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Voxpress:

Greek media is turning Zvërnec into a Greek minority issue

2026-06-01 15:40:05Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Greek media is turning Zvërnec into a Greek minority issue

A protest against a tourism project in Zvërnec, which is essentially related to the debate over investments, the environment and property rights in Albania, has received unusual attention in the Greek media in recent days.

The reason was the reaction of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which announced that a Greek citizen had been injured during the incidents of May 30 in Zvërnec and that the Greek Embassy in Tirana had offered consular and medical assistance.

Following this reaction, a number of Greek media outlets began to treat the event not simply as a clash between protesters and private security, but as an issue related to the Greek minority, property rights, and even Albania's European integration process.

In the reports published over the last 48 hours, there is a noticeable tendency to shift the focus from the debate taking place in Albania towards a narrative where the dominant element becomes the ethnic identity of one of the injured protesters.

Neos Kosmos presents the conflict as a confrontation between members of the Greek minority and security forces, focusing on the concerns of the Greek community about the property and historical character of the area.

Along the same lines, Greek Reporter describes Zvërnec as part of a Greek-speaking region and links the protest to the Greek minority's concerns about property and tourist developments.

Meanwhile, the Greek City Times and the Greek diplomatic statement itself move the debate even further, linking the incident to the protection of the rights of the Greek minority, respect for private property, and the conditions that Albania must meet on its path to membership in the European Union.

Even Kathimerini, although in a more institutional tone, treats the event through the prism of Greek-Albanian relations and Athens' reaction, placing the emphasis on the injured Greek citizen and the minority issue.

Of course, it is legitimate for Greece to react when one of its citizens is involved in such an incident. Equally legitimate is the demand for a full and transparent investigation.

However, what is striking is the scale given to the event in some parts of the Greek media, where the protest in Zvërnec is presented as a conflict with an ethnic background and not as an internal Albanian debate over a controversial project.

In Albania, opposition to the project has been articulated by environmental activists, local residents, and citizens with different political stances.

The debate has focused on environmental impact, property status, investment procedures, and the use of force against protesters. In much of the Greek reporting, these elements are relegated to the background, while the narrative of the Greek minority is foregrounded.

This is precisely the point where reality begins to distort. A serious and reprehensible incident, requiring legal and institutional responsibility, gradually becomes an instrument to fuel a broader political debate, which has little to do with the essence of the protest held in Zvërnec.

Ultimately, the Zvërnec narrative cannot be transformed according to the nationalist desires of a state. It remains fundamentally a matter for the Albanian citizens and the Government of Albania alone… even when the desires elsewhere may appear different. (AP)


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