Albania’s protests are no longer just about one resort in a protected area. For Anna Strolenberg, a Dutch member of the European Parliament, they expose a government drifting away from Europe.
Anna Strolenberg (Greens/EFA/NLD) spoke to EU Perspectives following the Parliament’s recent resolution calling for a moratorium on new developments in Albania’s protected areas. It is a politically significant signal to Tirana, even if not a binding one.
More than a month of demonstrations have turned a dispute over a luxury resort near Zvërnec into the biggest political crisis Albania has seen in years. The movement, now known as the Flamingo Revolution, has since spread well beyond one protected area.
The position of the Parliament comes following protests in Albania over changes to protected areas. Demonstrators have been clear that their problem is not foreign investment as such, but how decisions about it are made. “It is not a legally binding vote, but I think it does send a strong signal to the people in Tirana and Albania, saying that we listen to the people, to what is happening there,” Ms Strolenberg said.
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Ms Strolenberg is clear about the message sent to Prime Minister Edi Rama: economic development cannot override environmental protection. “It is a clear signal to Edi Rama that economic investment cannot come at any cost,” she said. “These protected nature reserves should be protected, and a country cannot just change the rules and use these protected lands for economic development.”
Nature laws must be restored
Ms Strolenberg linked the issue directly to Albania’s EU ambitions. “We all want Albania to become part of the EU as soon as possible, but if this is the case, then the laws concerning nature have to be restored,” she said.
When asked whether Albania had enough time to comply with EU environmental legislation under Chapter 27, she was direct: the issue is not about time, but political will. “It’s not so much about timing,” she said. “It’s more about which direction Edi Rama is going.”
Ms Strolenberg argued that Rama is actively moving in the wrong direction. “Instead of adapting towards European laws, he’s choosing to go the other way. He’s downgrading nature laws in Albania, making it easier to have these luxury resorts in protected areas,” she said. The main question, she added, is whether Albania is moving towards the EU or away from it.
Not against investment, but against opacity
Ms Strolenberg backed the protesters’ distinction between opposing investment and opposing how decisions are made behind closed doors. After her speech at the European Parliament, she said, she received hundreds of messages from Albanians sharing the same concern: a lack of transparency.
Many were asking why public funds are being used for private investment when basic public needs remain unmet. “How can it be that all these public resources go to private investments? The money should go towards healthcare, drinking water, a good education system,” she said.
From green protest to broader revolt
What began as a protest against protected areas policy has grown into a broader challenge to governance in Albania. Demonstrators are now gathering in front of the prime minister’s office, raising issues far beyond environmental protection, including wages, pensions and corruption.
Ms Strolenberg sees deeper problems at play. “There is a lack of transparency. There are corruption cases,” she said.
There are too many corruption scandals, too little transparency, and there is a lack of trust in the government of Edi Rama.
— Anna Strolenberg, Greens/EFA
Many Albanians, she said, still want a future in their country and want Albania to join the EU. But they no longer trust the current government. “What a lot of people tell me is that they want a future in Albania, and they want Albania in the EU, but right now there are still too many corruption scandals, too little transparency, and there is a lack of trust in the government of Edi Rama,” she said.
Rama accused of ignoring protests
Ms Strolenberg disagreed with Rama’s characterisation of the movement as a social media-driven revolt. “Edi Rama is now saying: look, this is just a social media revolution,” she said. But the size of the demonstrations tells a different story. “If thousands and thousands of people gather on the streets every day, then clearly there are more problems,” she added.
People in Albania say that right now it is enough. I think that sends a very strong signal.
— Anna Strolenberg, Greens/EFA
For Ms Strolenberg, the protests are not only about one protected area. They reflect a public demanding EU membership, better institutions, and a government accountable to its citizens. “People in Albania say that right now it is enough. I think that sends a very strong signal,” she said.
