CONDITIONS BEGIN TO CHANGE

The political scene was changing in 1989. The death sentence for attempting to escape from Albania was abolished.

The Berlin Wall fell on November 9, 1989, and it took no time for the effects to ripple into Albania. In March 1990 a riot against Communism broke out in Kavajë. Thousands of people flooded foreign embassies in Tiranë, trying to leave the country. Students demanded reforms and went on hunger strikes.

In February 1991, a massive crowd toppled the 30-foot [10 meter]-high statue of Enver Hoxha, which had dominated Tiranë’s Skanderbej Square for years. As far as the people were concerned, the dictator was gone. During March, some 30,000 Albanians hijacked ships from Durrës and Vlorë and sailed to Italy as refugees. That month, multiparty elections were held for the first time in years. Even though the Communist Party won, it was clear that the government was losing its grip.