{"id":31665,"date":"2022-02-17T11:59:37","date_gmt":"2022-02-17T10:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/euronews.al\/en\/?p=31665"},"modified":"2022-02-17T15:47:19","modified_gmt":"2022-02-17T14:47:19","slug":"5-maji-residents-before-the-us-embassy-theyre-persecuting-us-give-us-visas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/euronews.al\/en\/5-maji-residents-before-the-us-embassy-theyre-persecuting-us-give-us-visas\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Maji residents call on US embassy: They\u2019re persecuting us, give us visas!"},"content":{"rendered":"

2 hours after their protest<\/a> <\/strong>before the Albanian Parliament, 5 Maji residents moved their demonstrations to the US embassy building in Tirana, Albania.<\/p>\n

They accused Rama\u2019s administration of stealing their property and their homes. Meanwhile, they asked the US government to grant them a visa, which would allow them to move to the United States as at the present moment, they see no future in Albania.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve lost all hope. Rama has killed all of our hope. We are calling on the United States to issue us a US visa, so that we can leave and the big fish can continue to stay here,\u201d \u2013 said one of the protestors.<\/p>\n

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5 Maji residents protest before the US embassy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t leave us at the mercy of criminals. They\u2019re persecuting us, they\u2019re massacring us. They\u2019ve been in power since 1944\u2019. They\u2019ve destroyed churches and mosques, now they\u2019re destroying our homes. Give us visas so we can leave from here,\u201d \u2013 said another of 5 Maji’s residents.<\/p>\n

More than 400 homes will be demolished at the end of a state-ordered reconstruction project that will build a brand-new neighborhood in the area known as 5 Maji in the capital city.<\/p>\n

Citizens have been forced out of their homes \u2013 the majority of whom are now homeless and concerned that they\u2019ve been given no guarantee that they\u2019ll actually have a new home in the new neighborhood.<\/p>\n

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Citizen stands in the middle of rubble at 5 Maji in Tirana, Albania. Credits: LSA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Protestors have also been asking the government to grant them rental assistance known as a \u2018rent bonus\u2019 \u2013 as they have no means to cover rent, now that they’ve been displaced.<\/p>\n

Municipal officials have argued that they\u2019ve given 5 Maji residents a chance to sign a contract that will act as proof for their expropriation compensation but the majority of them have refused it.<\/p>\n

In addition, PM Rama has publicly promised<\/a> <\/strong>all former 5 Maji residents a home in the new neighborhood, but protestors remain unconvinced as they haven\u2019t been given a single document to show that they won\u2019t lose their homeownership rights and end up homeless at the end of all this.<\/p>\n

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