The moment Sali Berisha entered the doors of SPAK, the convicts in prison 313 were cheering in his support, even calling him a hero.
After journalists documented the incident, Berisha defended the detainees, who, according to him, are being held in cells without a right.
The DP leader said that he had also raised their issue with the EC, in his meeting with members of the Anti-Torture Committee, and promised that for every day of prison they have spent unjustly, they will be paid with money from the salaries of the government officials who kept them there.
"My message is this. Albania is the black spot of shame in Europe and one of the blackest in the world because Albania keeps 67% of the prison population in prisons, and there is no greater evidence of torture than this. The presumption of innocence has ceased to function in this country. I guarantee that those days in prison that they serve without merit will be rewarded with the salaries of the governments that held them. It is a crime and they should know that I, at the Council of Europe, had a very fruitful meeting with the Anti-Torture Committee. It was torture that was inflicted on 67% of the prisoners who are in pre-trial detention, 1/3 of whom are without any charges, 500 of them are sick, so it is a catastrophic situation that they deserve and I am confident that the European Anti-Torture Committee will advocate for all those whose rights are violated in Albanian prisons," said Berisha.
Asked further whether the detainees who called him a hero would vote for him in the May 11 elections, Berisha replied: " They themselves know who they will vote for ."
" We don't interfere with anyone's vote, but we say that voting for your executioner is a problem ," he emphasized. (A2 Televizion)
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