Albanian protests against Trump-linked resort swell

Protesters hold placards and national flags outside the Albanian prime minister’s office in Tirana, protesting a luxury resort near the protected Zvernec area near Vlore. (AFP pic)

TIRANA: Thousands of protesters marched through Albania’s capital Saturday, one of the largest demonstrations since rallies against a planned resort linked to US President Donald Trump’s family began almost three weeks ago.

Since late May, protesters have gathered every evening to oppose the construction of a luxury hotel linked to Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, planned in a nature reserve on the Balkan nation’s coast.

Opposition to the development has become a flash point for frustrations over perceived corruption, with demands now including the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Although official numbers were not available, AFP journalists said the crowd appeared to be the biggest since demonstrations began.

Boosted by a large number of Albanian diaspora who travelled to the country for the rally, a sea of marchers waved Albanian and American flags as red balloons were released into the air.

The protesters said they would stay in the streets until Rama resigns. Some protesters projected the slogan “Albania is not for sale” PM’s offices building.

The protesters accuse him and his government of a lack of transparency concerning the developments planned on the Albanian coast.

“We are not against the country’s development; we are against the arrogance and lack of transparency surrounding projects that affect our lives,” said one protester, Alma, a student at the faculty of science.

Rama defiant

Rama, who has remained defiant throughout the protests, told a party meeting earlier Saturday that he would not resign.

He claimed that Kushner’s involvement, rather than concerns about the development itself, was fuelling the protests.

“The world did not wake up from the fate of Narta, but from the name of Kushner and the shadow of Trump,” he said.

The wave of demonstrations was sparked after barbed-wire fencing and bulldozers appeared on a quiet beach in the coastal area of Zvernec in the protected Vjosa-Narta area – about 100km southwest of the capital Tirana.

Clashes between local protesters and private security at the proposed hotel site sparked outrage and drew large crowds to marches within days.

The Kushner-backed resort, along with another development on nearby Sazan Island, are both planned near a key breeding site for migratory birds – including hundreds of flamingos.

“The Vjosa-Narta landscape, including the Zvernec region, is one of Albania’s most valuable natural ecosystems, and its importance extends far beyond the country’s borders”, Olsi Nika, a biologist and aquatic ecologist, said at the protest.