It was opened in Tirana, in January 1950 at ‘5 Maji’ street, as a unit specialized in performing
various handicrafts, but also to exploit the intellectual work of convicts. Until August 1950, the
prison depended on the MIA’s (Ministry of Internal Affairs’) Rear Line Branch. The workshop
was located at the former ‘Flora’ cigarette factory of Ibrahim Biçakçiu. In 1950, prisoners were
divided into five labour sectors: tailors, shoemakers, carpenters, mechanics, and translators.
The first data showing the division of convicts are those of 1954 when 150 women prisoners
were reported. At the time, the unit had 70 people as service staff. After 1955, political prisoners
are reduced and ordinary ones are increased since political prisoners were wanted in other
labour camps. In the first quarter of 1956, the convicts worked in carpentry, tailoring,
shoemaking, mechanics, blacksmithing, mesagjeri (translations, printing, etc.), and cardboards.
In that same year, it was reported that there were prisoners working at the ‘Dinamo’ factory and
were subordinate to this unit. This plant operated for the repair of machinery, production of
consumer goods, and overall production. Some Yugoslavs convicted in Albania also served their
sentences in this unit.
At the beginning of November 1958, 27 political convicts (of which 24 were women) and
379 ordinary convicts (of which 139 were women), 406 overall, were reported to be working at
the unit.
Part of this camp also served as a women’s prison. Musine Kokalari was one of the convicts who
was released from this prison on 8 October 1961. She would be transferred to another type of
sentencing, internment. She had suffered 15 years in prison. From her file, it is learned that at
least from 1957, the craftswomen worked at the ‘Ylli i Kuq’ agricultural farm of Valias. This
record proved that the Valias farm was used as a place where convicted women served their
sentences in 1956–1961.
The numbers of prisoners in years, according to researcher Kastriot Dervishi, are
1950, 155 prisoners
1953, 827 prisoners
1954, 510 prisoners (253 political, 257 ordinary)
1955, 433 prisoners (215 political, 218 ordinary)
1957, 528 prisoners (140 political, 388 ordinary)
1958, 528 prisoners (48 political, 280 ordinary)
1959, 742 prisoners
1960, 406 prisoners
1961, 400 prisoners
1963, 295 prisoners (11 political and 284 ordinary)
1965, 380 prisoners
1966, 410 prisoners