Prime Minister Edi Rama has threated prison for protesters who engage in vandalism on the third day of protests following the killing of 25-year-old Klodian Rasha by a policeman after he allegedly broke curfew time and didn’t obey police orders.
Rama warned parents to keep their kids away from participating in the protest, and assured them that those who engage in vandalism will face prison.
“My call to the parents of minors abused by the Socialist Movement for Integration is to protect the children from the clutches of those unpatriotic people who have been led astray. For anyone else who takes to breaking and burning, it must be very clear that playing with the law and the state takes one behind bars,” Rama warned on Twitter on Friday.
He accused the opposition and President Ilir Meta of organizing the vandalism in protests.
“The opposition and the President are not only the instigators, but also the orchestrators of the violence that insults the memory of Klodian,” Rama wrote.
He added that opposition leaders Lulzim Basha and Monika Kryemadhi were “desperately” trying to use the incident for political gains.
The police arrested dozens of people after the second day of protest on Thursday.
The protests did not end after the minister of interior announced his irrevocable resignation.
Protesters, mainly youngsters, vandalized some public spaces and government building in the center of the capital Tirana.
Police dispersed them with tear gas and pepper spray after the minister’s resignation was announced.
The murder of 25-year-old Klodian Rasha by a police officer has sparked a wave of protests in several cities in Albania.
The third day of protest is expected to start at 18:00 on Friday, announced by some popular social media accounts engaged in social and political memes.
