By Helena Smith, “ The Guardian ”/ Albania’s “flamingo revolution” has gained its most prominent supporter yet, after pop star Dua Lipa expressed admiration for the protest movement against a Trump family-backed resort in the Balkan country.
As demonstrations against the €1.6 billion real estate project entered its sixth week, the London-born singer, who grew up partly in Pristina, the home of her Kosovo Albanian immigrant parents, described the civic unrest as "inspiring."
Speaking about the issue in a conversation with Albanian academic and author Lea Ypi on her podcast “Service95 Book Club,” Lipa said: “I find it very inspiring to see how many people really care.”
The project, which partly involves major construction on Sazan, Albania's only island, is backed by investors led by the US president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his wife, Ivanka Trump. In a podcast released in May, Trump described the planned resort as "magnificent" and beautiful.
The investment accelerated after the Albanian parliament controversially changed strict legislation in December 2024 to allow construction in environmentally sensitive areas. There is no evidence that Kushner had any role in this change.
But it was this action by parliament that Lipa, 30, said raised questions about the government's perceived transparency.
"What actually concerns me is the principle that the government can change the law to remove environmental protections without any kind of public consultation," Lipa told listeners.
In addition to the development in Sazan, the project also plans 10,000 more villas built along a strip of white sandy coastline on the Zvërnec peninsula opposite.
Both are uninhabited and considered nature reserves that house vital ecosystems and wildlife areas for birds and other rare species in the Adriatic.
MEPs have warned the EU candidate that accession talks could be jeopardised if environmental standards are not met. Albania had hoped to join the Union by 2030.
Albania’s Prime Minister, Edi Rama, has called the development — the biggest investment the former communist state has ever seen — “a gift to Europe” and “a blessing” for a nation that, more than 30 years after embracing democracy, remains among the poorest in the West. Despite the opposition, the veteran socialist has steadfastly refused to back down.
Lipa's intervention was greeted with enthusiasm on the 45th day of mass protests in Tirana, the capital of Albania.
Aleksandër Trajçe, who heads the country's main nature conservation group, the Protection and Conservation of the Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA), told The Guardian that the singer's comments were not only "fantastic, but also timely."
“It was a very powerful statement. Many, especially young Albanians, who see him as an idol, have been inspired,” he said. “This is the 45th day of our protests and there is no sign that they will stop.”
Asked if there was any sign of a change of attitude at the official level, Trajçe added: “The government is now starting to do what it should have done from the beginning, such as conducting an environmental impact study, but in [Zvërnec] the damage has already been done; the works have taken place, there has been an environmental crime and people should be held accountable.”
Despite the protests, the developers say they will move forward responsibly, saying their focus remains on "responsible governance, improving the environment, creating jobs and creating long-term value for local communities." ©LAPSI.al
