Aqif Pasha Elbasani (1861-1926) , political personality, activist for the freedom and independence of Albania and for the construction and consolidation of the Albanian state, statesman, passed away. He was born in Elbasan, where he completed primary and secondary school, while he completed his higher law studies in Istanbul. From a young age he became active in the activities of the Elbasan branch of the Albanian League of Prizren, then he participated in many patriotic activities developed in the district of Elbasan and outside it, on the eve and after the Declaration of Independence. Supported the efforts of Ismail Qemali’s government to stabilize the country and openly opposed the esadist forces. With the beginning of World War I and the departure from Albania of Ismail Qemali and his government, Aqif Pasha Elbasani took refuge in Shkodër, together with many other patriots. In July 1915, he was exiled to Cetina by the Montenegrin forces, who occupied Shkodra. After returning to his homeland (1916), he tried to establish an Albanian administration. He was one of the initiators of calling a National Congress in Elbasan, which would examine the political situation of the country and act according to the new conditions. But the new Austro-Hungarian invaders did not allow this political step. At the end of World War I, he joined the political forces that showed determination for the defense of the Albanian state and that led to the calling of the Congress of Lushnja. He participated in the political struggle that started for the stabilization and democratization of the country’s life. As a result of the crisis of December 1921, he was forced to emigrate outside Albania (1922). In 1924, a year after his election as a member of the Constitutional Assembly (December 1923), he returned to his homeland. After a long illness, he died in Elbasan. (In the photo: Aqif Pasha Elbasani)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 1, Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2008, page 589.
Photo: © https://sq.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeda:Aqif_Pash%C3%AB_Elbasani.jpg
Graphic processing: AHCF
