Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset has commented on the wave of protests sweeping several European countries, including Albania, warning that public anger must not be exploited for political purposes.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, Berset highlighted the social and economic grievances driving demonstrations, including inequality, education, housing shortages, a lack of prospects and the feeling among citizens that their concerns are being ignored.
“From Paris to Milan, from Brussels to Tirana, protests across Europe have gone viral. Inequality. Education. Housing. No prospects. A feeling of not being heard,” Berset wrote.
He also addressed the violence accompanying some demonstrations, noting that public buildings had been attacked, shops looted and people injured.
Berset stressed that violence ultimately harms peaceful demonstrators by overshadowing their demands and undermining their message.
“First, it hurts those who marched peacefully. Their message gets lost. Their anger belongs to them. It must not become anyone’s political tool,” he said, adding that citizens’ grievances deserved a response.
The Council of Europe chief cautioned against responding to the unrest exclusively through security measures, warning that such an approach could undermine democratic principles.
“The temptation now will be to respond only with security. This is how democratic security slides into a security democracy,” Berset wrote.
He added that the questions raised by protesters were already central to the Council of Europe’s New Democratic Pact for Europe, an initiative aimed at addressing challenges facing democratic societies.
His remarks come amid demonstrations in several European cities, where public frustration over living conditions and social services has coincided with episodes of violence and confrontations with police.
