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Police have charged the leader of Albania's center-right opposition Democratic Party with inciting violence. If found guilty, Lulzim Basha would face up to three years in prison.

Authorities made the announcement late Saturday, saying Basha had "called on citizens to react violently against state institutions." According to police, he told supporters to "puncture car tires, break the glass" in protests that hit a new peak on Friday. "You want a fight?" officers quoted Basha as saying. "A fight it will be."

Hundreds have protested in Tirana, the capital, for the past week, calling for the resignation of the Socialist prime minister, Edi Rama, ahead of elections set for June 18. The protesters have occupied a tent in front of the main government offices in the capital.

On Saturday, Basha deemed his party's protests "grandiose, popular, democratic, total and peaceful," certainly not the "call for war" that police have accused him of. He warned, however, that his Democrats would "not stay like sheep, but hit back strongly."

'Free and fair'

Last week, Basha said he would boycott parliament to delay the adoption of judicial overhauls required by the European Union in order for Albania to begin accession talks. Albania obtained EU candidate status in 2014 and officials hope to open talks for joining the bloc by the end of this year. Last year, the Balkan country adopted a key judicial reform sought by the European Union to fight widespread corruption and organized crime.

Basha said the opposition would continue to protest until a caretaker government was formed"that would organize free and fair elections."

Prime Minister Rama had suggested that the opposition send lawmakers to assure the adoption of the judicial measures while continuing their protests out of session, but Basha dismissed the request and accused the government of deepening poverty and corruption in Albania. The Democrats have also so far rejected international calls to stop their boycott.

On Saturday, the Romanian government bowed to protesters' demands, saying it would repeal legislation decriminalizing certain forms of corruption, but demonstrators said the move is not enough. "Now were asking for the government to resign," Mihai Oprica, 31, an IT manager pictured above. "[These protests] can stop if they cooperate. If not, we will continue coming out every day."

Since the controversial decree was passed on Tuesday, more than 300,000 people have demonstrated nightly in cities across the country, with 150,000 gathering in Bucharests Victoria Plaza, shown above. Protesters chanted "We woke up" through the evening and many expected the largest demonstration yet to take place here on Sunday night, when citizens from rural areas will come to Bucharest.

"No way, no escape," reads a sign in Victoria Plaza. "Even if they cancel the decree, how do we know they wont try to pass another one next month?" asked Dan, 36, a state employee. "We have no trust in the government and they should understand that there [are] enough honest citizens that will make sure the law is followed."

On Saturday, tens of thousands marched to Romania's parliament building to create a human chain around the complex, which has a perimeter of about three kilometers. One of the protesters on site, Christian Nadu, 32, a corporate project manager, said, "By surrounding the Parliament, we are making a statement that this is our house, not theirs, and were taking over."

The one-month old cabinet of Romanias Social Democrat party (PSD) sparked the revolt Tuesday, by passing legislation that made official misconduct punishable by prison time only when financial damages exceed 200,000 lei (44,000 euros.) The measure would have ended the ongoing trial of PSD party leader Liviu Dragnea, who is convicted of electoral fraud, and was largely seen as a self-pardon.

Sorin Taban, 53, a technical manager from Bucharest, holds a sign reading, '1: Cancel Ordinance. 2: Go home.' He said he would not be satisfied until the PSD cabinet resigns. "The people have so little while politicians have big mansions with swimming pools and billions of euros in foreign banks. This kind of old communist leadership must go home forever!"

The ongoing anti-corruption protests are the largest demonstrations in Romania since 1989. "Before this, people didnt go out to protest because they thought they couldn't change anything," Nadu said. "This is the media's fault. The state channels have always suppressed big movements. Now the Romanian people know they have power and they will not forget this."

Florin Luca, 31, a telecom project manager (not pictured above) said the end goal for protesters should be installing an independent judiciary. "The government was trying to shut the mouth and break the arms of justice and we would lose everything we built over the last ten years. We need a judicial system that stands independent of political parties."

Author: Diego Cupolo

mkg/tj (AFP, AP)

See the article here:
Albania police charge Democrat boss after Rama protests - Deutsche Welle