Ismail Kadaré

Ismail Kadaré
bjoerna.dk
Kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen
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[email protected]
Ismail Kadaré
Version 1.16 - 24.11.2006
Artiklen er under skrivning og afsluttes, når »Agamemnons Datter« er udkommet på dansk (foråret 2007) • PDFudgave med supplerende materiale kan findes på: http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/2006-u.pdf [6 MB] • PDF-udgave
uden supplerende materiale kan findes på: http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/2006.pdf [0,5 MB]
Indholdsfortegnelse
Ismail Kadaré • Dossiér Kadaré, incl. interview med Kadaré fra 2006
1980?: »Ufuldendt april« [PDF]
1981: »Drømmenes Palads«
1985/2006: »Agamemnons datter«
1991: »Albansk forår«
2002: Diskussionen om digtet »De Røde Pashaer« fra 1974
2003: Religious tolerance
2005: »Efterfølgeren«
2006: Diskussioner i Albanien og Kosóva i efteråret 2006
Ismail Kadaré og Enver Hoxha, muligvis omkring 1970
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/2006.htm
Ismail Kadaré, foto: Bjørn
Andersen, 2003
Ismail Kadaré
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Supplerende
Wikipedia om Ismail Kadaré [PDF]
1977: Ismail Kadaré: »The Literature of Socialist Realism is Developing in Struggle against
the Bourgeois and Revisionist Pressure«
1979-1990: Tilsvarende artikler
1982: Enver Hoxha: »The Titoites«
1984: Dritëro Agolli om Kadaré's 'The Great Winter'
1984: Dritëro Agolli om Kadaré's 'The General of the Dead Army'
Ismail Kadaré
Klik på kortet, hvis du vil have det forstørret / click http://bjoerna.dk/kort/Albanien.gif to enlarge it
Ismail Kadaré blev født 28. Januar 1936 i Gjirokastra i det sydlige Albanien, hvor de
kulturelle og religiøse forhold er præget af nærheden til Grækenland, og hvor også Enver
Hoxha var født. Da Ismail Kadaré var 3 år gammel blev Albanien besat af Italien, derefter
fulgte 2' Verdenskrig - og da det socialistiske Albanien blev proklameret 11.1.1946 var han
kun knap 10 år gammel. De næste mange år frem til han var omkring de 55 levede han i et
socialistisk regime, hvilket har påvirket ham og hans forfatterskab overordentligt dybt tematisk såvel som arbejdsmæssigt og personligt.
Kadaré viste gode evner for at skrive og fik muligheden for at blive professionel forfatter.
Dette kunne imidlertid kun lade sig gøre, hvis han kom overens med det socialistiske styre,
og hvis han - langt hen ad vejen - imødekom dé krav der blev stillet til ham.
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11.1.1946 Den Albanske Folkerepublik proklameres. Maleri af Fatmir Haxhiu. I centrum Enver Hoxha i militæruniform. Th for ham, men lidt
længere tilbage Mehmet Shehu - ligeledes i militæruniform. Kopieret fra »Albania today« # 1/1981. Hvis du vil se et udsnit af Hoxha og Shehu, så
klik på billedet.
Forholdet mellem Kadaré og det socialistiske styre var komplekst. Efterhånden som
Kadaré's ry voksede, efterhånden som han også blev en anerkendt forfatter uden for
landets grænser, blev han betragtet som et aktiv, og både den politiske leder, Enver Hoxha
[A], og hans kone, Nexhmije Hoxha, der spillede en stor rolle på det kulturelle område,
synes at have holdt hånden over ham og at have protegeret ham. Samtidig var der
imidlertid adskillige i det politiske system, der betragtede ham med mistro, og han blev
desuden konstant overvåget af sikkerhedsmyndighederne, »Sigurimi«, hvad Shaban Sinani
har dokumenteret i to bind, se [Dossier].
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Premierminister Mehmet Shehu, førstesekretær Enver Hoxha og parlamentsformand Haxhi Lleshi. Højtidelighed i Tirana i januar 1976 i anledning
af Chou-En-Lai's død.
De første mange år handlede Kadaré i store træk som forventet af det socialistiske styre,
det fremgår fx artiklen »The Literature of Socialist Realism is Developing in Struggle against
the Bourgeois and Revisionist Pressure«. Artiklen er »overgearet« - selv når man tager
tiden omkring 1977, hvor Albanien stadig samarbejdede med Kineserne, men hvor man så
småt var på vej til at stå alene, i betragtning, tag følgende eksempler [B] :
1/ History has known many conflicts among different literary schools, trends and tendencies. But
the struggle of realist socialist art against revisionist bourgeois art is not of the same nature. This
is a struggle of a new type, part of the class struggle, a struggle of the revolution against
counter-revolution, a life-and-death struggle of healthy art against the sick art of the bourgeoisie
and revisionism, which stinks of death and decay.
2/ In his speech of December 20th, 1974, Comrade Enver Hoxha points out that never before
has there been imperialist propaganda, of such variety and breadth, for the degeneration of
people and society in general, as in our days. Whole regiments of writers are included in this
army of the world counter-revolution. Night and day, its kitchen is concocting all sorts of
poisonous dishes for the degradation of man. Over the recent decades, the revisionist cuisine,
coarser in some respects, but more refined in others, has been added to the old bourgeois
cuisine. Their foul alliance, their supplementing each other in order to make the encirclement of
the progressive forces more complete, have rendered them even more dangerous.
3/ Hence, the so-called flowering of bourgeois and revisionist art conceals only a profound
stagnation, its external gigantomania hides only an internal dwarfism, whereas its pseudomodern veneer covers only an endless obsolescence. Making a profound Marxist-Leninist
analysis of the conservative essence of modern revisionism and the bourgeoisie, Comrade
Enver Hoxha says that, »those who call us conservative are the conservatives«. And this is in
the logic of things. Since they are trying to preserve or to re-establish an obsolete order in the
world, regardless of what they call themselves, in essence they remain conservatives and ultraconservatives. The same may be said of their art, too. It is not fay chance that, in their spirit, in
their content, even in their style and intonation, many of the works of the present-day decadent
bourgeois literature are reminiscent of the Bible, the New Testament, the Koran, the Talmud and
other tattered remnants of the Dark Ages. And this is one of the most coveted experiences that
the revisionist art has borrowed from the decadent art. The Revelation of St John, or the
Apocalypse, has become a favourite source of motifs for the revisionist pacifists. And, for them,
the Apocalypse is the revolution and the revolutionary struggle.
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4/ The sphere of criticism, of theoretical and philosophical literary thinking, is an important field
in which this struggle has been developed and should be developed further. Not only the critics
and scholars, but all the artists are duty bound to assist in the timely detection and prevention of
alien influences, and to render them harmless, whether they come from the bourgeoisie or the
revisionists, whether they are of the nature of a [Roger] Garaudy or [Ernst] Fischer, a Sholokhov
or Solzhenitsyn.
5/ Applying this profoundly Marxist-Leninist thesis to our sphere of literature and art, we can say
that the quarrels or rapprochements between the bourgeois and revisionist writers are just the
continuation of the quarrels and rapprochements of their patrons. Hence you cannot rely on the
arguments of the one art to combat or expose the other. To us writers of socialist realism, the
revisionist literary lights, whether official writers in their countries or dissidents fled to the West,
are the two sides of the same coin, for both of them have betrayed the art of the revolution for
the art of the counter-revolution. Therefore, they are equally alien and dangerous to
communism. Although they have mobilized entire regiments of men of letters and artists, both
these forms of bourgeois and revisionist art are essentially weak, because they have no future.
Therefore, in our fight against them, attack and not just defence, should characterize us.
Kadaré blev gjort til parlamentsmedlem (hvad der fx kan ses på et billede fra 1976, se
illustrationen i artiklen om 1980?: »Ufuldendt april« [PDF]) og til næstformand for Den
Demokratiske Alliance, som Nexhmije Hoxha var formand for. Den Demokratiske Alliance
var en meget vigtig organisation der havde til formål at samle en række politiske, kulturelle
og andre grupper og personer om Kommunistpartiet.
Senere - omkring 1980 - blev det tydeligere at han var blevet skeptisk over for styret,
måske især over for nogle af dets udartninger? På dén tid skrev han »Drømmenes
Palads«, der på overfladen foregår i Istanbul i 1800-tallet, men som i virkeligheden foregår i
1970'ernes Albanien.
Kadaré skrev i »Albansk forår«, der udkom efter at han var »hoppet af« til Frankrig, om en
strid han havde med Nexhmije Hoxha. Han beskrivelse viser at han havde relativt lang line,
men bogen bekræfter indirekte at han ikke havde reel magt, og at han kun kunne øve
politisk indflydelse i kraft af sine egne egenskaber og sit renommé.
I Albanien var det ellers sådan (og er det i høj grad stadig sådan) at man kun kunne øve
indflydelse ved at have et respekteret »bagland«, især en stærk klan eller familie, men et
sådant bagland synes Kadaré ikke at have haft, han var (og er) i det væsentlige en
individualist og enegænger. Uden et sådant bagland var hans position i mange henseender
usikker, og det er formentlig dette der fik ham til at »hoppe af«. Nok var han anerkendt og
nok blev han protegéret, men det var ikke usandsynligt, at »nogle« - netop i en
modsætningsfyldt overgangsperiode - kunne finde på at chikanere, overfalde eller endog
myrde ham.
Kadare´s politisk-litterære artikler og Dritero Agolli's tilsvarende er optrykt, fordi de er et
vigtigt supplement til de to forfatterskaber. Desuden er artiklerne nyttige, når man vil se og
diskutere film som »Kolonel Bunker« og »Slogans«.
Noter:
[A] Se: Wikipedia om Enver Hoxha [PDF]
[B] Teoretisk set kan artiklen være blevet skrevet af en anden end Ismail Kadaré, men jeg tvivler. Det er
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tænkeligt at han har skrevet den - muligvis på opfordring, muligvis på eget initiativ og sandsynligvis med
bistand fra partiapparatet.
[Dossier]
Shaban Sinani er professor; tidligere har han også arbejdet journalistisk. I 5 år - frem til udgangen af 2005 var han chef for det albanske nationalarkiv. Værket om Kadaré er på albansk, men i maj 2006 udkom en
særlig udgave på fransk; den franske udgave er suppleret med et langt interview med Kadaré, der er optaget
af Stéphane Courtois.
Titlen Dossier Kadaré henviser til mange ting på én gang, 'sagen' i arkiverne, Kafka's »Processen« og nogle
af Kadaré's bøger: »Drømmenes palads« og »Dossier H«.
Courtois' interview kommer godt rundt og giver et alsidigt indtryk af Kadaré's måde at beskrive
og fortolke sin tidligere og nuværende situation på. Kadaré fortæller at ikke alle var begejstrede
for at Sinani gik i gang med at finde gamle papirer frem eller for at man åbnede
Sikkerhedstjenestens arkiver, men at det var en bestræbelse han selv støttede. Projektet har
kostet Sinani dyrt, siger Kadaré et par gange, for den kostede ham hans job som chef for
Nationalarkivet. Det var ganske vist Berisha'regeringen der afskedigede Sinani, men nogle af
kuglerne var støbt af den foregående socialistiske regering. [Om denne udlægning er helt
korrekt, er jeg usikker på. Det er rigtigt at Sinani - som én af relativt få - blev afskediget som
følge af regeringsskiftet, men muligvis skyldtes det mest et gammelt regnskab vedrørende
chefposten, selv om det kan have spillet en vis rolle at Sinani gjorde omtalte indsats].
Kadaré er flere gange inde på forholdet til forfatterkollegaen Dritëro Agolli. Engang var de gode
venner, og Kadaré omtaler Agolli's forfatterskab meget positivt, men de kom efterhånden på
afstand fra hinanden, fordi Agolli lagde større vægt - end Kadaré - på at gøre politisk karriere
[Agolli som formand for Forfatterforeningen] end på at være forfatter. Muligvis har
'myndighederne' påvirket Agolli til at være fagligt jaloux på Kadaré?
Kadaré beskriver sig selv som først og fremmest forfatter og som én der ville tænke frit og
uafhængigt. [Denne udlægning er næppe helt rammende, for op igennem 1970'erne fik også
Kadaré politiske funktioner og blev en kendt talsmand for det officielle Albanien, samtidig med at
han - uden tvivl - blev betragtet med mistro fra den politiske top. Forholdet er bestemt ikke
entydigt, men meget sammensat].
Kadaré har kun truffet Enver Hoxha ved en enkelt lejlighed i 1971 [derimod har han adskillige
gange truffet andre fra partitoppen, dels Hoxha's kone, Nexhmije Hoxha, der spillede en stor
politisk rolle, dels Ramiz Alia, som han har skrevet og talt indgående med flere gange, bl.a. i
tiden frem til afhopningen i 1990]. Kadaré er - efter Hoxha-systemets sammenbrud - blevet
kritiseret af Nexhmije Hoxha for at have svigtet og for at have spillet en art dobbeltspil.
1971 var i øvrigt dét år hvor Kadaré blev optaget som medlem af Kommunistpartiet. Hvorfor blev
han dét, når han ikke så sig selv som 'partisoldat', men som forfatter?, kunne man spørge. Det
var ikke alle og enhver der blev medlemmer, men personer som partiet havde tillid til, og Kadaré
blev - synes det - ikke indstillet til optagelse af hvem som helst, men af partitoppen. Kadaré
mente af samme grund ikke det var muligt for ham at takke nej. [Det er nemt og gratis at være
bagklog, men Kadaré kunne relativt let have sluppet fri for optagelse i partiet, hvis det var dét
han ønskede - og dét formentlig uden større personlige konsekvenser. Min formodning er at
Kadaré déngang anså det for opportunt (måske mente han at en optagelse ville beskytte ham
eller gavne ham på anden vis) eller endda fordi han fandt det at være det rigtigste at gøre. Hvis
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dét var tilfældet, synes jeg det ville have været i orden. »Mit« problem er slet ikke dette, men
dén ikke helt gennemskuelige måde Kadaré omtaler Hoxha-tiden på i dag].
Det var meget almindeligt i Hoxha-tiden, siger Kadaré, at forfattere og andre kunstnere blev
forfulgt, at deres værker blev beslaglagt og at de blev fængslet. Det gjaldt flere af Kadaré's
venner og bekendte, så det var noget man på en måde vænnede sig til. Han har selv ved et par
lejligheder gået i brechen for kolleger, tilføjer han, og han har ikke bidraget til at nogle blev
forfulgt - hvad man heller ikke kunne se af nogle af de dokumenter der nu var lagt frem.
Nogle af hans egne ting kom ikke ud, fortæller Kadaré [og dette er - men ikke på nogen simpel
måde - en indikator på at Kadaré havde en sammensat position]. Digtet »De Røde Pashaer«
blev forbudt og destrueret, andre af hans ting kom i et fortryk tidsskriftsform, men opnåede ikke
at blive udgivet i bogform. [Kadaré's omtale af »De Røde Pashaer« er - formentlig - kun delvis
dækkende. Det er korrekt at digtet blev skarpt kritiseret og at det blev forbudt, men - at dømme
efter digtets indhold - ikke fordi det i det grundlæggende var kritisk mod det kommunistiske
system, derimod mod »nogle« unavngivne partifolk som Kadaré anså for at være bureaukrater;
efter digtets indhold ville bureaukraterne blive afsløret af Enver Hoxha og udstødt af ham. Som
digt betragtet er det - også efter datidige litterære standarder - gyseligt, men politisk set er det
på linie med Kadaré's litteraturpolitiske artikler som er aftrykt nedenfor. Mig bekendt blev digtet
ikke skrevet på opfordring, men på eget initiativ - og dét er en indikator på at Kadaré ikke var
dén dissident han i dag giver sig ud for at have været].
En særlig historie fik den russiske udgivelse af en samling digte af Kadaré. Udgivelsen blev
planlagt, mens Kadaré var på et længere studieophold i Moskva, men forlaget var ikke helt
tilfreds, man fandt digtene for vestligt orienterede og ønskede at der blev optaget et særligt
forord, der kritiserede digtene.
Nogenlunde samtidig indtraf bruddet mellem Sovjetunionen og Albanien, og der blev rejst kraftig
gensidig kritik. De kritiske bemærkninger til Kadaré druknede, og derfor blev Kadaré ikke
kritiseret i Albanien i forbindelse med udgivelsen.
Et Engelskproget resumé af et interview med Shaban Sinani [originalen er på Albansk] kan findes på:
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Sinani-2004.htm [As a PDF: http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Sinani-2004.pdf]. Jeg skylder
Gina Schaar megen tak for resuméet.
Drømmenes Palads
Bogen er én af de bedste Kadaré har skrevet. Den er på én gang simpel og meget
kompleks. Den har et godt, næsten surrealistisk plot, den er klar i sin struktur, den er
fantasiskabende - og den lægger op til at læseren tænker med. Kendskab til albansk
historie er måske ikke strengt nødvendigt, men på den anden side udfolder der sig et så
betydningsfuldt spil mellem fiktionen og den historiske virkelighed at man kun får en brøkdel
ud af bogen, hvis man ikke har et vist kendskab til den albanske historie i 1800- og i 1900tallet.
Fortællingen foregår på en tid hvor Albanien var en del af det Osmanniske Rige - formentlig
er det engang i 1800-tallet, måske omkring 1830, for massakren på de albanske stormænd
i Monastir i 1820'erne nævnes, og derfor også efter drabet på Ali Pasha [C].
Bogen har én centralfigur - Mark-Alem - der på mødrene side hører til Qyprilli-slægten; hele
bogen ses med hans øjne. Bogen tager sin begyndelse da han, mere eller mindre per
protektion, er blevet ansat i Drømmenes Palads, Tabir Saray, der er en stor og magtfuld
efterretningsorganisation. I Drømmenes Palads samler man ikke informationer om hvad
som helst, men derimod alle de drømme der drømmes i det Osmanniske Rige.
Drømmene noteres ned, samles og forsendes med særlige kurérer til Istanbul, hvor de
gennemgås, sorteres og viderebehandles på en særdeles grundig måde. Alle læses af
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underordnede embedsmænd, der vælger de vigtigste ud til nøjere analyse, evt. til
sammenligning med tidligere drømme med samme tema - og til sidst vælges den vigtigste,
mesterdrømmen, ud for at blive sendt til Sultanen. I nogle tilfælde skete der ikke videre, i
andre blev drømmen taget som anledning til politisk eller politimæssig handling.
Mark-Alem har fået en solid akademisk uddannelse, men er gået gennem livet uden at
være engageret i noget som helst. Hvad han oplever skyldes ikke at han har gjort noget,
forsøgt noget - men at andre har handlet, og derfor er hans tid i Drømmenes Palads også
nærmest drømmeagtig.
Man mærker en tydelig inspiration fra Kafka, der slet ikke nævnes i 1977-artiklen - 1977:
Ismail Kadaré: »The Literature of Socialist Realism is Developing in Struggle against the
Bourgeois and Revisionist Pressure«, men derimod respektfuldt nogle gange i den langt
senere »Albansk Forår«. Var Kafka blev nævnt i 1977 ville det næppe have været af
positive grunde; »dogmatikeren« Kadaré ville have været nødt til at tage skarp afstand fra
en så opgivende og pessimistisk digtning som Kafka's.
Qyprilli'erne - eller som de ofte skrives: Koprülü'erne - var en berømt og mægtig albansk
slægt, der i mange generationer var fremtrædende ministre eller embedsmænd for
Sultanen. Nogle af de mest berømte levede i slutningen af 1600-tallet, hvor én af dem
ledede den fejlslagne belejring af Wien, og som Sultanen lod henrette for ikke at have nået
hvad han skulle.
I Drømmenes Palads går det én af de mest fremtrædende af Qyprilli'erne ilde,
sandsynligvis fordi han - i en bestemt sammenhæng - var fremtrådt med et nationalt, et
albansk, ansigt, og på en måde som Sultanen og nogle af hans nærmeste (efter
fortællingen at dømme) havde opfattet som en trussel. Mark-Alem gik det derimod godt;
han avancerede - og havde, da bogen slutter, opnået en meget høj charge i systemet.
Hvornår Drømmenes Palads er skrevet, ved jeg ikke, men et par kapitler udkom - ifølge
Shaban Sinani - på albansk i 1979 (sammen med nogle andre tekster) og en fuldstændig
udgave i 1981. I begyndelsen af 1982 blev bogen fordømt af en forfatterorganisation og
umiddelbart efter forbudt; forfatterorganisationen brød sig ikke om allusionerne til det
albanske styre. Kadaré skrev senere: »[...] det skarpeste angrep på diktaturet som disse
linjers opphavsmann har skrevet - Drømmenes palass - lot seg skrive og utgi i Albania på
en tid da dette landet var på sitt mest formørkede, i 1981.« [»Albansk forår«, Norsk udgave
s. 22].
Kadaré har - et sted i »Albansk Forår« - skrevet at han slet ikke var begyndt at skrive bogen
med analogisk sigte. Men ingen der kendte til albanske forhold i 1970'erne kunne - da
bogen kom frem - undgå at se den endog meget tydelige analogi.
Måske var der en kerne af sandhed i fortællingen om et drømmenes palads i den
Osmanniske periode, men det var tydeligt at dét Kadaré i virkeligheden skrev om, men
under overfladen, var den albanske Sikkerhedstjeneste, Sigurimi, og frem for alt det
kommunistiske partisystem. Systemet benyttede sig déngang af angivere, personlig
forfølgelse, kritik-og-selvkritik og ingen, selv ikke de der havde en høj charge, kunne være
sikker på deres personlige fremtid. Fra Hoxha greb magten i slutningen af 2' Verdenskrig og
frem var den ene efter den anden konkurrent eller kritiker blevet renset ud og blevet enten
fængslet eller - som det gjaldt de mest prominente - henrettet, således Koçi Xoxe, der
sagdes at være Jugoslaviens-orienteret. Xoxe nævnes flere steder i Kadaré's artikler og
absolut ikke for det gode.
At forsøge at publicere en sådan historie - og netop i det socialistiske Albanien, der var én
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af de mest overvågede og regulerede socialistiske stater - måtte være en provokation for
magthaverne, og derfor var det enten overordentlig modigt at skrive og forsøge at udgive
den - eller også var det eventyrligt dumdristigt. Det eneste Kadaré kunne håbe på var at dé
der sad inde med den virkelige magt var optaget af noget andet, eller at de måske ligefrem
ville vurdere bogen positivt; læste man déngang bogen, blev man ikke animeret til at
»stikke snuden frem«, og måske kunne dét passe nogle af de øverste magthavere meget
godt? Men i den sidste ende blev bogen dog forbudt (så vidt det er oplyst).
Mehmet Shehu i: »Report on the 6th Five-Year Plan (1976-1980)«, 1976
I 1980 og '81 var Hoxha'erne (og alle andre i deres gruppe) stærkt optaget af de voksende
uoverensstemmelser mellem Hoxha og nr. 2 i hierarkiet, Mehmet Shehu, der havde spillet
en betydningsfuld rolle lige fra Befrielseskampene under 2' Verdenskrig. Albanien havde
netop brudt med Kina og stod ganske alene på Balkan, hvortil kom at man nu ikke længere
fik tilført betydelige økonomiske og andre midler udefra; tidligere havde - efter tur Jugoslavien, Sovjetunionen og Kina - støttet Albanien.
Hvad uoverensstemmelserne mellem Hoxha og Shehu i virkeligheden drejede sig om, er så vidt jeg ved - ikke helt klarlagt, men formentlig var de i stigende grad blevet uenige om
hvordan man skulle komme videre; om man skulle følge en strengt stole-på-egne-kræfterlinie, som var »smuk«, men næppe særlig realistisk - eller om man tværtimod skulle
forsøge en åbning mod Vesteuropa?
17.12.1981 blev Shehu fundet død i sin seng - angiveligt havde han begået selvmord,
muligvis var han blevet byrdet af én af Hoxha's håndgangne mænd. Kort efter påstod
Hoxha at Shehu havde været flerdobbelt agent for udenlandske kræfter. Så tiden omkring
1981-1982 var vitterlig, som Kadaré selv har været inde på, én af de mest mørke perioder i
det socialistiske Albanien.
Note og henvisninger:
[C] »Nichen i muren« handler om Ali Pasha af Tepelena, hans kamp mod Osmannerne og om drabet på ham.
Se evt.: Albaniens Historie. En oversigt
Om Ali Pasha kan læses flere steder, fx i Peter Oluf Brøndsted: »Interviews with Ali Pacha in the autumn of
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Ismail Kadaré
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1812«. Edited by Jacob Isager, The Danish Institute at Athens 1999 (distribueres af Aarhus University Press).
Agamemnons datter
[Bogen er under oversættelse til Engelsk og Dansk. Kommentar til bogen følger senere.
Bogen er angiveligt skrevet i 1985].
1. maj 1981, Tirana. Enver Hoxha i midten.
Forsiden af »Albania Today« # 3/1981
Dén datter der tænkes på er ikke Elektra, men Ifigineia. Euripides har skrevet to dramer om
hende, det første om Agamemnon's ofring af hende i Aulis og det andet om hendes (og
broderen) Orestes' flugt fra Tauroi - »Iphigeneia i Aulis« og »Iphigeneia i Tauroi«; de to
dramer kan findes på dansk i Christian Wilster's oversættelse via:
http://www.mahler.suite.dk/frx/euripides/bacchus_start_side.htm [Vælg pågældende drama
og benyt derefter '>>'-muligheden i øverste linie for at bladre frem].
Foreløbige noter: Det er en meget besynderlig historie. En ung mand ved radio/TV er
kæreste med #2's datter, Suzana, men hun ofrer sig (på faderens forlangende) på en uklar
måde og dropper ham. Det går den unge mand og tygger på - samtidig med at han
diskuterer med sig selv, hvad det koster at blive til noget - og det er åbenbart temmelig
meget, i det mindste så meget at man næsten får medlidenhed.
Den unge mand har åbenbart spillet en rolle i opgøret med de albanske »kinesere«, men
synes politisk set at være skingrende naiv. I det mindste virker hans formodning om hvorfor
datteren har droppet ham (at en ny stor udrensning, som hendes far skulle stå i spidsen for,
var undervejs), at være ikke så lidt konstrueret.
Hele historien foregår på én dag, 1. maj, hvor den unge mand - til forbløffelse for sig selv
(?!) og hele sin omgangskreds - har fået plads på én af de mest fornemme tribuner.
Man kommer uvilkårligt til at tænke på Kadaré's komplekse rolle i Hoxha-perioden. Måske
er bogen et forsøg på - midt i 1980'erne, efter Mehmet Shehu's død, men før systemets
sammenbrud - at skrive sig ud af sin egen og af den albanske politiske elendighed? Måske
har udgivelsen i 2006 et tilsvarende formål?
#2 refererer i virkelighedens verden til Mehmet Shehu, og forlovelseshistorien til en virkelig
forlovelse: Mehmet Shehu's søn (ikke en datter) ville forlove sig med en pige fra en
»problematisk familie«, se nærmere i »The Titoites«.
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Albansk forår
»Albansk forår« er skrevet i tiden hvor Kadaré besluttede sig for at »hoppe af« fra Albanien
til Frankrig og i den første tid derefter, dvs. i 1990-91.
Afhopningen fandt, umiddelbart set, sted på et besynderligt tidspunkt. De fleste kunne se at
det kun var et spørgsmål om tid før det hidtidige styre ville kollapse fuldstændigt - og
mange så Kadaré som dén der ville kunne løfte rollen som præsident i overgangsperioden,
nærmest som man havde set forfatterkollegaen Václav Havel gøre det i Tjekkoslovakiet [D].
Kadaré afviste allerede déngang at være kandidat - og har gentaget afvisningen flere
gange siden.
I bogen prøver Kadaré at forklare sig. Han var - på dette tidspunkt - ikke glad for det
socialistiske styre eller for det kommunistiske parti, men havde bevaret venskabelige
følelser for Hoxha's efterfølger, Ramiz Alia - og vel også en vis tiltro til at han ville begynde
en reformering af såvel det kommunistiske parti som af det politiske system.
Kadaré skrev et brev til Alia og havde en længere samtale med ham. Herefter skrev Kadaré
endnu et brev (som er optrykt i bogen). Lige som Ramiz Alia tidligere havde sat tid af til en
drøftelse med Kadaré, således svarede han også på hans andet brev. Nogle af de ting som
Kadaré foreslog eller bad om blev gennemført, men enten syntes han ikke det var
tilstrækkeligt - eller også var der andre grunde til at han i den sidste ende besluttede at
»hoppe af«, se ovenfor.
Så vidt jeg kan se var grunden ikke at man ikke lyttede til Kadaré, for dét gjorde man, men
at han var bange for sit skind - hvad der efter min mening er en ærlig sag. Jeg vil ikke
bestride at han befandt sig i en vanskelig, måske endda faretruende situation, selv om han
til stadighed var overvåget af Sikkerhedspolitiet.
Det er tydeligt i »Albansk forår« at Kadaré mente at han havde en vigtig rolle han både
kunne og skulle spille, måske som fremstående kulturpersonlighed der kunne fortælle den
kommunistiske Leder hvad der var galt? Hvad Kadaré i virkeligheden stræbte efter
déngang er uklart. Han fremkom øjensynligt med kritik, men ikke mod systemet eller dets
grundlag, kun mod vildskud og misbrug.
Allerede med digtet »De Røde Pashaer« [1974] havde Kadaré prøvet at fortælle
partitoppen at »bureaukraterne« ødelagde den kommunistiske bevægelse, men Lederen
selv kasserede digtet! - og andre i Ledelsen var tilsvarende kritiske eller negative.
Temaet - en venlig håndsrækning til Lederen - blev siden vendt i »Agamemnons datter«,
nemlig i nogle bemærkninger om at skrive hyldestdigte om Lederen, som ikke sendes til
ham eller offentliggøres, men som sendes til hans børn - formentlig for at et af børnene
skulle agere »postillon d'amour«?
Note:
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[D] Václav Havel blev præsident for Tjekkoslavkiet 28.12.1989. Efter delingen i Tjekkiet og Slovakiet blev han
i 1993 blev valgt som præsident for Tjekkiet; han blev genvalgt i 1998 og sad på posten frem til 2003.
Diskussionen om digtet »De Røde Pashaer« fra 1974
I marts 2002 opstod der røre om et digt som Ismail Kadaré har skrevet i 1974. Digtet
hedder »Në mesditë Byroja Politike u mblodh« (Politbureauet blev samlet ved aftenstid)
eller »Pashallaret e Kuq« (De Røde Pashaer).
Maks Velo i albansk TV 2003
Maleren, forfatteren og arkitekten Maks Velo [Max Velo], der var fængslet mange år i
Hoxha-tiden, havde ikke kunnet finde digtet, men havde hørt om det - måske havde han
læst hvad Kadaré selv havde skrevet i »Albansk forår«? Måske var Velo skeptisk over
Kadaré's beskrivelse, som tydede på at han havde optrådt mere systemkritisk end der var
dækning for?
[187] »På grunn av mitt dikt De røde pasjaene ble jeg i 1975 beskyldt for å ha oppfordret til
væpnet oppstand, noe som slett ikke var sant. Jeg ble ikke desto mindre tvunget til å tilstå at jeg
«uforsettlig var kommet med en appell om væpnet oppstand» (jeg fikk bare tillatelse til å føye til
«uforsettlig»). De krevde en skriftlig selvkritikk av meg, som antagelig ennå befinner seg i
Partiets arkiver. Det var en anklage ført i pennen av meg selv, som staten kunne bruke mot meg
når den måtte finne det for godt, og det visste jeg.«, se også s. 40.
Max Velo trak historien om digtet frem i ét af sine digte, hvis overskrift er: »De røde
pashaers forsvinden«. I den følgende tid var der mange gætterier, indtil digtet blev fundet i
statens arkiver.
Forfatteren Fatos Lubonja, også en forfatter der havde været fængslet - og tidligere en god
bekendt af Kadaré - mente at det forsvundne digt var en hyldest til Enver Hoxha m.fl., og at
Kadare havde flirtet med regimet, mens andre, fx Bashkim Shehu - også han engang ven af
Kadaré - søn af daværende premierminister Mehmet Shehu, antog at digtet var kritisk, i det
mindste mod bureaukraterne. Begge dele viste sig at være sandt.
Digtet skulle have været trykt, men det blev forhindret højt oppe fra - Enver Hoxha selv skal
have været negativ over for det! Så vidt det fremgår blev Kadaré kaldt til møde hos én af
Kommunistpartiets ledere, Ramiz Alia, hvor der blev læst og påskrevet, for man brød sig
ikke om det. Måske fordi det var for underdanigt? Eller måske snarere for skævt?
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Ismail Kadaré
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Nogle i partiapparatet mente at Kadaré skulle straffes, andre - bl.a. Hysni Kapo - at det var
tilstrækkeligt hvis han bøjede af og formulerede en selvkritik, og dette blev øjensynligt
resultatet. Heri skal Kadaré ifølge den albanske avis »Gazeta Shqiptare« have skrevet:
»The only aim and preoccupation of my life is to return in the quarries, in that great and
honoured place of party's aids, without which, either my life, nor my work would have a meaning.
And I thank my friend, who banned the publishing of my poem, and prevented me from the fatal
fall«.
Kadaré skal i 2002 have sagt at han ikke mente det gamle digt var systemkritisk, og han
mindede om de omstændigheder hvorunder det i sin tid var skrevet.
I midten af marts 2002 fandt »Gazeta Shqiptare« digtet i statens arkiver (og forelagde det
for Kadaré). I digtets begyndelse spørger han: »Hvorfor samles politbureauet? Der er ingen
trusler udefra. Men der er noget galt, og der må gøres noget. En sort kræft er på vej
nedefra. De mange der opfører sig som bureaukrater underminerer bygningen. Men frygt
ikke, Enver Hoxhas skarpe øje vil finde dem.«
En engelsk oversættelse - af Robert Elsie - er fundet [klik tv; digtet er et stykke nede på
'siden']. Der er ikke det mindste i digtet der er systemkritisk, hverken direkte eller indirekte.
Digtet er tværtimod et uforbeholdent hyldestdigt til Enver Hoxha. Kadaré fordømmer de
unavngivne bureaukrater der har fordrejet kommunismen, og stoler fuldt og fast på at Enver
Hoxha vil gøre det nødvendige - foretage en udrensning:
Enver Hoxha with his eagle eye
Was the first to have doubts about them.
He then descended to the foundations
Of the state, as in the great ballads of old.
He bore a red torch in his hand,
The very earth quivered,
The light of the fire fell upon them,
And he saw them effacing the blood of our martyrs
As they were dividing up the cloaks.
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I November 2003 blev der afholdt en international konference i Tirana om religiøs tolerance: Religions and
Civilizations in the New Millenium. The Albanian Case. Indbyderne var den Albanske præsident, Alfred
Moisiu, og UNESCO. Ismail Kadaré var formand for forberedelseskomitéen og holdt én af de første taler.
Talen er gengivet efter den konferencerapport, der blev udsendt af ACHR, The Albanian Center for Human
Rigths, i 2004.
Religious tolerance. International conference in Tirana, November 2003
Ismail Kadare - Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Conference
This international meeting is being held at a time when a new concern, or better said, an old
one returning with a renewed power, has reappeared in the world: the concern about
relations amongst Faiths. That is the reason why Samuel Huntington's thesis, claiming the
21st century to evidence the clash of civilizations after the fall of totalitarian Utopias, and
has aroused wide interest, both in the sense of its acceptation or its rejection.
This thesis, totally or partially accepted, glorified or even rejected, still presents itself in such
a way that it cannot be ignored. Something important has been occurring in our world for a
long time now, something that for long we have not noticed. It is difficult to anticipate
whether it will be named »clash of civilizations« or not, whether it will be qualified as an
unavoidable or an avoidable catastrophe. What we can state with conviction is, that the
majority of the peoples of the world are directiy or indirecdy involved in this issue. As a
consequence, millions of people all over the world have united their minds, will and passion,
in order to prevent the worst.
I am sure our meeting here in Tirana is a part out of the mosaic of this general concern of
mankind.
Owing to an unfortunate mixture of circumstances, the aggravation of the relations between
different religions (Faiths) has been coexistent and even mingled with another planetary
plague: terrorism.
Terrorism, as well as the conflicts, wars and hatred that create them, is much more ancient
than all contemporary great religions: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, etc.. Terror,
in ail its forms, props and masks, has accompanied human history in all its phases.
Terrorism has no religion. Terrorism is not supported by any value system. Terrorism has
no home country.
Like the cuckoo that has no nest of its own, and usurps those of other birds, terrorism is in
search of peoples, countries, ideologies, religious faiths, political causes, racial conflicts,
ethnical tensions, social misery and so forth, to lay its eggs, which give birth to its race: to
terror.
To identify terrorism with any people or group of peoples, with any major issue, with any
religious faith, is to fall prey to a tragic misconception. Unfortunately, this misconception is
growing and is becoming a primary factor in the efforts ro attribute to terrorism precisely
what it lacks: a basis, a ground, a religion.
Terrorism and the deterioration of relations among peoples of different Faiths
accompanying it, have become, as I mentioned above, a dramatic planetary problem. Our
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European continent is directly involved in that concern. When we speak about Europe, it
goes without saying that our Balkan peninsula is doubly involved. On this peninsula, our
country, Albania, whose population pertains to three different Faiths, which is rarely found
in Europe, constitutes a special case, as it is duly stressed in the program of this forum.
We Albanians, whether we like it or not, are well aware that the image of our country and
people at present in the world is not an enviable one. We are also aware that this image
cannot be fixed, neither by grudges, nor by revanchist sighs, but by work and by thorough
emancipation. I am not further elaborating on the matter, for it is beyond the scope of our
present Forum. I mentioned the damaged image of Albania only to come to another truth,
namely that even in such difficult conditions, when we are under the spotlight of criticism,
even when our flaws are evident, there is something that the world appreciates in us. And
that something is not just a trifle. On the contrary, it is something big, and precious,
especially nowadays. That is religious tolerance, and harmony among different religions.
Since times past, that tolerance has long been mentioned as a proverbial one.
And there is a reason for all this. A Balkan country of modest proportions, a country of three
different religious faiths and of four religious communities, inhabiting a region widely
renowned for its quarrels and grudges. A people of a bad temper, even irascible, like the
majority of the Balkan people. Although of three different faiths, an ideal condition to
provoke dissension, the Albanians have not experienced religious conflicts during their
history.
The explanation for this religious harmony, that has been lasting for centuries in Albania, is
not to be sought in any paradox, nor in any educational or emancipatory system of an
exemplary kind, and much less in special moral and ethical qualities of this people. The
Albanians are just like all the others. Their religions harmony is an offspring of their proper
life, is a natural consequence of their particular conditions and their special path throughout
history.
Conversion, or changing their faith from their primary faith Catholicism to the Orthodox faith,
and later on, the conversion of some to Islam, has served Albanians as their first school of
tolerance. During this process, it became a common fact among Albanians, that a part of
the family preserved their original Catholic faith, while the other part was converted into the
Orthodox or Islamic faith. There are multiple cases of two brothers living under the same
roof, one being of Catholic and the other Muslim fairh, and so forth, and that was common
for entire tribes and regions alike.
It is comprehensible thai when people are used to live together within the same tribe, under
the same roof, being of different faiths, they spontaneously get used to tolerant ways, to
social harmony. To such a man interreligious hatred seems something alien, something
absurd.
When during the 19th century, in the troubled Balkans, the Albanians, (like the others),
were elaborating their strategy of detachment from the Ottoman Empire, the Albanian
renaissance representatives, the philosophers, the poets, the politicians, became well
aware that their religious harmony was a priceless Treasure. They understood that religious
dissension in Albania would endanger the existence of Albania stuck itself. So they stuck to
the idea of religious harmony, and transformed it into an antidote, into a flag along with the
flag of liberty.
Fortunately, the liberal vision on religious matters, urging to accept the different faiths,
would somehow radiate tolerance, toward the same or a similar race, or nationality.
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Tolerance towards »the Other«, who was not only of a different faith, but also of a different
by nationality, was demonstrated by a great and excellent example, which has not been
seen often in the history of mankind: the way Albanians treated the Jews. The Albanians
showed themselves to be manifestly a semitophile nation, not only in their everyday life.
Their semitophilia passed most difficult test: the Holocaust. This is a widely known truth, but
please, allow me to repeat again that at the end of the Second World War the number of
Jews, was decreasing everywhere, but increased approximately tenfold in Albania. Let me
repeat that, for peoples need good models, and we are gathered here today precisely to
encourage them.
The recent publication of the documents of the Albanian Quisling Government, by which it
requested its German allies to refrain from the persecution of Jews in Albania, because it
would cause problems with the locals, bears witness to what degree the protection of the
Jews was unanimous in Albania.
2.
To better understand how the harmony among the three faiths and the four religious
communities, in a country as small as Albania, proceeding but with its own moral program,
philosophy, ethics or strategy, clashed with the tough historical reality, and has survived
unharmed to this day, allow me to remind you very briefly of what has occurred in this
country with regard to religion.
The first Albanian faith, Catholicism, as ancient as that to Rome itself, was the only one in
this country for nearly 1000 years. The schism between the Roman Church and the
Byzantine one, the borders of which ran approximately in Albania, would result in the first
conversion of a part of the Albanian Catholics to the Orthodox faith. Some centuries later,
the occupation of all the Balkans by the Ottoman Empire, would bring, along with the
military and administration, another faith: Islam.
Not only the Albanians were converted. The phenomenon was widespread all over the
peninsula. A part of the Slavs and of the Greeks also converted to the Moslem faith. The
Albanian Catholics were the first numerous Catholic population which fell under Ottoman
rule. They tried to maintain their links with the Christian European World. It goes without
saying a long calvary and infinite martyrdom followed for the Albanian Catholic community,
those lonely tragic people, within an Empire quite alien to them. In spite of all, they kept
ablate the torch of freedom, of religion, of culture, just to remind the other Albanians of what
they had lost: their homeland, and Europe.
The Albanian Orthodox community, although religiously divided from the Catholic one,
made constant efforts, together with the latter, to keep alive and burning the fire of liberty
and also of Albanian nationality. A new complication appeared in the life of the Albanian
Orthodox community during the 19th and 20th centuries, after the liberation of Greece from
the Ottoman yoke. A grotesque idea, an offspring of panhellenistic circles, the idea that all
Balkan Orthodox communities cannot pertain to any other nationality but to the Greek one,
poisoned the relations between Christian Greeks and Albanians. The Albanian Orthodox
community, by its acts, sometimes even by sacrifice of their lives, bore witness that they
were a separate Orthodox community in its own right. Much time has gone by, but
unfortunately such an absurd idea is still alive in present day Greece, a member of the
European Union.
The Albanian Moslems, the followers of the newest faith, would perhaps face the greatest
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ordeal. By adopting Islam, the official religion of the Empire, and tempted by the benefits
such positions brought, they risked despising being and be separated once and for all from
their Christian brothers. That would have been the end of the religious harmony in Albania,
and perhaps the end of Albania itself.
But the Albanian Moslems did not do that. And more. In order to clearly show they have
changed their faith, but not their nationality, they took part, as before, in all national
activities together with the Christians. They participated in all secret or open alliances, in
the committees, in the uprisings against the Ottoman state. Just like the Christians, they
sacrificed themselves, even by harsher penalties, for when the fate of the nation was at
stake, they chose the nation.
Independence found Albania in total chaos. However, even amidst that unprecedented
Balkan mess, amongst the divided principalities, amongst programs, banners, bishops,
imams, feudal lords, poets and brigands, to put it short, even in the days when Albanians
just wanted a pretext to go to war, religious division, save in some isolated cases, did not
manifest itself.
One of the explanations, or rather, one of the secrets, why after such chaos the kingdom of
Zog succeeded in a short time to establish the rule of law in Albania, was also its legislation
on the relations among the three faiths in the Albanian State. Although compiled three
quarters of a century before, this legislation is the best so far in the history of Albania, and
one of the best of Europe. Such it is, for it relies on the tradition we discussed above. I take
advantage of this occasion to suggest to the Albanian authorities that, they should be well
advised to consult this legislation for similar current problems.
3.
The history of religious harmony in Albania is not an idyllic one. Ir has been and remains a
dramatic one. I am not alluding here to such episodes as the tragic-comical farce of the
banning of religions by the Communist regime. Nor to the excommunication and the
malediction of the Albanian alphabet and of the Albanian Orthodox community reading it, in
the name of religion. Nor to the pro—Turk rebellion of Haxhi Qamili. This history has
essentially been a dramatic one, always fraught with grave dangers.
Today, in democratic Albania, all the survived dangers are still possible. They are also
possible, as it was stated, in Europe and, no doubt, in the World. In any case, just because
they are still possible we have gathered here to speak and show our concern about them.
Religious harmony, as grandiose a structure as it is, also is brittle. The first serious crack,
the radicalization of one of the faiths, and the structure comes down.
In the case of Albania all three faiths, as we already mentioned, are closely linked with the
nation, with its existence. We are never permitted to behave irresponsibly, to forget, to
neglect the maintenance of such a structure. And even more strictly forbidden are the
narrow-minded passions, the partialities, not to mention here the provocations and the
agitators.
First, we must be clear on fundamental matters, those that life and history alike have
established once for all, and there is no need to doubt them. All civilized people do this.
There is no country worthy of its name that changes its foundations each year and each
season, as nomads do.
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The foundation of all foundations in religious matters in Albania is that all three main faiths
are equally important and as equally legitimate. The Catholic community, though the
smallest in number, represents the first faith of the Albanians. As such, it has a unique
vertical descent in Albanian history and culture. As such, it has endowed the Albanian
nation with fundamental signs and symbols, from George Castriot to Mother Teresa. In
short, it is the most ancient bridge that has never collapsed, and links Albania with Europe.
The Albanian Moslems, although of the most recent in Albania, enjoy the same legitimacy.
It is ensured not only by the power of their numerical presence, but also from the ensuing
powerful contributions in all the vicissitudes of the journey of the Albanian people towards
emancipation and liberty.
The Albanian Orthodox community, as well as the Catholic and the Moslem one, has been
an inseparable part of the national corpus in all tempests it has overcome. They
compensated the unpardonable misunderstanding regarding to their nationality with their
colossal contribution to the Albanian National Renaissance, like the Catholic and Moslem
brothers.
This balance of the three main faiths, not forgetting here the fourth, the Bektashis, is not
wishful thinking; neither is it poetical rhetoric, nor a reconciliatory psychosis, that would
seek balance and harmony where it is nonexistent.
This balance and this legitimacy are a reality, an essence. Albania is a country of three
faiths. It cannot be identified with any of those three faiths. If we do not believe in this, we
don't believe our sheer reason of being, we don't believe in the »raison d'etre« of Albania
herself.
Hence, we are convinced that the mutual respect among the different religions must be
sacred in this country. No taunts and provocations are to be permitted between these
religions. No taunts from laymen to believers. No taunts from the believers to the laymen.
And last, but not least no taunts of the three faiths against the State.
Unfortunately temptations to the contrary were noted, recently in the democratic period. The
most sensitive misunderstandings are those arising from the relationship nation-religion.
Contrary to centennial tradition, tendencies to set religion against the nation have
appeared. The interference of Greek religious circles to refuse to the Albanian Orthodox
community their nationality, constitutes a grave problem, which doesn't lead to anything
good in the Balkans. We hope that the Greek Government puts as much pressure on those
circles as possible to resolve this misunderstanding.
The appearance of a radical wing among Albanian Moslems has not only upset public
opinion, but, as attested in both newspapers and TV, also the Moslem community itself. I
think the conflict exceeds the inner religious frame when relations with nationality are
affected. The rare but clearly written declarations in papers as well as on the internet, ideas
are put forward that openly negate the Albanian nation in the name of another nation, the
Islamic one. We are sure that such declarations are not supported by the majority of young
Albanian Moslems, a number of which had graduated in Arab countries.
As in the case of panhellenism, associated with proselytizing Albanian émigrés proselytism,
also in the case of panarabism, we are dealing with attempts at shrinking the Albanian
nation. In other words, with a »soft« version of dividing the country.
Another grave violation, especially encountered in anti-Albanian propaganda, was the
distortion of the idea of liberty and of human rights, identifying those only with religious
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rights. For a long time, the Milosevic propaganda tried to persuade the world that the war of
the Albanians of Kosova for freedom was but a religious war of Albanian Islam against Serb
Christianity. Today it is not difficult to imagine how tragic it would be if Kosova had fallen
into such a trap, if instead of authentic freedom, it would have sought religious freedom.
And instead of fighting against Serb criminals, would have declared war on neighboring
Christendom! A far away country, Chechnya, is paying dearly for a similar intrigue.
Another problem related to radical religious pressure is the effort to exploit the history of the
country. Due to aggravation among fundamentalists, the distortion of Albanian history is
endangered to such an extent, as to negate its roots, to deny to the Albanian people
autochthony in its own land, just to spite Christianity. We are aware of what happens in the
Balkans, when such theses are promoted by allegedly extreme historical situations, to be
immediately transformed into human tragedies. Supported by such theses, the Cam
population was banished from its lands sixty years ago. Supported by them 300,000
Kosovars were expatriated to Turkey from the Yugoslavia of Rankovich. And lately, we
have eye witnessed the banishment of nearly one million Kosova Albanians at the threshold
of the 21st century.
Coming back to the idea of conserving of the religious balance in Albania, I think that the
time has come for the Albanian State to establish the legal and constitutional bases of this
balance. The religious institutions, places of worship, schools, foundations, Albanian and
foreign clergymen serving therein, home and foreign investments, are not to be left to the
whims of chance, but must be ruled by law.
Consequently, the Albanian State must take the necessary measures to realize the
autocephaly of the Albanian Orthodox Church.
Always in this sense, and as a consequence of the fact that the Albanian people is of three
different faiths and of four different religious communities, the Albanian State must sanction
by its Constitution the prohibition by law of the participation of Albania in religious alliances
or leagues, as such alliances or leagues contradict the basic principle of the laity of our
Republic, for they maintain a discriminatory and exclusive position to the other Faiths.
The Albanian State must underscore the principle of the laity of the Republic, making a very
clear-cut separation of religion from the State and from politics.
Our country has chosen the way and the orientation towards its own natural family, the
family of the European peoples. It participates today in the alliance and in the war against
terrorism, against that plague that attacks the whole World and all Faiths.
Our modest country is situated right now in a zone that is called the outer court of Europe.
Countries like our own that are queuing to join, offer their contributions to the European
family. Our contribution, religious harmony, is the clearest message of friendship and
understanding that Albania is sending to the family of nations.
Translated from the Albanian by: Lluka Qafoku
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Efterfølgeren: Angstens arkitektur
Enver Hoxha i »The Titoites« (1982)
»Efterfølgeren« er som så mange andre af Kadaré's bøger relativt nem at gå til på
overfladen, men går man bare et par spadestik ned bliver den sværere og sværere.
Bogen handler om forholdet mellem to af de store gamle kommunister i Albanien, Enver
Hoxha og Mehmet Shehu, og om Shehu's pludselige død, og dét uden at hverken Hoxha's
eller Shehu's navne nævnes. Hoxha omtales som Lederen, Shehu som hans kårne
Efterfølger.
Det er ikke så meget virkeligheden og dens detaljer, der interesserer Kadaré, men dén
surrealisme der udviklede sig på samfundsplanet og det individuelle plan, den
ejendommelige »psykologi« som Hoxha-styrets mennesker var underlagt, og til dét formål
har han valgt nogle detaljer fra virkeligheden, drejet dem og tilføjet en række andre.
Regimets »officielle« beskrivelse af hvad der skete déngang kan man finde i Enver Hoxha's
bog »The Titoites« (sidste kapitel), og den er såmænd lige så bizar som Kadaré's. Shehu
havde i alle årene været agent for Albanien's fjender - for ikke færre end fire forskellige
udenlandske efterretningstjenester, står der hos Hoxha - men til sidst var Shehu kommet
under et så voldsomt pres at han ikke kunne andet end at begå selvmord. Skulle man tro
Hoxha var Shehu parat til at opgive Albaniens uafhængighed; han lå under for kravene fra
såvel imperialisterne med USA i spidsen, revisionisterne med Sovjetrusserne i spidsen og
de jugoslaviske naboer i Nord og Øst (nutidens Montenegro, Kosóva og Makedonien).
Bogens plot og personer ligner - på overfladen - virkelighedens, men kombinationen af
virkelighed, veltilrettelagte afvigelser og ren tildigtning fører læseren langt væk fra en
samfundsmæssig, politisk eller bare en journalistisk analyse og forståelse - til en
surrealistisk konstruktion, der ikke lader Kafka og hans verden noget efter.
Læseren får ikke meget mulighed for selv at »se«, men må stole på hvad de mange
modsatte og forvirrede fortællere tænker, drømmer eller siger, indbefattet den næsten
blinde Hoxha, den afdøde Shehu og indenrigsministeren. Dén objektive fortæller, der tager
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Ismail Kadaré
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over fra tid til anden, er egentlig ikke mere troværdig end fortællerne, selv om 'han' taler
med større autoritet.
Virkelighedens Efterfølger døde - så vidt vides - natten mellem 17. og 18. december 1981
og ikke som anført i fortællingen, nogle dage før. Fortællingens indenrigsminister 'Adrian
Hasobeu', der muligvis var dén der myrdede Shehu - han véd det i »Efterfølgeren«
tilsyneladende ikke selv - er en synligt påfaldende konstruktion der dog næppe ligner
virkelighedens Kadri Hazbiu det mindste. Hazbiu var tæt på inderkredsen omkring Hoxha eller ligefrem part i den - for han var indenrigsminister i omkring 25 år, fra 1954 til 1980,
hvorefter han i en kort periode var forsvarsminister (fra april 1980 til oktober 1982). I
Kadaré's bog er han et fjumrehoved der ikke forstår hvad Lederen ønsker af ham, som ikke
kan tage sig sammen til at gøre noget, som siden erklærer at være »uskyldig« i hvad det
måtte være, men som alligevel ekskluderes af partiet og straks efter anholdes af sin egen
sikkerhedstjeneste.
Det samme gælder (helt sikkert) flere andre af bogens figurer, såsom retsmedicineren Petrit Gjadri og arkitekten - at de er litterære konstruktioner.
Fælles for de to personer er at de er angste over at blive involveret. Den ene fordi han skal forestå obduktionen af Shehu, den anden fordi han var
blevet gjort opmærksom på en hemnmelig gang der forbandt Lederens og Efterfølgerens huse.
Kano Zhbira, som omtales flere gange er »bygget« over Nako Spiru (navnet er meget tæt på; der skal kun byttes lidt rundt i fornavnet og ændres
en vokal i efternavnet, så er der identitet). Spiru var en højtplaceret, meget berømt kommunist der begik selvmord i forbindelse med opgøret med
de albanske »jugoslaver«, hvoraf den vigtigste var Koçi Xoxe [udtales: Kozi Dodsje]. Spiru's historie svarer ikke til Shehu's, men han og Shehu
var dog i sin tid gode venner.
Én af bogens centrale personer er Shehu's datter Suzana. En datter havde Shehu ikke i
virkeligheden; hun er én af Kadaré's tildigtninger og nødvendig, fordi hun skal referere til
Agamemnon's ofring af Ifigineia. Suzana's kærlighedsliv gik på grund og måtte ofres, fordi
det kom på tværs af faderens politiske rolle.
At Suzana overtales eller tvinges til at opgive sin forlovelse, bringer et andet tema frem i
bogen, der dog ikke udfoldes, for efter gammel Nordalbansk sædvane kunne et sådant
brud udløse slægtsfejde og blodhævnsdrab.
Shehu havde (vist nok) en datter uden for ægteskab, men hun er først blevet kendt i de senere år. En vis relation til datidens virkelighed er der
dog, for ét af Hoxha's problemer med Shehu var angiveligt at hans søn havde forlovet sig med en pige der havde »forkerte« forældre. Hvilke tider,
hvilke skikke. Datteren Suzana er en konstruktion som allerede spillede en rolle i »Agamemnons datter«.
Hvad der muligvis, ifølge bogen, var med til at udløse bruddet mellem Hoxha og Shehu, var
konkurrencen mellem dem, og dén jalousi som Lederen havde over for sin tronfølger. Mest
tydeligt kommer det frem i forbindelse med at Efterfølgeren får bygget sit hus om. Nok
skulle ombygningen gøres ordentligt, men huset blev Albaniens smukkeste og dét på trods
af at arkitekten - der var blevet sur på sin bygherre - gjorde forsøg på at skæmme det.
Hvert forsøg på at fjerne noget, en veranda, eller at ødelægge noget, et par søjler der blev
forkortet, førte til det modsatte, at huset blev om muligt mere fuldendt og dermed en endnu
større torn i øjet på den blinde Leder.
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Ismail Kadaré
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Shehu's exit. Montage: BA.
»Efterfølgeren« er en besynderlig bog som nogle vil værdsætte, mens andre - som jeg hensættes i undren. Hvorfor gå så langt i surrealistisk og »psykologisk« retning uden at
slippe forbindelsen til virkeligheden? Fører det læseren tættere på en forståelse af hvad der
skete dén gang i Albanien? Tættere på en forståelse af hvordan surreelle regimer som
Hoxha's fungerede? Efter min mening har Kadaré gjort historien vanskeligere og mere
uigennemskuelig end den var i forvejen. Men er man interesseret i Albaniens nyere historie
og i Kadaré's store forfatterskab må man læse bogen, indvendingerne til trods.
Kadaré - eller måske snarere »den objektive fortæller« - antyder at albanerne er svære at
forstå for os andre. Den albanske kultur og mentalitet er klart forskellig fra den franske,
engelske eller danske, men den bygger på gamle principper og sædvaner, som man kan
genfinde paralleller til i vores egen forhistorie. Der pågår i disse år en omfattende
omstillingsproces, som er meget påvirket af de muligheder det giver at være del af en mere
åben verden, og det vil - på længere sigt - også ændre afgørende på kultur, mentalitet,
omgangsformer og forståelse.
Det er ikke mærkeligt at Kadaré i de senere år har brugt så meget energi på at »vende«
Hoxha-perioden og på at »vende« sin egen position dén gang. Han er imidlertid ikke
sluppet helt så godt fra det; måske fordi han sér tingene langt mere indviklet end fx sin
kollega Dritëro Agolli? Agolli havde et mere ligefremt forhold til Hoxha-styret end Kadaré og tilsyneladende også en mere ligefrem holdning til det efterfølgende opgør? Kadaré
havde et temmelig sammensat forhold til Hoxha-styret; han var en del af systemet, et
kunsterisk fyrtårn, men samtidig en afviger, og denne kompleksitet er han - tilsyneladende ikke kommet ud af.
Oversættelsen fortjener megen ros; den skyldes Gerd Have, der tidligere har oversat
»Hvem hjemførte Doruntine?«, »Drømmenes Palads« og »Ufuldendt april«. Skønt
oversættelserne sker efter de franske udgaver, synes sproget i den danske »Efterfølgeren«
at ramme godt.
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Ismail Kadaré
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At dømme efter omslaget var der ikke tale om selvmord; desuden kan vi se at morderen må have været kejthåndet ...
Noter og henvisninger:
Mehmet Shehu's lig blev genbegravet et hemmeligt sted efter den første begravelse; det er først blevet
lokaliseret inden for de aller seneste år i et samarbejde mellem den tidligere indenrigsminister Kadri Hazbiu's
søn og én af Shehu's.
David Bellos: »The Englishing of Ismail Kadare / Notes of a retranslator« (2005).
Wikipedia om Mehmet Shehu [PDF]
Diskussioner i efteråret 2006
Der pågår i efteråret 2006 store diskussioner i Albanien og Kosóva med - og om Kadaré. Var han dissident? Var han en del af systemet? Tonen er temmelig skinger. På det
senere har man fundet frem til Rrapin-familien (dvs en mor og søn der nu bor i USA).
Sønnen har, hævdes det, været kæreste med Kadaré's datter og gjort hende gravid, men
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Ismail Kadaré
24 / 52
så blev han - ifølge påstandene - tvunget væk fra hende ved Kadaré's mellemkomst.
Moderen, Janulla Rrapin, var - siges det - agent for Sigurimi, det hemmelige politi, og
øjensynligt én som Kadaré ikke brød sig om. Der kan være noget sandt i historien, noget
der er ren efterrationalisering - det er svært at afgøre udefra.
Én af dem der har kritiseret Kadaré er professor Rexhep Qosja fra Prishtina i Kosóva. Han
er - i modsætning til Kadaré - skeptisk over for det hensigtsmæssige i at åbne de gamle
Sigurimi-arkiver. Desuden mener han at Kadaré langt fra var en dissident, men én der var
stærkt integreret i det kommunistiske system. Qosja's kritik har irriteret Kadaré og
foranlediget ham til et modangreb af mere personlig karakter.
Kommentar: Måske er sandheden hverken sort eller hvid. Måske har Kadaré både været én
der støttede systemet (hvad der fx kan dokumenteres ud fra hans artikler fra Hoxha-tiden)
og én der - på det mere personlige og individuelle plan - i stigende grad kom til at tvivle,
dog ikke så meget på den øverste ledelse som på det omfattende »bureaukrati«. Muligvis
var det først efter Hoxha's død i 1985 at tvivlen begyndte at blive dominerende?
Links:
http://www.panorama.com.al/20061103/default.htm
http://gazetajava.com/artman/publish/article_656.shtml
»Albania today« Nr. 3/1977. The article is reprinted of historical reasons, BA
THE LITERATURE OF SOCIALIST REALISM IS DEVELOPING IN STRUGGLE
AGAINST THE BOURGEOIS AND REVISIONIST PRESSURE
by ISMAIL KADARE [1]
The fight against the bourgeois and revisionist pressure is complete and effective
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Ismail Kadaré
25 / 52
when it becomes the concern of all, when all take part in it - the specialists of critical
opinion and poets, artists who take up the theme of the blockade and those who
hammer out the major themes of socialism, novelists and playwrights who engage in
reflecting key moments of history and those who depict contemporary problems, etc.
AS IS KNOWN, THE PEOPLE'S SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA FINDS ITSELF IN A
TWOFOLD ENCIRCLEMENT. THIS ENCIRCLEMENT EXTENDS TO ALL SPHERES,
INCLUDING THAT OF CULTURE; CONSEQUENTLY, THE STRUGGLE WHICH THE
ALBANIAN WRITEKS AND ARTISTS ARE WAGING AGAINST ITS PRESSURE IS PART
AND PARCEL OF THE OVERALL STRUGGLE WAGED BY THE ALBANIAN PEOPLE,
LED BY THE PARTY OF LABOUR OF ALBANIA, TO SMASH THE ENCIRCLEMENT.
History has known many conflicts among different literary schools, trends and tendencies.
But the struggle of realist socialist art against revisionist bourgeois art is not of the same
nature. This is a struggle of a new type, part of the class struggle, a struggle of the
revolution against counter-revolution, a life-and-death struggle of healthy art against the
sick art of the bourgeoisie and revisionism, which stinks of death and decay.
The relentless struggle against bourgeois and revisionist pressure is an indispensable
dimension of literature and the arts in the socialist countries. The very development of
realist socialist art presupposes this struggle, while the cessation of this struggle would put
its very existence in jeopardy. This struggle is one of the forms of its existence. There is no
way of having a realist socialist art without engaging in this struggle. There is no way your
work can be close to the people, outside this struggle.
The 7th Congress of the PLA re-emphasized once again the necessity and importance of
this clash. It has been and should become even more a permanent action of the
revolutionary writers and artists, a great school for them. It has long become a part of the
great process of the artists' acquaintance with life and must become even more thoroughly
a part of it. Only by being considered as such, will it occupy its proper place in our life and
our works.
The struggle against the bourgeois and revisionist pressure, as integral part of class
struggle, is continuous and does not have the character of intermittent campaigns. The
history of the development of realist socialist literature has been, among other things, also
the history of its battle with counter-revolutionary literature. And this pressure has
constantly increased, particularly in recent years.
No relaxation of this pressure can be expected in the coming years; on the contrary, it will
become even stronger and more refined.
Hence, our tasks in the struggle to face up to this pressure are constantly increasing,
besoming ever more serious and important.
In his speech of December 20th, 1974, Comrade Enver Hoxha points out that never before
has there been imperialist propaganda, of such variety and breadth, for the degeneration of
people and society in general, as in our days. Whole regiments of writers are included in
this army of the world counter-revolution. Night and day, its kitchen is concocting all sorts of
poisonous dishes for the degradation of man. Over the recent decades, the revisionist
cuisine, coarser in some respects, but more refined in others, has been added to the old
bourgeois cuisine. Their foul alliance, their supplementing each other in order to make the
encirclement of the progressive forces more complete, have rendered them even more
dangerous.
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The present-day bourgeois and revisionist literature, expressing overall the spiritual state of
the bourgeoisie and revisionism, is pervaded through and through by an unhealthy spirit.
Regardless of all the powder and paint it uses, its face has the pallor of death. It preaches
that all is lost because it, itself, is lost, together with the base that has given it birth; it
preaches pessimism because it has no future; it preaches disintegration, the absurd, the
loss of logic, because its very existence is outdated and incompatible with the logic of
development of the whole of mankind. Like those microbes that fear the sun, this literature
is terrified of the light, of health, clarity, life. It is afraid of the great art of the revolution,
socialist realism, it is afraid of the majestic popular creativeness of all peoples of the world,
it is even afraid of great classics of the past. Thus, though it may seem at first sight as if this
literature and art have established their tyranny over the whole of the globe, in reality they
are isolated and alone. Their domination is illusory, for Marxism-Leninism teaches us that
there is no force capable of halting the development of history. Therefore, the struggle
against bourgeois and revisionist art is a struggle that can and certainly will be won.
Revolutionary art has already scored important victories in this struggle, and it will score still
more important ones in the coming years.
Sensing this great danger themselves, both the bourgeoisie and revisionism try, time after
time, to re-organize the structure of their literary and artistic forces. They are in constant
movement: one after the other, the trends are being replaced. Those which are exposed
more quickly are consigned to oblivion in order to bring out new trends which, also, are
withdrawn from the stage as soon as they begin to fade. This recurring stratagem, which,
among the naive, gives rise to the illusion of development, is nothing but running round and
round in a circle, without the slightest trace of development, but only repetition and
stagnation.
In reality, the decadent bourgeois art and the revisionist art which runs along behind it use
an obsolete array of refurbished tricks, on which they change only the external wrappings.
The deformation of reality, dehumanization, anti-ideologism, apoliticism, hermetism, the
disintegration of form, de-heroization, the elimination of commitment, and other trends like
these are the favourite weapons of the modern bourgeoisie, selected with great care. They
have been chosen from the arsenal of the oldest decadent bourgeois art, from the
decadence of the Middle Ages, or from that of barbarism.
If we examine, for example, certain aspects of literature and the art of the present superstates, we shall find that they are repeated at various stages of history. The attempt to
create a super-art has been made by all the great aggressor states of the past. Brezhnev's
present thesis on the «internationalization» of culture has its rusty counterparts lying in the
museum of history. The militarists of ancient Rome tried to create such an art in order to
make the subjugation of the peoples easier. The Byzantine emperors, the Italian fascists,
who were pale shadows of the Roman conquerors, the German nazis later, and the U.S.British and Soviet imperialists today, have all tried to do the same thing.
Despite the great support of the bureaucratic machine of the super-state, these supercultures have always failed. They have contributed nothing to world culture, which has been
and always will be created by the peoples, whether small or great, but never by the
superpowers.
They are trying to reduce the national character of literature into vulgar folklorism,
something to excite the curiosity of tourists. What the American imperialists have done to
the national character of the cultures of the Indian peoples of the two Americas, the Soviet
social-imperialists are trying to do today to the nationalities under their domination, of
course, in a more refined manner. However much they may shout about the so-called
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Ismail Kadaré
27 / 52
»blooming of the national spirit« in Soviet literature, everybody knows quite well the sort of
cultural desert there is in the various republics of the Soviet Union, the peoples of which, in
the field of literature, are treated as background natives.
The effort to create some sort of superstate art is one of the clearest expressions of the
present-day bourgeois and revisionist decadence. Its pseudo-monumentalism is
reminiscent of the pseudo-monumentalism of the times of revanchism in Germany. The
gigantomania of imperialist art, whether bourgeois or revisionist, is a form of blackmail
against the world proletariat, the progressive peoples and democratic states. By means of
this gigantomania they want to remind others of their size, the number of their square
kilometres, of their population and their wealth. But all this morbid gigantism, all this
boastful inflation of proportions, is an effort to cover up its petty themes. From top to
bottom, the art of the superpowers is entirely an art of petty themes, and the mania for
sophisticated forms, for novel techniques, the treatment of cosmic themes, is only to hide
this poverty and pettiness of themes. Its pettiness of ideas constitutes a basic quality of the
present-day bourgeois and revisionist art.
Hence, the so-called flowering of bourgeois and revisionist art conceals only a profound
stagnation, its external gigantomania hides only an internal dwarfism, whereas its pseudomodern veneer covers only an endless obsolescence. Making a profound Marxist-Leninist
analysis of the conservative essence of modern revisionism and the bourgeoisie, Comrade
Enver Hoxha says that, »those who call us conservative are the conservatives«. And this is
in the logic of things. Since they are trying to preserve or to re-establish an obsolete order
in the world, regardless of what they call themselves, in essence they remain conservatives
and ultra-conservatives. The same may be said of their art, too. It is not fay chance that, in
their spirit, in their content, even in their style and intonation, many of the works of the
present-day decadent bourgeois literature are reminiscent of the Bible, the New Testament,
the Koran, the Talmud and other tattered remnants of the Dark Ages. And this is one of the
most coveted experiences that the revisionist art has borrowed from the decadent art. The
Revelation of St John, or the Apocalypse, has become a favourite source of motifs for the
revisionist pacifists. And, for them, the Apocalypse is the revolution and the revolutionary
struggle.
The air of catastrophe, which is so prevalent in American and West European books and,
particularly, films, is nothing but a variant of the end of the world, which all the religions of
the world have preached to discourage the mobilization of revolutionary and progressive
people. The bourgeois and the revisionists have drawn and continue to draw many things
from the poisoned wells of religion. In this respect, there is the smell ol decay about their
art. It is not accidental that one of the revisionist and counter-revolutionary models,
Solzhenitsyn's »One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich« is written in an archaic language,
nearer to old Russian than to modern Russian. Likewise, the other counter-revolutionary
idol, Pasternak's »Doctor Zhivago«, here and there is suggestive of the old psalms.
The co-existence of liberalism with conservatism is a phenomenon often encountered
amongst decadent and reactionary men of letters. The ambivalence of such fiercely
reactionary writers as Fishta, Koliqi, and Konica, who combined in themselves the most
extreme liberalism with the most extreme conservatism, is a clear example of this. It is not
by chance that Konica, this bey in the service of the anachronistic Albanian monarchy, had
close connections with the decadent modernist circles of Europe and was even their patron.
A similar situation exists in Soviet literature today. The Report to the 7th Congress of the
PLA says that the Soviet writers and artists »have turned into a caste in the service of the
counter-revolution and the chauvinist and expansionist policy of Soviet social-imperialism«.
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In the Soviet Union today there are two groups of writers, the liberals and the
conservatives. They look as if they are opposed to each other, they even indulge in debates
and polemics and are grouped around particular magazines. The Soviet leadership not only
tolerates their existence, but actually encourages it. Why is this? The answer is simple: the
Soviet social-imperialists need these two groups, because both of them are equally antiMarxist, equally counter-revolutionary. There is nothing of benefit to the working class in
their polemics, nothing but confusion. The one group, the liberals, are for the maximum
contacts with the West, whereas the other group, the conservatives, are against this, not for
the sake of something progressive, but for the sake of old Czarist Slavophilism. To the
modernism of the former, the latter oppose Russian antiquity and Russian chauvinism,
while the liberals oppose Western modernism to the archaism of the conservatives.
The Soviet government needs both these groups in order to employ them according to the
changing political situations. When it is preparing some flirtation with the West, it pushes
the liberal group forward. When it has to whip up the chauvinist hysteria, it urges on the
conservative group.
This explains the dual character, both pacifist and militarist, of present-day Soviet literature.
When it comes to lowering the revolutionary temperature in the workers' movement of the
world, the Soviet literature lets the winds of pacifism blow. But when it comes to giving free
play to the aggressiveness of the Soviet state, it unleashes the spirit of militarism. In order
to extinguish the fire in Chile it needed the pacifism of the liberals, whereas in order to
attack Czechoslovakia it needed the chauvinism of the conservatives. Therefore, the
pacifism, »nationalism« or »patriotism« in Soviet literature are always one-sided: pacifism,
but only for export, nationalism, but only for internal consumption.
This dual character of the literature of the social-imperialists is very similar to that of the
reactionary art of the bourgeoisie. There, too, pacifism, coexists with the most undisguised
violence, demobilizing meekness with savagery and aggressiveness.
The 7th Congress of the Party of Labour of Albania heavily underlined the vital importance,
for all the arts, the continuation and advancement of the great militant action of all the
revolutionary writers and artists, of their daily and hourly battle with the bourgeois and
revisionist pressure. This is a complicated struggle which can be successful only if it is
complete and waged in all directions.
The sphere of criticism, of theoretical and philosophical literary thinking, is an important field
in which this struggle has been developed and should be developed further. Not only the
critics and scholars, but all the artists are duty bound to assist in the timely detection and
prevention of alien influences, and to render them harmless, whether they come from the
bourgeoisie or the revisionists, whether they are of the nature of a Garaudy or Fischer, a
Sholokhov or Solzhenitsyn.
Another sphere of which this struggle can be waged successfully and directly is that part of
literary creativeness which deals with the reflection of the struggle against the bourgeois
and revisionist blockade. Parallel with the struggle against the world bourgeoisie and
revisionism, in these works the struggle is waged against their ideology, thinking and art,
which are an integral part of the two-fold counter-revolutionary encirclement.
The strengthening of the proletarian partisanship and the national and popular character of
literature is a heavy blow to the bourgeois and revisionist pressure. The bourgeoisie and
revisionism well know how difficult it is for them to infiltrate such a literature, therefore they
direct their attacks, first of all, against its proletarian partisanship and its national character.
