The infamous ‘bunkers’ of Albania spread across
country from beaches to the highest mountains. There is also one near Peja’s
pass at an altitude of 1681 m a.s.l. These bunkers were built during bunker frenzy,
known as the ‘bunkerisation of Albania’ in popular culture. This points to
years between 1968 and 1985 when the communist regime in Albania reached its
harshest. These bunkers were built with military intention to defend Albania
from a possible attack from the West or the East during the Cold War.
The bunker building frenzy started after
Albania’s exit from the Warsaw Pact in 1968. The exit from the pact politically
isolated Albania from the rest of Europe and the ruling elite were paranoid
about the possible attacks. It is said that more than 170,000 bunkers were
built in Albania during this period, particularly along the border area.
There were three types of bunkers:
(i) Qendër zjarri -firing position bunkers,
which are the most common ones across Albania. They form a mushroom-like dome
with concrete parts where one or two soldiers with guns could stand inside and shoot
at approaching enemies. The bunkers of Peja pass belong to this type of bunkers;
(ii) Pikë zjarri -command and control bunkers has
large and tall domes, made with concrete, which could host a lot of people as
well as munitions;
(iii) The third type of bunkers consists of large
domes and tunnels. It serves as mass storage of munitions and shelter for
people.
Regardless of the very high costs and manpower
required, these bunkers have never been used as intended. Today the ones around
big cities have been largely removed and the rest stands in ruin. In a few cases,
locals came up with creative ways of its usage as storage depots, bars and restaurants. In spite of the negative
history associated, these bunkers are a constant reminder of the paranoia and
cruelty of the totalitarian regime.