Protests have erupted in Albania in the last three weeks, bringing thousands to the streets every day in opposition to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s proposed luxury resort development near a protected wetland and coastal habitat. The Zvërnec wetlands are home to over 70 endangered species, including flamingos, sea turtles, and the Mediterranean monk seal, which is one of the world’s most endangered marine mammals. Trump and Kushner, along with billionaire brothers Moutaz and Ramez Al Khayyat, want to turn it into a $1.6 million playground for the ultra wealthy.
Anger exploded May 30th, when bulldozers moved in to the Vjosa-Narta Protected Reserve and started clearing sand dune and pine forest habitats behind chain link fences and private security, blocking off locals from the land. Every day since, protests have flooded the streets in Tirana, the Albanian capital, marked by inflatable flamingos and signs reading “Albania is not for sale.”
Protesters are calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama for selling out their land to wealthy tourists with no semblance of transparency or public input. Rama has repeatedly doubled down on the development, saying the land “belongs to the investors,” and that “It is very important that we remain welcoming, that we remain fair, and that under no circumstances do we receive the stigma of being a country where investors are met with hostility.” But this one development is not where the anger begins or ends. Mass protests earlier this year also demanded Rama’s ousting over high-level corruption and Albania’s subordination to EU and U.S. interests in service of integration into the EU and his attempts to ingratiate himself to President Trump. Under Rama’s government, Albanian land has already become home to Italian-run migrant detention centers and a U.S. military Special Operations Command headquarters.
The Albanian people have a right to decide what happens to their natural resources. Like so many working people around the world, they are sick and tired of having no say in what is prioritized in their society and how they will be affected. And rightly so! We see our governments pass from party to party with no real solutions to problems of cost of living, job options, environmental conditions, and so many other issues. They can’t find the solution, because these problems are inherent to the system of capitalism, a system the ruling parties defend even if they call themselves Socialist like Rama’s party does. It is the internationally united working class that has the power to change the system fundamentally and build instead a truly participatory democratic society – one that prioritizes the needs of the majority.
