Fall of communism in Albania
Encyclopedia
In the Socialist People's Republic of Albania, Enver Hoxha
Enver Hoxha
Enver Halil Hoxha was a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary andthe leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania...
, who ruled Albania for four decades with an iron fist, died 11 April 1985. In 1989, the first revolts started in Shkodra; where they wanted to demolish Stalin's statue; and spread in other cities. Eventually, the existing regime introduced some liberalization, including measures in 1990 providing for freedom to travel abroad. Efforts were begun to improve ties with the outside world.
About 5,000 men and 450 women were executed under the rule of Enver Hoxha
Enver Hoxha
Enver Halil Hoxha was a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary andthe leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania...
. 34,135 People were jailed, and 1,000 died in prison. Many families are still looking for remains of their executed relatives.
Background
After Hoxha’s death in 1985, he was succeeded by Ramiz AliaRamiz Alia
was the second and last communist leader of Albania from 1985-91, and the President of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania from 1991 to 1992, and also the first President of the post communist Albania elected in 1991-92. He had been designated as successor by Enver Hoxha and took power after...
. Alia's policies tried to preserve the communist system while introducing gradual reforms in order to revive the economy, which had been declining steadily since the cessation of aid from former communist allies. To this end Alia legalized investments by foreign firms and expanded diplomatic relations with the western European countries.
During the turmoil in other communist states in Europe the Albanians had no idea what was happening due the lack of information of the isolated state. Most Albanians didn't even know the Berlin wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
had fallen.
However, with the fall of communism in eastern Europe in 1989, various segments of Albanian society became politically active and began to agitate against the government. The most alienated groups were those of certain intellectuals and of the working class — traditionally the vanguard of a communist movement or organization — as well as Albania’s youth, which had been frustrated by years of confinement and restrictions.
In response to these pressures, Alia granted Albanian citizens the right to travel abroad, previously forbidden, curtailed the powers of the Sigurimi
Sigurimi
The Drejtoria e Sigurimit të Shtetit , commonly called the Sigurimi, was the state security, intelligence and secret police service of the Socialist People's Republic of Albania...
forces, restored religious freedom, and adopted some free-market measures for the economy. In December 1990, under pressure from students and workers, Alia's government allowed the creation of independent political parties, thus signaling an end to the communists’ official monopoly of power.
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
had meanwhile already adopted new policies of glasnost
Glasnost
Glasnost was the policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s...
and perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. After Nicolae Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
, the communist leader of Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, was executed during the Romanian Revolution of 1989
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
, Alia knew that he might be next if changes were not made. He then signed the Helsinki Agreement which forced Albania to respect human rights. Under Alia, the first pluralist elections took place since the communists had taken power in Albania in 1944. Alia's party won the election of March 31, 1991.
Nevertheless, it was clear that the change would not be stopped. Pursuant to a 1991 interim basic law, Albania ratified its post communist constitution in 1998, establishing a democratic system of government based upon the rule of law and guaranteeing the protection of fundamental human rights.
The communists managed to retain control of the government in the first round of elections under the interim law, but fell two months later during a general strike. A committee of "national salvation" took over but also collapsed in six months. On March 22, 1992 the Communists were trumped by the Democratic Party in national elections. The change from dictatorship to democracy had many challenges.
The Democratic Party had to implement the reforms it had promised, but they were either too slow or did not solve the problems, so the people were disappointed when their hopes for fast prosperity went unfulfilled. In the general elections of June 1996 the Democratic Party tried to win an absolute majority and manipulated the results.
This government collapsed in 1997
1997 rebellion in Albania
The 1997 unrest in Albania, also known as the Lottery Uprising or Anarchy in Albania, was an uprising sparked by Ponzi scheme failures...
in the wake of the additional collapse of pyramid schemes and widespread corruption, which caused anarchy and rebellion throughout the country. The government attempted to suppress the rebellion by military force but the attempt failed, due to long-term corruption of the Armed Forces.
Start of Opposition
With each concession to the opposition, the state’s absolute control over Albanian society weakened. Continuing economic, social, and political instability led to the fall of several governments, and in March 1992 a decisive electoral victory was won by the anticommunist opposition, led by the Democratic PartyDemocratic Party of Albania
The Democratic Party of Albania is a center-right, Conservative, political party in Albania and the leading party in the governing coalition since the 2005 parliamentary elections...
. Alia resigned as president and was succeeded by Sali Berisha
Sali Berisha
Sali Ram Berisha is an Albanian politician and cardiologist, currently the Prime Minister of Albania and the leader of Democratic Party of Albania ....
, the first democratic leader of Albania since Bishop Fan Noli.
General strikes and the '92 elections
Further reading
- Meksi, Aleksander. Dhjetor '90: Dokumente dhe materiale, Tirana: UET Press, 2010. ISBN 978-99956-39-40-2