Agron Shehaj, leader of the “Mundësia” party, joined protesters on Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard and spoke live to News24. He harshly criticized the police for intervening against peaceful demonstrators, attributing responsibility for ordering the use of force to Prime Minister Edi Rama.
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Shehaj described the state violence as a sign of the government’s panic in the face of a youth movement that, he said, can no longer be brought under political control.
According to the leader of “Mundësia,” before the police intervened to disperse the protest, participants had not committed any violent acts. He said: “Today Edi Rama ordered the dispersal of a peaceful protest. We were here; no one threw stones, there was no act of violence, but at a certain point, when he saw that many people were gathering, he began pushing them and forcing them away. Why? Because he wants to stop the protest, because he wants to stop change, because he wants to stop young people.”
He claimed that the orders for the police intervention came from the head of government, who, in his view, is determined to hold on to power at any cost. “It is Edi Rama who directs the police; it is Edi Rama who personally directs the violence against the protesters. He thinks he will succeed through violence. He miscalculated, because this generation has extraordinary courage, a desire and a determination that no one has seen in the past 30 years,” Shehaj said.
Commenting on the decision by university lecturers to suspend classes and join the students’ boycott, he urged them not to limit themselves to expressing support, but to stand alongside the young people in the square. “They should not simply show solidarity with the students; they should be there together with the students. They did the right thing by joining them today. They should join them not only in the morning, but throughout the day, every day until Edi Rama steps down,” he said.
Shehaj argued that the civic and nonpartisan character of the protest is the source of its strength. “This protest is not a party protest. It is not made up of activists who are here seeking a job. They are here because they want to change Albania, because they want to bring down a corrupt political class that has made life impossible for their parents. Edi Rama will be forced to leave and must resign as soon as possible, unconditionally,” he concluded.
