AAK deputies pour coal in front of Government building in Pristina in energy-policy protest

Members of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) poured coal outside the entrance to the Government of Kosovo building in Pristina today as a show of displeasure with the country's energy management and wider political trajectory.

The action, carried out by AAK deputies, was presented by the party as a symbolic protest: coal was placed at the government entrance to underline Kosovo's untapped domestic resources and what the protesters described as chronic failure to produce electricity locally.

AAK lawmaker Burim Ramadani framed the move as both an energy and political warning

Burim Ramadani, speaking for the Alliance, said in his remarks that recent years had seen Kosovo move from an energy crisis into a broader political darkness. "With Kurti and Vetëvendosje, Kosovo was in an energy darkness for the last six or seven years that kept the country in that state, and now it is moving into a political darkness," Ramadani said.

Ramadani stressed the symbolism of coal as tied to Kosovo's underground reserves and criticised the lack of investment in the energy sector and the practice of buying power from abroad. "The message and symbolism of the coal is that Kosovo lies on coal, but electricity is not produced," he said.

He added that in recent years approximately one billion euros were spent on purchasing electricity from Serbia and other countries, accusing that the situation had benefited what he called the "energy mafia." The protest took place in front of the government building in Pristina and was intended to draw public attention to the AAK's demands for more domestic energy investment and transparency.

Photo: Skrinshot / Kosovo online