The Chairman of the Republican Party, Fatmir Mediu, has raised serious concerns regarding the "Smart City" project, recently presented by Prime Minister Edi Rama as an initiative to increase security through the installation of thousands of surveillance cameras across the country.
In a public reaction, Mediu emphasizes that Albania, as a democratic country and NATO member, has a legal and constitutional obligation to guarantee the privacy of its citizens, warning that mass surveillance cannot be justified simply with the claim of fighting crime.
According to him, a key point of this project is the lack of transparency on the origin of the companies proposing and implementing such investments. Mediu seeks clarification on whether these companies are in line with NATO and European Union standards, emphasizing that Albania is among the few countries in the region that does not yet have a law on "background check" of foreign investments, an obligation for EU aspiring countries and a standard consolidated in the US through the CFIUS law.
He also expresses concern about the risk of creating a vast surveillance network in critical sectors and infrastructure, built by companies that may come from countries contrary to Albania's national security interests. According to Mediu, these companies may have legal obligations to share the collected data with the intelligence services of their countries.
In his reaction, Mediu also mentions the AKSH scandal, emphasizing that in addition to corruption, the national security and data protection of a NATO member country have been compromised. He warns that such systems have also been used in the past as tools of blackmail and political pressure, especially in countries where the law and institutions do not function properly.
According to Mediu, camera networks within "Smart City" projects are usually connected to centralized servers, rely on private operators and store large amounts of sensitive data, increasing the risk of hacking, criminal access or manipulation of footage for political and criminal interests.
He points out that these risks can undermine national security rather than strengthen it, especially when the systems are built by companies from jurisdictions with weak privacy protections and legal obligations to share information with their governments.
In conclusion, Mediu underlines that security is not guaranteed by cameras, but by a state with uncorrupted and crime-free institutions. He demands that Parliament and the Security Committee exercise parliamentary control and request full information on the project, to guarantee respect for the freedoms and rights of citizens, the Constitution and Albania's obligations as a NATO member and EU aspirant.
