After a campaign of promises for legalization, property titles, fine forgiveness, and tourism development, the government returns to Theth with the bulldozers of the National Inspectorate for the Protection of Territory (IKMT). Residents accuse the government of deception and corruption.
By Lindita Çela – July 13, 2025
“Welcome! May God bless your arrival! Bread, salt, and heart!”
That’s how Prime Minister Edi Rama was greeted a year ago in Theth by a young local girl dressed in traditional costume, offering him bread baked by the women of the village. Rama broke the bread, dipped it in salt, and tasted it amid folkloric applause and çifteli dancers in a scene that resembled more a national celebration than a political meeting.
Accompanied by the mayor of Shkodër and the Minister of Tourism, the Prime Minister returned to Theth to present himself as a man of his word—not only to distribute property titles but also to forgive the many fines for illegal constructions.
Just a month earlier, during a visit to promote the “Mountain Package,” Rama had promised ownership certificates to many families whose property was unrecognized by the state—a longstanding problem that had paralyzed investment and stifled tourism.
Two hundred ownership certificates had been prepared by the local administration, and Rama personally handed one to a family from Theth in June 2024.
“On June 30 we promised we would return—and here we are today, at the end of the month, to distribute property titles… this is a long-standing process that’s now nearing its conclusion. What we’re doing here, we’ll do in other areas too, both north and south,” Rama told residents, explaining the legal deadlocks that had obstructed property registration.
“Today, we’re distributing 200 titles. There are 90 more to come,” he said, while suggesting that another group of 50 files could not yet be legalized due to their construction after the legal deadline.
But Rama also made another promise:
“We will find a dedicated solution for everyone in your situation, where obtaining a building permit was objectively impossible. These constructions were made not to bypass the law, but out of economic necessity through tourism. You didn’t build illegally out of ill will—strict regulations in this protected area made it impossible. The government will forgive all these fines because these are not abusive constructions.”
Rather than invoking the law, Rama justified the residents’ unlicensed buildings.
“These fines were issued for buildings constructed out of necessity, not to break the law. These are not abuses but constructions made in the face of an unworkable legal framework. All fines will be forgiven,” he said, appealing to the residents’ emotions—many of whom had sacrificed dearly to invest in their ancestral land.
His entire speech was a public guarantee: that the efforts of Theth’s residents to rebuild life in the mountains would be supported, not punished. He promised the return of youth from emigration, protection of property, flourishing tourism, and a favorable investment climate.
“This will be a top-class destination. People will pay a premium to sleep here for one night,” declared Rama.
Yet, by mid-July 2025, instead of music, Theth echoes with the roar of bulldozers. Instead of çifteli, there are cries of protest. Instead of embraces, there are clashes with the police.
Instead of property titles—bulldozers
One year after the celebratory promises and dances in the town square, residents have been met not with support, but with violent state intervention.
Instead of legalization papers, the road into the mountains is now traveled by IKMT vehicles escorted by police. Where fines were once to be forgiven, demolition orders are now issued.
Homes, guesthouses, and tourist structures built with bank loans, migrant remittances, or years of sweat are now declared “illegal.”
According to Shkodër Mayor Benet Beci, the constructions were in a protected zone, without permits, and built after the legal deadline.
“The center of Theth is being restored as the true heart of the Albanian Alps! Four work teams, 20 workers, 60 truckloads, and seven municipal bulldozers have removed about 500 cubic meters of concrete from Theth’s historic center. A major intervention to clean up and restore this pearl to its former glory,” wrote the mayor.
But in dozens of TV reports, residents insist they built on their inherited land. They say the area never had a development plan approved by the state, making it impossible to obtain permits.
“He promised us a solution. Today, the solution he brought was bulldozers,” says one resident trying to save the walls of the guesthouse he rebuilt with help from his son in England.
According to field reports, at least 150 structures are on IKMT’s inspection list, with several already under demolition orders.
From symbol of development to ‘criminal without a permit’
A video from the center of Theth, near the Tower of Blood Feuds, showing cabins built on concrete, triggered the demolition campaign.
Those who were encouraged to build a year ago are now labeled “criminals who poured concrete across the valley.”
“This is the magnificent field of Theth, where a criminal—who doesn’t even have the courage to show up while IKMT enforces the law—poured concrete everywhere to build his ‘tourist village’ without a single permit. A multiple crime,” Rama posted, initiating a public dispute with Shkodër’s chief prosecutor Elsa Gjeli, who had declined to initiate criminal proceedings against these constructions.
Rama criticized the Shkodër Prosecution for inaction and defended the IKMT operation as a legal obligation. “This is a beautiful field… and they’re turning it into a disaster,” he said.
Shortly after, a full-scale IKMT operation began. At the peak of the summer tourist season, bulldozers escorted by police entered the village to demolish around 80–90 tourist investments built without permits.
Special police units (FNSH) monitored from a distance, awaiting orders, while villagers blocked the bridge leading into the village, clashing with police to stop the bulldozers.
Fatmir Meta, one of the longest-serving IKMT officials and the head of the operation, told reporters that 70 to 80 illegal structures were slated for demolition.
“These are definitely unauthorized buildings. We are demolishing 70 or 80 illegal structures. We don’t interpret the law; we enforce it. We’ve issued prior notices for days. We were promised they would dismantle them. This is our third day here. These are new constructions. I’m not sure when they were built. It’s a disaster—this is a miracle of nature, and instead of preserving it, we’re building kiosks. Even the locals should be protecting this wonder, not degrading it,” said Meta.
But residents see it differently.
The residents protest
First, they don’t understand why the state is demanding the demolition of their investments at the peak of tourist season. Some tourists have canceled bookings, while others watch in disbelief as dozens of police surround guesthouses as if they were crime scenes.
“We just wanted to call for a joint solution. But not a massacre in the middle of the season,” one protester told the police trying to enter the village.
In a protest captured on dozens of cameras, a demonstrator insisted on his right to defend his property.
“That officer over there is just following orders, but we have a right to protect our property too! I swear, I cried last night when I saw the guesthouses being torn down!”
“He tells me to clear the way so they can demolish my house,” said another, “Where am I supposed to stay when my house is gone? Out in the rain. I’m already in the rain. You’re using force. You’re destroying our homes,” cried another resident.
As bulldozers and police surrounded the houses, others recalled that these same officials once took bribes when the guesthouses were built without permits.
One protester directly accused a police officer, leading to a failed attempt to arrest him.
“You took money to allow this construction! You! You’re the thieves! And now you come to demolish it? You enforce the law? You took bribes and let them build!”
Another elderly protester recalled how Prime Minister Edi Rama had once encouraged them to invest and bring their children back to live in Theth.
“When Edi Rama came to Theth, the Prime Minister of Albania said clearly, ‘Build on your own land.’ Now where did this idea come from? The youth returned from abroad. I never left—I’ve lived here all my life. I will burn everything if I have to. Better to die than to see this. I cried like a child yesterday when the house of a man drowning in debt was demolished. I know you’re following state orders, but we’ll defend our property and our sweat,” said one of Theth’s residents.
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