Slow death in the name of blood-feud

Closing-in is one of the wildest phenomenon accompanying blood-feud in Albania for years. In many cases, the families involved are even forced to forget the victims in the name of blood-feud while the see their dear ones suffering unable to meet their most elementary needs. As soon as a murder happens, even because of a moment disagreement, it is immediately considered as blood-feud in the name of the Canon of Lek Dukagjini, starting this way a long cycle of revenge between families. This phenomenon is very familiar in the Shkodra region and has become a nightmare for all the citizens. All the family has to shut-in up to the 7th generation, and can be released up to the 3rd generation if the family of the victim permits them.
This is familiar even around the city of Shkodra, through different villages, as it is Guci e Re. Only in this village there are several families involved in blood-feud, so they all have to shut-in, except for the women, for whom it is impossible to carry the heavy burden of providing for the family. There are many families living already in very difficult economical conditions, besides the continuous death-threat. Families in blood-feud are those of Musa Kulla, Muho Çoku, H. S. (this name cannot be made known for security motives), the family of Endrit Gëzim Goçaj etc., etc., for the list might be very long.
We’ve been talking about the difficult economical survival for the families closed-in with members of those families, mostly women, as you can talk to them without the need of having the permission of the family in enmity. Endrit Goçaj’s grandmother, Sybe, tells us the sorrowful story of her family, in blood-feud with the family of Shaban Dani. Mother Sabrije comes near with her eyes filled with fear for her son’s life as well as tired of many economical difficulties. Grandma Sybe, an old woman reflecting goodness in every cell of her body tired of life, is filled with tears while relying on Sabrije; two hopeless women. Sybe’s sons and husband had escaped to save their lives from the revenge of the family Dani, while they told us that none of the authorities took care about them. Grandma Sybe didn’t know any address of the male members of the family, and so was mother Sabrije, but they prayed that they might be alive and be out of danger from their enemies. Men do never leave address in these cases, otherwise they would be easily reached by their enemy. The two women of the family Goçaj have now to carry on their shoulders not only the anxiety that their male might be killed, not only the continuous pressure of the enemy waiting ready to shoot, but also the deep economical problems. It is clear that none of the men could work now, as they might immediately be the next victim of revenge. They have to live without address for a long time, depriving themselves from the normal life that anyone could dream about. Grandma Sybe dries her tears from time to time while groaning from deep inside. Although many attempts to reconcile, it was never possible between the two families. The economical situation of this family has become very difficult, even because of the heavy weight of the global crisis including Albania, especially the families of the villages, adding to this the many problems directly or indirectly due to blood-feud and the closing-in of all the men, or even worse their escape without address in order to save their life threatened by guns shooting in the name of the Canon.
This is just a chapter of the big sorrowful book of the Albanian tragedy called blood-feud. We left the village Guci e Re taking with us a sad memory of the two women, grandma Sybe and mother Sabrije, who live under the burden of poverty hoping not to have any bad news about the life of the men and sons of their family. Throughout of this sight the authorities are just watching without influencing or changing something. This is the story of the family of Endrit Gëzim Goçaj, but it might resemble the story of many other Albanian families who are still victims of revenge.
Sokol Pepushaj

Blood-feud, the never closing wound

After 1990, blood-feud was one of the phenomenon mostly damaging the Albanian family and society. This medieval phenomenon based on the Canon of Lek Dukagjini, developing more and causing victims mostly in north Albania. The statistics on the development of this “pestilence” among Albanians is very tragic showing that blood-feud is a never closing wound.
What makes blood-feud so terrible and incomparable to any other phenomenon is just revenge not only on the guilty one, but also on his family. The circle of the victims of blood-feud goes widening not only with the killed and wounded, but also with those who have to hide closing-in or by not telling their location.
The case of Arjan Guri, born on January 10, 1988, is reported as one of the most significant as far as revenge spread over all the men of a family involved in blood-feud is concerned. The question of land property, yet unsolved in Albania, was the beginning point of a sad story of revenge. It was 1998, when Arjan was only 10, when this tragic story begun. A property conflict between the family of Dem Vataj and the family Guri, put them against one another. During one of their disagreements, that of May 20, 1998, a member of the family Guri shot on Dem Vataj, killing him. This made all the mechanism of rules of the Canon of Lek Dukagjini, through the phenomenon of revenging blood, known as blood-feud. The family of Dem Vataj took revenge by killing Nike Guri, Arjan’s grandfather, on September 15th of the same year, while Arjan wasn’t just 11.
Since that year, these two families are in blood-feud and live closed-in because of the fear of revenge. Despite the efforts of the reconciling associations, it wasn’t possible to make these families reconcile. The family Guri has disappeared. Even their son, Arjan Guri, only 22, is seriously menaced because of the enmity of his family with the family of Dem Vataj. As the Canon says, he is the most preferred target of revenge, for even today is the “rule” of “killing the youngest and the best of the family”, in order to avenge.
This case clearly shows the impossibility to stop the phenomenon of blood-feud in north Albania, the transferring of enmity on other generations, not directly involved in the happening, as well as the inability of the authorities to stop it, while the reconciliation associations report tragic statistics. There are over 700 families in Albania living in enmity among them, while the victims are often the children and the young, who are over 170. According to the same source, there are many families which not only live hiding, but they don’t even have an address, being the target of revenge.
Editorial Office