On 2 September 1985, a meeting chaired by Ramiz Alia moved from a discussion of how to observe Enver Day to a report on an oil and gas well at Mollas. Both topics appeared on the same six-item agenda. The surviving minutes show how Albania’s Party secretaries discussed political commemoration alongside the practical problems of running the economy.
What the secretaries heard about Korçë and Kolonjë
The first item was Alia’s account of his visits to the two districts. The minutes record his impressions of the reception there and then turn to specific concerns about farming, livestock and how local Party and government bodies organised their work. Korçë and Kolonjë were discussed in terms of the problems officials thought local leaders could address.
What Enver Day was supposed to mean
Under the third item, Alia discussed how people should understand Enver Day. He referred to work and economic commitments already being made in its name. The discussion shows the leadership using commemoration as a way to talk about everyday work, a few months after Enver Hoxha’s death.
A well on the same agenda
By the fifth item, the conversation had moved to the Mollas well. Vangjel Çërava reported that tests at different pressures had yielded oil condensate and gas. Alia asked where the well was and drew a comparison with Cakran. The exchange records what officials said at the meeting. It leaves the well’s later production open.
Source: Minutes of the meeting of the Central Committee secretaries of the Party of Labour of Albania, 2 September 1985, pp. 1, 6–11 and 20–21. The featured image is the opening page of the minutes.
