TIRANA, Oct. 21 /ATA/ – Albania will work with European Union member states on measures to restrict access to their territories for people involved in violent protests, Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Wednesday, as he vowed to use technology to identify those responsible.
Speaking at a meeting with executives from the banking sector, Rama also said the country had made economic progress compared with other countries in the region, arguing that growth depended on hard work and cooperation rather than violence.
“An economy grows through work, not stones. It grows through cooperation, not by turning our backs on one another,” he said.
The prime minister said the government would step up efforts to identify those responsible for violence during protests and prevent further incidents.
He said the government would invest in technology to identify people who incite or commit violence, including those who attempt to conceal their identities by covering their faces.
“By investing rapidly in technology, we will identify those wearing hoods, even if they keep them on or cover their entire faces, because we will track them every step of the way using technology,” Rama said.
“This is not just talk, but a message to everyone still involved in violence: abandon this path before it is too late,” he added.
Rama said the government would also cooperate with EU member states to explore measures restricting access to their territories for people involved in violent acts.
“We will intervene on trains and across all modes of transport. Naturally, we will cooperate with EU countries, and we have already begun work to prevent people involved in acts of violence from accessing those countries,” he said.
“It is absolutely essential to understand that violence has no place in this country and will not be allowed to take root,” Rama added.
He reiterated that work and cooperation, rather than violence, were essential to Albania’s economic development.
/gj.m/j.p/u.sh/
