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"Not even his wife took part in Mehmet Shehu's funeral" - The ex-prime minister's unceremonious funeral and the reluctance of family members to attend
2023-12-20 17:58:53 / JETË
Only a few family members and three or four officials of the Council of Ministers attended the funeral of Mehmet Shehu, the former communist prime minister who committed suicide under suspicious circumstances in December of 1981.
Beyond what was foreseen by the state protocol for such cases, the farewell ceremony of the number two of the regime has been ordered to take place only with the presence of family members in the public cemetery, in Sharre, in Tirana. There was no official announcement about this and no event was held for the burial of the prime minister.
Everything has passed in complete secrecy, leaving behind many dilemmas and mysteries that still reverberate in today's media. It happened in that farewell escort that the wife, Fiqirete Shehu, and two of the brothers did not participate either. Many of the witnesses of the time say that everything in that mine was directed by the main offices of the Central Committee of the Party, from where only a few days later Mehmet Shehu would be declared a poly-agent and a traitor.
The only official who participated in the funeral ceremony of the Prime Minister was Kiço Kasapi, at that time, General Secretary of the Council of Ministers, who was also specially appointed by the top leaders of the state. More or less, this has been the chronicle of Mehmet Shehu's farewell, described as an "enemy of the people", for whom not only was there no place in the Nation's Martyrs' Cemetery, but he did not deserve any official funeral ceremony.
The newspaper "Panorama" publishes the memories of the former commander of the Guard Xhafer Peçi, Mehmet's brother Duro Shehu and son Bashkim Shehu, who bring their experiences from those dramatic and senseless moments for the moment. Much later, the communist propaganda, while shooting at the former communist prime minister with some of the most serious accusations in relation to loyalty to the Party and the people, also revealed the reasons for not organizing the official ceremony to convey the farewell of one of the most important figures of the regime….
THE EVENT THAT SHOCKED THE COUNTRY
Mehmet Shehu's suicide came as a bolt from the blue. I knew him well, I had friendly relations with him since the war years. The news of the extraordinary tragedy took me by surprise like many others. It was the morning of December 18, if I'm not mistaken, around 8 o'clock, when the operative of the Republic Guard informed me that I had to go to the Ministry of the Interior as soon as possible. I called the driver and started. On the way, I was informed by radio that I had to go to Mehmet Shehu's villa.
In just a few minutes when I arrived at the Prime Minister's villa, I was confronted by Kadri Hazbiu, former Minister of Defense, Llambi Ziçishti, Minister of Health and Xhule Çirak. All three looked cut in the face and overcome with a sense of anxiety. Kadri Hazbiu was the first to pull me aside and immediately told me: "Mehmet Shehu has killed himself, but be careful not to spread the news until it is clarified by the leadership." That's all Kadriu explained to me.
After him, Xhule Çiraku ordered me to strengthen the readiness. That we are in a very delicate situation, he concluded. I stayed a few moments in front of Mehmet Shehu's villa and left for the office where my subordinates were waiting for me with whom I had to carry out a special plan of measures. A little later, Kadriu called me and repeated the care that should be taken in overcoming the sudden situation...
ILLEGAL BURIAL OF THE PRIME MINISTER
There was no official ceremony for the burial of Mehmet Shehu. Apparently the explanations for this came directly from the dome of the Central Committee. There would be no cannon bed, there would be no guard of honor, there would be no riflemen to fire the weapons in the fatal procession. So, we, as the Guard, who carried out these things in such cases, would not have any obligations in the burial of the Prime Minister, who was apparently decided to be buried as an ordinary person.
However, one moment I was called by Kiço Kasapi, who was then acting as the General Secretary of the Prime Minister's Office, and told me that we had to get ten soldiers available to transport Mehmet Shehu's body from the house to the municipal funeral car. I remember that day vividly. It was raining bitterly and a furious wind was blowing. While I was staying in the office, one of the staff officers told me that someone from the Prime Minister's family had called and was looking for Fiqireti's car. It was something with pepper.
When it came to a simple mortuary, what did the official car need? However, I called the ministry and they told me that the car will not come out. I did so and waited from the services for the problems that could arise from the unusual ceremony. The truth is that only seven people participated in that escort, three, four family members and three members of the Prime Minister's administration. Even as I found out that day, even his wife, Fiqretit, did not participate, but let's understand why...
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