Prime Minister Edi Rama has responded to the protests in Tirana, as well as debates over the involvement of Albanian criminal groups in international drug trafficking. During an interview with American journalist Andrew Callaghan on the show “Channel 5”, Rama was asked about citizens’ dissatisfaction and the protesters’ demands for changes in the country. The head of government stated that the concerns raised during the protests are being taken into consideration by the government, adding that work has already begun to implement the demands for some of them.
Excerpt from the interview
Rama: Tell me what you want from me.
Journalist: What is your opinion on the street protests, the “Flamingo Revolution” and the people demanding change?
Rama: Do you feel that some revolution is happening here?
Journalist: I’m simply saying it the way they call it…
Rama: It is a protest and everything is fine. We have the right to protest as a free democratic country.
Journalist: Have you heard any of their concerns that made you think you should change some things about society here?
Rama: No, let’s say that in the first week, when everyone was in the streets, it was very useful to understand that we listened beyond the noise. And of course we took notes. Some of these notes are being implemented.
Journalist: What are the things you think are important to implement?
Rama: For example, the digital mirror. Your President (Donald Trump), a few days ago exposed an AI information source for the government. So we launched it immediately after we noted it from the beginning of the protest, and now we are implementing it. For example, now you have everything related to the project that incited the crowd exposed transparently online.
Journalist: A topic that has come up a lot from these protests is the rise of organized crime in Albania. How several different groups have grown greatly, dominating the cocaine market in Europe, Australia and other countries.
Rama: Who says this?
Journalist: DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) reports, SPAK intelligence and other organizations have said that various cocaine markets in London, Israel and various ports in Ecuador are now under the control of groups that have admitted to having links with Albanian mafia.
Rama: I have heard that, on the contrary, the director of SPAK, a few years ago, at least, said there is no such thing as an Albanian mafia. It does not exist. There are Albanians, just as there are Americans, Spanish or Italians, call them what you will, who are involved in this global chain. But there is nothing like an Albanian mafia that controls the cocaine world. These things are, forgive me, nonsense.
Journalist: Where do you think this nonsense comes from?
Rama: No, but they are nonsense because they do not match the reality of things.
Journalist: So you think these things don’t happen?
Rama: This is not an opinion. I am telling you that the director of SPAK himself told me that the Albanian mafia does not exist.
Journalist: Alright. If you look at the latest data published by SPAK recently, it says that between 2015 and 2024, it was estimated that more than 54% of the money flowing from real estate agencies and the construction sector in Albania comes from unknown and illegal sources. You have a hand in approving these developments.
Rama: Who says this?
Journalist: SPAK. Many international journalists.
Rama: SPAK has never said this. SPAK has never reported this problem, because SPAK may have said something different, that the seized money, part of it, was channeled into real estate agencies. But SPAK has never said that.