Striking Albanian miners stop at president’s office

TIRANA, July 6 – Albanian miners and a dozen of their fellow hunger strikers protested for two days in front of the president’s office in downtown Tirana, though they left after failing to reach any compromise on their strike demands.
The miners stayed overnight at the entrance toPresident Bamir Topi’s office, where they met with a number of his advisers. The miners had sought to meet with Topi, arguing that was the only way to make their voices heard. However, after learning they would not meet with Topi, they left the following day. They also ended the portion of the hunger strike in which they were not drinking water.
The miners have demanded that the government change their labor status to allow them to receive supplementary pensions. They have requested a 24,000 lek monthly pension, as opposed to the 6,000 lek monthly pension they now receive. They also have asked that miners’ retirement age be reduced to 50 years old.
A series of protests have been held around the country accusing the government of turning a deaf ear to their requests. Opposition Socialist Party leader Edi Rama also appealed to the government and Prime Minister Sali Berisha to meet with the miners to discuss their requests. During the last year 13 miners lost their lives in various accidents in Albanian mines, mainly in the Bulqiza chromium mine in northern Albania.