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The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay “A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine.  Fabulous!” Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker
June 2015 back issue
War is Over: the end of the Albanian bunkers
photographs by Corentin Fohlen story by Corentin Fohlen and David Breger
They can be seen all over Albania, from tourist beaches to deserted hills: sad concrete mushrooms inherited from the communist era. Over 750,000 of these bunkers were built by Enver Hoxha, the paranoid leader that ruled Albania from 1944 to 1985. They were supposed to protect the country from an invasion... that never came. Nowadays, the bunkers are still everywhere, but slowly, Albanians are saying goodbye. They are getting rid of them to earn a few hundred euros by reusing the scrap that they are made of. For the past two years demolitions have frequently been carried out, following the rise in steel prices. The remaining bunkers are part of the landscape. Albanians use them as barns, stables or junk cupboards but most of the time, they pass them by. They only arouse the curiosity of tourists. Some Albanians try to give them a second life - turning them into a tattoo shop, a beach bar or a restaurant. Rehabilitating or conserving them for historical purposes is still rare. In Albania, a country still in transition and a potential candidate for EU membership, the end of the bunkers is an important psychological step, allowing them to forget the dark years of the dictatorship. But the omnipresence of these heavy concrete monsters - built to be indestructible - serves as a reminder of how difficult it is to escape the past.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Kavaja, Albania. June 2013. Bunker used by Arif, fisherman, on the beach near Kavaja.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Tirana, Albania, June 2013. In the suburbs of the capital Tirana.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. On the road north of Tiran.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. MamMamurrasuras, Albania, June 2013. Catholic Church of Mamurras (north of Tirana).
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Tirana, Albania. June 2013. Memorial "Postblock" inaugurated in March 2013 by the former dissident Fatos Lubonja and the artist Ardian Isufi at the heart of the old quarter of the communist nomenklatura (ruling class). Visited by tourists.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. Near the coastal of the city of Kavaje.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. Bunker in a field near the archaeological site of Apollonia.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. Destruction of several large bunkers by the Pojan family, near the tourist site of Apollonia. They will keep only one, as a souvenir and to attract tourists.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. Village at the edge of Lake Ohrid.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence.  Albania, June 2013. Bunkers destroyed near Saranda.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Vlora, Albania, June 2013. Football field on a military airfield in the city of Vlora.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Albania, June 2013. On the road between Tirana and Elbasan.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Koplik, Albania, June 2013.
© Corentin Fohlen/Divergence. Pogradec, Albania, June 2013. Bunkers destroyed around Lake Ohrid during the construction of the road that runs alongside the lake.
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