However, against the background of their slanders, proletarian partisanship and the
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national character are highlighted even more brilliantly.
The linking of the writers with the people, with their life, their worries, their concerns, and
their feelings, along with their thorough knowledge of life, their »reading in the open book of
life«, as comrade Enver Hoxha puts it in his speech of December 20, 1974, all those things
constitute another factor in the struggle against reaction. The active life, the broad sweep of
the people, are an unsuitable environment for the bourgeois and revisionist microbe. Such
germs do not thrive amongst the people and in the thick of life, for they develop and multiply
in a closed environment, outside life, apart from the people, in the dark corners of
subjectivism and ego-centrlsm. Therefore, the more our creative artists live in a climate
pervaded by the popular spirit, the more immune with they be to the evil influence of the old
world.
The treatment of great themes, which is one of the special recommendations of the 7th
Congress of the Party of Labour of Albania, is also is a factor in the struggle and resistence
against the pressure. As was said above, a characteristic feature of bourgeois and
revisionist art is the petty theme with the trappings of gigantomania. The true, socialist
realist art is, in the first place, the art of great themes. It is up to the writers of socialist
realism to continue the magnificent traditions of the art of Mayakovsky, Gorky, or Brecht,
abandoned by the revisionists. The encyclopedia of communism will not be written and can
never be written either by the revisionists or the emigrees, whether they live in Moscow or
in Switzerland. It will be written by the sons and daughters of the revolution, by the truly
revolutionary writers.
Another factor of no lesser importance in this struggle is the effort to raise the artistic level
of revolutionary literature and art, their seriousness and solidity. Compared with them, the
extravagances and clownish tricks of bourgeois and revisionist literature and art will look
even more ridiculous.
In dealing with the problems related to our opposition to the pressure of reactionary
bourgeois and revisionist literature and art, we mentioned these two pressures together, for
that is what they are, component parts of one front, component parts of the two-fold
bourgeois and revisionist encirclement. But while considering them as such in general, we
are aware that bourgeois art and revisionist art have their own differences and
contradictions; they are differences and contradictions that stem from the contradictions
between the group of bourgeois states with the United States at the head, and the group of
revisionists states with the Soviet Union at the head.
In his report to the 7th Congress of the PLA, Comrade Enver Hoxha says: »Our Party
upholds the thesis that both when the two superpowers work together and when they
quarrel, it is others that pay the bill. The collaboration and rivalry between the superpowers
represent the two sides of the one contradictory reality .... They pose the same threat ... —
therefore one must never rely on one imperialism to fight or to escape from the other«.
Applying this profoundly Marxist-Leninist thesis to our sphere of literature and art, we can
say that the quarrels or rapprochements between the bourgeois and revisionist writers are
just the continuation of the quarrels and rapprochements of their patrons. Hence you cannot
rely on the arguments of the one art to combat or expose the other. To us writers of
socialist realism, the revisionist literary lights, whether official writers in their countries or
dissidents fled to the West, are the two sides of the same coin, for both of them have
betrayed the art of the revolution for the art of the counter-revolution. Therefore, they are
equally alien and dangerous to communism.
Although they have mobilized entire regiments of men of letters and artists, both these
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30 / 52
forms of bourgeois and revisionist art are essentially weak, because they have no future.
Therefore, in our fight against them, attack and not just defence, should characterize us.
Noter:
[1] Writer, deputy to the People's Assembly of the PSRA.
Tilsvarende artikler fra 1979-1990:
Der er lokaliseret flere andre artikler fra perioden 1979-1990. De vil blive offentliggjort ud på efteråret 2006:
• Dritëro Agolli: »Proletarian Partisanship and Some of its Aaspects of the Waging of the Class Struggle«.
»Albania today« # 2/1979
• Dritëro Agolli: »Literature and Arts towards a New Qualitative Leap«. »Albania today« # 2/1983
• Dritëro Agolli: »Some Features of the Albanian Novel«. »Albania today« # 1/1984
• Ismail Kadaré: »Some Aspects of the Development of the Albanian Poetry«. »Albania today« # 2/1984
• Ismail Kadaré: »Socialist Realism - Art and Great Possibilities«. »Albania today« # 6/1984
• Ismail Kadaré: »A Broad Vision of the Leader and the Epoch«. »Albania today« # 5/1988 [se nedenfor]
• Ismail Kadaré: »Our time and our literature«. »Albania today« # 3/1990 [se nedenfor]
SOME ASPECTS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ALBANIEN POETRY
by Ismail Kadaré
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»Albania today« # 2/1984
Poetry, an art dear to and valued by the Albanian people, develops successfully
today. Its road of development knows no crises, because it is closely linked with life
and finds a wide response among the broad mass of readers
ALBANIA IS A COUNTRY OF ANCIENT POETRY. THE ANCIENT ALBANIANS,
NEIGHBOURS OF THE ANCIENT GREEKS, EXCHANGED VITH THEM TOGETHER
WITH AGRICULTURAL AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS, ALSO POETICAL SUBJECTS
AND IMAGES. THIS IS PROVED BEST BY THE OLD ALBANIAN ORAL POETRY IN
WHICH THERE ARE HOMERIC AND AESCHYLIAN UNDERTONES. ANALYSING THE
OLD ALBANIAN ORAL POETRY, WELL-KNOWN SCIENTISTS AND STUDENTS HAVE
FOUND THERE, AMONG OTHERS, FIGURES REMINISCENT OF ULISSES, CIRCE,
POLYPHEMOS, ORESTES, CLYTEMNOSTRA AND OTHERS. SUCH FINDS ARE IN THE
LOGIC OF THINGS. IF »THE ORESTEIA« OF AESCHYLUS WAS READ TO AN
ILLITERATE ALBANIAN LIVING IN ONE REMOTE PART OF THE NORTHERN ALPS IN
THE 17TH, 18TH OR EVEN LATER CENTURIES, THE SUBJECT AND THE
FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEM OF THE GREEK TRAGEDY WOULD HAVE SEEM BUT TOO
FAMILIAR TO HIM BECAUSE THE QUESTION THERE WAS ABOUT A MURDER WHICH
WOULD HAVE REMINDED HIM OF ONE OF THE MANY CASES TRIED IN COURTS OF
CUSTOMARY LAW WHICH DECIDED WHETHER A MURDER HAD INFRINGED THE
CODE OF BLOOD FEUDS OR NOT.
One of the more ancient monuments of the oral poetry of the Albanians is the »Epic of the
Kreshniks«. It is a cycle of poems created and elaborated through the centuries. Apart from
traces of old Illyrian-Greek poetry and mythology, in this Epic there are many reminiscences
of the European Mediaeval Epic, the Chanson de Roland, the Nibelungenlied, the Songs of
Cid or the Scandinavian Sagas. In an action that lasts hundreds if not thousands of years (it
is normal for the heroes of this Epic to live, sleep or, better say, hibernate for tens or
hundreds of years to wake up and resume the action afterwards), this cycle of poems
describes the protracted wars waged between the Albanians and the Slavs who had
migrated into the Balkans in the 7th - 8th centuries AD. Although it sings about a centurieslong enmity over boundary problems, this Epic has no trace of chauvinism. It tells about
weddings between Albanians and Serbs, weddings which, although they do not take place
(and this shows the real state of things), show the anonymous poet's aspiration to
friendship and his message of peace.
The Epic of the Kreshniks is part of the Albanian legendary epic. There are also other
balads of rare beauty on mythological and legendary subjects like that of the dead brother
which has inspired Buerger to write the Balad of Lenore, or that of the walled-in wife which
Jacob Grimm considered to be among the finest poetry of all times.
Apart from the legendary epic the Albanians have also their heroic-historical epic. Unlike
the former, which is full of supernatural beings and events, the latter has an amazing
precision and concrete ness. It is like a huger archive of the history of the nation replete
with abundant information, innumerable dates, names and events.
In general, Albanian oral poetry, whether epic or lyrical (the latter also occupies an
important place in our literary legacy) have an encyclopaedic character. As the living
memory of the nation over the centuries, poetry stood for the cultural and scientific
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institutions the Albanian people did not have. It was the university and daily press, the
academy, diplomacy and jurisprudence of the Albanian life.
The principal and more important messages of the nation, its conception of life and,
besides, its moral, juridical, religious, political and other concepts have been handed over
from generation to generation through this poetry. As such its role in the formation of
cultivated poetry, and not only poetry, but the whole Albanian literature, has been
exceptionally great.
The history of the relationship between popular poetry and cultivated poetry in Albania is
very interesting. For long periods they have existed parallel to each other, without excluding
each other and in harmony.
The oppressive Turkish rule which began in the 15th century brought about a tragic
interruption of the normal development of Albania and turned its history backwards. The
long night of the five-centuries long Turkish occupation was a heavy trauma for the
Albanian civilization. Everything was ruined, destroyed, undone. Just as the entire nation,
the Albanian culture suffered the consequences of this catastrophe, too. It began to recover
with difficulty, struggling against persecutions and cunning obstacles. Many of the poets
were also martyrs for the national cause. Prometheism, the spirit of self-sacrifice, pervades
Albanian poetry throughout. The parable of the poet who had to feed his poetry on his blood
were a reality in Albania.
The first known poem in Albanian is that of the monk Lukë Matrënga in the 16th century
and it is a dirge.
A pleiad of other poets emerged after Matrënga. Pjetër Budi and Pjetër Bogdani are the
more outstanding among. Part of their poetry is of religious inspiration, nevertheless it does
not lack the spirit of resistance to the Turkish occupation, the more so as the religion of the
occupier was religion alien to the Albanian.
A common characteristic of the Albanian poets of the Late Middle Ages, as well as of the
poets that came after them, in the 18th and 19th centuries, was that they were generally
people of great learning and broad culture. Knowing well many languages other than their
own, especially, thinking and culture, it was for them normal and in the interest of the Nation
to write both in Albanian and in another language, and to publish their books in Venice or
Rome, in Paris or Constantinople, in Athens, Bucharest or London.
After the poets of the Late Middle Ages who carried the development of the Albanian poetry
to a new stage, there came the great poets of the National Renaissance — Naim Frashëri,
Jeronim de Rada, Zef Serembe, Ndre Mjeda, Anton Zako Çajupi, Gavril Dara and others.
They were the representatives of a literary century of the more brilliant of the Albanian
literature.
In 1836 »Milosao's Songs«, the first novel in verse of the Albanian literature, was published
by Jeronim de Rada. It was soon translated in several languages and aroused the
admiration of the Rada's contemporaries, Hugo and Mistral among them upon reading it, to
de Rada: »Poetry will return to its birth place, to your shores«.
The poetry of Naim Frashëri, the greatest poet of the nation, and the other poets of the
Albanian Renaissance was a great school for the nation and played an extremely important
role in the national movement for liberation from the Turkish rule.
Those poets not only created fine works, but also made titanic efforts to make Albanian
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literature free from the influences and mould of the Islamic culture which was stifling it.
Hence, their works, against the Mediaeval darkness of the backward Ottoman world, are full
of light, life and freshness. Naim Frashëri's poems in the collection »The Summer Flowers«
and De Rada's »Milosao's Songs« seem like bathed in a sea of light.
After Independence in 1912, our poetry went through a new stage of development,
represented by such wellknown poets as Fan Noli, Lasgush Poradeci, and Migjeni. Along
with its traditional epic motifs, it enriched itself with lyrical motifs (Lasgush Poradeci),
political-philosophical motifs (Fan Noli) and motifs of social protest in the restless poetical
work of Migjeni, {the harbinger of the literature of the new Albania).
The poets of this period carried the emancipation of the Albanian poetry further, divested it
of all romantic trappings and enriched it with the actue subjects of modern social conflicts.
The struggle for the liberation of the country from the nazi-fascist occupiers, as the greatest
liberation action ever carried out by our people, brought in its wake a new revival of the
Albanian poetry. The new world that was being born on the ruins of the old called for a new
poetic art, an art that would inherit the best qualities of the Albanian poetical treasury while
enriching itself with the ideas of modern, times,
For those in Albania who loved poetry it was very significant to hear that one of the partisan
battalions that fought against the German nazis bore Naim Frashëri's name. Symbolically,
this fact more than any literary manifestation expressed the stand of the epoch that was
dawning towards the poetical art of the past.
The first poets of the new times emerged from among the fighters for national and social
liberation, the partisans. Their poetical creations were simple poems and some of them
were put to music and sung during the war and in the first years following Liberation. Some
of the poets who wrote these first expressions of socialist realism in Albanian literature, like
Memo Meto, were killed in the war with the nazis, others continued to fight and write like
Shevqet Musaraj, Andrea Varfi, Fatmir Gjata, Kol Jakova. Many »partisan songs« lost their
authorship and became part of the great popular treasury repeating the ancient process
which often merged cultivated literature with anonymous popular literature.
During the National Liberation War more complete works were created as well. Such is
»The Epic of the National Front«, a long satirical poem by Shevqet Musaraj, one of the
veterans of Albanian socialist realism. The poem, which is the anti-epic of the Albanian
collaborationists, became known as soon as it was published, in 1943. It was read in the
partisan battalions and in the liberated zones of the country and even put on stage by the
partisans on many occasions. After the liberation of the country; with the creation of the
Albanian Writers and Artists' League, the first organization in the history of the Albanian
culture to include all the creators of the pen, the development of poetry, along with other
genres, assumed fresh vigour. To the partisan poets tens of other poets were added. In
their poems is felt the pulse of the time, the joy and elation of the first years following the
liberation of the country, years full of work, of worries and poverty inherited from the past,
but also of light, and hope created by the emergence of new horizons.
Enthusiasm, sincerity, a broad democratic and popular spirit were the characteristics of the
Albanian poetry of the first years after Liberation. Although young and without much
experience, still it reproduced the spirit of the time, the social revolution that was sweeping
away the leftovers of the feudal and bourgeois regime in Albania. On the other hand, the
memories of the National Liberation War were still too vivid and as a consequence part of
the poetical production could not fail to be inspired by it.
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With the new poets, the offspring of the epoch, joined forces also other poets who had
published their first works before Liberation like Nonda Bulka, Dhimitër Shuteriqi, Muzafer
Xhaxhiu, and others. The evolution of these poets, who had formerly adhered to different
literary trends, towards socialist realism is an interesting phenomenon which has often been
taken up for study by our literary critique.
One of the poetical works written in this period is the poem »Prishtina« by Llazar Siliqi, a
militant poet participant in the resistance against fascism, ex-internee of the nazi
concentration camp of Prishtina in Kosova. His poem, written and published in 1946, along
with the macabre tragedy of the extermination camp, expresses the heroic spirit and the
beauty of human resistance to the nazi beast.
During the Fifties new poetical talents emerged in the different spheres of life. The new
Albanian poetry drew on the purest sources of the Albanian literary tradition as well as on
the great treasury of world progressive poetry, especially the work of such poets as
Mayakovski and Brecht.
In the process of its development it was natural that, along positive phenomena, which were
predominant, there were also shortcomings and weaknesses among which a certain
rhetorism and turgidity were more apparent. However, it is to the credit of Albanian literary
thinking that it detected these shortcomings and weaknesses on time, pointed them out and
combatted them.
The Sixties were difficult years for Albania. The conflict with the Soviet Union, our close exally now transformed into an aggressive superpower, as well as with its satellites was
reflected in our culture, too. The Khrushchevites predicted the degeneration of the Albanian
literature after it freed itself from the influence of Soviet literature. According to them, the
Albanian literature would be transformed into a decadent literature of the Western type or
would eventually turn to nothing.
Our literature and poetry, as part of its vanguard, gave the lie to the predictions of the
Khrushchevites. They neither were transformed into a branch of the bourgeois decadent
literature, nor turned to nothing. On the contrary, continuing the finest tradition of world
revolutionary literature, including Soviet literature, the Albanian poetry achieved new
success and further development waging a struggle on two fronts — both against bourgeois
decadentism and revisionism. The number of poets grew, the horizon of their interests
expanded and, along with it, the artistic level of their productions rose to new heights. New
lyrical and philosophical motifs were added to the favourite national subjects.
Precisely in the Sixties the Albanian poetry went through a period of regeneration through
successful attempts at going from the stage of development it had already reached over to
a new, higher, stage. Innovations in poetry and prose became the subject of constructive
debate which assisted the development of literature as a whole. To this period belong the
collections of poems by Dritëro Agolli, Fatos Arapi and other poets who enlivened the new
Albanian poetry further.
In the heat of debate there were, of course, misunderstandings and exaggerations over the
relationship between tradition and innovation, but all this was temporary and was soon
overcome.
The Sixties saw the infusion of new life into the Albanian poetry, its enrichment with new
motifs and forms of expression, especially in the field of poetical figures. Poems such as
»Devoll, De-voll!« and »The Fathers of the Nation« by Dritëro Agolli, »Bloody Alarms« by
Fatos Arapi as well as the new productions of Llazar Siliqi, Dhimitër Shuteriqi, Agim
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Gjakova and others created a favourable poetical climate which contributed to the
deepening of the links of poetry with real life and the explosion of a great number of new
talents.
The Seventies were the years of the emergence of a great number of young poets who
brought fresh air into the world of Albanian poetry. Poets such as Agim Gjakova, Xhevahir
Spahiu, Spiro Dede, Ndoc Gjetja, Ndoc Papleka, Adem Istrefi, Bardhyl Londo, Natasha
Lake and others enriched the treasury of the new Albanian poetry with fresh motifs from the
new socialist life in Albania.
Along with them, poets of older generations, among whom Lasgush Poradeci who wrote his
first poems at the outset of this century and writes today about the new Albania, continued
to produce fine works. To this period belongs »Mother Albania« by Dritëro Agolli which our
critique has rightly ranked among the major works of the Albanian literature. Other poetical
works such as »The Message« by Llazar Siliqi and »Poetical Paths« by Fatos Arapi also
belong to this period.
Poetry, an art dear to and valued by the Albanian people, develops successfully today. Its
road of development knows no crises, because it is closely linked with life and finds a wide
response among the broad mass of readers. In its strong links with its readers lies one of its
keys to success. The Albanian reader, with his constant demands of a poetry of a high
quality represents an important factor in the further development of the Albanian poetry.
The ancient Albanian rhapsods sung their epic songs to a broad public and the process of
balad singing itself was done according to a beautiful ceremonial. This public played a
decisive role in the life of oral poetry, it called for it, kept it alive, approved or disapproved it.
Fortunately, for the songs of present-day life, too, the broad public of the Albanian poetry
continues to be just as active and plays its positive role in all the process of creation of the
modern Albanian poetry of socialist realrsm. So, nourished with the art of this poetry, in
return the public nourishes it with life.
SOCIALIST REALISM - ART OF GREAT POSSIBILITIES
by Ismail Kadaré
»Albania today« # 6/1984
The art of the working class, socialist realism, has no limitation of extension in time
and space, its content and form are the most varied, and its literary techniques the
most advanced, and this is only natural because no other literary method up till now
has coped with such a broad material as the complete tableau of the life of the
people
IT IS MORE THAN FORTY YEARS NOW THAT, ACCORDING TO THE TEACHINGS OF
THE PARTY AND COMRADE ENVER HOXHA, THE CREATIVE METHOD OF SOCIALIST
REALISM IS SUCCESSFULLY GUIDING THE WRITERS OF ALBANIA, THIS ANCIENT
LAND OF ARTS. THE AGE FORTY YEARS OF OUR SOCIALIST REALIST LITERATURE
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IS ONLY ONE TENTH OF THE AGE OF THE ALBANIAN LITERATURE AS A WHOLE.
HOWEVER, WE DO NOT THINK THAT THERE CAN BE PEOPLE OF SO DISTORTED
MIND AS TO CLOSE THEIR EYES TO THE GREAT FACT THAT IN THESE FORTY
YEARS IN ALBANIA MORE NOVELS, STORIES AND POEMS HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED
THAN DURING THE WHOLE FOUR-HUNDRED YEAR LONG PERIOD OF THE
EXISTENCE OF THE ALBANIAN LITERATURE, THAT THE ALBANIAN LITERATURE OF
THE PRESENT DAYS NOT ONLY HAS PRESERVED THE HIGH STANDARDS OF THE
LITERATURE OF THE PAST, BUT ALSO RAISED PARTS OF IT, ESPECIALLY THE
PROSE AND THE NOVEL, THE HEAVY ARTILLERY OF LITERATURE, TO A HIGHER
LEVEL.
The facts we mentioned are of capital importance for judging the literature of a given epoch.
So, we are justified to say with full conviction that in the epoch of socialism our literature
has developed as in no other time and that its development constitutes one of the more
brilliant chapters of the history of socialism in Albania and, without doubt, a great chapter in
the history of the Albanian civilization as a whole.
By successfully developing a literature which is guided by the principles of socialist realism,
among other things, our writers make their militant and revolutionary contribution to the
general strategy of the struggle of the working class for a new world, a new society and a
new art. The successful development of our literature, which is part of the struggle of our
Party for the triumph of the ideals of socialism and communism, has great importance of
principle for the progressive writers which follow this development, rejoice at its successes
and take it as an example.
It is known that in the present time, a period when the 'powerful bourgeois and revisionist
propaganda
machines are competing for the conquest of world opinion, a large-scale campaign of
denigration is being carried out against socialist realism. History up till now knows of no
other literary method which has been attached so fiercely and persistently. The polemics
between different literary trends and currents, the quarrels and contesting manifestos of the
past look like children's plays compared with the present savage wave of attacks the new
art of the working class, socialist realism, has had to defend itself against. This fact alone is
significant and sufficient for everybody to see how intolerable is this art of the bourgeoisie
and reaction, and inversely, how necessary it is to the working class.
In its attacks against socialist real-ism the bourgeoisie has resorted to many stratagems. No
matter how vulgar they may be, they have been used by the bourgeois propaganda on a
broad scale and succeeded in creating a distorted image of socialist realism in the eyes of
many people.
The whole struggle of the bourgeoisie to denigrate socialist realism is based on the old
reactionary thesis that no true literature and art can develop in the socialist order, because
the supposed levelling out of values and disappearance of strong individualities do not
allow it. In order to drive home its point the bourgeoisie hunts for works of inferior quality
which, beginning from the Homeric times, can be found in the socialist realist literature as
easily as in any other literature, and on the basis of them, taking them as models, tries to
create its own image of socialist realism.
Of course, the misrepresentation is too gross for the question not to be posed: what about
the powerful works, the outstanding figures of socialist realism, such as Gorky, Brecht,
Mayakovsky and others? It is clear that such a question makes havoc of the pattern of
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bourgeois thinking. Put hard to it, the reactionary propaganda has found a trick to
disintricate itself from its predicament. According to it, the works of these writers only partly
or not at all are products of socialist realism.
So, the bourgeois propaganda is stuck in a vicious circle when it claims that socialist
realism produces only works of inferior quality and that works of high quality should never
be attributed to socialist realism. The capitalists have the absurd notion that the working
class deserves only some sort of second-rate art.
This is one of the greatest misrepresentations ever created in the field of literature and art.
Having no other explanation for this state of things, the bourgeoisie continues to resort to
this vulgar distortion in order to malign the art of the working class. Otherwise, it would be
compelled to admit that socialist realism is one of the (most powerful literary trends which
since the first decades of its existence has brought forth such major works and writers as,
despite all the opposition to them, have succeeded in dominating the literary scene of the
20th century. Of course, it is not, nor will it ever be, up to the bourgeoisie to decide what is
and what is not socialist realism. This has been and will always be decided by the masters
of the house, those who live in socialism and struggle for socialism.
In its unrestrained campaign against socialist realism, the bourgeoisie resorts to all means,
making the most of any weakness or shortcoming that emerge in the process of
development of this method. Among these shortcomings the bourgeoise hunts with great
glee for art clichés. More than once the bourgeois propaganda has identified socialist
realism with clichés. However, it forgets, or rather feigns to forget that clichés were not
invented by socialist realism, they are older than the world, and it is precisely the
bourgeoisie that developed this routine in art to the higest degree, with its novels à l'eau de
rose, with its commercial literature of »orphans and blue princes«, with its false luster of life,
with its idealized positive heroes, with its happy ends and unwarranted optimism.
Marx has said that it often happens that the first taste of the winners comprises elements of
the last taste of the losers. Some of the shortcomings we mentioned have unfortunately
been transmitted from the bourgeois literature to the literature of socialist realism. The
bourgeoisie which, as far as its own self is concerned, has always considered these
shortcomings very tolerable, raises a hue and cry when it sees the same shortcomings on
the other side of the barricade. It seizes on this because it was very convenient pretext for
its campaign of abuse.
Although the bourgeoisie makes a great noise about clichés in socialist realism, it would like
to see the art of the working class precisely like this — an art of inferior quality, sclerotized
and sketchy. It would be ready to applaud this sort of art in silence, because it would suffer
no harm from it. Inversely, the great true art of socialist realism terrifies it.
Before the Soviet literature began flirting with the modernistic and half-decadent bourgeois
literature, a huge flow of clichés swamped Soviet literary life. For its part, Chinese literature
knew a period of extreme use of clichés before it plunged completely into its present-day
liberalism. These cases prove best that although attempts were made to hide clichés
behind sectarian, and »left« phrases and stands, in the reality they were intended to
prepare the terrain for the bourgeois cultural aggression.
Clichés are not a tolerable evil, as it may seem to some people who have bureaucratic
concepts about literature and art. Worse still when clichés and bourgeois-revisionist
influences are considered as the two opposite extremes of the same phenomenon. Clichés
are the worst means to oppose bourgeois and revisionist influences. The enemies of
socialist realism would very much prefer such an opposition, such a weak and discredited
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enemy.
Clichés have been and continue to be combated in our literature because, with their
poverty, their lifelessness, they create among the readers a state of indifference about the
problems that are raised. However, indifference is only one aspect of the great harm
coming from clichés. The other and worse aspect is that clichés, by presenting the ideas
which are supposed to be defended in a cut-and-dried manner, that is, outside life, create
the opposite reaction among the readers.
When because of the clichés the positive hero of a novel, play or film arouses antipathy
instead of sympathy among the readers or spectators, this means that the novel, play or
film is harmful and even dangerous to socialism.
Our socialist life, our struggle, the events we have lived through during these forty years,
the documents of the Party and the Works of Comrade Enver Hoxha, in particular, where
we find summed up all the major scenes of the history of the Party and our people in this
quarter of a century, are full of life, of sharp conflicts and forceful confrontations, there is
nothing scetchy or cliché-like about them. These documents and works are a great example
and a great source of inspiration for our writers, they will be for many generations of writers
sure landmarks for the further development of our literature.
The tasks the 8th Congress of the Party set to our writers: the strengthening of militancy in
literature and art, the achievement of a more complete picture of socialist life and more
efforts to improve quality in literature, are tasks which coincide with the further development
of our literature. The more our revolutionary life is introduced into our literature, the worse
will be for clichés, routine and cut-and-dried formulas. The storm or life blowing over our
poems, novels, plays and films will shake off them clichés like dry unnecessary leaves.
The beginning of the serial publication of the works of our writers of the epoch of socialism
enables the reader to have a complete idea of the variety and extension of the literary
creativenees of such writers as Shevqet Musaraj, Jakov Xoxe, Sterjo Spase, Dhimitër
Shuteriqi, Dritëro Agolli and others whose works will continue to be published in these
important series. This tradition of the epoch of socialism in literature will remain always
important, because it is the powerful testimony of a great epoch.
Socialist realism is the art of great possibilities. No other contemporary literary trend can
have its range, fullness, profundity and greatness. These attributions do not belong to it
from some kind of literary manifesto or some kind of academic tribune. It is the greatness of
the people themselves whose life it has placed at its foundations more than any other art, it
is its humanism, extension and light that create the major dimensions of this art.
The working class deserves a great art and it has and will always have it. The future
belongs to it and it will inherit the world of the future together with all the material and
spiritual wealth of mankind. The art of the working class, socialist realism, has no limitation
of extension in time and space, its content and form are the most varied, and its literary
techniques the most advanced, and this is only natural because no other literary methods
up till now has coped with such a broad material as the complete tableau of the life of the
people. We Albanian writers are proud of creating by the literary method of sccialist realism,
of working and struggling for its further development, for its triumph.
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Vælgermøde i Tirana 10.11.1982. Tv Ramiz Alia. I midten ved mikrofonerne Enver Hoxha. Foto fra »New Albania« # 6/1982. Billedet kan
forstørres ved at klikke på det.
A BROAD VISION OF THE LEADER AND THE EPOCH
by Ismail Kadaré
»Albania today« # 5/1988
Comrade Ramiz Alia's Our Enver is one of the most important books in the political history
published in the epoch of socialism in our country.
The importance of the book is conditioned by two factors: first, by the argument it treats —
the figure of the founder and architect of today's Albania, Enver Hoxha: and second,
because this broad vision is given by the man who is in the leadership of socialist Albania
today. Being elected as the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the PLA, a function
which was justly considered irreplaceable, the author, as the first to lead the country after
the death of the founder and leader, considers it his duty towards the Party and the whole
Albanian people to examine his own ideas about Enver Hoxha, his own assessments,
reminiscences and his sense of responsibility, which, at the same time, are assessments,
reminiscences and a sense of responsibility connected with the whole history of our
socialist country.
In this manner, by examining the central figure of an historic epoch, which still continues,
this book includes in itself the whole period of time in which we are living. The dimension of
the future is, nevertheless, just as powerful, indeed it is one of the primary qualities of the
'book.
From the very first phrases of the book the author admits that it was easy to tackle the task
of portraying the figure of Enver Hoxha, and this is understandable, because the portraying
of this comprehensive and profound figure means practically the portraying of the entire
history of Albania in the second half of the 20th century.
Although the author considers his task incomplete and unfinished (in the introduction he
calls his book just «notes»), in fact this book, as a whole, is complete from all aspects.
Being a homage and an act of loyalty to Enver Hoxha, it is also a wide-sweeping historical
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consideration of all the questions which the history of socialism has put forward before the
Albanian people, a program of the roads which will be followed in the future, a clear
platform and an answer to all the analysts who, for their different purposes, follow the road
of Albania's advance.
This aim is brilliantly achieved in the book, which, apart from other things, has the merit of
clarity, precision, directness. As any other book which has loyalty and sincerity at its
foundations, this work exists without pompous phrases, without farfetched epithets and
without high-falutin rhetorics and declarations. As Zëri in popullit rightly evaluates it, this
book, apart from other things is an example of how to write about the leader in general,
about the personalities and historic events.
Comrade Ramiz Alia's book is of special interest for the Albanian intelligentsia, for the
artists and writers, in particular. The fifth chapter of the book, entitled «More culture for the
people», is devoted to the problems of culture, Enver Hoxha's ideas, instructions and
platform of this important domain of life.
«When he spoke about culture, he was, you might say, completely in his element», says
the author about Enver Hoxha. «On this subject his oratory was more brilliant than in any
other instance and his thinking reached the greatest profundity.»
Putting the author's idea in other words, we can say that since for a quarter of a century the
author was secretary of the CC of the PLA in charge of ideology, in which culture, literature
and arts were included, he himself is just as much in his element when he dwells on
problems of these spheres.
The questions of culture and evocations of it are treated not only in the chapter on culture,
but also in other parts of the book, in those parts in which he speaks about the youth, the
school and education, science and the emancipation of the Albanian society. These
questions are mentioned in the first chapter, one of the most important and comprehensive
chapters of the book, entitled «Son of the revolution», and through to the last chapter, in
which there is the very well-found and moving reference to Enver Hoxha's farewell speech
of Greetings addressed to the Albanian people on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of
the Liberation, this «real masterpiece of Albanian journalism and of Albanian culture in
general», as the author characterizes it, which evokes in him the famous verse of Naim
[Frashëri]:
«When you see that I am absent
Do not think that I have died.
I am living, still in life,
I am truly in the light.»
The chapter devoted to questions of culture provides a complete historical tableau of
everything which the new Albania undertook and carried out for the development of culture,
from the last days of November 1944 until today. The action for culture undertaken by the
newborn Albanian state developed hand in hand with the other fundamental tasks: ensuring
the independence, carrying out the great socio-economic reforms, setting up and
strengthening the democratic institutions, etc. The author explains that the whole serious
attitude towards culture was illuminated by the principle that «culture is freedom, is the
reign of truth, is security in the solution of situations, is emancipation and civilization.»
Comrade Ramiz Alia explains clearly that Enver Hoxha's vision of culture proceeded from
the fact that our people, despite their illiteracy, were not ignorant. «Indeed, without any
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exaggeration the vitality of their culture is unrivalled,» he - writes. This explains why this
people, being in historical contacts and relations with the Greek culture and under the
pressure of the subsequent Roman, Slav and Turkish cultural invasions, managed to
preserve the identity of their own culture. Such a thing, the author continues, could not
come about as a result of conservation alone. In the first place, it was the result of their
inborn creative force.
In our century the National Liberation War was waged, apart from other things, under the
aegis of culture. The author mentions the concise slogan of Enver Hoxha's, «More bread,
more culture for the people», which became part of the program of the first Democratic
Government of the PR of Albania, and entered history.
In this section of the book, Comrade Ramiz Alia depicts a powerful tableau of the clash
between the correct and far-seeing vision of the Party and its founder about culture and
Koçi Xoxe's distorted and obscurantist optic, couched with ultra-revolutionary slogans. This
counter-current, the spawn of the darkest ignorance, combined with savagery and
careerism, tried to destroy the new culture on the dawn of freedom. «Culture frightened
Koçi Xoxe,» Comrade Ramiz Alia writes, «just as it frightens all those who, instead of
freedom, have tyranny in their hearts and instead of the thirst for knowledge, sinister evil
designs.»
The author goes on to explain the struggle which the Party and Comrade Enver Hoxha had
to wage for the destruction of this dangerous clique, which, among other things, worked on
the sly to bring about a division in culture, to destroy the intelligentsia and to negate the
values of literature and arts in the name of the so-called new proletarian art. The author
stops to dwell on the important moment when Enver Hoxha, in complete opposition with
Koçi Xoxe and company, and on the basis of the Leninist principles, personally guided a
careful and persistent work to create harmony in the ranks of the creative intelligentsia,
especially by bringing together the generation of the 1930, the most progressive part of
which, emerging from, their passivity or isolation, united with the army of the writers, artists
and scientists of the new epoch. The author mentions Comrade Enver Hoxha's personal
interest in the rapprochement and the activation of such distinguished scientists as Eqrem
Çabej and others, which became an important factor for the further development of the
Albanian science.
One of the important actions of the Party devoted to the problems of literature and arts,
which the author mentions, is the 15th Plenum of the Central Committee of the Party in
1965, in which, Enver Hoxha and he himself, as leader of the ideological section, raised
questions of fundamental importance, such as the relationship between the tradition and
innovatory in our arts, the highlighting of the values of popular art, correct understanding of
the relationship between the national and world culture, by avoiding such confusing
alternatives as vulgar folklorism, cosmopolitism, etc. Another event of special weight, on
which the author has stopped, is the 4th Plenum of the CC [Central Committee] of the Party
in 1973, at which Enver Hoxha himself dealt sternly with the spirit of liberalism that had
begun to be noticed in the Albanian literature and arts in the beginning of the 1970s. As
Enver Hoxha in his well-known speech puts it, this spirit of liberalism which emerged as an
influence of the «softening» waves from the western capitalist countries and from the
eastern revisionist countries, strove to orientate our literature and arts towards a spirit of
conciliation, towards the anti-heroism, and abstract humanism.
Among the other events which have already become part of the Albanian cultural legacy,
the author mentions the famous meeting in the beginning of the 1960s, In which the very
wise and cautious intervention of Enver Hoxha was decisive in avoiding grave
misunderstandings which threatened to divide our creative forces in the complicated
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conditions created in our literary circles after a long debate without precedent in its history.
At this meeting the author was present together with the leader of the country, the central
protagonist. Comrade Ramiz Alia delivered the main report in which the main problems
emerging from this heated debate were presented. In his book he evokes a subsequent
conversation which he had with Enver Hoxha about the famous argument and division
between the romanticists and classicists, caused in the last century after the performance in
Paris of Victor Hugo's «Hernani». In this conversation it is implied that knowledge of the
world history and culture and the steps by which it has risen, has been one of the main
factors which made Enver Hoxha feel in his element when he spoke about and assessed
culture.
By throwing light on the figure of Enver Hoxha, on this aspect of his as an outstanding
intellectual, erudite and humanist, the author explains that Enver Hoxha's passionate
attitude towards the treasury of world culture and art, his intransigence towards
cosmopolitism and xenophobia, one of the infantile diseases of the socialist state, were the
logical product of his all-round personality. «A man with such a broad culture and learning
as Enver,» the author writes, «could not allow the isolation of the (Albanian) people from
the most outstanding achievements of world culture and science of all times.»
In this moment Comrade Ramiz Alia reminds the reader that Enver Hoxha, despite the
many things he had to do as leader of the Party and the state, found time to write pure
scientific works such as «The Uprising of the Peasantry of Central Albania, Led by Haxhi
Qamili», «A Little History», «About the Men of the Renaissance», etc. Likewise, there is
also mention of his special passion for the Albanological and archaeological sciences in
support of the confirmation of the autochthonous character of the Albanian people, as one
of the most ancient peoples of the Balkan Peninsula.
Throughout the whole book, and not only in the chapter devoted to culture, Enver Hoxha's
global vision of history and culture is present, as it is present also in his own work, in which
there is a very natural ring in the mention, for example, of an ancient city like Butrint, which
in one instance is evoked in connection with the ancient Greek-Albanian proximity, and in
another instance, is made the scene of a dramatic conversation with a foreign prime
minister, who proposed that precisely in this city a military base should be set up especially
against Greece.
In Comrade Ramiz Alia's book there is always a similar combination of reminiscences,
assessments and dialogues with the reader, all of them in an effort to throw a most
complete light on the various aspects of th e many-sided versatile figure of Enver Hoxha,
and the more complete elucidation of the problems which history placed on the road of the
Albanian people in this half of our century. Most of them are answers which serve as an
orientation for the solution of the problems which time has raised or may raise in the future.
To remain to the examples which have to do with culture, concretely with the political
articles of the French writers and journalists, there is a very significant episode which the
author puts in at the last chapter of the book, in which he describes how Enver Hoxha
reacted to an article which contained the phrase: «Enver Hoxha's Albania stands like a
granite rock facing the external blockade,» writing on the margin with a nervous hand: «No
one has bequeathed Albania to me, it belongs to the people, to all Albanians.*
Further on Comrade Ramiz Alia writes: «To use his own words, for Enver Hoxha the people
and the Party were the greatest treasures ... Before them he always felt himself a soldier
and a servant.»
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An inner dialectics connects the whole texture of this book, the history of the problems
which are raised in it, the coherence, the continuity and the perspective of them.
The author shows that the important and decisive issues for th e development of culture,
literature and the arts in our country, which he has raised after the death of Enver Hoxha,
have been in the logic of a whole line. The systematic struggle against the efforts to level
out personalities, against the equalization of values, against which Comrade Ramiz Alia has
been outspoken from the 5th Plenum of the CC of the Party in 1988, and the struggle for
the uplift of quality of our literature and arts, which he raised two years ago, constitute key
moments, the solution of which conditions many things in the development of our literature
and arts in the future.
Our Enver is a special book for the Albanian reader. It is a book by one of the closest
collaborators of "Raver Hoxha, while he was alive, and of the present leader of Albania in
these three and a half years after his death. But his book is much more than that. It is the
book of a comrade, an interlocutor. Therefore the pages of this book combine the
penmanship of the statesman and the inmost feelings of the man. In its pages the profound
political analyses and the dramatic events of history are combined with lyrical fragments,
direct dialogues with the reader, parts of a diary, intimate and touching, joyful or painful
memories. In its pages, along with the militancy of the communist leader, there is a strong
current of humanity and benevolence.
This is a very valuable quality for any author, but when he is both author and leader of the
country, this quality is amplified and assumes special dimensions. Such qualities, which are
at the foundation of the social-philosophical conception, which has characterized the
Albanian throughout history, about his own leaders and tribunes, both of small regions and
of the whole nation, are, in the last analysis, another testimony to the culture of the
Albanian people. Therefore, this book, being important and unique for the Albanian reader,
because it carries the message of the leader of the country, will also be the book of a close
friend.
Redaktionel bemærkning:
Rød-markering viser at den pgl. sætning senere vil blive inddraget i en analyse.
Blå markering viser at Kadaré taler om en bestemt periode.
OUR TIME AND OUR LITERATURE
by Ismail Kadaré
»Albania today« # 3/1990
• The Albanian literature is a great national treasury and, as such, it deserves all our
energies, passion and devotion. It is part of the consciousness and dignity and freedom of
the Albanian people.
• The Albanian writers have made their choice long ago: total commitment on the side of
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their own people and of all the peoples of the world who strive for progress. They have no
doubt at all about and are not impressed by any philosophy. The Greek tragedians wrote
with a commitment, and so did Dante, Cervantes, Hugo, Brecht and scores of great men of
world art. The present generation of Albanian writers feel honoured in this company and do
not seek to enter any other club.
• The modern Albanian literature is one of the most emancipated literatures in this part of
Europe.
The current Albanian literature, what we ordinarily call the literature of socialist realism,
occupies nearly one tenth of the period of Albanian literature, whereas the literature of the
period of Renaissance stands for one fifth and that of independence for one twentieth part
of it. We needed this comparison to delineate a time scale of the four principal periods of
our literature, which is not without a correlation to the dimensions and values they have
created. As can be seen, although socialist realism is the last and culminating period of the
Albanian letters, it comes third in size, next to the period of the Middle Ages and the
National Renaissance. At the present moment, it spans a period of time twice as long as
that of Independence and keeps growing. The day will come shortly when it will equal the
time-span of the Renaissance.
This time-dimension assists us to form a clearer idea of this period, which is the closest to
us, since it is the product of our time and of our socialist social order. It is an asset in
making our requirements extremely serious and in weighing our words as strictly and
realistically as possible.
The time of socialism in Albania is one of extraordinary events and the greatest
emancipation the Albanian people have seen throughout their whole history. Their literature
and culture have also experienced an unordinary growth in this period. We would not be
objective if, in the assessment of our contemporary literature, as compared with that of the
other periods, we were to automatically attribute all the merits of the time and of the
revolution directly to the literature, if we were to place it in a privileged position confronted
with the other periods. Were we to proceed in that way, we would be allowing ourselves too
much euphoria, self-satisfaction and a complete lack of a sense of self-criticism towards our
work.
It is true that the contemporary Albanian literature is the product of its time, but it must be
assessed according to its own worth and not be allowed to assume merits from extraliterary circumstances. To put this idea plainly, let us make a hypothetical comparison
between our current life and that of a period of a hundred years ago, in 1889, or sixty years
ago in 1929. It is impossible to find any common elements which could compare among
themselves. The effort itself would be ridiculous. However, both in 1889 and in 1929, there
were masterpieces of literature, which could stand any comparison.
***
The socialist literature of our country today has its roots in the dramatic time when the
Albanian people, led by the communists, were locked in a life-and-death struggle against
the occupiers and the local feudal lords and bourgeoisie for national and social liberation. It
grew with each passing year and decade in the time of the construction of socialism. It was
extended and enriched against numerous predictable and unpredictable odds which
involved problems of ideas and artistic choice of the right or left directions.
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Never in the long history of the Albanians had their literature created such broad contacts
with the people; and the people and time never acted together with it, serving as a source
of support, inspiration and benevolent encouragement. Here we must add that, despite the
merits of literature, it was the nature of the new social order, the very nature of the socialist
culture, which created such an unprecedented communication. All these factors converged
to determine its emancipating role and character to such a broad extent which was not and
could not be created before in the life of the Albanians.
This was a literature of a new type, like the new atmosphere, time and the whole order
which was established in this country. At a first glance, it seems as if there was nothing in
common between it and the previous literature, but gradually, when the opinion of the time
became more mature and the vision more complete, it was easy to notice that this new
literature was part of the Albanian centuries-old literature, was its most advanced section,
which, together with the new messages, inherited the lifelong messages of the Albanian
letters, just as the new time inherited the best tradition of the past.
Our contemporary literature communicates with the three other periods of Albanian letters
and, thanks to its indisputable values, unites their values and qualities, which shows that,
apart from other things, it is a real national art of Albania's.
The contemporary literature has one thing in common with the old Albanian literature of the
Middle Ages: international recognition. By a paradox of history, it is precisely these two
periods — the earliest and the latest, which are best known outside the borders of the
country.
The old Albanian literature, a semi-religious, bloomy and extremely elitist literature, with
very few readers in Albania, has, nevertheless, played an important role in the creation of
all the mechanisms of expression of one of the oldest and most beautiful languages of
Europe and in making Albania, the Albanian nation and language known all over the world.
We can mention two facts in support of this: first, with its numerous publications in different
countries it succeeded in making the epic wars of Skanderbeg and the drama of the
Albanians known everywhere; and second, it encouraged the early investigations into the
Albanian language and civilization. It was precisely two books of this literature, by Pjetër
Budi and Frang Bardhi, which, three hundred years ago, came to the notice of the greatest
scientific mind of that time, Gotfried Leibniz — the initiator of studies on the origin of the
Albanian language and of the Albanians from the Illyrians.
The contemporary Albanian literature comes closer to the period of our Renaissance thanks
to their great national emancipating mission, their militancy and unreserved commitment to
the vital cause of the country. They stand close together also on account of their broad
popular character, humanism, lofty civic spirit, and the nobility of art as a bridge which
unites the peoples. Today, when the vulgar black winds of chauvinism are blowing in the
Balkan Peninsula, these qualities appear still more wonderful.
All these values and qualities of the different periods of Albanian art, were taken up by the
contemporary Albanian letters and further enriched with the new ideas of the epoch,
assuming a new vitality and brilliance which they never had before. As they rose in full
vigour, they built a wonderful reader, who became the broadest and most intelligent support
for the development of our new letters.
The road of growth and perfection of our contemporary socialist literature has not been
simple and easy.
Its first phase, that which roughly extends from the forties to the end of the fifties, is one
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of the most interesting ones, precisely on account of the clash of opposed concepts on art.
On the one hand, there was the great enthusiasm and the optimistic inebriation following
the liberation of the country, the confidence and the noble feelings stirred at the dawn of a
new epoch; on the other hand, there was the petty distrust towards the literature and the
intellectuals, which had the effect of a cold shower, especially in the early years of this
phase.
The sectarianism of Koçi Xoxe and his minions, their hatred towards the national culture
and identity, inflicted a considerable damage to literature. The greater the damage since
this culture was still in its beginnings, was still «brittle» and could be wounded easily. These
enemies of the Albanian culture and nation in their efforts to paralyze the Albanian literature
— in an effort to cause the paralyzation of our whole intelligentsia — resorted to an old
mechanism: that of the complex of guilt. By making the intelligentsia, and together with it
the writers, feel a sense of guilt, they hoped they could easily bring them to serve their own
aims, disarm them and destroy their personality, in brief, change them from militants of their
time into jesters of old feudal courts.
The overthrow of Koçi Xoxe and his ilk buried this reactionary mentality of ignoramuses, but
it does not mean that this barred all possibilities of its recrudescence in the same measure
as left sectarianism did.
Other difficulties on the way of the new Albanian literature were various misunderstandings
in connection with the mission and role of art. They came from different directions, from the
right and the left. But, whereas the political atmosphere, the pronounced anti-imperialist
character of the entire life of the country empasized the need for the struggle against the
right viewpoints which defended the perpetual character of art and departure from the social
problems, we cannot say the same about schematism.
The cut-and-dry views about the positive hero, the ill-famed theory of the absence of the
conflict, or of the conflicting not between evil and good, but between the good and the good,
and other similar misapprehensions, which appeared under a revolutionary garb, were
nothing but manifestations of a sort of decadent trends, imitations of petty-bourgeois rosewater literature known in the West as fashionable literature. This kind of literature had
nothing in common with the revolution, although with its arrogance and intolerance, it
pretended to be the only representative of it. Whereas, in essence, it was only an
expression of servility to the vulgar bourgeois art, in as much as it imitated its mechanisms.
All this was bound to create a lifelessness and superficiality in the Albanian letters and to
make it insipid. Nevertheless, while it could more easily fight back and contain this assault
of vulgariness, our literature had a much more arduous task in giving timely answers to the
more complicated problems of the relationship between what is national and what is
socialist in literature, between the typical and the non-typical, etc. Some of these problems
continue to preoccupy the literary thinking today, and it is the urgent task of our criticism
and all literary opinion to deal with them and put them to their place.
We are very familiar with the formulation «socialist contents and national form», but in my
opinion, today this formulation does not make much sense. The first question we would be
tempted to ask is: Why this division? Why the national part of literature and arts should
have the attribute of the form only? I am not going to ask any such questions which are
difficult to answer.
The above formulation emerged and appeared to make sense in a multinational socialist
state, in which different nationalities formed a people with a specific literature of its own the Soviet literature. In our country, which has a homogenous national constitution, this
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division of component parts cannot stand.
But whereas the relationships between contents and form in this case remained only within
the context of a formula the question of the typical and non-typical appeared much more
complex.
The theory on the typical, elaborated in the Soviet Union in the mid 50s, precisely on the
threshold of the revisionist processes, has brought about great confusion and incalculable
harm to the socialist literature of all countries.
The theory of the typical, as it was served to us, was the theoretical breeding-ground for
mediocrity, the groundwork on which it supported its edifice from which it launched its
attacks for the destruction of really great art. It championed the uniform art, conformity,
against militancy, against any novelty and originality in art, which form the principles of the
socialist art.
Accepting militancy in words, in fact it denied the concept wholesale, because it
disarmed the writer and deprived him of any possibility of treating the real problems of
society in his work. Any protagonist that happened to be criticized found protection in the
social category which he stood for, and, in this manner, the negative character could not be
made a physician, artist, police officer or office employee, and even less a peasant or a
worker, since the rule of the typical could not permit them to be ordinary people with vices.
It is useless to dwell any longer on the fatal consequences of this theory, if it were imposed
on literature. However, we must add here that, although in theory some efforts have been
made by our criticism to reject it, still the roots of this phenomenon have not been
eradicated, which shows the weakness of this criticism. In the practice of our literature, this
theory has been completely denied long since. It is to the credit of our new literature that it
resisted this alien theory. Besides other things, it is proof of its vitality and good condition
and the solidity of the ground on which it stands.
In the beginning of the 60s, when a non-typical event occurred and small Albania
challenged the Khrushchevites, the latter made a gruesome remark about the Albanian
letters. They offered two alternatives: either the Albanian literature would be disfigured and
transformed into a typical bourgeois literature, or it would disintegrate and end up as a
propaganda babble, as was the case with some dogmatic literatures of that period.
The challenge of the Albanian literature to this ill-wishing prophecy was worded in equally
strong terms. Not only it did not disintegrate and become a propaganda slop, not only it did
not degenerate into an imitation of decadent literature, but, on the contrary, defying any
forecast, it gathered new strength and vigour and experienced an unprecedented rise.
By this it showed that it was a true literature, and not a temporary flame which the first gale
could blow out.
The vigorous development of all genres was accompanied with an emancipation of
writers, with the liberation of their minds from all dishes and dogmas, with & renewal
of genres and forms. Powerful innovative works created one of the most beautiful literary
atmospheres in the history of Albanian letters. This confirmed again the great truth that art
is immortal through the renewal and change.
It was not unexpected that the Chinese pressure of the 70s, which did not pass without
leaving its imprint on some countries, should meet with repulsion at the gates [of?] our
literature. Having reached a stage of consolidation, our literature could not be shaken by
outside pressure, from any quarter it came. But, whereas it failed to put its stamp on the
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48 / 52
Albanian letters, this pressure, due to extra-literary reasons, had a negative influence
in the school-books and programs, with which our younger generation made their
contact with our national literature and with that of the world, in general.
The 70s were marked by a stern clash on two fronts: against the influence of bourgeois
liberalism, on the one hand, and against conservative schematism, on the other. Here an
admission has to be made that, whereas in the front against the right trend just as before,
the struggle was really efficient the same cannot be said of the struggle against the left
trend. Encouraged by the Chinese pressure, it strove for revival, for regaining its lost
positions and paralizing the Albanian letters, which, by then, had grown strong enough to
be overcome by schematism. Seeing that this was its last opportunity, schematism
launched a desperate attack.
The last decade of our literature has been just as rich, not to say richer, with problems
requiring explanations and solutions, with the joint efforts of the writers to overcome the
expected and unexpected difficulties which emerged in the literary process.
The unharmonious development of different genres, especially of poetry and the novel, the
backwardness of the theatre and the literary criticism, created preoccupations which
sometimes were justifiable and sometimes were not. A problem which had emerged
previously, but which the literary life brought into greater prominence, was that of the socalled major and minor themes. The consensus reached about this problem, that is, the
total avoiding of such a metaphysical division and the assessment of literary works, not by
merit of themes but by the ideo-artistic level, was a sign of the maturity of the common
literary and social opinion.
The extension of themes, the inclusion in literature of the great richness of life and the
complicated social, philosophical and psychological problems, have been another
preoccupation of the writers. This was especially true about some themes which seemed
taboos, although no one had declared them to be so, and managed to steal into the literary
world. The cause for this situation, I think, should not be sought outside the ranks of our
writers, It is they themselves who lacked the talent or the courage to overcome a
surmountable obstacle. In our literature there are still blanks in themes and motives
from the ethical-moral motives and spheres — those impulses and passions without
which the human existence cannot be imagined — and other complicated
experiences which are present in the life of everyone, but which cannot be found in
the pages of books. Other acute and dramatic themes which are connected with the
relationship between man and society, questions of democracy, the struggle against
the bureaucratization of legislation, and so on, are scarcely treated or avoided
altogether. All these problems which exist together with literature since ancient time
create a marked vacuum, if they remain absent. The history of our socialist state, the
published records of the Party, Enver Hoxha's works, are replete with facts, events and
protagonists connected with the above-mentioned themes, whereas in literature they
seldom occur or do not figure at all.
Some of our critics justify this blank by resorting to the mechanism of the typical. Others,
always proceeding from the same category, have dared further afield. To the question why
the facts of the history of the country should not appear in literature, they respond with the
argument that literature has a generalizing effect and is concerned with what is typical,
which makes the problem delicate. One must really be a barbarian in logic to accept that
the fact treated in the novel or story of a writer, I repeat it, in the novel or story which bears
the name of one of the numerous writers of the country, has a stronger generalizing effect,
that is, has a more delicate approach, than the fact mentioned in the book of the founder of
modern Albania.
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The overcoming of the above-mentioned misunderstandings and the establishment
of closer contacts with life are an imperative. They will bring a breath of fresh air into
the «lungs» of our literature.
Some time has passed since the moment when a basic demand was made for our literature
and arts: the struggle for better quality and against mediocrity. The problem which
Comrade Ramiz Alia raised has to do with major things connected with the future of a
literature.
Mediocrity, just as schematism and rose-waterliterature, the trite imagination of the positive
hero, the cut-and-dry moralizing and happy endings, is by no means the quality of socialist
literature. It is a universal disease of literature, which emerged together with it and will be its
lifelong companion. A total life and death struggle has continued between real great art and
mediocre art from the time when Homer sang the first line of the Illiad until our time, right to
the moment in which we are speaking about literature.
The outcome of this prolonged wearing clash has determined the fate of entire literatures,
of their blooming in to effervescence or withering, of their raise and fall.
As a rule, the states and administration, beginning from ancient Rome, have not
supported great art against mediocrity, on the contrary, they have put their support
behind the latter against great art. An this is in the logic of things, because it is known
that great art is a headache to the administration, whereas mediocricy is comfortable.
The fact that our socialist state has raised this problem in the opposite sense, that is,
against mediocrity, is significant in itself, and the writers and artists ought to
appreciate it for what it is.
In socialism, mediocrity continues to work against real art with unabated fury, although the
character of this struggle has its specifics. Like an ailment which is stimulated by other
concomitant diseases and which, in turn, stimulates them, mediocrity draws heavily on
schematism and nourishes it and all its sub-products. So, they operate together on a
broad front to gain dominating positions in literature and they can easily win if literature and
society slacken their vigilance towards them.
In socialism, mediocrity tries to flatter the bureaucrats in office with the aim of fulfilling one
of its main dreams: to gain recognition, even without being proclaimed official literature.
The concept of «official» literature is unacceptable in socialism, just as its opposite, the
«non-official» literature, is also unacceptable. A similar division would certainly cause a
diversion of fatal consequences which could have a disfiguring effect on literature.
Speaking about mediocrity as a negative phenomenon, we have correctly stressed
previously that the writers and artists of mediocre qualities are not to blame for being what
they are. But this innocence ends at the moment when they strive to raise mediocrity into a
standard, in short, when mediocrity becomes aggressive.
This kind of mediocrity strives to make the law in art. To this end, it resorts to various
methods. One of them is the effort to secure for its representatives the leading positions in
places where the fates of literature and art are discussed and decided. When the mediocre
writers and artists, especially those with great pretentions who become over-confident,
occupy such positions, they become dangerous because they want to impose their tastes
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Ismail Kadaré
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and preferences on literature and art.
This set of officials-writers can by no means help in establishing confidential relationships
between the writers and artists, on the one hand, and the state administration, on the other.
Sometimes they do the opposite. And this occurs at the moment when they want to show
that it is they who have the monopoly of the loyalty to the state, a loyalty which,
according to them, is lacking or is insufficient among the writers and artists.
According to this sinister logic, the latter, that is the writers and artists, must be kept under
surveillance and tutelage. Similar practices and concepts disrupt the unity of the creative
forces and lead to painful divisions between the writers and the state.
All this is opposed to the line of the Party on literature and arts. And this is confirmed fully in
the fact that in post-Liberation Albania, the institution of censorship has never existed
and does not exist, which is to the credit of our socialist state. If there are people who do
not like this situation, they are out of touch with our time and are against the advance of the
nation, against socialist democracy and the prospects which the 8th Plenum of the Party
has opened.
Literature has its own laws of development. Various internal mechanisms protect it from
destruction and ensure its rejuvenation and existence. One of these mechanisms is the
process of the selection of values.
Selection is one of the basic and most vital processes for the existence of literature. It is
similar to the process of metabolism of living beings. Interruption of it means the interruption
of life.
Violation of the process of selection is the gravest act that can be perpetrated against
literature. Unfortunately, sometimes it happens that this violation really takes place for
different motives: it is due mostly to the pressure of mediocrity, which seeks by all means to
occupy a place in the literary treasury of a people. Other motives are connected with
sentimentality, literary cabaalism, lack of principles and misunderstanding of democracy.
The struggle against mediocrity cannot be waged without respecting the laws of selection.
Mediocrity strives hard to disregard this principle, whereas real art does the opposite.
The principle of selection has been and continues to be flagrantly violated in our country in
our school text-books. They are full of passages and evaluations of many, literary works
that still have not passed through the sieve of selection. To include unselected works into
text-books means to put together the good with the bad.
Imagine the colossal amount of work that will be required to root out the bad from them.
Whereas, in the case when the principle of selection operates, the bad is thrown out of
literature in a natural way, every day and every minute.
That is the reason why in the practice of studies in the world, contemporary literature is
cautiously introduced, and that is done without haste. It is true that there are bourgeois
conservative schools which have been severely criticized for ignoring the contemporary
literature. But, the extreme opposite, the stuffing of the latter into studies is unwholesome to
culture.
In Albania, the contemporary writers occupy a much larger place as compared with
the literature of the past. Sometimes the disproportions are scandalous. Things have
reached the point that an ordinary writer of our time receives as much space as a whole
period of literature. This question has to do not only with ethics, the lack of modesty and a
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Ismail Kadaré
51 / 52
complete absence of a sense of self-criticism, but also with a disrespect for the culture of
your own people.
This phenomenon has had and continues to have its advocates. There is a strange
symbiosis between the schematic critical opinion and the mediocre literature. Both
sides are very comfortable in each other's presence; they nourish one another and, thus,
create a closed circle to the detriment of art.
Apart from other things the struggle for raising the quality of our letters and arts is also
directed against this dangerous symbiosis.
The Albanian literature is a great national treasury and, as such, it deserves all our
energies, passion and devotion.
It is part of the consciousness and dignity and freedom of the Albanian people.
Wherever it is created, in the first place here, in the motherland, and outside the state
borders of Albania, wherever the Albanians live in their own territories, the Albanian
literature bears the dramatic stamp of one of the most ancient and civilized peoples of
Europe, of the noble race of Albanians.
There is much talk today about the freedom of writing, about its violation, and from time to
time, the writers themselves accuse others of this act. The freedom of writing, the sublime
gift of the writer, cannot be snatched from him in any way. No establishment can give it to
him or take it away from him. Only the writer himself can dispose of it, defend it or give it
away, and in so doing, he should not seek an alibi, or accuse anyone, but must be
answerable for his actions to his own conscience and that of the nation to which he
belongs.
There is a great ado in the world today about how literature should be: with or without a
mission, committed to the great problems of the time or disinterested in them.
The Albanian writers have made their choice long ago: total commitment on the side of their
own people and of all the peoples of the world who strive for progress. They have no doubt
at all about this and are not impressed by any philosophy. The Greek tragedians wrote with
a commitment, and so did Dante, Cervantes, Hugo, Brecht and scores of great men of
world art. The present generation of Albanian writers feel honoured in this company and do
not seek to enter any other club.
The modern Albanian literature is one of the most emancipated literatures in this part of
Europe. It follows the great tradition of the emancipation of the old Albanian literature of
Naim Frashëri and De Rada, who were among the most illuminated minds in this zone of
the Mediterranean, of Migjeni, Noli and Poradeci who were among the leading figures of
Balkan emancipation in their time.
The literatures of the Balkan countries have passed through many tests in the last two
centuries. Some of these tests have been so bitter that they have left marked distortions in
them. One such consequence has been chauvinism, this mortal disease of literature. We
have been witnesses to innumerable cases when the Balkan chauvinistic writers and
accademicians hid their barbarous nature, their sinister hatred, their misdeeds and
jealousies against other peoples and cultures behind good manners and fine words, behind
titles and degrees. It is the exceptional merit of Albanian letters, which has its source in the
culture and noble spirit of the Albanian people, that they never fell to such lowliness. This
literature can be proud of many things, but one of its greatest assets is, without doubt, its
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Ismail Kadaré
52 / 52
love of its own people and, undivided from this, the love of the other peoples and all
progressive mankind.
For nearly half a century, the Albanian people live and are nourished with the
Albanian socialist literature. Their need for it is great, their love of it is touching. This
need and love makes our responsability before this people, to whom we belong,
before the time in which we live, before socialism for which we have been working
and fighting for forty-five years on end without interruption, all the more important.
Du må citere hvis du angiver hovedsidens adresse: bjoerna.dk ... Siderne om Albanerne: bjoerna.dk/albanerne.htm ... Søgning på internettet:
bjoerna.dk/soegning.htm
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/2006.htm
Kadaré-links
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Kadare-WIKI-060905.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Om-Ufuldendt-April.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Agolli/Agolli-WIKI-060906.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Agolli/artikler.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Agolli/TT-interview-2006.pdf
• http://bjoerna.dk/kort/Albanien.gif
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Hoxha-WIKI-060904.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Shehu-WIKI-060904.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/ALB-1946-01-11.jpg
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/ALB-1946-01-11-udsnit.jpg
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Dossier-K-b.jpg
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Sinani-2004.pdf
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Shehu.jpg
• http://bjoerna.dk/dokumentation/Hoxha-on-Shehu.htm
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/ALB-Alia-Hoxha-1982-11-10.jpg
• http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/albaniens_historie.htm
• http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/Europa-Parlamentet-Albanien-1985.pdf
• http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2000/03/jarvis.htm
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/1-5-1981.jpg
• http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780385662529
• http://www.mahler.suite.dk/frx/euripides/bacchus_start_side.htm
• http://www.albanianliterature.com/authors3/AA3-15poetry.html
• http://www.elsie.de/
• http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol6/issue2/bellos.htm
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Kadare-links.htm (1 of 2)09-10-2006 10:47:54
Kadaré-links
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/1977-1a.jpg
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/1977-2a.jpg
• http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/ALB-Alia-Hoxha-1982-11-10.jpg
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Kadare-links.htm (2 of 2)09-10-2006 10:47:54
Ismail Kadaré - Wikipedia
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Ismail Kadaré
Fra Wikipedia, den frie encyklopædi
Ismail Kadaré (også stavet Ismaïl Kadaré eller Ismail Kadare), f. 28. januar 1936 i
Gjirokastra, er en fremtrædende albansk forfatter. Han var protegé af Enver Hoxhas
styre, men blev samtidig overvåget, hvilket Shaban Sinani har dokumenteret.
Kadaré var en tid medlem af Folkeforsamlingen (Parlamentet).
Indholdsfortegnelse
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1 1990: Afhopning til Paris
2 2002: De røde pashaer der forsvandt
3 2003: Konference om religion og samfund med udgangspunkt i
Huntingtons teori om clash of civilizations
4 2005: Man Booker International Prize
5 2005-2006: Roman om forholdet mellem Enver Hoxha og Mehmet Shehu
6 Værker på dansk
7 Eksterne henvisninger
Ismail
Kadaré,
foto: Bjørn
Andersen,
2003
1990: Afhopning til Paris
Hoppede af til Frankrig i 1990, bor fortsat i Paris, men er ofte på besøg i Albanien. Afhopningen
fremkaldte undren fra mange sider. Hvorfor på dét tidspunkt? Nogle håbede på ham som den første
frie albanske præsident og var derfor skuffede. Kadaré har adskillige gange afvist at han ville være
præsident - sandsynligvis fordi han mente at han kunne gøre større nytte som forfatter.
2002: De røde pashaer der forsvandt
I marts 2002 opstod der røre om et digt som Ismail Kadaré har skrevet i 1974. Digtet hedder Në
mesditë Byroja Politike u mblodh (Politbureauet blev samlet ved aftenstid) eller Pashallaret e Kuq
(De røde pashaer).
Maleren, forfatteren og arkitekten Max Velo, der var fængslet mange år i Hoxha-tiden, havde ikke
kunnet finde digtet, men havde hørt om det. Han trak historien om digtet frem i ét af sine digte, hvis
overskrift er: De røde pashaers forsvinden.
I den følgende tid var der mange gætterier, indtil digtet blev fundet i statens arkiver.
Forfatteren Fatos Lubonja, også en forfatter der havde været fængslet, mente at det forsvundne digt
var en hyldest til Enver Hoxha m.fl. og at Kadare flirtede med regimet, mens andre, f.eks. Bashkim
Shehu, søn af daværende premierminister Mehmet Shehu og ven af Kadaré, antog at digtet var
kritisk, i det mindste mod bureaukraterne. Begge dele var sandt.
Digtet skulle have været trykt, men det blev forhindret højt oppe fra - Enver Hoxha skal have været
negativ over for det. Så vidt det fremgår blev Kadaré kaldt til møde hos en af Kommunistpartiets
ledere, Ramiz Alia (den sidste præsident under Hoxha-styret), hvor der blev læst og påskrevet, for
man brød sig ikke om det. Måske fordi det var for underdanigt?
Nogle i partiapparatet mente at Kadaré skulle straffes, andre - bl.a. Hysni Kapo - at det var
tilstrækkeligt hvis han bøjede af og formulerede en selvkritik, og dette blev øjensynligt resultatet.
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Heri skal Kadaré ifølge den albanske avis Gazeta Shqiptare have skrevet:
The only aim and preoccupation of my life is to return in the quarries, in that great and
honoured place of party's aids, without which, either my life, nor my work would have a
meaning. And I thank my friend, who banned the publishing of my poem, and prevented
me from the fatal fall.
Kadaré selv skal i 2002 have sagt at han ikke mente det gamle digt var systemkritisk, og han
mindede om de omstændigheder hvorunder det blev skrevet.
I midten af marts fandt Gazeta Shqiptare digtet i statens arkiver (og forelagde det for Kadaré).
I digtets begyndelse spørger han: Hvorfor samles politbureauet? Der er ingen trusler udefra. Men
der er noget galt, og der må gøres noget. En sort kræft er på vej nedefra. De mange der opfører sig
som bureaukrater underminerer bygningen. Men frygt ikke Enver Hoxhas skarpe øje vil finde dem.
2003: Konference om religion og samfund med
udgangspunkt i Huntingtons teori om clash of
civilizations
Kadaré var i 2003 én af hovedarrangørerne af the international conference »Religions and
Civilization in the New Millennium: the Albanian case« (Tirana). Konferencen tog udgangspunkt i
Samuel Huntington's berømte bog: The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order.
Hensigten var at vise at netop i Albanien var der stor fordragelighed mellem personer med
forskellige religiøs baggrund, og at det meget længe havde været sådan. Konferencen blev fulgt op
af en lidt anden Balkan-konference året efter - og også i Tirana. Denne konference blev afholdt i
samarbejde mellem UNESCO og den albanske præsident og drejede sig om religiøs tolerance.
Konferencen vedrørte albanske forhold, men også forholdene andetsteds på Balkan.
2005: Man Booker International Prize
Fik den første Man Booker International Prize i 2005. Er flere gange nævnt som kandidat til Nobelprisen.
2005-2006: Roman om forholdet mellem Enver Hoxha og
Mehmet Shehu
Ismail Kadaré har omkring årsskiftet 2005-2006 udgivet en roman på det engelsk-amerikanske
marked om forholdet mellem Enver Hoxha og Mehmet Shehu. Romanen hedder The Successor og
er på vej i dansk oversættelse.
Værker på dansk
Flere af hans værker er udkommet på dansk, således: Her er Tirana (1981), Den døde hærs
general (albansk 1964, dansk 1985), Nichen i muren om Ali Pasha fra Tepelena (albansk 1984,
dansk 1989), Hvem hjemførte Doruntine? (albansk 1986, dansk 1990), Drømmenes palads (albansk
1981, fransk 1990, dansk 1994) og Ufuldendt april om slægtsfejder og blodhævn i Nordalbanien og
om den sædvaneretlige tradition der findes i kanun (albansk 1980?, fransk 1982, dansk 2000). På
svensk findes desuden Brölloppet (albansk 1968, svensk 1976) og Den hårda vintern (fransk 1978,
svensk 1980) om skismaet mellem Sovjetunionen og Albanien. På norsk findes Albansk Vår.
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05-09-2006
Ismail Kadaré - Wikipedia
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Krønike, Brev, Refleksjoner (albansk, fransk og norsk 1991).
Eksterne henvisninger
„
Dritëro Agolli: Some Features of the Albanian Novel, 1984. bl.a. om nogle af Ismail Kadarés
romaner
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Shaban Sinani: Një dosje për Kararenë, Tirana. Om Hoxha-styrets overvågning af Kadaré
„
Shaban Sinani: Le Dossier Kadaré. Suivi de: La Vérité des souterrains. Ismail Kadaré avec
Stéphane Courtois, Odile Jacob, Paris 2006. Fransk udgave af Një dosje ..., suppleret med
længere interview med Kadaré
„
Kilde til afsnittet om de røde pashaer: Bjørn Andersen: Albansk Almanak 2002
„
Diskussion af Ufuldendt april: Bjørn Andersen i Albanske Studier bd. 2 (2002)
„
http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol6/issue2/bellos.htm David Bellos' artikel: The
Englishing of Ismail Kadare. Notes of a retranslator om vanskelighederne med at oversætte
netop Kadaré
„
en:Samuel_huntington: Engelsk Wikipedia's artikel om Samuel P. Huntington
Hentet fra "http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismail_Kadar%C3%A9"
Kategorier: Forfattere | Albanere
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Indholdet er udgivet under GNU Free Documentation License.
Behandling af personlige oplysninger
Om Wikipedia
Forbehold
http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismail_Kadar%C3%A9
05-09-2006
Bjørn Andersen
»Albanske Studier« bd. 2, 2002
Blodets Bogholderi [Ismail Kadare]
Om Ismail Kadare: »Ufuldendt april«, Tiderne Skifter, København 2000, oversat af Gerd Have efter »Avril brisé«, Paris
1982. 192 s.
Det Albanske Parlament (Folkeforsamlingen) vedtog i December 1979 en Straffelov. Forfatteren Ismail
Kadare var Medlem af Parlamentet og ses (hvis øjet ikke bedrager) på en fremtrædende plads - nr. 2 fra
venstre på 2. række - på rækken bag Nexhmije Hoxha, Enver Hoxha's magtfulde kone. Alle stemte for.
Fortiden
»Ufuldendt april« er en mærkelig bog - og Ismail Kadare en bemærkelsesværdig forfatter.
Bogen udkom oprindelig i begyndelsen af 1980'erne - i slutningen af Hoxha-perioden; den
handler om noget der skete på Kong Zog's tid engang i 1930'erne - og den er udkommet på
Dansk - og efter sigende filmatiseret - i 2000. Tre meget forskellige, tre meget vanskelige
perioder i Albansk historie.
Ismail Kadare er ikke politiker, men forfatter, en stor forfatter der jævnlig nævnes som kandidat
til Nobelprisen i litteratur - og én man kan lære meget af - men han har som så mange andre
på Balkan, og andetsteds, været ude hvor kragerne vender.
I mine gemmer har jeg en artikel fra 1977, som Kadare har lagt navn til. Den må være skrevet
omtrent samtidig med »Ufuldendt april« eller kort tid før. Titlen var »The Literature of Socialist
Realism is Developing in Struggle against the Bourgeois and Revisionist Pressure« - og artiklen
kunne læses i firmabladet »Albania Today« (3/1977).
Der er ingen grund til at referere artiklen i detaljer, for den er frygtelig og aldeles uaktuel, men
den er et typisk eksempel på hvor svært, for ikke at sige umuligt det var at være en fri fugl på
Hoxha's tid.
Man kunne ikke - end ikke som én der var anerkendt langt ud over landets grænser - træde op
med egne meninger, hvis man ellers havde nogle, men var bundet på hænder og fødder, og
255
Bjørn Andersen
»Albanske Studier« bd. 2, 2002
man skulle passe meget på, også når man skrev litterært. Det var Kadare - trist nok - selv med
til at sikre med en artikel som den nævnte.
Er bemærkninger om Kadare's fortid relevante i dag? Er der grund til at hænge ham ud? Så
meget mere som han efterfølgende har taget afstand fra socialrealismen?
