Elections, Albania’s Litmus Test, Says Europe

TIRANA, April 9 – Ambassador Helmuth Lohan, Head of the EC Delegation to Albania, made it clear in two interviews he gave last weekend to the Albanian newspapers that holding free and fair elections in June 28 was a fundamental issue the tiny Balkan country had to deal with.
Lohan said that there were noticed problems with the issuing of the new identity cards, saying that though on the overall the process of the election preparation was going in the right direction, many other problems remained.
“At the end, it is this result that counts. ŠParticipation in elections is a fundamental democratic right, and Albanian citizens can demonstrate their commitment to a functioning democracy by applying for ID cards as early as possible,” he told Korrieri newspaper.
Lohan said that the EC would “watch very carefully the preparations and the conduct of the elections” and the assessment would be reflected in the Annual Progress Report due in October.
“The elections will be the litmus test for Albania’s democratic maturity. The quality of the elections will have a strong influence on whether the European Union considers that Albania is ready for any further steps towards integration,” he told Shqip newspaper.
Lohan also said that following the enter into force of the Stabilization and Association Agreement Albania had to meet many obligations related to trade, to competition policy, consumer protection, to other areas and the Albanian citizens would feel their impact over the years to come.
Referring to Albania’s wish to formally apply for the candidate status, Lohan made a clear explanation on that process, without hinting anything.
Countries that submit an application for EU membership should have at least three important qualities that are directly relevant for this particular step towards European integration.
First, they should have a credible track record of implementing the SAA Interim Agreement. We have noted that in general, Albania has been implementing the Interim Agreement smoothly.
Secondly, the countries should have a positive track record of judiciary and economic reforms. Some pieces of legislation that have a direct impact on the judiciary in Albania followed a somewhat difficult road. I have in mind examples such as the Lustration Law or the first draft of the Prosecution Law.
Thirdly, the countries should be ready to take upon themselves the obligations of accession negotiations. This is a very heavy burden on the public sector and its administrative capacity. Albania should weigh carefully when it can live up to this challenge.
On the visa liberalization Lohan said that a group of EU experts who had visited the country would draw up a report and transmit their findings to the European Commission, which will then come forward with a proposal for visa free travel for those countries that meet previously defined benchmarks.
“Due to the focus on the ID cards, Albania has not yet really started large-scale production and distribution of biometric passports, so some more time will be required in this area,” he said.
“So the timing of the next steps in the dialogue of the visa liberalization very much depends on when the biometric passports will actually be produced and disseminated in Albania. In the first place it will depend on Albania.”
On Albania’s new NATO membership, Lohan said that, “Albania will no doubt endeavour to meet the expectations, and success in these efforts will be beneficial for progress towards European integration.”