The end of Stalinist rule in Albania

Published: Jan. 4, 2022, 9 a.m.

In 1990 Albania\u2019s communist government agreed to allow independent political parties following a wave of protests. Lea Ypi was an 11 year old schoolgirl at the time and watched events with consternation \u2013 she was a firm believer in what she had been taught about communism at school, and an admirer of Stalin. But she soon discovered that her parents had a secret past that they had been afraid to reveal to her before 1990. Lea talks to Rob Walker about her life growing up inside the world\u2019s last Stalinist state.

Picture: Lea Ypi as a child in Albania with her grandmother. (Credit: Photo provided by Lea Ypi)