Mr Rama, Albania’s prime minister since 2013, is accused by his opponents of corruption, ties to organized crime and silencing the media.
Thousands of right-wing opposition supporters in Albania demonstrated against the Socialist Party government in the capital Tirana on Thursday, with the leader of the Democratic Party, Sali Berisha, in a speech demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama.
Mr Berisha – whose supporters marched to the government headquarters without serious incident, carrying banners reading “Albania is in danger” – accuses Mr Rama of stealing public money, corruption and authoritarianism.
The former president of Albania had declared that yesterday’s demonstration would mark the beginning of a campaign of mass mobilizations aimed at bringing down Mr. Rama’s government.
Berisha, 77, became Albania’s first democratically elected president in 1992, after the fall of the communist government. He was later the country’s prime minister (2005-2013).
He was the head of the Democratic Party until 2013, when he resigned after his humiliating election defeat. But he regained the reins of his faction in May after successfully ousting his successor and one-time protégé Lulzim Basha.
Mr Rama, Albania’s prime minister since 2013, is accused by his opponents of corruption, ties to organized crime and silencing the media.
RES-EMP
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