The only place I've heard that claim is in Arshi Pipa's Albanian Stalinism. Pipa was very strongly anti-communist and based most of his stuff on rumor, having no academic credentials. Academic works on Albania note that Balluku was shot for political and army-related (not bunker-related) differences and for allegedly conspiring with the Chinese to overthrow the government in a military coup. Any other disgraced Albanian figure you'd like me to explain why they died/were imprisoned?
Beqir Balluku? Shot for treason. He wanted Albania to follow the Chinese "Three Worlds Theory" line of collaborating with US imperialism against Soviet social-imperialism and also opposed the "politicization" of the Albanian armed forces, i.e. he wanted the army to be an independent political force.
Albania did trade with Yugoslavia. In fact Yugoslavia was one of its largest trading partners by 1980, with the Albanians exporting electricity to it. Cuba could trade with the USSR all it'd like. The difference is that Cuba transformed its economy on monoculture lines in order to better serve Soviet social-imperialism while the Soviets in turn made Cuba into a dependency.
Har-de-har. Do you have anything of substance to say?
Apparently saying Kadare was an opportunist and anti-communist who was faking socialism means the entire People's Assembly was full of carbon copies of him. Except that's wrong; Albanian newspapers have done interviews with former Assembly members and especially former members of the Presidium of the Assembly who still support the socialist period. Alia has said that he himself believed in Marxism-Leninism until 1990-1992. Then he said he became "realistic" and realized the supposed need for market reforms and "democracy," etc. Albania did not undergo economic "reforms" until early 1990, and even these were relatively mild, a cross between the Kosygin reforms of 1965 and Perestroika (which meant, of course, a definite move towards capitalist restoration.) Shehu was a reactionary. Fighting a war well does not make you a wonderful communist, Arnaldo Ochoa ring a bell? Nor did he "mysteriously" commit suicide
He wasn't killed on Hoxha's orders but was exposed as a reactionary and committed suicide, whereas otherwise he would have been killed. Again, read the article I wrote on the subject: http://www.revleft.com/vb/death-mehm....html?t=168054 Also, again, hundreds of people were in the People's Assembly. Unless Kadare was in the Presidium of it he had no particular political significance. The People's Assembly, like the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, had quite a few artists, writers, scientists, etc. in it.
Yeah, pretty much.
How mature of you.
After googling the monument, it is really ugly!
Two amusing quotes. "Khrushchev remarked [at the International Meeting of Communist Parties in Moscow, 1960] that he 'could reach a better understanding with Harold Macmillan than with the Albanians.' To which Hoxha retorted: 'That you can come to terms with Macmillan, Eisenhower, Kennedy and their stooge, Tito, is a personal talent of yours which no one envies.' ... And Mehmet Shehu to Khrushchev's question as to whether they had any criticisms at all to make of Stalin announced: 'Yes, not getting rid of you!'" (William Ash, Pickaxe and Rifle: The Story of the Albanian People, p. 201.) "Shehu later told Mikoyan with brutal frankness: 'Stalin made two mistakes. First, he died too early and second, he failed to liquidate the entire present Soviet leadership.'" (Paul Lendvai, Eagles in Cobwebs: Nationalism and Communism in the Balkans, p. 194.)
