Last night on Euronews, Prime Minister Edi Rama was asked about the electiongate scandal.
This refers to the publication of leaked prosecution wiretaps that included the voices of criminals, state officials and employees, Socialist Party members, and Rama himself, seemingly discussing buying votes and intimidating voters.
When asked if he had listened to the tapes, Rama said yesterday that he had not listened to them as he was “disgusted”.
This is contrast to a Tweet from 2019, where Rama said:
“I confirm this conversation and I would do the same again. Who has ears, let him listen.”
He then threatened to sue BILD journalist Peter Teide who published some of the tapes but the case never materialized.
During the same emission, he said that the data leaked in the recent data scandal does belong to the Socialist Party, but has been modified.
“What has come out is a mixture of information that we have available, but that is not new, it’s old.”
Many citizens whose data was leaked said it contained updated information including new mobile numbers and workplaces that had been changed in the last few months.
He then attacked Lapsi.al and said that the data is manipulated and that’s why they don’t want to hand over the database, servers, mobiles, and computers.
Journalists’ sources are considered sacred and it is unethical to reveal them. Albanian law requires that in cases of a crime, the court can force them to be revealed, but this would typically only be appropriate in serious crimes such as murder.
The seizure of media platforms equipment could risk sources, confidential information,and the safety of anyone who has given information to the platform since it was created. It also sets a concerning precedent in terms of journalist-source trust and confidentiality in Albania.
