my job.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: Why is it not your job?
FADIL PAÇRAMI: Because I do not lead the work of the Writers ‘and Artists’ League.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: Who prevented you from leading him?
COMRADE HYSNI KAPO: You, Fadil, as secretary of the Tirana District Party Committee, think that you should influence the basic organization of the Party to play a greater role in the Writers ‘and Artists’ League.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: This is one of the main issues. The Party organization there has a big role. You are responsible for the work of the League of Writers and Artists, Radio-Television, etc., because the basic organizations of the Party, which are run by the Party Committee, have the duty to lead the entire activity of these institutions. However, Todi Lubonja has completely eliminated the work of the basic organization of the Party on Radio-Television, so did Koço Vasili at the Opera and Ballet Theater. How do you say the Party Committee should not watch these dangerous shows? The communists of these organizations themselves have risen up and said: No one has asked us about the progress of work! But Todi Lubonja, why did he bring Mihallaq Luarasi from Korça to Tirana and put him to work on Radio-Television, without knowing at all the basic organization of the Party? Do you know that you have a responsibility to Comrade Klimi, who was treated very badly and, because of this, went through a severe heart attack? By what right was the reasonable decision of the basic organization for Comrade Klimi overturned?
COMRADE HYSNI KAPO: Comrade Klimi’s case was raised in April last year and it was decided to transfer him to the Political Book Publishing Company. This action was outside the rules of the Party. When the issue was raised in the grassroots organization, the communists were self-critical about the mistake made. Even the secretary of the organization, who acted as Todi Lubonja had told him, made self-criticism and the organization decided not to approve the decision of his transfer. Fadil, as is his custom, does not speak to the communists as comrades, but with arrogance, which has been criticized. He asks such questions to the old communists: Who are you?! “I am a communist,” one replied, and asked Fadil: “Who are you? Such attitudes are held by Fadil and, when pointed out to him, he accepts nothing.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: By not admitting mistakes, you show that you are arrogant. Arrogance is arrogance. Arrogance is a dangerous habit with serious consequences, especially for the work of communists and cadres.
COMRADE HYSNI KAPO: I, Comrade Enver, thought that Fadil would speak differently in front of you. When he came to me, he spoke for 15 minutes, he had the same notebook and the same pages that he reads here, he also read there. These words that he said here, he also said to me in the meeting I had with him, so I advised him, saying: “Try to understand correctly the word of Comrade Enver. In the plenum to deepen and make self-criticism “, but Fadili also said the same things in the plenum of the Party Committee of the Tirana District. There they asked him 15 or 20 questions and I can say that the plenum was not satisfied with his answers. From the discussions that took place, Fadil heard many things about his liberalism, about the wrong policy with the cadre, about the inappropriate implementation of the Party norms, about his arrogance, etc. He finally said: “I will take into account these criticisms made against me and I will delve into them.” Then I got up and I spoke too.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: Did you accept these criticisms in the plenum?
FADIL PAÇRAMI: I said that these criticisms will help me, that among them there are things that I will accept, but there are others that I will not accept. Here I came to you to talk about the criticism you made of me at the meeting of the Communists of the Central Committee of the Party.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: You may have come for the criticism that I made, but you should know that that criticism is based on facts derived from your activity, otherwise I had no reason to criticize you. My criticism of your address may be strong, but it is based on many mistakes and shortcomings that have come to you in the Party-based organizations, which have been directed at you by many comrades. Then other mistakes and flaws may arise, but of all those who will discuss, there will be some who will not only talk about you, because they will also talk about themselves. For these reasons we decided not to limit the discussion only to the field of literature and the arts, but to extend it to all areas of Party activity. These problems and displays are very serious, so if they are not viewed with the utmost care, then the error will become more severe. From the attitude that everyone holds in this situation, it is seen whether or not he is with the Party. Liberalism has penetrated in several directions and has become extremely dangerous, so manifestations of this nature must be eradicated. From the manifestations of liberalism, what is true was aggravated a little by the Party, but its heart is wide and the work it does has comprehensive aims. If in this war positions such as: “I said so and not so”, then our country and socialism will be in difficult situations. The Party will also take measures against the most prominent bearers of these shows, such as, for example, Todi Lubonja can be sent to another district with a job, but the issue