Tirana Protest: Rama's Dialogue Chairs Smashed Again

University professors marched through Tirana on October 21 alongside students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama, and protesters again rejected the call for dialogue he renewed. Albania, like Serbia, is a candidate for European Union membership, so developments in its capital are being followed across the region.

The day count differs by outlet: B92 reports that the protest is in its ninth day, while N1 earlier said it was entering its eighth. This article follows the B92 count. The demand is the same throughout: the prime minister’s resignation over corruption allegations.

What happened to the chairs outside the government?

Rama placed chairs labeled “dialogue” outside the government building. Protesters smashed them on Tuesday, and the prime minister put them back in the morning. A column gathered in front of the Polytechnic University and walked to Skanderbeg Square, home to the government and the prime minister’s office. When it arrived, the chairs were smashed and removed again.

In a video posted on Facebook on Tuesday, Rama said:

“Anyone who wants unconditional dialogue, wherever they want it and whenever they want it, even here if they want, I am available together with the Government. The only ones who are not welcome are those who resort to violence and those who do not distance themselves from violence.”

The next day, after putting the chairs back, he added:

“There are a thousand and one reasons for dissatisfaction, a thousand and one problems, a thousand and one reasons to protest, but no reason justifies violence. Every reason is one more argument for dialogue among people who share the same homeland and want the same thing: for Albania to be better.”

Participants carried banners reading “Long Live Free Youth,” “Today We Decide” and “End of Katovic.” According to a post by the portal Tirana Report on X, the morning began with rain and a walk by professors in support of the students, and the protest passed peacefully, with a warning that tension could rise in the afternoon.

How many people were injured or arrested?

According to official health data, 320 people have been injured in protests in several Albanian cities:

• 192 police officers
• 92 protesters
• 36 bystanders

Six media workers are among the injured, one of them a foreign national.

The Tirana police directorate said 33 people were arrested in the latest wave of violence, including six minors aged 15 to 17, and criminal proceedings were opened against 41 more. Authorities say masked suspects attacked officers and police vehicles with hard objects and set traffic signs on fire, injuring seven police officers. According to the same source, protesters threw cobblestones and firecrackers, and police responded with tear gas and water cannons.

For the past seven days, police report a total of 271 arrests, 51 of the detainees with prior criminal records. Authorities cite murder, drug production, extortion, prostitution and illegal weapons possession among those offenses. We earlier reported on 167 arrests and Rama’s refusal to resign.

How does Rama explain the unrest?

At a meeting with representatives of educational institutions, the prime minister called the unrest a “hybrid war.” He argues that foreign and political actors are exploiting discontent over economic problems to incite violence and try to bring down the government. Authorities say the criminal records of those arrested support that claim.

The Albanian ombudsman offers the other side of the picture. In a preliminary report published on Tuesday, the ombudsman cited numerous irregularities in the detention of protesters, OCCRP reports. The report raised concern about possible human rights violations during the police response.