The use of rubber bullets by the State Police during today's protest in Tirana raises questions about the respect for European standards on the right to assembly and the protection of the physical integrity of citizens. Is the Delegation of the European Union in Tirana aware of the standards set by the European Court of Human Rights?
An important reference is the decision of the Grand Chamber of the ECHR in the case of Tsaava and Others v. Georgia, dated December 11, 2025, which examined the excessive and indiscriminate use of weapons with impact shells during the protests in Tbilisi.
According to the standards addressed by the Court, the use of kinetic projectiles should be a measure of last resort, only in the face of a real and immediate threat to life or physical integrity. They should not be used for general crowd dispersal, but only against specific individuals, avoiding the head, face and neck areas. Their use should be governed by clear protocols and, where possible, preceded by warning.
In this context, the use of rubber bullets in Tirana requires transparency and clarification from the authorities: under what circumstances they were used, what threat they aimed to neutralize, and whether the criteria of necessity, proportionality, and distinction of objectives were respected.
The question also remains open for the EU Delegation in Tirana: will it demand an explanation on the use of these means and respect for European human rights standards during the protests in Albania?