Jeg er ikke ude efter personen Ismail Kadare - som jeg har haft stor fornøjelse af at læse og
også har stor respekt for - men han er et levende eksempel på hvor svær tilværelsen kunne
være.
Kadare valgte sin måde at tage ved lære. Så snart det blev muligt - uden at nedkalde sværdet
over venner og slægtninge - sprang han fra og slog sig ned i Paris. Hvis han var blevet i
Albanien, kunne han måske være blevet præsident som forfatterkollegaen Vaclav Havel i
Tjekkiet - men det er langt fra sikkert, og det er heller ikke sikkert at han ville være blevet god
eller tilstrækkelig slagkraftig, de komplekse omstændigheder taget i betragtning.
Jeg gætter på at Kadare greb chancen for at koncentrere sig om dét han var god til og for at
trække sig ud af dén politiske Praksis han kunne siges allerede at have brændt fingrene på.
Det er temmelig nemt at pege fingre ad en passage som denne perle fra ovennævnte artikel:
»Marxismen-Leninismen lærer os at Historien har et bestemt udviklingsforløb. Kampen mod
den Borgerlige og den Revisionistiske [=Sovjetrussiske] kunst vil derfor blive vundet, og den
Revolutionære Kunst vil nå store sejre«,
men så farlig er den vel ikke?
Værre er det derimod når Solsjenitsyn og Pasternak noget senere omtales som kontrarevolutionære (altså som forfattere man ikke burde læse), og når der lægges op til at alle Albanske
Kunstnere og Kritikere aktivt skal bekæmpe fremmed indflydelse.
Væk med Garaudy, Ernst Fischer, Sjolokov og Solsjenitsyn. Langt væk.
Selvfølgelig var der mange af disse forfattere der var problematiske eller skrev problematiske
ting, men hvorfor skulle man ikke kunne læse dem og danne sig sine egne tanker?
I dag kan man hurtigt komme til at glemme at tingene var temmelig sammensatte omkring 1980.
Der var et stærkt modsætningsforhold mellem de to store supermagter - som havde stor
indflydelse på forholdene mange andre steder, ikke mindst i de små lande - og nabolandet
Jugoslavien var - omend på en anden måde end i 1990'erne - en vanskelig udfordring.
Alt i alt var det svært for Albanerne at finde en passende balance, og det lykkedes heller ikke
for dem. Det endte i paranoia, intolerance, undertrykkelse og særdeles problematiske
økonomiske og sociale forhold i stedet for i åbenhed og positiv udvikling.
Man ville stå på sine egne ben, men man lukkede sig inde og slog sig selv omkuld - hvad der
var årsag til at man siden har haft det så svært med sig selv og med omverdenen.
Måske kunne det have gået anderledes, måske kunne man have sprunget en meget kedelig
mellemfase over? Men det er svært at sige - og en anelse post festum. På den anden side er
det vigtigt at både Albanerne og vi andre skriver os de forskellige historiske erfaringer bag øret
og alvorligt lærer af dem.
Ufuldendt?
Bogen er en rigtig Kadare-bog. Den er nem at gå til, umiddelbart spændende, men også
komponeret overordentlig bevidst i mange lag og med skiftende synsvinkler; komposition og
indhold passer nøje sammen.
Udviklingsforløbet er dels spiralsk, dels cirkulært - jo længere ud på Højlandet man kommer,
desto mere cirkulært er forløbet, akkurat som livsforløbet havde været det i århundreder: En
bunden gentagelse.
256
Bjørn Andersen
»Albanske Studier« bd. 2, 2002
Selv om bogens Franske titel - Avril brisé - vel nærmest betyder afbrudt april, er den Danske
titel ganske rammende - omend tragisk-ironisk - for er der noget dén April er - for helten Gjorg
Berisha - er det fuldendt eller afrundet, akkurat som de skæbnetunge Græske tragedier.
Et sted i det Albanske højland, i nærheden af Prokletija (De forbandede Bjerge) højt mod nord
begik Gjorg engang i 1930'erne dét hævndrab han var forpligtet til efter Kanún 368). Han havde
været længe om tage sig sammen til at hævne sin eneste bror - og gjorde det kun fordi hans
far sagde at han skulle. At begå hævndrab var på det nærmeste ensbetydende med at begå
selvmord, og det var formentlig årsagen til at Gjorg har tøvet som en anden Hamlet.
Der skal nok været en del andre der ligesom Gjorg har været tilbageholdende, men skal man
tro Edith Durham - der var på dé kanter nogle år før - havde man normalt ikke de samme
problemer eller forestillinger som Gjorg. Det hørte med til livet at man var fanden-i-voldsk og at
man på et tidspunkt kunne blive dræbt, men hellere dét end at lade skammen sidde på sig.
Som sædvanen byder får Gjorg en måned til efter drabet at bringe sig i orden.
Først skal han til Borgen i Orosh (nær Rrëshen?) for at give Borgherrens Forvalter den afgift
han er forpligtet til; derefter kunne han som andre - der netop havde dræbt - gifte sig, havde det
ikke været fordi hans trolovede netop var død af en sygdom, eller han kunne gøre noget andet
af en vis betydning - men frem for alt kunne han til sidst bringe sig i sikkerhed i ét af de
befæstede tårne hvor så mange andre drabsmænd havde gemt sig for de hævnende forfølgere.
Bessian og Diana
Parallelt med denne historie fortælles en anden om forfatteren Bessian og hans kone Diana
som er taget på bryllupsrejse til Højlandet. Normalt bor de i Tirana hvor livet leves helt
anderledes end mod nord - og selv om især Bessian interesserer sig for Højlænderne og vist
har skrevet om dem, ved han og Diana ikke så meget virkeligt om dem.
Kadare har givetvis været lidt i samme situation som dem, for han kom fra Gjirokastra i den
modsatte ende af landet hvor leveforhold og traditioner var en hel del anderledes og stadig er
det.
Bessian, Diana og Gjorg mødes ikke for alvor - får kun nogle glimt af hinanden - men Diana
besættes af Gjorg og hans skæbne, og Gjorg giver sig til - noget omtåget - at efterstræbe
Diana's skygge i stedet for at bringe sig i sikkerhed.
Hver af tingene kan muligvis være meningsfuld i litterær forstand, men virker ikke særlig
overbevisende sociologisk eller historisk, endsige psykologisk, og gensidigheden gør det ikke
bedre, tværtimod.
En Dickens ville have fået læseren til at spørge hvad der bagefter skete med Bessian og Diana,
men sådan er moderne forfattere ofte ikke, og Kadare langtfra.
Bessian og Diana skaffer sig et nydeligt problem, det er en vigtig del af plottet, men så
interessant er det nu heller ikke, den øvrige historie taget i betragtning, og det spekulerer man
ikke synderlig over når bogen er læst.
Mange drab, men også en del forlig
Selv om bogen kæntrer hvad denne del af plottet angår, får man meget at vide om Kanún og
om sædvanen, og man må tro at Kadare har sin research på plads.
Déngang i 1930'erne var der omkring 1000 drabsmænd der holdt sig i skjul. Mange af drabene
- måske 1/3 - skyldtes uenighed om materielle forhold (vandingsrettigheder med videre), men
langt de fleste af drabene og konflikterne havde en lang forhistorie - for der var tale om fejder
der rullede videre generation efter generation.
368) Om Kanún - se nærmere i omtalen ovenfor af Edith Durham: »High Albania«.
257
Bjørn Andersen
»Albanske Studier« bd. 2, 2002
Ligesom man kan lære hos Edith Durham, skete det imidlertid - ifølge denne bog - jævnligt i
1930'erne at fejderne blev afblæst, enten fordi parterne fik stablet et forlig på benene, eller fordi
man enedes om at tilkalde en kyndig mægler. En sådan navnkundig mægler og hans lille følge
spiller en stor rolle i bogen, ikke mindst med hensyn til at sætte tingene og historien i relief.
Dén fejde som er bogens ramme var næsten ved at blive forligt et stykke tid før bogens
begyndelse. En tante vidste at et hævndrab ville bevirke at dén del af slægten ville dø ud og fik
med stort besvær og megen stædighed arrangeret forligsforhandlinger, men de mislykkedes
alligevel til sidst fordi en enkelt slægtning satte sig imod, og historiens hjul måtte derfor male
videre på gammel manér.
Mæglingsmanden er uafbrudt på farten (hvad der tyder på at man i mange tilfælde - muligvis
hyppigere end tidligere - foretrak et kompromis frem for en ny fejde) og han bliver ledsaget af
to specialister.
Den ene er en læge, som dog ikke skal pleje nogen, men vurdere invalideringsgraden så at den
rigtige erstatning kan fastsættes. Havde man kun slået sin fjende halvt ihjel, havde man fortabt
sin ret til hævn - med mindre man betalte en betydelig erstatning; jo mere tilredt offeret var,
desto mere. Havde man slået sin fjende helt ihjel skulle man derimod ikke betale nogen
erstatning. Alt eller intet - og dét måtte man om fornødent betale for.
Den anden ledsager er landmåler - og evigt beruset - men det forbliver uklart hvorfor
mæglingsmanden har taget ham med, for han har ingen praktisk funktion (bortset fra en litterært
kontrasterende).
Når der er opstået uenighed om græsningsrettigheder og skel, vil man vil ikke vide af hans
videnskabelige opmålinger, men holder sig til sædvanerettens metoder, så hans udstyr er aldrig
i brug og kunne lige så godt være bortkommet.
Bogen fortæller at der var en borgherre som af uvisse grunde skulle have afgift for hvert drab,
og at en væsentlig del af hans udkomme afhang af disse afgifter, som nu var ved at tage af.
Durham fortæller ikke ét ord om sådanne Borgherrer og deres Forvaltere i »High Albania« hvad man nok burde forvente (hvis de havde spillet en rolle) - men kun om at man - hvis man
var uheldig - skulle bløde en afgift til de Osmanniske Myndigheder som havde den overordnede
magt på hendes tid, og det er noget andet 369).
Hvad der sker på Borgen, hvordan Arkivet er indrettet og hvilke tanker Borgforvalteren gør sig
er en spændende historie for sig, der bringer »Nichen i muren« i erindring, Kadare's roman om
den navnkundige Ali Pasha af Tepelena 370).
Hvor vil Kadare hen?
Bogen blev skrevet på et tidspunkt hvor blodhævn og slægtsfejder mere eller mindre var
kommet under kontrol, så det mest sandsynlige er at Kadare har skrevet bogen for at fortælle
en god historie og bruge den til at fortælle om hvad Kanún gik ud på og hvordan den skulle
fortolkes.
Kadare viser frem for alt at Kanún ikke var vilkårlig, selv om efterlevelsen af den havde
konsekvenser som kunne forekomme absurde - og desuden at der skulle en del til for at vende
skuden og løse problemerne på en anden måde.
Det er i den forbindelse udmærket at han fortæller om de to modsatte fortolkningsmodeller, som
har været ført i marken op gennem 1900-tallet: At Kanún gav anledning til drab og hævndrab,
og at Kanún skulle tjene til at begrænse drab og hævndrab. Kadare viser at der er faktorer der
trækker hver sin vej. Visse faktorer holder hjulet i gang, visse faktorer hæmmer det.
369) Skulle der være en læser der véd noget om denne side af sagen, hører jeg meget gerne. Skriv for eksempel på
[email protected]
370) Ali Pasha kan man læse om i »Krudttønden i baghaven«.
258
Bjørn Andersen
»Albanske Studier« bd. 2, 2002
Om det har været Kadare's hensigt ved jeg ikke, men man kan nok se en vis lighed mellem den
Middelalderlige Kánun og dé (mulige) absurditeter dens efterlevelse kunne føre til - og dé vilkår
man levede under i Hoxha-tiden.
I Hoxha-tiden gjaldt det også om at følge en Kanún; gjorde man det ikke var man fortabt, men
i modsætning til den Middelalderlige Kánun's logik - som byggede på at hver mand tog sit
ansvar på sig og håndhævede sin del af Retten - var det ganske anderledes i Hoxha-tiden.
Her var det et apparat der havde monopol på at formulere og fortolke Kanún og til at håndhæve
Retten, herunder til at skille sig af med dem, der havde en forbudt opfattelse (for eksempel i
forbindelse med springene fra et Jugoslavisk til et Russisk til et Kinesisk til et »autonomt«
paradigme).
Havde man en sådan forbudt opfattelse, måtte man skjule sig - mændene i Højlandet kunne i
sin tid flygte til en kulla, en Digter i Hoxha-tiden måtte gå i indre landflygtighed - og eventuelt
snakke Styret efter munden.
Hverken i Middelalderen eller i Hoxha-tiden var tingene uforklarlige, men de var lige
ubønhørlige.
Nogle småting
Oversættelsen går ganske udmærket, men der er nogle småting.
Man har en tradition i Albanien for at holde fred eller våbenhvile i en bestemt periode eller på bestemte steder; man
aftalte eller erklærede Besa (bestemt form, besë i ubestemt). Af én eller anden grund hedder det bessa i oversættelsen
(i bestemt form: bessaet). Dén stavemåde er vist ikke meget brugt på Dansk.
På s. 44 skrives flere gange doreräs i betydningen drabshånd = dén der har dræbt i en fejde. Sprogligt er der et
problem, for der er mig bekendt ikke noget ä på Albansk. I nærheden finder man dorë der betyder hånd og doras der
betyder drabsmand.
Borgen i Orosh kaldes både Borgen, Slottet og Fæstningen - foruden det Albanske: Kulla'en. Vi har muligvis ikke et
ord på Dansk der dækker præcist, men Borgen ELLER Fæstningen kunne vel bruges, hvorimod Slottet forekommer
at være noget misvisende. (Jeg ved ikke om den inkonsekvente betegnelse stammer fra Kadare eller den Franske
udgave).
Den berusede landmåler bliver de fleste gange kaldt geometeren; det er vist mere Fransk eller Norsk end almindelig
Dansk? Et enkelt sted eller to bruges dog: landmåleren. Men da Albansk har gjeometër - skulle jeg måske stikke piben
ind?
Gjorg's bror hedder dels Mehill, dels Mëhill.
259
Dritëro Agolli - Wikipedia
1/1
Dritëro Agolli
Fra Wikipedia, den frie encyklopædi
Dritëro Agolli f. 13. oktober 1931 i Menkulas i nærheden af Korça. Albansk forfatter.
Han gik i gymnasiet i Gjirokastra og fik journalistisk uddannelse i Leningrad i 1950'erne.
Han var kommunist i Hoxha-perioden. I nogle år var han journalist på partiavisen Zëri i Popullit.
Han debuterede som skønlitterær forfatter i 1958 og var formand for den albanske forfatterforening
fra 1973 til 1992.
Efter Hoxha-styrets sammenbrud og etableringen af demokratiet i begyndelsen af 1990'erne blev
han medlem af Socialistpartiet. Han har været medlem af Parlamentet for dette parti.
Han har skrevet digte, noveller, romaner og artikler.
På albansk foreligger bl.a.: Në Macka Shtet, Arka e djallit og Komiser Memo.
På dansk foreligger: Manden med kanonen (1987).
Eksterne henvisninger
„
[Robert Elsies internetbiografi over Dritëro Agolli]
Artikler af Dritëro Agolli. Interview
„
Proletarian Partisanship and Some of its Aspects of the Waging of the Class Struggle, 1979.
Om den socialistiske litteraturopfattelse i 1970'erne med udfald mod 'borgerlige' og
sovjetrussiske ('revisionistiske') opfattelser
„
Literature and Arts towards a New Qualitative Leap, 1983. Om den socialistiske
litteraturopfattelse i den sidste del af Hoxha-perioden
„
Some Features of the Albanian Novel, 1984. Bl.a. om nogle af Ismail Kadarés romaner
„
Rethinking the past. Interview in Tirana Times, august 2006. Om Hoxha-perioden, nutiden
og Agollis egen situation
Hentet fra "http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drit%C3%ABro_Agolli"
Kategorier: Forfattere | Albanere
„
„
„
„
„
Denne side blev senest ændret den 4. sep 2006 kl. 23:55.
Indholdet er udgivet under GNU Free Documentation License.
Behandling af personlige oplysninger
Om Wikipedia
Forbehold
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Dritëro Agolli: Artikler
bjoerna.dk
Kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen
1 / 26
[email protected]
Dritëro Agolli
Artikler fra 1970'erne og 1980'erne
Version 1.3 - 04.09.2006. - Tekst i [kantet parentes] er korrigeret ift originalen.
Indholdsfortegnelse
1979: PROLETARIAN PARTISANSHIP AND SOME OF ITS ASPECTS OF THE WAGING
OF THE CLASS STRUGGLE
1983: LITERATURE AND ARTS TOWARDS A NEW QUALITATIVE LEAP
1984: SOME FEATURES OF THE ALBANIAN NOVEL
Henvisninger
Artikel om Dritëro Agolli i dansk Wikipedia [PDF] [Klik tv]
Redaktionel bemærkning:
Rød-markering angiver en lokalitet.
http://bjoerna.net/Agolli/artikler.htm
06-09-2006
Dritëro Agolli: Artikler
2 / 26
Blå markering angiver et personnavn, typisk på en forfatter.
»Albania today« Nr. 2/1979. The article is reprinted of historical reasons, BA
PROLETARIAN PARTISANSHIP AND SOME OF ITS ASPECTS OF THE
WAGING OF THE CLASS STRUGGLE
by Dritëro Agolli
Writer, Chairman of the Writers' and Artists League of the PSR of Albania [PSR: People's Socialist Republic]
»In today's conditions of the waging of the class struggle ensuring the leading role
of the Party in art is one of the fundamental requirements for the implementation of
proletarian partisanship. Nowadays, the principle of party leadership in art, as the
essential element of proletarian partisanship, is the main target for attack by the
bourgeois and revisionist theories and all the other opportunist trends«.
MARXISM-LENINISM LONG AGO SHOWED THAT THE WAY IN WHICH LIFE IS
REFLECTED IN ART DEPENDS ON THE INTERESTS OF DEFINITE CLASSES AND THE
CHARACTER OF THEIR IDEOLOGY, WHILE AS THE EXPERIENCE OF OUR PARTY
OVER MANY YEARS HAS SHOWN, THIS CLASS NATURE OF THE REFLECTION OF
LIFE IN ART IS REVEALED IN THE MOST COMPLETE AND OPEN WAY, IN THE
CONDITIONS OF THE UNINTERRUPTED DEVELOPMENT OF THE CLASS STRUGGLE.
IN THESE CONDITIONS, OUR IDEOLOGICAL STRUGGLE IN THE SPHERE OF ART
ASSUMES A SPECIAL SHARPNESS, AND PLAYS A DECISIVE ROLE FOR THE
FURTHER HEALTHY QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE DEVELOPMENT OF
ARTISTIC CULTURE. THE CORRECT WAGING OF THIS STRUGGLE HAS TO DO WITH
THE FUTURE OF LITERATURE AND ART, WITH THE COURSE OF THE WHOLE
CONTEMPORARY CREATIVE PROCESS, TODAY AND IN THE FUTURE. AND IT MUST
BE SAID THAT THIS STRUGGLE IS NOT WAGED SIMPLY TO ELIMINATE SOME
WEAKNESSES WHICH SHOW UP FROM TIME TO TIME IN THE CREATIVE PROCESS
AND WHICH ARE UNACCEPTABLE TO US BECAUSE THEY ARE FAR REMOVED
FROM OUR ESTABLISHED AESTHETIC TASTES. THIS STRUGGLE IS OF AN
IDEOLOGICAL NATURE.
Thus, our struggle against bourgeois and revisionist alien influences displayed in their most
complete form in literature and art prior to the 4th Plenum of the CC of the Party, as a
consequence of the savage imperialist-revisionist pressure, from both inside and outside
the country, cannot be explained simply as an effort to escape from certain distorted artistic
tastes that we did not like, but as a principled struggle that was necessary to destroy the
roots of these manifestations, behind the modernist nature of which lurked an entire,
conscious, elaborated class ideology, a complete reactionary ideology, with well-considered
and far-reaching aims. The representatives of, and agitators for, this ideology had tried to
use the weapon of art to achieve their sinister desires and aims against socialism.
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Dritëro Agolli: Artikler
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Summing up, on the one hand, the rich experience of the development of literature and art
in the recent period, and on the other, the experience of leadership by the Party in the field
of artistic creativeness, the 7th Congress reached the conclusion that the consistent
defence and strengthening of proletarian partisanship comprise not only the main condition
for all outstanding achievements, but also the fundamental requirement for the further
progress of artistic culture. The class essence of our art and its aims are reflected, and the
interests and the socialaesthetic ideals of the working class are expressed, in the principle
of proletarian partisanship. This principle makes our art capable of militating for the line of
the Party, militating as a powerful ideological weapon of the working class for the
construction of socialism and the complete triumph of the revolution. The implementation of
the principle of proletarian partisanship in literature and art in the conditions of the
development of the class struggle in our society, has several main aspects which we
consider of particular importance. These aspects may be summed up in three directions: 1)
Enhancement of the leading role of the Party in literature and art; 2) Strengthening of
proletarian partisanship in literature and artistic creativeness; 3) Raising the level of
the worldoutlook of writers and artists.
1. ENHANCEMENT OF THE LEADING ROLE OF THE PARTY IN LITERATURE AND
ART
In the presentday conditions of the development of the ideological struggle in our country,
the direction of art with definite aims, with lofty proletarian partisanship, direction which
should exert an active influence on artistic creativeness, assumes special importance. In
this manner, literature and art become part and parcel of the great cause of the Party, are
closely linked with the tasks of our socialist revolution and fully in the service of this
revolution. »The sound leadership of the Party,« says Comrade Enver Hoxha, »has given
culture and education, literature and art a development, a direction and mobilizing force,
and has linked them more closely with the people, the working class and the cooperativist
peasantry, with the great tasks of our socialist revolution« [1].
Our Party has given art very consistent guidance, has orientated and assisted it at many
moments when artistic practice and the class struggle in this field have raised complicated
ideo-aesthetic problems. It has focussed its attention on, and strongly criticized the partial
slips and deviations that have occured in our creative work, while severely condemning
those ideological enemies who have tried to weaken the leadership of the Party in literature
and art and to encourage modernist alien influences. While ensuring its leadership in
literature and art, not only has the Party fought for their ideological purity, but it has also
encouraged their enrichment in content and form, in styles and genres, by constantly
opening up fresh creative possibilities for every writer and artist. This has come about
because the Party has constantly kept in mind the specific character of creative art, having
trust in and respect for the artist, valuing his work, while at the same time, never reconciling
itself to any negative alien influence.
The strengthening of proletarian partisanship is not only an ideological problem, but also a
political, organizational, and economic problem. It has many other aspects, too. Proletarian
partisanship implies all the comprehensive activity to implement the line of the Party and to
defend the dictatorship of the proletariat in the field of artistic culture. It is embodied in the
various directives and instructions of the Party. This fundamental principle of socialist
realism is connected with the fulfilment of many tasks: with the deepening of the MarxistLeninist ideological orientation of literature and the arts, with the activity of the Writers and
Artists' League and the literary press, with the work of the schools of art, with the training of
cadres to work in and run the sectors of creative literary-artistic work, with the amateur
movement, and with all the aesthetic education in the general educational system. On the
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Dritëro Agolli: Artikler
4 / 26
other hand, the strengthening of proletarian partisanship is linked with a more thorough
development of aesthetic studies on the current problems of literature and art and the
unmasking of modernist and revisionist trends. Finally, it is linked with all the work of the
party organizations and state organs, which lead the cultural and artistic institutions. If there
is not a united front of struggle for the consistent implementation of directives and
instructions of the Party in all these directions, and this is forgotten, distortions which hinder
the achievement of the leading role of the Party in individual links and sectors emerge.
Although the leading role of the Party in the implementation of proletarian partisanship has
been enhanced and strengthened, sometimes there is still an oversimplified administrative
concept of it, for instance, thinking it sufficient to ensure the number of items in the
repertoire, publications or performances, and not extending this leadership to the main
orientation of the content and the artistic level.
In today's conditions of the development of the class struggle, ensuring the leading role of
the Party in art is one of the fundamental requirements for the implementation of proletarian
partisanship. Nowadays the principle of the party leadership in art, as the essential element
of proletarian partisanship, is the main target for attack by bourgeois and revisionist
theories and all the other opportunist trends. The bourgeois and revisionist ideologists and
aesthetes and all our ideological enemies consider party leadership in creative work as a
petrification of art, a restriction on the expression of individuality. The bourgeois and
revisionist ideologists constantly raise their notorious slogan against leadership by the party
in art, while trumpeting the idea of the freedom of the artist. All this is concealed under the
mask of an ideology that stands above classes. In reality, bourgeois and revisionist art,
itself, is guided by their ideologies and their reactionary partisanship which destroys the
artist, turns him into a market commodity, and gives him no possibility of entering into the
life of the people. The notorious revisionists G. Lukacs, E. Fischer and R. Garaudy come
out openly against party leadership in art and against the Leninist principle of proletarian
partisanship. In his notorious article, »Art and the Ideological Superstructure«, E. Fischer
long ago theorized about the inevitable »ancient« conflict between the state and »the
spiritual elite«, as he calls the artists. »If the socialist artist,« he writes, »is a supporter of
the Central Committee, a qualified worker in the sector of agitation and propaganda, then
as a result, not only will he be degraded as an artist, but he will also be a bad agitator and
propagandist. If art is forced to adept itself to the requirements of the current tactical
situation, life forsakes it«.
This revisionist ideologist puts the proletarian policy of the Party in open conflict with the
artist, whereas it is known that this policy arms creative practice, orientates it and helps it to
reflect the life of the people truthfully, to judge and analyse the main directions of social life
scientifically.
The Soviet revisionist theoreticians and scholars have resorted to shameless distortion of
Lenin, presenting him as a leader »tolerant« towards liberal and decadent trends in art,
claiming that he was allegedly in favour of the flourishing of many trends and that he
understood »tolerance« in art. Thus, in a recently published book, entitled, »That's how it
happened«, the revisionist Soviet writer, O. Litovsky, writes that Lenin's policy in the
sphere of art was »liberal in the finest sense of the term«.
It is clear that revisionism is not ashamed to become the most cynical falsifier when it
comes to attacking the sacred principles of revolutionary ideology.
By ensuring the leadership of the Party in literature and the arts we fight, at the same time,
for the strengthening of proletarian partisanship in every work, and for its defence against
the attacks of enemies and renegades from Marxism-Leninism.
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2. THE STRENGTHENING OF PROLETARIAN PARTISANSHIP IN CREATIVE ARTISTIC
WORK
By making art an inseparable part of its great cause in the fierce class struggle, our Party
created in our country a rich artistic culture closely linked with the life of the people, with
their interests and dreams. This advance of our arts on a broad front could not have been
made if class tendentiousness in the artistic treament of the range of themes and
problemes, which the revolutionary development of our society brought to the fore through
fierce class struggle, had not been strengthened by affirming lofty ideals and rejecting old,
inhibiting, alien, anti-socialist concepts. At the 7th Congress of the Party Comrade Enver
Hoxha said about this: »The 4th Plenum of the Central Committee sternly criticized
some harmful manifestations that had to do with imitations of reactionary foreign
trends, with the wrong treatment of contradictions in our society, with theories that
disparaged folk creativeness, etc. It put forward important tasks over the entire front
of culture. Their implementation gave a fresh impulse to the development of literature
and art, to all cultural and artistic activity« [2].
But looking at the process of creative work in the light of the decisions of the 7th Congress
of the Party and the requirements of its own mission in the development of the class
struggle, for the further strengthening of proletarian partisanship in literary and artistic
works, a series of new tasks, which assume particular importance in the presentday
conditions, have emerged.
»The Moscow Meeting« by G. Madhi [billedet er tilføjet ift originalartiklen]
First, the class struggle must be a subject reflected, and a permanent and cardinal
theme in our literature and arts. This theme broadens the horizons of arts, gives them an
indisputable superiority, because the class struggle pervades all the fields and pores of
social life. It manifests itself in the economic and political relations between people, in
collectives and families, in town and countryside, in intimate actions and moral
relationships, at school and in production, in the past, the present and the future. The
treatment of the class struggle in literature and the arts is one of the ways to strengthen
their tendentiousness, to link them with the fundamental problems of the internal and
external developments that engage the attention of the Party and the people. If some
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works, such as »The Great Winter« by I. Kadare, »The Moscow Meeting« by G. Madhi,
»Confrontation« by T. Laço, »The Girl of the Mountains« by N. Zoraqi, »The Fall of Idols«
by S. Drini, »The Grand-Mother« by K. Kosta, and a number of films produced in recent
years, have had a favourable reception from readers and audiences. This is due not only to
the mastery of their authors, but also to the class tendentiousness with which they treat the
problems of our socity, and the political line of the Party. We have many other works, too,
which have reflected the reality from the angle of the development of the class struggle. But
it is essential to do more in this field. The reflection of the class struggle in literature and art
is one of the most important problems of our creative work, because it is linked with many
other problems, such as those of the recognition and correct solution of contradictions in
our society, those of a thorough understanding of the typical and the individual, those of the
relationship of the hero to the mass, those of the aesthetic and social ideal, those of the
class stand towards tradition and its relationship with innovation, and many others. A
thorough Marxist-Leninist knowledge of the development of the class struggle in our society
helps the artist to capture the fundamental trends of development of our revolution in a
scientific manner. The writers and artists »are required to reflect accurately in their
works the fundamental processes and trends of development of our revolution, the
contradictions of life, and to fight any manifestation of formalism and stereotyped
treatment of them, to faithfully and creatively apply the method of socialist realism,
which is the foundation of the proletarian art which the future belongs« [3].
Although improvements have been made since the time of the 4th Plenum of the CC of the
PLA, erroneous solutions to these difficult problems of our arts are still seen occasionally.
Sometimes the reflection of the class struggle is superficial and there is no thorough
analysis of its processes in certain works.
Second, the strengthening of proletarian partisanship is also linked closely with the
treatment of the acute current problems which engage the attention of the Party in
the stage of the complete construction of socialism. Thus more stress should be put on
certain themes such as that of the [hegemonic] role of the working class, the revolutionary
transformations in our countryside, and the revolutionizing force of communists, which
require more profound treatment in all their breadth and magnificence, because, despite the
indisputable achievements, we think there is a disproportion in this direction, which must be
overcome. The problem is that these themes should occupy the place they deserve in our
literature and art, in conformity with their intrinsic importance in the context of the struggle
our Party is waging today to enhance the leading role of the working class, to reduce the
essential distinctions between city and countryside, to liquidate the sources of bourgeoisrevisionist degeneration and to complete the construction of socialism. On the other hand,
greater attention must be focussed on the treatment of all the cardinal problems of social
development, as laid down by the 7th Congress of the Party such as the themes of our
people's resistance and struggle against the imperialist-revisionist encirclement, patriotism
and proletarian internationalism, the implementation of the principle of self-reliance,
defence and revolutionary vigilance, etc.
The treatment of this range of themes and problems with class tendentiousness helps to
link literature and art better with the great cause of the Party, with the entire presentday and
historical reality of Albania. Linking art with the problems of the Party invigorates it with rich
social content and lofty communist ideals. Then it is not imprisoned in the shell of petty
eroticism and never becomes a means to delve into the murkiest depths of the
consciousness of the egoistic isolated individual, such as is seen in the degeneration of the
literature and arts of the bourgeois and revisionist countries. One of the functions of
Western and Soviet modernism is to destroy man's confidence in himself and his own
thinking. According to the US aesthete and writer, R. Kostelliants, art is »blinding,
deafening, maddening spiritual suffering«. That is why books are centred on psychopaths,
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idiots, the spiritually crippled, sadists and prostitutes. In his book entitled, »Love, fight
back!«, the Soviet poet, V. Kotov extols the figure of Eva Braun, Hitler's wife, who burnt
herself to death together with her husband, demonstrating her conjugal »fidelity« with this
gesture. The poet counterposes Eva Braun to the wives of great men, who allegedly, were
not loyal, but quarrelsome and unfaithful. According to him, such were the wife of Socrates
of antiquity, the wife of the great poet Pushkin, and Leon Tolstoy's Sophia!
What was Hitler...
But Eva Brawn, the screen star,
Remained faithful to him to the end!
...
What was Pushkin....
But his beloved Natalya
Slyly winks at Dantes!
...
Leon Tolstoy, great as a god
Flees demented from Sophia....
(V. Kotov, »Zashchishchaysya, Liubovj!« Moscow, 1969, pp. 55-56).
In a word, alongside that revisionist Soviet literature which, with overworked cliches, sings
to the glory of the chauvinist soldier of Russian expansion, another literature, which boosts
criminals, their »faithful« wives, and prostitutes, under the veil of »all-conquering love«, is
flourishing.
Our militant and pure art, with all its power and beauty, stands in contrast to this aggressive
degenerate bourgeois and revisionist modernism. This contrast becomes more militant
when we deal with the whole wide range of problems and themes which was presented and
analysed at the 7th Congress of the Party, with an even sharper class tendentiousness.
The fullest possible treatment of this range of themes and problems, does not norrow the
creative horizon of our literature and art, but, on the contrary broadens and deepens it,
because it contains a wealth of aspects which give rise to an endless variety of subjects
and forms. Within this broad horizon each writer or artist finds a boundless field for the
flowering of his creative individuality, and the utilization of all means of artistic expression.
Third, the strengthening of proletarian partisanship in the conditions of the
development of the class struggle requires the ceaseless raising of the artistic level
of literature and the arts. Proletarian partisanship cannot be achieved without the allround development of all means of artistic reflection, without a continuous evolution of
artistic form. Only an art with sound content and fine artistic form can become a powerful
weapon of the working class in the class struggle. We must struggle to achieve a sound
content embodied in a perfect artistic form. On this question, Comrade Enver Hoxha has
said: »And such content is bound to be conducive to the search for and discover of
new forms« [4]. The Party teaches us, on the one hand, to regard art as part of the overall
cause of the proletariat, i.e., not to divorce it from ideology, politics, [sociology], ethics and
other forms of social consciousness, and on the other hand, to regard it, also, as a
reflection of the reality with its own specific means, its varied forms, while encouraging the
initiative of creative thought and imagination. Lenin recommends: »All these things are
indisputable, but this only proves that the literary part of the work of the proletarian
party cannot be fitted into the same mould as the other parts of the work of the Party
of the proletariat« [5].
It is true that the artistic level of our creative literary and artistic work has risen, and the
efforts of the writers and artists to cultivate all forms of art and to find fresh means of
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expression have been intensified.
Nevertheless, sometimes a narrow concept of proletarian partisanship is encountered,
giving it the tone of routine agitation. This weakness is more apparent in variety theatre and
plays. In these fields, banality and schematic treatment of the material from life are
observed. In children's literature and some of the poetry published, there are also instances
of the treatment of themes and problems with empty pompous phraseology. In some
instances there are obscure and incomprehensible figures in poetry, a phenomenon which
has been criticized following the 4th Plenum of the CC of the Party.
When we speak about the strengthening of proletarian partisanship, we do not exclude the
demands for a higher artistic level. To raise the artistic level while maintaining proletarian
tendentiousness means to achieve a broad understanding of the problem of proletarian
partisanship, to put art more effectively in the service of people and to democratize it
further.
Alien manifestations, old and new, conservative and liberal, schematic and modernist, are
expressions of the class struggle in the field of artistic form.
The alien influences, manifested in the most complete way prior to the 4th Plenum of the
CC of the Party, were camouflaged at first under the idea of »the quest for forms«. In fact
they were intended to distort the proletarian partisanship and change the proletarian
tendentiousness of our art. All those metamorphoses which the lyrical hero of poetry went
through, for example, »I am a prickly pear«, a »shell«, a »fossil«, and what not, alienated
art and cut it off from the major problems of the time by extinguishing the class spirit of
action. Therefore the task remains to defend the form against the modernist distortions,
which are in fashion today in bourgeois and revisionist literature and art. Form is always
more vulnerable to formalist pressure, to alien creative trends and practices.
In present-day revisionist Soviet criticism, this quest in the field of form has become the
fashion. In his article »The Class Spirit in Literature« (»Znamya«, 1968, N° 2, p. 217), the
well known revisionist Soviet critic, G. Kunitsyn, writes: »Our enemy in art is, of course,
neither Kafka nor any other close to his artistic trend, but in the first place the
various forms of pseudo-realism and naturalism, which unlike Kafka, try to preserve
the truth in details while affirming the overall lie.«
It is clear that the revisionist critic is disturbed neither by Kafka nor by modernism. All these
things are acceptable to him. What worries him is realist art, which he calls »naturalism«. F.
Paçrami, too, was worried only by conservatism, naturalism and schematism, as he
understood them, whereas to him liberalism was not a problem.
Therefore, in order to face up to the great bourgeoisrevisionist ideological pressure and to
keep our art in attacking positions, it is necessary to step up the struggle for the formation
of the revolutionary worldoutlook in the ranks of our writers, artists, scholars and critics.
3. RAISING THE LEVEL OF THE MARXIST-LENINIST WORLD OUTLOOK OF WRITERS
AND ARTISTS
The strengthening of the proletarian partisanship is closely connected with the ability of
each writer and artist to interpret and analyse all the material from life in the spirit of our
Marxist-Leninist ideology. Therefore, in the realization of proletarian partisanship, the world
outlook of the artist himself plays a decisive role. We say this because his world-outlook
determines the direction and the character of the creative work of each artist. For this
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reason every writer and artist should feel that the effort to raise his ideological level is an
objective necessity, because only in this way can the complicated character of the class
struggle be reflected correctly, can the pressure of the alien ideology be coped with and
works of a sound militant spirit of attack be created. At the 7th Congress of the Party,
Comrade Enver Hoxha said, »Those artists who work ceaselessly to raise their
Marxist-Leninist ideological level, who master the teachings of the Party, who lead an
active political life, who are thoroughly immersed in the life of the masses and have a
profound knowledge of the road of the revolutionary historical development of our
people and culture, succeed best in these tasks. Revolutionary art is created by
revolutionary artists whose hearts beat in time with the heartbeat of the people« [6].
These words of Comrade Enver Hoxha clearly express the idea that the Marxist-Leninist
world outlook not only has theoretical importance, but also has great practical activating
force. All our literary and artistic practice, guided by the Party has confirmed the validity of
this idea. Those artists who have thoroughly mastered the Marxist-Leninist world outlook
have always stood in sound positions and have created a militant and partisan art of a high
artistic level. Without mastering the Marxist-Leninist worldoutlook one cannot find one's
bearings in the complicated phenomena of life, cannot disclose the fundamental trends of
the development of our society, from the revolutionary class standpoint. However, the
Marxist-Leninist ideology should not be studied for curiosity's sake, or simply to add to
one's general culture, to be able to answer a question or to display one's ability as an orator
in certain auditoriums. Its study, too, should be tendentious, should pursue an aim. In his
report to the 7th Congress of the Party Comrade Enver Hoxha said: »We do not study
Marxism-Leninism for the sake of erudition. We study it to apply it in life, so that we
are guided by its principles in every action and judge everything in its spirit. Such a
study of theory, closely linked with life and revolutionary practice, serves true
communist moulding, the creation not only of a scientific outlook but also of a
revolutionary character, so that our people will always be resolute fighters for the
cause of socialism, irreconcilable with the enemies and their ideology« [7].
In the documents of our Party, in the Works of Comrade Enver Hoxha, the experience of
the creative application of the general laws and principles of Marxism-Leninism in the
conditions of our country has been reflected and summed up, a synthesis has been made
of the rich experience of the revolution and the practice of socialist construction, and the
struggle against imperialism and revisionism. While gaining a thorough knowledge of
Marxist philosophy, political economy, scientific socialism, of our ethics and aesthetics and
theoretical thinking, our writers and artists must also make themselves better acquainted
with the rich experience of our literature and arts which have developed on a correct
course, according to the principles of socialist realism. This should be done not only by the
writers and artists, but also by all the editors, critics, scholars and cadres who direct the
sectors of art. All books devoid of ideas which are published have first gone through the
hands of the reviewers who have recommended them to the publishers. The second
concession is made by the editors, and the third by the directors of publishing houses
themselves. In all these practices either personal friendship is placed above principles, or
one's world-outlook is insufficiently formed, or ideological vigilance is lax. Two years ago
was published the book »Poets of the Thirties« in which the editor had collected even
writings of authors compromised with the foreign invaders and the antipopular regimes,
writings that were published in the fascist press even in the beginning of the Forties. This
comes also from insufficient study of the documents of the Party over that period, as well as
from a sentimental stand towards the literary and artistic past.
But the revolutionary education and tempering o£ the artists and writers are not achieved
through ideological work alone. It is essential that the party organizations concern
themselves, also, with all the other aspects of the activity for the revolutionization of writers
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and artists, with integrating them into the life of the country and activating them in the
solution of social problems, so that their lives are intensively involved with the political
situations. They must be militant people, people who live with the policy of the Party. At
every moment our artist is a political person in the first place. The policy of the Party gives
the artist the powerful passion and class standpoint so that he can consistently defend its
principles. Nowadays the bourgeois and revisionist theoreticians try either to make the
writers stand aside from revolutionary politics, or to turn them, in general, into people
indifferent towards the problems of society. The aging revisionist Soviet writer, Marietta
Shaginian, in her book »Four Lessons from Lenin«, published in the Soviet Union recently,
counterposes politics to art, as the bourgeois theoreticians have always done. Leafing
through Lenin's correspondence with Gorky [Gorkij], this revisionist author and publicist
writes: »Reading every word of this correspondence, one begins to be aware of how
necessary the shy, withdrawn, stubborn, sensitive, fiery Gorky was to Lenin, who
sharpened up his thoughts on this friendship, on the questions asked by this rough,
different, strange man. The artist was as necessary to the politician as air, food, as
the left foot is necessary to the right foot.« And further: »...I think that had Gorky been
another person, had he not made mistakes in 1908, in 1917, and perhaps more than
once, before and after those dates, Ilych would not have loved him as he did, getting
angry with him, persisting with him, sharpening his thought on the polemic with
him«. (Marietta Shaginian, »Chetyre Uroka u Lenina«, Moscow, 1970, p. 281). These
few lines bring out clearly the monstrous distortion, not only of two great figures of the
proletariat Lenin and Gorky, but also of the Leninist policy of partisanship in art. On the
one hand, the revisionist writer counterposes the artist to the politician, and on the other,
puts Gorky in the role of the entertainer of the leader of the proletariat. Everybody knows
that Lenin did not keep close to Gorky in order to »sharpen his thought« on polemics with
him, but to make him a cofighter and a soldier of the revolution. Moreover, Lenin never
considered Gorky »alien« to the cause of the revolution. What Shaginian says is
shameless fabrication.
The Soviet revisionist theoreticians, guided by their bourgeois world-outlook, are now
coming out openly for the revision of the principle of partisanship, not only in creative
practice but also in theory. In reality they are for partisanship, provided it is revisionist
partisanship. Indeed they have come out with the »theory« that, in the countries with a
bourgeois system, only those writers who are »organized in the communist parties« (read:
revisionist parties) can master this partisanship. We all know that proletarian partisanship is
not only for those artists who are organized in parties. But according to the revisionist
theoreticians this principle should allegedly be reviewed. The revisionist critic, G. Starets,
[writes]: »Thus, in the framework of the bourgeois system, communist partisanship,
as a rule, can be achieved only by those writers who are organizationally linked with
the party«. Hence, according to this theoretician, it emerges that, Gorky and Mayakovsky
[Majakovskij], who, were not party members, allegedly did not achieve partisanship in their
works. True, they did not achieve that revisionist partisanship this theoretician is after!...
The essence of all the modernist and reactionary trends, schools and methods, whether
camouflaged as art »that stands above classes«, or manifested openly, is bourgeois and
revisionist partisanship, which deviously and hypocriticly, but also aggressively, tries to
counterpose itself to proletarian partisanship and socialist realism. Hence, to adhere to
proletarian partisanship today, means to combat the bourgeois and revisionist ideology, to
combat its reactionary world outlook within the country and in the international arena, and to
propagate the line and ideology of the Party tirelessly. Today the revisionist and bourgeois
aesthetes have made decadence, irrationality, the preaching of absurdity, etc., fashionable
throughout the world. Allen Ginzburg, who is well known in the Soviet Union, writes: »Now
all revolutionary ideas and the usual methods of acting on the human consciousness
have become obsolete«.
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Faced with all this ideological chaos and all these reactionary trends that exert fierce
pressure on our life, the struggle to raise the level of the Marxist-Leninist world-outlook of
every writer and artist in all fields of our art is more necessary than ever. As Comrade
Enver Hoxha teaches us: »We must cope with the united front of the enemies by
strengthening our internal front in all directions, in the fields of defence and the
economy, politics and ideology, always consistently waging the class struggle« [8].
The formation of the artist's world-outlook plays a major role, not only in strengthening the
content of his creative work, but also in his treatment of many theoretical problems that face
our arts in the party spirit. The confusion which sometimes arises over the question of the
national character, tradition, innovation, etc., also stems from inadequate Marxist-Leninist
formation.
The problems of the national character of art at the present time cannot be dealt with simply
as academic analyses, because they are important political and ideological problems which
are subject to class tendenciousness and proletarian partisanship. The reflection of special
national features, and the national character in general, in art cannot be divorced from the
class struggle and history. One of the most distinctive and active elements which expresses
the national character is the patriotism of the artist himself, the originality of this patriotism
which he finds among his own people. With their impudence devoid of all principles, the
Soviet revisionists do everything they can to hit out directly or indirectly at the patriotism of
our people in their publications and translations from bourgeois artistic and political
literature. Recently in Moscow was published L. Mosley's book »Time lost«, where among
other things, the English author says: »On April 7th, the Duce dispatched his naval ships to
the port of Durrës and occupied the whole of Albania without meeting resistance« (L.
Mosley, »Time Lost«, Russ. edition, 1972; p. 219). This is an ill-intentioned distortion of the
history which cynically hurts the patriotic feelings of our people. Everybody knows that on
April 7th, 1939, our people, although betrayed by Zog and the feudal-bourgeois regime,
fought heroically to defend their land and honour against the fascist invaders.
Our literature and arts have found their patriotism in the very life of our people. This reality
has given our arts their national tone and colour. Therefore, the national character of art
assists directly to increase its educative power, with its love of country, its feeling of civic
responsibility and its militant character. Hence, we come to the conclusion that the question
of the national character is closely linked with the ideological leanings and the world-outlook
of the artist, is closely linked with his partisanship. The ideology and world-outlook of the
artists also determine his concept of patriotism and his reflection of the national character in
art. Gjergj Fishta wrote in the Albanian language, was a master of the octosyllabic verse,
portrayed the originality of life in our Highlands, drew on folk songs, but his ideology and
world-outlook were reactionary because they were an expression of the interests of the
anti-democratic and obscurantist exploiting classes. Even a reactionary writer may use
national elements such as folk customs, traditional dress and headwear and popular
phraseology, but he cannot be a patriot and a man of the people because he lacks the
progressive ideological trend which is determined by his world-outlook. For this reason we
say that the national character of an artist is linked with the popular spirit of his work, which
stems from his treatment of the major problems of the life of the people. And the highest
form of expression of the popular spirit is proletarian partisanship, the quintessence of class
tendentiousness. Proletarian partisanship places art completely in the service of socialism,
in the service of the communist education of man, while protecting it against
cosmopolitanism and other antinational trends.
The insistence on the strengthening of the national character and the popular spirit in our
literature and arts is linked directly with the requirements of the development of the class
struggle in literary and artistic work. The socialist realism of our art is in open struggle
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against the ideology of the two superpowers the United States of America and the Soviet
Union, which, proceeding from their expansionist intentions, are doing their utmost to divest
the cultures of peoples of their national character and to make them cosmopolitan. For this
reason the defence and the strengthening of the national character is not simply a question
of aesthetics, but a question of political principle and of world-outlook in the arena where
class struggle is waged. That is why, at the 7th Congress of the Party, Comrade Enver
Hoxha takes both the national character and the popular spirit as inseparable from the
positions of the Marxist-Leninist ideology, the class standpoint, proletarian partisanship.
Dealing with the three cardinal problems of our arts: proletarian partisanship, the national
character, and the popular spirit, all inter-connected with one another dialectically, he
comes to the conclusion: »The national character and the popular spirit are
expressed through the truthful reflection of reality, from the standpoint of MarxistLeninist ideology...« [9].
It is from this angle that the revolutionary artist or writer of the new type should see his task
as a creator and a citizen. Only through a sound ideological moulding can works with a high
proletarian partisanship, with a clear national character and a thoroughly popular spirit, be
created.
[Noter er sidst på denne internetside]
»Albania today« Nr. 2/1983. The article is reprinted of historical reasons, BA
LITERATURE AND ARTS TOWARDS A NEW QUALITATIVE LEAP
by Dritëro Agolli
Chairman of the League of Writers and Artists of Albania
Socialism and its reflection in art enliven and refresh the cells of literary artistic
creation
OUR LITERATURE AND ARTS HAVE BECOME AN IMPORTANT FACTOR OF SOCIAL
INFLUENCE BECAUSE THEY HAVE FOCUSSED ON THE ACTIVITY OF THE PEOPLE,
THEIR HISTORY, THE SOCIALIST REVOLUTION, THE DAY-TO-DAY WORK AND
PROBLEMS AND THE BATTLE FOR THE TRIUMPH OF THE IDEALS OF COMMUNISM.
THEY PLAY NOW A GREAT ROLE IN THE FORMATION OF THE WORLD OUTLOOK OF
PEOPLE, THE ENRICHMENT OF THEIR SPIRITUAL WORLD AND THE DEVELOPMENT
OF SOCIAL OPINION. PROCEEDING FROM THEIR ROLE IN SOCIETY, AS THEY
TREAT CARDINAL PROBLEMS OF SOCIALISM, WE ALSO SPEAK OF
CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE AND ART, THE GREAT VALUES WHICH SOCIALISM,
ON ITS ROAD OF CONSTRUCTION, HAS CREATED. THEREFORE, AT ITS 8TH
CONGRESS THE PARTY OF LABOUR OF ALBANIA MADE A HIGH ASSESSMENT OF
LITERATURE AND ART, OPENED UP BROAD HORIZONS AND SET IMPORTANT
TASKS TO ALL THE CREATIVE FORCES OF THE COUNTRY.
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This assessment is based on the reality of the artistic and literary creations of recent years
and their process of development. They have some features which distinguish them from
those of the previous periods. Among them we can mention:
The enrichment of art in content and form, which results from the strengthening of the
socialist spirit, is a process which must be further deepened. The socialist spirit is felt in the
broader reflection of presentday life, as a consequence of the ever growing interest of the
creative forces in the great variety of themes and problems presented by the socialist
reality. This spirit is also seen in the works of art treating problems from the historical past
and the National Liberation War.
Another feature is that a more correct ratio has been established between themes from life
in socialist society and the historical past, although some problems still remain in this field.
However, it must be said that life, its acute problems, the uplift of the cultural level of
people, the all-round development of their personality and the extension of the frontiers of
their knowledge exercise a powerful pressure on artistic creativeness which must turn its
attention more towards life and establish a more correct ratio between themes from the
present and from earlier history.
An important feature is that the literary and artistic activity has assumed extensive
development in all its kinds and genres: literature, cinematography, theatre, figurative arts,
music and choreography. Let us take an example from literature. From the year 1976 to the
end of 1980 we have seen 996 titles, published, of which 128 novels. The League of
Writers and Artists has swelled its ranks to include 1,500 members and candidate
members, apart from hundreds of new talent and thousands of amateurs. An activity of
such unprecedented proportions is bound to yield valuable works that enrich the treasury of
literature and art.
In the field of more recent creativeness worth mentioning is the ever growing preoccupation
of the writers and artists about their own ideological, aesthetic and cultural formation. This
the creativeness of each of them. In their creative process they have thrashed out problems
of art content and form, discussed principles and methods of the developing socialist
revolution. Some questions of the deepening of the socialist spirit and national originality
are treated far more extensively than several years before and the cultural and professional
level of writers and artists is in constant rise. From a rapid excursion into the literature and
art of the recent period we notice undeniable achievements which make us optimistic about
the perspective of artistic production. However, considering literature and the arts from the
heights of the 8th Congress of the Party, we find ourselves faced with many problems, the
correct solution of which will quicken the transition to a new qualitative leap in literary and
artistic activity.
***
The demands of our society for higher quality in literature and art are not unattainable,
abstract ones. Quality is not the result of a simple addition of expression means used in the
process of creation, but the result of a whole development connected with the world outlook
of the writer or artist, his truthful, though artistic, reflection of the essence of the life of the
people in socialist society and in the historical past. When we lay the stress on a more
complete reflection of life, this means that we have to go deeper into it, because it is
precisely in the great socialist reality that phenomena and problems are more acute and
their reflection calls for a high artistic level in literature and the arts. We live in the socialist
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reality and when we see it reflected in art, we immediately feel both the beaty of the artistic
work and its faults. Conversely, in a book reflecting the past, the reader does not notice its
faults so easily, since he is attracted by the plot, by what is romantic and exotic in it. On the
other hand, in reflecting the past we have gained an experience from both national and
international sources. Here come into play our great teachers, the classics, with their works.
The reflection of the past lacks the acute problems of the present reality in which we live
and with which we are confronted every day. In the works treating problems of the
presentday reality there is the invariable difficulty of coping with a complex reality, with
complex phenomena which demand an allround ideological, cultural and aesthetic
formation.
True art is tendentious, since without being tendentious the artist cannot defend his views
and fight for his lofty aims. Engels is quite outspoken about the problem of tendentious
ness. Speaking in favour of this feature of progressive art, he says: »I think that
tendentiousness should emanate from the milieu and from action, that we must not
overstress it, and that the writer is not compelled to provide the reader with readymade
historical solutions to the social conflicts which he depicts.« [10]
Cut and dried treatments of problems have overdoses of tendentiousness, expressed
through pompous-sounding phrases. The use of pompous phrases necessarily demands
the squeezing of all ideas and principles of a manifesto in to one work, however small it
may be. A manifestation of schemtic phraseologism is the polishing and embellishment of
the reality, the idealization of the hero and the milieu. Schematism is sometimes
responsible for the harm caused to generally positive works of writers of talent an literary
experience, preventing them from going to the end of the conflict or leading them to shifting
the main stress from the principal to the trivial.
Our literature and arts, in the first place, point out the new phenomena in life, but they also
stigmatize everything which inhibits their development; they exalt the bold builders of
socialism, the working people, the peasants and the intellectuals: the main place in them is
occupied by the positive hero while enemies, traitors, scribblers, creepers and individualists
are made the target of stern criticism. Our society is strong, and with the struggle it wages
against every difficulty and inhibiting phenomena it becomes even more so. The
atmosphere in our society is so healthy that even the extreme individualist finds it hard to
act freely. One of the missions of socialist arts is to educate moral fortitude, therefore it
finds such heroes as try to live up to their own ideals. Such heroes may even look
unsensational, unglamorous. We have works which reflect such heroes. The main tendency
in such works is: the ordinary man harbors in himself lofty moral virtues, which, when
revealed in dramatic moments, shine in all their human splendour.
Today even the greatest artist must develop and enrich his means of expression, otherwise
time, discards him. This development of structures and forms we see from the vantage
point of Marxist-Leninist aesthetics, without separating it from its content. Marx says: »Form
is devoid of all value if it is not the form of the content.« [11] The new does not lie in the
form, but in the personality of the artist, in his world outlook. This personality and outlook
can make form advance and break off with routine.
These, in turn, have to do with artistic skill, without which literarism and schematism cannot
be combat through to the end. »To take up the theme of the day, to write about the positive
hero, the socialist reality, etc is not enough. This alone, without artistic skill, cannot arouse
emotion, cannot educate on inspire you for the present and the future.« [12]
I want to stress that we must make more efforts in this direction, aware that any superficial
reflection of life in socialist society is a hangover of the past and as such is alien to the
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method of socialist realism.
A more thorough reflection of the socialist society requires from writers and artists a more
comprehensive understanding of the themes of present times. The theme of the day in our
literature and arts has two broad aspects: that which reflects the National Liberation War
and that which reflects the period of the socialist construction of the country. These two
aspects constitute one single theme, completing each other, and being treated with growing
maturity in our literature and arts. Sometimes by actual themes peoples understand themes
of the day or the moment, day-to-day events and momentary achievements of individuals of
collectives. Actual themes are something else. They are major events in the life of society,
events which form the background of major moments. Art is the generalization of events
and the destiny of man in dramatic and important moments of history. It portrays our time,
our hard struggle and work, the great transformations of our society, our socialist advance
in town and countryside. First and formost, it exalts man. Our literature and arts have now
gained a rich experience in the reflection of the man of our time, the man of the socialist
ideals. Even though our literature and arts have made a great contribution to the reflection
of the man of our time, of his work in the construction of the new society, even though they
have reflected the great epoch of socialism, [there] are still many shortcomings in the
observation of the processes of development of socialism and the new phenomena of life.
In many cases they treat only the simpler processes of development, the day-to-day
manifestations of life, without going deeper into them, therefore there must be an extension
of the gamut of themes in literature and the arts so that they comprehend with greater depth
and variety all our socialist life. Compared with the rates of transformation of society and
the psychology of people, artistic creativeness, as an ideological and aesthetic
phenomenon, lags behind, if it fails to take account of life which changes rapidly. Our
literature and arts will make a qualitative leap only if they find their nourishment in real life.
This will ensure them a broader range of themes. Here lies the special importance of
contemporary themes for literature and the arts in the present stage of the development of
our society.
Phsychological insights is imperative especially for the works of prose and drama, which
reflect the emergence and growth of the new man. In poetry, a more profound content will
relieve it more and more of rhetorical and declamatory elements, while reaffirming its lyrical
and epic elements in the artistic analysis and expression of the spiritual world of man. The
rnanysided reflection of life in socialist society gives new features to the national character
of literature and the arts. Since socialism is built in a given country and in special historical
conditions, literature and art which reflect this process must have their own original
features. Our literature, its content and form, are closely connected with the national way of
life, with the economic, political and cultural peculiarities of the country, with the spiritual
formation of people and the entire history of the nation. The national originality of the writer
is clearly reflected in his work, in its content and its means of expression, in its general spirit
and its [style].
One of the most distinguishing and most active features, which express the national
character of our artistic creativeness, is the patriotic spirit of the writer and the originality of
this patriotism. A genuine writer [is] a patriot who fights for the advance of his country. His
patriotism is conspicuous in all his work, down to the tiniest detail, even in the manner in
which the home landscape is depicted. But the reflection of national peculiarities and the
national character, in general, cannot be achieved in isolation from the class struggles and
from history. The question of the national character in the creative activity of the writer is
closely linked with his ideological tendentiousness. The ideological positition of the writer
determines the degree of his patriotism and the national character of his production. The
reactionary writer, the collaborator with the fascists, Father Gjergj Fishta, wrote in
Albanian was a past master of the octametre, expressed the originality of the Albanian
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milieu, made skilful use of popular songs, but his ideological tendency was antipopular,
because it represented the interests of the exploiting, anti-democratic and obscurantist
classes. The national character and originality of Fishta set him apart from the reactionary
writers of other countries, but his reactionary ideological tendency united him with them.
With the English writer and poet Kipling the national character is expressed in his
descriptions of the presentday adventurous colonizer who enslaves the peoples. In the
present-day Albanian writer the national character is revealed in his patriotism, in his love of
country, in his struggle for the construction of socialism and in his internationalist spirit. The
assesment of the national element in the creativeness of a writer is connected with the
popular spirit of his production. A work of popular spirit is one which expressed, to a high
degree, the progressive interests and aims of the people, which is accessible to the people,
both in content and form. The popular spirit is expressed when the writer takes up problem
from life which have great importance for the entire people. Without a popular spirit the
national character cannot be expressed. The highest form of expression of the popular spirit
in art is proletarian partisanship, the very essence of class tendentiousness, the ideology of
the working class. Proletarian partisanship places art in the service of socialism, in the
service of the communist education of the man. Socialism fully expresses the interests of
the peoples. Therefore, socialist art is profoundly popular. The national character is not [an]
unchangeable category. It develops with the advance of society and assumes ever new
features. The more complete reflection of life will further enrich it and the arts will gain ever
new originality.
Socialism and its reflection in art enliven and refresh the cells of literary-artistic creation.
The problem today is not that we have few works of art which treat the socialist reality in all
its diverse aspects. We have many productions of literature, cinematography and the
figurative arts which deal with its problems. But many of them do not treat the fundamental
aspects of this reality.
The writer feels that he is one of the builders of socialism, that he is responsible for his
social mission, therefore, in the work he produces he exalts the epoch in which he lives.
Great aesthetic pleasure is derived from great artistic inventions. Trivial [inventions] are
bound to arouse small aesthetic pleasure.
For a more complete reflection of life in socialist society it is absolutely necessary to protect
literature and art against liberalism. Without a ceaseless struggle against liberalism in art
there can be no pure content and vanguard form. With the development and consolidation
of the method of socialist realism, the struggle against bookish prejudices and abstract
treatment of problems, against a lifeless, phrase-mongering and schematic reflection of the
reality, grows fiercer, and together with it, the offensive against liberalism in art grows more
extensive. The method of socialist realism is against any scheme, conservative or liberal.
This method is in continuous development, and it is against its nature to accept petrified
forms which inhibit its progress and suffocate its innovatory research. However, negation of
schematism does toy no means imply that we must forget the struggle against liberal
stands which are reflected in the form of the alien influences. We do not wage the struggle
against schematism in order to tone down, even in the slightest, our struggle against
liberalism. On the contrary rejection of schematism creates a smothering atmosphere for
liberalism as well. Nevertheless, liberal stands and alien influences always constitute a
threat to literature and the arts, therefore, opposition to them and irreconcilable struggle
with them are on the order of the day for every writer and artist.
In works treating contemporary themes liberalism ignores the typical and the realistic
reflection of our life, disregards its main stream and takes up some blemish of our society,
exaggerating it out of all proportion and generalizing it. It is quite a different thing from
literature treating the shortcomings of a society and submitting them [to] a stern trial
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proceeding from the positions of the interests of the people. In the literature of socialist
realism characters polemize, affirm and negate, and those who make mistakes and crimes
are criticized and condemned for the sake of the triumph of lofty ideals.
Our literary and artistic experience shows that time and again we have had to cope with
distortions in different genres. They have been more outrageous in poetry, in which they
manifested themselves especially in strange figures, in incoherent, illogical and foggy
verses, etc. Liberalism in poetry sometimes manifests itself in the irregularity of
versification, in the obliteration of the frontiers between the prose and the poetry, etc. It also
manifests itself in mannerisms as a pretended originality of expression.
In the world today there is a confusion of all sorts of trends and tendencies in literature, art
and philosophy, which have debased all intellectual values, both in the West and in the
East. This is connected with the cultural expansion undertaken by the United States of
America and the Soviet Union together with their satellite countries. This expansion through
literature and art, which is the official policy of the two superpowers, is a source of decay,
degeneration, crime, scandal and bestiality. There is an entire industry of words, colours
and sounds, which, although ramified in literary and artistic trends, schools and [styles],
boils down to one and the same thing: literature and art are used as a drug against human
consciousness, a drug against what is truly human. Revived and popularized in a new garb,
Freud's subjectivist and idealist theories, especially his theories on sex and its role as a
stimulus in literature and the arts, have become widespread today. Not less widespread are
Freud's theories of dreams and their interpretation, on the line dividing dreams from the
reality, implying that this line should be almost imperceptible in literary works, which will
only gain from this approach. In his book »Dream Interpretation« [Freud] writes: »The
dream represents the (hidden) reality of the (suppressed) desire«. According to him, the
treatment of dreams in art is very important, because through them the artist expresses his
hidden and suppressed desires. Therefore, both in the West and in the East there are
thousands of novels in which it is hard to distinguish between the world of dreams and the
world of reality. This only confuses the art consumer.
Gangsters and egotists, sadists and narcissists are the protagonists of Western and
Eastern literature. Western literary criticism says that the narcissist of modern times is a
man without ideals, indifferent to all problems and preoccupations. All the important
questions are confined within the cell of his own self.
Bent on cultural and artistic expansion, capitalism and revisionism spread degenerate forms
and structures. The degree of degeneration of the forms of art, especially poetry, which
according to the bourgeois aesthetes is the form of modern times, is well known. We have
closed our doors to this sort of poetry and this sort of forms, and will keep them closed for
ever.
Our literature and arts, by raising their qualitative level, and by strengthening and perfecting
their form, are in a position to defend themselves better from any negative influence, while
on the other hand, heightening their authority with the reader. With this we make our
modest contribution to world literature. Our literature and arts have achieved important
successes also in their affirmation before the international public. They have more and
more attracted its attention and have been positively assessed by progressive people, who
find in them not only progressive ideas, a sound realistic spirit, but also democratic and
human spirit unlike the decadent and reactionary spirit of modern bourgeois and revisionist
art.
Our culture, with its present qualitative level, is a culture rich in vital elements which is in a
position to convey its own values and takes from world literature and art whatever is
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progressive, human and revolutionary. The struggle against liberalism and alien influences
does not shut us away or isolate us from world culture, on the contray, it makes us better
able to appropriate it in a dialectical manner. We continuously translate works of the
progressive literature created by mankind in the centuries. We have translations of most
classics, from Homer to modern authors. And we shall continue to translate more works of
the world literary treasure, works with valuable content and from.
The literature created in Kosova is widely read in our country. Almost all the Kosova writers
have been published by the »Naim Frashëri« Publishing House in Albania and they are
popular with our readers, writers and artists. It is a literature in development, a literature
with patriotic feelings and progressive ideas, which discloses genuine aesthetic values to
the reader. Genuine literature and art of the same trunk cannot be isolated, no matter how
hard the Titoite illwishers and chauvinists may try. They will spread constantly and will have
thousands and thousands of readers and wellwishers. They, too, play their role in our
culture, in its enrichment and qualitative development. Whenever we speak of Albanian
literature and art we cannot be silent about the important part of it which is created in
Kosova in the same language and with an indubitable national originality.
***
One of the demands on literature and arts about quality is connected with the general issue
of the ratio of themes from the present and the past. Certainly, this ratio cannot be gauged
simply by arithmetical methods or percentages. Nevertheless, the general, the average can
be easily traced out if literary and artistic processes are attentively analysed. The ratio of
themes in general, is correct.
Certainly, we shall continue to write about our historical past and the period of antiquity,
because works taking up such themes carry an actual note and educate patriotic and
aesthetic feelings, educate people to be proud of their nation, and enrich literature and art.
In his report to the 8th Congress of the Party, speaking about the importance of the themes
drawn from history, Comrade Enver Hoxha stresses: »But the development of literature
and art is inconceivable without the broadest reflection of the great surge of life and
presentday reality in the novels, poems, films and musical and figurative arts. By basing
themselves firmly on the reality in which we live, by reflecting it extensively, literature and
the arts will also be able to reflect the past better, more correctly and at a higher ideoartistic level.« [13]
The writer is a vital social element, is the contemporary of his own epoch. Should he grope
about in history and record its stages and periods as a pedantic historian? No! History, of
course, aids him to see better and more clearly into the present which lives, fights and
seethes around him. The present reality also gives historical themes some of its actual
note. This has great importance. History provides facts and themes. But facts and themes
remain lifeless without problems and the actual note. It is in this dialectical relation that
themes from history find their vitality.
The ever growing interest in the themes of the earlier life of our people and their history is
favoured by some factors existing in our socialist society today. With the development of
socialism in Albania with the raising of the general level of culture, with the advance of
education, science, literature and the arts and with the ever better assimilation of
knowledge and the Marxist-Leninist theory, the demands of people to know more about
their past, their ethnic development, their spiritual values, the treasury of their folklore and
legends, their wars and struggles for freedom and the independence of the country, have
increased and imposed themselves as an absolute necessity. A consolidated and mature
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society want to know everything possible. This is true of man, too. When he grows up and
matures his curiosity increases, and he wants to know about his origin, is interested about
his forefathers, about their life and struggles. On the other hand, the pressure of [alien]
bourgeois and revisionist ideologies on our country has become fiercer. The enemies, in
fighting socialism which is built under the leadership of our Party, in fighting MarxismLeninism in general, have gone over to the offensive also against our historical past and the
spiritual values of our people. And this induces us to given them their answer in our own
language and reveal the truth to the world. But there is another factor, too. Our sociological
and historical sciences have now reached a certain stage of development and facts have
come to light in greater numbers than a few years before. Consequently, literature and the
arts have a richer material to handle and reflect in their creativeness. Certainly there are
shortcomings, there are also cases of a superficial [approach] to the reflection of the past
and history, but the main trend is positive, has yielded fruit and will continue to do so. What
is required now is that themes drawn from history should be reflected according to the
requirements of the conscious writer and not by way of imitating the successful work of
other authors. Besides we must bear in mind the ratio between the themes and guard
against disproportions. We will continue to reflect history and handle themes from history.
There are moments in life in which this is important, like this year when we celebrated the
70th anniversary of the Proclamation of Independence. On this occasion, historical themes
occupy an important place and carry a strong actual note which is necessary in every
historical work.
Almost all our arts have treated life in the past society in all its contradictions, with its
progressive movements and social revolts. This is especially true about the recent years
when history has been seen in its different aspects.
It is only natural to stress that one of the main places in our literature and art is occupied by
themes from the National Liberation War, which also are treated at the highest artistic level.
However, in themes of the National Liberation War, too, the time has come to go over to a
new qualitative leap and do away with a certain monotony in the handling of characters,
heroes and milieus.
Today and in the future the National Liberation War is and will be a major theme for our
writers. Interest in and reflection of this period will always be growing. However, along with
the growing interest in its reflection, there should be more profound study of written and live
documents so that the works treating these themes should always be truthful to history.
***
A special feature of our society is that cultivated art develops together with popular art, with
folklore and the creativeness of the amateur movement. This phenomenon has its
originality and gives the arts their freshness and impels them to further development. Our
folklore does not remain shut up in museums and cultural institutions. It is there, out in the
streets and on the stages. It is assimilated and kept alive by ordinary people, who create it,
and by the artists. It is given a powerful impulse at the local and regional folkore festivals,
an especially at the National Festival of Folklore in Gjirokastra, in which the great talent of
the people manifests itself without restraint. From this inexhaustible source inspire
themselves our composers and poets, our critics and scholars, our journalists and writers,
our singers and dancers. So the impact of this art is powerful and makes its contribution to
the advancement of artistic and cultural creativeness.
Viewing the problem from a general point of view, the ratio between cultivated art and
popular art is correct. However, we must bear in mind that this ratio should be constantly
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maintained and no disproportions allowed.
And here three questions emerge: first, detachment of cultivated art from popular art is
harmful; second, putting the equalizer between them is unacceptable; third, mechanical
imitation of popular art should be avoided.
There have been harmful tendencies of bitter consequences, especially at the end of the
60's and in the beginning of the 70's, before the 4th Plenum of the CC of the Party in 1973,
when people of liberal tendencies tried to detach our music from popular art, because,
according to them, this connection only prevented the development of new forms. We felt
the dangerous consequences of this trend in our songs, until it reached its culmination in
the llth Radio and Television Song Festival in 1972. The dialectical relationship, between
cultivated art and folklore must necessarily be maintained in music because it gives it that
unrivalled national originality which cannot be found in other forms.
Trying to equalize cultivated art with popular art, making this equalization paramount in the
creativeness of the writer or the artist, only dampens down their creative and demanding
spirit, petrifies artistic and cultural creativeness, in the first place, in music, turning it into a
mere derivative of folklore and preventing the development of all the forms of music - the
opera, ballet, symphony and song, thereby creating an anachronic monotoy and uniformity
which is alien to socialism. Tendencies towards this equalization hsve manifested
themselves time and again in recent years, especially in songs and dances.
In recent years there have been manifestations of mechanical imitation of popular art,
especially in the field of music. The art of the people is as magnificent as nature itself.
Folklore will continue to be cultivated and the amateur movement developed. The
development of folklore should not be contained, in order to maintain a correct ratio
between it and cultivated art. On the contrary, cultivated art should rise towards its heights,
and never say to folklore: Wait, I cannot keep in step with you! Wait, otherwise the ratio is
upset!
»Albania today« Nr. 1/1984. The article is reprinted of historical reasons, BA
SOME FEATURES OF THE ALBANIAN NOVEL
by Dritëro Agolli
Chairman of the Writers and Artists' League of Albania
Albanian writers have always asked themselves: does the content of their works
respond to the tasks the country is solving, the economic, social, ideological and
political tasks our socialist state has to cope with? That is why they have not allowed
themselves to be attracted by petty ordinary themes, but by the great theme of the
revolution and the building of the new society
THE NOVEL EMERGED RATHER LATE ON THE HORIZON OF THE ALBANIAN
LITERATURE. WHEN THE ALBANIAN WRITERS BEGAN TO WRITE NOVELS IN THEIR
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MOTHER TONGUE, THIS GENRE OF LITERATURE HAD EMERGED AND REACHED
ITS COMPLETE MATURITY CENTURIES AGO IN EUROPE. THE DEVELOPMENT OF
THE EUROPEAN NOVEL, WITH ITS PEAKS IN FRANCE, BRITAIN, RUSSIA AND
OTHER COUNTRIES, COULD NOT GO UNNOTICED BY THE ALBANIAN WRITERS OF
OUR NATIONAL RENAISSANCE, BECAUSE THEY WERE CULTURED PEOPLE WITH
BROAD INTERESTS. BUT AT THAT TIME, IN THE 19th CENTURY, THE NOVEL COULD
NOT BE WRITTEN IN ALBANIA, BECAUSE THE ALBANIAN LANGUAGE STILL HAD
NOT ITS OWN ALPHABET; THE ILLITERATE PEOPLE WERE LANGUISHING UNDER
THE YOKE OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE, THE MEN OF LETTERS HAD TO SOLVE
MORE IMMEDIATE PROBLEMS CONCERNING THE AWAKENING OF THE NATIONAL
AWARENESS BY MEANS OF POLITICAL AND TEACHING PAMPHLETS, POEMS AND
ARTICLES, ASSEMBLIES AND OPEN AGITATION, ORGANIZATION AND DIRECTION
OF THE PATRIOTIC MOVEMENT, WITH PLEASANT READERS FOR THE PUPILS, AND
SO ON.
