Tirana Times
TIRANA, April 21 – The parliament postponed the parliamentary investigation of the Jan. 21 violent riots with three more months. That was requested from the governing Democratic Party. The parliament created this investigative commission only two days after the riots where four protesters were shot dead. The commission was not accepted from the opposition Socialists who considered it a farce as they directly accuse the premier and then-interior minister for the deaths.
Following the questioning during the first days, including Prime Minister Sali Berisha, there was almost not heard anything from that commission. So it is not clear why they are asking to postpone it. They have had enough time to ask anyone, though some top officials, like the country’s president, denied to go there.
The international community made it clear in reactions they do not support such kind of political investigation in a politically-contested issue. They added it would be good if first prosecutors would be let free to proceed and then the parliament could hold its probe later.
Meanwhile the prosecutors have yet to produce any conclusion on the deaths, despite the assistance from the US forensic and other investigators. They have also extended to three more months the timing of their procedure. But that is up to them and they need to produce concrete results and blame someone for their deaths. They are keeping under arrest only one guardsman, Agim Llupo, who seems to be the main suspects for the death of at least one of the opposition supporters.
