Nexhmije Hoxha

Nexhmije Hoxha [ nɛdʒmijɛ hɔdʒa ] ( born February 7, 1921 in Bitola, Macedonia) is the former head of state of Albania, Enver Hoxha 's widow.

Life

Born as Nexhmije Xhuuglini in present-day Macedonia, she attended a teachers' seminar in Tirana, graduating in 1941. As a result, she taught in elementary schools and joined the Albanian communist party. In 1941 she was elected to the General Assembly. In the absence of a court sentenced her to twelve years in prison, but was never arrested. From the year 1944 she participated in partisan battles against the German occupiers and remained politically active.

In January 1945, she married the leaders of the Albanian Communist Party, Enver Hoxha. In 1948 she was elected to the Albanian Workers' Party, the former Communist Party in the National Assembly. Hoxha in 1966 was appointed Director of the Institute of Marxist-Leninist Studies in Tirana.

The reign of the Hoxha was marked by human rights violations and persecution of dissenters. Particularly affected were the churches and mosques, which were generally prohibited due to the Maoist- atheistic orientation of the regime. Popularly Nexhmije Hoxha was considered a real ruler of Albania, because she had a strong influence on the decisions of her husband.

After her husband's death in 1985 Nexhmije tried until 1991, the regime with the help of a puppet government to maintain. It was replaced by Prime Minister Adil Carcani and imprisoned in December 1991 on charges of corruption and subsequently convicted. After five years in jail, she was released and claimed to use their remaining life to maintain the memory of her husband.