It is true that, at that time, the gap left by the lack of the novel was filled to some extent by
the poems and poetry which were composed in the form of a long narrative with a fable and
characters. The poet De Rada, for example, published the long poem, »The Songs of
Milosao« in 1863, which may be called the first novel in verse of the Albanian literature.
Nevertheless, we still cannot speak of the novel in the true sense of the word. At that time
in place of the novel we had narratives about the popular fighters, legends about
extraordinary events and supernatural heroes, rhapsodies about the valiant knights and the
songs to heroes. Just as we today have the radio novel, at that time they had the long
stories of their grandfathers and grandmothers, which were transmitted by word of mouth.
Our grandmother and grandfathers were George Sand and Dumas. This was the craddle
in which the future Albanian novel was rocked, though not on paper, a novel which, even
when it was born, would always retain a tinge of the strange narrative of our grandmothers
and grandfathers.
The history of the Albanian novel has some specific phenomena which it would be of
interest to mark out. The theme of our history was treated by European novelists even
before Albanian writers took it up. In the 16th century the Italian Antonio Posenti was
attracted by the figure of Skanderbeg and wrote his novel »Terror of the Turks« in 1548.
Later, in 1644, the French writers Y. Chevreau wrote »Scanderbeg«, just as his
contemporary I. Chevier did in 1732 writing the novel »Scanderbeg or the Adventures of
the Albanian Prince«. The figure of Skanderbeg and later that of Ali Pasha of Tepelena
attracted the attention of many European writers of the 19th century, of whom we may
mention the Englishman G. Lodlow who wrote »The Captain of the Jenissaries«, the Italian
A. Gioconda (»Scanderbeg«), the Pole T. Jeszi »About Life« and many others. Our men
of culture, who had been formed in schools abroad, or who lived in emigration, were glad
that the European writers found an inspiration in the Albanian history and life and used the
Albanian material to write novels and stories, but, at the same time, they could not but be
sorry that they could not do themselves what the foreigners were doing. At this point,
another important phenomenon in the history of our novel occurred. At the time when the
Albanian theme was cultivated by foreign writers, the Albanian writers began to write their
novels in foreign languages, on the local material of their own country. Without doubt, these
no veils are the fruit of the labour of beginners, but they are important for our culture. The
first novel of this kind was that written by Sami Frashëri, »Telat's Love for Fitnet«,
published in Turkish in 1872, for which he based himself on the works of Göte [Goethe],
Hugo and Lamartine, who, as he admits: »sang to true love, truth, freedom and humanity
instead of religious fanaticism«. However, the most valuable work written by the Albanian
writers in a foreign language is Pashko Vasa's »Bardha of Temal«, written in French and
published in Paris in 1890 under the penname of Albanus Albano. The novel reflects
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aspects of the Albanian life in the past century through the vicissitudes of two young lovers
at the time of the Ottoman rule. The writer emphasizes the pride and valiance of the
Albanians, their customs and noble virtues, without overlooking the serious social ulcers
such as the blood feud, fanaticism, religious strife and the deplorable state of the Albanian
women.
It is true that the novels written in a foreign tongue by our writers could have no great
response among the readers abroad and were read at a relatively late time in Albania.
Nevertheless, they prepared the ground for the emergence of the true Albanian novel. At
the beginning of the 20th century, when shortstory writers began to appear and some books
by foreign writers were translated, the first novels in the Albanian language were published.
The year 1913 saw the publication of the novel of Ndoc Nikaj, Betrothed from the Cradle
or Ulqin Captured" and »Shkodra Besieged«. Before he turned to the novel, the writer had
published some historical studies written in a narrative vein. Since 1902 he had published
the bocks »The History of Albania« and »The History of Turkey«. In 1914 Zef Harapi
published the historical novel, »The Traitor's Rifle«, and in the period 1909-1919 Foqion
Postoli published »For the Defence of the Homeland« and »The Flower of Souvenir«.
The first novels in Albanian were, thus, written in the second decade of our century, in the
period 1913-1920, which is the time of our national independence. It was a period charged
with dramatic tension and full of heroic events, in which the destiny of Albania was decided.
Albania, which had just won its independence and was liberated from the five hundred-year
old yoke of the Ottoman Empire, became the token of barter for the big imperialist powers
and was in danger of being partitioned by its neighbours, Serbia, Greece and Italy. The
reactionary governments of the neighbouring countries, aided and abbetted by the
imperialist states, and encited by a savage traditional chauvinism swooped on the Albanian
territories, committing unexampled attrocities. In these turbulent times which stenched of
blood, which were full of threats to and dangers for the national existence, the true popular
patriotism and heroic spirit stood out in full splendour. Precisely in this period the first
Albanian novelists emerged in the arena of the Albanian literature. Therefore, they placed in
the centre of their novels the spirit of patriotism and the Albanian drama of the time, the
theme of the defence of the land and honour, the theme of the enhancement of the national
awareness. The first steps of our novel were taken right in the ashes and ambers of the
burned down houses, in the devastated fields and ruined villages. The first novels may lack
some of the perfection and lustre which come from mastery and style, they lack
psychological insight, spiritual struggle and meditation, but they are full of the pathos and
total involvement in the patriotic movement, which is the main characteristic of these novel.
We pointed out this because the patriotic movement set the tone to the political struggle,
the life of the country, culture, literature and the whole superstructure. In Europe the novel
is the creation, of the bourgeoisie, of that new class which wanted transformations in the
social life, which wanted new forms in art. The novel of that time in Europe reflected the
social life, analysed the society and centered on the personality of the man. In various
manners and forms it reflected the class struggle of that time. Whereas our novel, which
developed in its own specific conditions, could not make the analysis of society, but
reflected only the patriotic movement of the time and the clash of the democratic and
progressive sections of the population with the foreign occupiers. Our novel would tackle
social problems and study the personality of the man at a much later period, in the 30's of
this century, wdth the generation of new novelists such as Haki Stërmilli with his novel »If I
Were a Boy«, and Sterjo Spasse with »Why?«. They tried to reflect the difficulties of the
man against the background of the obscurantist regime of Ahmet Zog, the suppression and
curb on the personality of the man and, especially, of the Albanian woman. Poetry and the
short story were working on same lines at that time.
Despite the efforts of our progressive writers, our novel remained almost at the initial phase.
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It marked only little progress and its forms were naive. It was perfected as a genre after the
National Liberation War in the conditions of the new socialist society. It was raised to higher
levels by such novelists as Sterjo Spasse, Jakov Xoxa, Fatmir Gjata, Ali Abdihoxha,
and later by writers of the younger generation such as Ismail Kadare, Dhimiter Xhuvani,
Sabri Godo, Teodor Laço, Skënder Drini and others. The novels of these writers who are
well-known in our country, treat the themes of the socialist revolution and the past of our
people, the new social life and its problems, the man and his personality. The new novels
reveal the national life through the clash of views, the world out-look and ideas of the
characters, in conformity with the aims of the author and his social and aesthetic ideal. The
success of the novel of Ismail Kadare, »The Great Winter«, lies precisely in the strength of
ideas and views, the new psychology and morality of the characters and in the manner in
which the problem is raised and solved: Will the communist ideals and progress win in a
complicated situation? The answer is in the affirmative, but the road is long. The dialectic of
the morality and psychology of the central character, Besnik, speaks of the difficulty and
complexity of the situation, the turbid situations and clarity, the dilemma and the resolve
which lead ham to conquer his own weaknesses for the sake of the great cause. This
dialectical clash of the ideas in complex situations is not realized through a simple narrative.
The narrator is something different from the true novelist. The former narrates the feats of
his heroes, the foolish acts of the stupid, the stratagems of the cunny. Whereas the novelist
uses the narrative in order to reveal something else, to reveal the history of man in the
given conditions of society.
Characteristic of our novel are high-tensioned events full of contrasts and ups and downs
like the barbarian hordes which swept the country and were routed, which temporarily won
and then lost; events like the patriots' bands or the partisan detachments in the gorges and
valleys of the country; events like the craggy mountains and the narrow plains of Albania.
The plot of our novel is frequently interrupted and its characters wait impatiently for time to
end. It is like the Albanian landscape with little scape for endless voyages. It is no
landscape for the characters travelling for months on end across steppes and deserts. In
our landscape all travel comes up against a mountain. And there are inns and innkeepers,
there are inviting café-kespers and malissoris. So the measure of time itself is changeable.
Days are short. Nights are long, with conversations and talks. Days invite to shorter
journeys. Nights, with their stories and narrations, make journeys longer. Take our novels
and draw a diagrame of time and space in them and you will see how characters describe
distances and how long days and nights last. This is due to such national peculiarities as
hospitality, loyalty and respect for guests. And guests need conversation not during the day,
but during the night. Take the novels »The Awakening« by S. Spasse and »The General of
the Dead Army«" by I. Kadare and you will find there what I am saying in these few lines.
And this stems not only from the peculiarity of space in our country, but also from the
culture of its people. In the night, the heroes of our legends fall into profound thoughts
about their tomorrow's travels. As a foreign critic says, the reins, the stirrup, the harness
and the horse itself are made ready during the night. In the night the hero also falls into
meditations. Perhaps more than in the literature of other countries, this aspect is better
preserved in our literature, especially in the prose, but also in poetry. Why? Because
industrialization has not spoilt tradition, because respect for tradition continues to be great
in our country. Socialism itself has taught us to honour tradition. Socialism considers
tradition as the basis on which innovations strike root. We are nearer to legends than many
other peoples. We preserve them, for otherwise great dangers, which are known to all,
would be threatening us. And this has had an influence on all our literature, especially, the
novel.
In our novel live all the forms of the narrative: the narrative manner, the narrative-meditative
manner and the manner of the interrupted narrative. And here lies the originality of our
novel. I say this that, while expressing itself in all these forms, it is a rich, not monotonous,
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novel. Our novel has revived the classical forms of the novel with the new ideas and
thoughts of the time. Its forms sound new because of their great social thoughts. At times
they are fresher than vain format experiments. Our novel has set out on the road of its
revival and perfectioning, of finding new forms for expressing new ideas. Apparently today it
is drawing ever more closer to musical works, with sounds and echoes, with distances and
contiguities. It is like a polyphony. In our presentday novel man never descends to the level
of things. Man is the master of things and objects, so the novelist does not number things
and objects as the symphony does. If he did so he would make the hero the slave of things.
The modern novel is the concentrated history of one or several heroes. Being a history,
every character is a type and an individual at the same time. The hero of the traditional
novel goes through many external adventures. The hero of the modern novel sees these
adventures take place more in the consciousness or thoughts of the character. The more
time goes by the more autobiographical the novel becomes, because the writer lives
himself intensely with the life of society, lives among the people. The more the time goes by
the more the author and the hero resemble each other. Why? Because the author does feel
no great difference of social position from the character he represents. The author does no
speak »ex-cathedra«.
Being the characters the masters of things and not their slaves or their contemplative
observers has had an influence not only on the plot, but also on the time it develops, the
time of narration. Time in the traditional novel is measured by hours, by the calendar, while
the modern novel introduces this time, these calendar hours into the consciousness from
which it takes them out again. So, the modern novel does not leave time out of the
consciousness, does not leave it only in things. That is why in our modern novel time is not
reflected always on one line. We say so because every character has his own time, his own
biography, and biography does not develop outside time.
As I dwelt on the problems of space, time and narration as well as on some aspects of the
changes of structure the novel has undergone, I want to add also something about some
other elements of the enrichment of the expressive means of the novel.
A peculiarity of our novelist is that he is more and more accentuating his irony towards
negative phenomena. This makes the novel more lively and more intelligent while at the
same time strengthening its dialectics. Such a peculiarity is a sign of intelligent people, of
intelligent characters who do not feel themselves satisfied with everything a milieu or time
gives them, because, along the major social advance, there are still inhibitive phenomena.
We see this ironical stand in the prose of I. Kadare, T. Laço, F. Gjata, Jakov Xoxa, K.
Kosta and others.
On the other hand, the language of the novel has become livelier and subtler, with strange
surprises, at times in the form of oddities. The surprise interventions like those of the old
woman Nica in »The General of the Dead Army« or of some characters of F. Gjata's novels
not only make the language of the novel more dynamic, but also step up the evolution of
events and break the monotony.
Now let us deal with the dynamization of events. The novel cannot live a full and true life
without, what I might call, the spring which pushes action ahead and, together with it,
thought, too. If the spring of the novel slackens, the reader is bored and reading time seems
to him longer. But, speaking in figurative term, this spring does not consist in the subject
which lies at the foundation of the novel. This spring is the dialectics of the author's
thoughts, it makes itself felt in their clash and opposition, in original assertions and
negations. The boring and unreadable novels resemble the watches which lag behind
because their springs have slackened.
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I tried to express some opinions about the Albanian novel. Of course, our novel is faced
with many problems which have to do with its content and form, its structure and language.
In its process of development it affects ever broader spheres of society and people's
destinies, revealing ever new or less treated aspects of the life of our people. The
construction of socialism in Albania has enriched the spiritual life of people and produced a
new man, a man of advanced and lofty social ideals. This man is being reflected ever more
fully in our novel. And this is due to the method of socialist realism.
Our writer never forgets that the conditions of living created by a society exercise a
powerful influence on people's ideas, morality, and passions, just as economic and cultural
achievements or the rights a social order secures the individual. This influence is expressed
in the novel itself, which if followed step by step, enables you to recreate the history of
society, to single out the main lines of its development, to imagine the ethics, tastes and
behaviour of people, to discover their psychology and world outlook.
Albanian writers have always asked themselves: does the content of their works respond to
the tasks the country is solving, the economic, social, ideological and political tasks our
socialist state has to cope with? That is why they have not allowed themselves to be
attracted by petty ordinary themes, but by the great theme of the revolution and the building
of the new society. Proceeding from these Lofty aims they have continued to make broad
summings-up of the National Liberation War, of the past and present history of our country
and treated monumental tableaus worthy of the epoch of socialism. At the same time they
have introduced new themes, uncultivated so far, into the horizon of art, such as those of
work and the joy of work in which the possibilities, abilities and high moral qualities of man
are revealed. So, there are many broad tableaus of the struggle and work of our people
which have remained artistic documents of the years when they were written and enjoy
great popularity among all the Albanian readers.
Noter:
1979-2
[1] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 76 (Eng.ed.)
[2] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 150 (Eng.ed.)
[3] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 153 (Eng.ed.)
[4] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 6th Congress og the PLA, p. 160 (Alb.ed.)
[5] Lenin on Culture and Art, 1960, p. 51 (Alb.ed.)
[6] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 153 (Eng.ed.)
[7] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 142 (Eng.ed.)
[8] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 113 (Eng.ed.)
[9] Enver Hoxha, Report to the 7th Congress og the PLA, p. 152 (Eng.ed.)
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1983-2
[10] K. Marx - F. Engels »On Literature and Art«, vol. 1, p. 10, Tirana 1976, Alb. ed.
[11] K. Marx, F. Engels, »Works«, vol. 1, p. 258, Russ. ed.
[12] Enver Hoxha, »Report to the 8th Congress of the PLA«, pp. 150-151, Eng. ed.
[13] Enver Hoxha, »Report to the 8th Congress of the PLA«, p. 149, Eng. ed.
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Dritëro Agolli: Interview in Tirana Times August 2006
bjoerna.dk
Kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen
1/8
[email protected]
Dritëro Agolli: Rethinking the past
Interview in »Tirana Times« August 2006
Version 1.0 - 06.09.2006. - Reprinted with the kind permission of the »Tirana Times«
Dritëro Agolli was born in 1931. By 1950 he had become an established writer in Albania.
Of working class background, he completed studies at the University of Leningrad and
embarked on his career in journalism and writing when he returned to Albania. He began by
writing poetry and in 1970 began writing prose too. Although he had feelings of hostility
toward the then Soviet Union in the sixties, Agolli was Chairman of the Writers and Artists
League from 1972 until 1992. Both as a member of the communist nomenclatura, and as a
public figure, Agolli retained respect even after the collapse of the communist regime. Still a
prolific and popular writer, in the 1990’s he took a seat in the Albanian Assembly at the
outset of the transition of the Socialist Party.
• Mr. Agolli, as a writer you are a long standing favourite of the Albanian public and your
books have also been published abroad. Your life time has spanned a good part of the
socialist phase of the country and these years of radical change. First of all we would be
interested to know what values have been important to you in your life?
It’s quite difficult to talk about oneself. For this description to be a little more objective, it
should be done by others. Usually when you speak about yourself you are embarrassed to
reveal everything, so you leave things unmentioned, or perhaps you are even prone to
boasting.
As a writer and like the rest of my generation, I was formed in a period that is now past
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history, the period of socialism. All of us have acquired positive and negative features
pertaining to that system. You could perhaps say that we are like row boats encrusted with
shell fish and seaweed, dragged up onto the sands to be scraped clean. That was a difficult
period. Everything was heavily censured. Of course literature and the institutions and
instances of culture and politics were no exception. It goes without saying that this period,
the system, and the society left indelible marks behind.
These things are reflected in my works, particularly from a critical angle. My works are not
mere volumes of praise for the system, but more like a critique of it. This is the reason why
several volumes I wrote were prohibited or even reduced to pulp. In 1964 my first book of
short stories was printed. It was entitled, »The Rustle of Winds of the Past«, and was
immediately banned from circulation because it allegedly diluted the heroism of the
characters. This was the terminology used at that time. The play, »The White Age« and the
book, »The Splendour and Downfall of Comrade Zylo« also disappeared from circulation
following their first publication. This last book was published again in 1973. It was regarded
as being critical of society and it focused on power and the individual and how power
transforms the individual. This novel received acclaim in other European countries.
• You mentioned that censorship made things difficult for literature and politics in socialist
Albania. What sort of a relationship did you have with politics at that time?
I am not a professional politician. I am a writer who dabbles in politics - inasmuch as any
other citizen does when he goes to the polls to vote. When a citizen casts his vote he also
dabbles in politics; when he doesn’t vote, he doesn’t dabble in politics, that’s the extent of it.
Aristotle was right when he said that, »man is a political animal«.
I am a kind of political animal, seeing I am also a writer, I have worked this ability to
perfection, because every writer is the mirror of the society he lives in. Therefore I was a
member of the Party of Labour, I was a communist, and even a member of the Central
Committee of the Party. But I was also Chairman of the Writers’ and Artists’ League for a
long time. Subsequently I could do far more, as I did, like Ismail Kadare and others [1].
Irrespective of the conditions of the time, we did reflect that reality. When the time came
and the regimes changed I joined the Socialist Party, which emerged from the Party of
Labour, changing in name only. In the first years it carried over many dyed-in-the-wool
communists, but slowly these elements dropped out of its ranks. I also changed and shed a
lot of useless deadweight, although some things still remain.
• You speak about a kind of purging, which the country, your party, and also you yourself
have undergone. Did this occur without problems? Was this cleansing process obstructed
by certain issues?
I remember a verse by the Greek poet Seferis [2], about an island where there was a
Church and a Saint. One day many serpents appeared on the island. The Saint called the
cats on the island and the cats devoured the serpents. The island was purged of all the
serpents, but at the same time all the cats died too. Why? Well, because they had
consumed so much venom. In our society today too, people have consumed a great deal of
venom. With this venom you could eliminate an opponent, occasionally even an old friend
who has become your opponent. But this venom has also done its work on you, I mean
one’s self as well.
This is precisely the kind of society I come from too. I was admitted into the Socialist Party,
I was elected to its forums, first to the Executive and then to its Steering Committee. Then I
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wanted to leave the Party. This Party now is more modern, which means it has offloaded a
lot of the past dogmas of the period of socialism. It has drawn closer to other European
parties in kind. There have been a great deal of polemics and debates, and in the time
when I was involved fully in politics, I was always ready to talk about the flaws of the
Socialist Party. Over the last eight years I have frequently raised my voice in criticism,
writing articles and in interviews, perhaps even more than its own political opponents.
Anyway, I did not drop out of the SP and no one made the slightest effort to have me
expelled. I have always been a writer and their firm supporter.
• This means that you joined them, and you have sought confrontation in a party sensitive
towards changes-which in the meantime you even thought of leaving, as you just
mentioned. Does this differ from the stand you had towards the communist Party of
Labour?
What I would like to explain is the fact that one should always speak up about the good and
bad even when referring to a political party you are a member of. A contemporary French
philosopher Bachelard [3] once said, »Before you get to know a person you must first
quarrel; you must oppose the person so the truth emerges; without quarrelling or without
debate you can never get to know anyone, because the truth is not the daughter of
sympathy, it is the daughter of discourse.« I always bear this in mind.
When the Chairman of the Socialist Party stated, »The Party resembles a marshland«, I
opposed that and said he himself was bloated like a swamp toad. I was never shy to speak
out when it came to the truth and within my limitations I have done a great deal of criticising.
However, I have always been in support of the party. Like everyone else, I too have my pet
foibles, I have my good sides but also my weaknesses. Perhaps I should have criticised
somewhat more in the past system, but the conditions were such…and not only that, but
you create a family and you certainly don’t want anything bad to befall them. One piece of
verse says that in the time of Galilee, there were also other Galileans who could have come
out and said the truth, but they had families. They also knew that the Earth was round, but if
they had said this in public they would have been burnt alive at the stake. This is also the
case with writers who lived during that system, they knew so much, they also knew the
Earth was round, but they also had families. I am one of those individuals.
• What ideals do you regard as being fundamental in the field of politics and society?
Although you do not consider yourself a politician, are there any foreign or local politicians
who have had such a special impact as you have?
I grew up and was moulded in a socialist society, and at that time we had communist ideals.
We were sincere in these ideals and like many other intellectuals in the world, talented
writers such as Aragon [4], Paul Éluard [5] or even Picasso and Majakowskij [6], embraced
this idea of communism. We also believed that the world could be changed. We believed
that there could be more equality between people; that poverty could be eliminated; that
there could be greater solidarity, and a more complete freedom. These were the ideals we
had and which influenced our formation. Philosophical figures like Marx, as well as political
figures like Enver Hoxha did have an influence on me. This was our ideal, and our
generation cannot deny this. For some time it was the same ideal, but as the years went by
the enthusiasm began to wane, because we could see there were so many flaws in our
society.
As a writer I idealised Naim Frashëri [7], because he was a poet inspired by the West and
in particular by the French Revolution. He was very humane, he loved freedom, he worked
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for equality between people but also fraternity. His work helped me a great deal to create
my own opinion on the development of society. From this angle, Frashëri became my idol in
my creativity and other political issues. He was my idol, not only as a writer because he was
also a distinguished politician, but especially regarding his approaches to issues of the
country and how he fought the evils perpetrated against our country. He also wrote in
Greek and one of his most famous poems is entitled, »The Albanians and the Greeks«. So
there is also an international side to his spirit. Another idol I had was Fan Noli [8], one of the
finest socialists. I believe so because he headed the June Revolution. Although he only
governed for six months, he jump started development in Albania, bringing it closer to
Europe. That is what the people wanted and what I wanted for my country. From outside of
my country, Marx and Lenin and later on Willy Brandt were figures I respected. I thought
highly of Brandt as a socialist and as a person with his own views. By this time I was an
adult so I was not greatly influenced by Brandt, but I thought he had charisma at the time.
The same went for other socialists of the epoch such as Mitterand. Naim Frashëri, Fan Noli
and Enver Hoxha were the individuals whose work influenced me the most.
• It is obvious that drawing closer to Europe has always had significance for you. Today,
Europe is no longer merely a geographic and cultural notion; on the contrary, this now
means social-economic and political structures. Do you believe that Albania has the
maturity needed to become part of these structures?
No, I don’t believe it has. First of all, to be able to approach the more developed countries,
we must have a developed economy. That goes for the social side of the coin, including
cultural and educational levels.
People must show greater tolerance with one another, and also towards politics. A political
debate should not automatically lead to a fight and to hostility, as if every change of
government resembles the installation of a new invader. What I mean by this is that we lack
a developed democratic and political culture. If, hand in hand with economic development,
democratic culture also increases, and if tolerance is predominant in the debates on issues,
then dogmatism and intolerance are avoided. If there is no longer any revenge in society,
then yes we will be mature enough to enter Europe. This hideous ulcer of our society,
revenge, must be eradicated.
• How can the International Community assist Albania? What do the Albanians themselves
have to do to be included in the process of becoming part of the EU?
Representatives of the EU who come to Albania should carefully study the conditions of this
country. They should not all come and go with the same approach they have had towards
other countries. On the contrary, they should have studied and know the nature of Albanian
society. They should know what customs and traditions there are, and what the positive
sides of the Albanians are. They should know the country’s spiritual constitution. It is
worthless if intelligent people come and go who do their work well in Bulgaria or Rumania,
because even though we have many things in common with other Balkan countries, we are
also different in many ways.
• Where do the differences lie? From a socio-psychological angle, is there any such thing
as an individual type of Albanian?
Albanians are very intelligent and they are people with a great deal of imagination. But they
are also very impatient and lose interest in their work very quickly. If a job takes ten years to
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do, they want to do it in one year; they want to complete in one hour something that takes
five months to do. If someone who would know the psychology of Albanian society well
came to work in Albania, this person would do a great service to the country.
However, first of all the Albanians must build their own country themselves. Unfortunately,
we are used to others doing our work for us - but this is a very bad lesson. It depends on
our psychology: when others direct us, we appear to be very clever. For example, in Turkey
there were thirty Prime Ministers and who knows how many commanders, soldiers and
statesmen who were remarkable individuals of Albanian origin. Or Take Greece as another
example - how many heroes of the Greek Revolution were Albanian?
The Albanians are exceptionally resourceful if they are led by others, but if they are the
ones at the helm they are forever at loggerheads. Only the Albanians themselves can
change this psyche. First of all they must fight to do their own chores themselves and not
perpetually depend on others on the journey to Europe.
So, the Albanians must work themselves to reach Europe. At the same time they are
resourceful, but impatient and badly coordinated. Is this the gist of what you said?
Within a very short period of time, the Albanians have made major changes, particularly in
the cities. They have the energy and limitless imagination in all fields. But they are also very
masterly at being the Mafia - on this point they have even surpassed the Russians and the
Italians. In the case of the Mafia, they make their way to the top very quickly. So they are
not only very capable in just the one direction, but on many planes. This is why they need
skilful leaders. A leader should never shirk work. Here people develop rapidly and well and
they pick up things better and quicker than the leader, who understands very little or
pretends he does. This means that the people are more advanced and skilful than the
leaders.
• The political future hinges a great deal on the future politicians. How do you conceive the
young people of today? It seems that during these last few years, the youth are being left
out of politics and its commitment is decreasing.
Previously, young people were active in politics. Young men and women wanted to make
change and progress. But it is as if the youth of the country has shifted to slow motion
mode because the party leaders have failed to encourage younger people to join; only the
senior membership remained, who never really understood the youth properly. This very
weak policy became obvious when the Socialist Party split and all the young people went
with the Socialist Movement for Integration. Only if party leaders offer qualified young men
and women leading posts in society, in the economy, in the party and in culture and
education, will they get the chance to come in and make their contribution. And in the final
account, these are the young people who have studied and know how to operate so they
should be activated and not left idle.
• Do you consider the epoch of communism in Albania as time wasted?
No, I don’t. Irrespective of the enormous flaws of the socialist camp and in that system,
there were very positive sides too. I would mention here, in the moral-political field, the
solidarity, which was extensive, because people lived in collectives. The emancipation of
women also proved a huge help. Women were isolated in the Balkans and their
emancipation helped in developing schooling, culture and similar fields. In the time of
Ahmed Zogu [9] and up until 1944, there were only seven secondary schools in Albania.
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During the years of socialism 370 secondary schools were opened and 12 Universities.
There were no universities at all previously. We even had a Ballet and Opera Theatre, a
People’s Theatre, and Film Studios that produced 14 features films per year and many
other institutions.
To this day, Albania is fed by electric power generated by the same hydropower stations of
that period. Music and literature benefited the most in cultural development. Prior to the
socialist period, not a single one of the works by our authors was ever translated into any
foreign language, so the world could come into contact with them. But in this time, our
translations and literature became known in countries like Germany. This reveals a high
level. Books from the beginnings of literature in the Middle Ages or of the time of Ahmed
Zog up until the epoch of socialism were translated. This played a very important role.
• According to what you have said above, the socialist period was therefore a phase of
development of the country in the direction of modernization. But at the same time it was
also a time of isolation, to a far greater degree in comparison with the other countries of
East Europe. Could Albanians communicate with the rest of the world seeing that this was
so restricted and irrespective of the fact that this could only be realized through the works
by Albanian authors?
You are quite right regarding Albania after 1960. Isolation was exceptionally stringent.
However, there was trade with other countries in the West as well as the Eastern Bloc.
Although through mediation of a third party, there was communication with the world. Our
artistic ensembles, such as the State Folk Song and Dance Ensemble all performed
overseas. Archaeological exhibitions were opened in Paris and Rome. In other words, there
was a level of communication.
Unfortunately we are used to thinking only in back and white and the rest we discard. Some
even ask whether people fell in love in the years of socialism. If people had not loved, there
would not have been children. We were so sick of such questions about those times. The
only question that was not asked was whether or not there were children in socialism?
• In other words, you keep on differentiating about the period of socialism. Does that mean
that this period produced values that are of importance to you?
Yes, socialism also had its good aspects. The backward customs of the Middle Ages were
eliminated and there was no longer any fratricidal killing. People were not confined behind
the four walls of their homes for fear of being tracked down and killed; these things do not
exist in a dictatorship.
Families were more consolidated than today. There was greater equality between people
and the huge ratios of differences between incomes did not exist. Without doubt this led to
a level of backwardness when you look at the levels the rest of the world enjoys today,
because the ratios are hugely different in pay scales in capitalism.
At that time the solidarity between people was something positive and led to a situation
where everyone worked together. In the time of socialism, the communists tried to play on
the positive sides of our people, like solidarity, which was demonstrated in certain moments
of our history. Today, we harshly criticise that system because of the existence of a
dictatorship and Enver Hoxha.
At the founding congress of the Socialist Party, where the name changed from the PLA, I
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was the first to stand up and attack the system, Enver Hoxha and the dictatorship. All the
delegates turned on me. Naturally, this was painful for me to do. Why did it have to happen
this way, why were so many things so futile? But not the entire period of socialism was
futile. The Middle Ages were not a waste either. In every system you can find positive
elements. In the Middle Ages, there would not have been a Cervantes, but he emerged with
Don Quixote. There were the Niebelungen of the Germans; artists of genius emerged from
that time and not from today’s modern times. Socialism was a system that was established
over half of Europe. Similar things occurred in the time of Charles the Great. Did Charles
the Great bring Europe together through war?
Notes
[1] Ismail Kadare (*1936), writer of renown in and outside of Albania. 1990-1999 Kadare lived in Paris seeing
that whilst in Albania he had written about the collapse of the communist regime and because, in general, he
was a person who could not abide by the rules of the regime; he returned to live in Tirana in 1999.
[2] Giorgios Seferis (1900-1971), Greek Poet who won Nobel Award for Literature in 1963.
[3] Gaston Bachelard (1884-1962), French philosopher and critic, professor in Dijon and at the Sorbonne
(Paris).
[4] Louis Aragon (1897-1982), French writer, co-founder of the Surrealist Movement and later on a member of
the French Communist Party.
[5] Paul Éluard (1895-1952), French poet, active during the Resistance and a member of the French
Communist Party.
[6] Wladimir Majakowskij (1893-1930), Russian writer, co-founder and chiefly the representative of Russian
Futurism; Bolshevist since 1908.
[7] Naim Frashëri (1846-1900),, Albanian writer, first and foremost, a poet, wrote in Albanian for early on,
fighter for the liberation of the country.
[8] Theophan (Fan) Stylian Noli (1882-1965) Albanian orthodox priest and politician, committed to the
independence of Albania and its recognition whilst being a resident in the USA. In 1924, after the downfall of
Ahmed Zog, Noli became Prime Minister, but he was brought down during the same year and he fought the
self proclaimed King Zog from abroad. During WWII Noli was in contact with the Albanian communists of
Enver Hoxha.
[9] Ahmed Zogu(1895-1961), known as Zog, the Sovereign of the Albanians, as he was from 1928-1939 up
until the invasion of Albania by the Italians. He officially abdicated in 1946; he was PM 1923-24 and President
of Albania 1925-1928, before proclaiming himself King.
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»Tirana Times« - http://www.tiranatimes.com/ - is an Albanian weekly in English. Editor-in-chief is Jerina
Zaloshnja. Information about subscription: http://www.tiranatimes.com/subscription.php
Links:
• Dritëro Agolli. Biography in Danish Wikipedia [PDF]
1970's and 1980's
http://bjoerna.net/Agolli/TT-interview-2006.htm
• Agolli-articles from the
06-09-2006
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Enver Hoxha
Fra Wikipedia, den frie encyklopædi
Enver Hoxha, (IPA /ɛnvɛɾ hɔʤa/, 16. oktober 1908–11. april
1985) var leder af Albanien fra anden verdenskrigs afslutning
og til sin død i 1985.
Indholdsfortegnelse
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1 Tiden før anden verdenskrig
2 Tiden under og efter anden verdenskrig
„ 2.1 Skiftende politisk kurs
„ 2.2 Uenigheden med Mehmet Shehu
3 Udviklingen af det albanske samfund
4 Hoxhas sygdom, død; hans bisættelse
5 Bøger af Enver Hoxha
Tiden før anden verdenskrig
Enver Hoxha
Enver Hoxha var apotekersøn. Han stammede fra Gjirokastra i
det sydlige Albanien og kom på det franske gymnasium i
Korça, der var blevet grundlagt i 1917. Han fik stipendium til et studieophold i Montpellier i Frankrig
i 1930, men stipendiet bortfaldt efter et år hvad grunden end kan have været. Hoxha stiftede
bekendtskab med albanske kommunister i Paris. Efter et par år flyttede han til Belgien hvor han
arbejdede for den albanske legation, dvs. for Kong Zogs udenrigstjeneste. I 1936 vendte han
tilbage til Korça og fik arbejde som lærer på det franske gymnasium.
Tiden under og efter anden verdenskrig
Enver Hoxha blev leder af Befrielseshæren under 2' Verdenskrig og leder af det kommunistiske
Albaniens Arbejderparti fra ca. 1945 til sin død i 1985; han trak sig tilbage fra dagligt politisk
arbejde omkring 1983. Han var premierminister fra 1944 og frem til 1954, hvor han blev afløst af
Mehmet Shehu.
Skiftende politisk kurs
Hoxha - og det kommunistiske parti - skiftede flere gange politisk retning. Til at begynde med
samarbejdede man med det jugoslaviske kommunistparti og modtog økonomisk støtte fra
Jugoslavien, men i forbindelse med Stalins opgør med Tito i 1948 brød man med jugoslaverne og
udrensede de albanske kommunister, der var mest Jugoslaviensorienterede, således Koçi Xoxe.
Senere fulgte en periode hvor man samarbejdede med Sovjetunionen og fik økonomisk og militær
støtte derfra, men da Nikita Khrusjtjov i midten af 1950'erne begyndte en udsoning med Tito, førte
det til det næste brud omkring 1960 og til udrensning af flere Moskva-orienterede albanske
kommunister.
Herefter fulgte en periode frem til omkring 1978 hvor man samarbejdede med Kina og fik
økonomisk og militær støtte derfra.
Kinas åbning mod Richard Nixons USA gav anledning til endnu et brud; herefter stod Albanien
politisk isoleret og fik i stigende grad økonomiske problemer, både med hensyn til
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udenrigshandelen og med hensyn til investeringer i landbrug og industri. Man forsøgte en politik
med at stole på egne kræfter, men kræfterne var for begrænsede til at man kunne følge med
udviklingen i nabolandene og dette var formentlig én af årsagerne til at ind- og udrejse af Albanien
fortsat var stærkt begrænset og kontrolleret.
Uenigheden med Mehmet Shehu
Omkring 1980-1981 opstod der uenighed om den politiske linie, hvilket førte til at
premierministeren, Mehmet Shehu, enten blev myrdet eller - som det officielt blev erklæret - begik
selvmord. Enver Hoxha beskyldte ham bagefter for at have været hemmelig agent for en række
udenlandske stater.
Ismail Kadaré har omkring årsskiftet 2005-2006 udgivet en roman på det engelsk-amerikanske
marked om forholdet mellem Enver Hoxha og Mehmet Shehu. Romanen hedder The Successor og
er på vej i dansk oversættelse.
Udviklingen af det albanske samfund
Da kommunisterne greb magten, var Albanien et feudalt samfund, et landbrugsland der blev ledet
af godsejere. I Hoxha-perioden skete der en vis industrialisering og i landbrugssektoren blev
godserne omdannet til kollektivbrug og statsfarme.
Hoxhas sygdom, død; hans bisættelse
I sine sidste år led Hoxha af diabetes og af forskellige følgesygdomme.
Enver Hoxha var gift med Nexhmije Hoxha, født Xhuglini, og efterlod sig en datter, Pranvera
Hoxha, og to sønner. Pranvera Hoxha er arkitekt og forestod efter faderens død bygningen af
Pyramiden på et centralt sted ved Lana-floden i Tirana. Enver Hoxha blev bisat her, men hans
kiste blev i 1992 ført til den almindelige begravelsesplads i udkanten af Tirana, og bygningen
omdannet til udstillingsformål. Forskellige medievirksomheder har også til huse i bygningen.
Hoxhas fødehjem i Gjirokastra har været museum. En bombe eksploderede i huset i december
1997 og anrettede en del ødelæggelse.
Bøger af Enver Hoxha
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Yugoslav 'Self-Administration' - a Capitalist Theory and Practice, 1978
With Stalin. Memoirs, 1979
Reflections on China. Extracts from the Political Diary 1962-1977, 1979
Imperialism and the Revolution, 1979
The Krushchevites. Memoirs, 1980
Eurocommunism is anti-communism, 1980
The Titoites. Historical notes, 1982. Uddrag om Mehmet Shehu
Laying the foundations of the new Albania, 1984
Nogle af bøgerne findes i dansk oversættelse.
Hentet fra "http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enver_Hoxha"
Kategorier: Albanere
http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enver_Hoxha
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Mehmet Shehu - Wikipedia
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Mehmet Shehu
Fra Wikipedia, den frie encyklopædi
Mehmet Shehu var en albansk kommunistisk politiker. Han blev født 10. januar 1913 i nærheden
af Mallakastra og døde i Tirana 17. december 1981.
Indholdsfortegnelse
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„
1 Militæruddannelse. Deltagelse i den Spanske Borgerkrig
2 I den albanske modstandsbevægelse
3 I den kommunistiske partiledelse. Minister. Premierminister
4 Forholdet til Enver Hoxha
5 Selvmord eller drab?
6 Ismail Kadaré's roman
7 Eksterne henvisninger
Militæruddannelse. Deltagelse i den Spanske Borgerkrig
Mehmu Shehu studerede militærvidenskab i Napoli i 1930'erne. Han deltog i den spanske
borgerkrig fra 1937 til 1939 som medlem af den Internationale Garibaldi Brigade. Han var
interneret i Frankrig fra 1939 til 1942.
I den albanske modstandsbevægelse
I 1942 indgik han i den kommunistisk orienterede del af den albanske modstandsbevægelse. Han
avancerede til chef for den 1' partisanbrigade (1943-1944) og blev senere divisionskommandant i
befrielseshæren. Han var én af de ansvarlige for undertrykkelsen af bjergbønderne i Nordalbanien,
der var negativt stemt over for kommunisterne.
I 1944 blev han medlem af modstandsbevægelsens regering (Den Nationale Befrielses Antifascistiske Råd).
Mehmet Shehu blev næstkommanderende for befrielseshærens generalstab og senere general og
generalstabschef efter at have studeret militærvidenskab i Moskva. Blandt andre der har studeret
militærvidenskab i Moskva er Albaniens præsident, tidligere general Alfred Moisiu.
I den kommunistiske partiledelse. Minister.
Premierminister
Fra 1948 og frem overgik Mehmet Shehu i det væsentlige til civilt politisk arbejde. Han blev
medlem af den kommunistiske centralkomité og af den øverste ledelse, politbureauet, og var også
i en periode indenrigsminister og ansvarlig for politimyndighederne.
I perioden 1954 til 1981 var Mehmet Shehu premierminister (formand for ministerrådet), fra 1974
var han tillige forsvarsminister.
Forholdet til Enver Hoxha
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Han var i mange år Enver Hoxha's støtte, både i opgøret med Tito's Jugoslavien i 1948, med
Sovjetunionen i 1961 og med den kinesiske folkerepublik i midten af 1970'erne.
Det er hævdet at Mehmet Shehu omkring 1981 begyndte at anfægte den politiske isolationalisme
som Enver Hoxha, hans kone Nexhmije Hoxha og flere andre var ansvarlige for.
Selvmord eller drab?
Han blev fundet skudt i sin seng natten mellem den 17. december 1981 og 18. december 1981, og
det blev straks efter officielt meddelt at han havde begået selvmord på grund af et nervøst
sammenbrud. Han blev hemmeligt begravet ved landsbyen Ndroq.
Kort efter hævdede Enver Hoxha i taler og i sin bog The Titoites fra 1982 at Mehmet Shehu havde
været flerdobbelt spion for den Jugoslaviske efterretningstjeneste, for KGB og for CIA.
Det formodes i almindelighed at Mehmet Shehu blev likvideret på ordre af Enver Hoxha, fordi
denne ikke ville acceptere kritik af sin isolationistiske linie og af sin øverste politiske ledelse.
Mehmet Shehu's kone, Fiqret (født Sanxhaktari), og to af hans sønner blev fængslet. Den yngste
søn, Bashkim, søgte efter sin fars grav og lokaliserede den den 19. november 2001.
Ismail Kadaré's roman
Ismail Kadaré har omkring årsskiftet 2005-2006 udgivet en roman på det engelsk-amerikanske
marked om forholdet mellem Enver Hoxha og Mehmet Shehu. Romanen hedder The Successor og
er på vej i dansk oversættelse.
Eksterne henvisninger
„
Kilde: Bjørn Andersen: Albansk navnebog 2000
Hentet fra "http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehmet_Shehu"
Kategorier: Albanere | Albanske politikere
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Forbehold
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04-09-2006
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Interview med Shaban Sinani om Dossier K
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Kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen
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[email protected]
Interview with Shaban Sinani about
Dossier K
Interview by Fiqiri Sejdijaj in »Trepça Net«,
January 2004
Version 1.0 - 10.09.2006. - Summary thanks to Gina Schaar
Introduction
In December 2003 and the following years, the author Ismail Kadaré donated several
manuscripts-for his novels »The Shadow«, »Agamemnon's Daughter« and »The City
without Advertisements« to the Albanian National Archives (ANA), under the direction of
Director General Shaban Sinani.
The manuscripts started the Ismail Kadaré Fund, the ANA's repository of Ismail Kadaré's
documents. As part of the Ismail Kadaré Fund, Shaban Sinani decided to create what he
called »The K Dossier« by digging into the ANA files to find documents related to political
investigations of Ismail Kadaré himself. The interview concerns the so-called K Dossier.
Interview
Question: Why such a long delay for an author who is so well-known, who has been writing
for more than a half century?
Shaban Sinani: The same is true for all post-war authors. There is a disturbing general lack
of manuscripts and documents in the ANA. Many manuscripts have disappeared, excepts
those that were attached to political investigations, like Ismail Kadaré's poem »One
Afternoon the Political Office Held a Meeting« [»The Red Pashas«].
Political figures were more important than cultural ones under the ideocratic state. Cultural
activities were neglected during the upheaval of the 1990s.
Manuscripts disappeared because there was no law forcing them to be archived. The
practice among publishers was to notify authors that the »manuscript will not be returned«.
Question: What does the Ismail Kadaré Fund currently consist of?
Shaban Sinani: The Ismail Kadaré Fund was started because Ismail Kadaré wanted to
donate the three manuscripts.
»Agamemnon's Daughter« and »The Shadow« had been in a Paris bank vault during the
1980s to avoid political consequences to the author and because they were originally not
written for publication in Albania. They were later published as the political times changed.
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Now the manuscripts are important for textual research.
Question: Can you explain in more detail where this importance stems from?
Shaban Sinani: Manuscripts are a national treasure. Also, they are a basis for research into
the »literature between two eras« on a deeper level than just the significance of, for
example, instances where one geographical name in the manuscript was substituted by
another name in the published version.
It is important to compare the manuscript and the published work not just for differences in
wording but also for the artist's vision in a repressive society as compared to a free society.
This has broader significance than just the literary one.
Question: Has it been technically difficult to compare the manuscripts with the books?
Shaban Sinani: Comparison of two of the three manuscripts has been very difficult.
»Agamemnon's Daughter« contains supplements and additions on the reverse of the
pages. The pages of »The Shadow« was intentionally written confusingly and the pages
misnumbered to destroy the logical sequence, so that the meaning could not be
deciphered.
Question: What is still lacking from the Ismail Kadaré Fund in terms of documentation?
Shaban Sinani: In archival science, a literary or personal repository ought to include several
categories of documents, a number of which are missing from the Ismail Kadaré Fund.
These categories are works, official or public acts, correspondence and bibliographical
items.
The Ismail Kadaré Fund now contains:
• Manuscripts of the three novels mentioned above
• The poem mentioned above
• A long section that was to have been added to the novel »The Great Winter«
• Unimportant discussions about Ismail Kadaré in Parliament
• Self-critiques that were politically motivated
• Very little correspondence other than a letter from Ismail Kadaré to an
important politician in support of the Lasgush Pogradeci family
Documents pertaining to Ismail Kadaré are found all over the world in the possession of
many different people and organizations, even his former political enemies.
Question: So, is there a »Kadaré Dossier«, or »K Dossier« as you have called it, in the
ANA?
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Shaban Sinani: There is no »K Dossier« as such in the archives. That is just a descriptive
name I invented for the media in order to explain the concept. It was a take-off on the name
of Ismail Kadaré's novel »Dossier H«, later republished under the title »A Dossier on
Homer«.
Question: What is the significance of the fact that you have created such a dossier?
Shaban Sinani: The ANA is not creating any such dossier. We are just making literary
historical research easier by managing documents. It is the cultural responsibility of the
ANA to preserve unpublished administrative/political documents, starting with the
complaints about the publication of »Princess Argjiro« and up through the late 1990s and
later.
Question: Do you believe that after the publication of the »K Dossier« Ismail Kadaré's works
will be evaluated differently by students and readers? Why have you undertaken the
publication of these sources?
Shaban Sinani: The primary reasons are for literary and cultural history. It would be
depressing if the K Dossier would be seen as a kind of democratic payback for Ismail
Kadaré. ANA must respect individual rights according to the new law on the state archives.
People have a right to know what is written about them.
Question: Are there legal or other obstacles to making these documents public?
Shaban Sinani: There are few legal obstacles for documents older that 25 years, and there
are exceptions for newer documents. The ethical obstacles can be overcome by identifying
only the office or institution of the document's author, not the individual names. It is
important that the debate not be personalized.
Moral obstacles are the most difficult to deal with, because the documents about Ismail
Kadaré written by specialists, and it can't be said that their intellectual viewpoint was
»wrong« for trying to prevent the publication of certain works because they were
»disparaging of events or personalities«. Still, the use of terms such as »decadent
literature«, »psycho-freudian influence«, »antagonistic activity«, »deformation of history and
reality«, »surrealistic novel«, etc. must be questioned in the political context of the times
during which Ismail Kadaré's books were published.
Question: Do you think that this book will complicate Ismail Kadaré's relations with his
writer-colleagues?
Shaban Sinani: I don't think so at all. Ismail Kadaré knows about everything in the
documents and has lost interest in taking it further. He has never talked about people by
name, but about the need for Albanian literature to recognize the difficulties of the post-war
period. Other literary figures cannot avoid this confrontation, because without it Albanian
literature cannot be understood.
Question: Can you mention some of the writers who have made unpublished official
evaluations of Ismail Kadaré?
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Shaban Sinani: This is not important to the whole process. Refer to the harsh discussions in
the 1970s at the Writers' Union plenum concerning the banning of Kadaré's poem.
Question: The history of Kadaré and the ANA?
Shaban Sinani: When he left Albania in 1990, Ismail Kadaré made a special request to the
then-President that care be taken for his archives in the ANA. This wish was respected and
encouraged him to donate the three manuscripts (as described earlier in the interview) later
in the 1990s.
During the donation ceremony, Ismail Kadaré mentioned the need to respect one's country
and its institutions, even if not all of them are serious. He also mentioned his concern for
what would happen to the manuscripts, for example if he died while in France, they would
likely be published abroad. Since the communist regime fell, there is no reason they should
not instead be published in Albania.
About the donation of the manuscript of his first novel, Ismail Kadaré said the first work of
any author is of special interest. »City Without Advertising« was written in Moscow and the
first 30 pages were published but immediately banned after his return. He hid the rest in his
house and never spoke of them again because it was too risky. Drago Siliqi, who read part
of it, told Ismail Kadaré that it was foolish to print even 30 pages and that he should not say
that there was an entire novel.
Ismail Kadaré said that he was giving the manuscripts to the ANA because they would be
safe there, and as a sign of respect for the importance of the institution to the nation, and to
encourage other authors to do the same. He believes that an author's emotions behind the
published work can be judged by reading the manuscript. The tracks of writing are like
fingerprints. Through them, one can identify the individual's character.
Question: »Princess Argjiro« was a text Ismail Kadaré was »spied on«?
Shaban Sinani: For several years I have been working on a text concerning the town and
region of Gjirokastra, but a few days ago I was surprised to notice that Ismail Kadaré as a
young poet published the poem »Princess Argjiro« whose title is completely wrong.
Gjirokastra was not founded by her and did not take her name. Archival sources, history
and well-preserved writings contradict the legend as it appears in the poem. Gjirokastra
comes from the year 568 A.D. and did not take the name of Argjiro in the 15th century,
since the Turks came at that time, not to mention the fact that the Turks would not have
allowed a town to name itself after one of its military enemies.
If the poem had been based on solid history and writings, and the poet had consulted
historical scholars, it would have come out without any flaws. Moreover, even the State
Publishing Enterprise, if asked, would not have allowed the publication of a poem not based
on historical fact. Besides that, I can say about Albanian geography that on the contrary
Gjirokastra appears to have been built by Gjin Bue Shpata. This is also in error, so that by
presenting different versions the history of the country is damaged.
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Sinani-2004.htm
10-09-2006
Interview med Shaban Sinani om Dossier K
Links:
• Ismail Kadaré. Biography in Danish Wikipedia [PDF]
Kadaré
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Sinani-2004.htm
5/5
• Article about Ismal
10-09-2006
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Shehu.jpg
http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Shehu.jpg09-10-2006 10:48:40
Hoxha on Shehu
bjoerna.dk Kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen
[email protected]
Enver Hoxha on Mehmet
Shehu
Version 1.5 - 05.09.2006.
From: Enver Hoxha: »The Titoites, Historical notes«, Tirana 1982.
Republished on the occasion of the publication of Ismail Kadarë's novel »The Successor«
Cf.: Article in Danish on Ismail Kadaré [2006]. Appendices in English
Wikipedia (Danish) on Enver Hoxha: http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Hoxha-WIKI-060904.pdf [PDF]
Wikipedia (Danish) on Mehmet Shehu: http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/Shehu-WIKI-060904.pdf [PDF]
Bjoern Andersen, http://bjoerna.dk
Enver Hoxha. Photo in the book
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The plots continue
Already in May-June 1948 we were more than aware that Tito and the Titoites, as traitors to
Marxism-Leninism, were and would remain inimical and dangerous to all the communist
parties, to the revolutionary movements and national liberation struggles everywhere in the
world, but for us, the Albanian communists and people, besides this, they were and would
remain direct, savage, sworn anti-Albanian enemies. We were convinced that they would
never give up their plans and aims to gobble up Albania, and to this end would not lay down
their arms of subversion, interference and plots against our Party and country.
We would be vigilant and with our fist clenched at every moment, because, although it had
suffered heavy blows, the Titoite agency in Albania would not cease working for the future
and for long-term plans and variants. In this context, in a thousand and one ways, Tito and
company would do everything in their power to regain their lost positions, to create
conditions and the terrain in order to penetrate amongst us and destroy us. They could
never reconcile themselves to the fact that Albania had «escaped» from their hands, could
never sleep easily when they saw that a party, which they had wanted to turn into a blind
tool, but which to their regret had constantly attacked them and their old pan-Slav dreams
and in the end had smashed them, was working and leading in Albania. Hence, as long as
[580] they remained in power, the Titoites would be real and dangerous enemies of our
Party and country.
It did not take months or years for the Titoites themselves to prove the truth of this. On the
contrary, when we still had not denounced them publicly, in order to «forestall the evil» they
launched a whole campaign of slanders and accusations against our Party and its
leadership, and immediately after the 1st Congress of our Party, Belgrade's anti-Albanian
campaign assumed unprecedented proportions and intensity. The newspapers, radio
stations, pamphlets and publishing houses, all the means of Titoite propaganda were
activized in this dirty campaign, pouring out monstrosities against us. Amongst other things,
at that time they accused us of being «violators of democracy» in the party and among the
people (!), of killing «communists» and «honest patriots» (!), and later went on to the
accusation that we were turning Albania into a «barracks surrounded by barbed wire»
where everything was trampled under the «military jackboot», etc., etc.
According to this alarm for propaganda which thundered from Belgrade one would have
thought that havoc was being wrought in Albania, but when it came to providing facts and
arguments «the defenders of democracy» in Belgrade found themselves in a deplorable
position: they were able to mention only one name, that of Koçi Xoxe!
But who were these «ideal defenders» of «pure democracy» who, simply because our
organs of the dictatorship had condemned to death only one sworn enemy and agent, Koçi
Xoxe, arrived at the «horrified» conclusion that we were «murderers» and «violators of
democracy»?!
Here I shall not mention the mass murders, eliminations and exterminations which the
Titoite army and the organs of the UDB perpetrated during the period 1945-1948 on the
orders of Tito-Rankovic and company, under the pretext of the struggle to «clean up ustase
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and cetnici elements», «criminal bands», «remnants of the old regime», etc., nor shall I
mention the black terror which they unleashed at this period (especially from the end of
1944 right through 1945) [581] upon the people of Kosova and the Albanian population
living on their own territories in Montenegro and Macedonia, under the pretext of the
struggle against «Ballist gangs», «nationalists», «great Albanians», etc. For comparison,
however, I shall dwell a little on how «the Titoite democracy» acted and how our democracy
acted in 1948 towards the respective opponents and enemies.
As I related in detail above, the whole picture of the treacherous work of the gang of Koçi
Xoxe, Pandi Kristo and others as agents in the service of the Yugoslavs became more than
clear to us especially in the early months of 1948. However, although they were not
accused simply of having alien views, but especially of high treason towards the Party and
the country, we allowed Koçi Xoxe, Pandi Kristo and company to take part in all the
meetings of the Political Bureau, in the 9th, 10th and 11th Plenums of the CC of the Party,
in the meetings of party activists which were held later and even in the 1st Congress of the
CPA. Not only did we allow them to take part, but we also gave them the right to speak as
often as they considered necessary.
What special type of «democracy» did Tito and Rankovic in Yugoslavia offer all those
thousands of elements of the CPY who expressed solidarity with the letters of the CC of the
CPSU and the Resolution of the Cominform?! They were clapped in handcuffs as soon as
they began to open their mouths! And when hundreds of others simply demanded that what
was written in the letters of the CC of the CPSU should be discussed in the party, that is,
when they had not yet expressed themselves either for or against, the Titoite «democracy»
arrested them, threw them into prison and killed them in secret. So, while we analysed the
criminal work of the Koçi Xoxe gang for five to six months on end in the Party (where the
traitors themselves were present), the Titoites did not allow their opponents to speak even
in a single meeting of the organization of which they were members! Out of the whole
network of anti-state agents that we discovered we handed over to the court only 4-5
persons, while the Tito [582] clique filled the prisons with thousands and thousands of
people who were simply ideological opponents! And after all this Tito and company had the
temerity to accuse us of being «violators of democracy»!
Of the four or five elements whom we handed over to the courts for punishment at the end
of 1948, in fact, only one, Koçi Xoxe, was sentenced to death as a sworn traitor to the Party
and state, as chief of the gang which had done everything in its power to put Albania in
thrall to Yugoslavia! The 3 or 4 others were sentenced to 5-20 years imprisonment
according to the degree of their culpability and the stand they adopted when they were
caught red handed in the plot. In Yugoslavia, however, the Titoites killed the bulk of those
thousands of Yugoslav communists who were thrown into prison as supporters of the
Cominform or they simply disappeared leaving to trace. Nevertheless, they had the temerity
to accuse us of being «murderers» !
The notorious concentration camps like Goli Otok, a kind of Mathausen in the conditions of
«Yugoslav socialism», were set up not in Albania, but in Yugoslavia. It was not our
communists and patriots who were incarcerated, maimed, and wiped out in them, but
Yugoslavs, including hundreds of thousands of Albanians from Kosova and others who lived
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on their own lands in Montenegro and Macedonia. That is, we did not fill Albania with Goli
Otoks, but the Belgrade leadership filled Yugoslavia with such notorious camps. And they
had the temerity to accuse us of turning Albania into «a barracks dominated by the military
jackboot»!
That, then, is what the «Titoite democracy» was, that is what the «advocates of Christian
charity», Tito and Rankovic, were, who perpetrated the most monstrous crimes against the
party and peoples of Yugoslavia without a tremor, while they were «horrified», because we
had condemned to death one sworn enemy of ours and their obedient agent! It is the same
«Rankovic democracy» which has been wreaking havoc in Yugoslavia for 35 years on end,
the same «Titoite democracy» which recently unleashed the black [583] hundreds and
thousands of Rankovices, Lubicices, Stambolices, and Herlevices against the peaceful
demonstrations of the people of Kosova demanding respect for and implementation of their
constitutional rights.
However, since 1948 Tito, as the rabid anti Albanian he was, could not and did not content
himself simply with propaganda attacks against us.
Just like the reactionary governments of Western countries, the Titoite leadership set up on
Yugoslav territory whole camps in which criminals and other agents, enemies of the new
socialist order in Albania, were assembled, trained and prepared to infiltrate into our territory
for sabotage and subversion. Thus, the time came when instead of the earlier «party» and
state emissaries, Tito and his henchmen began to send us dozens of bandits, criminals,
thieves and other reprobates who had fled from Albania together with the occupiers in 1944
or afterwards, on account of the crimes they had committed and the hostility they nurtured
towards the new order of the dictatorship of the proletariat. In collaboration with the foreign
imperialist and chauvinist agencies, especially those of the neighbouring countries, the
renegades of Belgrade collected up the anti-Albanian scum of agents, political and ordinary
criminals and fugitives wherever they were and brought them to Yugoslavia to prepare them
as mercenary forces against the Party of Labour of Albania and the Albanian socialist state.
Naturally, we were to receive these bandit «guests» from Yugoslavia as bandits and
criminals are received — with the trap set.
These sinister forces constituted, you might say, the «external echelon» which the Yugoslav
leadership was to throw in against us, as it did. At the same time, the Yugoslavs did not
overlook the «internal echelon», either. In this were included not only those elements long
recruited by the UDB. whom we had still not discovered, but all the remnants of the old
order which we had overthrown. All these elements were predisposed to prick up their ears
and accept the orientations and signals which came from Belgrade. This is under- [584]
standable: the overthrown classes, the traitors, the discontented elements, enemies of the
people's state power, all those who could not endure the justice of the Party and our
people's state power, had pinned all their hopes on external support. And if up till 1948 they
had pinned their hopes on the Americans and the British, now it was no trouble to add
another ally and new patron. They were bound to try, just as they did, to activize
themselves, to enter into contact with and operate in the Titoite's network, too.
In time, however, they, too, were uncovered and attacked. The hopes of Tito and company
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about arousing discontent, panic, despair, confusion and disorder in Albania were not
justifying themselves. One after the other, all the gangsters and wreckers and the secret
agents who were thrown into action in our country during this period fell into our hands, like
rats in a trap. {1 From 1948 to 1955 the Yugoslav secret agency infiltrated into and
organized in Albania 307 gangs of secret agents, wreckers and criminals who were all
captured or wiped out. During the same period groups and secret organizations of agents
set up and guided by the Yugoslav secret service in collaboration with Western secret
services were discovered and wiped out in our country.}
Still we did not go to sleep. Time was to show that the Yugoslav leadership, either with «its
own forces» or in secret agreement with the imperialist secret agencies, kept other «pawns
in reserve» to bring into action at the moments which appeared most opportune and when
their interests required. As to who these «pawns in reserve» were, this would be brought to
light by the progress of our revolution. The main thing is that we remained permanently
vigilant, aware that we would not be left to pursue our course in peace, because, apart from
anything else, our many enemies would never allow us to work and live in peace.
In this way the initial phase of Tito's efforts to change the situation in Albania through
wreckers and secret agents came to an end. Nothing shook our socialist fortress, its
foundations were unshakeable. Step by step, along with the advance in [585] all fields of
life, along with the cleaning out of imperialist, Titoite and imperialist-Titoite gangs and
networks of secret agents, we became stronger and more determined on our course. About
the beginning of the 50's it was seen clearly that Tito could achieve nothing against us
through the methods of wreckers, secret agents and the old anti-Albanian and anti-socialist
scum. However, precisely when his hopes of overturning the situation in Albania were
fading, another renegade, Nikita Khrushchev, came to the aid of Tito, like a «gift from God».
The Khrushchevite betrayal, one of the greatest traumas the international communist and
workers' movement has ever suffered, gave Tito new possibilities and means and, together
with them, great hopes of changing the situation in Albania. Now his old chauvinist greed to
gobble up Albania was to be combined with two other fundamental factors: with the hatred
of the renegades of Belgrade for socialism which was being built in Albania, and second,
with the desire to avenge themselves for the repeated blows and exposures which our Party
and people had been inflicting on them for years on end.
The Titoites did not wait long before they launched their first attack on us through Tuk
Jakova. It was by no means an accident that precisely when Tito and Khrushchev were
putting their fiddles in tune, a month or two before Khrushchev went to Belgrade to kiss Tito,
Tuk Jakova got up and repeated the hostile thesis of the Yugoslavs that allegedly they had
created the Communist Party of Albania (!) and that the «merit» for all the victories achieved
during the Anti-fascist National Liberation War belonged to them(!).
I have already dealt in detail with what this «thesis» is and why it was raised. Here I want to
point out something else: Tuk Jakova was one of the participants in the Founding Meeting
of the CPA in November 1941 and, during the years of the war up till 1955, like all of us, he,
too, had heard this thesis many times and had not accepted it, but on the contrary had
opposed it strongly. Then, how did it come about that he changed his mind and spat in his
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own face in April [586] 1955?! Undoubtedly, Çalamani (Dusan Mugosa) who, according to
the code-word of the UDB, «remembered and did not lorget» his recruits, signalled Tuk to
go into action. Tuk's other «theses» were all those which the Khrushchevite team were
peddling wholesale in their preparation of the terrain for the 20th Congress of the CPSU: the
dying out of the class struggle, re-examination of the line pursued by the Party, especially
the rehabilitation of those enemies who had been condemned for opportunism and
Trotskyism; the changing of the composition of the CC of the party and the bringing of
condemned elements into the leadership, etc., etc.
Our Party immediately dealt powerful, merciless blows at the «theses» and aims of Tuk and
those who had dished them up to him. Only one person, Bedri Spahiu, long known as an
opportunist, a megalomaniac, and a partisan of the thesis of the dying out of the class
struggle, etc., associated himself with Tuk Jakova. In condemning these two capitulationist
and anti-party elements, the Plenum of the CC of the PLA held in June 1955, not only
expressed the determination of the PLA not to fall into that mire in which the other parties of
the then socialist countries had begun to sink, but, at the same time, gave Tito and
company a good lesson. The Titoites' first attempt against us in the period when the
Khrushchevite epidemic had broken out was foiled. Despite this bitter outcome, however,
the Yugoslav leadership did not lose hope and did not spare its efforts to make new
attempts at interference and subversion in Albania.
These were precisely the moments when the sensational and disgraceful reconciliation of
Tito and Khrushchev was being brought to fruition in Belgrade at the end of May and the
beginning of June 1955. Our clear-cut opposition to this notorious action is well known.
As soon as Khrushchev informed us at the last minute that he was going to Belgrade in
person to make peace with Tito, to beg his «pardon» for «the mistakes committed against
him» in 1948 and in 1949 (!) and to publish in the press the «decision» (which Khrushchev
himself had taken) about annull- [587] ing the resolutions of the Corninform, we wrote a
strong letter to Khrushchev in which we expressed our disaproval of these actions and
especially of his annulling the resolutions of the Cominform. {1 «The daily experience of our
Party in relation to the Yugoslavs,» we wrote to Khrushchev among other things, «both
before the breach with the Yugoslavs in 1948 and later, to this day, proves clearly and
completely, with many incontestable facts, that the principled content of all the resolutions of
the Cominform in regard to the Yugoslav question has been completely correct... In our
opinion such a hasty (and ill-considered) decision on an issue of great importance and of
principle, without first making a profound analysis together with all the parties interested in
this issue, and what is more, the publication of it in the press and proclamation of it in the
talks in Belgrade, would not only be premature, but would also cause serious harm in the
general orientation. .. We are convinced that this general line of our Party in its relations
with Yugoslavia is correct. ..» (From the letter of the CC of the PLA to the CC of the CPSU,
May 25, 1955, CAP.)} In several meetings which I had those days with the Soviet
ambassador in Tirana Levichkin. I presented the Soviet leadership with a wide range of
powerful arguments in support of our correct stand on this question. However, the TitoKhrushchev accord came about. A few days after this act of treachery, on June 17, 1955,
with the measures which our Plenum of the Central Committee took against Tuk Jakova and
Bedri Spahiu, we gave Tito and Khrushchev direct and indirect warning that we would not
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reconcile ourselves to their plans, but on the contrary would mercilessly attack any attempt
of theirs or their agents to subjugate us. However, it must be said that, although we never
on any occasion accepted the line which Moscow dictated to us, but on the contrary
opposed it, we could not remain «unaffected», as you might say, outside the waves which it
stirred up. Both Khrushchev and Tito were to work, sometimes in unity, sometimes
separately, in order to give it the maximum striking force, that is, to create a situation which
would lead towards the «submission» of Albania.
Among the more serious events during this process, the Party Conference of Tirana in April
1956 must be mentioned. [588] In the context of the first phase of the open emergence of
Khrushchevite revisionism it undoubtedly constitutes the main attempt of Tito and
Khrushchev to overturn the situation in Albania, Held very shortly after the ill-famed 20th
Congress of the CPSU, the Tirana Conference of April 1956; from the ideological
standpoint, was a reflection of that congress .and the revisionist platform which it codified,
while, from the organizational standpoint it was simply a plot hatched up by the Titoite
leadership through the Yugoslav, embassy and, as it turned out later, in collaboration with
the Soviet embassy, too.
It is a recognized fact that especially after the 20th Congress of February 1956,
Khrushchev, in collusion with Tito, did everything in his power to overturn the situation in all
the countries of people's democracy. As I wrote above, one of the first measures which
Khrushchev took was the rehabilitation of those condemned in the time of the Cominform,
bringing them into the leaderships of the parties and countries of people's democracy. Rajk
in Hungary, Gomulka in Poland and Kostov in Bulgaria were all rehabilitated one after the
other, the socalled movement for democratization» for «the re-examination of decisions
taken under the influence of Stalin and the Cominform,» etc.. was launched. In many
countries the «new line» of reconciliation with the former enemies, «peaceful coexistence»
with imperialism, etc., were made law. None of the other erstwhile people's democracies of
Europe, nor Mao Zedong's China, lagged behind in this headlong gallop.
Tito watched this process with satisfaction and did everything possible to give it new
impulses and develop it in his own interest. Hoping that the time had come for him to take
up the banner, he declared more than once that the «blame» for all that had occurred lay in
the socialist order itself and, consequently, the «dogmatic», «Stalinist» socialism must be
overturned and the Yugoslav order of «vital», «human self-administration» must be
established.
Many were deceived by or enthusiastically welcomed all [589] this betrayal which was now
codified and became an official ideology. Only our Party and country remained unshaken on
the former line. This could not fail to infuriate, the preachers of modern revisionism, Tito and
Khrushchev. When they saw that what was happening in the other countries was not
happening here, they decided to pursue their old course — that of plots. In this direction Tito
was a master.
The Tirana Conference was precisely a part of the Tito-Khrushchev plot to overturn the
situation in our country. I say a part, because their plan, or their plot, was much more wideranging and of much greater proportions. At the Tirana Conference only the first step was to
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be taken, the feeling of the pulse, the preparation of the terrain, and later it would be carried
further, especially at the 3rd Congress of the PLA which was to be held and did take place a
little after the Tirana Conference. {1 The 3rd Congress of the PLA was held in Tirana from
May 25 to June 3, 1956.}
In fact, what occurred at the Tirana Conference?
Initially, in Tirana and throughout the whole country the meetings of the party organizations
had been held, meetings which were characterized by the political, ideological and
organizational maturity of the whole Party, by the love which the communists nurtured for
the Party, for its leadership and its line, by their determination to carry forward and defend
this line resolutely, etc. At these meetings the delegates to the Party Conference of Tirana
were elected, too. Up to this point, then, as I said, everything proceeded quite normally. The
organization of the Party in Tirana, as the organizations of the Party throughout the country,
once again confirmed its maturity and the correctness of the general line of the Party.
Precisely when the delegates had been elected and were preparing themselves for the
Conference, the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana was ordered to launch into urgent action the
secret agents prepared long before, discontented elements, etc. The reason for this haste of
Belgrade is easily understood: [590] the revisionist theses and decisions of the 20th
Congress of the CPSU had just been published and the Yugoslav leadership judged that
time must not be lost. In their view, a rapid, secret and intensive action in Albania might
disturb and completely confuse the situation, otherwise «the Stalinist leadership of Enver
Hoxha» could not be shaken. They started to spin the threads of the plot.
Under the pretext of «acquainting» people with and «popularizing» the decisions and theses
of the 20th Congress of the CPSU, which the whole world was propagating noisily, the
agents of the Yugoslavs and other elements condemned by the Party, instructed by the
Yugoslav embassy, began secretly to indoctrinate the delegates elected to the Conference.
Indeed, a «legal» course was followed: taking advantage of the love which our Party had
cultivated for the CPSU, many delegates were «instructed» to demand from the
organizations which had elected them that there should be a further «discussion», following
the example of the «Soviet sister party», to ensure that «complaints» and «criticism», which
would be in conformity with «the new spirit», were made against the leadership of our Party;
that the communists were called on to tell «everything» «about the present and the past»;
that efforts were made allegedly to «correct the mistakes and distortions» under the
disguise of «democracy», «listening to the voice of the masses», «bringing the voice of the
base to the Conference», etc., etc.
From the first day of the Conference, and especially in the first sessions of the second day,
this «spirit of criticism» was very obvious, indeed the accusations very quickly advanced so
far that the situation was becoming grave and disturbing even to the secret organizers of the
plot.
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Mehmet Shehu i: »Report on the 6th Five-Year Plan (1976-1980)«, 1976. The illustration is added by BA
Precisely in the middle of the second day of the Conference, quite unexpectedly Nexhmije
arrived in Vlora. I had been about a week in Vlora on holiday, although in fact I was working,
preparing the report for the 3rd Congress of the Party which was to be held in May that
year. Nexhmije told me that that day (I remember clearly it was Sunday, April 15) Mehmet
[591] Shehu and Begir Balluku had summoned her, and Mehmet Shehu had told her that
«the situation in the Conference is serious», «they are demanding the rehabilitation of Koçi
Xoxe, Tuk Jakova and Bedri Spahiu», calling for «links with Tito and the Yugoslav party«
etc. «I am telling you these things,» Mehmet Shehu had concluded, «so that you go to Vlora
to inform Comrade Enver and we think that it is necessary that he personally should come
to the Conference.»
Later I shall explain why Mehmet Shehu gave this information, why he saw it «necessary»
that I should go to the Conference and what was his true role in this plot. Here I want to
point out that even without Mehmet Shehu's «request», after what Nexhmije told me, I could
not have stayed a moment longer in Vlora. I ordered my car and two hours, later was back
in Tirana.
I immediately summoned Mehmet Shehu and Beqir Balluku (who officially was the delegate
of the Central Committee to the Conference, but in fact, as was proved later, he was the
«delegate» of the Yugoslav secret service). Hysni Kapo was present at this meeting, too. I
demanded from Beqir Balluku especially that he informed me in detail about what was being
done and said at the Conference and, alternately flushing red and turning pale, he began:
«Yesterday, as soon as Fiqret Shehu finished delivering the report, they bombarded us with
questions. The questions are. .. hard, shattering: 'Why is the Central Committee not acting
quickly and extensively to popularize the 20th Congress of the Soviet party?'; 'Are we going
to adopt its theses and decisions as the sister parties have done?!'; 'Does the Central
Committee think that the decisions taken against Koçi Xoxe, Tuk Jakova, Bedri Spahiu and
others should be re-examined in the light of the 20th Congress?'; 'Why has the publication in
the press of articles and materials of the sister parties, which have been written in the spirit
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of the 20th Congress, been banned by the Central Committee of the Party?'; 'Why has the
leadership of our Party not condemned Stalin's cult of the individual, as the others have
done, and are there [592] manifestations of it amongst us?'; 'How does the leadership of our
Party judge the Yugoslav question?'; 'Why are we not linking ourselves with the CPY like the
others?...»
After mentioning a number of other such questions (the formulation of them may have been
different, but in essence they are identical with these I mentioned above), Balluku
concluded:
«These were the questions which were raised yesterday and the contributions of the
delegates are developing in this spirit.»
«Did all the delegates ask such questions, and did they all speak in this spirit?!» I asked him
there and then.
Balluku was silent for a moment, red-faced, and looked at Mehmet Shehu, but since Shehu
sat like a mummy, he cleared his throat and replied:
«No! Only some comrades spoke about these problems and in this spirit, however, they are
setting the tone for the Conference.»
«And did you give the proper reply to these questions and accusations raised against the
Party and its line?»
