Avni Rustemi

Avni Rustemi (22 September 1895 – 22 April 1924) was an Albanian patriot, militant, teacher, activist and member of the Albanian parliament. Rustemi was the leader of both democratic organisations "Atdheu" and "Bashkimi", and also a member of the democratic opposition in the Albanian National Assembly preceding the Revolution of June 1924. He is also known for having assassinated Essad Pasha Toptani.

Avni Rustemi
Avni Rustemi in the 1920s
Born	(1895-09-22)22 September 1895 Libohovë, Gjirokastër, Janina Vilayet, Ottoman Empire (modern Albania)
Died	22 April 1924(1924-04-22) (aged 28) Tirana, Principality of Albania
Cause of death	Assassinated by Jusuf Reçi
Nationality	Albanian
Occupation(s)	Member of Parliament, Writer, Politician
Awards	Hero of the People

Ideology

Avni Rustemi was an eminent democratic activist and ideologist. He claimed that "when the government does not fulfill the needs of the people, then this need must be fulfilled with the organised interest of people to push government to do so.'" He is quoted saying that "Without an independent economy, there can be no independent politics." His ideology was further enforced in the National Assembly of 1924; he became a deputy of the people from ex-prefecture of Kosovo.

Perception

Albanians generally see Rustemi as a national hero for the assassination of Essad Pasha Toptani, whom they think of as a traitor who developed good relations with the Kingdom of Serbia and Kingdom of Montenegro. As a member of the Toptani family, King Zog I ordered an assassination of him, ultimately leading to his popularity decreasing in the country.

Films

Avni Rustemi has also been the subject of numerous feature films, in most of them he appears as national hero, who killed the traitor of the nation. Two shots in Paris (sq:Dy krisma në Paris) is a drama by Sheri Mita, Pëllumb Kulla with the subject of Essad Pasha Toptani's murder in Paris and the trial of Avni Rustemi