Prime Minister Edi Rama published on Friday a list containing the names, ages, and photographs of individuals he claimed were detained during recent violent protests.
Rama asserted that the detainees were not students, but rather individuals with prior criminal records involving narcotics production and trafficking, domestic violence, theft, and other offenses. He went a step further, alleging that the demonstrators were financed by organized crime, "dark forces," and the political opposition, while being ideologically driven by Antifa.
Rama’s list, however, contains at least one verified inaccuracy.
Jon Sinoimeri, whom the prime minister publicly labeled a criminal rather than a student, responded immediately from the ongoing demonstration outside the Prime Minister’s office. Sinoimeri clarified that he is a medical student and held up his official university transcripts showing straight A's in every subject.
“The prime minister accused me of producing and selling narcotics, but I am an excellent medical student. These fake accusations are the final, desperate efforts of a dictator,” Sinoimeri said.
Beyond the factual accuracy of the list, a more fundamental legal question has emerged: Was this publication lawful? Does the Prime Minister have the authority to publish citizens' personal and criminal records?
Under Albanian law, criminal records, like all personal data, are strictly protected. According to Article 10 of the Law on Personal Data Protection, information regarding prior arrests, charges, or convictions may only be processed under the direct supervision of a competent judicial authority—specifically the courts, the prosecution, or the police—and strictly within the execution of their official criminal justice functions, backed by adequate safeguards for individual rights.
That statutory provision does not authorize the prime minister publish, such sensitive data. The law explicitly bars him, or any other government official, from releasing lists of names, photos, and allegations of "criminal records" for political purposes or to publicly discredit individuals.
Friday's publication follows a series of warnings earlier this week, during which Rama announced punitive measures that critics argue openly flout the law. He declared that protesters would be barred from traveling abroad, stripped of their student scholarships, and forced to pay for property damages themselves—or have the financial liability billed directly to their families.
For the past ten days, students and young people have been protesting and clashing with police in the streets of Tirana. The protesters want Prime Minister Edi Rama to resign. They are accusing his government of heavy corruption, a very high cost of living, and poor education quality in public schools and universities.
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