Albanian youth protests escalate: Tear gas, at least 167 detained as Rama government faces legitimacy pressure

According to Al Jazeera, anti-government demonstrations have taken place for several consecutive days in Albania’s capital, Tirana. Police fired tear gas at several thousand young protesters as they attempted to cross barricades, and used water cannon and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd; at least 167 people were detained, including minors. As secondary-school and university students joined, grievances over rising tuition fees, deteriorating public education facilities and dormitory conditions were brought to the streets, with protesters demanding that Prime Minister Edi Rama resign immediately and form a “technocratic government,” while rejecting the government’s proposed dialogue.

The movement evolved from the “Flamingo Revolution” launched in May against luxury development projects. The dispute involved proposed resort projects on the protected coast at Zvërnec and on Sazan Island. Al Jazeera said the Sazan Island project included an investment by a company affiliated with Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Trump; it described the venture as a US private-capital project rather than a US government policy. Meanwhile, claims circulating on social media that the Rama government was placing the national interest below private interests, personal power or foreign interests, including purported Israeli interests, have not been substantiated. Rama dismissed them as conspiracy theories and disinformation spread by a “foreign hand.”

Fatos Hakoria, editor-in-chief of TV Klan, told Al Jazeera that what was clear so far was that the protests were organized mainly by young people themselves. Hakoria said dynamic coordination was carried out primarily through digital platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram and Snapchat, rather than through a formal organizational hierarchy. Political analyst Ben Andoni called it a “horizontal movement,” saying participants were mobilized mainly through TikTok groups and social networks rather than directed by formal cultural or political organizations. There was no clear evidence of a unified organization behind the movement. Andoni also cited corruption, nepotism and a lack of confidence in the future as underlying causes.

The movement has simultaneously rejected the ruling Socialist Party and the Democratic Party led by Sal Berisha. Opposition leaders did not control the situation on the ground, and several opposition lawmakers who tried to address the crowd were publicly hostility. The protesters’ rejection showed that they did not accept representation by the two existing parties and left the government without a single interlocutor with whom to negotiate. This breakdown of trust in state institutions meant the dialogue proposal had no clear recipient. Andoni said the movement’s horizontal structure was both a source of pressure on the Rama government and a reason it was difficult for the government to engage in dialogue with the protesters.

In response to protesters refusing to engage in dialogue, the Rama government has relied more heavily on the police. The report did not independently verify the legality of the police’s use of water cannon and rubber bullets at each stage. Amid mass arrests and continuing clashes, Rama announced bonuses of 2,500 euros for frontline police officers and plans to raise police salaries in 2027. Hakoria believed the government was treating the crisis primarily as a matter of public order and law enforcement. Andoni was more blunt: “The protesters remain persistent and tough, while Rama plays the force card through the police.” In his assessment, police rather than dialogue were becoming the government’s main tool for maintaining control, severely damaging its moral authority and legitimacy.

Al Jazeera also reported that unidentified people carrying wooden clubs had appeared inside the Socialist Party’s headquarters; the report said they had stayed to protect the building while protesters threw stones, and that some were public officeholders. The report did not clarify the identities of these people or the authority under which they acted, making the boundary between informal security forces and formal policing even more blurred.

Analysts believe fatigue may force some young people temporarily off the streets, leaving Rama responsible for demonstrating the legitimacy, capacity and willingness to reform his government. But the absence of clear leadership also means an ebb in protests does not necessarily amount to failure. The police’s methods can currently disperse crowds but have not opened a channel for negotiations. The protests have made the rift between young people and the political establishment publicly visible. Whether the movement subsides with fatigue or becomes a more enduring challenge to Albania’s existing party system will depend on whether its organizational capacity can withstand continued attrition.