Pirro Dodbiba (1925–2004) was an

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

n politician of the

Albanian Party of Labour The Party of Labour of Albania ( sq, Partia e Punës e Shqipërisë, PPSh), sometimes referred to as the Albanian Workers' Party (AWP), was the ruling and sole legal party of Albania during the communist period (1945–1991). It was founded on ...

(PPSh). Although the nephew of Sokrat Dodbiba, former Minister of Finance in the

quisling ''Quisling'' (, ) is a term used in Scandinavian languages and in English meaning a citizen or politician of an occupied country who collaborates with an enemy occupying force – or more generally as a synonym for ''traitor''. The word ori ...

government of

Rexhep Mitrovica Rexhep Mitrovica (15 January 1888 – 21 May 1967) was a Prime Minister of Albania's government under Nazi Germany. A staunch nationalist, he was elected head of the Second League of Prizren. Biography Early life Rexhep was born to a wealthy ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

who died in communist prisons, he chose from the beginning the opposite path joining the National Liberation Movement. He served as Party's representative in various places in

Communist Albania The People's Socialist Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika Popullore Socialiste e Shqipërisë, links=no) was the Marxist–Leninist one party state that existed in Albania from 1946 to 1992 (the official name of the country was the People's R ...

, and by early 1970s became candidate-member for the

Politburo of the Party of Labour of Albania The Politburo was the leading organ of the Party of Labour of Albania. It comprised key government ministers and Central Committee secretaries and served as the main administrative and policy-making body, convening on a weekly basis. The following ...

, the highest political ruling entity of that time.

Biography

Dodbiba came from an influential Orthodox family from

Elbasan Elbasan ( ; sq-definite, Elbasani ) is the fourth most populous city of Albania and seat of Elbasan County and Elbasan Municipality. It lies to the north of the river Shkumbin between the Skanderbeg Mountains and the Myzeqe Plain in central Al ...

central Albania Central Albania ( sq, Shqipëria Qendrore) is one of the three NUTS-2 Regions of Albania. It consists of two counties: Tirana County and Elbasan County. See also *Northern Albania (''Ghegeria'' or ''Gegeria'') *Southern Albania Southern Alba ...

. He was the son of Jani Dodbiba and Athina Buda (sister of Albanian historian Aleks Buda). His uncle Sokrat Dodbiba was a known economist and intellectual, who between November 1943 and July 1944 served as Minister of Finance. He would be prosecuted by the

Special Court of Albania, 1945 The Special Court for War Criminals and Enemies of the People ( sq, Gjyqi Special për Kriminelët e Luftës dhe Armiqtë e Popullit), usually referred only as The Special Court ( sq, Gjyqi Special), was a Socialist court set up during the spring o ...

and died in prison. Pirro's brother Niko served as ambassador to

People's Republic of Bulgaria The People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB; bg, Народна Република България (НРБ), ''Narodna Republika Balgariya, NRB'') was the official name of Bulgaria, when it was a socialist republic from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the ...

, while the other brother Bardhyl as officer of the

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

. His sister Henrieta was married to the Albanian poet

Llazar Siliqi Llazar Siliqi (1924 – 2001) was a notable Albanian poet. His poetic profile was influenced by the work of Mayakovsky. Siliqi was born in Shkodër, the son of the Albanian poet and nationalist figure Risto Siliqi. He was an active particip ...

. Dodbiba is also related to the

Lef Nosi Lef Nosi (born Elefter Nosi; 9 April 187720 February 1946) was an Albanian publisher, archivist, philologist, folklorist, ethnographer, numismatist, archaeologist and politician. On 28 November 1912, he was as one of the signatories of the Decla ...

, another prominent Albanian politician of the early 20th century. During World War II he took part from 1942 to 1944 as member of the "Dajti" communist

partisan Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * ''Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also know ...

battalion and was later political

commissar Commissar (or sometimes ''Kommissar'') is an English transliteration of the Russian (''komissar''), which means 'commissary'. In English, the transliteration ''commissar'' often refers specifically to the political commissars of Soviet and Eas ...

