"The voice of the people must be heard, politics must find solutions"/ Episcopal Conference of Albania, reaction to the protests

2026-06-09 11:21:00, Aktualitet CNA

"The voice of the people must be heard, politics must find solutions"/

The Episcopal Conference of Albania has issued a statement regarding the recent developments in our country and especially the protests taking place in Tirana, other cities and the diaspora.

The statement says that the protests of these days and the participation of many young people and families in them have highlighted dissatisfaction with the current political system. Among other things, it says that the voice of the people must be heard and heard.

The Episcopal Conference emphasizes that it is politics that must find solutions within the political and democratic framework of a country that aims for European integration.

Full statement:

The Episcopal Conference of Albania is closely following social developments in our country, especially the protests taking place in the city of Tirana, in other cities of Albania and in the diaspora. The reason for these protests has been several projects that affect protected natural areas or where ownership problems are intertwined, to build facilities in them that aim to develop elite tourism.

For our part, as Bishops of the Catholic Church, we believe that any development of the country must take into account the protection of the environment, but also the respect for everyone's property. Pope Francis, in his Encyclical Letter Laudato si', says: "The prediction of the environmental impact of enterprises and projects requires transparent political processes that are subject to dialogue, while corruption, which hides the true environmental impact of a project, in exchange for favors, often leads to unclear agreements that evade the obligation to inform and an in-depth debate" (LS 182).

In this sense, the assessment, consultation and involvement of local communities living there and of agencies dealing with environmental protection are more than necessary. For us, this is called integral development that must take into account all dimensions of human life, both individual and community. As Saint Paul VI said, this development must include all people and the whole man (Populorum Progressio, 42). This is part of the Social Doctrine of the Church and we invite that every development project be carried out taking into account, not only the creation of structures as an end in itself, but to have at the center the man with his private and community needs and rights.

The protests of these days and the participation of many young people and families in them have also highlighted a dissatisfaction with the current political system. This dissatisfaction has been observed in the participation and articulation of many protesters. The Church does not have the duty to find solutions, but to orient consciences. We are convinced that the voice of the people must be heard and read. It is up to politics to find solutions within the political and democratic framework. These are the rules of European democracy where we aspire to go. The voice of many people whose only agenda is the well-being of their families and society and who express dissatisfaction with the action or inaction of politics cannot be ignored. The voice of everyone must be heard and evaluated with care and respect by politics, the government and the opposition.

We invite political representatives to choose the dialogue table, to provide appropriate responses to the ordinary citizens of our people who seek not to be overlooked, to listen to the voice of young people who have the right to build their lives here, without fatally succumbing to the loss of hope and the path of emigration, a wound that in recent years has been called the depopulation of the country.

We pray to God for our people, for politics, and for all people of good will in this country, that they may find, along with the path of political and social dialogue, the right solutions within the political and democratic frameworks of a country that aims for European integration.

God bless Albania! /CNA