Democratic Party activist Aulon Kalaja has recounted the tense moments during the opposition's recent protest in front of the Prime Minister's Office, claiming that he was raped by police forces.
Invited to the studio News24, Kalaja indicated that he had initially left the protest after the tear gas was fired, but then returned.
"When the gas grenades were thrown, I left and then I thought about returning to the protest. When I arrived, there were no more than 30 of us. The police had set up a fence, we did not appear dangerous, and Luciano Boçi even removed the gas grenade and we made a statement to the media," he said.
According to him, the situation escalated when he was helping MP Klevis Balliu.
"When I was pulling MP Klevis Balliu, I was first hit in the head with a diving suit. At that moment, I pulled the diving suit because he hit me in the face, I was kicked twice in the lower part and I was hit three times with a spray can," Kalaja declared.
He added that one of the spray shots caused serious vision problems.
"Fortunately, I had glasses and I didn't suffer any major damage, but a spray hit my eye, causing me to lose my vision for four hours," he said.
Kalaja confessed that the most difficult moment was when he was hit from behind.
"The fatal blow was when I turned my back on the police and was hit by a diving suit. I walked a little and fell to the ground on the boulevard tiles. I grabbed a person's leg and said 'help me'," he said.
According to him, medical assistance arrived late and initially he thought he would be sent to the QSUT, but was then transported to the Trauma Hospital.
"There were many people in the ambulance. They put a collar on me for the injuries I suffered and then, after I had the scan, they found a fracture in the back of my head, neck and shoulder, as I had numbness in my hand," he said.
Kalaja said that after several hours of treatment in the hospital, his condition stabilized, while recalling that the incident occurred at a moment when, according to him, the protesters did not pose a danger.
