Prokop Murra (24 November 1921 – 9 September 2005) 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 (PPSh).

Early life

Murra was born on 24 November 1921 in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

, and studied economics.Historical Dictionary of Albania - Robert Elsie, p.314-315
/ref> He joined the Albanian Communist Party in 1943 and fought 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 opposing ...

as a partisan of the National Liberation Movement. He initially worked as a functionary of the party in the economic sector, and petroleum industry. In 1956 he became member of the Central Committee of the Party.

Rise in the party

In 1962, he was elected for the first time as representative in the People's Assembly, and remained such until the fifth legislature ending in 1966. In the '70s, he was temporarily First Secretary of PPSh in Shkodra. Furthermore, he was temporarily Deputy Chairman of the State Planning Commission 1980–1981. At the 7th Congress of the Party which took place in November 1976, Murra was elected member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Party. He held this position until April 1980. Between 1978 and 1991, he served again from the ninth to eleventh legislature as representative in the National Assembly. On April 26, 1980, he was Minister of Industry and Mines in the last 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 ...

. Murra succeeded at the 8th Party Congress in November 1981 to become candidate-member of 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 followin ...

, but was removed from the Secretariat of the Central Committee.Quarterly economic review of Rumania, Bulgaria, Albania, Issue 1, Economist Intelligence Unit., 1982, p.xli
/ref> In the subsequent government of

Adil Çarçani Adil Çarçani (5 May 1922 – 13 October 1997) was an Albanian politician who served as the 24th Prime Minister of Albania during the Communist era led by Enver Hoxha. He served as the titular head of the Albanian government in the years immedia ...

, he served as Minister of Energy (the Ministry of Industry and Mines was split) until 1 July 1982 when he was replaced by

Pali Miska Pali Miska (19 May 1931 – September 2009) was an Albanian politician of the Communist Era. He served as Chairman of the Assembly of the Republic of Albania from 22 November 1982 to 19 February 1987. Miska was first as a party functionary in ...

Defence Minister (1982-1990)

He served shortly as Party's Secretary in Tirana District, before being replaced by Gaqo "Gogo" Nesho and becoming Minister of People's Defence () on November 23, 1982. His appointment as Defense Minister was surprising, since he was the first civilian in this position since the founding of the People's Republic of Albania on 11 January 1946.Yearbook on International Communist Affairs, Milorad M. Drachkovitch, Lewis H. Gann, Hoover Institution Press., 1983, p.238-239
(

Yearbook on International Communist Affairs ''Yearbook on International Communist Affairs'' is a series of 25 books published annually between 1966 and 1991, which chronicle the activities of communist parties throughout the world. It was published by the Hoover Institution Press, Stanfor ...

series) In a speech he gave shortly after the death of Enver Hoxha, he stated that Albania would never establish relations with the superpowers as United States and

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, and focus on "self-reliance". At the 9th Congress of the Party in 1986, he became member of the Politburo. With

Ramiz Alia Ramiz Tafë Alia (; 18 October 1925 – 7 October 2011) was an Albanian politician serving as the second and last leader of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania from 1985 to 1991, serving as First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Alban ...

coming into power after Hoxha's death, he was later removed from the Politburo as a "hard-liner", thus not Alia's favorite. After retiring from the government on July 9, 1990, he was replaced by Kiço Mustaqi as Minister of Defense.

Post-politics

In 1993, a court process came up against Murra and nine other former high-ranking officials ( Muho Asllani, Besnik Bekteshi,

Foto Çami Foto Çami (born 4 October 1925, date of death unknown) was an Albanian academic and politician of Albanian Party of Labour (PPSh). Biography Çami was born on 4 October 1925 in the village of Labovë of Gjirokastër District in Albania. He joine ...

Hajredin Çeliku Hajredin Çeliku (born May 4th 1927 - died June 2005) was a former Albanian politician of the Albanian Party of Labour. He was a member of the Albanian Parliament, Politburo of the Party of Labour of Albania, and served as member of the Cabinet of ...

Lenka Çuko Lenka Çuko (born 8 July 1938) is an Albanian former politician of the Albanian Party of Labour (PPSh). Biography Çuko was born in Lushnjë to a family of partial Aromanian origins. In 1970, she was elected first-deputy of the People's Asse ...

Llambi Gegprifti Llambi Gegprifti (born 14 February 1942, in Pogradec) is a former Albanian politician and mayor of Tirana (precisely Chairman of the Executive Committee of the People's Council of Tirana District) from 1986 through 1987 and 1989 through 1990. He w ...

, Qirjako Mihali,

, and Vangjel Çërrava). They were accused of "abuse of funds". The court in Tirana came up with the following sentences: Mihali and Gegprifti eight years each, Miska and Çuko seven years each, Çami, Çeliku, and Bekteshi six years each, and Çërrava, Murra and Asllani five years each. Another case rose against him and others in June 1996, this time for "crimes against humanity", according to Art. 74, 67 and 25 of the

Albanian Penal Code Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

. Other co-defendants were the former Party local-level politicians as Muho Asllani, Foto Çami, Gaqo Nesho, former 1st secretary of the PPSh in Vlora and Tirana, Zef Loka, former director in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Dilaver Benghazi, former Deputy Minister of the Interior. Decision was carried out in August 1996. Murra received 20-year prison sentence, Asllani and Loka 18, Nesho 16 years and Benghazi 12 years.ATA NEWS: ''EX COMMUNIST SENIOR OFFICIAL RELEASED FROM THE COURT HALL'' (13. August 1993)
/ref> They would serve their terms partially. An amnesty came out after the turmoils of 1997.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murra, Prokop 1921 births 2005 deaths Politicians from Tirana Labour Party of Albania politicians Members of the Politburo of the Labour Party of Albania Candidate members of the Politburo of the Labour Party of Albania Members of the Parliament of Albania Government ministers of Albania Defence ministers of Albania Communism in Albania Albanian resistance members