Heritage from the Communist Period in Albania – An Unwanted Heritage Today?

Abstract

This master thesis is based on interviews with heritage professionals carried out during two months in Tirana, Albania in the autumn of 2010. The research questions concern who works with communist heritage in Albania, what constitutes the heritage from the communist period (1945-1991) and how this heritage is discussed, valued and handled in Albania today. A general question is whether heritage from the communist period is an unwanted heritage or not today. The aim is to study what is happening with this heritage in one of the countries in Europe where this heritage have been discussed and emphasized the least and also to contribute to the discussion about heritage from difficult periods and events and show what different meanings it may have instead of labelling it “unwanted heritage”. The communist regime in Albania used urban planning and architecture to demonstrate and strengthen their power. Every aspect of the Albanian landscape and cities were affected by the ideology. New towns and huge industries were built, city centres were re-constructed, statues and monuments were raised and a nation wide defence system of hundreds of thousands of bunkers were built and is still seen everywhere in the landscape. When the dictator Enver Hoxha died in 1985, a pyramid shaped building was raised as a museum for him in the centre of Tirana. In the autumn of 2010, the Albanian government decided to demolish the Pyramid to get rid of memories from Hoxha and to build a new parliament building in its place to demonstrate the power of the present regime. This decision intensified a recent debate in Albania concerning communist heritage. The government argues that the Pyramid is an unwanted heritage, while the informants in this study want to preserve the Pyramid and other buildings from the communist period as reminders of an important era in the Albanian history, for future generations' knowledge and understanding of Albania's past, and because of architectural, aesthetic and social values which the informants connect to the buildings. The work with heritage from the communist period is going on within state institutions, universities, NGOs and different protest groups concerning the Pyramid issue. However, the Albanian society does not have experience, routines and regulations for the management of this heritage and therefore the protection of the communist heritage rely on dedicated individuals. The management of this heritage is further obstructed by weak state institutions, corruption, a lack of interest for public space among citizens and the political climate in Albania today.