«Yes, I gave it, but as it turns out, the problem has reached a serious stage. They are
continuing to raise these questions. Therefore, Comrade Mehmet Shehu and I thought we
should inform you and ask you to go to the Conference yourself to reply to them.. .»
«That is clear!» I interrupted Beqir Balluku. «You did well to inform me and ask me to come
back. We shall go immediately to the Conference and not we, but those elements who are
trying to put a spoke in the wheel and to distort our correct line, should be afraid of the
confrontation. But before we go there I have something I must say to you.
«First, from what I heard from you, it is clear that we are facing a hostile attack which,
undoubtedly, is not only inspired, but also organized. How and by whom we shall find out,
indeed very quickly, but my opinion is that the Yugoslavs have had not only a finger but a
whole arm in this pie. We shall look at this, too. However, I am of the opinion that [593] you,
Beqir Balluku, as the delegate of the Central Committee of the Party, should not have
allowed the situation to reach this point. You know the line of the Party and our stand on all
those problems which a few 'bold spirits' are now raising, seeking their 're-examination', is
more than clear. We have discussed all those problems and taken collective decisions on
them at the proper time and I am not aware that any of you is unclear about them, let alone
opposed to them.»
«That is so!» put in Mehmet Shehu in a low voice. «We have been in agreement and said
so.»
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«Then, why was it necessary for me to come to cope with the situation and to give the
answer to questions which you know very well?!» I asked Mehmet Shehu and Beqir Balluku.
«From every standpoint, this is not only incorrect, but also impermissible for main leaders of
a party. All of us must defend the things which all of us have settled and decided.
Nevertheless,» I continued, «the main thing now is to deal with the existing situation and,
since you considered it in order that I should do this work, I will certainly do it.»
«The second thing I wanted to say to you is about the tactic which must be pursued. I think I
should act in this way: I shall ask for the floor immediately and quietly, without attacking the
accusers for the time being, I shall make the delegates clear about the essence of the truth
in connection with the questions and base accusations which have been raised. I shall
explain what the stand of our Party has been and is on those problems, how we have acted,
and from what positions the accusations are raised and where they lead to, if they are
allowed to become established, I am convinced that the overwhelming majority of the
delegates are sound elements loyal to the Party and, if any of them are confused, matters
will soon be made clear to them. In regard to those 'bold spirits' who want a revisionlng, I
shall deal with them concretely in the second phase when the delegates have been made
clear about the truth. I shall demand that each of these elements explain to the Conference
from what positions he raises these filthy accusations, on whose behalf he [594] is speaking
and who has inspired him. I am convinced that, confronted with the truth, they will be
exposed and discredited.»
So, in the afternoon of April 15, I went to the Tirana Conference and followed the tactic
which I outlined above. I must say that as soon as I entered the Conference hall I was
surrounded by an atmosphere which gave me even greater confidence and strength: as
soon as they saw me the delegates rose to their feet and burst into applause and cheers for
the Party and its Central Committee. Excitement and joy began to appear in their faces. It
was clear, the comrades were being freed from an anxiety which had disturbed and worried
them for nearly two days on end. I was even more convinced of the truth of this as soon as I
began to speak. The explanation in a comradely spirit which I began to make of the
problems, the arguments which I raised to prove the correctness of the general line pursued
by the Party, very quickly electrified the hall. Time after time the delegates shouted from the
body of the hall:
«That is the truth! Long live the Party!»
Only a few individuals were out of tune with this general spirit: when all the delegates rose
to their feet they were obliged to stand up with the majority, but they did not applaud or
cheer. Of course, we did not want their applause, even if it cost us nothing. They had to be
gripped firmly in the vice, to admit through their own mouths that in all the things they had
raised they proceeded from hostile anti-Albanian and anti-party positions, that they had
carried out the orders and «directives», of the Trotskyite Yugoslav leadership, and for all
this evil work they would have to render account. On the following day, April 16, in
particular, I had to deal especially with these elements. As I said, the phase of quietly
clearing up the problems in principle had ended with success. Now it was the time for the
devastating attack on the plotters and their tools at the Conference. I called on one of them
by name and demanded that he «explain» to us there and then what had impelled him in
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the accusations which he made!
[595]
At first he began with a show of «boldness», but then began to mumble that he had brought
forward «the opinion of his basic organization».
«Leave your basic organization out of this!» I told him. «First of all, explain to us what you
were doing in the car of the Yugoslav embassy on such and such a date, where you went
and what instructions you received?!»
An excited ripple ran through the hall.
«It was a mistake,» the tool of the Yugoslavs dared to «defend» himself. «I thought it was
an Albanian car.»
«Let us assume that at first you made a mistake,» I continued with his «logic», «but when
you got in and heard them speaking Serbian, did Serbian sound to you like Albanian?!»
The whole of the hall burst into laughter. The agent of the Yugoslavs was deathly pale. He
did not know what straw to cling to and what to say. We continued in this way with two or
three others who, up till yesterday, had shown themselves «unrestrained» and «very bold»
but were now left completely isolated and discredited.
After this there was virtually no further need for me to intervene. The delegates began to
speak and, with the maturity, courage and the spirit of criticism and self-criticism which have
always characterized our communists, ensured that the proceedings of the Party
Conference of Tirana were carried through to the end with complete success.
The attempt to turn it into the first action to overthrow the sound leadership of the PLA and
change the situation in Albania was nipped in the bud.
During the Conference, and especially after it, we made a dispassionate analysis of what
had occurred and, as I said, on the basis of an endless series of facts we arrived at the
conclusion that everything had been organized by the Titoite leadership through the
Yugoslav embassy in Tirana. Likewise, as early as those days we arrived at the correct
conclusion, that it was the revisionist platform of the 20th Congress of the CPSU which had
inspired and encouraged both the Yugo- [596] slav leadership and its agents within our
ranks to undertake this hostile attempt.
After the group of conspirators at the Tirana Conference was routed, some of its participants
were expelled from the Party and some others, those who turned out to be in contact with
the Yugoslav embassy (because at that time we had no facts about the Soviet embassy)
were handed over to the court.
At that time, however, because of the level of our knowledge, we did not manage to
discover and attack the most powerful implement of foreign agencies who, on this occasion,
set in action by the Yugoslav UDB, secretly played the main role in the plot hatched up. This
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was Mehmet Shehu. The facts which had to do with his stand at the Conference did not
permit us to arrive at any conclusion other than the ones we did. Now, from analysis of
earlier and later events, especially of the facts which we discovered after his suicide on
December 18, 1981, the Party has arrived at precise and completely proven conclusions.
However, before I speak about the role and conspiratorial aims of Mehmet Shehu and his
enemy group at the Tirana Conference in 1956 and after it, up till the moment when he
killed himself, I consider it necessary to go back to the past to show who Mehmet Shehu
really was, where he came from and whom he served.
From the investigations following the suicide of Mehmet Shehu and from the documents in
the possession of the Party, it results that Mehmet Shehu was an agent recruited by the
Americans from the time he attended Fultz's school in Tirana. On Fultz's orders, Mehmet
Shehu went to study in a military school in Italy, on the orders of the American secret
service he was sent to Spain to penetrate into the ranks of the International Brigades. The
aim of the American secret service was to provide its agent with the «aura» of an
«intemationalist fighter» so he could be used for long-term aims in Albania later.
After the defeat of the anti-fascist war in Spain, Mehmet Shehu went to a refugee camp in
France where he stayed [597] for three years, at a time when many of his comrades
escaped from it. In the camp he was recruited as an agent of the British Intelligence Service
also. He was taken out of the camp by an officer of the German Gestapo and one of the
Italian SIM, passed through Italy, where he was held two months, and was then handed
over in Durrës to the Albanian notorious spy in the pay of the Italian secret service Man
Kukaleshi, who released him after 20 days, and Mehmet Shehu went to Mallakastra and
linked up with the organization of our Party there.
During the National Liberation War, Mehmet Shehu and his wife Fiqret Sanxhaktari were
recruited as agents of the Yugoslavs, too, by Dusan Mugosa. Mugosa began his work with
Mehmet Shehu in Vlora in the spring and summer of 1943 and intensified it even more
when the pair of them «arranged» that they should be together in the 1st Shock Brigade
which we formed in August of that year. While in the brigade Mugosa capped his work
neatly. He recruited Fiqret Sanxhaktari and arranged her betrothal to Mehmet Shehu for the
aims of his secret activity. Like every foreign secret agency, the Titoite agency, which was
emerging and taking form «in the flames of the war», operated with its recruits for short-term
and long-term aims: in the short term, immediately, Mugosa demanded and urged his agent
Mehmet Shehu to commit the maximum number of sectarian acts with the aim that later,
when necessary, the Yugoslavs could use this sectarianism, which they implanted and
encouraged themselves, to accuse the leadership of our Party of «sectarianism», just as
they did (as I said above, this was consummated at Berat in November 1944). At the same
time, in the context of «collaboration with the allies», the Titoite secret agency learned a
great deal from the experience of the Intelligence Service. Apart from what I said above, it
also took into account that it might suffer defeat in Albania, therefore, it prepared Mehmet
and Fiqret Shehu as agents for difficult times in the future. To this end, the former was given
the secret pseudonym MISH (Mehmet Ismail Shehu), [598] and the latter the pseudonym
FISARI (Fiqret Sanxhaktari).
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From the written documents of Mehmet Shehu, which have now been found, it is proved
that he was a member of the Berat plot, together with Koçi Xoxe and Nako Spiru,
irrespective of the fact that he was not at Berat in November 1944.
Thus, in a letter addressed to the Central Committee of the Party [to Koçi Xoxe] in
December 1944, Mehmet Shehu attacks the line of the Party as «sectarian» and «localist»
and describes its sound leadership as a «clique within the Party». And in order to leave no
doubt as to whom he was referring, Mehmet Shehu, enthusiastic over the anti-party turn at
Berat, writes with his own hand that «if the Party... had not made the turn which it is making
we would certainly be heading for disaster.» {1 From the letter of Mehmet Shehu addressed
to the CO of the CPA [to Koçi Xoxe] on December 10, 1944. CAP.}
Naturally Mehmet Shehu, as a recruited agent of the Yugoslavs, would take an anti-party
stand and unite with the plotters. At the same time, through this letter of solidarity he found
the opportunity to express his personal discontent with the leadership of the Party and,
especially with me, and to demand from Koçi Xoxe and those who directed Koçi Xoxe a
reward for the services which he had rendered and was rendering.
During the war, too, Mehmet Shehu had displayed signs of discontent, because at the 1st
National Conference of the Communist Party of Albania at Labinot in March 1943 he was
elected only a candidate member of the Central Committee and at Permet, at the Antifascist National Liberation Congress in May 1944, he was not promoted to general, like
several others whom he scorned.
Mehmet Shehu wanted the mistakes which he had made and continued to make by
violating the line of the Party and failing to carry out the orders of the General Staff, over
which he had been criticized several times, to be forgotten, [599] and now it is quite clear
that he did not do all this without a purpose. So he had used terror in the villages through
which the 1st Brigade passed to discredit the Party and the partisan forces, elevated to a
legend the «incursion» of two battalions of the 1st Brigade to rescue the General Staff from
the German-Ballist encirclement, although he not only did not rescue it (because the Staff
broke through the encirclement with its own forces), but Mehmet Shehu deliberately lost two
weeks, in place of two days, taking the forces of the Brigade over a number of dangerous
paths, thus, causing many brave fighters of this Brigade to lay down their lives heroically.
During the war Mehmet Shehu opposed the order of the General Staff for the 1st Division to
cross the Shkumbin River and move to the north. This opposition of Mehmet Shehu's was
not something accidental. It was in accord with the Anglo-American plan to prevent the
movement of formations of the ANLA from the south to Central and Northern Albania and
with the great pressure which the Anglo-American Mediterranean Command exerted on the
General Command of our Army to stop the movement of the Division to the north {1 See
Enver Hoxha «The Anglo-American Threat to Albania» (Memoirs), Tirana 1982, pp. 248268, Eng. ed.} and prevent any attack on the forces of Abaz Kupi describing this movement
and the vigorous development of our fighting actions as «interference in its strategic plans».
However, our Party and the General Staff had their own strategic plans for the liberation of
the whole of Albania as quickly as possible. Our categorical order for the immediate
movement of the 1st Division to the north resulted in foiling the Anglo-American plan and
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the services of Mehmet Shehu towards his patrons.
Hence, Mehmet Shehu came to Albania and fought not as a communist and partisan, but as
a mercenary sent by the Anglo-Americans to serve their plans for the future of Albania. {2
That Mehmet Shehu was a secret agent of the Americans and served them, is also borne
out, among others, by a letter dated February 6, 1944 which the CIA agent Larry Post (who
later was sent by the American secret service to Albania) wrote to another secret agent of
the Americans Hasan Reçi, «I repeated many times to them that we wanted facts, facts,
and facts about every situation and everything,» stressed Larry Post in this letter and
continued: «Transmit to Mjekrra — Mehmet Shehu — my warmest greetings. Is it possible
for him to send me a report on his situation and activity?! You do not write whether you have
contacted him. . .! P.S. Mjekrra may read this letter, too.» (From the original copy of the
letter in CAP.)} After his suicide, a program written by his own hand [600] in 1942, at the
time when he came to Albania, was found in his safe. This was nothing but a bourgeoisdemocratic program which made no mention at all of socialism and the communist party, but
of many parties, just as the Anglo-American missions and the reactionary groups which
supported them tried to bring about in the period immediately after Liberation. We are now
in possession of documents which fully prove that Mehmet Shehu was an agent of the
Intelligence Service, too. In these documents figure his name and some coded pseudonyms
such as, BAB-008, etc. From them it emerges that Mehmet Shehu had even received
money for his services and the centre instructed to leave him at peace, which meant that he
was one of those potential agents that are left, in the language of spying agencies,
»dormant« so as to be used when needed {1 From its assessments of the situation in
Albania in the end of 1944, the British secret service envisaged the eventual organization of
an opposition to the new state of people's democracy which was created. They included
Mehmet Shehu among the main elements of this opposition. This is borne out by a
document dated November 10, 1944, the photocopy of which has been taken from the
archives of the Foreign Office, London, and which, among other things, says about Mehmet
Shehu, «. ., he is a communist, but his personal ambition exceeds his loyalty to the Party».
(FO 371/43554 PRO.) Whereas in another document dated February 10, 1945, the section
of the British Intelligence Service for Albania (Force No. 399) describes Mehmet Shehu «to
be the only man with sufficient following to prove dangerous to Hoxha, should they
disagree» (read: over the program of the British Mehmet Shehu brought with him on his
return to Albania in 1942, which was found in his safe after his suicide. See p. 599 of this
book). WO-204.}
[601]
Thus, this hidden agent of the American secret service, later trained by the Intelligence
Service in the refugee camps of former volunteers from the International Brigades in France
to sabotage the National Liberation War in Albania, linked, as I wrote above, during the war
with the Yugoslav OZNA (UDB), could not but go further down the road of betrayal:
immediately after Liberation, on the 'Orders of his boss, Fultz, who at that time was official
representative of the American mission in Tirana, he was not long in infiltrating into the
Soviet secret service. We are now in possession of a letter which Mehmet Shehu sent Major
Ivanov immediately after Liberation, couched in so many vilifying terms against the line of
the Party and full of hatred for the sound cadres who defended this line, especially against
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the General Secretary Enver Hoxha, Hysni Kapo and others. This proves that Mehmet
Shehu, apart from his links as a secret agent of the Yugoslavs, had also established links
with a greater power, with the secret service of the Soviet Union. This is what, among other
things, he wrote to the Major of the Soviet secret service, Ivanov, chief of the Soviet military
mission in Tirana:
«... I feel it my duty to tell you my opinion about the things which I see and express what I
think. I know very well that this action of mine on this occasion is contrary to the rules of the
organizational line of our Party, but having confidence in you... I take the responsibility of
referring directly to you.» {1 From the letter of Mehmet Shehu addressed to Major Ivanov.
CAP.}
The letter in the form of a report to Ivanov goes on to make an all-round attack on the line of
the Party, which led the National Liberation War and triumphed. He attacks the historic
periods and events from the past struggle of the Party, such as the Conference of Peza, the
Congress of Përmet, and the 1st National Conference of the Party, and is in complete
conformity with the anti-Marxist and anti-Albanian views of Velimir Stojnic and Koçi Xoxe.
Like Velimir Stojnic, Mehmet Shehu, too, describes Enver Hoxha and the [602] other
comrades as «a CLIQUE» {1 The words in capitals are quoted from the original letter.}
which must be purged, going further than the decisions which were taken at Berat. «In order
to make the change,» writes Mehmet Shehu, «a total revolution in our Party is
required» (implying a total purge).
While describing Tito as «a head of INTERNATIONAL value» and in order to fulfil his
personal ambition which he could not achieve during his struggle full of vacillations and
sectarian and anarchist mistakes, Mehmet Shehu closes his letter to Major Ivanov with
certain «conclusions» and appeals written in capital letters.
«Amongst us, Albanian communists,» he writes, «there is no one as capable as Tito in
Yugoslavia. . . In order to help us to advance well, it is necessary that we have direct and
immediate aid from the CI [Communist International] or the CPY [Communist Party of
Yugoslavia] {2 Underlining and brackets in this excerpt of the letter are ours (Editorial
Board).} and this is needed quickly because the situation has given rise to very important
problems.» (After Mehmet Shehu's suicide, in his safe was found a note in his own hand
about his having written a letter to Ivanov.)
In this context it is easy to understand the acrobatic twists and contradictory stands of
Mehmet Shehu during the National Liberation War and after Liberation, before and after the
8th and 11th Plenums of the Central Committee (in 1948), sometimes defending the
Yugoslav theses, sometimes opposing them under the protection of Soviet military advisers.
At the 8th Plenum Nako Spiru was denounced and condemned as an enemy by the
Yugoslavs and Koçi Xoxe, while, as I wrote above, Mehmet Shehu was described as «antiYu-goslav» and the «attacks» and «pressure» of Tito's delegates and Koçi Xoxe to remove
him from the army were stepped up. However, these same «critics» from Belgrade, indeed,
in Tito's name, insisted that Mehmet Shehu should not be completely eliminated, but on the
contrary, should be given the [603] portfolio of a ministry(!). He was appointed minister of
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communications, that is, a member of the government. {1 At the 11th Plenum Kristo
Themelko declared: «The Yugoslavs liked Mehmet Shehu.» Indeed, at one moment he
turned to Mehmet Shehu and said: «It's true that I have a whole load of mistakes, but don't
forget that whenever we went to Belgrade, it was you Tito received first and not me!» «As
for the criticisms in December 1947,» continued Kristo, «true, the Yugoslavs criticized him,
but they told me to exert pressure on the leadership to appoint him a minister! They wanted
to keep sweet with Mehmet Shehu, because they were afraid of him!» (From the minutes of
the llth Plenum of the CC of the CPA, CAP.)
Further evidence of Mehmet Shehu's «special» links with the Titoites is provided by his
«confidential» correspondence with Dusan Mugosa. Thus, in the letter which he sent
Mugosa on February 9, 1944, Mehmet Shehu wrote among other things: «The letter which
you sent me reassures me.. . ; there you show what special personal interest you have
taken [in me]. The letter reassures me, comforts me, advises, helps and teaches me. I am
keeping the letter and it will serve me as your photograph with which to remember you. . .
Ah! If only you were to desert and come back to us we would keep you under cover as an
illegal fighter!»
In the letter of April 22, 1944, on the occasion of Mugosa's departure from Albania, after a
dithyramb of praise and describing him with servility as «our teacher», Mehmet Shehu calls
the Albanian communists «communist brigands», a «hotch-potch of bitter vegetables» and
concludes: «Oh, Sale! [the pseudonym of Dusan Mugosa]... To whom will you entrust this
special mission. . .?» (The letters are kept in the CAP.)}
After the letters of the CPSU(B) to the CC of the CPY, after the 11th Plenum of the CC of
our Party, Mehmet Shehu adapted himself to the line of the Party, defending the Soviet
Union and Stalin and «exposing» Tito and his clique as agents of imperialism, as our whole
Party did. Despite the thundering of Mehmet Shehu against the Tito clique, Belgrade
remained silent. The Yugoslav UDB, in collaboration with the American CIA and the British
Intelligence Service, did not denounce him, because he was their potential agent infiltrated
into the Soviet secret service, the trust of which he enjoyed.
Following the death of Stalin, the team that came to [604] power condemned Beria, tine
chief of the Soviet KGB, for many violations of the law. We asked Mehmet Shehu to
examine whether mistakes had also been made in the organs of our Ministry of Internal
Affairs of which he was the head. Mehmet Shehu was afraid that his links with the Soviet
KGB or with the Western secret agencies had been discovered and he might suffer the
same fate as Beria. He went to the Soviet ambassador Levichkin, whom he assured of his
loyalty to the new Khrushchevite team that had come to power, and sought Soviet
protection, because, according to his statements, «Enver Hoxha regards me with suspicion»
and he was very disturbed about this. Levichkin advised Mehmet Shehu to come to me and
make his position clear, while ensuring him that he, Levichkin, would protect him. Levichkin
personally came to me, told me of Mehmet Shehu's worries and that he had advised him to
come to me. Mehmet Shehu did not come for two or three weeks. At a subsequent meeting,
Levichkin asked me:
«Have you talked with Mehmet Shehu?»
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«He has not sought any meeting with me,» I replied.
«Perhaps you should summon him,» said Levichkin.
«By no means!» I said. «I have no reason to summon him. On the contrary, he must come
to me himself and make a thorough self-criticism. It is true, we are friends with you, but I
consider it a very grave mistake that he went to talk with you about a problem which has to
do with us, without first talking to me, as General Secretary of the Party.»
Levichkin was alarmed and «ordered» Mehmet Shehu to come to me. First he sent Fiqret
Shehu to feel my pulse. She came to enquire what was wrong with Mehmet Shehu, who
was «extremely worried» (as if she herself knew nothing!). «We have no problem with him,»
I replied, «so you had better ask him whether he has something against us!» In this way
Mehmet Shehu was reassured that we had not made any discovery and had no suspicions
about him. On Levichkin's urging too he came to me, made a self-criticism and also made a
self-criticism in the Political Bureau and in the Plenum of the Central Committee, saying that
he had made a [605] serious mistake in going to the Soviet ambassador to complain about
the General Secretary of the Central Committee without discussing the matter with him and
without raising the problem in the leadership of the Party.
Later, something else occurred which greatly alarmed and worried Mehmet Shehu: Sokrat
Bufi, a party cadre who was studying in Moscow at that time, sent the Central Committee a
letter in which, amongst other things, he said: «Mehmet Shehu is a provocateur...» Mehmet
Shehu was furious about this and demanded insistently in the Secretariat and in the Political
Bureau of the Central Committee and several times to me personally that Sokrat Bufi should
be arrested and condemned. We did not accept his proposal, because to condemn him
simply for the fact that he had made a criticism of a party cadre would be contrary to the
norms of the Party. Since Sokrat Bufi was appointed vice-chairman of the Executive
Committee of a district, the doubts of Mehmet Shehu that we had discovered some of his
sins were further aroused and he continued to live and work in feverish anxiety. The coming
to power of Khrushchev and the 20th Congress of the CPSU, which brought reconciliation
between the Soviet revisionists and the Titoites, found Mehmet Shehu still in this state of
anxiety.
After the abortive attempt through Tuk Jakova and Bedri Spahiu to change the situation in
Albania, the foreign secret agencies considered that Mehmet Shehu, too, should be brought
into action. I say the foreign secret agencies, because at those moments the aims of the
Soviets and the Titoites, as well as of the imperialists, with American imperialism at the
head, for the disruption and destruction of the socialist countries by means of the
«Khrushchev line», were all in accord. Subsequently, of course, after the sound leadership
of the Party and state had been replaced with a revisionist team, the foreign secret agencies
would commence their usual fights, each of them striving to take Albania under its own
wing.
Hence, Mehmet Shehu was ordered by the Soviets and the Yugoslavs (but with the
approval of the British and [606] American agencies) to go into action with all his group in
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order to achieve in Albania what had been or was being achieved in the other former
countries of people's democracy. Precisely at this point begins the implication of Mehmet
Shehu in the Party Conference of Tirana, where the task of first secretary of the Party
Committee of the district was performed by his wife and long-term agent of the Yugoslavs,
Fiqret Shehu. By chance (but also through the secret machinations of Mehmet Shehu) the
other agent of his group, Beqir Balluku, was appointed the delegate of the CC of the Party
to the Conference. In regard to the others, the «claque» of the group of plotters, the need
did not arise for MISH, FISARI or Balluku to be involved in their orientation. No, the chiefs of
the plot, especially Mehmet Shehu, had to operate in secrecy, far behind the scenes, so
they could escape in any unexpected eventuality. The employees of the Yugoslav embassy
and their henchmen long known and condemned by our Party, such as Liri Gega, Dali
Ndreu, Hulusi Spahiu and others, were to deal directly with the «claque», as they did.
On this occasion, the duty of the chiefs of the plot initially was to create for elements from
the floor, concealed under the mandate of «delegates», conditions and possibilities to vent
all their spleen and give the tone to the Conference. Only when they were assured that
everything was proceeding normally could other more obvious and decisive steps be taken.
Beqir Balluku and Fiqret Shehu accomplished this secret task. The fact is that from the first
day of the Conference they created all the possibilities for the enemy elements to pour out
all the filth of their anti-party questions and, when the time came for discussion, through
their «inac-tivity», allegedly because «they were taken by surprise and dumbfounded» and
were «incapable» of «explaining» things to the enemies, they arranged that enemy
elements were given the floor one after the other, and this brought about that the first phase
of the plot proceeded as they had envisaged and planned behind the scenes.
Precisely when the anti-party discussions at the Confe- [607] rence blazed up, Mehmet
Shehu and Beqir Balluku «consi-dered it in order» to demand that I go to the Conference.
Why? They had two main aims for this urgent demand which they made:
First, to place me personally directly under the main anti-party attack, to raise the tempers
higher and, if I were faced with an irresistible attack or retreated, then Mehmet Shehu would
manoeuvre in the troubled waters that would be created to disrupt the situation further, to
take the lead and, coming out openly, carry through to the end the scenario prepared by his
patrons.
Second, Mehmet Shehu had also taken account of the possible failure of the plot, indeed,
even he was afraid when he saw the reins were slipping from his hands. Not knowing that
their leader was Mehmet Shehu himself, the enemy elements, «the claque», did not spare
their attacks on him and his wife, since they identified them with the sound leadership. In
such a case he considered it in order that I should come, do battle myself, and if he saw that
the plot had failed, then he would act as was his custom: would come out «beside me»,
would launch the «attack« against minor elements, the pawns in the game, and no doubt,
against Tito, too, and as before, would wait in gloom and anxiety for more appropriate
moments.
However, his patrons, too, both the new ones (Khrushchev and company) and the old ones
(the Anglo-Americans and the Titoites), sensed and knew that those situations which
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existed then in the other parties and countries of people's democracy did not exist in
Albania. The unity of the PLA was powerful. In the 15 years of its existence the PLA had
proved that it did not tolerate mistakes, slips and deviations, its political and ideological past
was pure, it had strong links with the masses and enjoyed the boundless love and respect
of the people. In such a sound situation it was not at all easy for the enemies to stir up antiparty feelings and triumph, It was more likely that everything would burst like a soap bubble,
as it did.
[608]
The enemies calculated these things well, and understandably, they were not so silly as to
destroy their main agent for nothing. On the contrary, they did everything in their power to
ensure that he remained as «clean» as possible, attempted in one instance or the other to
launch him into the attack, but as soon as they saw he might be in danger they gave him the
signal to change his position and come out «on the side» of the sound leadership.
This is what occurred on this occasion and what was to occur even later. As soon as they
saw that the Party did not fall into the trap set, Mehmet Shehu and Beqir Balluku retreated
into the background and «condemned» the plotters, while Fiqret Shehu vowed that she had
not had the slightest warning, that the plotters had operated «behind her back», that she
had been shut up at home preparing the report, etc. Fiqret Shehu was dismissed as first
secretary and the reprimand was recorded on her registration document. At that time, we
knew nothing in regard to Feçor Shehu {1 An anti-party element and sworn enemy of the
PSRA. On the proposal of Mehmet Shehu he was appointed minister of Internal Affairs.
After the disclosure of the activity of Mehmet Shehu as a secret agent, the true features of
Feçor Shehu were revealed, too, and he has been handed over to the organs of justice for
investigation of his enemy activity.}, who, it now turns out, was an agent in the service of the
UDB and was the liaision agent between the Yugoslav embassy and Mehmet Shehu.
Mehmet Shehu personally maintained the direct links with the Soviet embassy, readily
exploiting the good relations we had with the Soviet Union at that time.
In the situation which was created after the failure of the Khrushchevite-Titoite plot at the
Tirana Conference and the resolute, open unmasking by our Party of the events in Poland,
and especially those in Hungary, the UDB of Tito-Rankovic ordered their agents Liri Gega,
Dali Ndreu and Panajot Plaku to flee to Yugoslavia in order to create an opposition abroad
and to fight us through their mouths. The first two were arrested attempting to cross the
border, while [609] Panajot Plaku, with the aid of Mehmet Shehu and his collaborators
amongst the officers of the army and the state security, such as the former minister of
defence Beqir Ba-lluku and the former minister of internal affairs Kadri Hazbiu, crossed our
state border and worked for some time in an allegedly clandestine radio which broadcast
the old Titoite poison against our Party and country from the territory of Yugoslavia.
Here it is important to point out that even in the stand towards Dali Ndreu, Liri Gega and
Panajot Plaku, not only the continuous anti-Albanian activity of the Titoite leadership, but
also the collaboration of the Yugoslavs with the Soviets was clearly obvious. When our
organs captured Dali Ndreu and Liri Gega red-handed and placed them in the dock, the
Yugoslavs jumped up in rage, and so did Khrushchev. He sent an urgent radiogram to the
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Soviet ambassador in Tirana Krylov to intervene with me to ensure that the enemies and
traitors were not condemned. These were precisely those days of Novembier 1956 when,
as I said above, Tito delivered his notorious speech at Pula in which, amongst other things,
he called openly for the overthrow of the leadership of the PLA and for my condemnation.
Khrushchev sent Krylov with two main instructions: we were not to reply sternly to Tito's
speech and not to punish the captured agents who were rendering account before the
people's court. We very quickly gave Khrushchev and Tito the answer: in regard to the first
instruction, we published articles in the press in which we fired off all our batteries against
Tito, Titoism and the speech at Pula; in regard to the second instruction, we gave the
agents and traitors the punishment they deserved.
This was bitter medicine for Khrushchev and Tito, but they did not stop their anti-Albanian
actions. A little after this, the flight of Panajot Plaku to Yugoslavia was achieved. However,
the Titoites were soon to be convinced that they could do us nothing from outside, either
through the «op-positions» the Dusan Mugosas tried to set up with the reac- [610] tionary
emigrées, or with the spleen the abject traitor Panajot Plaku vented on us through a socalled clandestine radio, so they sought Khrushchev's help. The Yugoslavs hoped that
Khrushchev would exercise pressure on us and influence us so that we would accept
Panajot Plaku in Albania with the aim that he, together with their agents and other secret
enemies, could carry out the plots and plans of the Yugoslav and the Soviet secret services
from inside. Sensing the advantages of this course, Khrushchev was ready to collaborate
with Tito, as he did over the Polish and Hungarian question, to mislead the work of the Party
Conference of Tirana (1956), etc., therefore, he did not fail to intervene for a «concilia-tion»
with the traitor. As the first step, he told us that he was considering admitting him to the
Soviet Union, since Plaku himself had expressed this desire in a letter he had sent
Khrushchev.
«He is a traitor,» I told Khrushchev, «and if you accept him in your country, we shall break
off our friendship with you. If you do accept him, you must hand him over to us so we can
hang him in the middle of the square in Tirana.» {1 See Enver Hoxha, «The
Khrushchevites» (Memoirs), Tirana 1980, p. 354-356, Eng. ed.}
This was the end of these old agents of the Titoite clique and, obviously, also of the hopes
which both the Titoites and the Khrushchevites had based on them.
However, this by no means meant that from now on we would no longer have to deal with
other attempts, traps and plots. Therefore, on no occasion did we permit any lowering of
vigilance. On the contrary, our Party of Labour continued persistently with the ideological
and political struggle against Titoism, at a time when our contradictions with the Soviet
revisionist leadership were steadily mounting. We were heading for the confrontation of
June 1960 in Bucharest.
Just as had occurred continually with the Titoites, the Khrushchevites, too, did not spare
either their means, their pressure and blackmail or their agents, recruited long before, on
[611] the eve of and after this great confrontation. The pawn with which they made their
opening move was Liri Belishova. In the summer of that year Belishova was in Beijing with a
parliamentary delegation, at the time that the meeting of the World Federation of Trade
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Unions was being held there. Contrary to every party rule and norm, the profound
contradictions which had developed in the ranks of the international communist and
workers' movement between the Chinese and the Soviets emerged openly at that meeting.
In opposition to the stand of the leadership of our Party, which did not want to pronounce
itself prematurely on these contradictions, Liri went to the Soviet embassy and reported all
that the Chinese had told her. We sent Liri Belishova two letters, one to Beijing and one that
reached her on the way back to Moscow, in which we criticized her for her stand in Beijing
and explained the stand she must take in Moscow. However, Liri Belishova, as an agent of
the Soviets, not only did not follow the advice of the leadership of the Party, but met Kozlov, talked with him, listened to him and even handed over to the Khrushchevites our letters
(radiograms) which, when we asked her for them, she told us she «had burnt».
When she returned to Albania, Liri Belishova took Comrade Hysni aside and said to him,
«Let us keep Comrade Enver out of these clashes,» but Hysni denounced Liri. She had also
met Mehmet Shehu and told him, «Don't talk about Khrushchev, because everything you
say reaches his ears.» Mehmet Shehu reluctantly admitted this much later, when he saw
that the leadership of the Party was condemning Liri Belishova. What other pressure Liri
Belishova had exerted on him is not known.
Likewise, we do not know what Kosygin said to Mehmet Shehu when he was in hospital in
Moscow for treatment. Mehmet Shehu told us that Kosygin had tried to convince him that
China must be condemned and this «had angered» him, so he left the hospital and returned
to Albania. Now it turns out that Mehmet Shehu, together with Fiqret Shehu, had been
summoned to a meeting with Mikoyan at which Andropov [612] and I think also the chief of
security Shelepin were present and talked for four hours with them.
In the end, apparently, the Soviets decided that they should set Mehmet Shehu in action for
the subjugation of the leadership of our Party. I say «in the end», because some months
earlier, in February of that year, they not only hesitated, but did not even want to inform
Mehmet Shehu of the quarrels which they had with the Chinese.
As I have written in my book of memoirs «The Khrushchevites», when we arrived in Moscow
for a top-level meeting in the framework of the Comecon and the Warsaw Treaty, they
informed me that Mikoyan sought an urgent meeting «with Enver Hoxha alone». I insisted
that Mehmet Shehu should be present, too, and since despite their wishes I took Mehmet
Shehu with me, the Soviets hesitated, frowned, but were faced «with an accomplished
fact». {1 See Enver Hoxha, -The Khrushchevites» (Memoirs), Tirana 1980, pp. 387-389,
Eng. ed.} In order to avoid angering Mehmet Shehu, they justified themselves for not inviting
him to the meeting on the grounds that they had decided to speak «only with the first
secretaries of sister parties». Now it turns out that this «reason« was a bluff. They did not
want Mehmet Shehu to learn what had occurred, because they knew that he was the man
of many agencies and might carry informa-tion to the Americans and the British. However,
the events evolved and in May-June the Soviets changed their tune.
Meanwhile, Mehmet Shehu saw that the leadership of our Party was not going to tolerate
Khrushchev's plans against Marxism-Leninism and the international communist and
workers' movement any longer. Our Party worked out the platform for the stand it would
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take at Bucharest, retaining its right to present its views at the regular meeting of all parties
(in November 1960 in Moscow). At that time Mehmet Shehu was in a quandary: whom to
please and whom to displease? To place himself in opposition to the leadership of the Party
was of no benefit to him, because he would suffer the fate of [613] Liri Belishova and all the
other anti-party enemies. However, as a man of many foreign secret agencies he had to
take the Americans, the British and the Yugoslavs into his calculations, besides us and the
Soviets.
Which way would this multiple agent turn in this complicated situation?!
However, a way out was presented to him. At this time Mehmet Shehu was sent to New
York at the head of a government delegation to the UNO. He travelled on the British transAtlantic luxury liner «Queen Elizabeth». We knew that Tito, also, was travelling on that ship,
but it never crossed our minds that Mehmet Shehu might meet Tito. Now we learn from his
fellow-travellers who were his collaborators and are now in jail that Harry Fultz of the
American CIA and Randolph Churchill, who was an Intelligence Service agent but figured
on the passenger list as a journalist, were also aboard. During this trip of several days,
Mehmet Shehu, being their agent, had secret meetings and talks with Tito, Fultz, and R.
Churchill, informed them of the situation in and the stands of our Party, the acute
contradictions which were arising with the Soviet Union and the stand which the leadership
of our Party intended to take in Moscow.
The strategies of the three agencies, Yugoslav, American and British, were in accord and
they suggested to their super-agent that he should unreservedly «support» the correct
stands of the leadership of the Party, which would lead to the great breach and rupture with
the Soviet Union. It would be no loss to them that we supported China. On the contrary, this
«friendship» with their secret pro-American, pro-Titoite friends (such as Zhou Enlai, Liu
Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping) would serve their longer-range strategic plans (to involve us in
the liberal policies of China, such as it began later with the Nixon-Zhou Enlai meeting, or
when Zhou Enlai urged Beqir Balluku to act relying on a Yugoslavia-Rumania-Albania
alliance), etc.
Mehmet Shehu returned from the United States of America full of «courage» and became
more catholic than the Pope. was unrestrained in his «defence» of the line of our Party [614]
against the plans and stands of Khrushchev and the revisionist Soviet leadership. Indeed,
he organized «scenes» in order to boost himself and thoroughly cement our trust in him.
When we were at the Meeting of 81 parties in Moscow, in November of that year, he
proposed we should leave the house in which the Soviets had placed us because «they are
capable of poisoning us». (He was afraid rather on his own account.) When we went to our
embassy in Moscow, through the secret microphones which the Soviets had planted and
which we discovered, he «transmitted» to them a fiery message eulogizing our Party and its
first secretary, while using all the gravest insults against them for their disgraceful act in
eaves-dropping on their close friends, such as the Party of Labour of Albania and its
leaders. Mehmet Shehu stubbornly opposed our return by ship via the Black Sea and
organized our return by train through Austria and Italy. We agreed to these measures,
because we no longer trusted the Soviets, either, but with the zeal which he displayed he
strengthened our trust in him and also protected himself. Nevertheless, Mehmet Shehu
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could not but be worried that he might pay with his head for the «betrayal» which he was
committing against his Soviet patrons as a disobedient agent.
There was no lack of some hints and needling. In my book «The Khrushchevites» I have
recorded that Kosygin said to me, «There are enemies in your leadership». {1 See Enver
Hoxha, «The Khrushchevites» (Memoirs), Tirana p. 432, Eng. ed.} However, when I called
on Mehmet Shehu to translate this to me better, because, although I understood Russian, I
had never mastered those Cyrillic letters which hindered me from reading and learning it
well, Kosygin shut his mouth and said that I «had not understood him properly». There, too,
I have written about the pressure exerted on us by the Soviet militarymen who had an
argument with Mehmet Shehu, too. Now another explanation can be given for why
Khrushchev at our last meeting said to us: «This is how MacMillan wanted to speak [615] to
me», at which Mehmet Shehu jumped to his feet and we broke off the meeting. Apparently,
when Khrushchev mentioned the Englishman MacMillan, Mehmet Shehu feared that he
might open a wound which would cause him great pain.
After the Meeting of 81 parties, Khrushchev and company tried to patch up their relations
with us. This they tried to do at our 4th Congress, with the letters they sent us, as well as
through the Chinese, etc. They also tried to turn us to their course through economic and
military pressures, but they failed in all directions. We maintained our immovable stand. We
expelled the Soviets from the base at Vlora; they cut off their economic and military aid,
even broke off diplomatic relations.
Precisely at the extremely difficult and delicate moments which our Party and country were
experiencing in 1960 we uncovered the dangerous plot of Teme Sejko, hatched up and
supported by the American 6th Fleet, the renegades of Belgrade and the Greek chauvinist
circles. In collaboration with one another, these forces of darkness had thrown into action
their long-standing agent Teme Sejko and a number of other agents around him to prepare
and cause «internal» disorders to break out in Albania which would serve as a pretext for a
foreign military intervention against our country. However, although we were deeply
involved in the struggle against our new Khrushcbevite enemies, we had not relaxed for a
moment our vigilance towards our old enemies — the imperialists, the chauvinists and the
Belgrade renegades. We discovered their plot, smashed it and, at the 4th Congress of the
Party, {1 The 4th Congress of the PLA carried out its proceedings from 13-20 February
1961.} spoke about it and publicly denounced it and its organizers. At those moments the
Soviets pretended to be totally ignorant of and even alarmed about it, so much so that
Gomulka asked that a commission from the Warsaw Treaty be set to «verify» things, which
we turned down! What all this alarm of the Soviets was about, this we did not know at that
time.
[616]
Now it is fully proved that at a time when the Americans, the Yugoslav and Greek
chauvinists were secretly hatching up the plot of Teme Sejko and company, the Soviets got
air of this plot through their secret agents and made the most of it as a very favourable
occasion to maintain and strengthen their positions in Albania, which were being shaken.
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Let us not forget that the Soviet fleet was still at Vlora. Let us not forget that those were
days and months when we were at daggers drawn with the Soviets. The Soviets sensed
that their end was coming in Albania and feared that their naval fleet might be driven from
Vlora. We had just launched the attack in Bucharest and were preparing the main and
general attack for the Meeting of communist and workers' parties which was to be held in
Moscow in November that year. To forestall the evil the Soviets threatened us in many
ways, indeed, in one letter they wrote that we must extinguish the «spark» which was
kindled at Bucharest. {1 See Enver Hoxha, Works, vol. 19, p. 128, Alb. ed. 616} We
continued resolutely on our course. Then, they tried to find a way out through another more
«powerful» and more «menacing» means: through their secret agents Mehmet Shehu,
Beqir Balluku and Kadri Hazbiu they tried to employ the truth about Teme Sejko's plot as a
means of pressure and blackmail on us in order to make us kowtow to the Soviets. They
even gave Mehmet Shehu, Beqir Balluku and Kadri Hazbiu additional information ensured
through the KGB, which confirmed the threat of an attack prepared by the West and the
Yugoslavs against our country. After this the Soviets and their agents expected that we
would fall into the trap and see our «salvation from the danger» in relying on the Soviets,
especially on their fleet in Vlora. Hence, with the card of the imperialist-Yugoslav plot the
Soviets said to us: Don't do anything silly, the attack is prepared, imperialism will gobble you
up, therefore come to your senses, because you need us! What a masquerade! These
plans and base calcula- [617] tions by the Khrushchevites in 1960 about the plot of Teme
Sejko are very similar to the plans which the Titoites concocted with Koçi Xoxe and Beqir
Balluku at the end of 1947 and the beginning of 1948, that we were allegedly under threat of
a Greek attack and, therefore, the Yugoslav divisions should come «to defend and save
us»!
However, just as we foiled the Titoites' plots and secret plans in 1947 and 1948, we also
foiled the plots of the imperialists, the Yugoslavs and the Soviets in 1960. On the basis of
many facts and documents which we discovered, we handed Teme Sejko and his network
of agents over to the people's court where they admitted through their own mouths, not only
their participation in the plot, but also the work that they had done as agents for the
Yugoslav, Greek and American secret services.
Naturally, our foiling and public denunciation of the imperialist-Yugoslav plot would alarm
the Soviets, as it did. The smashing of the first, American-Yugoslav-Greek, plot
automatically blew up the second plot which the Khrushchevites. and their agents Mehmet
Shehu, Beqir Balluku and others had hatched up in secrecy. The Soviets saw that after this
they had their days numbered in Albania. And true enough, very soon we ousted the Soviet
naval fleet from Vlora, without it ever crossing our mind that we could rely on it to «save
ourselves». This fleet of the Khrushchevites had already become just like the American 6th
Fleet in the Mediterranean and we knew that our salvation would not come from relying. on
it, but from expelling it, as we did.
The fact that we uncovered and foiled this plot right at the outset made Mehmet Shehu draw
in his horns. Meanwhile, our Party pursued the course of Marxism-Leninism and Mehmet
Shehu «endorsed» its line, indeed, he greatly advertised his role in these situations and, of
course, in the eyes of the Americans and the Yugoslavs posed as if it was he that inspired
this course. From the plans which they had made and the secret contacts which they
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maintained, the Americans and the Yugoslavs knew this, while all the Western [618] secret
agencies were in agreement that their «boy» should thunder against them with such
statements as «We are dancing in the wolf's mouth», etc., etc. They accepted any abuse,
content that their agent was climbing higher and higher and might turn the helm of our Party
and state towards the West.
Mehmet Shehu zealously continued the «struggle» against the Soviet revisionists, but
proceeding from other purposes and aims, quite the opposite of the lofty aims of the Party
which worked for the defence of Marxism-Leninism and the supreme interests of our people
and socialist Homeland.
The events of Czechoslovakia in August 1968 came about and the Party decided to
denounce the Warsaw Treaty, to take our country out of this ill-famed treaty de jure,
although de facto, we had withdrawn from it at the end of 1960. On this occasion, Mehmet
Shehu delivered the speeches as prime minister and, of course, he presented this to his
patrons as his personal victory. The American agency (and those linked with it, first of all,
the Titoites) thought that Albania was left isolated and undefended, and since China was far
away, it considered that the time had come when our country would turn its face towards the
West.
The trump card of the Western and Titoite agencies, Mehmet Shehu, was brought into
action. In 1972 he went to Paris for an operation, accompanied by the same team that
accompanied him to the UNO, plus his wife Fiqret Shehu. There he made contact with a top
figure of the American CIA, who said to him: «What are you doing? You are getting old, you
must act!»
Mehmet Shehu reported to him about the situation and the plots which were being prepared
(by Beqir Balluku and Abdyl Këllezi and company). The CIA recommended that he should
act, but without compromising himself. It proposed three variants for the elimination of Enver
Hoxha: 1) through a motor accident; 2) through shooting with a rifle from a distance; or 3)
with delayed-action poison. It was left to Mehmet Shehu to put into action the variant he
considered most feasible.
[618]
Through Feçor Shehu, Mehmet Shehu received the same instructions from the Yugoslav
UDB which was completely in agreement with the CIA.
In Paris Mehmet Shehu was also given a sophisticated radio receiver-transmitter which his
eldest son, who was an electronics engineer, installed in his house, ready to function.
In fact, Mehmet Shehu had turned, or was to turn, his whole family into a nest of agents, a
family of vipers. As we said, Fiqret Shehu had been recruited during the war by Dusan
Mugosa and had the pseudonym FISARI, without taking into account what she might have
done earlier when she went to Italy on a one- or two-year course during the occupation, or
what Liri Gega (and Smith {1 Officer of the British military mission in Albania, secret agent of
the Intelligence Service, a friend of Liri Gega and Mustafa Gjinishi. During the National
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Liberation War he was attached to the Staff of the 1st Division of the ANLA. See Enver
Hoxha «The Anglo-American Threat to Albania» (Memoirs), Tirana 1982, p. 224, Eng. ed.})
might have done with her when they worked together in the 1st Army Corps. Eventually
Mehmet Shehu had made his second son Skënder a collaborator and when he went abroad
(especially when he went to study in Sweden), Mehmet Shehu charged him to establish
contact with the CIA and act as a liaison agent, while activating his younger son and his wife
in the direction of a foreign embassy in Tirana.
Of course, the elements recruited by Mehmet Shehu over a long period, or the hostile and
immoral elements of his own family would not suffice for him to accomplish the evil work the
CIA and the UDB demanded of him. He would aim to extend the network of agents and
conspirators everywhere. To this end in 1972 he was directed and ordered by the American
CIA to work out concrete plans to overturn the situation in Albania in favour of the West, to
set in motion and urge in this direction the agents known or unknown to him, regardless of
whose they were, Yugoslav, Greek, British, Italian, and others, but avoiding compromising
himself.
[620]
Thus began the implementation, of the ramified conspiratorial plan organized under cover
by Mehmet Shehu:
I. The hostile activity of Fadil Paçrami and his group in the field of culture, art and the radio
and television service for the degeneration of the line in these fields. However, as is known,
the Party quickly dealt with this group and its activity. Mehmet Shehu hastened to wash his
hands of them, indeed, he thundered loudly against people of art and the youth in order to
realize his anti-party aims in this way, as he had done during the War, to create antagonism
in the rela-tions and the links of the Party with these strata.
II. In 1973 the group of Beqir Balluku was set in motion. It prepared the military putsch
through the black theses, «the theory of slipping away», of abandoning the coast and the
cities to imperialist aggressors, the patrons of Mehmet Shehu. Be-qir Balluku was
completely unmasked. Even Petrit Dume and Hito Çako who were in the plot, abandoned
him. Mehmet Shehu, who was the head of the plot and pulled the strings behind the scenes
(now it turns out that all the strategic and tactical plans had been worked out contrary to the
plans of the Council of Defence and these black materials, as they were called when we
discovered them, had been approved by him), tried to save Petrit Dume and Hito Çako.
They had great hopes that through Mehmet Shehu their «heads would be saved», as he
told them in the Plenum of the Central Committee which met at that time on these problems,
and they did not give Mehmet Shehu away, but he could not save them from the danger for
fear of damaging himself.
III. Meanwhile Mehmet Shehu, this time more directly, set in motion his henchmen Abdyl
Këllezi, Koço Theodhosi and Kiço Ngjela to carry out sabotage in the economic field,
especially in the oil industry and agriculture, to disorganize the economy of the country by
beginning to work out and introduce forms of Yugoslav self-administration.
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However, as is known, Mehmet Shehu failed in these three directions.
Throughout this period Tito, who was following the si- [621] tuation attentively, thought that
since he had his agent in the leadership of our Party and state, after the fall of Rankovic in
Yugoslavia and the exposure of the barbarities which he had perpetrated in Kosova, as well
as after the situations which were created with our leaving the Warsaw Treaty, he could
make some concessions in regard to Kosova and our relations with it. Kosova began to
breathe a little more freely, Albanian schools were opened, the University of Prishtina was
set up, cultural relations, visits to one another and other activities began. Tito_and company
cherished the old dream that through Kosova they could influence the liberal forces in
Albania and, in this way, make possible the union of Albania with Kosova in the framework
of Yugoslavia. When the leaders of Kosova told Tito: «The Albanians are fanning up
nationalist sentiments and speaking against you,» he replied: «That's not your business, let
them abuse me if they want to...» Tito said this because he knew that in Albania he had
Mehmet Shehu, who, after three failures, was regrouping the other conspirators, especially
in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with Kadri Hazbiu, Feçor Shehu and some others
Nevertheless, Mehmet Shehu needed time to hatch up new plots.
Meanwhile Tito died. A situation of political and economic insecurity was created in
Yugoslavia. The world capitalist crisis had gripped Yugoslavia, too, which was up to its ears
in debt. The situation was seething in Kosova more than anywhere else on account of the
Great-Serb oppression, the unemployment and the gloomy prospects for the working people
who saw that in their Motherland, in socialist Albania, the situation was quite different. Thus,
Kosova did not serve as a bridgehead for the penetration of Titoite self-administration and
ideological degeneration into Albania, but Albania showed Kosova the brilliant features of
true socialism in our country. And this it did through normal, official bilateral relations and
contacts with Kosova and not through secret agents, because, first, this was not the line of
our Party and, second, the Yugoslav secret agency (through Feçor Shehu) was at the [622]
head of the organs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Therefore, the «theses» of the
Yugoslavs about the alleged interference of Albania by means of secret agents for the
organization of demonstrations in Kosova have no foundation. The American and Yugoslav
secret agencies began to be worried lest Kosova escape from their control, lest Albania
intervene, possibly, as they thought, in collaboration with Bulgaria and the Soviet Union.
Meanwhile, the situation in Kosova was becoming ever more difficult and complicated. The
people of Kosova and the whole Albanian population living on their own lands in
Montenegro and Macedonia were seeing more and more each day that in the Titoite reality
their legitimate rights, indeed, even those rights written in the Yugoslav Constitution, were
being violated and denied.
The profound economic and political crisis which had swept the whole of Yugoslavia was
manifesting itself in more tragic colours in Kosova. Not only was the standard of living
several times lower than the average of Yugoslavia, but the gap was being ceaselessly
widened to the detriment of the Kosovars; unemployment, especially among the Albanian
youth there, was wreaking havoc. Whereas 10-15 years earlier the demagogue Tito had laid
the blame on Rankovic for the mass expulsions and displacements of Kosovars to Turkey
and the Western countries, now the Kosovars were seeing that they were forced to leave
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their lands and betake themselves to the markets of the West, just as in the «time of
Rankovic». At that time Rankovic drove them out, now unemployment was driving them out
just the same, indeed, in even greater numbers. Hence, it was not one or five Rankovices
that were to blame, but the Yugoslav reality, the Titoite «self-administrative socialism». The
people of Kosova were bound to become conscious of this reality, just as they did.
However, these were not the only reasons which were bringing the cauldron to boiling-point.
Above all, the people of Kosova and the whole Albanian population living in their own
territories in Yugoslavia saw and felt deeply that in Titoite Yugoslavia they were treated
[623] as second-rate citizens, their legitimate rights were trampled on and they were
insulted and despised by the Titoites for what has always been dearest to the heart of the
Albanian: his national pride and dignity.
Precisely in such situations which had long been boiling up, the demonstrations took place
in Kosova at the beginning of 1981. The Great-Serbs and the Yugoslav UDB were alarmed,
sent in the army and crushed the demonstrations with tanks. Hundreds of people were killed
and wounded. A conflagration dangerous to the internal situation of Yugoslavia, now shaken
by both economic crises and political crises, broke out. These savage repressive measures
caused a great sensation in international opinion. Albania maintained an open stand, as
resolute as it was wise.
Apart from the slanders that these demonstrations had allegedly been inspired by Albania,
the Yugoslavs had to take immediate measures to «discredit» the «Stalinist» Albanian
leadership in order to disturb and overturn the sound situation in Albania, as well as to
confuse the patriotic-revolutionary forces in Kosova.
They demanded that their agent Mehmet Shehu acted. The Yugoslav UDB was in
collaboration with the CIA and was aware of its directive for the liquidation of Enver Hoxha,
Therefore, they demanded that Mehmet Shehu send his wife urgently to Paris. The
demonstrations took place in March, while she went to Paris in April 1981. There an envoy
from Çalamani (Mugosa himself had died, but his mission as an agent «lived on»)
presented himself to her and gave her the poison which had to be administered immediately
to Enver Hoxha.
Fiqret Shehu and Mehmet Shehu had racked their brains together about when, where and
how they would act with the variants which the CIA had suggested to them, and had found
as the most feasible variant the administration of the delayed-action poison, which could be
carried out when we paid each other visits. In the conditions under which I travelled the
motor accident was ruled out, while the attempt [624] with a rifle was too sensational and
With unforseeable dangers.
The order which the Yugoslavs gave Mehmet Shehu to act immediately and quickly
according to the third variant found him unprepared. Mehmet Shehu was afraid, did not like
being placed in a corner with no room to move. Therefore, he appealed to his major patron,
the American CIA. Fiqret Shehu began to visit the capitals of Europe — Vienna, Stockholm,
Copenhagen. Both in Stockholm and in Denmark she met representatives of the CIA and
put forward Mehmet Shehu's idea that they should not act hastily, as the Yugoslavs
demanded, because they were not well prepared; the poisoning or physical liquidation of
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Enver Hoxha could be put off until March 1982 (during the winter holidays), while up till that
time they could undertake some action which might cause a split in the Party and
encourage the liberal element. The representative of the CIA discussed the matter with his
centre and at the second meeting, this time in Denmark gave his approval for Mehmet
Shehu's variant.
In this context Mehmet Shehu arranged the engagement of his son to the daughter of a
family in the circle of which there were 6 or 7 fugitive war criminals, including the notorious
agent of the CIA Arshi Pipa. Such an engagement could not fail to attract the attention of the
public. And it was done precisely with the aim of attracting public attention and causing a
sensation. If it were accepted by the Party, it would lead to splits and liberalism among
others, too, in the Party, the Youth organization, etc. If it were not accepted by the Party,
measures would be taken against Mehmet Shehu, not imprisonment, of course, but
demotion, removal from his position or even expulsion from the Party. This would cause a
sensation and the Yugoslavs could use it, as they needed it for their propaganda purposes
to discredit the leadership of the Party of Labour of Albania and especially Enver Hoxha,
who, as they have repeated over and over again, is «eliminating» his collaborators, as
Stalin did.
However, the plans did not work out as Mehmet Shehu [625] had intended. The Party
intervened immediately, the engagement was broken off, Mehmet Shehu was criticized by
the comrades for this major political mistake, he was required to make a profound selfcriticism to find the sources of such an error and it was left that this would be done after the
8th Congress of the Party. {1 The 8th Congress of the PLA took place on November 1-8,
1931.} He did not expect this. He tried to make «some other mistakes»: he completely
neglected his report for the 8th Congress of the Party, presented it late and with flagrant
political errors and the Political Bureau rejected it. Mehmet Shehu wanted to make a «selfcriticism» at the Congress over the engagement of his son (his aim was to cause an upset
in the Congress), but it was refused, too. In the Congress he purposely sat like a «repentant
sinner» and this was so obvious to the delegates and the TV viewers that they began to ask
one another why.
Meanwhile, the question of Kosova was becoming dangerous. The Yugoslavs were being
unmasked before international public opinion, while the authority of our country was rising.
The Yugoslavs saw that nothing happened either before the Congress or after it. Mehmet
Shehu delivered the report to the Congress, he was elected to the Political Bureau and no
measure was taken against him, as the Yugoslavs hoped, to demote him or to remove him
from the function he had in the state. Once the Congress was over, perhaps Mehmet Shehu
informed the Yugoslavs that even after the delivery of his self-criticism he was being treated
just the same. From what he had understood from his talks with us the measure of sanction
would be of an internal party character. This was of no benefit to the Titoites, the GreatSerbs and the Yugoslav UDB, who were expecting and wanting disorder to occur in Albania
at all costs. Therefore, on the eve of the meeting of the Political Bureau, at which the grave
political mistake of Mehmet Shehu was to be discussed, the Yugoslav embassy in Tirana,
acting on orders which it had received from Belgrade, sent its agent and contact man Feçor
Shehu to [626] Mehmet Shehu to transmit the «ultimatum» of the UDB that «Enver Hoxha
must be killed at all costs, even in the meeting, even if Mehmet Shehu himself is killed.» So
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hard-pressed were the UDB, the Great-Serb and Titoite clique with the situation in Kosova,
so gloomy seemed the future, that they decided to «destroy» their trump card, their
superagent, provided only that something spectacular would occur which would «shake
socialist Albania and the Party of Labour of Albania to their foundations»!
At ten o'clock at night, on December 16, 1981, Feçor Shehu went to Mehmet Shehu's home
and transmitted the order of their secret centre.
On December 17, the discussion commenced in the meeting of the Political Bureau. All the
comrades, old and new, took part in the discussion, and resolutely condemned Mehmet
Shehu's act of engaging his son to a girl in whose family there were 6 to 7 war criminals.
They expressed their dissatisfaction with Mehmet Shehu's self-criticism, demanded that he
made it more profound and disclosed where the cause of such a mistake lay, asked him
many questions, reminded him that he had made mistakes during the National Liber-ation
War also that he had placed himself above the Party, they spoke about his unrestrained
conceit and arrogance towards the cadres and towards virtually all his closest collaborators
in the work of the government, the Political Bureau, etc. (On the day following the suicide,
all these contributions to the discussion, which had been tape-recorded, were heard just as
they were made by the whole Plenum of the Central Committee and the meetings of party
activists.)
The criticisms by the members of the Political Bureau were strong, open and bolshevik, but
only «the recording of a serious reprimand on his registration document» was demanded as
sanction. This was the spirit in which I, too, had prepared my contribution in which I outlined
the history of Mehmet Shehu's mistakes, beginning from the period of the war (this
contribution, too, was heard by the Plenum of the Central Committee and by the meetings of
party activists [627] as it would have been delivered following the contributions of other
comrades). However, because the meeting went on late, my contribution was not delivered
that day. Thus, it was left that the meeting would continue the following day. At the end of
the discussion on the first day. I said to Mehmet Shehu:
«Reflect deeply all night and tomorrow tell us in the Political Bureau from what motives you
have proceeded. Your alibi for the engagement does not hold water, something else has
impelled you in this reprehensible act.»
What I said alarmed Mehmet Shehu, he suspected that the crime which he was preparing
might have been discovered. The «bold» Mehmet Shehu thought all night about how to
escape from the tight spot, worked out and applied a plan of his own. Apparently, he judged
matters in this way: «I am as good as dead, the best thing is to save what I can,» and he
decided to act like his friend Nako Spiru, to kill himself, thinking the Party would bury this
«statesman», this «legendary leader», this «partisan and fighter in Spain» with honours,
would not sully his reputation but would say that «the gun went off accidentally» (as he
suggested in the letter which he left), and thus, at least, he would not lose his past and his
family would not suffer.
Together with his wife he flushed the poison down the WC and charged his eldest son with
dismantling and removing the compromising parts of the radio which he had installed for
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him.
Fiqret Shehu, as the agent she was (she who trembled and wept over nothing), agreed to
the suicide of her husband coolly and cynically, provided only that their «historic» past and
she and her sons were saved.
However, they had reckoned their account without the innkeeper. As soon as they informed
me about Mehmet Shehu's final act, within moments I proposed that his suicide should be
condemned, that he had acted as an enemy, and the Political Bureau expressed its
unanimous condemnation of the act of this enemy. Not only the leadership and the Party,
[628] but our whole people considered this a hostile act and maintained a revolutionary
stand. The Party and people continued with enthusiasm, indeed, with greater determination
and unity, the work for the implementation of the decisions of the 8th Congress of the Party.
The UDB and the CIA were left biting their fingers. The foreign news agencies related the
fact as we had given it, that Mehmet Shehu «committed suicide in a nervous crisis». Here
and there some comment secretly paid for by the Yugoslavs was made. However, even the
Yugoslavs were unable to exploit this act in their official press apart from charging a
student's newspaper in Zagreb to write about the «drama» which had occurred at the
meeting of the Albanian leadership (according to the version which the UDB had planned).
According to this newspaper, «...Mehmet Shehu fired some shots with a Chinese revolver of
this or that type and calibre (!), but Enver Hoxha's comrades killed him. The fate of Enver
Hoxha is not known...»
A scenario modelled on westerns with gunfights which occurred in the saloons at the time!
But what could they do? This is what they wanted! But their trump card, the super-agent of
the CIA and the UDB in Albania, was thrown away for no advantage.
Albania has always supported Kosova and the population of other Albanian regions of
Yugoslavia in their legitimate rights, but Kosova, all the Albanians who rose in
demonstrations, do not realize what colossal assistance they gave Albania by forcing the
Yugoslav UDB to play its trump card and destroy its last «great hope» of overthrowing the
Marxist-Leninist leadership in Albania, which had continually unmasked and was relentlessly
unmasking the Titoite betrayal, self-administration, non-alignment, this filthy agency of
American and British imperialism, of international reaction, of social-democracy and
whoever else you like.
Together with Mehmet Shehu, the agencies of the imperialists, social-imperialists and
others, like the Yugoslav UDB, received a blow which they will feel for a long time. [629]
Their network of agents which had Mehmet Shehu in the centre was uncovered thread by
thread, attacked in all its joints and connections, and everything which had to do with this
terrible network of long-standing secret agents and conspirators is now in our hands.
Here I must point out that the dangerous plot of Mehmet Shehu, just as other plotters and
plotting groups before it, were discovered through the strength and vigilance of the Party
and its leadership and none by the State Security. Why? Because, as is known, Koçi Xoxe,
a notorious agent of Tito-Rankovic, who was condemned as such for crimes which have
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been dealt with in detail in this book, was minister of the internal affairs until 1948. Then, he
was succeeded by Mehmet Shehu to be followed later by Kadri Hazbiu and more recently,
by Feçor Shehu. Unfortunately for the people and the Party none of them was suspected to
be an agent, while the three of them, just like Koçi Xoxe, were active agents, mainly of the
Yugoslav UDB, who covered up the dirty linen and crimes of one another and some of their
collaborators around them, and for almost four decades kept hidden from the Party all
information about the espionage activity of one another. None of these plotters, Mehmet
Shehu included, openly opposed the line of the Party, because they were afraid of the
Party, its unity and the Party-people unity. The uncovering of all these plots, especially the
criminal plot of Mehmet Shehu, as well as the information and documents now in the hands
of the Party, some of which have been dealt with in these notes, go to prove that Mehmet
Shehu and his collaborators acted simply as agents behind the back of the Party and its
leadership, not as open opponents of the line or policy of the Party, but as plotters in the
service of foreign secret services. Their mission was to act and plot secretly so as to change
the sound situation in Albania, to overthrow the people's state power and clear the way for
their foreign patrons, who for more than 40 years, not to go even further back, have always
hatched up sinister plans and have had criminal aims, to violate the independence [630] of
Albania, to deprive the Albanian people of their freedom and rights won at the expense of so
much blood and sweat.
After the final traumatic blow we dealt them, the foreign secret services, and the Titoite UDB
among them, in their rage and despair turned to forms and methods which we had long
experience of and from which they themselves had never seen any good: they tried to feel
our pulse and shake us through a group of hired mercenaries and bandits! Apparently, they
forgot what «victories» they had scored with the saboteurs and criminals they had sent us in
the first years after Liberation! But we, too, were quick to riposte to them: if in the 50's there
were cases when we needed even 4-5 days, and at times even more, to detect and wipe
out their bands of saboteurs now we needed no more than 5 hours to discover and wipe out
the terrorist band of Xhevdet Mustafa, which was sent by the UDB. This ought to serve as a
lesson to the enemies of Albania abroad, that such bands of criminals, large or small, from
the East or the West, will be wiped out mercilessly by a people who are all armed and on
guard. This is what has occurred and always will occur with any one who dares to carry out
the adventurous orders of imperialists and revisionists! We are well aware that even after
this the foreign secret services, and together with them the UDB, will not sit idle. However,
they will never catch us asleep. We will never be lacking in vigilance.
Let everyone understand clearly: the walls of our fortress are of unshakeable granite rock.
This is in general outline the history of our relations with the CPY and the revisionist
Yugoslav state: on their part, it is a history of interference and traps, of ceaseless plots to
damage our Party and socialist state, while, on our part, it is a history of just and consistent
struggle by our Party and people determined never to fall for any of their traps and plots, to
uncover and foil them before they cause us serious harm. For socialist Albania to develop
and march forward we [631] defined and consistently followed the road which seemed to us
to be the most correct one — the road which is based on the teachings of Marx, Engels,
Lenin and Stalin, and which has always fulfilled the loftiest aspirations and desires of our
brave, hard-working and revolutionary people. This has been and is the road of the constant
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consolidation of the leading role of the Party and of the active participation of the masses in
all the life of the country, of the defence of the independence of the Homeland, of the
deepening of the all-round revolution in all fields, of the gradual and constant raising of the
well-being of the masses, etc. All along this time, our numerous enemies, and the Yugoslav
Titoites in particular, resorted to all means of pressure to swerve us from this course,
sometimes through threats, sometimes «pitying us» or accusing us of being «on a wrong»,
«dogmatic», «Stalinist road», etc., etc.
We never listened to this «advice» or «admonishments» of the enemies, but followed
consistently the road we had mapped out, conscious of its correctness. Only time was to
prove and our people were to judge whether we had gone in the right or wrong direction.
And tune, the reality, has long proved and continues to prove with the utmost clarity who
was right and who was wrong.
The so much advertised creature of Tito — the «self-administrative» Yugoslavia of «specific
socialism», has been totally engulfed by the gravest crisis in its history and is now in a very
grave situation with no way out.
The Yugoslav system has been reduced to bad shape, the development of events has torn
down all masks and dispelled all illusions. The external pompous appearances, the
misleading advertisements of a «well-being such as can be found in no other place» (!), of a
«Yugoslavia of freedom and abundance» (!) have left the place to all-round crisis, poverty
and growing unemployment, galloping inflation, and increasing shortages of even the most
essential goods and articles of broad consumption, etc.
Just as they did with Tito in his last breath, the im- [632] perialists and social-imperialists are
doing their utmost to give the Yugoslav system a new lease of life, to keep it alive, although
this system is wholly gangrened. No blood transfusion, either from Washington, Moscow or
whatever international bank or fund, can save it. This is the logical end of all revisionist
theory and practice. The imperialist and social-imperialist creditors take the money from
their safes, not because they ache to help the peoples of Yugoslavia out of their misery, but
because they want to protect their political and economic interest in Yugoslavia, to expand
or consolidate the domains Tito has long ago sold them in return for the credits he has
received from them. But if for a period of time it seemed as if Yugoslavia was to gain in this
dangerous game, now the time has come for Yugoslavia to put itself up for auction to the
imperialists and social-imperialists. A first-class borrower, shaken to its very foundations in
all respects, with no clear perspective, without the necessary means and forces to find the
road of salvation — such is the present-day Titoite self-administrative Yugoslavia.
We cannot watch without concern this extremely grave and dangerous situation, not only for
the fraternal peoples of Yugoslavia, but also for peace and security in the Balkans and
beyond the Balkans. We have never wished those peoples ill, on the contrary we have
always been for good neighbourly relations with them. In vain Tito, and company accused
us — and his present-day successors follow him in this, of creating turbulent situations and
interfering in their internal affairs. No, the evil seed is in their midst, they have planted and
tended it to grow with their own hands, so let them find it and fight it there where they have
it.
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Quite the opposite is the case with our country, with our course of the construction of
socialism. Consistently applying the Marxist-Leninist principles in the construction and
leadership of the entire life of the country, socialist Albania has marched with sure steps
ahead, without holding its hand out to anyone. We have come up against many difficulties
[633] and obstacles, have grappled with them fearlessly, have been fully aware of and
accepted privations and sacrifices, while always, like a thrifty family, going by the principle of
building and enjoying what we build, not only for ourselves and just for today but going
about it in such a way that our life and that of the new generations become ever better and
at the same time, the future, the life of the coming generations, be ever happier, richer and
more secure. Our wonderful people have understood the road the Party has shown them,
and aware of it, have mobilized all their mental and physical energies to turn the teachings
and directives of the Party into reality. Every generation in our country is fighting and
working so as to bequeathe to the future generations an ever stronger Albania, an Albania
permanently free and independent, with a beautiful present and with clear and brilliant
perspectives.
So, with the Party at the head, having its Marxist-Leninist line as our guiding compass, we
will always go on working vigilantly, further tempering unity, marching ahead, with the Party
and people united as one, so as to keep the name of our heroic Party always honoured, to
raise the prestige of socialist Albania ever higher, to preserve the sacred independence of
our Homeland intact. This has been and remains the lofty mission of our Party of Labour. To
this mission, to the good of the people and socialism, we have devoted and will devote all
our life, all our forces and energies.
1981-1982
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http://bjoerna.net/Kadare/ALB-Alia-Hoxha-1982-11-10.jpg
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Miqesia. Erfaringsprojekt. Albaniens Historie
Miqësia's Erfaringsprojekt
Miqësia er albansk og betyder venskab
Albaniens Historie
Kontaktadresse: [email protected]
En oversigt
Af kultursociolog Bjørn Andersen {1}
Artiklen er under udbygning
Version 1.29 - 23.07.2005
Indholdsfortegnelse
INDLEDNING
- Den danske baggrund
- Albanien i dag
ALBANIENS HISTORIE
- Oldtiden og Middelalderen
- Middelalderen: Skanderbeg En note om 'Skanderborg', 'Skanderbeg's segl' og 'Holberg'
- Rozafat Borgen ved Shkodra. Bushati'erne
- 1800-tallet: Ali Pasha af Tepelena Peter OIuf Brøndsted besøgte Ali Pasha
- På rejse i Albanien i 1800-tallet og den første del af 1900-tallet Edward Lear og Edith Durham
- Omkring 1900: Slægtsfejder, blodhævn og mægling Sami Bey Frashëri's skuespil »Æresordet«
- 1908: Det Albanske sprog. Et alfabet
- Det osmanniske riges undergang Franz von Jessen og Fritz Magnussen
- Mellem 1918 og 1939: Mellemkrigstiden. Kong Zog
- Mellem 1940'erne og 1991: Albanien under Hoxha. Gentagne udskiftninger af »patroner«
- Filmen »Kolonel Bunker«
http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/albaniens_historie.htm (1 of 57)09-10-2006 10:49:09
Miqesia. Erfaringsprojekt. Albaniens Historie
- Social kontrol. Fletë rrufe
- Tiden umiddelbart efter Hoxha 's død i 1985
- 1991-1997: Sammenbruddet. Den kasino-kapitalistiske periode. Nyt sammenbrud
- 1997 og frem: Magtskifte. Drabet på Azem Hajdari
- Et forsøg på en sammenfatning
TILFØJELSER
- Stor-Albanien?
- Religiøse forhold: Mother Teresa og de religiøse forhold i Albanien
NOTER
De synspunkter der fremsættes i artiklen er mine egne. Hvad Miqësia mener som forening vil være underskrevet af
bestyrelsen eller vedtaget på en generalforsamling.
Når artiklen er skrevet som den er, er det fordi jeg mener man bør sige tingene så ærligt som muligt, og fordi det er dét der er
til størst gavn for de albanere der stædigt arbejder for modernisere deres samfund.
Evt. kommentarer, korrektioner, spørgsmål og informationer vil være meget velkomne og blive overvejet grundigt.
BA
INDLEDNING
Albaniens og Danmarks historie er vidt forskellige, og derfor er albanernes og danskernes
baggrunde for at indgå i verdenssamfundet også helt forskellige.
Der har ikke i historien været nogen særlig relation mellem Danmark og Albanien {relationer}.
