The city of Milan in Italy is waiting anxiously for Saturday. Concern about new clashes comes as reports speak of cancelled marches, calls on social networks, and possibilities for different groups to gather in the square. The possible involvement of anarchist groups adds to the uncertainty.
Footage from other places is a serious warning. In France, the protests of 17 October were accompanied in several cities by violence, looting and destruction.
In Albania too, violence has affected institutions and public and private property. The European Commission explicitly condemned the arson and attacks, while also calling for the authorities’ response to remain within the law and be proportionate.
The causes of the protests differ from one country to another. The consequences of violence are everywhere similar: frightened citizens, destroyed work and social demands that disappear in the smoke.
What does a citizen gain from a burned bus? What justice is served by looting a shop? Who does the destruction of an institution serve, when that institution must tomorrow serve the very people who are protesting?
Behind a shop window there are savings and sacrifices. Behind a business there are employees and families. The repair of public property is paid again by taxpayers. Thus, the bill for violence ends up on the shoulders of citizens.
In Milan, every anarchist group or other grouping that seeks confrontation must know that dissatisfaction gives no license for arson. No ideology justifies the destruction of another person’s livelihood. Even the organizers of protests must clearly distance themselves from those who seek to turn the square into a place of violence.
Governments have an obligation to listen to dissatisfaction and respond to concrete problems. The police have an obligation to protect peaceful protesters, citizens and property, acting in accordance with the law. Responsibility for violence must be individual and proven.
From Tirana to Brussels, from Paris to Milan, the right to protest must be protected. Whoever sets fire and destroys must answer before justice. A society does not build its future by burning what it has!
