On the third day of protests in Tirana, police violence against young people, students and high school students has escalated significantly.
In contrast, over the previous two days, groups of masked civilians, without any identification marks, have appeared on the streets, hitting protesters with sticks, raising serious questions about the way the police are responding.
In the above footage filmed today in Tirana, the presence of masked individuals, dressed in civilian clothes and equipped with batons, who act without visible signs of identification alongside uniformed police officers is noticeable.
These police-organized groups did not appear on the first and second days of the protest. The lack of identification and the manner of intervention raise serious questions of legality and institutional accountability.
In the footage circulating on social media, young people, including those who appear to be minors, are seen being caught in the street, beaten with rubber batons and dragged. The interventions are not limited to dispersing the crowd, but also include chasing and hitting protesters, in circumstances that require an explanation from the leaders of the State Police.
While the police are tasked with maintaining public order, it has been noted that the response being given to the protest now resembles more the violence of street gangs than the intervention of a state institution.
In the footage seen above, filmed by Syri TV, groups of police are seen throwing stones at the crowd as the protesters retreat.
On the first day of the protest, the police response was considered excessive, with one protester's leg broken, while others were dragged and beaten before being escorted to the police station.
Foreign missions in Tirana reacted by condemning the excessive use of force by the blue uniforms, who have the obligation to guarantee public safety, but also to respect the proportionality of force, especially when faced with minors. Even in cases where protests are accompanied by acts of violence, this does not give anyone the right to hit neutralized persons or throw stones at protesters.
But what is most important is that the police must clarify who the masked civilians with batons are, who is commanding them, and on what legal basis they intervene against the protesters./Lapsi.al
