GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE AND POLITICAL SYSTEM
Political power in 1970 was solely in the hands of the ruling elite, that is, the leadership of the Communist Party (officially the Albanian Workers' Party). No political, economic, or social activity occurred without the sanction of the Party. Although the facade of a people's republic under constitutional rule was established in 1946, the reality of a rigid police state was clearly evident from the beginning, and no true democratic processes had been allowed to develop. The greatly heralded People's Assembly, people's councils, and people's courts were elected from a list of Party candidates; only one candidate was presented for each office, and there was no popular selection or popular choice. In effect, the Party was the government and directed all aspects of the lives of the people—from the cradle to the grave.
The governmental structure and political system of the Albanian People's Republic have their roots in the National Liberation Movement, which came into existence during the Italian and German occupations of World War II. Communist Party members dominated the leadership and, while combating Italian and German occupiers, fought against other national resistance groups for postwar control of the country. Enver Hoxha, first secretary of the Albanian Workers' Party in 1970, and Mehmet Shehu, premier and second ranking Party member, were wartime leaders of the Communist resistance forces. Superior organization and the establishment of crude governing bodies called national liberation councils facilitated the Communist takeover of the country after the cessation of hostilities. These councils later became the basis of the postwar governmental structure.
The Communists moved rapidly after the end of the war to prevent the reestablishment of the monarchy and to secure their own position of power. Operating under the banner of a mass organization known as the Democratic Front, the Communist Party strengthened its hold on the country and in early 1946 promulgated a Constitution based on Yugoslav and Soviet models. This Constitution provided for a unicameral legislature, a collective executive branch, and an independent judiciary. Actually, the Albanian Workers' Party, formerly the Communist Party, which is mentioned in the Constitution as "the vanguard organization of the working class," uses the formal governmental structure as the instrument for governing the nation and for implementing its own policies.
The Albanian People's Republic in its twenty-five years as a Communist nation has remained as rigidly authoritarian and Stalinist in its approach to government as it was at the end of World War II. The Party is all pervasive, the leadership is glorified to an extreme degree, and Party pronouncements are treated as infallible doctrine. The average citizen casts his ballot in periodic elections for local and national offices, but two conditions invariably exist: a candidate for office is a member of the Party, and only one name is listed for any particular office. It has become standard practice for well over 99 percent of the electorate to vote and for over 99 percent of those voting to approve the single candidate. Absolute control of the government, the economy, and the cultural life of the country is assured by a system that places the leading officers of the Party in the top positions of government.
Albanian history as a Communist state can be divided into three distinct phases based on outside influence: the Yugoslav period, the Soviet period, and the Chinese period. Yugoslav influence began with the founding in 1941 of the Albanian Communist Party, in which some Yugoslav nationals played leading roles, and lasted until Yugoslavia's expulsion from the Cominform in 1948. From 1948 until 1961 the Albanians looked to the Soviet Union for assistance and advice, and after 1961 Communist China became the foreign power wielding greatest influence in the country.
In 1970 Albania continued as the only European ally of Communist China. Hoxha and Shehu continued the harsh polemics with the Soviet Union; made tentative gestures of friendship toward Yugoslavia; continued their tirades against Western imperialism; and, in general, tried to present themselves to the world as the embodiment of true Marxism-Leninism.
FORMAL STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT
The People's Assembly
The Constitution established the People's Assembly as the legislative branch of the government and refers to it as "the highest organ of state power." Representatives to the Assembly are elected from a single list of Party-selected candidates for a term of four years in a ratio of 1 representative for every 8,000 inhabitants. The Assembly meets in two regularly scheduled sessions annually, and there is constitutional provision for the convening of extraordinary sessions.