. After the war, he studied Agricultural Science at the

Timiryazev Agricultural Academy Timiryazev (russian: Тимиря́зев, links=no; masculine) or Timiryazeva (russian: Тимиря́зева, links=no; feminine) is a Turkic Russian last name. It may refer to: People * Arkady Timiryasev (1880-1955), Soviet physicist and philo ...

(the State Agrarian University of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

) from 1945 to 1950, and graduated with a diploma from it in Agricultural Planning. On his return, he served first as Deputy Minister of Agriculture, before becoming director and founder of the 1951

Tirana Agricultural Institute The Agricultural University of Tirana ( sq, Universiteti Bujqësor i Tiranës) is a public university located in Tirana, Albania. It offers education in agronomy, veterinary, forestry, ecology, agribusiness, and similar subjects. History AUT wa ...

(Alb: ''Instituti i Lartë Bujqësor''). Dodbiba, who had become also member of the Central Committee of the Party, followed from 1956 to 1966 as Head of the Department of Agriculture of the Central Committee. In 1962, he was First Deputy of the People's Assembly (Alb: ''Kuvendi Popullor''). He remained member of the parliament from fifth to the eighth legislature.
- Republika e Shqipërisë KUVEND. Tiranë 2005 On 1 January 1965, he was appointed Ministry of Agriculture of Albania, Minister of Agriculture in the government of Prime Minister

Mehmet Shehu Mehmet Ismail Shehu (January 10, 1913 – December 18, 1981) was an Albanian communist politician who served as the 23rd Prime Minister of Albania from 1954 to 1981. As an acknowledged military tactician, without whose leadership the communist p ...

, and served as such until his release on 29 April 1976. During his tenure,

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

farming became increasingly important; there were estimated steadily growing targets by the Central Committee for after 1971. In previous years there were repeated problems in the agricultural sector and the non-achievement of planning objectives in agricultural production. In addition, he appealed for rapid modernization and consolidation of

state farm State Farm Insurance is a large group of mutual insurance companies throughout the United States with corporate headquarters in Bloomington, Illinois. Overview State Farm is the largest property and casualty insurance provider, and the la ...

s to the leadership of the party. As a minister, he led an agricultural delegation on a trip to the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

in 1971, and met with Chinese Premier

Zhou Enlai Zhou Enlai (; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman and military officer who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, premier of the People's Republic of China from 1 October 1949 until his death on 8 J ...

and the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry

Sha Feng Sha or SHA may refer to: Places * Sha County, Fujian, China * Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, (IATA code) * Sia, Cyprus, also spelled ''Sha'' * Sagamihara Housing Area, an army installation in Japan * Vehicle registration plates in th ...

. During the 6th Congress of the PPSh in November 1971 he was elected candidate-member of its

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contraction ...

. He remained in this position until his retirement in April 1976. On November 15, 1976, he also lost his seat in the National Assembly. The reason for his dismissal as Minister of Agriculture in April 1976 was "professional failure" in the implementation of the production targets in agriculture. After the

collapse of communism The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Natio ...

, he was elected in 2003 Chairman of the National Committee of War Veterans of the Anti-Fascist National Liberation War of the Albanian People (Alb: ''Komiteti Kombëtar i Veteranëve të Luftës Antifashiste Nacional-Clirimtare të Popullit Shqiptar''). Dodbiba died in April 2004. irro Dodbiba, personalitet I shquar I bujqesise shqiptare (Gazeta Telegraf 27 November 2012 http://telegraf.al/kulture/pirro-dodbiba-personalitet-i-shquar-i-bujqesise-shqiptare/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodbiba, Pirro 1925 births 2004 deaths Labour Party of Albania politicians Candidate members of the Politburo of the Labour Party of Albania Members of the Parliament of Albania 20th-century Albanian politicians Government ministers of Albania Agriculture ministers of Albania People from Elbasan Albanian communists Communism in Albania Academic staff of the Agricultural University of Tirana Agriculture in Albania Albanian resistance members