Interior minister reports successes in fighting crime, but opposition says crime rate is up under the current administration
Minister Flamur Noka on Monday reported to the parliamentary commission on Albania’s crime rates last year, boasting of achievements and an improved security.
But the opposition Socialist Party reports an increased number of murders in the country and a demotivated police force that has bowed down to criminal organizations. The Socialists have made fighting crime a key point of their platform ahead of the parliamentary elections in June 23.
Albania’s crime rate usually goes up some before elections, as authorities are more focus on staying in office rather than fight crime, experts note.
The minister spoke of a sustainable progress “toward the integration of our country into the European family” as they have already complied with or fulfilled the recommendations from the European Union, which the country aims at becoming a member one day.
He said that the public order situation in the country has seen improvements.
Noka reported that fighting drug traffic remained a top priority. Figures for 2012 also showed that there were 962 cases of police action. He said police had seized three times more heroin, two times more cocaine and three times more cannabis sativa. Authorities have eliminated some 31,000 narcotic plants and have arrested 95 persons involved in such traffic, the minister reported.
Police have also fought against 59 identified criminal groupings and have also organized 67 joint operations with counterparts in Europe and more.
Police have also sequestered 13 million euro of properties belonging to persons sentenced for criminal activity.
He also mentioned that 194 officials were prosecuted for corruption.
The minister said there were 125 murders in 2012, or 16 less than a year ago.
Human trafficking, economic crimes, violence in family, and other ones were part of the police work last year.
But despite the positive tones for the report, for common Albanians, there is a sense that the crime rate is up, and the Socialist Party has honed on that.
The Socialists say police are not fully reporting crime, adding more than 20,000 crimes took place in 2012, a significant increase from 2005 when the Democrats came to power, when there were 8,000 ones.
Border management remains a big issue as some northern European EU countries have threatened of re-imposing the visa regime unless Albania stops people asking for political asylum there.
A local media, A1 report TV station has reported that Belgium has hampered the free entrance of some Albanians during the recent days.