De to lande ligger langt fra hinanden, Albanien har været utilgængeligt på mere end én måde og der har ikke været nogen naturlig anledning til at have med hinanden at gøre.
Det er først i de senere år, dvs. efter Hoxha-styrets sammenbrud, at der har været forbindelse af
betydning, og det er først på det seneste at det er blevet realistisk at tage på charterferie til
Albanien. Albanien opfattes i almindelig som et anderledes og eksotisk land, selv om det kun
tager få timer at flyve fra Kastrup til Tirana via Budapest eller Wien. Albanien bliver jævnlig brugt
som kulisse eller »baggrund«, således i den amerikanske film »wag the dog«.
I en forholdsvis kort periode der sluttede ved udgangen af 2003 har Danmark givet
overgangsbistand til Albanien (størrelsesordenen var 100 mio kr). Vi var involveret i en række
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projekter på forskellige områder, demokratiområdet, menneskerettighedsområdet, rets- og
politiområdet, medieområdet, undervisningsområdet og sundheds- og socialområdet. Dertil
kommer at vi i 1999 har givet katastrofehjælp til flygtninge fra Kosovo.
Fotocollage: Henning Larsens Tegnestue. HLT's projektbeskrivelse kan downloades fra: http://www.hlt.dk/binfiles/Tiranamappe.pdf (7 MB)
Kommercielt samkvem af betydning har der ikke været tale om, men det er ved at komme i
stand nu, hvor foretagender som Carlsberg overvejer at »slå sig ned« og foretagender som
Rohde Nielsen og Henning Larsens Tegnestue er involveret i større, men tidsbegrænsede
projekter.
Den danske indsats var måske ikke så stor i international målestok, men særlig nyttig fordi den
blev gjort af et lille land der ikke kunne mistænkes for at have stormagtsinteresser. Noget af
indsatsen har givet umiddelbar succes, andre dele af den har større eller mindre vanskeligheder
med at udvikle sig eller blot at overleve.
Når man fra dansk side standsede overgangsbistanden med slutningen af 2003 var det så at
sige i sagens natur. Man havde fra begyndelsen haft et kortvarigt perspektiv. Om det har været
klogt at stoppe kan imidlertid diskuteres.
I øvrigt er det nu - hvor Danmark netop er blevet medlem af FN's Sikkerhedsråd
{FN} og hvor Tyrkiet, Serbien-Montenegro, Makedonien og Albanien ønsker
optagelse i EU - af særlig stor betydning at vi fastholder enhver positiv kontakt til
Balkan-landene, ikke mindst til Albanien og til Albanien's nabolande. Hvis vi ikke
fastholder og udbygger sådanne kontakter, vil det besværliggøre vores deltagelse i
løsningen af de mange og tunge problemer der er på dagsordenen, hvoraf ét er
meget aktuelt allerede i 2005: Kosovo's fremtid {DK-i-Kosovo}.
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På den ene side er det klart at et land som Danmark har begrænsede ressourcer og at man må
bruge de ressourcer man har ud fra klare politiske prioriteringer - og dér hvor nøden er størst.
På den anden side forekommer det selvmodsigende at man sætter aktiviteter i gang og derefter
overlader en evt. fortsættelse til EU eller - i visse tilfælde - til Norge. Som en albansk bekendt
har udtrykt det: »Danskerne er mærkelige. De bygger et hus der er halvanden meter højt,
hvorefter de giver sig til at bygge huse helt andre steder i Verden«.
Det er fint at efterlade et hus på halvanden meter, hvis dét vi er dygtige til er at lave
fundamenter, og hvis der er nogen til at tage over, primært lokalt, men også internationalt. Men
sådan forholder det sig ikke helt i det albanske tilfælde. De albanske samarbejdspartnere (på
lokalt niveau eller på institutionsniveau) er ikke stærke nok, men må nu bruge en del tid på at
rejse penge fra andre donorer. I nogle tilfælde er der andre der kan træde ind i stedet for os,
primært Norge på visse særlige områder, men i andre tilfælde tilfælde vil en »erstatning« være
af en helt anden type.
De internationale organisationer og stormagterne er gode til nogle ting, danskerne til helt andre.
Det var givetvis nødvendigt da OSCE's daværende ambassadør, Geert-Hinrich Ahrens, slog i
bordet for nogle år siden og forlangte at de to store partier, Socialisterne og Demokraterne,
satte sig sammen og løste nogle af de tunge tekniske problemer, således at det parlamentatiske
arbejde kunne udvikle sig i en mere konstruktiv retning. Men der var næppe kommet bukser af
skindet, hvis ikke også Jørgen Grunnet, der var missionschef for Europarådet i Tirana, havde
været på banen og på sin måde overbevist parterne om at man ville nå væsentlig længere med hensyn til en optagelse i EU - ved at samarbejde end ved at strides.
Det er også nødvendigt at nogle af de »store« bliver ved med at insistere på at der skal gøres
op med den udbredte korruption, at der gribes godt fat for at bekæmpe den organiserede
kriminalitet - og at der gøres noget mere alvorligt ved den omfattende trafficking til Grækenland
eller over Adriaterhavet til Italien.
Men det er lige så nødvendigt at nogle af de »små« bliver ved med at bistå græsrødder,
lokalområder og enkeltinstitutioner med at overleve og videreudvikle sig. Det er overordentlig
positivt at Danmark har støttet etableringen af en albansk ombudsmandsinstitution, at vi har
støttet moderniseringen af politiet, at vi har støttet dommeruddannelsen, at vi har bistået ved
etableringen af en konfliktmæglingsinstitution osv. - men det er ikke nok; der skal bruges nogle
penge, men frem for alt noget »manpower« til at holde kontakten ved lige og til at udvikle den.
Relationerne mellem Danmark og Albanien bør videreudvikles. Vi kan måske sige at første fase
- etableringen af kontakter og gennemførelsen af en serie »forsøgsprojekter« - nu er afsluttet,
men så skal vi videre til næste fase, hvor der stabiliseres og arbejdes videre, således at vi
engang - om nogle år - kan komme i en situation hvor der er tale om et mere ligeværdigt
samarbejde, både i økonomisk og i kulturel henseende.
I dag står Albanien i mange henseender »udenfor«. Man banker på døren til NATO; måske kan
man (som Makedonien) blive optaget inden for et forholdsvis overskueligt antal år; den
nuværende amerikanske administration lægger tydeligvis op til noget i dén retning og søger at
fastholde en positiv kontakt til Tirana.
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Man banker på døren til EU, men det har temmelig lange udsigter før en optagelse kan komme
på tale. Albanien er ikke langt nok, hverken i politisk eller økonomisk henseende.
Albanien er alt i alt i en vanskelig og skrøbelig situation. Der er for meget der får de kreative
elementer til at benytte skæve metoder til at skaffe sig indkomst, for sådan som landet ligger
kan energiske folk få langt mere ud af at arbejde inden for den »grå« og »sorte« økonomi end
inden for den »hvide«.
Det er langt fra nok at påpege at dén form for trafik er uacceptabel og at kræve at der bliver
taget energiske initiativer fra toppen af samfundspyramiden. Der skal også etableres langt bedre
muligheder for et økonomisk samarbejde. Hvis kreative albanere ikke kan tjene penge på
hæderlig vis - fx ved eksport til andre lande - så gør de noget andet, og det er den almindelige
befolkning i Albanien (og for den sags skyld også i Danmark) ikke tjent med.
Bjørn Andersen
Artiklen vil blive suppleret og bearbejdet i løbet af 2005.
Den danske baggrund
Når Danmark i dag er et af Verdens rigeste samfund - og Albaniens et af de fattigere har det
sine grunde.
Vi har i Danmark haft vores problemer, både indre og ydre. Blandt de indre var nogle af
problemskaberne nogle af kongerne og de ledende statsmænd, blandt de ydre problemskabere
var svenskerne, tyskerne og englænderne. Op gennem århundrederne er landet derfor blevet
mindre og mindre - men trods mange tilbageslag - og helt parakdoksalt - også rigere og rigere.
På Holberg's tid havde vi ganske vist tabt Skåne, Halland og Blekinge, men Norge og Island hørte fortsat
med til familien, og vi havde større eller mindre besiddelser i Indien (Tranqebar og Nicobarerne), Afrika
(Ghana) og Vestindien (St. Croix, St. Thomas og St. Jan).
Slesvig-Holsten hørte frem til 1864 stadig til Danmark {Slesvig-Holsten}, men i dag er det kun den
nordligste del der er dansk. Selv Flensborg valgte i 1920 at høre til Tyskland.
I 1920 kom sindene i kog. Den højre del af samfundet var blevet voldsomt irriteret over grænsedragningen
mod Tyskland, og det provokerede kong Christian X til at forsøge et statskup. Kuppet mislykkedes imidlertid
fuldstændig; det var tilstrækkeligt at Stauning blot raslede med »sablen«. Resultatet af kupforsøget blev at
grænsen kom til at ligge fast, og at Kongens betydning blev yderligere reduceret. Indtil da kunne man måske
mene at han havde en vis politisk rolle, men fra da af var den kun symbolsk.
Den økonomiske, politiske og kulturelle dagsorden er i dag helt forskellig fra dén der gjaldt i 1600-,1700- og
1800-tallene. Danmark har et fortræffeligt samvirke med Sverige, Norge og Tyskland, og grænsen mellem
Danmark og disse lande spiller ikke længere nogen afgørende rolle. Skulle der være nogen der i dag ville
tale om at vi skal passe på tyskerne, og at det ikke er så længe siden de besatte os, ville de fleste ryste
undrende på hovedet, hvis de overhovedet gad interessere sig for det.
Engang levede vi i »den florissante periode«. Det var tiden fra 1740 og frem til 1800.
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Købmændene tjente penge ved omfattende skibstrafik. Der blev hentet kaffe og krydderier, og
man udviklede en indbringende trekantshandel. Man sendte skibe til Afrika for at hente slaver.
Så sejlede man slaverne Vestindien for at de kunne blive solgt til de store plantager. Og til sidst
sejlede skibene til København med sukker og fyldte pengekister. Traficking er ikke noget der er
forbeholdt nutiden.
Op gennem 1800-tallet ændredes samfundet helt fundamentalt. Hoveri og stavsbånd blev
afskaffet, og fæstebønderne blev til landmænd og husmænd og endnu senere til
industriarbejdere.
Engang efter krigen i 1864, som kostede os en stor del af Sønderjylland, blev oberst Dalgas
kendt for sit handlekraftige bon mot: »Hvad udad tabes, skal indad vindes«. Dette ord blev
overskriften på en storstilet indsats hvor heden blev opdyrket og vanskelig jord blev lagt under
plov {Dalgas}.
Samtidig kom der gang i andels- og højskolebevægelsen, og det parlamentariske demokrati
blev grundlagt og stabiliseret. I slutningen af 1800-tallet kom der desuden fart i industrien, og
der blev grundlagt en arbejderbevægelse der fik stor betydning både i det økonomiske liv og på
det politiske plan.
Det danske demokrati er ikke etableret på kort tid, men over en meget lang periode - og med
mange tilbageslag.
De sociale forhold var meget forskellige for dem der levede i toppen af samfundet og dem der
levede i bunden, så der var adskillige der måtte udenlands for at få en acceptabel tilværelse. Så
mange som 300.000 rejste ud i tiden efter 1864 og frem til 1. Verdenskrig, og af dem var der
mange der slog sig ned i Amerika. 300.000 var op mod 10 % af befolkningen.
Nogle arbejdere og intellektuelle mente at det økonomiske og politiske system var råddent og
måtte kastes omkuld for derefter at blive genopbygget på en ny, socialistisk eller kommunistisk,
måde, men langt de fleste mingelerede sig frem, og efterhånden kunne man se at det førende
arbejderparti, Socialdemokratiet, og størstedelen af fagbevægelsen lagde sig på en
samarbejdsorienteret kurs.
Tiden fra 1' Verdenskrig til kort efter 2' Verdenskrig var en sej periode for mange danskere, selv
om vi var forskånet for at være direkte involveret i de store europæiske krige
{Tvangsrekruttering}. Der måtte stoppes strømper og vendes frakker, og skoene blev brugt til
de ikke kunne mere. Men det »indre« grundlag for den følgende vækstperiode blev samtidig
lagt; demokratiet blev udbygget, uddannelsesniveauet blev bragt i vejret, de sociale
sikringssystemer etableret, og vi stod derfor parat ved samlebånd og i butik da pengene
begyndte at rulle. Nogle år efter kunne den socialdemokratiske Viggo Kampmann gå til valg på
at ville gøre gode tider bedre.
Selv om der under Besættelsen var en modstandsbevægelse, så fik den ikke - trods en ærefuld
indsats - den store militære betydning. Betydningen lå på det holdningsmæssige og det politiske
plan og gav et grundlag for at Danmark kunne regnes med til de Allierede og til dem der kunne
optages i NATO fra day-one.
Hvad der er grunden er svært at sige, måske er der flere årsager - men den almindelige
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embedsmand på de nordlige himmelstrøg kan ikke beskyldes for korruption. Når en dansk
politiker eller embedsmand fra tid til anden gribes med fingrene i klejnekassen, så betragtes det
som en skrigende og uacceptabel undtagelse som da en Marius i Aalborg ville have et grønt
badeværelse eller da en Brixtofte i Farum tilsyneladende drak en stor del af sit Byråd fra sans
og samling. Bevæger man sig derimod lidt uden for det offentlige's sfære, så ser tingene
anderledes ud. Det er i mange sammenhænge blevet til en indgroet vane at handle »sort«, at
købe smuglervarer eller at betale »under bordet«. Nogle typer af den økonomiske kriminalitet
accepteres mand-og-mand imellem, andre betragtes som anstødelige.
En almindelig dansker vil ikke finde sig i at en politiker eller embedsmand beriger sig på
skatteborgernes bekostning, modtager bestikkelse eller optræder som skrankepave, derimod
nok i man selv tilbydes »sorte« ydelser.
Albanien i dag
Albanien har på meget kort tid skullet omstille sig fra at være en marxistisk arbejderstat - der i
praksis var et temmelig hårdhændet diktatur hvor der ikke var frihed til at tænke, tale og skrive,
til at rejse udenlands eller til at gøre business, og hvor der var styr på alt for mange ting - og til
et moderne markedsorienteret demokrati.
De første år efter de første frie valg i 1991 var tumultariske og endte i 1997 med en meget
voldsom udladning, nyvalg under NATO-kontrol og udskiftning på alle de politiske topposter på
statsniveauet. Præsident Sali Berisha blev erstattet med Rexhep Meidani (og senere med den
nuværende Alfred Moisiu), og den demokratiske premierminister med en socialistisk.
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Årene siden 1997 har været roligere. Det demokratiske system er ved at blive stabiliseret og
»normale« parlamentariske rutiner er ved at blive accepteret, men der er en række tekniske
problemer som man har betydelige vanskeligheder med at tackle på en konstruktiv måde. De
seneste valg, parlamentsvalget i 2001 og lokalvalgene i 2003, er forløbet tydeligt bedre end de
forrige valg, men dog ikke tilfredsstillende. Alle er enige om at gennemførelsen af valget i
sommeren 2005 vil få stor betydning for Albaniens internationale anseelse og vil få betydning for
de løbende forhandlinger med EU.
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Beløb i mio lek. Kilde: Albaniens Statistik
Den officielle albanske økonomi er lille og overordentlig sårbar. Eksporten er minimal og retter
sig særligt mod Grækenland og Italien. Importen af varer og elektricitet en hel del større.
Betalingsbalanceunderskuddet bliver bl.a. dækket ved at familiemedlemmer der arbejder i
udlandet sender penge hjem, men også ved at der stadig tilføres mange midler fra andre lande
og internationale organisationer {Handelsunderskud}.
Oliven, grøntsager, ost har en udmærket kvalitet, men har vanskeligheder med at få afsætning
på det europæiske marked, fordi man ikke er medlem af EU og fordi man møder voldsom
konkurrence fra EU-Middelhavslande og andre lande i regionen der producerer de samme
varer.
Ved siden af den officielle økonomi er der en temmelig stor uofficiel {OECD}. En del af denne er
givetvis forbundet med eller finansieret af kriminel virksomhed (trafficking, narkotikahandel,
smugleri m.v.), mens en anden del er af samme karakter som den »sorte« økonomi i Danmark,
hvor det kan formodes at det kun er en begrænset del af den der er forbundet med anden form
for kriminalitet.
Og endelig er der i landdistrikterne en vis naturalieøkonomi, dvs. produktion til eget forbrug og til
simpelt varebytte med venner og bekendte.
Når albanere gør forretninger med hinanden bruger de »forbindelser«, og det kan give mange
problemer hvis man ikke accepterer dette. Det har selv sagt sine fordele at bruge
»forbindelser«, for tingene går - i en vis forstand - hurtigere når man kender hinanden i forvejen,
men i det grundlæggende er det et meget problematisk »mønster«, eftersom mange ordrer vil
gå til foretagender der ikke nødvendigvis arbejder så effektivt eller konkurrencedygtigt som det
var ønskeligt; dertil kommer at prisstrukturen også bliver helt forvredet.
Korruptionen er omfattende {Korruption}. Det er svært at sige om den er blevet mindre eller
større de sidste år. Det sker med mellemrum at Politimyndighederne skiller sig af med
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medarbejdere der har haft hånden for langt fremme, men det er en udbredt opfattelse at man er
nødt til at smøre dén politimand der stopper én når man kommer kørende; det er ikke engang
sikkert at politimanden personligt får så meget ud af det, for det formodes at han skal levere
størstedelen videre til sin overordnede. Der er tilsvarende problemer på højere niveau. Det sker
fx at selv ordrer der finansieres internationalt på ugennemskuelig måde havner hos venner og
bekendte. Det har derfor sine vanskeligheder at gennemføre en simpel udbudsforretning som i
Danmark.
Under Kosovokrisen i 1999 blev korruptionen meget synlig for hjælpeorganisationerne. Der
kendes talrige eksempler på at man først blev ekspederet når man havde betalt et passende
beløb til tolderen. Det gik så vidt og førte til så meget kritik at regeringen i en længere periode
erstattede tolderne med militært personel.
»Forbindelses«- og »korruptionskulturen« passer meget dårligt til de vilkår der gælder i
vesteuropæisk sammenhæng, og albanerne vil kun vanskeligt kunne gøre sig gældende på det
europæiske marked hvis de ikke skifter stil. Når »forbindelses«- og »korruptionskulturen« stadig
lever, er det fordi albanerne næsten ikke kan leve uden, den er en vigtig del af deres mentalitet.
Kunne man fjerne kulturen med et snuptag ville det svare til at man med ét fjernede alle biler fra
Tiranas gader. På den ene side ville det være befriende (og løse en stor del af smogproblemet), men samtidig ville det sætte det økonomiske liv i stå.
Elproduktion og -forbrug 2003-04. Kilde: Albaniens Statistik
Infrastrukturen er utilstrækkelig eller forældet. Man producerer en hel del elektricitet på store
vandkraftværker langs Drin, men mængden er afhængig af hvor meget vand der er til rådighed.
Desuden produceres elektricitet på en række mindre værker. I 2004 blev der indgået en aftale
med bl.a. Bulgarien om levering af olie/gas dérfra.
Vejnettet er i de senere år blevet udbygget - ikke mindst finansieret af internationale midler - og
har fået hævet standarden, men der er stadig mange veje der er for små eller meget dårligt
vedligeholdt. Dette gælder i særlig grad i fjerne og afsides dele af landet.
Det er i international sammenhæng besluttet at Korridor 8 skal føres gennem Albanien fra
Durrës, via Elbasan til den Makedonske grænse og derfra videre til Varna i Bulgarien. I Albanien
følger korridoren på det nærmeste den gamle romervej Via Egnatia (se nedenfor) {Via Egnatia1}. Jernbane findes i et vist omfang, og der blev for et par år siden etableret forbindelse til
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Montenegro, hvilket er af betydning for varetransporter.
Der findes havne i Shengjin mod nord, i Durrës »i midten« og Vlora og Saranda mod syd. Visse
udbedrings- og udbygningsarbejder er pågået i de senere år. Der går færger mellem Italien og
Albanien og mellem Korfu og Albanien.
Der er i de senere år sket en kraftig tilstrømning til byerne, især Tirana, og der er bygget mange
huse med og uden behørig tilladelse. I 2004 har man påbegyndt et omfattende
byfornyelsesprojekt i Tirana; det ledende arkitektfirma vandt opgaven i en international
konkurrence, og i 2005 tager man stilling til flere konkrete projekter. Et af dem - der vedrører et
stort byggeri ved Skanderbeg-pladsen - blev i januar 2005 vundet af Henning Larsens
Tegnestue A/S.
Flere hundrede tusinde albanere opholder sig permanent eller midlertidigt i udlandet. Nogle er
på studieophold i USA, Tyrkiet og forskellige europæiske lande. Mange flere har manuelt
arbejde inden for landbrug, industri, håndværk og service - fortrinsvis i Grækenland og Italien,
men også i lande længere mod nord som fx Tyskland. Et ukendt antal er på illegalt ophold rundt
omkring i Europa - vist nok især i Grækenland og Tyrkiet; nogle af disse har underbetalt arbejde
i landbruget eller i servicesektoren, men adskillige lever af prostitution eller tilsvarende. Endelig
er der en del albanere (fra Albanien, Kosovo og Makedonien) der lever af mafia-agtige
aktiviteter og fx er involveret i narkohandel {Fast mand}.
ALBANIENS HISTORIE
Oldtiden og Middelalderen
Det er en almindelig antagelse i Albanien at albanerne nedstammer fra Oldtidens illyrere. Om
dem ved man noget, men ikke meget. Der er bevaret enkelte ting fra perioden, som
arkæologerne har vendt og drejet, men - mig bekendt - kan man ikke med fuldstændig
sikkerhed fastslå forbindelsen {Illyrerne}.
Det illyriske kongerige blev indlemmet i det romerske imperium omkring 230 f.Kr., først som
protektorat, på Augustus' tid som provinsen Illyricum. Den romerske periode varede temmelig
længe, ca. 500 år. Der er en del spor fra den tid, nogle er imaterielle (som mange ord i det
albanske sprog), nogle er materielle - fx er der rester af Via Egnatia, romervejen fra Durrës, forbi
Elbasan, via Makedonien og Grækenland til Konstantinopel, det nuværende Istanbul {Via
Egnatia-2}.
Efter romertiden fulgte folkevandringstiden. Blandt dem der kom til Balkan var sláverne (6' årh.
efter Kristus) der i 1100-tallet løsrev sig fra det byzantinske kejserrige, etablerede deres egen
kirke - den ortodokse - og noget senere, omkring år 1300 etablerede et serbisk rige. Riget holdt
ikke særlig længe, men brød sammen af indre og ydre årsager. En skelsættende begivenhed
var Slaget på Solsortesletten (Kosovo Polje) i sommeren 1389 der stod mellem den serbiske
kejser, Lazar, og hans forbundsfæller - hvoriblandt formentlig én eller flere af de albanske fyrster
- og Osmannerne med deres forbundsfæller, hvoriblandt nogle af de serbiske fyrster
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{Solsortesletten}. Osmannerne havde i 1389 været på Balkan en vis tid, sandsynligvis hidkaldt
af ét af de byzantinske partier i Konstantinopel, men satte sig efterhånden grundigt fast og
erobrede magten over området.
Tilsyneladende bar Osmannerne sig i den første lange tid klogt ad; man skaffede sig allierede,
man tillod de lokale herskere at fungere videre, man gav plads for den lokale religion, man
brugte økonomiske påvirkningsmidler, men om nødvendigt brugte man også militær magt for at
sikre sine interesser og for at nedkæmpe den militære modstand der rejste sig fra tid til anden.
For at sikre sig at vasallerne - nogle af de lokale fyrster - optrådte loyalt benyttede man sig som det også er set tidligere i historien - af et gidselsystem. Fyrsterne måtte sende
familiemedlemmer, typisk nogle af deres børn, til det osmanniske hof hvor de i mange tilfælde
blev respekteret og evt. »indoktrineret« og integreret {Devshirme}.
Skanderbeg {Sk:beg}
Skanderbeg er én af de mest centrale skikkelser i den albanske historie. Det meste af hvad man
ved om Skanderbeg stammer fra en biografi der blev skrevet omkring 40 år efter hans død af
den albanskfødte munk eller præst Marinus Barletti (eller Barletius) {Barletius}.
Engang i midten af 1900-tallet skrev den albansk-amerikanske præst Fan Noli en biografi over
Skanderbeg, der bl.a. udmærker sig ved at referere eller optrykke en stor del af det
kildemateriale der findes om Skanderbeg {Noli}.
Skanderbeg hed oprindelig Gjergj Kastrioti. Han var yngste søn af Djon Kastrioti [John Kastrioti]
der var fyrste over et mindre område i den nordlige del af det nuværende Albanien. Skanderbeg
havde nogle ældre brødre og også flere søstre. Hvornår Skanderbeg blev født vides ikke
præcist, måske var det i 1403, måske var det et par år senere, fx i 1405. Den Albanske
Regering »står« på 1405, hvilket betyder at det i 2005 er 600 år siden han blev født.
En fyrste besad et landområde med bønder og hyrder; ofte var fyrsten leder af den mægtigste
klan i området. Han var både politisk og militær leder. Fyrsten fik en vis betaling, formentlig især
i naturalier, fra bønderne og hyrderne. På Skanderbegs tid blev der taget initativer til - i de
respektive fyrstedømmer - at samordne den mundtlige sædvaneret (Kanún), således i Dukagjinområdet. Først på et langt senere tidspunkt blev sædvaneretten skrevet ned.
Skanderbeg's far stod - som de andre albanske prinser - i en vanskelig situation og måtte
manøvrere for at opnå så høj en grad af uafhængighed som muligt i forhold til de konkurrerende
magter, fx den ungarske Konge, bystaten Venezia, Kongen af Napoli og den osmanniske Sultan
i Adrianopel (det nuværende Edirne, senere i Konstantinopel). I en vis periode var hans far
vasal af Sultanen - og i konsekvens heraf blev Gjergj tilknyttet Sultanen. Sandsynligvis skete
dette først da han var næsten voksen. Det siges om faderen at han skiftede religion efter behov;
han skal således have haft en romersk-katolsk periode og en muslimsk, der givetvis var mere
»tydelig« end ligefrem åndeligt intens.
Gjerg Kastrioti opholdt sig (muligvis) hos Sultanen i nogle år, blev islamiseret, havde succes og
opnåede rang af general (-beg). Hans osmanniske navn - Skanderbeg - betyder ca.: General
Alexander. Skanderbeg var, formoder jeg, leder af en albansk hærafdeling der især bestod af let
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rytteri og muligvis også af nogle infanterigrupper.
Der er rygter om at Sultanen lod Skanderbeg's brødre dræbe med gift, men dette er
sandsynligvis forkert. Fan Noli oplyser at brødrene var i live længe efter et tidspunkt hvor de
efter overleveringen skulle være blevet dræbt.
På et tidspunkt sprang Skanderbeg fra; han deserterede - med sine soldater - fra en osmannisk
kampagne mod ungarerne og vendte hjem til Albanien, hvor han stillede sig i spidsen for et
oprør mod Sultanen. Ved samme lejlighed afsvor han den islamiske tro og blev igen god
romersk-katolsk kristen. Man ved ikke præcist hvad årsagen var til at han og hans folk sprang
fra; men den vigtigste grund var formentlig at Skanderbeg så en mulighed for at genvinde den
selvstændighed som hans far - der var død kort før - tidligere havde haft.
I de følgende år (dvs. fra 1444 og til sin død i 1468) manøvrerede Skanderbeg. Han
bekæmpede med stor dygtighed de osmanniske hære der blev sendt imod ham, ligesom det
lykkedes ham at holde Venezianerne stangen. Det lykkedes ham at etablere en alliance med de
andre albanske fyrster, men alliancen blev ikke særlig fasttømret; der var flere tilfælde af
alvorlige uoverensstemmelser, og på et senere tidspunkt faldt den på det nærmeste fra
hinanden. Nogle af fyrsterne allierede sig med Venezianerne, nogle med Osmannerne.
Foto fra Kruja. Skanderbeg's borg i Kruja er en rekonstruktion.
Én af Skanderbeg's dygtigste generaler, Moses, sprang på et tidspunkt fra, tilsluttede sig
Sultanen og gik i krig mod Skanderbeg, men Skanderbeg overvandt ham - og gengav ham hans
tidligere position. Moses tjente derefter Skanderbeg i flere år indtil han blev overvundet af
Sultanen og henrettet sammen med andre fremstående personer. Det siges at han og de andre
blev flået levende.
Én af de dygtigste hærførere som Sultanen sendte imod Skanderbeg var selv Albaner - Balaban
Pasha, og i de følgende ca. 4 hundrede år var der adskillige Albanere der var i Osmannisk
tjeneste, hvoraf nogle af dem opnåede overoverdentlig høje positioner som storvesirer,
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hærførere og guvernører forskellige steder i kejserriget.
For at kunne bevare sin position måtte Skanderbeg finde stærke og formuende magter at alliere
sig med. Én af dem var Paven i Rom, en anden Kongen af Napoli, først Alfonso, senere
Ferdinand, og sidst men ikke mindst bystaten Venezia.
Med Venezia var det noget op og ned, forholdet til Paven og Kongen af Napoli var derimod
mere fast og vedvarende positivt. Alliancen med Kongen af Napoli førte til at Skanderbeg
sendte Albanske hjælpetropper til Syditalien for at støtte Kongen i hans magtkampe - og i en
periode rejste han selv derover for at sætte sig i spidsen for sine tropper.
Paven sætter sig i spidsen for korstoget på Balkan
men det blev ikke til noget da Paven døde.
Skanderbeg var en overmåde dygtig strateg og hærfører. Han vandt de fleste af kampene med
Osmannerne, først og fremmest fordi han benyttede sine lette ryttere til lynhurtige overfald,
hit-'n-run, både når Osmannerne var på march og når de belejrede Albanske fæstninger. Hans
dygtighed gjorde ham frygtet hos Osmannerne (og Venezianerne) og var en væsentlig grund til
at Paven (sidst Pius II Piccolomini) ønskede at han skulle være den militære leder af et egentligt
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korstog mod Sultanen.
Korstoget kollapsede, dels fordi Paven døde i Ancona, netop da det skulle påbegyndes, dels
fordi flere af dem der skulle finansiere korstoget eller stille med tropper og forsyninger var meget
modvillige eller negative; dette gjaldt bl.a. venezianerne.
Skanderbeg døde i 1468, og det lykkedes hans kone og søn at holde hans position i nogle år
derefter, men til sidst måtte man opgive. Hans efterkommere - og mange andre Albanere udvandrede, især til Calabrien og Sicilien, hvor der stadig er flere albanske landsbyer.
Rozafat-borgen [Rozafa-borgen; Rozafat Castle] ved Shkodra. Foto: Charlotte Bøgh, 1993.
Rozafat - borgen ved Shkodra
Rozafat er en stor borg der blev bygget engang i Middelalderen på en højt hævet limstensklippe
ved Shkodra. Der går et sagn om at der blev muret en kvinde ind under bygningen af borgen
fordi bygmestrene ikke kunne hold tand for tunge. Albaniens-forskeren, Dr Robert Elsie, har
udgivet en samling albanske folkefortællinger på Engelsk, hvor man også kan finde historien om
Rozafat {Folkefortællinger}. Den begynder således i dansk oversættelse:
En dag kom en gammel mand forbi. »Jeg ønsker jer held med jert arbejde«, sagde han til
de tre brødre.
»Vi ønsker også dig held Gamle, men det går os ikke godt. Hvad vi bygger om dagen,
falder sammen om natten. Véd du hvad man skal gøre for at murene kan blive stående?«.
»Ja, det gør jeg«, svarede den Gamle. »Men jeg ville begå en synd om jeg fortalte jer
det«.
»Lad os dele din synd, for vi vil bygge borgen«.
Den Gamle tænkte en stund. Så spurgte han: »Er I gift? Har I alle koner?«
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»Ja - vel er vi gift«, svarede brødrene. »Hver af os har en kone. Fortæl os hvad vi skal
gøre«.
»Hvis I virkelig vil bygge borgen, så må hver og én af jer sværge ikke at fortælle jeres
koner hvad jeg nu vil fortælle jer«.
Da brødrene havde sværget, sagde den Gamle: »Dén af jeres koner der bringer maden
op til jer i morgen, skal I mure ind i borgens mure. Kun på dén måde kan I sikre at murene
vil stå - og stå i al evighed«.
Således talte den Gamle - og gik væk.
Shkodra og Rozafat blev hen over midten af 1700-tallet sæde for Mehmed Bey Bushati, der
opkastede sig som pasha over området. Han, og senere også hans søn - den Sorte Bushati,
Kara Mahmoud Bushati - gjorde sig herrer over Albanien ned til Shukmbini Floden og også
over Kosóva. De forsøgte også at erobre Montenegro. I 1778 lykkedes det Osmannerne at få
dræbt Mehmed Bey Bushati med gift.
Der var perioder hvor Kara Mahmud Bushati stod på god fod med Osmannerne og bestred høje
poster i det osmanniske rige. På et tidspunkt, mens Osmannerne var i krig med østrigerne, fik
han tilbud om at blive visir - hvad han afslog. Sultanen fandt det så klogest at foretage et opgør
med ham og omdirigerede nogle tropper, der var engageret i krigen med østrigerne, mod ham
der retirerede til Rozafat i august 1787. Det lykkedes Kara Mahmud at klare belejringen og at
gøre så stærke udfald at Osmannerne blev tvunget til at trække sig tilbage. Kara Mahmoud
forsøgte at få politisk støtte hos østrigerne, men blev svigtet af dem - og af flere af sine egne der
hellere så en forsoning med Konstantinopel, hvad det også kom til i første omgang.
Konflikten brød imidlertid snart ud igen, nogle af Kara Mahmoud’s forbundsfæller svigtede ham
og hans yngste bror flygtede til Konstantinopel. Konflikten drejede sig væsentligst om politisk
uafhængighed, selv om der muligvis også var økonomiske aspekter - for Kara Mahmoud syntes
at være interesseret i at udvide handelen mod vest og at styrke den albanske økonomi, hvad
der kunne rejse problemer for dén handel som Konstantinopel kontrollerede. Sultanen sendte
igen i 1793 en hær imod ham, men Kara Mahmoud gentog kunststykket fra 1787 - forskansede
sig i Rozafat, foretog et udfald og jog Osmannerne bort. Senere allierede han sig med
franskmændene for i forståelse med dem at undertvinge sig Montenegro. Dette mislykkedes og Kara Mahmoud faldt i baghold og blev dræbt i 1796.
Hans bror, Ibrahim pasha Bushati, efterfulgte ham og kom overens med Osmannerne; han døde
i 1810. Bushati'erne gik påny deres egne veje, men blev undertvunget i 1831 af Mehmet Reshid
Pasha. Herefter blev pasha-dømmet, pashalik'et, opløst, og vilayet'erne Shkodra og Kosovo
blev dannet i dettes sted. Et senere oprør mislykkedes.
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Osmannerne byggede - som romerne før dem - mange broer og veje i Albanien. Flere af broerne er bevarede som denne
uden for Shkodra. På broen ses bl.a. Lis Jespersen. Foto: Charlotte Bøgh, 1998.
Ali Pasha af Tepelena
Ali Pasha fra Tepelena var en fremtrædende Balkanfyrste i slutningen af 1700-tallet og i den
første del af 1800-tallet. Hans eftermæle er blakket. Han havde - som Skanderbeg - været
allieret med Osmannerne, men gik sine egne veje så snart det kunne lade sig gøre. Dén
uafhængighed han søgte var ikke national, men personlig; han stræbte efter et personligt
herredømme og en politisk uafhængighed, og han ville sætte sin magt igennem i Epirus - dvs.
den sydlige del af det nuværende Albanien og den nordlige del af Grækenland.
Blandt dem der mødte Ali Pasha var Lord Byron {Byron}.
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Den danske arkæolog Peter Oluf Brøndsted besøgte Ali Pasha i 1812 og nedskrev nogle samtaler med
ham. Jacob Isager har udgivet dem i 1999 under titlen: »Interviews with Ali Pacha of Joanina In the Autumn
of 1812, with some particulars of Epirus and the Albanians of the present day«. Aarhus Universitetsforlag
beskriver bogen således:
»P.O. Brøndsted (1780-1842) rejste fra 1810 til 1813 i Grækenland, hvor han bl.a. mødte
Lord Byron. Et andet interessant bekendtskab, han gjorde, var med den tyrkiske sultans
guvernør i Nordvestgrækenland. Denne guvernør, Ali Pacha, var albaner af fødsel, og han
udviste stor uafhængighed af sultanen. Han kom til at spille en stor rolle i den græske kamp
for uafhængighed og blev henrettet af sultanens soldater i 1822.«
P.O. Brøndsted er bl.a. beskrevet i »Dansk Biografisk Lexikon« 1887-1905, bd. III, s. 208 ff (se Runeberg's
gengivelse: http://runeberg.org/dbl/3/0210.html ff. Om Brøndsteds besøg hos Ali Pasha står der:
»Sidst paa Aaret [1812] var han i Epirus, hvor han tilbragte nogen Tid hos «den genialske
Tyran» Ali Pascha af Janina. Han kunde ikke andet end føle Afsky for denne Mands listige
og grusomme Regimente og saa tillige i hans Indflydelse den stærkeste Hindring for, at
Grækenland kunde vinde Frihed og Selvstændighed; men han mente dog, at hans Despoti i
alt Fald var at foretrække for den tyrkiske Regerings, og Alis Personlighed har gjort et
stærkt Indtryk paa ham.«
Billedet er et udsnit af Louis Dupré's billede fra 1819.
Johannes Østrup beskrev Ali Pasha således i »Salmonsens Konversations Leksikon« (2.
udgave, Kbhvn. 1915):
»Ali Pasha, Hersker i Albanien (1741-1822). A., som hørte til en gl. Høvdingeslægt,
var ved sin Faders Død 1754 i stor Nød; men den snilde og kraftige Mand, som
ikke skyede noget Middel for at vinde Magt og Rigdom, genvandt ikke blot sin
Faders Stilling, men udbredte efterhaanden sit Herredømme over hele Albanien og
blev Pasha i Janina. Selv blottet for religiøs Tro gjorde han ingen Forskel mellem
Kristne og Muhammedanere og undertrykte Albanesernes Fejder og Røverier.
1803 undertvang han Sulioterne, som havde forsvaret sig i fl. Aar med stor
Tapperhed. Han traadte i Forbindelse med Franskmændene og udvirkede ved
deres Indflydelse i Konstantinopel, at hans Sønner blev Pashaer i Grækenland.
Selv udstrakte han sin Magt over Thessalien og det sydlige Makedonien og var i
Virkeligheden uafhængig, skønt han betalte Tribut til Sultanen. For ogsaa at befri
sig fra denne indlod han sig i Underhandlinger med Grækerne, da de tænkte paa at
løsrive sig fra Tyrkernes Herredømme. 1820 sendte Sultanen, som især var
begærlig efter A.'s store Skatte, en Hær imod ham; mange Albanesere faldt fra
ham, og han maatte indeslutte sig i Janina, hvor han længe forsvarede sig. 1822
lykkedes det endelig Churshid Pasha at faa ham i sin Magt og rydde ham af Vejen.
Hans Hoved udstilledes i Seraillet, hans Sønner blev dræbte, hans Døtre solgte.«
På rejse i Albanien i 1800-tallet og den første del af 1900-tallet
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I midten af 1800-tallet besøgte den engelske forfatter
og maler Edward Lear Albanien. Lear er i dag mest
bekendt for sine mange limericks {Lear}, men han var
også en fremragende tegner og har skrevet mange
rejseskildringer der stadig er læseværdige fordi de er
uden omsvøb og meget konkrete. Lear kom godt
omkring i Albanien; han var både i Shkodra i det
nordlige og langs kysten i det sydlige. Han kunne have
indlogeret sig hos de lokale dignitarer, men foretrak at
bo som en simpel rejsende i det lokale gæstgiveri, en
han.
Et halvt århundrede senere kom en anden englænder
på besøg, Edith Durham, som er kendt blandt
sociologer og etnografer. Hun rejste lige så primitivt
som Edward Lear og skrev bagefter sin berømte bog
»High Albania« {Durham} hvor hun fortæller om de
lokale skikke, om klanerne og fejderne og om de
'albanske jomfruer', kvinder der levede et liv næsten
som mænd. Edith Durham var - på en måde - en
'engelsk jomfru' der gjorde hvad kvinder sjældent
kunne på dén tid: Hun rejste omkring kun ledsaget af
en fører der ikke altid kendte de steder de skulle
besøge, men som kunne sproget. Hun var lige så
omhyggelig som Edward Lear med at få noteret
detaljerne; undertiden tegnede hun, undertiden
fotograferede hun.
Edith Durham havde kristen baggrund og stilelde sig
derfor - til at begynde med - ret positivt over for
landsbypræsterne og de ortodokse klostre i Kosovo.
Men efterhånden opdagede hun at serberne optrådte
aggressivt og undertrykkende over for albanere og tog
tydeligt afstand fra serbiske overgreb.
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Den unge Edward Lear tegnet af Wilhelm Marstrand.
Miqesia. Erfaringsprojekt. Albaniens Historie
Edith Durham's tegning af en albansk bebyggelse i bjergene. Som man kan ane, kunne man lukke sig inde i tilfælde af
angreb, og det kunne være nødvendigt for der var på dén tid mange slægtsfjeder og blodhævnsdrab (også i dag udkæmpes
der slægtsfejder, ligesom der er en del eksempler på hævndrab). {Fejder}. Fotografiet forestiller en albansk dreng fra de
nordlige bjerge.
Slægtsfejder, blodhævn og mægling. Sami Bey Frashëri: »Æresordet«
Spørger man en avislæsende dansker om hvad der er karakteristisk ved albanere, vil han tit
svare at det er ballade. Enten ballade i Kosóva eller ballade i Makedonien. [En almindelig
dansker ville ikke sige Kosóva, men det serbisk-internationale Kosovo].
»Hvor kommer balladen fra?«, kunne man spørge.
»Albanerne. Albanerne er et mærkeligt folkefærd«, kunne svaret lyde. »Albanerne lever med det
ene ben i Middelalderen og det andet i nutiden. Den ene dag er de blandet ind i voldsom
kriminalitet, den næste er de ved at udkæmpe en slægtsfejde«.
Taler man med nogen der har været i Kosóva, Makedonien og Albanien vil svaret være langt
mere nuanceret. Nogle vil fremhæve venligheden og gæstfriheden, andre vil tale om at nutiden
findes på små »øer« i et »gammelt hav« - men alle vil bekræfte at »familie« og »forbindelser«
har en helt anden og langt stærkere betydning end her i de nordlige og kølige lande.
Vil man forsøge sig med »business« i Albanien kommer man ingen steder, hvis man ikke har
forbindelser. Bliver man blandet ind i løsningen af militære og politiske konflikter, som fx i
Kosóva, opdager man hurtigt at man ikke kommer nogen steder, hvis man ikke får fat i de
»rigtige«, dem der har »forbindelser« langt ud i samfundet.
Selv om tingene har ændret sig radikalt i de senere år, er der mange spor af fortiden. Nogle af
sporene er meget tydelige som de ortodokse kirker og klostre i Kosova og minareterne i
Albanien, Kosóva og Makedonien. Men nogle af sporene er immaterielle og ikke umiddelbart
synlige - som slægtsskabsbåndene og familieforholdene. Jo længere man kommer væk fra
byerne og jo længere man går tilbage i historien, desto større betydning har disse bånd.
Der er mange problemer med disse bånd, men der er også meget positivt at sige om dem.
Familie og slægt har i tidens løb været et socialt, økonomisk og kulturelt sikkerhedsnet - som
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imidlertid bedst egnede sig til små samfund i en »gammel« verden der var præget af
patriarkalisme, sædvaner og en snæver horisont - og hvor der ikke var nogen stat, endsige en
stat der kunne sætte sig igennem og håndhæve en lovgivning der var besluttet i et magtcentrum
langt væk fra bjerglandsbyerne.
Forskellene til trods, er der mange ligheder mellem livet på landet i den danske Middelalder og
livet i de albanske bjerge helt op til 2' Verdenskrig ... og måske længere endnu.
»Hvor kommer du fra?«, spurgte en albansk bjergbonde for næsten 10 år siden.
Danskeren, han spurgte og som han mødte på vejen uden for landsbyen - det var Mads
Lund fra SiD - kunne akkurat så mange ord at han kunne gøre sig forståelig, i det mindste
på det sproglige plan: »Fra Danmark. Et land der ligger langt mod nord, hvor der ikke er
bjerge - og hvor der kan være både koldt og blæsende«.
»Fra Danmark? Det forstår jeg ikke«, svarede bonden - »jeg mener: hvilken dal kommer
du fra?«
Det må have været som at se Holberg's komedie »Erasmus Montanus« for sig, men som
ren virkelighed. Til forklaring må siges at Hoxha-tidens geografi- og historieundervisning
ikke var kendt for sin sandfærdighed, og det samme gjaldt mediernes dækning af
forholdene i andre lande. {ML}.
Patriarkalisme, sædvanerne og den snævre horisont gav på én gang styrke og sikkerhed, men
er - i nutiden - alvorlige forhindringer for en økonomisk, social og kulturel modernisering og
videreudvikling.
Giver man en albaner et job eller en tjans, får man meget mere med. Meget af det er ren
fornøjelse - men noget af det er både dyrt og problematisk. Har en albaner fået et job, er det - i
vid udstrækning - et livsvilkår for ham (eller hende) at han hjælper slægtninge, venner og
bekendte til fadet - eller at han betaler sin gæld til den patron der måske har skaffet ham jobbet.
Korruption, altså at man skal betale for helt »usaglige« ydelser, skal - med en albansk optik ikke altid betragtes som lummer kriminalitet, men undertiden som dén olie der får tingene til at
virke. En sådan albansk optik bygger på århundreders sædvane, men må - når man taler om
den globale økonomi - betragtes som meget kortsigtet.
Det kan godt være at man får en pålidelig og meget venlig medarbejder hvis man benytter sig af
de sædvanlige metoder, men sandsynligheden for at denne pålidelige og venlige medarbejder
slet ikke kan sin metiér er meget stor, desto mere naturligvis når det drejer sig om jobs der
kræver særlige og moderne faglige kvalifikationer.
Tæt sammenvævet med de tætte familie- og slægtsskabsbånd var sædvaneretten. Den var
udviklet gennem århundreder i det daglige samkvem og ved mange drøftelser mellem
landsbyens ældste. Der er en høj grad af konsistens og logik i denne sædvaneret, men denne
logik og konsistens har ikke været der fra en fjern begyndelse, men har formentlig udviklet sig
over tid i takt med at man har skullet løse vanskelige problemer gennem lang tids diskussion og
overvejelse og ikke mindst gennem inddragning og fortolkning af forskellige fortilfælde.
I nogle henseender er sædvaneretten formentlig blevet mere sofistikeret eller har undergået
betydningsfulde ændringer (som da den romersk-katolske kirke begyndte at gøre sig gældende
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blandt albanerne), i andre er den ved langt »slid« blevet forenklet og strømlinet.
Shtjefën Gjeçov.
Den albanske sædvaneret, kanún (jf. det ny-danske ord: kánon) udvikledes på forskellig måde i
de forskellige dele af Middelalderens og den Nyere Tids Albanien og var i det store og hele en
mundtlig tradition. Noget tyder på at der i 1400-tallet blev gjort forskellige forsøg på at samle og
»ordne« den, således tales der om en Skanderbeg'sk Kanún og en Dukagjin'sk. Der er ikke
vidnesbyrd om at 1400-tallets kanún'er blev skrevet ned, men det er tænkeligt. I slutningen af
1800-tallet og i begyndelsen af 1900-tallet blev der gjort systematiske forsøg på en indsamling,
nedskrivning og redigering. Én af de mest ihærdige personer i denne proces var den katolske
munk, Shtjefën Gjeçov, der senere faldt i baghold og blev dræbt.
Sædvaneretten var ikke demokratisk i moderne betydning, men byggede ikke desto mindre på
lighedsgrundsætninger der kan minde om dem man kan spore i middelalderlig dansk
sædvaneret (og som på nogle punkter blev videreført i Enevældens Danske Lov fra 1683).
En bærende tanke er at den juridiske agent ikke er det enkelte individ, for man tænkte slet ikke
individualistisk, men den enkelte familie eller slægt, som der påhviler et stort, men altså
kollektivt, ansvar.
Konflikten kunne vedrøre græsningsrettigheder eller andre ejendomsforhold, men den kunne
også vedrøre håndteringen af et ægteskabstilbud, en ophævelse af en trolovelse eller et
ægteskabsbrud. Og endelig kunne den vedrøre andre angreb på æren.
Når man i nutiden hører om sådanne konflikter vil man ofte tænke på dem ud fra moderne
tankemønstre, der i Danmark er blevet mere og mere individualistiske. Formålet med et dansk
ægteskab er jo ikke at etablere eller styrke nogle familiemæssige relationer eller at styrke en
særlig økonomisk eller lokalpolitisk »strategi«, men derimod at maksimere den individuelle
lykke; tilsvarende gælder ofte når et dansk ægtepar bliver skilt.
Helt anderledes var det i det traditionelle Albanien. Derfor havde eventuelle
uoverensstemmelser også en helt anden og meget bredere eller dybere familiemæssig
betydning. Blev en trolovet pige vraget - ofte fordi brudgommens familie havde fundet en mere
attraktiv mulighed - var det ikke så meget hendes personlige problem, som det var hendes
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families problem; undertiden førte sådanne konflikter til at den krænkede familie følte sig tvunget
til at sætte sig i respekt, eller rettere til at genvinde sin respekt eller ære. Dette kunne føre til en
langvarig konflikt mellem de involverede familier med mange tab på begge sider.
Familierne ville imidlertid ikke se tabene som individuelle tab, langt mere som familiens eller
slægtens kollektive tab. I en vis forstand kunne det være ligegyldigt hvem man dræbte, når blot
der ville almindelig accept af at man havde dræbt én af de mulige »kandidater«, dvs. en
våbenfør mand.
Udviklede en konflikt sig til en egentlig slægtsfejde, kunne det være overordentlig vanskeligt at
standse den. De involverede familier blev nødt til at fortsætte den - dvs. snarest muligt at dræbe
én fra modstanderens »parti« når der var blev dræbt én fra det egne »parti« - også hvis der ikke
længere var nogen der havde en personlig erindring om den oprindelige konflikt.
En sådan konflikt havde dybe økonomiske og sociale konsekvenser. Våbenføre mænd måtte
enten tage deres rolle på sig eller flygte eller gemme sig i en »beskyttet bolig«, typisk i et
befæstet tårn. Til gengæld måtte kvinder, børn og tyende tage sig af driften, dvs. af at passe dyr
og marker.
Under særlige omstændigheder kunne der indgås en våbenstilstandsaftale, typisk når hele
området blev inddraget i en mere omfattende konflikt - et angreb udefra eller tilsvarende.
Der findes tilfælde hvor en konflikt er ebbet ud, men det kan have haft meget alvorlige
konsekvenser for dén part der ikke fortsatte konflikten, selv om den kunne. Undlod rette
vedkommende at hævne et drab på et medlem af familien eller slægten, betød det at den
pågældende - og dennes familie - blev »outcast«, dvs. en person og familie man ikke kunne
respektere eller have samkvem med, i det mindst ikke uden samtidig at håne dem.
Der findes også tilfælde hvor en konflikt er blevet bragt til ophør ved brug af en mellemmand, en
mægler.
Netop fordi en konflikt kunne have så dybtgående konsekvenser, er det nærliggende at forestille
sig at man bestræbte sig for at undgå at sætte nye konflikter i gang. Der er givetvis tilfælde af at
konflikter er påbegyndt fordi to »brushaner« har krænket hinanden og fremprovokeret en fejde,
men det er nok mere sandsynligt at familiens ældste og mere besindige medlemmer har
standset den, før den for alvor kom i gang.
Kom en konflikt på den anden side i gang, gav Kanún de retningslinier man skulle følge, og det
er tænkeligt at man i det store og hele fulgte reglerne, i det mindste indtil nyere tid.
Sami Bey Frashëri's stykke - »Æresordet« - er skrevet omkring [1870-1875] og beskriver
nogle centrale familietraditioner og sædvaneretlige forhold i Albanien, der dengang var en del af
det tyrkiske rige. Et vigtigt tema er modsætningerne mellem godsejeren - og hans folk - og en
bjerghyrde og hans familie. Det vigtigste tema er dog kærligheden mellem en fætter og hans
kusine, der bliver realiseret trods mange og meget alvorlige forhindringer. Når konflikterne bliver
så alvorlige - og får så mange triste konsekvenser - skyldes det at personerne er stærkt påvirket
af deres æresopfattelse; det er på den anden side også en konsekvent realisering af denne
opfattelse der fører til at stykkets grundlæggende konflikt bliver løst - og ikke fortsættes i en
mangeårig slægtsfejde.
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Når der i dag udbryder fejder, er det ikke altid fejder af traditionel karakter, men fejder der
finder sted i miljøer der er involveret i kriminelle aktiviteter - smugling, trafficking, prostitution,
narkotika- og våbenhandel. Her drejer fejderne sig formentlig om »markedsandele« og magt,
ikke om familiens og slægtens ære.
I Albanien er der - med dansk og senere norsk bistand - etableret en institution der forsøger
at løse konflikter ved brug af mægling. Mange af disse konflikter har ikke at gøre med
slægtskabsfejder eller blodhævn, men nogle har.
Om slægtsfejder, blodhævn og mægling
Sami Bey Frashëri's skuespil »Æresordet«
Hvis du vil have et print af skuespillet, kan du hente en PDF-udgave forrest i HTM-filen. PDF-filen fylder 0,6 MB. PDF-filen
kan læses af nyere udgaver af Adobe Reader, men det kan anbefales at hente den nyeste Reader (7' udgave); den kan
findes via: http://bjoerna.dk/vaerktoejer.htm#PDF. Bruger du en tidligere Reader, kommer der muligvis en (betydningsløs)
fejlmeddelelse
»Kanuni i Lekë Dukagjinit / The Code of Lekë Dukagjini« findes i en albansk-engelsk udgave fra
Gjonlekaj Publishing Company, New York, USA, 1989. Den albanske tekst bygger på Shtjefën Gjeçov's
materialesamling og er oversat og forsynet med en introduktion af Leonard Fox.
Margaret Hasluck: »The Unwritten Law in Albania«, Cambridge University Press, England, 1954.
Bjørn Andersen: »Albanske Studier« 1-2, se: http://bjoerna.dk/albansk-historie/studier-2002.htm, heri
om Edward Lear's og Edith Durham's iagttagelser, om Anne Knudsen's disputats om slægtsfejder på
Korsika og om Ismail Kadare's roman »Ufuldendt april«.
Hans Henrik Brydensholt: »Establishing and Assisting Democratic Institutions. The Case of
Albania« [1st April 2005. Preliminary edition]
Konfliktmægling: http://bjoerna.dk/dokumentation/mediation.htm
Det Albanske sprog. Et alfabet
Albansk er - i sin kerne - et meget gammelt sprog, og det udgør sin egen gruppe inden for den
indoeuropæiske sprogæt. En meget stor del af ordforrådet er hentet fra omliggende sprog - men
hvornår og ad hvilke veje der er sket indlån er svært at afgøre, da albansk alene var et talesprog
frem til omkring 1900. Der er ganske vist bevaret enkelte albanske tekster fra 1500-tallet og
frem, men langt de fleste albanere var analfabeter. De albanere der ikke var analfabeter
udtrykte sig gerne på andre sprog som tyrkisk og græsk.
Blandt dem der har forsket i Albansk sprog er de danske sprogforskere Holger Pedersen (18671953), Kristian Sandfeld (1873-1942) og Gunnar Svane (f. 1927).
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Holger Pedersen besøgte området omkring 1900 og indsamlede materiale. Han udgav digte og
folkefortællinger og analyserede nogle sproghistoriske forhold. I 1924 gjorde han status i bogen
»Sprogvidenskaben i det Nittende Aarhundrede. Metoder og Resultater«, og heri skrev han:
Er det den samme befolkning, der har boet i landet under alle disse omskiftelser? Er
Albaneserne efterkommere av Illyrierne eller av nogle av stammerne i Illyrien (hvad enten
så dette navn var udtryk for en folkelig og sproglig enhed eller blot en politisk-geografisk
betegnelse)? Det ligger nærmest at svare ja, naturligvis uden derved at udelukke en mer
eller mindre væsentlig forskydning av folkegrænsen. Under alle omstændigheder har
Albanesernes forfædre i oldtiden boet et sted på Balkan-halvøen, og vi kan kun bestyrkes
i formodningen om Albanesernes illyriske herkomst, når vi ser, hvilken mægtig romersk
indflydelse deres sprog har været underkastet. Latin må en gang have været dagligt brød
for Albaneserne. Deres sprog er fuldt av latinske låneord; de har fra latin lånt ikke blot
navne på ny indførte kulturbegreber eller tekniske, juridiske og politiske udtryk, men også
ord, der hører til dagliglivets kreds (som 'himmel', 'hundrede', 'kind', 'at komme' o.s.v.).
Disse låneord er optagne i en meget gammel tid og har gjort så mange albanesiske
lydudviklinger med, at de slet ikke stikker av imod det ægte albanesiske ordforråd, og kun
den øvede sprogforsker kan med sikkerhed skelne mellem de latinske og de hjemlige ord.
I modsætning hertil har græsk, som det synes, ingen indflydelse udøvet i oldtiden eller i
det højeste en ganske ubetydelig. Om Goternes herredømme har albanesisk ikke bevaret
noget minde, og de mange låneord fra slavisk, italiensk, nygræsk og tyrkisk har i denne
sammenhæng ingen interesse; de stammer fra tider, da man ikke kan nære tvivl om
Albanesernes bopæle.
Resolutionen fra mødet i Monastir i 1908 [klik på billedet for at forstørre det]
I slutningen af 1800-tallet blev der taget forskellige initiativer der havde sprogpolitisk betydning.
Forfatteren Sami Bey Frashëri - der har skrevet »Æresordet« - foreslog et nyt alfabet, men det
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var ikke helt dét der blev opnået enighed om da en kreds af sproginteresserede mødtes i
Monastir i 1908, se nærmere i Holger Pedersen's artikel.
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Illustration fra Holger Pedersen's bog (1924). Som det kan ses ligger det valgte alfabet tættere på det latinske alfabet end
Sami Bey Frashëri's.
¤
Det osmanniske riges undergang
Når man læser Edward Lear's og Edith Durham's beskrivelser står det klart at »den almindelige
albaner« og hans familie levede et tradtionsrigt - og traditionsbundet - liv. Flertallet af albanerne
var muslimer, men mod nord var der en del katolikker og mod syd en del ortodokse, men det
ændrede ikke grundlæggende ved forholdene - nuancerede dem kun.
Den enkelte - og familien - stod ikke alene. Albaneren og familien var en del af en større helhed,
landsbyen og klanen. I nogle områder var der stormænd, der optrådte som godsejere og som
udpinte bønderne, i andre - fjernere - områder var det snarere de ældste der havde det
afgørende ord.
Men der var albanere der efterhånden kom til at leve et andet liv, nemlig de der boede i byerne,
ikke kun i det nuværende Albanien, Kosova {Kosova} og Makedonien, men også i de store byer
andre steder i det osmanniske rige, fx i Istanbul eller Thessaloniki. Der er - i historiens løb mange albanere der har fået uddannelse eller opnået høje positioner rundt omkring i det store
rige.
Der var en del af disse »udlandsalbanere« der blev grebet af de nationale strømninger der
udviklede sig i 1800-tallet og som blev en del af frigørelsesprocessen. Men den nationale
frigørelsesproces begyndte meget sent i Albanien - sammenlignet med Grækenland og Serbien
- og man kan konstatere at mens der udviklede sig en stærk frigørelsesbevægelse dér, var det
slet ikke tilfældet i hverken Kosovo eller Albanien.
Det kan der være flere grunde til, men den mest fundamentale var formentlig at de albanske
klaner - når alt kom til alt - ikke mente der var andre måder at leve på end den traditionelle. Der
var oprør, ikke så meget mod det osmanniske styre som sådan - endsige mod Sultanen i
Istanbul - men mod specifikke overgreb, en for hård skatteudskrivning, en for hårdhændet
udskrivning af soldater, en groft undertrykkende provinsguvernør.
Den tyrkisk-russiske krig 1877-78 gav stødet til at albanske nationalister dannede Prizrenligaen som oprindelig stræbte efter at fastholde de albanske områder som en enhed inden for
det osmanniske rige. Berlinerkongressen - der skulle tage stilling til grænsedragningen efter
krigen - førte til et selvstændigt Bulgarien, til en østrigsk besættelse af Bosnien-Hercegovina og
til en fuldstændig løsrivelse af Serbien og Montenegro, men ikke til ændringer for albanerne.
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Prizren-ligaen blev opløst af det osmanniske styre i 1881, da det fandt at dens formål ikke var i
overensstemmelse med dets interesser, og flere af lederne blev fængslet. Nogle år efter blev
ligaen dog genoplivet, og den nationale selvstændighedsbevægelse udviklede sig. Nogle gik
siden sammen med ungtyrkerne der væltede det osmanniske rige i 1908 og lagde grunden til en
reorganiseret og revitaliseret tyrkisk stat.
Serbiske tropper har fanget albanere - arnauter - i Makedonien. Billede fra én af Fritz Magnussen's reportager.
Den danske journalist Franz von Jessen rejste på Balkan, bl.a. i Albanien, Makedonien og
Serbien, i første del af 1900-tallet, og oplevede på tæt hold både hvordan man levede det
daglige liv, og hvordan Balkan-krigene hærgede, og hans kollega, forfatteren Fritz Magnussen
fulgte den serbiske hær ind i Makedonien i 1912 {Magnussen}.
Serberne måtte på et tidspunkt flygte til kysten og ned til Korfu og kunne konstatere at de - da
de passerede det nordalbanske område - på ingen måde var vellidte, tværtimod blev de udsat
for mange angreb og plyndringsforsøg fra lokale guerillagrupper og forskellige irregulære
enheder.
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Republikken udråbes af Ismail Qemal (Qemal Pasha) i Vlora 28.11.1912. Det viste sig snart at der ikke var enighed om hvad
albanerne ville, Esad Pasha Toptani i Shkodra og klanlederne i de nordlige områder ville ét, Ismail Qemal og godsejerne mod
syd noget andet - og i en periode var der derfor to regeringer der stredes om magten.
Eftersom serberne stod på sejrherrernes side i 1' Verdenskrig blev der - i fredsforhandlingerne lyttet relativt meget til de serbiske synspunkter, og det var grunden til at Kosova blev tillagt
Serbien, og at der ikke blev oprettet en forenet og større albansk stat efter krigen, men en
mindre - og det endda kun fordi den amerikanske præsident, Wilson, insisterede på at der skulle
oprettes en særlig albansk stat. Kosova havde været et selvstændigt guvernørområde i det
osmanniske rige, et villayet, men der havde været en vis trafik over bjergene mellem det
nuværende Albanien og Kosova - og også sydover mellem Kosova og det nuværende
Makedonien.
Blandt dem der var kommet til Vlora i november 1912 var den kosova albanske Isa Boletin, der ses i forgrunden.
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Mellemkrigstiden
Tiden efter 1' Verdenskrig blev en overordentlig vanskelig periode. De nye stat stod på skrøbelig
og usikker grund. Der var stærke politiske kræfter som holdt hinanden i skak i adskillige år, og
der var betydelig uro, fx. nåede man i december 1921 at have 4 forskellige regeringer. Men en
national kongres i Lushnja i januar 1920 havde dog skabt grundlag for at der overhovedet kunne
dannes en regering og for at Albanien kunne blive medlem af Folkeforbundet.
Foruden de indre modsætninger var der et betydeligt pres fra de omliggende lande:
Grækenland og Italien rejste begge territoriale krav på Albanien - og var endda nået til en vis
gensidig forståelse herom som blev formuleret i en aftale - der blev støttet af englænderne men som gik i vasken på grund af et amerikansk veto. Italien ønskede Vlora som en slags
brohoved til Balkan og havde fra 1' Verdenskrig et militært korps stående her. Grækenland
ønskede at realisere et gammelt ønske om at lægge Korça og Gjirokastra til det græske Epirus.
Montenegro krævede desuden rum i det nordlige - inkl. Shkodra - og Serbien ville have sin del,
skønt man allerede var blevet tilgodeset med at få tillagt Kosova.
Én af dem der fortsat søgte at trække i trådene og at skaffe sig indflydelse - muligvis i alliance
med Serbien - var Esad Pasha Toptani, som imidlertid blev sat ud af spillet da studenten Avni
Rustemi dræbte ham ved et attentat i Paris i sommeren 1920.
Dén person der kom til at spille den største politiske rolle i tiden frem til 2' Verdenskrig var
Ahmet Zogu [Ahmet Zogolli] fra Mat-området. Han var allerede som ung blevet klanleder, og
det lykkedes ham i de følgende år at manøvrere sig frem til en dominerende position - skønt han
en kort tid var blevet udspillet af en socialistisk orienteret regering under ledelse af Fan Noli
{Noli}. Med en solid magtbasis i Mat-området som baggrund - og muligvis støttet af serberne lykkedes det ham at erobre magten og at vælte Noli's regering. Han blev først premierminister,
senere præsident og til sidst udråbte han sig selv som konge under navnet Zog I.
Kong Zog.
Zog forsøgte at sætte en økonomisk udvikling i gang, men måtte indse at det forudsatte
betydelig støtte udefra. For ikke at blive for afhængig af serberne, vendte han sig mod
italienerne der etablerede virksomheder og også samarbejdede med albanerne om en udvikling
af militæret. Han vidste uden tvivl at italienerrne havde deres egne interesser at tage hensyn til,
og at de ikke involverede sig for »deres brune øjnes skyld« - men fandt det ikke desto mindre
nødvendigt at entrere til dén side.
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Italienerne havde deres egne interesser at varetage. Stod det ikke klart før, blev det meget
synligt i Påsken 1939 hvor Mussolini's tropper invaderede Albanien og besatte alle centrale
steder - mens kong Zog flygtede til udlandet. I betragtning af at albanerne både før og siden har
været i stand til at holde besættelsestropper stangen, kan det undre at denne okkupation forløb
så forholdsvis enkelt. Det var der imidlertid flere grunde til. Der var nogle albanere der ønskede
at blive en del af et stærkt Italien, det gjaldt givetvis en stor del af det albanske officerskorps.
Ikke alle var imidlertid tilfredse, og nogle af disse organiserede sig politisk og militært. Da
Mussolini's stat brød sammen førte det til at de italienske tropper trak sig ud, men de blev straks
efterfulgt af tyske. For så vidt gentog billedet sig, eftersom nogle albanere fandt det klogest eller
i bedst overensstemmelse med deres egne interesser at samarbejde med tyskerne, men den
politiske og militære modstand voksede imidlertid, og selv om det var svært lykkedes det at
etablere en forenet front af kommunister og nationale kræfter der - med støtte fra jugoslaviske
kommunister (og i nogen grad også med amerikansk og engelsk militær rådgivning) - kunne
jage de tyske tropper ud af Albanien.
Den bedst organiserede og den mest beslutsomme del af modstandsbevægelsen var givetvis
det albanske kommunistparti, som derfor fik meget stor indflydelse på den politiske dagsorden
efter afslutningen af krigen. 11.1.1946 udråbte modstandsbevægelsen en ny uafhængig
socialistisk republik. Når englænderne og amerikanerne affandt sig hermed var det fordi
Albanien ikke betød så meget for dem i strategisk henseende, og fordi man lagde meget større
vægt på og mange flere ressourcer ind på at skaffe sig kontrol over udviklingen i Grækenland
og Italien.
Én af Hoxha-tidens utallige bunkere. Her på begravelsespladsen i udkanten af Tirana engang i november 2003. Meningen
var at man skulle kunne forsvare sig i tilfælde af angreb udefra, og mange af bunkerne lå derfor sådan at man kunne
bestryge et vigtigt område foran eller neden for bunkerne med maskingeværer eller geværer. Af tilsvarende grund blev der
opmagasineret store mængder af lettere våben i depoter rundt omkring i landet. Tekst og foto: Bjørn Andersen, 2003.
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Albanien under Hoxha. Gentagne udskiftninger af »patroner«
I den første tid efter krigen var det på tale at Albanien skulle indgå som republik i det nye
Jugoslavien. Mange af de ledende jugoslaver fandt det mest hensigtsmæssigt, og mange
albanere mente at det var en nødvendighed for at sikre Albanien både militært, økonomisk og
politisk.
Men da der i 1948 opstod et skisma mellem Sovjetunionen og Jugoslavien, mellem Stalin og
Tito, måtte albanerne vælge side. Nogle albanere - med én af de fremtrædende kommunistiske
ledere, Koçi Xoxe, i spidsen - foretrak en »jugoslavisk« løsning, mens andre med Enver Hoxha
og Mehmet Shehu i spidsen - foretrak en »sovjetrussisk« løsning og de var stærke nok til at
sætte netop dén løsning igennem og til at eliminere Xoxe-fløjen, hvilket ikke kun skete politisk,
men også fysisk. Koçi Xoxe blev fængslet og henrettet meget kort efter.
CIA har givet adgang til visse dokumenter om forholdene i Albanien og Kosovo (Kosova) fra
tiden efter 2' Verdenskrig og frem til 1990'erne. http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/CIA-1952-10-20.pdf er
et eksempel på et sådant dokument. Heri drøftes forholdet mellem Jugoslavien og Albanien.
Kunne Jugoslavien erobre Albanien hvis man ville? Var det klogere at lade være med at
forsøge? Som man kan se af dokumentet er der mange »hvide pletter«, dvs. passager som man
endnu ikke ønsker at frigive, skønt Østblokken er faldet sammen for en del år siden, og skønt
ingen af de nævnte lande (Albanien, Jugoslavien, Grækenland og Italien) er hvad de déngang
var. I indledningen bemærkes at de hidtidige forsøg på at vælte Hoxha-regimet ikke er lykkedes,
for emigrant-enhederne har været for svage og den albanske sikkerhedstjeneste for stærk.
Længere nede i rapporten finder man følgende bemærkelsesværdige passager:
»The Yugoslavs could overtrow the Hoxha regime if they utilized their own forces of large
numbers of Kosovars (an Albanian minority in Yugoslavia) for operations in Albania.
[...]
However, the Yugoslav leaders probably estimate that identifiable intervention would
adversely affect their present favorable relations with the Western Powers, would
complicate Yugoslavia's relations with her non-Communist neighbors, and migh provoke
Soviet or Satellite retaliation.«
De følgende år blev Albanien omorganiseret i forståelse med Sovjetunionen. Der blev oprettet
kooperative brug og statslandbrug. Der blev etableret industrivirksomheder og der blev etableret
et nyt sundheds- og uddannelsessystem. Også militæret og politiet blev udbygget - og i løbet af
forholdsvis få år stod det klart at kommunisterne sad stærkt på magten og at politisk og kulturel
opposition ikke kunne accepteres. I dén tid var mange albanere på studieophold i østlandene, bl.
a. i Moskva, og det albanske militær blev stærkt påvirket af sovjetrussiske militære doktriner.
Man fik fly, kampvogne og ubåde fra Sovjetunionen og der blev etableret en ubådsbase i Vlora,
hvilket gav Sovjetunionen mulighed for at være tilstede på en anden måde end ellers i både
Adriaterhavet og Middelhavet.
Da man i Sovjetunionen påbegyndte opgøret med stalinismen omkring midten af 1950'erne,
blev de albanske kommunister meget betænkelige. Om det - som de selv hævdede - skyldtes
principielle politiske uoverensstemmelser eller om der også var andre bagtanker, kan være
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svært at vide, men i begyndelsen af 1960'erne svingede kommunisterne væk fra Khrusjtjov,
som man fandt var ved at indordne sig under USA, og over mod formand Mao Zedong i Kina.
Socialrealistiske vinkler? I november 1960 kom det til et kraftigt ideologisk opgør på et internationalt kommunistmøde i
Moskva; det var omtrent på dette tidspunkt at albanerne forlod den sovjetrussiske linie og - for en tid - allierede sig med
kineserne. På dette albanske maleri - af Guri Madhi - er det »antydet« hvem der er venner og fjender. Khrusjtjov tager sig
febrilsk til kravetøjet for at få luft, kineserne sidder roligt eftertænksomme, mens Enver Hoxha læser og påskriver. Khrusjtjov
skrev: »[Da] vi begyndte at tage skridt imod en normalisering af forholdet til Jugoslavien [i 1954], var Albaniens holdning
skadelig for os. Det albanske kommunistparti tog vores initiativ meget ilde op og hævdede, at man ikke kunne stole på
jugoslaverne, og at de ikke var rigtige kommunister. Alt dette blev sagt nedladende, meget ondskabsfuldt og hadefuldt.
Sådan var Enver Hoxha, han talte med stor heftighed, fortrak ansigtet og skar tænder. Albanien blev til sidst tvunget til at
acceptere vore synspunkter. De havde intet valg. Vi så på Albaniens holdning i denne sag, som en storebror ser på en
lillebror. Vi følte, at selvom de ikke forstod det nu, så ville de blive voksne en dag og forstå«. Nikita Khrusjtjov: »Uofficielle
erindringer«, Munksgaard, København 1991, s. 136.
Khrusjtjov og den øvrige sovjetrussiske ledelse blev voldsomt irriterede på albanerne og
iværksatte forskellige former for repressalier på det økonomiske område, så efter ganske kort tid
var det indlysende at der ikke var nogen vej tilbage. Man måtte allliere sig tættere med
kineserne - der i en vis forstand var behageligt langt væk, men som samtidig var rede til - i et
vist omfang - at træde ind i stedet for russerne på det økonomiske område. Man støttede
opbygningen af store vandkraftværker langs Drin i Nordalbanien, man etablerede en
traktorfabrik i Tirana og man bistod med en videreudvikling af det albanske militær.
