Vlora Hyseni’s arrest sparks debate over Rama’s responsibility and the leadership of SHISH

The Special Court’s decision to place Vlora Hyseni, the former director of the State Intelligence Service (SHISH), under house arrest has brought renewed attention to discussions about the functioning of security institutions and the political leadership’s responsibility for them.

The issue has not been limited to the accusations against the former SHISH director or to the court ruling. Prime Minister Edi Rama has also become part of the debate because of his institutional role in relation to the service.

Rama described the arrest measure against Hyseni as “extreme”, while the institutional responsibilities linked to the case were also discussed by the Security Council. The prime minister’s position has raised questions about political responsibility for the administration of security structures and about the limits of the relationship between the executive branch and the judiciary.

The Special Prosecution accuses Vlora Hyseni of supporting the perpetrator of a crime and disclosing state secrets. In addition to individual responsibility, which will be determined by the justice authorities, the case has also prompted discussion about the way an institution crucial to national security is led.

Rama’s assessment of the arrest measure has raised further questions in the public sphere. If he considers the decision “extreme”, the debate concerns the reasons for this position and the responsibility the prime minister bears toward the security structures. The question has also been raised of whether responsibility will remain solely with the former director or extend to the way SHISH functions and is led.

SPAK’s communication has also drawn attention. The publication of parts of the case file has prompted reactions concerning the balance between the public’s right to information and respect for the presumption of innocence, while the judicial process has not yet concluded.

Kapiti: Political responsibility for SHISH cannot stop at the former director

Analyst Skënder Kapiti, speaking to “Bota sot”, said that the case involving Vlora Hyseni should be analyzed beyond her personal responsibility.

According to Kapiti, the charges brought by the Special Prosecution and the developments within a national security institution are also connected to the country’s political leadership. He believes that the role of Prime Minister Edi Rama and the way SHISH has been administered should be examined in this case.

Kapiti says Hyseni is accused of supporting the perpetrator of a crime and disclosing state secrets, while he portrays the prime minister as the de facto head of the State Intelligence Service. In his statement, he links Rama to corruption, illegality, treason and deals involving national interests, claiming that history will remember him and the “Renaissance court” for the damage, corruption, theft and departure of Albanians from their homeland. According to him, Rama will be recorded as the greatest wrongdoer against Albanians, Albania and Kosovo.

The analyst broadens his criticism to the way institution heads are selected. He claims that the ministers, directors, diplomats and advisers appointed by the prime minister are loyal and obedient people who carry out his orders. Kapiti says that, in his view, obedience to Rama is a criterion for obtaining positions such as member of parliament, minister, director of SHISH or head of other state structures, as well as roles such as academic, media mercenary, patronage activist, “consomol” member or Rama pioneer.

Kapiti goes on to argue that the prime minister cannot be separated from responsibility for the situation created at SHISH. According to him, the institution has been used to serve the government’s political interests.

He accuses Rama of undermining intelligence and human dignity through the language used in his jokes, while also criticizing the way he treats protesters, judges and journalists. Kapiti describes the prime minister as a defender of ministers, directors, thieves and corrupt individuals, saying that he is also defending the former SHISH director, whom he himself selected.

Regarding the specific case, the analyst says that political responsibility falls more heavily on the prime minister than on the former director. According to him, Hyseni found a particular institutional environment and, willingly or unwillingly, carried out the political orders of her superior. Kapiti claims that SHISH has been placed at the service of corruption, theft, the narco-state and the government.

Kapiti also links the situation to relations between Albania and Kosovo. He recalls that in 2012 he wrote the book “The Triumph of the Nation”, hoping that, after the victory of independence and the creation of the state of Kosovo, the way would be opened toward national unification. According to him, in 2026 Albania and Kosovo are at a crossroads, and relations between them have never been at such a low level. He says history will attribute this situation to the “national wrongdoers”, both the government in Tirana and Kosovo’s current opposition.

Ndoj: Rama bears moral and political responsibility for SHISH

Publicist Llesh Ndoj views the prime minister’s responsibility in terms of his position as SHISH’s direct superior. He distinguishes between moral and political responsibility and criminal responsibility, stressing that he does not consider himself competent to determine whether Rama bears criminal responsibility.

Ndoj describes the prime minister’s reaction as normal, given what he considers the alarming situation for the state and for Rama. He notes that it would once have been unimaginable for a person in office and at much lower levels to be arrested, whereas now the head of the service has been arrested—not only while carrying out her duties, but also while she was abroad.

The publicist also criticizes the way SPAK communicated. According to him, if the state and its institutions were functioning normally in its service, Vlora Hyseni should have returned to her homeland and resigned before the arrest measure was announced. He stresses that this would have mattered for the seriousness of the Albanian state, and not only for Hyseni or Rama.

Ndoj adds that SPAK should not have published parts of the case file because, in his view, this contributed to the former director’s denigration in the public eye before legal guilt had been established.