Prime Minister offers stone table as symbol for dialogue during unrest
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Prime Minister Edi Rama has placed a stone table outside his office as a symbolic invitation to dialogue on the 12th day of national demonstrations. What began as a student movement has grown to include doctors, artists, and teachers, with protesters gathering in the capital to call for the Prime Minister's resignation and an end to corruption.
The tactics of the state are coming under as much scrutiny as its leadership. Police face accusations of illegally searching the mobile phones of those they detain, while parents have gone public with accounts of police brutality. Mr Rama’s own rhetoric has been challenged by a medical student who refuted his claims that protesters are being criminalized.
A separate corruption scandal involving the AKSHI agency has seen a French appeal regarding the release of Ermal Beqiri, with businessmen opposing his extradition. Meanwhile, police in Korçë arrested a kindergarten teacher following a mother's report and video footage of the alleged abuse of a four-year-old.