Why Albanian opposition politicians lit fire and set off smoke bombs in parliament

Albania’s Opposition politicians set off coloured smoke flares in parliament on Monday: The reason: to stop the chamber from voting on the 2024 budget. The Opposition Democratic Party members said they were protesting against increasing authoritarian rule by the governing Socialists. The minute Prime Minister Edi Rama took his seat to vote on next year’s budget, MPs piled chairs in the centre of the chamber and set off smoke bombs and lit a small fire, which led red, green and purple smoke filled the air as security kept protesters back from the seat of Prime Minister Edi Rama. One MP appeared to light a small fire which was passed forward in a container before flames briefly spread and were doused by surrounding MPs. The Socialists, who have 73 seats in the 140-seat Parliament, voted quickly in principle and closed the session in five minutes. Each budget item will be debated later this week. What the Opposition wants The Opposition wants to establish parliamentary investigation commissions to look into suspected corruption cases involving Rama and other high government officials. The Socialists say the Opposition’s demands do not meet constitutional requirements. One of the Opposition legislators, Gazmend Bardhi, stated that they would not allow the Parliament to conduct its routine work. “Our battle is to show to each citizen that this is not the Parliament representing them,” he said. [caption id=“attachment_13410422” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Flamur Noka, a democratic lawmaker, holds flares during a parliament session, in Tirana, Albania. Albanian Opposition lawmakers disrupted the Parliament’s session again on Monday to protest against what they say, is increasingly authoritarian rule by the governing Socialists. AP[/caption] However, Bledi Cuci, the president of the Socialists’ parliamentary bloc, asked Albanians to remember that the Parliament was passing the largest budget in history, twice the size of the one passed in 2013, when the Socialists took control. “In democracy, the opposition speaks with alternatives and not with flares,” he added. The de-facto leader of the party, Sali Berisha, a former prime minister, has accused the government of trying to silence the Opposition in parliament where Rama’s Socialist Party has a majority. “The battle has no way back,” Berisha told reporters after the disturbance in the chamber where the budget passed a first vote in a session that lasted less than five minutes. “Our goal is to bring pluralism to parliament.” How it all began The unrest began last month, two days before prosecutors charged Sali Berisha, former prime minister and president of the Democratic Party, with corruption in connection with a land-buying scam that is currently being investigated in Tirana. Prosecutors claim Berisha, 79, gave financial favours to his son-in-law, who was arrested. Berisha has stated that they are both innocent and that the case is politically motivated by his opponent, Rama. [caption id=“attachment_13410452” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Democratic lawmakers using chairs as they try to block the parliament session in Tirana, Albania. AP[/caption] Bardhi stated that the Opposition’s protests would become more radical, but he did not elaborate. Since 2021, when Berisha and his family members were prevented from entering the country by the US, and then by the UK, due to alleged corruption, the Opposition has been divided into at least three factions. Berisha is the fourth top Albanian official forbidden from entering the United States due to corruption. Albania has struggled to combat corruption, which has hampered the country’s democratic, economic, and social growth. Berisha accuses Rama of orchestrating the prosecution against him. Rama denies the accusation. “They (Opposition) brought the vocabulary and manners of the street into politics,” Rama said on X, previously Twitter, after the disturbance. With inputs from Reuters and AP