The Memo: Albania bans TikTok following concerns over youth violence

Concerns over the influence of social media on young people is certainly nothing new. However, with the steep rise of short-form content app TikTok, it’s fair to say that opposing voices to such society-altering influences have been given a new lease of life. The site is already banned in Afghanistan, India, Nepal and Somalia, and Albania has become the first European nation to follow suit after Prime Minister Edi Rama initially declared the plan at the end of December. The Albanian government has officially referenced concerns over youth violence and the role TikTok has supposedly played in its facilitation. At the end of 2024 – immediately preceding the announcement of the ban – a fight in a school in Albania’s capital, Tirana, led to the killing of a 14-year-old. It’s reported that the arguments between the parties originated online through the the app. 

Official letters have now been sent by national regulators on behalf of the Albanian government to the country’s telecommunications operators, who have now been tasked with restricting access and blocking IP addresses. While they may be successful in doing so, the reality remains that there are still workarounds. Unsurprisingly, it’s reported than Albania has seen a 1,200% surge in VPN usage following the TikTok ban, while flocking to Chinese video-sharing app Xiaohongshu (RedNote) remains another option. This follows a similar pattern seen in the US following the Supreme Court’s decision in January to uphold a bill banning the site on grounds of national security and data collection concerns. 

However, such a draconian move expectedly comes with questions and anxieties over the rule of law and freedom among citizens. Whatever the intentions of Rama’s government, many argue that implementing a nationwide embargo on the site is simply an abuse of power that impinges on freedom of speech. Parliamentary opposition has accused Rama of silencing any dissent towards his ruling party, arguing that the move is a cynical ploy to control mainstream media and consolidate power. Rama insists that the move stems from a one-off incident, though that will not stop the Association of Journalists in Albania (AJA) from taking a case to the Constitutional Court. Such debates will inevitably rumble on, as governments all around the world grapple with balancing social media restrictions with the rights and freedoms of its citizens.