Alliancen mellem det store Kina og »det lille fyrtårn« i Europa - som mange betragtede Albanien
som - varede kun omkring 15 år. I midten af 1970'erne krakelerede forholdet. Igen var grunden ifølge den officielle albanske udlægning - at den store i parforholdet af strategiske grunde slog
ind på en alt for USA-venlig kurs.
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Under morbærtræet. Der blev taget mange billeder af Enver Hoxha. Hvert havde sit formål. Dette formentlig at vise at han var
i god overensstemmelse med den ældre - og traditionelt levende - del af befolkningen.
Hver gang der skete et brud, først med jugoslaverne, så med russerne, så med kineserne, førte
det til hurtige udrensninger i det albanske magtapparat. Hver gang var der nogle der blev
fængslet - og adskillige blev henrettet, både i den politiske og i den militære ledelse.
Det er meget tænkeligt at denne fremgangsmåde - hvor logisk og machiavellisk den end var samtidig førte til at mange albanere lærte at det var bedst at holde kæft og ikke at vise initiativ,
hverken i politisk eller anden henseende.
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Man gjorde meget på landbrugsområdet. Der blev dyrket hvede og majs, solsikker, tobak, oliven og æbler - ofte på terrasser
og undertiden på meget vanskelige jorder. Der blev anlagt kunstvandingssystemer og der blev produceret traktorer. Frem for
alt blev der lagt planer; på landbrugsområdet havde man store vanskeligheder med at nå de af og til temmelig optimistiske
mål - og derfor faldt der ofte brænde ned over dem der var ansvarlige - eller gjort ansvarlige. I »den russiske periode«
forestillede Khrusjtjov sig at Albanien skulle koncentrere sig om at producere korn og og forskellige andre landbrugsvarer til
Sovjetuionen og andre lande i Comecon. Fotos: Bjørn Andersen, 1976.
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Årene fra midten af 1970'erne og frem blev særligt vanskelige. Der var ikke længere en »rig
onkel« der kunne holde hånden over Albanien eller støtte økonomisk. Man stod fuldkommen
alene.
Et lille privat marked. »Det er da ikke noget at fotografere«, sagde tolken. »Det er jo kun nogle tomater og så'en«. Foto: Bjørn
Andersen, 1976.
Hoxha-styret havde nok altid haft symptomer på paranoia, men i denne periode blev det særlig
udtalt - hvad enten denne paranoia var skuespil eller ej. Et kendt eksempel herpå var da én af
de virkeligt »tunge drenge«, Hoxha's nære allierede fra krigens tid og gennem alle de senere
omskiftelser og omsving, premierminister Mehmet Shehu døde i december 1981. Hoxha-styret
forklarede at han havde begået selvmord efter at være blevet afsløret som tredobbelt hemmelig
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agent; blandt hans »virkelige arbejdsgivere« skulle have været så forskellige »størrelser« som
Sovjetunionen, Jugoslavien og USA {Shehu}.
Sandheden var sandsynligvis helt anderledes. Shehu var formentlig nået til en opfattelse af at
det var nødvendigt at skifte kurs, hvis ellers Albanien skulle udvikle sig økonomisk og socialt
{Formodning}. Hans opfattelse var dermed i klar modstrid med de interesser som Enver Hoxha
og kredsen omkring ham havde og med dén politik som de ønskede ført. Da det var tænkeligt at
der var adskillige der tænkte som Shehu, fandt man det nødvendigt at dræbe ham selv,
desuden at sværte ham til, at udrense flere af hans familiemedlemmer og bekendte, at henrette
to af dem - og endda også at skjule hans lig. Det er først i de allerseneste år at hans søn har
lokaliseret dét sted hvor han var blevet begravet.
Fem af en bunkers tilstandsformer: En forelsket mands gave til sin kone. Mål, prøvesten og beskyttelsesrum. Kirke efter
diktaturets sammenbrud.
Klip fra Kujtim Çashku's film »Kolonel Bunker«.
Filmen »Kolonel Bunker«
Kujtim Çashku fortalte i 1996 den sælsomme historie om Muro Neto, der var oberst i den
albanske hær. Lige før sin udnævnelse til general blev han gjort »vingeløs«, for det var déngang
at alle militære grader og gradstegn blev fjernet. Nok skulle der stå officerer i spidsen for
soldaterne, men de skulle ikke rage så meget ovenud at de kunne blive en trussel mod den
øverste ledelse, og de måtte aldrig glemme at de var under stram politisk kommando. Ville de
anfægte ledelsen var det med livet som indsats.
Obersten fik til opgave at lede bygningen af de 700.000 små og større betonbunkere der kom til
at pryde det albanske landskab - og som betød at bygningen af boliger måtte udskydes. Han
skulle tilmed sidde i én af disse bunkers, mens artilleriet skød mod ham, for at man kunne sikre
sig at han kunne holde til dét han skulle, og at både han og bunkeren var støbt homogent.
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Kunne man ikke bestå de prøver man blev underkastet, blev der foretaget kontant afregning på
stedet.
Det er ét af filmens vigtigste temaer at albanerne måtte undertrykke deres følelser og virkelige
synspunkter. Selv en så betroet kadre som oberst Bunker måtte rulle sig ind i badeforhæng når
han skulle tale fortroligt med sin kone, Ana - polsk pianist med chopinsk anslag.
Oberstens dobbeltliv blev afsløret; han blev endnu engang forpuppet - nu ikke i et uskyldigt
forhæng, men i en kiste - og efter at være blevet gjort mør hér blev han indrulleret som arbejder
i ét af Hoxha's minefængsler. Hvordan der var dér kan man læse i John Frølich's artikler om
Fatos Lubonja {Lubonja}; de var fuldt på højde med hvad Stalin tidligere havde leveret.
Çashku's film er et grundigt og godt komponeret arbejde. Dens blanding af realisme og
surrealisme symboliserer Hoxha-styrets paranoide karakter og viser at man ikke kunne leve et
virkeligt liv hverken som overflademenneske eller som puppe. Albanernes vigtigste fjende
déngang var ikke Jugoslaverne eller Italierne, men Hoxha-styrets mafiaagtige ledelse {Kolonel
Bunker}.
Social kontrol. Fletë rrufe
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Hoxha-styret brugte mange forskellige metoder til at kontrollere samfundet og borgerne. Var der nogen der skejede ud, var
én af metoderne at hænge dem ud på en flete rrufë, dvs på en plakat. Her er et eksempel fra Korça 1976. Plakaten hang bag
en butiksrude - og der var lignende eksempler andetsteds i byen:
Partiet og kammerat Enver har sagt at spil er et negativt fænomen der ikke hører hjemme under socialismen. Men Kiço
Avushka og Skender Furxhi har ikke kunnet styre sig; de har forladt deres arbejde i landbrugssektoren for at spille. Ikke alene
har de opført sig dårligt, de har også påvirket andre unge mennesker. Måske har de ansvarlige ikke vist sig deres ansvar
voksne? Har de ansvarlige kun interesseret sig for det rent tekniske og glemt deres moralske og politiske ansvar? Plakaten
var underskrevet af 'Gruppen for Social Kontrol med Ungdommen'. Foto: Bjørn Andersen, 1976. Tak til Elmira Alija for hjælp
til oversættelsen.
Tiden umiddelbart efter Hoxha 's død i 1985
»Pyramiden« i Tirana's centrum, lige ved Lana-floden og vis-a-vis den nye katolske katedral. »Pyramiden« blev oprindelig
bygget som mausoleum og museum for Enver Hoxha, hans bunker post mortem. I dag bruges bygningen af forskellige
medieforetagender, bl.a. TV-stationen top-channel - og desuden holdes der mange udstillinger dér, Hoxha selv er flyttet til en
almindelig gravplads i udkanten af Tirana. »Pyramiden« blev tegnet af en gruppe arkitekter under ledelse af Hoxha's datter,
Pranvera Hoxha, og hendes mand, Klement Koraneci. Pyramiden kan opfattes som et symbol på det stærke og stive
kommunistiske hierarki i Hoxha-tiden der imidlertid krakelerede og faldt sammen - men tillige som et symbol på Berishatidens pyramideforetagender der også kollapsede, hvilket førte til at mange naive småsparere mistede deres midler. Foto:
Bjørn Andersen, november 2003.
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I 1985 var der et udvalg i Europa-Parlamentet der udarbejdede en betænkning om forholdet til
Albanien {1985-betænkning, som PDF}. Man anbefalede at man forholdt sig positivt til et øget
handelsmæssigt samarbejde med Albanien, selv om - eller måske netop fordi - det albanske
samfund havde en helt anden karakter end de vestlige samfund. I betænkningen gives et kort
rids over den albanske historie siden 2' Verdenskrig, og et sted gav man følgende
sammenfattende karakteristik, der - så vidt jeg kan vurdere - er meget rammende:
»Albaniens temmelig stormfulde brud med de efter hinanden følgende beskyttere og de
ideologiske grunde, der fremførtes herfor, eller af den yderst strenge opfattelse af national
uafhængighed, som blev gjort gældende, gjorde stort indtryk på offentligheden og de
internationale observatører. Det er sandt, at hver beskytter blev afløst af en anden,
fjernere og derfor ufarligere, eller i hvert fald mindre farlig. Den virkelige grund til
omlægningerne af Albaniens udenrigspolitik bør nok søges i de albanske lederes
beslutning om ikke at tillade, at deres magt blev bragt i fare af en eller anden ny politisk
linje, fastlagt af lederne i beskytterlandet.«
Enver Hoxha's kiste blev senere flyttet til gravpladsen uden for Tirana. Foto: Mads Lund, 1997.
Sammenbruddet. Den kasino-kapitalistiske periode. Nyt sammenbrud
Da de andre lande i Østblokken var »faldet«, faldt også styret i Albanien. De grundlæggende
årsager var formentlig af økonomisk og social art, men drivkraften var ideologisk og politisk.
Landet var - sådan oplevede langt de fleste det - fattigt og tilbagestående, der var ingen i
udlandet der støttede økonomisk, man havde ingen eksport af betydning (og mange af de
tidligere importlande var ikke længere interesserede eller betalingsdygtige), og der var også
vanskeligheder med at afsætte indenlandsk producerede produkter i selve Albanien.
Den kommunistiske præsident, Ramiz Alia (som anså den nuværende premierminister, Fatos
Nano, for at være en »coming man«), forsøgte sig ad manøvreringens og kompromissets vej,
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men mislykkedes i den sidste ende og kørte fast. Samtidig var der mange - især i den yngre del
af befolkningen - der stemte med fødderne og benyttede alle midler for at komme væk, først og
fremmest til Italien - men meget gerne videre til USA.
Da det kommunistiske styre brød sammen var der tusindvis der forsøgte at komme til Italien og Amerika ... med og uden
visum. Mange kom afsted på overfyldte plimsollere, men mange måtte vende tilbage igen efter at have siddet et stykke tid i
en flygtningelejr i Italien. I årene derefter var der mange der prøvede at komme afsted med små motorbåde. I de allerseneste
år er strømmen blevet begrænset - bl.a. fordi italiensk grænsepoliti i flere år havde en station i Albanien. I begyndelsen af
2004 skete der en trist ulykke i Adriaterhavet og adskillige omkom, da deres båd sank. Ulykken viser at der stadig er en vis
trafik, og at der altid vil være nogle der er parate til at »hjælpe« hvis de kan opnå en fortjeneste.
Under urolighederne i 1996/97 søgte præsident Berisha - til at begynde med - at indsætte politi og militær, men det måtte
han opgive, særligt da militærets våbenlagre var blevet plyndret. Foto af militærkøretøj: Mads Lund, 1997.
Der udviklede sig to politiske hovedkræfter, den ene samlet omkring hjertelægen Sali Berisha der stammer fra Tropoja i det nordlige Albanien - den anden om kommunisterne, der snart tog
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navneforandring til Socialisterne og som også drejede kursen over i en euro-socialdemokratisk
retning, under ledelse af økonomen Fatos Nano.
Perioden var karakteriseret af uforsonlighed og bi-polaritet. Når Demokraterne var ved
magten, gjoirde alt hvad de kunne for at holde Socialisterne væk (tilsvarende gjorde
Socialisterne når de var ved fadet), og efter et stykke tid fængslede man endog Fatos Nano for
svindel med udenlandske støttemidler. Senere forsøgte man at udelukke tidligere fremtrædende
kommunister fra at få offentligt embede.
Demokraterne var ikke en homogen gruppe. Efterhånden opstod der sprækker i partiet, og
nogle af de mest fremtrædende figurer - som Sali Berisha anså for at være farlige konkurrenter blev udskilt eller gik selv. Blandt dem var Genc Pollo der nu er leder af et reformdemokratisk
parti og økonomen Gramoz Pashko.
På grund af de grundlæggende og meget omfattende sociale problemer endte »den
demokratiske periode« med et sammenbrud. Den umiddelbare anledning var at nogle store
pyramideforetagender {Pyramider} brød sammen.
Ligesom andetsteds i Østeuropa var der geschæftige folk der etablerede pyramideforetagender
som lovede en høj og hurtig forrentning af indskudte midler. De første der investerede fik
vitterligt store gevinster og det trak en ekspansion med sig, og der var adskillige - der i
virkeligheden manglede til dagen og vejen - der ikke turde andet end at gribe chancen. De
omsatte alt hvad de kunne og investerede. Det gik godt i en kort periode, men dén slags
foretagender kan kun holde hvad de lover, når markedet ekspanderer, dvs. når der kommer nye
investorer. Når nyindbetalingerne stagnerer eller falder, kan man ikke længere finde midler til at
honorere investorernes forventninger, og så vil der begynde en bevægelse den anden vej. Lige
så hurtigt pyramideforetagenderne var skudt op, lige så hurtigt faldt de sammen igen.
Den demokratiske regering kunne ikke stille noget op, og der gik mange rygter om at der var
højtplacerede politikere der var involveret i foretagenderne.
Sammenbruddet af pyramideforetagenderne og den udbredte utilfredshed førte til at mange gik
på gaderne for at protestere mod styret og i næste omgang for at få det fjernet. Lovløsheden
herskede og de mange lokale våbenlagre - fra Hoxha-styrets tid - blev plyndret. Nogle af disse
våben blev smuglet ud af landet, formentlig særligt til Kosova, andre blev gemt i Albanien for at
man kunne beskytte sig selv og sin familie. Hverken den albanske hær eller politi forsøgte at
forhindre oprøret - som endte med at mange politiske fanger, hvoriblandt Fatos Nano, blev
løsladt og at NATO sendte tropper til landet, primært fra Italien, men også fra Frankrig og
Danmark {Operation ALBA}.
Urolighederne førte bl.a. med sig at det Dansk-Albanske AMU-center i Vlora blev plyndret, se nærmere i
artiklen om SiD's Albaniens-aktiviteter.
Magtskifte. Drabet på Azem Hajdari
Ved det efterfølgende valg kom Socialistpartiet til magten, og dén har man siddet på siden - til
en vis grad i samarbejde med nogle af de små partier omkring midten. Der er i årene siden sket
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en vældig udvikling. Der er i langt højere grad tale om »ordnede forhold«, men der er - som
nævnt i indledningen - mange og meget dybe problemer, dels fordi økonomien er meget svag
og fordi en meget stor del af det økonomiske liv sker i den grå eller sorte sektor, dels fordi der er
omfattende organiseret kriminalitet, korruption og trafficking.
Azem Hajdari.
Året efter skete der et opsigtsvækkende attentat uden for Demokraternes Partihovedkvarter i
Tirana's centrum. Én af de mest fremtrædende demokratiske politikere, Azem Hajdari, og hans
livvagt blev skudt ned og dræbt. Der gik mange rygter om hvem drabsmanden kunne være og
der var spekulationer om hvor vidt Berisha var involveret, for forholdet mellem ham og Hajdari
var ikke altid lige positivt. Det ser imidlertid ud til at Hajdari blev dræbt som led i en fejde der
havde sine rødder på hans hjemegn, Tropoja-området i det nordlige Albanien. Drabet blev
anledning til forskellige tumulter, fortrinsvis i Tirana, og den daværende premierminister Fatos
Nano stak af til udlandet, hvad han er blevet bebrejdet flere gange siden, måske ikke så meget
offentligt, som i det skjulte. Tumulterne blev bragt til ophør og regeringen genoptog sit arbejde,
men nu under ledelse af Pandeli Majko.
Ligesom der har været store interne modsætninger i det demokratiske parti har der været
modsætninger i det socialistiske. Flere fløje har kæmpet med hinanden, og nogle har søgt at
»komme til fadet«. Pandeli Majko søgte at blive partiformand, men kom uoverens med Ilir Meta
og måtte træde tilside. På et senere tidspunkt blev han forsvarsminister, og han synes at trives
med at have netop dén position.
Senere var det Ilir Meta der blev skubbet til side, for han kom uoverens med Fatos Nano der på
det tidspunkt var partiformand, og som i dén position skaffede sig større og større indflydelse.
Nano var ikke medlem af regeringen, hvilket hang sammen med at han déngang ønskede at
blive præsident - men dét mislykkedes fordi Berisha ikke ville acceptere ham, og fordi de
»Internationale« af dén grund ønskede en anden kandidat, én der ville være bredt respekteret.
Efter adskillige »udladninger« mellem Nano og Meta blev der indgået våbenhvile. Fatos Nano
overtog posten som premierminister, mens Ilir Meta blev vice-premierminister og
udenrigsminister. Våbenhvilen holdt imidlertid ikke længe, så kom Meta og Nano igen uoverens,
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og Meta måtte fortrække - og til sidst melde sig helt ud af partiet, da han indså at han og hans
gruppe af forbundsfæller ikke kunne få et ben til jorden. Nano havde indgået aftaler med de
forskellige dele af partiet, hvilket dels eliminerede Meta's indflydelse, dels gav ham selv
mulighed for at bevare sin position som partiformand og premierminister.
Nano har en solid basis i partiet og har demonstreret en udtalt politisk vilje og manøvreevne, og
det er baggrunden for at han kunne etablere alliancen med de forskellige dele af partiet (og i
øvrigt også med andre politiske samarbejdspartnere). Hverken Meta eller Majko har nogen
særlig stærk basis, og det er grunden til deres perifere placeringer. Majko har valgt at
samarbejde med Nano (som også synes at respektere ham), mens Meta valgte at gå på
kollisionskurs, hvad der førte til at han tabte og står i risiko for ikke at have nogen politisk
indflydelse af betydning i flere år fremover. Om han - og hans forbundsfæller - vil opnå genvalg
ved parlamentsvalget til sommer er svært at sige [skrevet februar 2005].
Et forsøg på en sammenfatning
Siden 2' Verdenskrig har det været karakteristisk at den politiske ledelse har forsøgt at
manøvrere, dvs. at opnå uafhængighed, politisk og økonomisk styrke ved at bevæge sig mellem
skiftende samarbejdspartnere. Dén forholdsvis kortvarige periode hvor man forsøgte at stå helt
på egne ben (nemlig fra man afbrød forbindelserne til Kina) endte med systemets sammenbrud.
De væsentligste grunde skyldtes indre problemer og modsætninger, men sammenbruddet blev
fremskyndet af udviklingen i de andre Østlande.
Der har været (og er fortsat) mange grundlæggende problemer med at få det albanske
demokrati til at fungere. Der er sket tydelige fremskridt, men det er svært at tro at fremskridtene
er stabiliserede. Sammenbruddet i 1997 er trods alt ikke særlig længe siden, det er først i de
allerseneste år at det er lykkedes at få de to store grupper til at samarbejde rent teknisk med at
få demokratiet til at fungere, og først for et par år siden besluttede Demokraterne at deltage i det
parlamentariske arbejde efter at de havde boykottet det gennem længere tid.
Når det har været så svært at få etableret et virksomt demokrati i Albanien har det flere årsager.
Én er at man tradtionelt har tænkt i helt andre baner end i parlamentarisk demokrati. Der har i
fortiden, fx i landsbyforsamlingerne i bjergegnene, været praktiseret en vis form for
klandemokrati, som dog var stærkt patriarkalsk og stærkt domineret af de ældste og af dem der
havde største »styrke«, men det er ikke en form for demokrati der harmonerer godt med
moderne parlamentarisk og politisk demokrati. Skillelinierne gik helt anderledes. Det er stadig
sådan at mange almindelige albanere har langt større tiltro til de traditionelle bånd og
forbindelser end til det moderne stats- og kommuneapparat.
Dertil kommer at Hoxha-styrets ledere sagde ét, men gjorde noget nær det modsatte. De sagde
at de praktiserede et virkeligt demokrati til forskel fra dét skindemokrati der blev praktiseret i den
Vestlige Verden, men i virkeligheden var praksis grundlæggende udemokratisk. Det var kun
muligt at »avancere« hvis man i det grundlæggende accepterede det kommunistiske styre, så
konsekvensen var at enhver der tænkte den mindste smule anderledes måtte lære at holde sin
mund for at overleve.
Desuden kan man konstatere at dét billede som det kommunistiske styre gav af omverdenen
var helt misvisende. Der var (og er) meget at kritisere i den Vestlige Verden, men den
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almindelige albaner vidste ikke for alvor noget om hvordan tingene var i Den Vestlige Verden (i
den sidste del af Hoxha-styret kunne man dog snyde sig til at se italiensk fjernsyn), fx var det et
meget beskedent fåtal albanere der havde mulighed for at komme udenlands og se tingene med
egne øjne, og derfor havde de helt urealistiske forestillinger om hvordan man skulle bære sig ad
med at fungere i en situation der var styret efter den Vestlige Verdens og markedets vilkår.
Efter Hoxha-styrets sammenbrud har man forsøgt at »skyde sig ind« på den nye verdensorden,
der domineres af USA og EU. Det nuværende styre forsøger en afbalanceret udenrigspolitik:
man støtter USA, men véd at den økonomiske fremtid ligger i en integration i EU. Det ser
imidlertid ud til at man ikke er helt parat til at gøre hvad der er nødvendigt for at blive optaget i
EU. Derimod gøres der en del forsøg på at kortslutte processen, dvs. at bruge gode venner og
bekendte i USA, Tyrkiet og Grækenland til at fremskynde en optagelse.
TILFØJELSER
Stor-Albanien?
Den albanske Ali Ahmeti fra Makedonien på besøg hos premierminister Fatos Nano i Tirana februar 2005. På væggen
bagved hænger et maleri der forestiller Frashëri-brødrene på besøg i Wien. De og deres ledsagere betragter Skanderbeg's
hjelm og sværd. Officielt foto.
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Med jævne mellemrum bliver der - fx fra serbisk side - talt om at dét som albanerne i
virkeligheden ønsker er at etablere et Stor-Albanien. Nogle gange kan det se sådan ud, for den
albanske regering udtaler sig jævnlig om forholdene på Balkan, men primært for at lægge en
dæmper på »oprørske elementer«. Om dette er et spil for galleriet eller om man mener det fuldt
oprigtigt, er meget svært at sige; måske er det mere korrekt at sige at den albanske politik er et
forsøg på at manøvrere og at optræde afbalanceret mellem de forskellige kræfter i henholdsvis
Kosova og Makedonien.
På den ene side så den socialistiske regering i Albanien overordentlig positivt på UÇK's aktioner
i Kosova, på den anden side ønsker man at stå sig godt med præsident Rugova og hans
midterorienterede politik.
På den ene side så man meget positivt på dét oprør som Ali Ahmeti i Makedonien var én af
lederne af, på den anden side ønsker man også at stå sig godt med en anden albansk
gruppering der ledes af Arber Xhaferri, for ikke at tale om præsident Branko Crvenkovski.
Når jeg ikke tror at man ønsker at »gå efter« et Stor-Albanien har det i det væsentlige tre
grunde:
Fremtiden ligger ikke i en forenet albansk stat, for den vil - alt andet lige - primært
vil blive en forening af økonomiske, sociale og politiske problemer og
modsætninger.
Fremtiden ligger snarere i en optagelse i NATO og især i EU, og her vil
spørgsmålet om en nationalstat slet ikke have den samme betydning som tidligere.
Dette er et synspunkt der er udtrykt ved mange lejligheder, ikke mindst af Fatos
Nano. Man kan tilføje at med en optagelse af både Kosova, Albanien og
Makedonien vil det samvirke der allerede findes i dag på det politiske og kulturelle
plan kunne videreudvikles og få flere aspekterEndelig står det klart for de fleste albanske politikere (i Kosova, Albanien og
Makedonien) at en promovering af et Stor-Albanien ville virke stærkt negativt på de
politiske kræfter i USA og Europa man skal samarbejde med for at opnå en
optagelse i NATO og EU. (Dette skal ikke forstås som et afgørende, kun som et
supplerende argument).
Se i øvrigt: Bjørn Andersen: »Kosóva's fremtid«
Mother Teresa og de religiøse forhold i Albanien
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Indvielsen af Mother Teresa-statuen ved Universitetet i Tirana. Foto: Bjørn Andersen, december 2004. På billedet ses bl.a.
en fremtrædende Bektashi (tv, iført grøn klædning), statsminister Kjell-Magne Bondevik fra Norge, ærkebiskop Rrok Mirdita
(ærkebispedømmet Tirana-Durrës), præsident Alfred Moisiu, generaldirektør Koïchiro Matsuura (UNESCO), præsident
Crvenkovski (Makedonien), fader Arthur E. Liolin (med ansigtet mod statuen; fader Liolin tilhører den særlige albanskkatolske kirke i USA). Desuden kan man ane præsident Svetozar Marovic (Serbien-Montenegro) og præsident Stjepan Mesic
(Kroatien). Allerbagest - bag præsident Moisiu - den franske ambassadør i Makedonien og én af sikkerhedsvagterne.
Det store flertal af albanerne er muslimer, men på en forholdsvis afslappet måde. I Tirana og
oppe i nord er der en del katolikker, mod syd en del ortodokse.
Anslået antal
indbyggere
Anslået andel af
befolkningen (pct.)
Muslimer
826.000
70
Heraf Sunni'er
[600.000]
[51]
Heraf Bektashi'er (retning af moderat observans)
[220.000]
[19]
Ortodokse
212.500
18
Romersk-katolske
142.000
12
1.180.500
100
Religiøs orientering i 1944
I alt
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Kilde: ALBANIA / a country study / Federal Research Division / Library of Congress / Edited by Raymond Zickel and
Walter R. Iwaskiw / Research Completed April 1992 - se: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/altoc.html og (mere specifikt): http://
lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+al0055). Materialet vedrører situationen i 1944. Tallene er meget
usikre. Der haves ikke tilsvarende, endsige pålidelige, tal for de følgende år.
Fra 1967 og frem til Hoxha-styrets sammenbrud var religionsudøvelse forbudt, moskéer og
kirker blev lukket og evt. omdannet til andre formål. Hoxha-styret ville ikke acceptere
konkurrence fra kirkerne, endsige fra Vatikanet i Rom.
»The state recognizes no religion whatever and supports atheist propaganda for the
purpose of inculcating the scientific materialist world outlook in people. « (Albaniens
Forfatning fra 1976, artikel 37).
»The creation of any type of organization of a fascist, anti-democratic, religious, and antisocialist character is prohibited.
Fascist, anti-democratic, religious, war-mongering, and anti-socialist activities and
propaganda, as well as the incitement of national and racial hatred are
prohibited.« (Albaniens Forfatning fra 1976, artikel 55).
Der er udbredt enighed om at der hverken før Hoxha-styret eller nu har været tilfælde af
religiøse overgreb. Tværtimod er det indtrykket at de forskellige trosretninger i dag lever
overordentlig fredsommeligt med hinanden og med staten {USA-Human-Rights}.
Mother Teresa er en central figur i det moderne Albanien, sådan var det i Hoxha-perioden, og
sådan er det i endnu højere grad nu. Mange albanere er stolte over hende, og præsidenten og
regeringen fejrer hende gerne; måske er dette ikke helt uden politiske bagtanker? Se nærmere
om Mother Teresa på: http://bjoerna.dk/albanien/Teresa.htm
I 2003 og 2004 har der været afholdt to internationale konferencer i Tirana om religiøs og etnisk
tolerance - se nærmere på: http://bjoerna.dk/tolerance/ og http://miqesia.dk/Summit-2004.htm.
NOTER
1) Bjørn Andersen er cand.mag. i dansk og kultursociologi. Har siden 1999 udgivet det elektroniske
ugebrev »Sidste Nyt fra Albanien, Kosóva og Makedonien« og bøger om Albaniens og Kosóva's
historie, fx. »Krudttønden i baghaven« (1999), »Fra Kosovo til Kosóva« (1999) og »Albanske Studier« 12 (2002). Har endvidere udgivet »Danske Lov 1683« på CD (2003) og arbejder nu på en bog om Ludvig
Holberg: »Et åbent sind«, der handler om hans filosofi og hans tanker om natur- og folkeret. Det
næstfølgende projekt vil dreje sig om sædvaneret. Hjemmeside: http://bjoerna.dk
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relationer) Der er et par - indirekte - »forbindelser« som ikke er helt uinteressante:
I) Normannerne slog sig ned i Syditalien i begyndelsen af 1000-tallet og grundlagde
senere et kongedømme på Sicilien og i Neapel der spillede en rolle i Middelhavs- og
Adriaterhavsområdet frem til ca. 1250. Som Hans Lyngby Jepsen beretter i »Korset og
nymånen. Normannerne i Syden« (1986) nedstammede normannerne fra vikingerne. Han
skriver s. 255: »Nord og Syd [Italien] skilles af historien. Det mærkværdige er netop at
forhenværende nordboer, mænd med oprindelse i Skandinavien, bidrog til den udvikling.
De trak ikke Sicilien mod deres Europa, men lod øen frit drive i det hav der er Europas
sydgrænse.«
I slutningen af 1200-tallet deltes kongeriget; Neapel (Napoli) gik til Charles af Anjou; i
1443 blev Sicilien og Neapel genforenet under Alfonso 5 af Aragonien (benævnt Kongen
af de to Sicilier 1443-1458). Han og hans søn, Ferdinand I, samarbejdede med Gjergj
Kastrioti Skanderbeg fra Albanien. Fra omkring 1500 var Napoli-Sicilien et
vicekongedømme under den spanske konge.
II) En meget senere »forbindelse« opstod i slutningen af 1600-tallet. Én af de fattigere
holstenske hertuger, Georg Christian von Holstein (Georg Christian af Sønderborg), der
tilhørte en særlig katolsk gren, havde meldt sig som officer under den østrigsk-ungarske
kejser og var avanceret til generalmajor og næstkommanderende under general
Piccolomini i et felttog mod tyrkerne i 1689/90. Felttoget fandt sted ikke så mange år efter
at tyrkerne forgæves havde belejret Wien under ledelse af en tyrkisk-albansk general.
Felttoget gik ind i det nuværende Kosovo, men kørte hurtig fast. Piccolomini og mange af
soldaterne omkom af pest, og resten blev jaget på flugt af tyrkiske tropper og formentlig
også af albanske guerillaer. Tilbagetoget blev ledet af Georg Christian von Holstein og
med ham fulgte mange serbere og den ortodokse patriark. Georg Christian von Holstein
faldt i 1691 i et slag med tyrkerne.
Slesvig-Holsten) Hvilken statsretlig status Slesvig og Holsten havde har i lange tider givet anledning til
hovedbrud, provokationer og konflikter. Begge områder var hertugdømmer; de Slesvigske Hertuger
havde den danske Konge som overherre; de Holstenske den tyske Kejser. Formelt set var forholdene
imidlertid langt mere indviklede.
I 1848 var der stærke kræfter i Hertugdømmerne der ønskede en forening, en optagelse i Det Tyske
Forbund - og en fri forfatning. I København var der mange der også ønskede en fri forfatning, men for et
forenet Danmark og Slesvig. Parolen var: Danmark til Ejderen. De forskellige uoverensstemmelser førte
til oprøret i 1848 og til de forskellige krige i midten af 1800-tallet, kulminerende med krigen i 1864.
FN) Danmark er medlem af Sikkerhedsrådet fra 1.1.2005 til 31.12.2006. Udenrigsministeriet har
etableret en særlig side om medlemsskabet: http://www.sikkerhedsraadet.um.dk/da/Forside.htm.
DK-i-Kosovo) Danmark er synlig på mange forskellige måder i Kosovo. Siden 1999 har vi deltaget i
KFOR. Søren Jessen-Petersen har siden august 2004 været SRSG, dvs. været Kofi Annan's særlige
repræsentant og dermed den øverste internationale tovholder; for nogle år tilbage var det Hans
Hækkerup der havde samme bestilling. Peter Sørensen leder EU-kontoret i Prishtina. Endelig er Kai
Vittrup fornylig blevet chef for den internationale politistyrke.
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Dalgas) Hans søn, Ernesto Dalgas, gik ganske andre veje og skrev de ejendommelige bøger
»Lidelsens Vej« og »Dommedags Bog«.
Tvangsrekruttering) Adskillige danske i den tyske del af Sønderjylland blev indrulleret i den tyske hær og mange omkom.
Handelsunderskud) I begyndelsen af 2005 skrev Albaniens Statistik:
»In September of 2004 export and import rise compared with the pervious month of 2004.
Export increased from 3511 mln leks to 5372 mln leks (53%) and import increased from
18576 mln leks to 20504 mln leks (10%). During in this month, the humanitarian aid are
210 mln leks. Trade deficit for this month is 15132 mln leks signing an increase of 0.4 per
cent comparing with the previous month. Trade with the EU countries is 70.7 per cent.
The main trade partners for this month remains Italy and Greece. Export to Italy is 72 per
cent and import 29.9 per cent. While the export to Greece is 12.2 per cent and import 19.7
per cent. Comparing the data of this month with the previous month for some main
countries and group of products we have:
Export of “Leather and leather manufactures” increased from 32 mln leks to 113 mln leks
(252%),”Wood manufactures and article of papers” increased from 92 mln leks to 190 mln
leks (106%), “Textile and footwear” increased from 1854 mln leks to 3241 mln leks
(74.8%), while export of “Minerals, fuels, electricity” , decreased from 139 mln leks to 131
mln leks (5.7%).
Export to Italy, Slovenia, Germany, Kosovo, etc. increased, while export to Sweden,
Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, Romania, etc. decreased.
Import of “Leather and leather manufactures” increased from 181 mln leks to 480 mln leks
(165%), “Textile and footwear" increased from 1647 mln leks to 2564 mln leks (55.7%),
“Machinery, equipment, spare parts” increased from 3910 mln leks to 4393 mln leks
(12.4%), while import of “ Construction materials and metals ” decreased from 2830 mln
leks to 253 mln leks (10.6%).
Import from Russian, Italy, USA, Great Britain, Greece, Macedonia, etc. increased, while
import from China, Spain, Turkey, Germany, etc. decreased.
Indicator of specialization is the difference between the percentage of export for each
product to total and percentage of import for each product to total. This indicator is
calculated for the group products of the nine sections of Harmonized System (HS). On
first quarter of 2004 increase of this indicator is noted on the group “Textile and
footwear”.«
OECD) OECD har i 2004/2005 - i forståelse med regeringen - foretaget en undersøgelse af den
uofficielle økonomi.
Korruption) Dette afsnit bygger på informationer fra internationale organisationer der arbejder i
Albanien, fra venner og bekendte »downthere« og her i byen, på egne iagttagelser og på uformelle
interviews i Tirana.
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Via Egnatia-1) Se kort på: http://www1.oecd.org/cem/online/infrastr03/RoadCorrVIII.pdf
MEETING OF THE MINISTERS OF TRANSPORT OF CORRIDOR VIII COUNTRIES
Tirana 31 March, 2004
JOINT DECLARATION
Upon the invitation of the Minister of Transport and Telecommunications of the Republic of Albania, the
Ministers of Transport of the countries that are signatories of the Memorandum of Understanding and the
representative of the European Commission met in Tirana on 31 March 2004 with the aim of examining the
current state of progress and to promote concrete initiatives for the development of the infrastructure and
operation of the Corridor VIII.
Appreciating the progress achieved by the countries of Corridor VIII in the process of implementation of the
Corridor infrastructure projects and transport reform in general,
Addressing the European Parliament and the European Commission to include Corridor VIII projects as
major priorities for the European Union investment programmes for the near future,
Appreciating the efforts made by Italy during its EU Presidency, to give greater importance to Corridor VIII
projects,
Expressing their conviction that the progress of the countries of the region towards EU integration to bring
improvements to the regulatory and institutional framework will at the same time create the necessary
conditions for a better operation of the Corridor VIII existing infrastructure,
The Ministers discussed the current state and the possibilities to accelerate the implementation of the
Memorandum of Understanding signed on 9 September 2002 in Bari and the construction of the Corridor
VIII with the main focus upon transport infrastructure, in the light of the agreement reached by the Ministers
of Transport of Corridor VIII, at the meeting held in Bari on 18 September 2003 as set out in the “Bari
Declaration”.
The Ministers stressed the need for closer collaboration and coordination of effort between the Corridor VIII
countries in order to identify joint priority investment projects with the highest possible functional and
economic efficiency.
The Ministers stressed the need to increase the role and the activity of the Corridor VIII Steering Committee
and Secretariat with the main purpose of expediting the steps towards creating the necessary conditions for
joint investment projects to be submitted and launched in the shortest time possible.
The Ministers urge donor organisations to support the interested countries in examining and providing
solutions for the rapid elimination of the present bottlenecks and missing links along the Corridor VIII.
The Ministers emphasise the need for the creation of a suitable climate to attract private investments in the
development of Corridor VIII infrastructure with the main focus placed on public private partnership type
projects.
The Ministers appreciate the initiative of the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria to hold a meeting of the
Prime Ministers of Corridor VIII in Bulgaria, devoted to the next steps towards the overall construction of
Corridor VIII.
The Ministers express their appreciation for the initiative of the Albanian Government for organising and
hosting this meeting in Tirana, and agree on the need to continue periodically with further political and
technical collaboration.
Mr. Spartak POÇI, Minister of Transport and Telecommunication
Mr. Nikolay VASSILEV, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications
Mr. Pietro LUNARDI, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport
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Mr. Agron BUXHAKU, Minister of Transport and Communications
Mr. Pantelis CARCABASSIS, Ambassador, Representing the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications
Mr. Lutz SALZMANN, Ambassador European Commission Delegation, Tirana
Tirana, 31 March 2004
Fast mand) Dansk Politi vil etablere en fast »mand« i Tirana for at styrke indsatsen mod organiseret
kriminalitet fra Albanien og andre Balkanlande, jf. følgende nyhedstelegram fra begyndelsen af januar
2005: »De nordiske lande og i særdeleshed Danmark er et mere og mere centralt interesseområde for
kriminelle serbiske og albanske netværk, som arbejder sammen med herboende folk fra Balkan. Vi
forstærker fokus på dem og sender derfor en dansk politimand til Tirana,« siger chefkriminalinspektør
Troels Ørting Jørgensen, Rigspolitiet.
Illyrerne) Jf. John Wilkes: »The Illyrians«, 1' udgave 1992, mit eksemplar er en paperbackudgave fra
1995, udgivet af Blackwell , Oxford, England og Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA . Wilkes er
tilbageholdende med at fastslå en direkte forbindelse.
Via Egnatia-2) Jan Bo Hansen fulgte Via Egnatia i 2002 og havde fire artikler herom i
»weekendavisen« (2.7.-12.8.2002). Han skrev bl.a.: »Vejen blev anlagt af den romerske proconsul,
Gnaius Egnatius, fra 146 f. Kr. til 120 f. Kr., og gennem mange århundreder var det den store
forbindelsesvej mellem øst og vest, brugt af romerske hære og kolonisatorer, siden af østromere og af
normanniske og osmanniske erobrere«.
Solsortesletten) Man kan læse nærmere om slaget og tiden i Konstantin fra Kostenec: »Den serbiske
Despot Stefan Lazarevics liv og levned«, oversat og kommenteret af Gunnar Svane, udgivet af
Selskabet til Historiske Kildeskrifters Oversættelse, Munksgaard, København 1975. 'Despot' betyder vel
nærmest 'Konge' eller 'Storfyrste'.
Devshirme) Devshirme- eller gidselsystemet er omdiskuteret i litteraturen. Sandsynligvis blev det
benyttet i forskellige varianter. I nogle tilfælde var der nærmest tale om at gidslerne blev fjernet med
magt og taget »i forvaring«, i andre tilfælde var der måske snarere tale om at vasallerne ønskede at
deres sønner skulle uddannes og avancere ved det osmanniske hof. Om den osmanniske tid kan læses
i Henning Mørk's bog: »Balkan under Tyrkisk Herredømme 1350-1800«, Aarhus Universitetsforlag
1998.
Sk:beg) Skanderbeg og Danmark. Jeg er blevet spurgt om 'Skanderbeg' og 'Skanderborg' har noget at
gøre med hinanden. Svaret er et klart nej. Det fremgår alene af at man brugte stednavnet 'Skanderborg'
- fx i forbindelsen Skantorpborg - længe før Skanderbeg blev født og hans navn 'konstrueret'. Det består
af segmenterne: Skan(d) + [evt. -torp] + det efterhængte borg. Skan(d) er sandsynligvis et mandsnavn,
torp er betegnelsen for en udflytterbebyggelse og borg giver sig selv. Jeg er ikke klar over om Skan(d)
kan være en afledning af Skaane. I så fald ville 'Skanderborg' betyde: Borgen ved Skantorp, som er dén
bebyggelse som Skåningen anlagde. Navnet Skanderbeg stammer fra tyrkisk. Det består af
segmenterne: Iskender eller Skender - der svarer til: Alexander - og det efterhængte beg der betegner
en højtstående officer. Skanderbeg betyder ca: General Alexander.
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Klik på billedet hvis du vil have det forstørret.
Arkæologen Peter Pentz har på Nationalmuseet »genfundet« en seglstampe der ifølge sin indskrift var
Skanderbegs. Om den virkelig var dét har man ingen sikker viden om, men sandsynligvis er der tale om
en stampe der er produceret i tiden efter Skanderbeg's død, muligvis engang i 1500-tallet. Engang i
1600-tallet blev det købt af en udsending for Christian IV for at indgå i hans kunstkammer. Se nærmere
herom på: http://miqesia.dk/arrangementer.htm#Pentz.
Klik på billederne hvis du vil have dem forstørret.
Ludvig Holberg var meget optaget af Skanderbeg og skrev om ham i sine 'Heltehistorier' (1739).
Holberg's tekst kan findes på: http://bjoerna.dk/albansk-historie/Holberg.htm. Holberg vurderede
Skanderbeg overordentlig højt fordi han på éngang var ydmyg og mådeholden og overordentlig effektiv
som hærfører i sine talrige kampe med tyrkerne. Når netop Skanderbeg og krigene med tyrkerne fik
Holberg's opmærksomhed, skyldtes det givetvis at tyrkerne på hans tid stadig måtte anses for at være
en mægtig modstander. Så sent som i 1683 havde tyrkerne belejret Wien, omend det var forgæves;
senere fulgte en krig i Kosovo og yderligere kampe.
Barletius) Den klassiske filolog, professor Minna Skafte Jensen, har analyseret Barletius' biografi, se
nærmere på: http://miqesia.dk/Barletius.htm.
Noli) Jf. Fan Noli: »George Castrioti Scanderbeg«, International Universities Press, New York, 1947.
Fan Noli var biskop for den særlige Albanske Kirke i USA (den Albanske Kirke er i familie med den
Græsk-Ortodokse Kirke). Han blev født 6.1.1882 i Tepe - dengang en Albansk landsby i nærheden af
Adrianopel, det nuværende Edirne - men kom til USA i 1906 hvor han slog sig ned. Han blev uddannet i
Harvard og Boston i litteratur, musik og historie og opnåede en ph.d.-grad. Han blev præsteviet i 1906
og blev biskop i 1923. Fra 1920 til 1924 repræsenterede han Albanien i Folkeforbundet og blev derefter
- i en kort periode på ½ år - leder af en venstredrejet albansk regering. Hans regering blev skubbet til
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side af Ahmed Zogu, der i en måneds tid var premierminister, hvorefter han blev præsident og senere
konge. Efter nogen tid vendte Fan Noli tilbage til USA hvor han genoptog sit embede som biskop og sin
skribentvirksomhed.
Folkefortællinger) Se nærmere på Robert Elsie's side: http://www.elsie.de/pub/b23.html. Bogen om
folkefortællingerne kan downloades som zip-fil fra: http://www.elsie.de/pub/download_b/
B2001AlbFolktalesLegends.zip. Se også Elsie's artikel om Kadare's gengivelse af Rozafat-fortællingen
på: http://www.elsie.de/pub/download_r/R1997KadareBridge.pdf. En præsentation af Robert Elsie kan
findes på: http://www.elsie.de/.
Byron) Se evt. min bog »Krudttønden i baghaven«, s. 62-67.
Lear) Se fx Marco Graziosi's Lear-site: http://www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/index.html. Blandt rejsebøgerne
er én fra Korsika, én fra Syditalien og én fra Albanien og Grækenland. Man kan læse nærmere om
Edward Lear i mine bøger: »Albanske Studier« bd. 1-2, se: http://bjoerna.dk/albansk-historie/studier2002.htm. Lear malede fremragende fugle- og blomsterbilleder. Også hans landskabstegninger er gode.
Durham) Bogen kan læses på internettet: http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/durham/albania/albania.
html. Man kan læse nærmere om Edith Durham i »Albanske Studier« bd. 1-2, se: http://bjoerna.dk/
albansk-historie/studier-2002.htm.
Fejder) Se afsnittet om slægtsfejder og blodhævn.
ML) Mads Lund var i Albanien for SiD (der senere er fusioneret med KAD og blevet til 3F). Mads
fortæller at mødet fandt sted i Påsken 1998 i Valbona-dalen i det nordligste Albanien. Valbona ligger
ikke så langt fra Bajram Curri.
Kosova) Når jeg i denne artikel (fortrinsvis) bruger den albanske skrivemåde Kosova - der udtales
Kosóva - frem for den ofte brugte Kosovo, som er serbisk, skyldes det at befolkningsflertallet - i det
mindste nuomstunder - er albansk. Muligvis har flertallet engang været serbisk, muligvis albansk, men
det ved man ikke sikkert. Mange Kosovo-serbere flygtede i 1689 da de østrigsk-ungarske tropper blev
drevet tilbage - se i øvrigt {relationer} - og det tyder på at serberne udgjorde en minoritet såvel før, men
naturligvis især efter flugten. Hvad enten der engang var serbisk flertal eller ej er det et faktum at der er
mange ortodokse kirker og klostre i Kosovo/Kosova, og at Kosovo i 1300-tallet blevet styret af en
serbisk fyrste.
Magnussen) Fritz Magnussen's krigsberetning kan læses på: http://bjoerna.dk/albansk-historie/1912.
htm. Beretningen er fundet frem af Palle Rossen der også har skrevet en indledning.
Shehu) Enver Hoxha udtalte sig i 1982 således om sin gamle forbundsfælle:
»Det var netop på partiets og folkets enhed, at også Mehmet Shehu, en af det
socialistiske Albaniens farligste forrædere og fjender, brækkede halsen. Han var mange
gange blevet kritiseret af partiet for sine alvorlige fejltagelser, men det var lykkedes ham
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at dække over sig. De dokumenter, der er blevet fundet, samt en ubestridelig bevisbyrde
beviser, at han fra før krigens tid havde arbejdet for den amerikanske
efterretningstjeneste. Under krigen og efter befrielsen kæmpede og arbejdede Mehmet
Shehu i Albanien som lejesoldat i fremmedes sold og efter deres ordrer. Allerede fra han
var i den 1. Brigade, blev han hyret af den jugoslaviske efterretningstjeneste (OZNA, i dag
UDB) og senere af det sovjetiske KGB, og han tjente nidkært dem alle. Han og den
gruppe af komplotmagere, der var knyttet til ham, og som nu befinder sig i
myndighedernes hænder og er ved at blive udforsket, handlede på ordrer og direktiv fra
udenlandske spionagecentrer, specielt CIA og UDB. De arbejdede på at knuse partiet og
folkets statsmagt og sætte Albanien under fremmed åg. Mehmet Shehu og hans
forbundsfæller var forberedt på at begå alvorlige forbrydelser for at gennemføre de
undergravende gangsterplaner, som blev udarbejdet af deres herrer i Washington,
Beograd og andetsteds. Mehmet Shehu havde af det jugoslaviske UDB fået ordre til at
myrde centralkomiteens førstesekretær og andre parti- og statsledere samt til at tage
terroristiske metoder i anvendelse for at knuse alle dem, der ville stå op mod dette store
forræderi. Hvis de ikke var i stand til at gennemføre deres kriminelle hensigter, så hænger
dette sammen med deres store frygt for folket og partiet og disses stålfaste enhed, som
ikke tillader nogen fjende, hvor snu og djævelsk han end er, at manøvrere. Mehmet
Shehu var aldrig i stand til at forandre eller forvrænge partiets linie, for hvis han forsøgte
at gøre det, ville han straks blive afsløret. Da Mehmet Shehu blev fanget mellem på den
ene side ordrer fra UDB, som jorden brændte under i Kosova, og på den anden side
frygten for partiets og folkets enhed, så han intet andet alternativ end selvmordets
skændige vej.«
Fra Enver Hoxha: »Tale til vælgerne i Tirana 10.11.1982«. Udgivet af
Venskabsforeningen Danmark-Albanien, 1983.
En nærliggende konklusion kunne være at det enten var lykkedes Shehu og forbundsfæller at »snøre«
Hoxha og den øvrige ledelse gennem mere end 40 år - eller også at det er Hoxha der nu - i 1982 forsøgte at »snøre« sin tilhørere og læsere.
Formodning) Om denne formodning er korrekt eller ej, ved jeg ikke. Jeg bygger den især på dén måde
som Hoxha-styret forklarede dødsfaldet på, men også på at Hoxha og kredsen om ham i årenes løb
havde fremtrådt tydeligt dogmatisk - samtidig med at de pragmatisk skiftede kurs, den ene gang efter
den anden. Mehmet Shehu var en aktiv part i dette spil, men spillede en noget mere anonym og
tilbageholdende rolle end Hoxha og mange andre i hans nærhed.
Hvis nogen skulle vide »noget« eller som har en god idé, hører jeg gerne.
Lubonja) Se: John Frølich: »Fatos Lubonja's dagbog« og »17 år i monsterets gab. Den albanske
forfatter Fatos Lubonja blev politisk fange som ung
og tilbragte 17 år i fængsler og fangelejre«.
Kolonel Bunker) Tadrart Film der distribuerer »Kolonel Bunker« skriver:
Enver Hodja a dirigé l'Albanie pendant près de quarante ans. Après avoir rompu avec Belgrade pour se
rapprocher de l'URSS, puis frayer avec la Chine et abandonnné Moscou, pour s'enfermer définitvement,
Enver Hodja a commis purge sur purge. Dictateur suprême, c'était l'un des dirigeants du bloc communiste le
plus totalitaire et intransigeant. L'Albanie a vécu sous son joug une "paranoïa" quotidienne... Le système
Enver Hodja a survécu sept années après sa mort. Après une "mini révolution", l'Albanie a élu un président
et s'est -après presque un demi-siècle- ouvert au monde.L'Albanie est un pays ravagé, défiguré par des
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"bunkers", symboles de ce pays sous le joug d'un dictateur fou.
Le colonel Muro Neto, héros du film, a été le jouet de Enver Hodja qui l'avait chargé de protéger le pays
contre l'ennemi omniprésent. Ce Kolonel Bunker est le personnage symbole de ce pays.
1950-1960 en Pologne
Muro Neto suit de brillantes études militaires, il rencontre Ana Jakubowska, une passionnée de piano. Il en
tombe amoureux, ils se marient . En 1960, ils viennent vivre en Albanie, pays de Muro Neto.
1961 en Albanie
Choisir de vivre en Albanie, c'est rompre à jamais avec l'extérieur. Ana Jakubowska décide de rester avec
son mari dans ce pays et coupe toute relations avec sa famille en Pologne.
1974 en Albanie
Muro Neto est chargé de défendre le pays contre un ennemi invisible. En qualité de grand stratège militaire,
il décide que la "bunkérisation" est la seule parade à une attaque surprise. Muro Neto érige près de 800.000
bunkers ; la population est soumise à des alertes d'attaques soudaines et irraisonnées. La paranoïa grandit.
Muro Neto a disparu pour laisser place au Colonel Bunker. Monstre de l'appareil communiste, le Colonel
Bunker détruit tout sur son passage, ferme les yeux sur les procès et les éxécutions sommaires. Il se sent
investi d'une mission de défenseur suprême du pays.
Sa femme, impuissante, assiste à la montée de la folie paranoïaque de son mari.
Elle se réfugie dans son amour pour Chopin et dans la religion déclarée illégale par Henver Hodja.
Cast : Agim Qirjaqi, Anna Nehrebecka, Viktor Zhusti, Cun Lajci, Kadri Roshi, Xhevat Nimani, Malaj Petrit,
Alma Rambi, Maurice Nash
A film by : Kujtim Cashku
Production : 3B Productions (France), Alba Film Studio (Albanie), Studio Filmmowe Dove (Pologne)
Distribution : Tadrart Films
In theater: October 6th 1999
www.tadrart.com/en/films/kolonel_bunker/
Awards
1998:
VENISE: Cict - Unesco Award "Enrico Fulchignoni" 1997:
OSCARS: Official Albanian Entry
IZMIR: Special Jury Prize
SAINT ETIENNE: Grand Prize
1996:
BASTIA: Critic's Prize
MONTREAL: Official compétition
1985-betænkning) Se: http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/Europa-Parlamentet-Albanien-1985.htm.
Pyramider) Se nærmere i Christoper Jarvis: »The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes« i: IMF's
»Finance & Development«, March 2000, s. 46-49.
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Operation ALBA) Se herom i Søren Knudsen's artikel: »Den danske indsats i »Operation ALBA««:
http://miqesia.dk/erfaring/soeren_knudsen_1997.htm.
USA-Human-Rights) Se evt. officiel Amerikansk Human Rights-rapport.
Kontakt webmaster: [email protected]. Du er meget velkommen til at sende informationer og forslag til hvad der skal
være på siden. Send evt. bekendte et tip om Miqësia's hjemmeside: miqesia.dk
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Miqësia's Erfaringsprojekt
Miqësia er albansk og betyder venskab
De Europæiske Fælleskaber
om relationerne til Albanien
[1985]
Kontaktadresse: [email protected]
Version 1.0 - 23.2.2005
Dokumentet er skannet fra en papirudgave og OCR-behandlet. Der kan være enkelte OCR-fortolkningsfejl. Nogle dokumenttekniske detaljer og
de efterhængte bilagstabeller er udeladt. BA
De europæiske Fællesskaber
EUROPA-PARLAMENTET
MØDEDOKUMENTER
Udgave på dansk 1985-86
9. oktober 1985 SERIE A DOKUMENT A 2-114/85
BETÆNKNING
udarbejdet for udvalget om eksterne økonomiske forbindelser om de økonomiske og
handelsmæssige forbindelser mellem EØF og Albanien
Ordfører: loannis TZOUNIS
På mødet den 13. november 1984 henviste Europa-Parlamentet forslag til beslutning af
FORD om Fællesskabets handelsforbindelser med Albanien (dok. 2-927/84) i
overensstemmelse med artikel 47 i forretningsordenen til udvalget om eksterne
økonomiske forbindelser.
På mødet den 21. november 1984 vedtog udvalget at udarbejde betænkning og valgte
TZOUNIS til ordfører.
Udvalget behandlede udkastet til betænkning på møder den 19. december 1984, den 31.
januar 1985, den 26. marts 1985, den 20. maj 1985 og den 25.-26. september 1985. Det
vedtog den 26. september 1985 beslutningsforslaget som helhed enstemmigt.
I afstemningen deltog: Dame Shelagh Roberts, formand; Hindley, næstformand; Tzounis,
ordfører; Beazley (for Kilby), Blumenfeld (for van Aerssen), de Camaret, Costanzo, Mallet
(for Muehlen), Moorhouse, Tove Nielsen (for de Winter), Rossetti (for Galluzzi), van Rooy,
Seeler, Toussaint, Wieczorek-Zeul, Zahorka og Zarges.
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Betænkningen indgivet den 30. september 1985.
Fristen for at stille ændringsforslag til denne betænkning er angivet i forslaget til
dagsorden for den mødeperiode, hvor den skal behandles.
FORSLAG TIL BESLUTNING
om de økonomiske og handelsmæssige forbindelser mellem EØF og Albanien
Europa-Parlamentet,
- der henviser til forslag til beslutning af Ford om Fællesskabets handelsforbindelser med
Albanien (dok. 2-927/84),
- der henviser til betænkning fra udvalget om eksterne økonomiske forbindelser (dok. A 2114/85),
A. der konstaterer, de handelsmæssige og økonomiske forbindelser mellem Det
europæiske Fællesskab og Albanien er særdeles begrænsede, men har mulighed for at
kunne udvikles,
B. der er overbevist om, at en udvikling af disse forbindelser i et særdeles følsomt område
af direkte betydning for Fællesskabet ville være til gensidig fordel for Fællesskabet og
Albanien og være medvirkende til en stabilisering af situationen i denne del af Balkan,
C. der erkender Albaniens politiske og diplomatiske særstilling,
D. der henviser til muligheden for, at der vil ske en udvikling i dette land,
E. der mener, at en forbedring og en udvikling af de økonomiske og handelsmæssige
forbindelser forudsætter en gunstig atmosfære,
1. ønsker, at det i fremtiden bliver muligt at forbedre og udvikle de økonomiske og
handelsmæssige forbindelser med Albanien;
2. registrerer med interesse, at Albanien søger nye handelsforbindelser med nogle
fællesskabslande;
3. mener, at ethvert forsøg Albanien måtte gøre i den retning, bør støttes af Fællesskabet;
4. håber, at man vil finde metoder og fremgangsmader, der kan fremme det økonomiske
og handelsmæssige samarbejde mellem de to parter;
5. mener, at Det europæiske Fællesskab kan spille en positiv og betydningsfuld rolle med
hensyn til udviklingen i Albanien;
6. understreger, at det ville bidrage til at skabe en gunstigere atmosfære for udviklingen af
samarbejdet med Fællesskabet, hvis Albanien respekterede menneskerettighederne
generelt og specielt det talstærke græske mindretals rettigheder, hvis eksistens er
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internationalt anerkendt, samt de øvrige mindretals rettigheder, der lever på albansk
område;
7. bemærker, at handlinger som dem, der for nylig resulterede i, at fællesskabsborgere
blev dræbt af albanske grænsevagter ikke fremmer forbindelserne med Albanien;
8. pålægger sin formand at sende denne beslutning og udvalgets betænkning til Rådet,
Kommissionen og medlemsstaternes regeringer.
BEGRUNDELSE
INDLEDNING
De handelsmæssige og økonomiske forbindelser med Albanien har kun begrænset
betydning for Fællesskabet. I 1983 udgjorde de kun 0,03% af importen og 0,03% af
eksporten. Importen repræsenterede kun 89.281.000 ECU og eksporten 99.170.000 ECU.
Disse tal taler for sig selv. Derfor refererer betænkningens titel også i højere grad til de
fremtidige muligheder end til de nuværende forhold, og indholdet vedrører især
baggrunden for den eksisterende situation.
Fra begyndelsen bør understreges, at ethvert forsøg på at undersøge Albaniens
undenrigshandel og økonomi som så er forbundet med en meget stor vanskelighed:
landets myndigheder er yderst tilbageholdende med at give oplysninger. Til og med 1965
udkom en officiel statistisk årbog. Indtil 1959 manglede den imidlertid enhver henvisning til
international handel. Efter 1965 begyndte bogen at udkomme hvert andet år og indeholdt
endnu mindre om økonomiske forbindelser med udlandet. I 1972 udkom den for sidste
gang. Siden da er der kun ved to lejligheder fra de albanske myndigheders side givet
oplysninger om landets udenrigshandel: i 1974 i publikationen "30 års socialistisk
Albanien" og i 1979 i publikationen "35 års socialistisk Albanien". Den sidste var endnu
ringere end den første. Sidenhen er der med mellemrum fremkommet visse oplysninger,
som karakteriseres af manglen på tal. Derfor har vi kun et ret uklart billede af situationen.
Albanien er faktisk det mest lukkede land i Europa, selv om det har diplomatisk forbindelse
med ca. 100 lande, af hvilke 17 har ambassade i Tirana.
Albanien ligger på Balkan ud til Middelhavet og er 28.748 km2 stort. Landets grænse til
Jugoslavien og Grækenland er af en længde på 577 km og dets kyststrækning 472 km. I
Otrantostrædet er afstanden til Italien kun 75 km. Landets strategiske betydning kan ikke
betvivles, hverken som brohoved til Balkan eller som base i Middelhavet. Tidligere har
landet gentagne gange spillet begge disse roller. 76,6% af landet er højland og
gennemsnitsbeliggenheden over havet er ca. 700 m, omkring det dobbelte af
gennemsnittet i Europa.
En smal strimmel langs kysten er det eneste lavland i Albanien. Ca. 40% af landet er
dækket af skov. Der eksisterer rige forekomster af krom (mod nordøst nær den
jugoslaviske grænse), olie (i områderne Veratio [Berat] og Fieri), jernnikkel (fra Pogradec
til dalen ved øvre Shkumbin), kobber (i området ved Mirditia), brunkul (Tirana, Korce,
Tepelene), asfalt og naturgas (Aulon og Fieri). Det betragtelige antal floder er blevet
udnyttet til elektricitetsfremstilling.
Befolkningstallet er for indeværende næsten 3 mio og stiger med den største hastighed i
Europa. Det anslås, at i år 2000 vil der være 4 mio albanere. Befolkningen er den yngste
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på vort kontinent (gennemsnitsalderen er 25,7 år). 2/3 af befolkningen bor stadig på
landet, et enestående fænomen i Europa. Sondringen af gekere nord for Shkumbin-floden
og toskier syd for og bibeholdelsen af disses særegne dialekter eksisterer stadig på trods
af regeringens indgriben. Så længe albanerne havde religionsfrihed (indtil 1967), var
flertallet muhamedanere. Der var dog også kristne (ca. 30%), de fleste ortodokse, men
også en del katolikker. Et talrigt græsk mindretal, der traditionelt har boet i det nordlige
Ipirus, som ligger ved grænsen til Grækenland, er stadig udsat for systematisk
undertrykkelse (i 1911 anslog de tyrkiske myndigheder tallet til 113.000. I
overensstemmelse med det græske konsulat var der før krigen 200-250.000. På grund af
manglende oplysninger er det nuværende tal svært at præcisere. De albanske
myndigheder anerkender kun 30-40.000 personer, og indskrænker enerådigt mindretallet
til kun at eksistere i 2 amter, Gjirokaster og Sarande, selv om det er kendt, at der findes
betydelige græske mindretal i andre områder af Albanien).
Albanien var det sidste land på Balkan, der blev befriet fra tyrkerne. Som det mest
tilbagestående land i Europa, socialt og økonomisk underudviklet, skete den nationale
udvikling langsomt, og landet var ude af stand til at forsvare sin uafhængighed, da
fascisterne angreb i april 1939.
Siden slutningen af 2. verdenskrig har den absolutte magt i landet ligget hos et enkelt
parti, det albanske kommunistiske parti (i 1948 skiftede det navn til Albaniens
arbejderparti), som på sin side var fuldstændig behersket af det samme menneske i mere
end fyrre år. Regimets ideologi var stalinismen, og man har indtil i dag fulgt stalinistisk
praksis, og har lagt en særlig stalinistisk mentalitet for dagen med hensyn til spørgsmålet
om menneskerettigheder, som vort Parlament forståeligt nok er meget følsom overfor.
Landet har ført en udenrigspolitik, der har resulteret i den nuværende helt specielle
diplomatiske situation.
Magten i Albanien var i mange år i hænderne på en person, som ikke lever mere. I et land
hvor det politiske system, den politiske tradition og den geografiske beliggenhed, som
Albanien har, er det ikke udelukket, at arvefølgen efter den afdøde leder vil byde på
overraskelser, trods den hidtidige normale udvikling. Selv om det er menneskeligt at ønske
en positiv udvikling, må eventuelle pludselige kriser ikke udelukkes. Fællesskabet bør
opmærksomt følge situationens udvikling og på fornuftig vis udforme en politik, som vil
modvirke enhver forstyrrelse af freden og balancen på Balkan.
Albanien er stadig Europas fattigste land. Verdensbanken anslog i 1981 pr. capitaindkomsten til 820 US$. Den økonomiske udvikling har efter krigen været præget af en
række 5-års-planer, som siden 1951 har været meget centralistiske og strenge.
Industrialiseringen af landet har været tillagt særlig betydning. Samtidig er det systematisk
blevet tilstræbt ikke at rokke ved den demografiske befolkningsfordeling mellem land og
by. Siden 1970 har landet været elektrificeret. Hvad landbruget angår, blev jorden i første
omgang fordelt mellem landbrugere, men i anden omgang opnåedes der fuldstændig
kollektivisering. Selvforsyning med visse varer har været tilstræbt. Den traditionelle
majsdyrkning erstattedes af korndyrkning, og det ser ud til, at disse forsøg har ført til
positive resultater. Med udvidelsen af de opdyrkede områder, selv i bjergområder, vil
forøget landbrugsproduktion imidlertid skabe fremtidige problemer, som landets regering
forsøger at imødegå med strukturelle forholdsregler: udvidelse af de statslige bedrifter i
modsætning til kooperativerne, formindskelse af de personlige jordlodder fra de hidtidige
3.000 m2 til 300 m2 osv.
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Det anslås, at 61% af den arbejdsdygtige befolkning i 1980 var beskæftiget inden for
landbruget, 25% i industrien og 14% i servicesektoren. Af den albanske økonomis
udvikling kan den konklusion drages, at partidogmer ofte lå til grund for
fremgangsmåderne, og at det albanske folks levestandard påvirkedes negativt af valg,
som havde politisk motiv og ideologisk baggrund. Det ser endvidere ud til, at den
økonomiske vækst i de senere år er blevet formindsket.
I. EKSTERNE ØKONOMISKE FORBINDELSER OG DEN ALBANSKE
UDENRIGSPOLITIK
Især hvad angår Albaniens eksterne økonomiske forbindelser er én iagttagelse af
grundlæggende betydning: Siden indførelsen af det kommunistiske styre og indtil 1978, da
det kom til et brud mellem Albanien og Kina, var udenrigshandelen direkte afhængig af
den udenrigspolitik, der førtes af landets ledelse, som systematisk søgte at opnå en
fuldstændig tilnærmelse - fastlåsning var maske et mere præcist ord - af det lille Albanien
til et større kommunistisk land, fra hvilket det forventede politisk, diplomatisk, strategisk og
økonomisk støtte såvel indadtil som udadtil.
Albaniens temmelig stormfulde brud med de efter hinanden følgende beskyttere og de
ideologiske grunde, der fremførtes herfor, eller af den yderst strenge opfattelse af national
uafhængighed, som blev gjort gældende, gjorde stort indtryk på offentligheden og de
internationale observatører. Det er sandt, at hver beskytter blev afløst af en anden,
fjernere og derfor ufarligere, eller i hvert fald mindre farlig. Den virkelige grund til
omlægningerne af Albaniens udenrigspolitik bør nok søges i de albanske lederes
beslutning om ikke at tillade, at deres magt blev bragt i fare af en eller anden ny politisk
linje, fastlagt af lederne i beskytterlandet.
Under alle omstændigheder resulterede Albaniens fuldstændige afhængighed af tre på
hinanden følgende beskyttere, Jugoslavien (1944-1948), Sovjetunionen (1948-1961) og
Kina (1961-1978) bl.a. i, at den til enhver tid beskyttende magt i særdeles høj grad
monopoliserede den albanske udenrigshandel.
Brud med et beskytterland resulterede hver gang i afbrydelse af de økonomiske
forbindelser med alvorlige følger for Albaniens økonomiske udvikling (afbrudte
udviklingsprogrammer, tekniske rådgiveres hjemrejse, kreditstop). Udenrigshandelen med
den tidligere beskytter reduceredes til nul. Tre gange blev præcist det samme
handlingsforløb gentaget. Sammen med andre negative følger resulterede bruddene i, at
Albanien kom til at stå over for en pludselig udskiftning af den så at sige eneste partner. Vi
kan derfor tale om en "politisk" udenrigshandel, eller i det mindste om udenrigshandel, der
er enorm følsom over for udenrigspolitik.
Efter 1978 sker en betydningsfuld ændring. Albanien synes ikke at ønske flere beskyttere.
Dette kan muligvis forklares med, at ledelsen anser sin position for tilstrækkelig stærk, og
landets økonomiske situation på et niveau, der gør, at landet kan handle, som var det
autonomt. Endvidere er der ikke flere mulige beskyttere tilbage i den kommunistiske blok.
Udenrigshandelen foregår mere afbalanceret og er mere alsidig orienteret end tidligere.
Valget af handelspartnere foregår politisk objektivt.
Det vil være gavnligt at undersøge disse to faser i Albaniens eksterne økonomiske
forbindelser nærmere.
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1. Perioden med eksklusive økonomiske partnere (1944-1978)
A. Forbindelserne med Jugoslavien (1944-1948)
Ved anden verdenskrigs afslutning var den albanske regering, der havde ambitioner om
en dybtgående økonomisk og social ændring, på den ene side klar over sin politiske
afmagt, og på den anden side klar over de uendelig mange problemer, det fattige og
krigshærgede Albanien stod over for. Nødvendigheden af hjælp udefra var tydelig, og
ganske naturligt valgtes nabolandet Jugoslavien, især naturligt i betragtning af det
jugoslaviske kommunistpartis aktive rolle ved oprettelsen af det albanske søsterparti og i
betragtning af, at Sovjetunionen gav sin velsignelse hertil. De problemer, de to lande
havde indbyrdes i mellemkrigstiden (grænsestridigheder, Jugoslaviens tendens til at
blande sig i interne albanske spørgsmål) blev skubbet til side.
Efter 1944 kom et snævert økonomisk samarbejde i stand mellem de to lande. Det
besluttedes, at deres økonomiske programmer skulle koordineres, lek'en ligestilles med
dinaren, de to lande bliver gjort til et fælles toldområde, og de gensidige toldafgifter
afskaffes. Der foreslås oprettelse af fælles virksomheder med henblik på udnyttelse af
råvarer, undenrigshandelen og andre områder. Den økonomiske støtte, Jugoslavien gav
Albanien i denne periode, anslås til 33 mio US$. Fra jugoslavisk side påstås det, at dets
finansielle støtte i 1947 repræsenterede 57% af Albaniens indtægter og 48% året efter.
Den albanske udenrigshandels udvikling i denne periode kan tilskrives Jugoslaviens rolle:
albansk import, som i 1946 kun repræsenterede 2,05 mio US$, steg året efter brat til 30,27
mio US$, hvorimod eksporten, der i 1946 repræsenterede 1,91 mio US$, kun nåede op på
4,75 mio US$ i 1947. Det ville ikke være muligt at dække et sådant underskud uden
jugoslavisk hjælp
Lige så karakteristisk er det fald, der følger efter forværringen af og siden hen afbrydelsen
af forbindelserne med Jugoslavien: importen daler (kun 18,18 mio US$) i 1948 og falder
året efter helt ned til 12,89 mio US$. Eksporten viser stadig en stigning i 1948 (8,33 mio
US$), men også den falder til 5,82 i 1949.
De begivenheder, som medvirkede til at Jugoslavien fjernede sig fra den sovjetiske lejr, er
kendte. Albanien fulgte ikke Jugoslavien, magtkampen blev ikke vundet af Titotilhængerne, Enver Hoxha forblev ved magten, Albanien støttede sig udelukkende til
Sovjetunionen, forbindelserne til Jugoslavien blev afbrudt, og samhandelen ophørte. Det
alliancefrie Jugoslaviens beliggenhed mellem Albanien og den sovjetiske blok hjalp
imidlertid den albanske regering i 1961, da den besluttede at indtage et andet standpunkt
end Khrustjovs Rusland.
B. Forbindelserne med Sovjetunionen (1948-1961)
Sovjetunionen og dets tilhængere indtog fuldstændig Jugoslaviens plads på det
økonomiske og handelsmæssige område. Fra 1948 til 1961 havde disse lande næsten
monopol på Albaniens udenrigshandel. I denne periode udgjorde Albaniens handel med
COMECON-landene en meget høj procentdel. I 1950 var den 99,94%. I 1952 99,70%. I
1955 99,29%. Disse tal er karakteristiske. I perioden 1950-1961 ligger tallet kun 2 gange
under 90%, i årene 1956 (87,71%) og 1957 (86,90%), sikkert på grund af de usikre forhold
under afstaliniseringsperioden og urolighederne i Ungarn og Polen, og naturligvis i 1960
(88,68%) og 1961 (75,59%) umiddelbart før bruddet.
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Størsteparten af handelen foregår naturligvis med Sovjetunionen. Ofte er andelen over
50%, som i 1951 (57,95%) i 1953 (51,96%), 1958 (54,11%), 1960 (53,89%). I 1961 er
tallet nede på 36,05%, sidste år af den albansk-sovjetiske venskabsperiode (det bør
huskes, at de to lande afbrød de diplomatiske forbindelser 3. december 1961, og at
Albanien trak sig ud af Warszawa-pagten i 1968 efter den russiske invasion af
Tjekkoslovakiet. Albanien fortsatte som medlem af COMECON, medlemskabet blev dog
stillet i bero, da Albanien ikke betalte sit bidrag). Året efter ophørte handelen med
Sovjetunionen. De østeuropæiske lande deler resten af handelsandelen, først og
fremmest det industrialiserede Tjekkoslovakiet. Det er interessant, at
handelsforbindelserne med disse lande fortsatte, selv efter afbrydelsen af de diplomatiske,
økonomiske og handelsmæssige forbindelser med Sovjetunionen, som uden tvivl gav
dette sin velsignelse. Derfor var andelen af Albaniens handel med COMECON-landene
bortset fra USSR, i 1962 38,09% og fortsatte på dette relativt høje niveau.
l venskabsperioden med Sovjetunionen sås et betragteligt underskud på Albaniens
udenrigshandel. Problemet blev løst ved hjælp af betydelig økonomisk støtte fra Rusland,
en støtte der anslås til ca. 156 mio US$ for perioden 1947-1961, og desuden ca. 100 mio
US$ i militær og teknisk støtte. De øvrige østeuropæiske lande hjalp også til: de bidrog
med ca. 133 mio US$.
