Liri Belishova (14 October 1926 – 23 April 2018) was an Albanian politician. She was a 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 ...

and an important political figure in Albania between 1944 and 1960.

Life

Born in the village of Belishovë,

Mallakastër Mallakastër ( sq-definite, Mallakastra) is a region and a municipality in Fier County, southwestern Albania. It was created in 2015 by the merger of the present municipalities Aranitas, Ballsh, Fratar, Greshicë, Hekal, Kutë, Ngraçan, Qendër Du ...

, Belishova was the daughter of Albanian patriot Kamber Belishova, a participant in the

Congress of Durrës The Congress of Durrës () was a conference of Albanian political leaders, held from December 25 to December 27, 1918, in Durrës, at the time capital of the Principality of Albania. Mehmet Konica was the Chairman of the Congress, which aimed a ...

and the

Vlora War The Vlora War or the War of 1920 ( sq, Lufta e Vlorës or ''Lufta e Njëzetës''; it, Guerra di Valona) was a series of battles between Italian forces garrisoned throughout the Vlorë region of Albania (an Italian protectorate) and Albanian nati ...

. Belishova attended the Queen Mother Pedagogical Institute 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 ...

, along with

Nexhmije Hoxha Nexhmije Hoxha (; ; 8 February 1921 – 26 February 2020) was an Albanian communist politician. For many years she was the wife of Enver Hoxha, the first leader of the Socialist People's Republic of Albania and the First Secretary of the Party ...

, Ramize Gjebrea, Fiqrete Shehu and Vito Kapo. She joined the National Liberation Movement of Albania and lost one eye. During 1946-47, she was Albania's Popular Youth (''Rinia Popullore'') president. The death of her husband, Nako Spiru, in 1946, an alleged suicide, led to her dismissal from her role and she was sent from Tirana to

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located in ...

to teach. After Nako Spiru was rehabilitated, as a result of the Yugoslav–Albanian split, in 1948, Belishova was rehabilitated as well, and became a member of the

from 1948-60. She attended, along 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 ...

, the Marxist–Leninist institute of the

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

from 1952 to 1954, and married during this period her second husband, Maqo Çomo, who was

Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister ...

during 1954–60. In 1960, during the Soviet–Albanian split, Belishova was arrested on charges of being pro-Soviet and a friend of

Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...

. She, her husband Çomo and old communist Koço Tashko had protested against Enver Hoxha's unilateral decision to take a pro-Chinese stance, warning about the consequences of a split with the Soviets. She was purged as a traitor and enemy of the Party and people. On 9 November 1960, her family was moved to a state-owned

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used ...

Gjirokastër District Gjirokastër District () was one of the 36 districts of Albania, which were dissolved in July 2000 and replaced by 12 counties. It had a population of 55,991 in 2001, and an area of . It contained a large Greek ethnic minority. It is in the sout ...

, where she worked as a teacher and her husband as the farm director. After that, they were expelled from the Party and interned in Kuç near Vlorë, later in Progonat,

Zvërnec Zvërnec ( sq-definite, Zvërneci; el, Σβέρνιτσα, Svernitsa) is a community in Vlorë County, Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Vlorë. It is situated northwest of the city of Vlorë. It is ...

, and

Cërrik Cërrik (; sq-definite, Cërriku ) is a municipality in Elbasan County, central Albania. The municipality consists of the administrative units of Gostimë, Klos, Mollas, Shalës with Cërrik constituting its seat. As of the Institute of Stat ...

. In 1991, Belishova returned to

Family

Belishova had a daughter, Drita Çomo (19581981), from her husband, Maqo Çomo. Drita Çomo, a poet, died from cancer at age 23. Drita's works, most notably ''Dritë që vjen nga humnera'' ( en, "Light that comes from the abyss") were published posthumously in Albania.

Death

Belishova died in 2018, aged 91.Ndërron jetën në moshën 91-vjeçare Liri Belishova
top-channel.tv; accessed 25 April 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Belishova, Liri 1926 births 2018 deaths People from Mallakastër Labour Party of Albania politicians Members of the Politburo of the Labour Party of Albania Members of the Parliament of Albania Women members of the Parliament of Albania Leaders of organizations 20th-century Albanian women politicians Moscow State University alumni Albanian resistance members Female resistance members of World War II Prisoners and detainees of Albania

Life

Family

Death

See also

References