Gozi: "Von der Leyen must ask Rama for explanations"
"Ursula von der Leyen needs to ask Edi Rama what is happening in Albania." This is the call made by Sandro Gozi, Secretary General of the European Democratic Party (EDP) and Renew Europe MEP, in an interview with the Italian daily Il Piccolo published on [DATA], on the eve of the Commission President's visit to Tirana.
A movement that keeps asking for democracy
The interview focuses on the Flamingo revolution, the environmental and anti-corruption protest movement that began against real estate and tourism projects on the island of Sazan, which are linked to Jared Kushner. According to Gozi, the movement "is still strong and keeps asking for transparency and democracy", while "Rama is reacting in a repressive and authoritarian way".
"Von der Leyen must now ask for explanations, because we need to be demanding in resolving democratic issues of transparency," he added.
A candidate country on the wrong track
For Gozi, what is happening in Albania "is not positive for a candidate country. It is not helping Albania's path towards Europe."
He recalled that last summer he asked Meta and Rama himself to explain why the Instagram accounts of several activists of the movement had been shut down. He also tabled a written question to the European Commission on the matter. "This led to an open dispute between Rama and us," he said. "On 4 September I gave an interview to Euronews Albania, and a few hours later their account was taken down too."
Rome's silence
Gozi also criticised the Italian government's silence. "Given the relationship between Giorgia Meloni and Rama, including on the centres in Albania, a failure that the Prime Minister managed to sell as a success in the EU, it is no surprise that the Italian government and part of the Italian institutional world are so silent on the Flamingo revolution."
The Hungarian lesson
Gozi ended with a warning: "If we end up with an Albania in the EU that is not fully democratic, well, we have seen what happened with Hungary."
The EDP has always supported Albania's European future. Enlargement is a strategic choice for the Union, and it only works if the rule of law, media freedom and the right to protest are respected in full. Being demanding with Tirana today is the best way to make sure that Albania joins the EU as a full democracy.
