Conference on the reform of the Albanian justice system

TIRANA, Oct 25 – A high profile conference on the reform of the judiciary was held in Tirana with the participation of judges and lawyers from across the country, Albania’s judicial authorities and other stakeholders.
Under the lead of EURALIUS, the European Commission’s justice mission to Albania, the Conference sought to draw concrete recommendations and solutions for Albania’s judicial reform from specialized discussions by national and international experts.
More than 150 participants from all ranks and institutions of the Albanian justice system as well as other experts from EU Member States and their judicial institutions participated in the Conference seeking to assist Albania in completing the formulation and in implementing its Judicial Reform.
The discussions largely elaborated the judicial system issues identified by the European Commission in its Annual Progress Report such as completion of the legal framework and strategy for the reform, legal enforcement, inspections and disciplinary proceedings, court management and efficiency, judicial administration, judicial budget transparency and independence etc.
The European Commission’s Annual Progress Report, an assessment of Albania’s advancement towards the European Union in a large number of areas, notes that overall, judicial reform in Albania remains at an early stage. Key pieces of legislation needed to complete the legal framework such as acts on the functioning of the High Court of Justice and on administrative courts have not been adopted yet. The justice system continues to function poorly due to shortcomings in independence, transparency and efficiency. Recalling the need for a comprehensive strategy to improve the judicial system, the Head of the European Commission Delegation to Albania, Ambassador Helmuth Lohan emphasized that, “Now is the right time to address the outstanding reform issues.”
EURALIUS, the European Commission’s Mission to Albania, funded by 4.5 million euro to assist the Albanian government in bringing the justice system in line with EU standards of efficiency, transparency and independence, organized the Conference in cooperation with the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
Prosecutor General Ina Rama has called for a constitutional amendment that would restrict the immunity of judges, in order to strengthen the fight against corruption in the judiciary.
“It’s problematic because [while] prosecutors can be investigated without hassles, we don’t have the possibility to investigate judges, who are granted immunity by the constitution,” Rama said.
“If the General Prosecutor’s Office seeks the authorization to investigate a judge on corruption-related charges, the investigation has already become public and its difficult to move forward,” she said, adding: “It’s not possible to investigate a judge on corruption, if he knows that he is being investigated.”
Rama also spoke out against corporatism in the judicial system, illustrating her argument with cases where prosecutors arrested on corruption charges were set free by the courts.
The 2009 European Commission progress report, judicial reform in Albania remains in its early stages, with little progress made thereon in the last year.
“Key pieces of legislation needed to complete the legal framework have not been adopted and the justice system continues to function poorly due to shortcomings in independence, transparency and efficiency,” the report found.