TIRANA, July 11 /ATA/ – Protesters gathered in central Tirana on Saturday evening for a 42nd consecutive day of demonstrations that began over a planned tourism development in the coastal area of Zvërnec, southern Albania, and have since broadened into calls for the government’s resignation.
As on previous days, demonstrators assembled in Skanderbeg Square before marching along the “Martyrs of the Nation” Boulevard to the Prime Minister’s office, where they delivered speeches.
Carrying banners, protesters called for Prime Minister Edi Rama’s resignation, the departure of what they described as the country’s old political establishment, changes to the electoral law and the repeal of amendments to legislation governing protected areas.
Addressing the crowd, activist Sidorela Vatnikaj said the demonstrations had evolved into a broader civic movement, attracting support across Albania and among the Albanian diaspora.
“In 42 days, Albanian society has shown that it does not deserve the government it has today,” Vatnikaj said. “We have demonstrated not only that citizens can protest, but that they can articulate political demands and build an alternative for a new Albania.”
She said protests and solidarity events had spread beyond Tirana to cities across Albania as well as Albanian communities elsewhere in Europe and the United States.
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