is that these shortcomings will disappear from the consciousness of those people who have. Unrighteous attitudes, which deny the true state of things, do not correct weaknesses. I want to fix you on the way to the party and I was confident that you would go deeper into the analysis of your work, but you still have not done so, nevertheless, I still hope in you, judging you as an old communist. You have to look at the mistakes you have made, analyze them well, and explain them with maturity, with roots, and not in a general and superficial way, going to the side of things and hiding your legs. If your mistakes are scrutinized, neither you nor the Party will be satisfied. You, from all that is said, accept only two or three cases, but you do not go deeper, why did you do even what you yourself admit. This attitude deserves careful consideration. For you, Fadil, there were complaints, which Comrade Manush (Mufti) told Comrade Hysni, so when Manushi told you, you should come and ask: What complaints does he have against me? You should have done this, just as you asked to come to me. As soon as Comrade Manush told you, come and talk here, because this conversation would be a good help for you. You are disturbed by the state of mind to see the truths as they are. You have judged more or less like this: I do not agree with the criticism leveled at me, I am pure, so there is no reason for me to ask what my friends have to say about my work. If they have anything to do with me, then let them call me. For the communist to meet with us, this is very good, even when he judges him appropriately, he asks himself to mature with the comrades of the Party leadership, let alone, when they tell him that Enver or any other comrade, that he comes, asks him immediately. You, even if you were really convinced that you had not made mistakes, still should not be guided by that wrong concept, according to which you, “if others cry for me, if they want you let me they call”. This attitude is not right. The mistakes you have made are not one, two or four, but more, so analyze them carefully in your conscience. The criticism that I made at the meeting of the communists of the Central Committee apparatus, you cannot say that it was unexpected, after previously you had signals and advice, but you underestimated them, because in all the conversations you had with comrade Ramiz e with Comrade Hysni, in my opinion, you have taken an arrogant attitude. Have you had any display of arrogance in your working relationship with Comrade Manush?
FADIL PAÇRAMI: I think not.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: But I think so. Comrade Manush is correct and approachable to the people, but you understood his courtesy as if he had delegated all the competencies of the Tirana Party Committee to you for implementation. You have abused his correctness, creating the wrong opinion as if only you were competent for those things, therefore you have remembered that what you do was right and indisputable! Do not forget that you did a lot of work without Manush. When he gives you five orders, you complete only one of them. When Manushi said what this or that person does, you did not take the right attitude towards them, but you were willing to support and protect them. These elements, having warm arms on your side, kept repeating and constantly adding to the mistakes. Comrade Ramiz has always guided you correctly on many problems, even on unity, but you had sown the seeds of disunity and division in literary circles. There may be different opinions, that without thoughts and criticism one cannot walk. Comrade Ramiz has instructed you to fight against wrong thoughts, to put aside subjectivism and others. The party in the district and its grassroots organizations must constantly deal with the implementation of the orders and tasks that belong to them.
COMRADE HYSNI KAPO: You were criticized in the plenum of the District Party Committee for not following the role of the Party’s grassroots organizations and for not putting yourself in charge of this issue. I do not know with what impressions you came out of the plenum, but I think that his works were really developed in the spirit of the party, there were harsh criticisms, but they were fair and social, without ambitious bad intentions. It is not right to say: “I have nothing to do for the Writers ‘and Artists’ League, as I am not its leader”, because you know that, as everywhere, the basic organization of the Party leads there.
COMRADE ENVER HOXHA: Why did these mistakes happen in the basic organization of the Writers ‘and Artists’ League at the same time that your omissions and those of Ibrahim Uruçi are confirmed? Do we have the right to ask this question? We need to know why these mistakes were made, otherwise, as I said, we have no way to correct them. The scheme you have prepared for error analysis is very dry. You do not admit serious mistakes and do not determine their causes. Personally, I am not given anything with this scheme that you present, therefore, when these problems are discussed in the Plenum of the Central Committee of the Party, I advise you to make an in-depth and fair analysis. You yourself have worked in the apparatus of the Central Committee of the Party and you must understand well what we are advising you. With your self-critical attitude we hope that in the Plenum you will help yourself and convince your friends that you have understood the mistakes, otherwise they will ask you questions. But why force them to ask you when it would be better for you to tell them all yourself. With that we close the meeting./Memorie.al
