A camera is not a weapon

The list published by Reporters Without Borders reads like the minutes of a grim week. Journalists beaten near Rruga e Dibrës, a photojournalist detained by force, a phone returned to its owner with the footage deleted, a reporter wounded in the leg by a rubber bullet. Most of these incidents happened while the journalists were doing exactly their job: filming.

At a tense protest, a journalist's camera is the best guarantee for both sides. It records the stone thrown at the police officer, but also the excessive baton blow against the protester. When footage is deleted, evidence is lost for everyone: for prosecutors investigating protesters' violence and for the Supervision Agency investigating officers' conduct.

The State Police have clear guidelines on the safety of journalists in the field. The question is not whether they exist, but why they were not applied. The suspension of seven officers is a step, but the public does not know whether it is linked to these cases. That uncertainty only adds to the mistrust.

Newsrooms have responsibilities too: to clearly identify their staff in the field and not to send them unprotected onto the front lines of clashes. But the main responsibility lies with the state, because only the state carries weapons, helmets and handcuffs.

The police director and the interior minister must respond publicly to the RSF list, case by case: what was verified, who was suspended and for what. A country ranked 83rd in the world for press freedom cannot afford to ignore this list.