Begivenhederne i Sovjetunionen forud for afbrydelsen af forbindelserne med Albanien, og
måden hvorpå bruddet fandt sted, havde alvorlige følger for den albanske økonomi og
handel. Den politiske ledelse i Albanien undlod at afstalinisere, og der var intet, der
hindrede den i atter at skabe den samme slags forbindelsesnet, denne gang med Kina.
C. Forbindelserne med Kina (1961-1978)
Fra starten havde dette land været blandt Albaniens mindre bemærkelsesværdige
handelspartnere. I 1955 udgjorde dets andel 2,27%. I 1960 nåede andelen op på 6,98%.
Året efter 18,41%. Men efter det aIbansk-sovjetiske brud steg den brat, og var i 1962
50,03%. Året efter udgjorde den 54,73%. Øjensynlig forblev .andelen på nogenlunde dette
niveau i de år, venskabet mellem Albanien og Kina varede.
Det blev nu Kina, der finansierede den albanske økonomi og underskuddet på landets
udenrigshandel. Informationerne om støttens størrelse er modstridende. Kineserne selv
taler om 5 mio US$ for perioden 1957-1978. Fra vestlig side fastholdtes det imidlertid, at
den kinesiske støtte fra 1959 til 1975 højest var på 838 mio US$.
For tredje gang førte den albanske udenrigspolitik til en ensidig udenrigshandel. Det var
dog den sidste, men også den længste periode, måske fordi det fjerntliggende Kina i
mindre grad kunne true tingenes tilstand i Albanien. Visse ændringer på den politiske
arena i Kina resulterede imidlertid i en frygt for at disse ændringer eventuelt kunne
spredes, hvilket igen førte til afslutning på det albansk-kinesiske venskab - atter under
påskud af ideologisk renhed.
2. Perioden med en mangesidig albansk udenrigshandel (1978-?)
I 1978 havde den albanske ledelse fået mere selvtillid; landets økonomi havde mindre
brug for støtte, omkostningerne ved de tre på hinanden følgende brud med Albaniens tre
eksklusive partnere ansås for så betragtelige (det må dog understreges, at Albanien på sin
side til en vis grad synes at have modvirket disse skader ved ikke at betale sin gæld til de
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forhenværende beskyttere), at man ikke søgte efter en fjerde. Udenrigshandlen blev
mindre politisk og ideologisk, og der gjordes forsøg på at opnå en vis balance i valget af
handelspartnere. På den anden side krævede afbrydelsen af økonomisk støtte, at der på
systematisk vis gjordes forsøg på at formindske handelsunderskuddet.
A. Forbindelserne med Fællesskabet
Handelen med Det europæiske Fællesskabs lande var til gavn for disse ændringer. En
sådan handel eksisterede ikke i 50erne. Kina var ikke i stand til at erstatte visse varer fra
Sovjetunionen, og dette medvirkede til opsvinget. Situationen forbedredes desuden
yderligere efter bruddet med Kina.
Ideologisk var Albaniens holdning til Fællesskabet naturligvis absolut negativ. Det er
karakteristisk at i skrivelsen af 29. juli 1978 fra Albaniens arbejderpartis centralkomite og
den albanske regering til de tilsvarende kinesiske myndigheder (med hvilken de to landes
"skilsmisse" blev officiel) anklagede Albanien Kina for at "forsøge at støtte Fællesmarkedet
og den europæiske union, som er organisationer, der blev oprettet med henblik på fortsat
at holde det europæiske proletariat i kapitalistisk trældom, og for at undertrykke og udnytte
de andre folkeslag". Trods dette udviklede handelsforbindelserne mellem Albanien og EØF
sig rent faktisk positivt. Til betænkningen er vedføjet relevante tabeller, som giver et klart
billede af Fællesskabets handel med Albanien i de senere år, både globalt og pr.
medlemsland, omfanget og arten af handelen, samt viser, at balancen som oftest er positiv
for Fællesskabet. (I perioden 1974-1984 var den negativ i årene 1979, 1980, 1981)
[tabellerne.er udeladt i denne udgave; BA]
Der bør dog skelnes mellem forskellige medlemslande. Af historiske årsager har Italien
vist særlig interesse for forbindelserne med Albanien. Betydningsfulde aftaler er blevet
underskrevet, og ministermøder har fundet sted. Særlig betydningsfuld var beslutningen
om oprettelsen af en færgeforbindelse mellem
Triest og Durres (et skib på 5.000 brt med en transportkapacitet på 30 last vogne, 200
privatbiler og 750 passagerer, med afgang hver tiende dag). Af EØF-medlemslandene er
Italien nu Albaniens vigtigste handelspartner og på verdensplan er det nummer to efter
Jugoslavien.
Grækenlands forhold til Albanien er af en særlig karakter. Først i maj 1971, under det
græske diktatur, oprettedes diplomatiske forbindelser. Rent juridisk er landene imidlertid
stadig i krigstilstand. Spørgsmålet om grækerne i Nordipirus star stadig åbent. Alligevel er
en række aftaler blevet indgået, samhandelen er vokset i betydelig grad, det nationale
græske flyselskab har flyveforbindelser til Tirana, landevejsforbindelsen mellem de to
lande er forbedret, men kun yderst lidt trafikeret (fra 1. januar 1985 blev
grænseovergangen ved Kakavia genabnet), og Albanien sælger elektricitet til
Grækenland. En for nylig indgået aftale forudser færgeforbindelse mellem Korfu og
Sarande.
Et andet fællesskabsland med betydelige handelsforbindelser til Albanien, er Den tyske
Forbundsrepublik, til trods for at de diplomatiske forbindelser ikke er genoptaget, fordi
Albanien altid har krævet krigsskadeerstatning.
Handelsforbindelserne mellem Det forenede Kongerige og Albanien er derimod ganske
ubetydelige. Genoprettelsen af de diplomatiske forbindelser forhindres af den tvist, der har
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været mellem de to lande siden episoden i Korfustrædet. Det forenede Kongerige kræver
en skadeserstatning (ca. 840.000 pund), som det blev tilkendt af den internationale
domstol i Haag, for to engelske torpedojageres minesprængning i 1946, og endvidere
nægter Det forenede Kongerige at tilbagelevere 2.450 kg guld, som har tilhørt den
albanske nationalbank.
Rent objektivt må det anses for rimeligt og naturligt at Det europæiske Fællesskab og
Albanien er handelspartnere. Fællesskabets geografiske beliggenhed, dets økonomiske
muligheder og dets teknologiske udvikling gør det til en særdeles egnet handelspartner,
der ikke stiller Albanien politiske betingelser.
B. Forbindelserne med Jugoslavien
Et interessant bevis på den nye albanske mentalitet på udenrigshandelsområdet er
Jugoslaviens genindtræden som Albaniens vigtigste handelspartner. Det er allerede
nævnt, at samhandelen var ophørt fuldstændigt efter bruddet i 1948. Skærpelsen og
styrkelsen af den ideologiske strid mellem den albanske ledelse og general Titos regime
udelukkede i lang tid genoptagelsen af de to landes samhandel. Efter mange års
stagnering er den atter gradvist nået op på et højt niveau (ca. 130 mio US$ i 1983).
Siden 1981 har en ny krise i Kosovo skabt alvorlig splid mellem de to lande (det er
velkendt, at denne autonome jugoslaviske provins har et stort antal albanske indbyggere.
Der udbrød voldsomme uroligheder i foråret 1981).
Denne situation havde også negative indvirkninger på de økonomiske forbindelser mellem
Albanien og Jugoslavien. Det ser ud til at den var medvirkende til den forsinkelse, der
opstod i forbindelse med konstruktionen af en 54 km jernbanelinje fra Titograd til Shkoder,
der skulle forbinde de to landes jernbanenet. Albanien havde længe anmodet om denne
jernbanelinje. Det har endvidere været vanskeligt for albanske lastbiler at køre gennem
jugoslavisk territorium. Det er dog tydeligt, at ingen af parterne forsøger at tilspidse
situationen, man ønsker ikke at ofre samhandelen på grund af politiske
uoverensstemmelser. Frygten for at jugoslaverne vil vanskeliggøre Albaniens kontakt med
den øvrige verden og lægge hindringer i vejen for handelsforbindelserne med andre lande,
vil måske tilskynde albanerne til nærmere forbindelser med Vesteuropa.
C. Forbindelserne med Tyrkiet
På det seneste spores en vis genoplivelse af forbindelserne med Tyrkiet: gen sidige
ministerbesøg, underskrivelse af en handelsaftale i 1982, som blev fornyet året efter, og
en luftfartsaftale i 1984. Den påtænkte rute er dog ikke åbnet endnu.
D. Forbindelserne med USA og Kina
Et andet eksempel på, at Albaniens udenrigshandel er upolitisk er den efter albanske
forhold ikke ubetydelige samhandel med USA, der beløber sig til flere mio US$, og dette
på trods af manglende diplomatiske forbindelser, som Albanien på særdeles tydelig vis
konstant har understreget sin modvilje mod at oprette.
Endvidere synes det ideologiske og politiske brud med Kina ikke at have forhindret
økonomiske forbindelser med dette land. I foråret 1983 besøgte en kinesisk
handelsdelegation Tirana.
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Siden 1978 er antallet af albanske handelspartnere mangedoblet, og valget af disse sker
ikke som før kun på baggrund af politiske og ideologiske kriterier. Denne udvikling har
allerede gavnet Fællesskabet og kan muligvis udnyttes bedre i fremtiden.
II. ALBANIENS EKSTERNE ØKONOMISKE FORBINDELSER - SVAGHEDER OG
MULIGHEDER
Efter undersøgelsen af det mest karakteristiske ved den albanske handel, det vil sige at
den indtil 1978 var vendt i kun en retning ad gangen og altid fulgte de meget pludselige
vendinger, den albanske udenrigspolitik tog, er det nødvendigt at undersøge visse andre
karakteristika. Der synes at eksistere visse særegenheder, som spiller en rolle for
fremtidsudsigterne. Endvidere er det nyttigt at give en kortfattet oversigt over udbuddet af
albanske produkter og de behov, som må dækkes via import.
1. Svagheder
At have økonomiske forbindelser med Albanien synes ikke at være så ligetil. Det er
forbundet med alvorlige vanskeligheder, som lægger hindringer i vejen for udviklingen,
hindringer, som de der ønsker samhandel med Albanien bør tage ad notam, hindringer
som albanerne også selv må fjerne, hvis de ønsker at udvikle disse forbindelser.
A. Lovgivningsmæssige problemer
De lovgivningsmæssige rammer, inden for hvilke Albaniens eksterne økonomiske
forbindelser kan udfolde sig, er særdeles ugunstige, ugunstigere end i andre lande, der
har et lignende politisk og økonomisk system.
Den albanske grundlov, der i artikel 47, stk. 1, siger, at "udenrigshandelen er et
statsmonopol" kundgør i artikel 28 følgende:
"Overførsel af og oprettelse af udenlandske økonomiske og kreditgivende virksomheder
samt andre institutioner eller virksomheder, som oprettes sammen med borgerlige
revisionistiske kapitalistiske monopoler og lande, savel som lån fra disse, er forbudt i den
albanske socialistiske folkerepublik".
Hvis artiklen fortsat kommer til at gælde og gennemføres, som den står, vil den være en
effektiv bremse for Albaniens samarbejde med andre lande og for landets økonomiske
udvikling.
I det syvende femårsprogram (1981-1985) er der for første gang et særligt afsnit om
udenrigshandelen. I 1977 oprettedes et særligt ministerium for udenrigshandel.
Statsorganisationer med navne, der genspejler deres kompetenceområde, såsom
AGROEKSPORT, ALBIMPORT, INDUSTRIALEKSPORT, METALIMPORT, MINERAL
EKSPORT, TRANSSHQIP beskæftiger sig med forskellige grene af landets
udenrigshandel. Periodiske udrensninger blandt det politiske og administrative personale
har været en hindring for denne mekanismes gnidningsløse funktion. Et karakteristisk
eksempel på de følger, den slags forholdsregler kan få for udenrigshandelen, er, at
samtidig med udrensningen i 1975 af handelsministeren, industriministeren og formanden
for statens planlægningskommission, en udrensning, der også bredte sig til andre niveauer
af statsapparatet, skete der et betydeligt fald i Albaniens samhandel med de højtudviklede
lande med fri økonomi.
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B. Økonomiske problemer
Albanien står over for et meget enkelt, men også næsten uløseligt økonomisk problem
med hensyn til de eksterne økonomiske forbindelser, og løsningen er ikke fundet endnu.
Måske kan det ikke løses. For at udvikle forbindelserne må importen øges. Men betalingen
for denne forudsætter en eksportforøgelse. Forøget eksport kræver imidlertid forøget
produktivitet, altså flere kapitalgoder, hvilket det ikke er muligt at fremskaffe, eftersom
låntagning er forbudt, og i betragtning af, at disse kapitalgoder ikke produceres i Albanien.
C. Infrastrukturproblemer
Udviklingen af Albaniens internationale handel er snævert forbundet med en udvikling af
transportnettet. På dette område er Albanien langt tilbage.
Vejnettet er middelmådigt og kun en tredjedel af de ca. 6.000 km af dette vejnet er
asfalteret. Jernbanenettet er kun ca. 400 km. Problemet med dets tilslutning til det
internationale jernbanenet er særdeles vanskeligt.
Lufttransport til og fra Albanien foretages af østeuropæiske flyselskaber og det græske
flyselskab. Albanien indgik for nylig en civil luftfartsaftale med Tyrkiet, men indtil nu er
flyforbindelse med dette land ikke oprettet. Betingelserne disse flyselskaber palægges er
meget uøkonomiske, f.eks. må Olympic Airways, der en gang om ugen flyver fra loannina
til Tirana, ikke overflyve den græsk-albanske grænse. For at beflyve ruten er det
nødvendigt først at flyve næsten til Brindisi, og derpå foretage indflyvningen til Albanien
ved Durres.
Landets vigtigste havn er Durres, som ligger 220 km fra Bari og 150 km fra Brindisi.
Den årlige havnekapacitet er på over 2 mio tons varer. Den albanske handelsflåde dækker
ganske vist 30% af søtransporten til og fra landet, men består af kun 20 skibe med et
deplacement på i alt 56.127 tons.
Hvad angår trafik og transport er der med sikkerhed meget at tage fat på i Albanien
fremover.
2. Muligheder
Mulighederne for forbedring er begrænset af faktorer, der enten ikke kan ændres, eller kun
kan ændres ganske langsomt. Albaniens størrelse og befolkning giver ikke håb om, at
landet engang vil blive til en vigtig handelspartner for Fællesskabet. Den nuværende
situation giver ingen forventning om, at de økonomiske og handelsmæssige forbindelser
vil kunne udvides væsentligt i den nærmeste fremtid. Visse beslutninger og valg fra
albansk side vil dog kunne give meget positive resultater.
Under alle omstændigheder er den stadige stigning i Albaniens handel et opmuntrende
element. Albanske kilder oplyser, at i 1960 var udenrigshandelen 6 gange større end i
1938, i 1970 13 gange, i 1975 23,5 og i 1980 35,8 gange større.
A. Eksport
Oplysningerne om eksportstrukturen er utilstrækkelige og forældede. Omkring 1968 var
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strukturen ifølge albansk kilde følgende: olieprodukter 24%, mineraler 31%,
fødevareindustriprodukter 15%, landbrugsprodukter 20,5%, håndværksprodukter 1,5%. En
anden albansk kilde anfører, at i 1980 var 70% af eksportprodukterne forarbejdede.
Krom er det vigtigste albanske produkt. Landet er blandt de mest betydningsfulde
kromproducenter og -eksportører. Muligvis den tredjestørste producent og næststørste
eksportør. Det siges, at produktionen i 1980 nåede op på 955.000 tons, og det tyder på, at
80% blev eksporteret til vestlige lande. Denne del af udenrigshandelen indbringer en stor
del af den fremmede valuta (44% i 1979). Hvis produktionen skal forøges, må
mineraludvindingen hele tiden foregå i endnu dybere liggende jordlag, hvilket kræver et
særligt teknisk udstyr.
Endvidere er olien (som er tung) og dennes biprodukter vigtige albanske eksportprodukter
(i 1979 var de de næstvigtigste). Her vil en forøgelse af produktionen dog kræve, at der
erhverves moderne teknisk udstyr, samtidig med at de eksisterende installationer må
gøres tidssvarende.
Også andre albanske industriprodukter er af betydning, især beklædningsgenstande.
Derudover eksporteres nikkel og kobber, som er af høj kvalitet. Tomater, citrusfrugter og
tobak er de vigtigste landbrugsprodukter. Salget af strøm til Jugoslavien og Grækenland er
af en vis betydning (henholdsvis 392 mio kwh og 96 mio kwh i 1979).
Mulighederne for en betydelig forøgelse af eksporten af disse produkter er næppe
sandsynlig inden for den nærmeste fremtid.
B. Import
Den meget begrænsede andel, forarbejdede forbrugsgoder udgør af den albanske import,
er et karakteristisk element: kun 10% i 1968. De vigtigste importvarer (især fra Vesten) er
jern, stål, mekanisk og teknisk udstyr af enhver art (det er allerede blevet fastslået, at de
albanske mangler på dette område er særdeles store, og det er en grundlæggende
forudsætning for udviklingen af landets økonomi at de bliver dækket), transportmidler,
brændstoffer, kemiske produkter, byggematerialer.
Det må understreges, at Albanien i vid udstrækning forsøger at få kontant betaling i stærk
valuta for sin eksport, og at afregne sin import ved hjælp af clearing.
C. Turisme
Albaniens muligheder som turistland er store og bør omtales. Landet har en mangeartet
og smuk natur, arkæologiske seværdigheder, samt byer som Gjirokaster og Verati [Berat],
der kan betegnes som museumsbyer, idet de har bibeholdt deres traditionelle arkitektur.
Turistinfrastruktur eksisterer nærmest ikke, og det er usikkert, om de albanske
myndigheder indtil nu har ønsket at fremme tilstedeværelsen af mange udlændinge i deres
land.
KONKLUSION
1. De økonomiske og handelsmæssige forbindelser mellem Fællesskabet og Albanien er
for indeværende særdeles begrænsede. For Fællesskabet har de kun perifer betydning,
men for Albanien er de klart af stor vigtighed.
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2. I lang tid (indtil 1978) skyldtes en stor del af den økonomiske fremgang i Albanien den
hjælp, som blev givet af de tre på hinanden følgende beakyttermagter. Denne hjælp
standsede uden at blive erstattet fra anden side. Det nuværende tekniske udstyr må
udskiftes. Naturligvis er yderligere investering nødvendig for bibeholdelsen af
tilfredsstillende udviklingstakt.
3. Derfor, selv om der selvfølgelig rent faktisk ikke er uendelige udviklingsmuligheder for
de økonomiske forbindelser med Fællesskabet, ville det dog være muligt i væsentlig grad
at forbedre disse, hvis den albanske regering tog de nødvendige forholdsregler i denne
retning. Fællesskabet bør opmuntre enhver tilkendegivelse af denne art.
A. Albaniens geografiske beliggenhed, politiske og diplomatiske særprægethed og Enver
Hoxha's nylige død, som er medvirkende til at skabe usikkerhed om udviklingen i dette
land, en udvikling, som kan have alvorlige følger for Balkan og middelhavsområdet, er
noget Fællesskabet gør ret i at tillægge større opmærksomhed.
5. Menneskerettighederne i Albanien og det græske mindretal i Nordipirus' skæbne er
spørgsmål, man til enhver tid bør være opmærksom på inden for rammerne af
Fællesskabets forbindelser med Albanien.
6. Udviklingen af økonomiske og handelsmæssige forbindelser med Albanien fremmes
ikke af handlinger som dem, der for nylig resulterede i, at fællesskabsborgere blev dræbt
af albanske grænsevagter.
Kontakt webmaster: [email protected]. Du er meget velkommen til at sende informationer og forslag til hvad der skal være på siden. Send
evt. bekendte et tip om Miqësia's hjemmeside: miqesia.dk
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Finance & Development, March 2000 - The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes
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A quarterly magazine of the IMF
March 2000, Volume 37, Number 1
The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes
Christopher Jarvis
Search Finance &
Development
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During 1996-97, Albania was convulsed by the dramatic rise and collapse of
several huge financial pyramid schemes. This article discusses the crisis and
the steps other countries can take to prevent similar disasters.
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The pyramid scheme phenomenon in Albania is important because its scale
relative to the size of the economy was unprecedented, and because the
political and social consequences of the collapse of the pyramid schemes were
profound. At their peak, the nominal value of the pyramid schemes' liabilities
amounted to almost half of the country's GDP. Many Albanians—about twothirds of the population—invested in them. When the schemes collapsed, there
was uncontained rioting, the government fell, and the country descended into
anarchy and a near civil war in which some 2,000 people were killed. Albania's
experience has significant implications for other countries in which conditions
are similar to those that led to the schemes' rise in Albania, and others can learn
from the way the Albanian authorities handled—and mishandled—the crisis.
Why the pyramid schemes grew
The wide appeal of Albania's schemes can be attributed to several factors,
including Albanians' unfamiliarity with financial markets; the deficiencies of
the country's formal financial system, which encouraged the development of an
informal market and, within this market, of the pyramid schemes; and failures
of governance.
When Albania started the transition from central planning to a market
economy, it was the poorest and most isolated and backward country in
Europe. For centuries, Albania had been largely unknown and inaccessible,
and, from 1945 to 1985, its isolation was compounded by the rigid communist
dictatorship of Enver Hoxha, which eliminated almost all forms of private
property and virtually cut the country off from outside influences and
information. When transition began in 1991, the country had been reduced to
desperate poverty, and the vast majority of its population was unfamiliar with
market institutions and practices.
Although Albania's transition to a market economy was rapid and quite
successful, financial sector reform was very limited. Albania's formal financial
system was rudimentary. There were few private banks. The three state banks,
which held 90 percent of deposits, offered positive real interest rates but had
growing portfolios of bad loans, prompting the Bank of Albania to impose tight
credit ceilings on them. With the banks unable to satisfy private sector demand
for credit, an informal credit market based on family ties and financed by
remittances grew. The informal lending companies were initially regarded as
benign and even as making an important economic contribution. Operating
alongside them, however, were deposit-taking companies that invested on their
own account instead of making loans. These companies were the ones that
turned into pyramid schemes.
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There were also governance problems, both in the financial sector and more
generally. The regulatory framework was inadequate, and it was not clear who
had responsibility for supervising the informal market. Even after the approval
of a banking act in February 1996 that appeared to give the Bank of Albania
the power to close illegal deposit-taking institutions, the central bank could not
obtain the government's support. Indeed, the government was supportive of the
companies: senior government officials frequently appeared at company
functions, and, in November 1996, even as the pyramid schemes began to
crumble, the prime minister and the speaker of the parliament accepted medals
in honor of the anniversary of one of the companies. During the 1996 elections,
several of the companies made campaign contributions to the ruling
Democratic Party. There were allegations that many government officials
benefited personally from the companies.
How the schemes operated
In a typical pyramid scheme, a fund or company attracts investors by offering
them very high returns; these returns are paid to the first investors out of the
funds received from those who invest later. The scheme is insolvent—
liabilities exceed assets—from the day it opens for business. However, it
flourishes initially, as news about the high returns spreads and more investors
are drawn in. Encouraged by the high payouts, and in some cases by showcase
investments and ostentatious spending by the operators, still more people are
drawn in, and the scheme grows until the interest and principal due to the early
investors exceeds the money paid in by new investors. To attract new investors,
a scheme may raise interest rates, but the larger interest payments soon force it
to raise rates again. Eventually, the high rates begin to arouse suspicion or the
scheme finds itself unable to make interest payments. When investors try to get
their money out, they discover the truth about the scheme, whose demise is
swift—and usually accompanied by acts of outright theft by the operators, if
they are not caught first.
Some of the Albanian companies meet this definition exactly: they were pure
pyramid schemes, with no real assets. Other cases are more ambiguous. Some
of the largest of the companies—in particular VEFA, Gjallica, and Kamberi—
had substantial real investments. They were also widely believed to be engaged
in criminal activities—including violating United Nations sanctions by
smuggling goods into the former Yugoslavia—that were thought to be the
source of the high returns they paid. And they had been in business for a long
time, in some cases since 1992. However, even if they had not been pyramid
schemes from the outset, at some point, probably during early 1996, these
companies too became pyramid schemes. When they collapsed, it was clear
that their liabilities massively exceeded their assets.
Mania: the events of 1996
Two events set the stage for the pyramid-scheme mania of late 1996. First, at
the end of 1995, United Nations sanctions against the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia were suspended, eliminating an important source of income
(smuggling) for the companies. In January 1996, the leading companies
increased their interest rates from 4-5 percent a month to 6 percent a month, or
almost 100 percent annually in real terms. (Annual inflation in Albania was 5
percent in 1995 and 17 percent in 1996.) Second, the uncertainty created by
approaching parliamentary elections, which were to be held in May, prompted
the companies to raise their rates again, this time to 8 percent a month, or a real
annual rate of well over 100 percent. During the same period, new schemes
entered the market, offering even higher rates. In early 1996, two new pyramid
schemes—Xhafferi and Populli—were created, and an already existing scheme
that had no real investments—Sude—stepped up its activities, offering interest
rates of 12-19 percent a month.
The proliferation of schemes had baleful effects. First, more depositors were
drawn in. Although VEFA had the largest liabilities, it had only 85,000
depositors. Xhafferi and Populli between them attracted nearly 2 million
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Finance & Development, March 2000 - The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes
depositors—in a country with a population of 3.5 million—within a few
months. Second, the investment funds felt pressured to compete and began to
offer higher interest rates on deposits. In July, Kamberi raised its monthly
interest rate to 10 percent. In September, Populli began offering more than 30
percent a month. In November, Xhafferi offered to treble depositors' money in
three months; Sude responded with an offer to double principal in two months.
By November, the face value of the schemes' liabilities totaled $1.2 billion.
Albanians sold their houses to invest in the schemes; farmers sold their
livestock. The mood is vividly captured by a resident who said that, in the fall
of 1996, Tirana smelled and sounded like a slaughterhouse, as farmers drove
their animals to market to invest the proceeds in the pyramid schemes.
Throughout the year, the government was a passive spectator to the unfolding
crisis. Although the enormity of the problem became clear when the Bank of
Albania discovered that VEFA's deposits in the banking system were
equivalent to $120 million (5 percent of GDP), and despite repeated warnings
from the IMF and the World Bank, the finance ministry did not warn the public
about the schemes until October. Even then, however, it drew a false and
misleading distinction between companies with real investments, which were
believed to be solvent, and "pure pyramid schemes." When it was suggested
that some companies might be surviving by laundering money, President Sali
Berisha came to their defense. Press and public reaction was mostly negative:
the IMF was accused of trying to close down Albania's most successful firms.
In November, in response to outside pressure, the government set up a
committee to investigate the schemes. The committee never met. On November
19, Sude defaulted on its payments, and the collapse began.
Collapse
Sude's collapse shook the public's confidence in all of the companies and new
deposits dried up. An attempt by VEFA, Kamberi, Silva, and Cenaj to convince
depositors of their soundness by lowering monthly interest rates to 5 percent
failed. In January 1997, Sude and Gjallica declared bankruptcy, triggering
riots. The other schemes soon also ceased to make payments. The government
belatedly took some useful steps. First, it refused to compensate depositors for
their losses, which made achieving economic stabilization after the crisis much
easier than it would otherwise have been. Second, it began to move against
some of the companies. In January 1997, it froze the bank accounts of Xhafferi
and Populli, which amounted to $250 million (10 percent of GDP). The Bank
of Albania, on its own initiative, began to limit daily withdrawals from bank
accounts to prevent other schemes from emptying their accounts. In February,
parliament passed a law banning pyramid schemes (but not defining them).
However, the government continued to differentiate between companies with
real investments and pure pyramid schemes and did not move against the
largest companies.
By March 1997, Albania was in chaos. The government had lost control of the
south. Many in the army and police force had deserted, and 1 million weapons
had been looted from the armories. Evacuation of foreign nationals and mass
emigration of Albanians began. The government was forced to resign.
President Berisha agreed to hold new parliamentary elections before the end of
June, and an interim coalition government was appointed.
The interim government inherited a desperate situation. Some 2,000 people had
been killed in the violence that followed the pyramid schemes' collapse. Large
parts of the country were no longer within the government's control.
Government revenues collapsed as customs posts and tax offices were burned.
By the end of June, the lek had depreciated against the dollar by 40 percent;
prices increased by 28 percent in the first half of 1997. Many industries
temporarily ceased production, and trade was interrupted. Meanwhile, the
major pyramid schemes continued to hang on to their assets, proclaim their
solvency, and resist closure.
Winding up the schemes
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Despite the many obstacles it faced, the interim government, aided by the
international community, made impressive progress in restoring order and
stabilizing the economy. Winding up the pyramid schemes proved to be more
difficult. The government encountered resistance from both the operators and
the outgoing parliamentarians, many of whom were reported to have invested
in the schemes. Thus, it was not until July that the newly elected parliament
passed a law, drafted with assistance from the IMF and the World Bank,
mandating the appointment of foreign administrators from international
accounting firms to liquidate the schemes.
The administrators appointed under the new law were required to report
regularly to the government but otherwise had complete independence. They
were given broad powers to carry on the companies' businesses, pay their
debts, sell their assets, fire staff and managers, seize the assets of individuals
connected with the schemes, and hire experts to trace assets abroad. However,
by November 1997, when the administrators took up their duties, the schemes'
liquid assets had shrunk considerably. The schemes' owners challenged the
new law in the courts and tried to intimidate the administrators with threats of
violence. It took several months to dislodge the owners, partly because the
administrators needed their cooperation in finding the companies' assets. The
administrators did not gain full control of all of the companies until March
1998. Owners who had not fled were jailed, and whatever assets remained were
prepared for sale. But much had been lost already.
Effect on the economy
Few studies have been done on the macroeconomic effect of pyramid schemes
on the scale of those in Albania, which, fortunately, are extremely rare. The
closest analogy to such schemes is the asset bubble, whose economic impact is
due to changes in perceived wealth. As a bubble expands, people believe
themselves to be better off than they actually are, and their demand for goods
and money increases, leading to a deterioration in a country's external current
account as well as increased output or accelerated inflation or both. If the
bubble attracts foreign investors, capital inflows might be sufficient to fund the
current account deficit. After the bubble bursts, perceived wealth falls
dramatically. Demand for goods and money, as well as output and inflation
rates, can be expected to decrease, while the current account balance is likely
to improve.
Some of these effects were observed in Albania but appear to have been
limited and short lived. Although the current account of the balance of
payments (excluding official transfers) deteriorated by about 2 percent of GDP
in 1996, to 9.1 percent of GDP, because of a 35 percent increase in imports,
this consumption boom seems not to have been the main factor driving
inflation. The impact of the schemes' rise on output, which grew at nearly the
same rate—9 percent—in 1996 as in the previous three years, is also unclear.
The collapse of the schemes seems to have had a major short-term economic
impact, but the most damaging effects came from the civil disorder it
precipitated. Output fell by about 7 percent in 1997, with most of the decline
being due to interruptions in production during the civil disorder. The increase
in the inflation rate to more than 40 percent in 1997 can be attributed almost
entirely to the depreciation of the lek and the sharp rise in the fiscal deficit
caused by the loss of government revenues during the period of civil disorder.
Recorded imports fell by more than 25 percent, reflecting not only the loss of
savings but also the disruptions in trade and increased smuggling. Capital
inflows declined but did not turn into net outflows.
The long-term effects of the pyramid scheme phenomenon are likely to be
limited, reflecting not only the resilience of the Albanian economy but also—
and, perhaps, most important—the government's adjustment efforts and its
refusal to bail out depositors. Prices and wages are extremely flexible in
Albania; as a result, the government was able to cut real public sector wages
substantially in 1997 (by leaving nominal wages unchanged), and the economy
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Finance & Development, March 2000 - The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes
suffered no loss of competitiveness when the lek appreciated. The new
government's willingness to tackle the budget deficit and undertake longoverdue structural reforms was also crucial. However, the social effects were
profound. In addition to the loss of life, thousands of people were impoverished
either by their unwise investments in the pyramid schemes or by the
destruction of their property in the ensuing violence. Less tangible, but also
significant, are the effects on confidence in Albania. The resilience of the
Albanian people is considerable and has been more severely tested in the past.
But the pyramid scheme phenomenon was a sobering setback.
How to deal with pyramid schemes
Albania's experience contains some important lessons for other countries.
There are steps governments can take to make the growth of pyramid schemes
less likely. These include establishing a well-functioning formal financial
system, setting up a regulatory framework that covers informal as well as
formal markets and has clear lines of responsibility for supervision and action,
and tackling general governance problems. Although preventing pyramid
schemes is not the most important reason for establishing good governance, the
Albanian experience is a powerful reminder of the social costs of unchecked
criminality.
When pyramid schemes emerge, they should be dealt with swiftly and firmly.
Companies believed to be operating pyramid schemes should be investigated.
By definition, the liabilities of pyramid schemes exceed their assets, and the
schemes fund payments to investors out of new investment inflows. To
determine whether a company is operating a pyramid scheme, it is necessary to
find out if it has real investments and if these investments are likely to be
sufficient to cover its liabilities. The investigation can be conducted by the
police, a government ministry, or the central bank. The key point is that the
investigators should be able to recognize financial fraud and also to assess the
value of company assets. If such expertise does not exist in the country, then
the investigation can be conducted by outsiders; the IMF and the World Bank
should be prepared to help governments find qualified outsiders, if necessary,
either from other governments or from large international accounting firms
with expertise in this area.
The investigation should be swift. If a company is found to be operating a
pyramid scheme, it should be closed immediately. Allowing schemes to
continue will result only in more inflows of deposits and greater losses.
Governments can close these companies for a variety of legal reasons: the
companies may be taking unlicensed deposits or operating businesses without
licenses; they may be evading taxes; or they may be liable for prosecution for
straightforward fraud.
If there is a strong presumption that companies are pyramid schemes, the
government should freeze and, if necessary, seize their assets during the
investigation. Once an investigation of a pyramid scheme has begun, the
operators will try to steal as much of the assets as possible before the truth
comes out. This cannot be entirely prevented, but freezing any assets held in
the formal financial sector and seizing other assets that can be easily disposed
of may save depositors a great deal of money.
Once a scheme is closed, all assets should be seized and turned over to
administrators, who could be government accountants or, if these officials do
not have sufficient independence or expertise, accountants from an
international firm with an insolvency practice. Legislation may be needed to
void contracts made by the companies in the last several months (to prevent
theft by transfer to associated parties) to give administrators full control over
the assets of the companies and protect them from legal challenges.
The government should make it clear from the outset that it will not
compensate depositors for their losses. If this is not done, the fiscal costs are
likely to be ruinous, and the moral hazard considerable.
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Finance & Development, March 2000 - The Rise and Fall of Albania's Pyramid Schemes
Finally, the IMF and the World Bank should be aware of the possibilities of
pyramid schemes emerging when the conditions for their growth are present
and should be vigilant in warning governments about them. When they can, the
IMF and the World Bank should insist on action.
This article is based on Christopher Jarvis, 1999, "The Rise and Fall of the Pyramid
Schemes in Albania," IMF Working Paper 99/98 (International Monetary Fund:
Washington).
Christopher Jarvis is a Senior Economist in the IMF's Policy Development
and Review Department.
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In this spellbinding novel, written in Albania and smuggled into France a few pages at
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a time in the 1980s, Kadare denounces with rare force the machinery of the dictatorial
About this Author
regime, drawing us back to the ancient roots of Western civilization and tyranny.
The partner to The Successor, Agamemnon's Daughter is an impeccably crafted,
psychologically incisive tale of a disappointed lover's odyssey through a single day and
his gradual realization of how the utter cruelty of dictatorship can express itself even in
matters of the heart.
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The day begins as the unnamed narrator waits in vain for his lover Suzana, daughter
of “The Successor,” even though he knows that she will have to sacrifice their love for
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her father's success. As he moves through the crowded streets on the great socialist
holiday, May 1st, the narrator recalls episodes of his life that illustrate the vast system
of absurdity, paranoia, and cruelty that was Albania under dictator Enver Hoxha.
Finally, as he watches Suzana in her decorated viewing box, the narrator realizes what
her sacrifice truly means. Like that of Agamemnon’s daughter Iphigenia, which loosed
the bloody nine years of the Trojan War, Suzana's will serve to open a new floodgate
of persecution and purging, from which no one will be safe.
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This book also showcases two stories by this European master of fiction, “The Blinding
Order,” a parable about the uses of terror set in the Ottoman Empire, and “The Great
Wall,” a chilling duet between a Chinese official and a soldier in the invading army of
the great Central Asian conqueror of the 14th century, Tamerlane.
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About this Author
Ismail Kadare is Albania’s best-known poet and novelist. His first novel, The General
of the Dead Army, made his name in Albania. After 1986, under the Communist
regime, Kadare’s work was smuggled out of Albania by his French publisher, Éditions
Fayard, and stored in safe keeping for later publication. Translations of his many
novels have been published in more than forty countries. In June 2005, Kadare was
named the winner of the inaugural Man Booker International Prize for his lifelong
achievements in fiction.
Both The Successor and Agamemnon’s Daughter are translated from the French
by David Bellos.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
| Robert Elsie | Albanian Literature | Albanian History | Contact |
Albanian authors in translation
Robert Elsie
Modern Authors from Albania (late 20th - 21st centuries)
Ismail KADARE
POETRY
Poetry
Ismail KADARE.
Poetry,
How did you find your way to me?
My mother does not know Albanian well,
She writes letters like Aragon, without commas and periods,
My father roamed the seas in his youth,
But you have come,
Walking down the pavement of my quiet city of stone,
And knocked timidly at the door of my three-storey house,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
At Number 16.
There are many things I have loved and hated in life,
For many a problem I have been an 'open city',
But anyway...
Like a young man returning home late at night,
Exhausted and broken by his nocturnal wanderings,
Here too am I, returning to you,
Worn out after another escapade.
And you,
Not holding my infidelity against me,
Stroke my hair tenderly,
My last stop,
Poetry.
(Yalta 1959)
[Poezia, from the volume Vjersha dhe poema zë zgjedhura, Tirana: Naim
Frashëri 1966, p. 27, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first
published in English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian
poetry, London: Forest Books 1993, p. 76]
Childhood
My childhood - ink-stained fingers,
Bells in the morning,
The muezzin at dusk,
Collections of cigar boxes and old stamps,
Trading one Ceylon
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
For two Luxembourg.
Thus they passed,
Childhood days,
Chasing after a rag ball, raising dust and cries,
A rag ball,
Made of grey Albanian rags.
(1958)
[Fëminia, from the volume Shekulli im, Tirana: Naim Frashëri 1961, translated
from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first published in English in An elusive
eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian poetry, London: Forest Books
1993, p. 77]
And when my memory
And when my fading memory,
Like the after-midnight trams,
Stops only at the main stations,
I will not forget you.
I will remember
That quiet evening, endless in your eyes,
The stifled sob upon my shoulder,
Like snow that cannot be brushed off.
The separation came
And I departed, far from you.
Nothing unusual,
But some night
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Someone's fingers will weave themselves into your hair,
My distant fingers, stretching across the miles.
[Edhe kur kujtesa, from the volume Shekulli im, Tirana: Naim Frashëri 1961,
translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first published in English in
An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian poetry, London: Forest
Books 1993, p. 78]
Longing for Albania
I was filled with longing for Albania
Tonight as I returned home on the trolley,
The smoke of a Partizani cigarette in the hand of a Russian
Curled bluish, twirled upwards
As if whispering to me, its compatriot,
In the language of the Albanians.
I long to stroll through the streets of Tiranë in the evening,
Where I used to get into mischief,
And through the streets where I never got into mischief.
Those old wooden doorways know me,
They will still hold a grudge against me
And will snub their noses at me,
But I won't mind
Because I am filled with longing.
I long to stroll through the lanes full of dry leaves,
Dry leaves, autumn leaves,
For which comparisons can so easily be found.
I was filled with longing for Albania,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
For that great, wide and deep sky,
For the azure course of the Adriatic waves,
For clouds at sunset ablaze like castles,
For the Albanian Alps with their white hair and green beards,
For the nylon nights fluttering in the breeze,
For the mists, like red Indians, on the prowl at dawn,
For the locomotives and the horses
That huff and puff, dripping in sweat,
For the cypresses, the herds and graves
I was filled with longing.
I was filled with longing
For the Albanians.
I was filled with longing and swiftly journey there,
Flying over the mists, as over desires.
How far and how beloved you are, my country.
The airport will tremble with the droning,
The mists will hang in suspense over the chasms.
Surely those who invented the jet engine
Must have been far from their country once.
(Moscow 1960)
[Malli i Shqipërisë, from the volume Shekulli im, Tirana: Naim Frashëri 1961,
translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first published in English in
An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian poetry, London: Forest
Books 1993, p. 79]
The cataracts
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
The cataracts cascade downwards
Like spirited white horses,
Their manes full of foam and a rainbow of hues.
But suddenly, at the edge of the gorge,
They fall on their forelegs,
They break, oh, their white legs,
And die at the foot of the rocks.
Now in their lifeless eyes
The frozen sky reflects.
[Kataraktet, from the volume Vjersha dhe poema zë zgjedhura, Tirana: Naim
Frashëri 1966, p. 30, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first
published in English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian
poetry, London: Forest Books 1993, p. 81]
The old cinema
Old cinema,
Abandoned cinema
Where no films, not even reruns, have been shown for a long time,
Where the audiences no longer make a clatter with their seats,
Where peanuts are no longer sold
At intermission.
The stained screen,
The broken speakers,
The empty seats like lines unwritten.
Pensive and full of nostalgia
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
I stare from the doorway
At this poem of seats, long and abandoned.
Childhood cinema,
Tumbledown cinema,
I've seen so many countries,
I've seen so many auditoriums,
But none of them have I entered with such joy
As you,
Shabby old cinema,
Wonderful and precious to me!
Nowhere have I felt better,
Not in luxurious halls of shining velvet,
With a couple of blondes at my side.
To you I come
In the company of a gypsy or two.
Coins, coins,
Money collected with difficulty,
Jingling merrily at the ticket-booth,
The posters by the mosque
And by the Bazaar Cafe
Drawn by Qani the doorman himself.
One poster said:
'Soviet film',
Another for the same film said:
'Czech film',
But no one really cared,
We forgave you everything,
Dear old
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Cinema.
On that bit of screen
We saw a bit of the whole world,
For the first time.
On six square metres
The world had no limits,
The world was splendid
Even though the screen was patched up.
We too were patched up,
Patched up was the Republic,
Time, elbows, States were patched up,
But the glossiest of screens
Had never seen
A sparkle like the one
In our eyes.
Old cinema,
Abandoned cinema,
Seats where childhood days
Sat in rows.
Childhood days,
Always chattering,
Like a row of birds
On a telephone wire.
Old cinema,
Abandoned cinema,
Heavy, long and sunken seats.
As old as I get,
Wherever I go,
http://www.albanianliterature.com/authors3/AA3-15poetry.html (8 of 30)09-10-2006 10:49:46
Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Like a porter I'll carry them
With me, those seats.
[Kinemaja e vjetër, from the volume Vjersha dhe poema zë zgjedhura, Tirana:
Naim Frashëri 1966, p. 35, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and
first published in English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern
Albanian poetry, London: Forest Books 1993, p. 82]
Train timetables
I love those train timetables at little railway stations,
Standing on the wet platform and contemplating the infinity of the tracks.
The distant howl of a locomotive. What, what?
(No one understands the nebulous language of steam engines)
Passenger trains. Tank cars. Freight cars full of ore
Endlessly pass by.
Thus pass the days of your life through the station of your being,
Filled with voices, noise, signals
And the heavy ore of memory.
[Këto orare trenash, from the volume Përse mendohen këto male, Tirana:
Naim Frashëri 1964, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first
published in English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian
poetry, London: Forest Books 1993, p. 84]
Requiem for Mayakovski
http://www.albanianliterature.com/authors3/AA3-15poetry.html (9 of 30)09-10-2006 10:49:46
Ismail KADARE - Poetry
I ate at the same table with his assassins
At the writers' vacation house
in Dubulti, in Yalta.
They smiled and talked of socialist realism,
While his blood
spattered their car windows,
Their jackets, armchairs, salaries
And the ruddy face of the critic Yermilov.
They thumped their chests and talked of socialist realism
In the presidium chamber of red velvet
under the emblem with a star,
While the Russian winter
froze him,
Stretched out upon the black earth,
only to be thawed out in April.
Obscure forces dressed in socialist garb,
A pack of lousy critics, speculators, careerists,
Took up the attack with the age-old refrain of the mediocre:
"You were great, but we got you."
There stands his bronze statue in Mayakovski Square,
It rose and glumly observed the years to come.
Behind the crowd of his assassins, whom he knew,
He saw the first clouds of the counter-revolution darken the sky.
[Rekuiem për Majakovskin, from the volume Koha, Tirana: Naim Frashëri
1976, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and first published in
English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern Albanian poetry,
London: Forest Books 1993, p. 85]
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
What are these mountains thinking about
1
What are these lofty mountains thinking about
As the sun sets in the distance beyond the highway?
A mountaineer sets out at the fall of night,
His long rifle
Casting a hundred-mile-long shadow on the ground.
The shadow of the rifle hurries
Over mountains, plains, villages;
The shadow of its barrels hastens through the dusk.
I too set forth along the hillside
With a thought in my mind
Somewhere.
The shadow of the thought and the shadow of the rifle
Cross and collide in the twilight.
2
This is how you have always set out, Albania,
On your long legs
And with a long rifle.
You wandered without knowing where to go,
Onwards toward the morning full of clouds and mist,
Grey and ponderous, as though born of night.
3
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Cloudbursts ate away at the land
And bared the bases of the cliffs.
Thus, the centuries have gnawed away at your body
Until your very sinew and ribs were exposed.
Sinew, sinew and ribs,
Only boulders, rocks and mountains,
Little flat land,
Oh, how very little flat land
The centuries left you!
The centuries gnawed at you like hounds
Wherever they could get at you.
When you met them
They attacked you,
The teeth of time
Dug into your thighs,
But you did not turn back,
You did not yield.
4
You never removed the long rifle
From your shoulders,
From shoulders covered in wounds,
From shoulders of skin and bone.
You ate bread in brine,
Brine and maize every night,
And you saved a little fat,
Oh, that little bit of fat
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
For friends and for the long rifle,
To grease the long rifle.
Women give birth to babies,
But a rifle gives birth to bullets,
And the two have been equally sacred
To the Albanian:
The bullets and the babies.
The child will tomorrow take to the plough
And the rifle will protect him at night.
Time fired bullets over the shoulders of Albania
Like rice thrown over the shoulders of a bride.
5
The pealing of bells
Rung by night
Resounded over the mountain slopes.
What were the bells saying,
What were the priests murmuring
To their high churches
In their foreign tongues?
Latin logic, in long sentences,
Strove to bend the long rifle.
6
And there were poets
Poised on hand-carved furniture
From your forests
Who, inspired by you,
http://www.albanianliterature.com/authors3/AA3-15poetry.html (13 of 30)09-10-2006 10:49:46
Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Wrote of varnished wood
And of nightingales
In the trees, ancestors of furniture,
Who had once sung.
They forgot
That in your forests,
From whence the furniture came,
There were many wolves
And few nightingales.
7
Storms, fever, malaria ravaged your body,
The priests and the mullahs
Deafened you.
Like Saturn,
You devoured your children in blood feuds,
And on these feuds the minarets and bell towers
Bestowed their blessings.
8
And fierce enemies nipped at the borders,
Nipped at the pale, bare shoulders of our native land.
The land arose, tottering,
Its eyes glowing with hunger and fever
And, forgetting its hunger,
Set forth in the night to measure the borders,
With a foot rule?
With a yard stick?
No,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
With the long rifle.
9
Your first contact with inventions,
With the new technology of civilization
Was with types and calibres of new weapons,
Which were tested against your withered, bullet-riddled breast.
After the fighting
There remained but the solitary graves of mountaineers,
Mounds of melancholy,
Monosyllabic names,
For a long time
Nothing but a heap of stone
And, instead of flowers at the head,
A monotonous song
Chanted by the tribe,
A monotonous song.
And beside the long limbs
The rifle fell away, the long rifle.
And after the long limbs
The short name fell away,
The letters dropping off
Like pine cones in the rain,
And after everything else
At last the song ceased,
The monotonous song of the tribe.
10
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And once again Albania cowered in a hut
In her dark mythological nights
And on the strings of a lute strove to express something
Of her incomprehensible soul,
Of the inner voices
That echoed mutely from the depths of the epic earth.
She strove to express something
But what could three strings
Beneath five fingers trembling with hunger express?
It would have taken hundreds of miles of strings
And millions of fingers
To express the soul of Albania!
11
If one was slain on a hillside,
Another arose elsewhere,
As if out of the earth The gaunt Albanian,
And above his body,
Like an iron limb,
The long rifle
Rose black.
With the rifle in his hand,
He wandered through these regions,
Over mountains and plains.
The rifle made him taller,
Though it often made his life shorter.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
12
Chewing on legends in the freezing night,
Famished, you ate your own songs,
Albania.
You were overcome by sleep,
Bent over the plough at twilight
Under the dark heavens
And you dreamt of so little joy
As no one had ever dreamt of before.
You dreamt
Of one more slice of bread,
Of one more spoonful of brine.
You dreamt of brine and bread
And of a little, so very little fat
To share with the rifle.
Your wedding was
Lightning in the midst of your misery,
Full of nerves, drums, quarrelling
And a little joy,
The little joy you dreamt of behind the plough
13
The nights gave birth to mornings,
Ponderous and grey;
The days cursed the nights,
The nights cursed the days.
Albania in her ruggedness
Gave birth to beautiful children,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Implanting in each child
A dream, a hope.
Tending her withered breasts,
Albania gave life,
She gave birth to soldiers,
Who later died in the sands of the Sahara,
Singing of the Bridge to the Kaaba.
14
The sons you sent to the cities of Europe,
Who knew foreign pleasures,
Returned
One by one,
To find a sorrowful land,
Clouds laden with yellow rain.
The monarchy, like a quarryman, smashed their dreams.
They arrived
With suitcases full of illusions
Under the shadow of minarets, of monasteries,
And rambled in autumnal delusions
Until the earth returned them to her bosom
And they rotted under the monotonous song of the rain.
15
Early fruits are expensive in price,
But early fruits are often destroyed by frost.
Albania placed them back into her bosom
"It is still too early," she said,
Observing the gloomy light of dawn.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
16
And once again she bent over the plough
And sowed her bitter tears in long furrows.
Under a sombre sky of endless ignorance
She sowed her tears
For rainstorms and tempests to come.
17
Amen!
The priests and a few drowsy poets came forth
To declaim abstract genealogical glories,
But you trampled on traditional laws
With your bare feet and scratched their poetic figures.
As if you were some insane beauty,
The traitors spun you around to take advantage of you,
Shouting,
"No worry,
No matter if you have no food.
We are God's chosen people,"
While you scratched out an embossment under the stars,
Your embossment of scabby, filthy sores.
18
The poets wrote hymns to the fairies and nymphs,
Who were delousing themselves by the streams.
You could count the very ribs of the fairies, the nymphs,
Who, for a few coins, would proffer themselves in the bushes.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
On occasion, the fairies and the nymphs managed
To abandon their epic alpine meadows
And descend one by one
Into the villages.
And, one by one, they ended up
In the brothels,
In the brothels that dotted
The weary mountain ridges,
Like wounds,
Like derision.
19
The nymphs departed,
Abandoning the myths,
And the myths began to empty.
The myths,
The last granary of the nation,
Returned to the abandoned churches.
For the myths, like people, were hungry,
And lived in great poverty,
Greater than any other,
In an age when the winds of boredom whistled
Over deserted mythical plains.
20
In the palace, King Zog gave nightly balls,
The princesses smiled,
The dancers waltzed.
In the quiet cells of frigid monasteries
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
The priests studied suffixes.
The orchestra played on
In Café Kursaal,
The elderly matrons powdered their noses,
While pregnant Albania
Miscarried the days
On bloodstained napkins of clouds.
21
And the mountain ranges were silent like horse caravans,
Oh, what caravans they were,
These mountain ranges!
They waited for hours,
For days,
For months,
For someone to lead them into the great battle,
For someone to lead them to a new world,
The mountain ranges waited with their heads in the clouds.
22
There were those who tried to tug at the mountains,
Like at the halters of horses
And led them a little way down the road,
But in the dark, they lost their way.
The formidable mountain ranges wandered in circles
Through the night and the fog,
Blind,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Terrified.
As if frightened by a tragic shrieking of old,
The heroic mountains neighed in their dreams.
23
And thus they turned in circles like a caravan in the desert,
Until they settled down, were calm once again,
Until twilight, the fortresses, hunger, the epic legends
Jumped on their backs again,
And with them
The brothels too.
But the calm was deceptive,
The long mountain caravans were waiting,
Waiting for a leader,
Albania was waiting
For the Communist Party.
24
What are these lofty mountains thinking about,
These enigmas of ridges stretching north and south?
I continue on my way
In the shadow of the long rifle,
That long rifle:
Your Archimedes' lever, Albania.
Through the sight of his rifle
The Albanian observed the horizons and the times,
The solitary whistling of his musket
Forced the centuries to duck.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
This rifle barrel
On the Albanian's back
Has grown there like a long sharp bone
Transplanted to his spine by a difficult destiny,
An extension of his backbone,
This awesome iron limb,
A proud atavism of ancient times.
The fearless Albanian has crossed the centuries,
With destiny on his back,
Trudging in his ancient sandals
Across the ageless land holding the graves of our forefathers.
This land which has brought forth
More heroism than grain through the ages,
This land...
That is what these lofty mountains are thinking about,
As evening falls in the distance beyond the highway.
(1962-1964)
[Përse mendohen këto male, from the volume Përse mendohen këto male,
Tirana: Naim Frashëri 1964, translated from the Albanian by Robert Elsie, and
first published in English in An elusive eagle soars, anthology of modern
Albanian poetry, London: Forest Books 1993, p. 88-96]
The Red Pashas
1.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
At midnight did the Politburo gather,
What's new at the northern border?
What's up at the southern border?
The sky is clouded, snowy winter.
Is the old ruling class on the move,
Is disaster in the making?
Have the heads of foreign missions
Been sending telegrams of alarm?
No, it's quiet at the borders,
No alarm comes from the missions,
Under the dictatorship of the proletariat
The once great castes will spend winter with bowed heads.
And production is normal, and the days
Pass routinely in December...
Why then unexpectedly
At midnight did the Politburo gather?
2.
States are not destroyed from the rooftops
Though the water seeps in somewhere,
They're destroyed from their foundations,
Socialist states are subject
To this principle, too.
Everything may seem fine at the top,
Socialist competition, song-singing,
Posters and our heroes of socialist labour,
On the First of May in the local paper.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Telegrams of congratulation, sunshine
At public meetings and in the verse of young writers,
But, down below,
Yes, in the foundations,
A black tumour grows slowly.
For our foes we have cannons, hymns and dances,
Let the foreign missions send the message,
With what do we fight bureaucracy?
Cannons are of no use,
And there are no consuls for spreading such news.
3.
Midst notes and phone calls, correspondence,
The scenes are always filled
To the hilt with those friendly smiles,
Bureaucrats are a different matter.
Not with Pelican ink they're covered,
That fine, eccentric bunch, ha, ha,
No, they are evil,
I see them with their hands
Bathed in blood up to the elbows.
I see them digging deeply
At the foundations of the revolution.
What are they doing?
Why are they overturning, throwing left and right,
The bodies of our socialist martyrs?
But take a look,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
It appears they are washing the bodies,
They are trying swiftly to efface the bloodstains from the foundations,
And with the blood, efface what they have left behind themselves:
All our ideals and principles.
How are they to efface these traces of blood?
Oh, they know how easy it then is
To alter the course of the revolution, the dictatorship
Of the proletariat
In its essence.
Thus, they have fallen to their knees,
Ever scrubbing, washing the blood away,
But what has happened now?
Why have they halted
At that barren garden, at that empty yard?
Here is where the overthrown caste was buried,
The pashas, beys, and noble families,
They attack, turn the bodies over and begin
Without delay to strip them bare.
The bloodstained robes of the former rulers
They don quickly, with orders and medals.
Sporting these on their shoulders, in the night,
They set off towards morning like a cloudburst.
4.
And morning came,
Pale and frozen,
Under their cloaks with the orders and crowns,
They go off to work, to their ministries and offices,
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Indeed, even to the Central Committee.
The Red Pashas, beys with party membership cards,
Baron-secretaries, petroleum mafia, all lined up,
A sombre procession, to the chanting of liturgy,
They bear the revolution's coffin to the grave...
5.
But externally, the scene looked different,
Smiles and the clenching of fists at public meetings,
Things went easily with Uncle Kamberi and the old men,
With words like "Enver," "the Party," "Self-criticism."
So it was during the daytime,
But at night
They returned to the foundations,
But the revolution was not like Rozafa's Castle,
Which rose in the daytime and crumbled at night.
6.
Enver Hoxha with his eagle eye
Was the first to have doubts about them.
He then descended to the foundations
Of the state, as in the great ballads of old.
He bore a red torch in his hand,
The very earth quivered,
The light of the fire fell upon them,
And he saw them effacing the blood of our martyrs
As they were dividing up the cloaks.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
"What, you are here?"
They rose to their feet.
"Oh, Comrade Enver, hmm, long may you live!"
But he looked askance
With pain in each strand of his hair,
And roared like a mountain in winter.
He was not Christ, to drive them from power
With a whip and a club.
He raised the working class
To make Communism thrive.
7.
Just as once partisan patrols,
Teams of worker-supervisors now spread out:
"Let the ministries not be seized by cannon fire
Tomorrow,
Today we will take them under our control."
The dictatorship of the working class is not found simply in poetry
Or on the birthday of a veteran lathe worker.
Are you for socialism?
Then run and queue up,
Proclaim everywhere and above all
The control of the working class.
Fight bureaucracy day and night,
Keep the old ruling class underfoot
If you do not want the firing squad
To line them up against the wall tomorrow
On the Main Boulevard.
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
8.
Days passed.
The storm of events
Continued furiously for years and seasons,
Plenary sessions of the Party gathered, like
The revolution's soldiers
In a storm.
The working class marches with the party on epoch-making days
The people swarm behind the working class,
And should the Politburo again
Gather at noon or at midnight
They are at the ready.
[Pashallarët e Kuq, translated by Robert Elsie. This poem, modest from a
literary point of view, was written ca. January 1974, half a year after the
Fourth Plenary Session of the Central Committee (June 1973), which had
caused considerable panic in intellectual circles in Albania. It was originally to
have been published in the literary newspaper Drita (The Light) in 1975, but
was banned at the last moment, and Kadare was severely taken to task for
having written it. Long regarded as lost, "The Red Pashas," also known as
"Meeting of the Politburo at Noon," has been the subject of much controversy
and interpretation. Indeed a whole book was written about it, Zhdukja e
Pashallarëve të kuq të Kadaresë: anketim për një krim letrar (The
Disappearance of Kadare's The Red Pashas: Inquiry into a Literary Crime),
Tirana 2002, by Maks Velo. In March 2002, the poem was finally discovered
in a Tirana archive and is translated here for the first time]
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Ismail KADARE - Poetry
Modern Authors from Albania (late 20th - 21st centuries)
| Robert Elsie | Albanian Literature | Albanian History | Contact |
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Dr. Robert Elsie
Robert Elsie
Writer, translator, interpreter, specialist in Albanian studies
| Home | My publications | Albanian Literature | Albanian History | Curriculum vitae | Contact |
Books
Welcome to the website of Robert Elsie: writer, translator, interpreter and specialist
in Albanian studies. Here you will find not only information about Robert Elsie, but
in particular all the publications of the author: books, articles, book reviews and
interviews from 1975 to the present day. The full text of many of these books and of
most of the articles, book reviews and interviews can be downloaded as a PDF file.
Balkan beauty, Balkan blood:
modern Albanian short stories
Leksiku i kulturës
popullore shqiptare
Gjergj Fishta.
The Highland Lute
(Lahuta e Malcís)
Articles
Fati i Gjon Buzukut
Modern Albanian writing
and its reception
in the English-speaking world
Gjergj Fishta
and the Albanian national epic
Interviews
http://www.elsie.de/ (1 of 2)09-10-2006 10:49:48
The focal point of the scholarly interests of Robert Elsie over the last twenty years
has been Albanian culture, literature and history. Most of his publications are thus
in these fields. The related websites, linked to this one, are devoted to these special
areas of literature and history.
The website "Albanian Authors in Translation" contains the largest selection of
Albanian literature ever to appear in English translation. It comprises a wide range
of authors from past and present, including writers from Albania, Kosova and the
Albanian diaspora. Some of these translations have been published but most of
them appear there for the first time.
The website "Texts and Documents of Albanian History" is a collection of texts
which endeavours to throw light on a corner of Europe which is often ignored by
historians and scholars. It is not designed as a history of Albania or of the
Dr. Robert Elsie
The Highland Lute: kur vargjet e Fishtës
flasin edhe anglisht
Albanians, but is simply a compilation of historical texts - some important and
some less important - from the eleventh to the twentieth century, which will add to
an understanding of the history and development of Albania and its people. Many
of these works have never appeared before in translation.
E mundimshja "Lahuta e Malcis"
Have fun reading.
Robert Elsie
last updated: 2006.8.21
The texts of all articles and books which can be downloaded here may be copied for private use if
the author and source are properly acknowledged. Please contact the author in advance for any
commercial usage. Thank you.
| Home | My publications | Albanian Literature | Albanian History | Curriculum vitae | Contact |
http://www.elsie.de/ (2 of 2)09-10-2006 10:49:48
The Englishing of Ismail Kadare: Notes of a retranslator by David Bellos - the complete review Quarterly
Volume VI, Issue 2 -- May, 2005
The Englishing of Ismail Kadare
Notes of a retranslator
by
David Bellos
When I was asked ten years ago by Christopher MacLehose, the literary director of The
Harvill Press, to take on the translation into English from the French translation of Ismail
Kadare's Dosja H, I was initially dubious in the extreme. I knew no Albanian (and even
now know only the tiniest scraps of that strange and difficult tongue). I also had principles !
Enough damage can be done in one language shift to make a double shift seem like a
recipe, if not for disaster, then at least for pretty thin gruel. On the other hand, the book
fascinated me; as I began to read more of Kadare in French I also realized that what was
being put on my plate was a writer of the first importance, with an œuvre that was wideranging, coherent, intricately connected… and certainly worth bringing into English as well
as could be done. But why not get it translated direct ? I asked MacLehose. He raised his
long arms to the heavens. If you only knew… was his mysterious and unanswerable reply.
It so happened that at about that time I saw an episode of the BBC "Video Diaries"
series set in Albania. It was a kind of video log in the first person by a country doctor, Ylli
Hassani, a man so destitute that he did not even have a stethoscope for patients even more
destitute than he. He had learned English exclusively from listening (illegally) to BBC radio
broadcasts, and he turned out to be as well-informed about the fortunes and back-stories of
Liverpool United as any authentic Scouser. At the end of the program it was revealed that
as a way of recompensing the doctor for having made the documentary, the BBC had
brought him to England to fulfill his wildest dream -- to go to a Liverpool versus
Manchester United cup final. I rang the producers to find out if Hassani was still in the UK,
and yes, he was. I contacted him and asked him if he would like to help me translate
Kadare, by telling me when my version of the French departed a lot, or a little, from the
Albanian original. He came to stay, we got on with the work for a day or two, and then he
disappeared. I later learned that he had managed to get a proper visa and to enroll at a
medical school to obtain recognized or at least recognizable qualifications, so that was the
end of the two-handed idea.
Who else knew Albanian ? In Britain, remarkably few people: a sole member of the
linguistics department of my university, a couple of people at the School of Oriental and
African Studies at the University of London… But no-one that my publisher could find who
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was a gifted and stylish literary translator, and also willing and free to do the job. (I have
subsequently learned that there are some distinguished Englishmen proficient in Albanian -Noel Malcolm, now of All Souls College, Oxford, and Julian Pettifer, at the BBC, but I'm
not at all sure they would have wanted then, or would want now, to work for the rates of
pay of a literary translator… )
I went to Paris to meet Kadare himself and to quiz him (in French) on the problems and
mysteries of the text. At that time (1994) he was preparing the first volumes of the
extraordinary bi-lingual Complete Works series that Fayard has now brought out as far
Volume 12 (and continuing). He showed me how he was working, checking the French
against the Albanian… and vice versa. Yes, he said, I do change the Albanian when I feel
that the French is better. He was not at all worried about being translated from his French
translations; in fact, he said, he really preferred it that way. I then learned one of the reasons
why.
Isolated, isolationist, tyrannical and mad, Enver Hoxha's Albania never signed any
copyright convention. (The post-communist Albanian Republic finally signed the Berne
Convention on March 6, 1994). For the bulk of Kadare's writing life, therefore, none of his
works in Albanian was protected by international copyright, and were thus simultaneously
free (anyone could publish a translation, anywhere, just like that) and unavailable (no selfrespecting publisher could buy the rights, since there were no rights to be bought). That's
why it was simply easier to trade the French versions, which were of course © Librairie
Arthème Fayard (or © Éditions Albin Michel, for the first works).
Because of the lack of copyright, the Albanians themselves had produced Englishlanguage versions of some of Kadare's works: there are editions of The General of the Dead
Army, The Castle (a cut and censored version of the novel now (and originally) called Les
Tambours de la Pluie), and of various of Kadare's "duty" works such as An Autobiography
of the People in Verse translated into English by Albanian linguists working in Tirana
(whose knowledge of the language had presumably been gained, like Ylli Hassani's, from
BBC sports reports). I now have a couple of these Tirana editions: they are dreadful -accurate, no doubt, but in a language now completely out of date, and in a style so wooden
it would float. (One work was translated in the US by an American-Albanian, Arshi Pipa,
but I need to learn more about this figure before making any comment on his career.)
Kadare has long been translated into German directly from Albanian, but for that there
is a good reason: a German scholar virtually invented the discipline of Albanology, and
there has long been a tradition of teaching Albanian in German universities. In Holland,
too, Kadare is translated directly -- but then, Dutch authorities paid two experienced
translators a good salary for two years simply to go and learn Albanian in order to do the
job. Britan and America have neither those traditions, nor such support for translation.
In addition, Kadare's French texts are more than merely professional translations. The
great, late Jusuf Vrioni, who has told his story in a wonderful memoir called Mondes
effaces. Souvenirs d'un Européen (Paris: Jean-Claude Lattès, 2001) learned French in
France before the Second World War. In 1945, like many exiles, he decided to return to
help build a new Albania from the ashes of multiple occupation and civil war. He was
promptly thrown in jail for being a member of the wrong class. During his long
imprisonment, he started translating into French simply to keep his memory of civilization
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alive, and to stop himself going mad. It was his translation into French of The General of
the Dead Army that was taken out of the country and acquired by Albin Michel, and that
translation led to the Italian edition, which led to the film (starring Mastroianni)... which all
led to Kadare acquiring a kind of sacred status in his own land, as just about the only
Albanian heard of outside the country, apart from Enver and Nexhime Hoxha.
Vrioni translated everything Kadare wrote; Kadare's French was good enough for him
to be able to read and appreciate Vrioni's labors; there were also things that Vrioni could
keep in the French that had to be cut or altered from the Albanian; and there were of course
whole works appearing in French that never came out as books, or never came out at all, in
the people's paradise of socialist Albania. I never met Vrioni: he came to France again only
toward the very end of his life, to be greeted as a hero at the Assises de la traduction
littéraire at Arles.
What I had translated, then, when I produced my English version of The File on H, was
something more than a book by Ismail Kadare. It was a book by Kadare co-produced by
one of the strangest but most effective translation pairs of all time. Vrioni's French is fluid,
spare, slightly old-fashioned ... and not quite native. It has a poetry of its own, which I
cannot compare to the original, of course, but which pleases and satisfies the author of the
original. It may not be an obvious way to go about things, but translation is, on occasions,
like politics, the art of the possible.
Many other English-language translators have done one or two Kadare novels, from
French (Derek Coltman, Barbara Bray, Jon Rothschild, Emile Capouya) and from Albanian
(Peter Constantine, John Hodgson). Their work is not to be discounted, but their
multiplicity has to do in part with the contorted history of Albin Michel's and Fayard's sale
of rights to English-language publishers. It is often difficult for French publishers to
imagine just how hard it is for foreign fiction to get a hearing in the US and the UK, and
they do not always chose well, or consistently, in signing deals. The late Emile Capouya, of
New Amsterdam Books, persisted heroically in trying to get Kadare an audience in the US,
but he lost a lot of money over his small publishing house; Saqi Books, in the UK, which
specializes in the Orient (and includes Albania, I guess, because of the Ottoman
background) teamed up with New Amsterdam for a while; but then Fayard decided to move
Kadare to Morrow in the US, a quite different kind of firm which predictably dropped the
author after one book, which sold pitiful quantities.
From the early 1990s, Harvill (originally, Collins Harvill, then The Harvill Press)
picked up Kadare, reprinting titles from the Saqi backlist, and commissioning new
translations year by year. Harvill is just about the only British house that specializes in
foreign literature, and it found a partner in due course in Arcade, in New York. That is why
the bulk of Kadare's work is now with those two houses, and is translated by people who
have done many other titles for them (Barbara Bray, and myself). Alas, Harvill has now
been forced into the sidelines and the torch has been passed to a Scottish independent,
Canongate, as far as the UK is concerned, though in the US Arcade still holds it aloft.
Kadare's low profile in the Engish-speaking world is partly due to the fact that he
speaks no English and is thus not available for speaking tours, lectures, radio and television
interviews -- the kind of author-promotion which seems an essential ingredient for a
prominent career as a writer nowadays. (Even an interview with the BBC last week in the
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wake of the announcement of the Man Booker International Prize was cancelled on grounds
that a voice-over translation would make "bad radio".) But as Kadare's stint at Bard College
last fall, and his "performance" at Princeton in December demonstrate, it is possible, with
proper preparation, to reach an English-language audience through simultaneous
interpretation. It just costs a lot !
Jusuf Vrioni died in 2002, and a competition was held to find his successor. Four
finalists were read "blind" by publisher's readers (Kadare did not even look at the
submissions) and the unanimous verdict went -- not to a Frenchman, but to another and
perhaps equally special Albanian, Tedi Papavrami, a concert violinist now based in Geneva.
Papavrami's French is far more intricate than Vrioni's, I might say it is almost baroque, and
I think the change of tone will be noticeable in The Successor, the next of Kadare's novels
to appear in English (probably this fall). Kadare claims his own style in Albanian hasn't
changed one bit, but he does not mind at all that his French work has been moved in the
direction of greater linguistic complexity.
My own impression is that Kadare has long understood the constraints of writing
"double" -- for his Albanian readers, on the one hand, and for a world audience, on the
other. He doesn't think that anything he writes in prose is "untranslatable" -- on the
contrary, he thinks that what he has to say will come through in pretty much any language.
He could hardly be more different in his attitude to linguistic particularity than (for
example) Milan Kundera, who insists that even his original punctuation in Czech be
reproduced without alteration in English translation.
What I try to do in my twice-removed translations of Kadare from French is to respect
the simplicity of the language, and at the same time to decorate it with those classical and
Shakespearean associations that seem to me to hover over nearly all he writes. For Kadare
is not, in any ordinary sense, a contemporary writer, that's to say a writer engaged with
contemporary trends and fashions. He's a story-teller – a bard – a rhapsode, indeed,
spinning yarns that are always slightly strange yet hauntingly familiar. One day, I hope, a
literary translator with fluent Albanian will devote a lifetime to translating the entire œuvre
over again. In the meantime, I am honored to be able to do my little bit to make this
remarkable writer accessible to English speakers the world over.
© 2005 David Bellos
David Bellos has taught at the universities of Oxford, Edinburgh, Southampton,
Manchester, and, currently, Princeton. He has translated numerous works from the
French, notably works by Georges Perec and Ismail Kadare, and is the author of
two biographies, Georges Perec. A Life in Words and Jacques Tati. His Life and
Art.
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The Englishing of Ismail Kadare: Notes of a retranslator by David Bellos - the complete review Quarterly
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The Man Booker International Prize 2005
❍ Announcement that Ismail Kadare takes the prize
❍ Judges' list - the eighteen finalists (later reduced to seventeen)
❍ Announcement that David Bellos receives the additional award for
translation
❍ Speech by Ismail Kadaré accepting the prize (see also the French original)
❍ Speech by Chair John Carey at the awards ceremony
❍ Azar Nafisi on the difficulties of judging the competition.
❍ Worthy winner despite language restrictions by Alberto Manguel, originally
in The Guardian.
❍ 'His voice is unique' by Julian Evans in The Guardian.
❍ Ismail Kadare wins. And so does Man Booker by Stephanie Merritt in The
Observer
❍ Ismail Kadaré: lost in translation ? by Magnus Linklater in The Times
❍ The crQuarterly's (way offf base) punter's guide to the MBI Prize
Ismail Kadare:
❍ Adventures in Kadaria by David Bellos in The Independent
❍ Finesse without frontiers by Jennie Erdal in The Scotsman
❍ Mystery of Man: Just Who Is Ismail Kadare ? by Adam Kirsch in The New
York Sun
❍ Ismail Kadaré at books and writers
❍ Ismail Kadare at Albanian literature.
❍ Interview at Label France
❍ Interview at New Europe Review
Information at Ismail Kadare's publishers' sites:
❍ Librairie Arthème Fayard
❍ Arcade
❍ Ivan R. Dee (New Amsterdam Books)
Twice-removed translations:
❍ Twice Removed: The Baffling Phenomenon of the Translated and then ReTranslated Text (with case studies)
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The Englishing of Ismail Kadare: Notes of a retranslator by David Bellos - the complete review Quarterly
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