Albanian MP joins student protests demanding Prime Minister Rama's resignation
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Twenty-five-year-old MP Marjana Koceku, now an independent, stood with students in Tirana demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama step down amid corruption accusations and a backlash against policies many say serve elites, not ordinary people.
Albanian parliamentarian Marjana Koceku, a 25-year-old who was selected by Prime Minister Edi Rama to run for office, joined a wave of student protests in Tirana demanding the premier’s resignation. The demonstrations, which have seen clashes with police, reflect deep and growing anger over corruption allegations, unemployment and a sense that the government has abandoned ordinary people.
Police reports indicate that around 500 demonstrators were detained, with 330 released, and that injuries were reported among both officers and protesters. Authorities condemned the violence, while protestors argued that peaceful avenues had been ignored and that their demands were being treated with repression instead of answers.
"The country is amazing, but ... the wrong policies that have been implemented by this political elite are completely against what the Albanian communities and Albanian citizens have been asking and seeking for so long," Koceku said during the protests.
Prime Minister Rama, who has led the Socialist Party since 2013 and secured a fourth term last year, rejected calls to resign. He told Reuters that governmental change should occur through elections, not violence.
"Governments are changed through democratic elections and we had them last year, not through violence," Rama said.
The unrest follows earlier demonstrations over a proposed luxury resort on Albania’s southern coast, a project linked to President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Villagers have contested the land sale, and prosecutors have investigated the seller for alleged drug-trafficking, though no wrongdoing by Kushner was found.
Additional controversies have surrounded Rama’s administration, including allegations that the deputy prime minister was involved in awarding construction contracts to favored firms, which both officials deny.
"I didn't agree, especially with the policies that they were implementing against nature, and our land and our Albania," Koceku added.
The protests represent a major challenge to Rama’s rule, marking the largest public dissent since his party came to power.