'Our land, our Albania': young lawmaker demands new future as protests rage
TIRANA, Oct 17 -
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protests → demand → future
Marjana Koceku's life changed last year when Prime Minister Edi Rama hand-picked her to run for Albania's parliament, one of a legion of young lawmakers he hoped would become the face of his Socialist Party.
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he → change → Party
This week, however, the 25-year-old, now an independent member of parliament, joined mass student protests calling for Rama to step down.
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Rama → join → protests
Corruption, a lack of jobs and a general feeling that the government does not work for them have created a deep-seated anger that spilled over this week, when young protesters swarmed the capital Tirana, setting fire to government buildings and banks and hurling pavement stones at police.
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protesters → work → police
The government and the police have condemned the violence.
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government → condemn → violence
According to police figures, 500 protestors have been detained, 330 of whom have been released.
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330 → accord → whom
Some 120 police and 45 protesters have been injured, the figures show, although the protester figure is likely higher given that many injuries have gone unrecorded.
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injuries → injure → ?
Albania's unrest is part of a wave of student activism in Europe, including in France, where high school students have staged weeks of protests and school blockades demanding more teachers and better facilities.
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students → include → teachers
YOUTH PROTESTS THREATEN RAMA'S RULE
"The country is amazing, but ... the wrong policies that have been implemented by this political elite are completely against what the Albanian communities and Albanian citizens have been asking and seeking for so long," Koceku said during the protests on Friday as police fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters nearby.
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police → threaten → protesters
He won a fourth term in elections last year but his administration has since been dogged by corruption scandals.
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administration → win → scandals
Rama denies wrongdoing and this week told Reuters that he would not step down.
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he → deny → Reuters
"Governments are changed through democratic elections and we had them last year, not through violence," he said.
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he → change → violence
Still, the protests represent the biggest threat to his rule yet.
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protests → represent → rule
They follow months of mostly peaceful demonstrations sparked by plans to build a luxury resort on Albania's pristine southern coastline.
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They → follow → coastline
The project, whose backers include US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has faced legal challenges.
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backers → include → challenges
Villagers told Reuters in July that their land was wrongfully sold for the development.
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land → tell → development
Reuters later reported that the man who sold the land was wanted by prosecutors on suspicion of drug trafficking, accusations his lawyer denied.
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lawyer → report → accusations
Reuters found no evidence of wrongdoing by Kushner, who is not directly involved in the villagers' dispute.
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who → find → dispute
He did not respond to requests for comment.
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He → respond → comment
Last year, prosecutors alleged that his deputy prime minister was involved in doling out construction contracts to favoured companies, charges Rama and the deputy deny.
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Rama → allege → charges
"I didn't agree, especially with the policies that they were implementing against nature, and our land and our Albania," Koceku said.
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Koceku → agree → nature
This week, protesters said they had resorted to violence because they had not felt heard.
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they → say → violence
The Kushner-backed project upset Koceku, who has a close relationship with the land.
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who → back → land
She is from the remote mountains of northern Albania where her family runs a small, no-frills guest house on the shore of a lake.
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family → run → lake
"Our country is the Albanian people," she said, the air around her thick with acrid tear gas.
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air → say → gas
"They create the future, they create the now, and they are the ones who can bring our country forward.
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who → create → country
The Aporia
