The Tepelena camp was established in the years 1949–1954 in the former Italian barracks and was one of the most important internment camps during the communist regime in Albania. It was created to deport hundreds of families that the regime considered “enemies of the government”, due to their biography, origin or political positions. Women, men, children and the elderly were sent to this camp, who were forced to live in very difficult conditions, with a lack of food, minimal hygiene and hard physical work. The Tepelena camp has remained known as a symbol of the cruelty of the dictatorship and the innocent suffering of thousands of people.
Today, the Tepelena Camp no longer functions as an internment site. It has been turned into a memorial and study space, where some of the original buildings are preserved and signs are placed telling its history. The area is visited by historians, students and tourists as a place of reflection on past suffering and as a way to preserve historical memory for future generations. Its current function is educational and commemorative, making the camp one of the most important testimonies of the tragedies of communism in Albania.
