Dila Marku (Dilica), social activist in the province of Mirdita, People’s Hero, was killed by an armed anti-government gang. She was born in the village of Fregën (Lezhë) in 1931. She developed extensive activities for the emancipation and education of women against the backward and patriarchal customs that limited her rights. With her example, she attracted many young men and women from the province, in the actions for the reconstruction of the country. Loni Papa’s drama “Cuca e Maleve” (“The girl of the mountains”) is dedicated to her life and work, on which a ballet was created (1970) with music by Nikolla Zoraq and choreography by Agron Aliaj, and a film was shot (1974) with directors Dhimitër Anagnostin and Pëllumb Kallfen. (In the photo: Scene from the ballet “Cuca e Maleve”.)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 2 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2008, page 1634.
Photo: © https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuca_e_maleve_%28balet%29
Graphic processing: AHCF
