General prosecutor indicates major corruption indictments on the way

TIRANA, May 19 – Albania’s general prosecutor has indicated there will be major corruption-related indictments coming soon which could affect top politicians.
General Prosecutor Adriatik Lalla said in a public meetings with the country’s top law enforcement officials that he was overseeing investigations that could affect the country’s effort to join the EU, which has repeated that fighting corruption and organized crime in Albania are priorities for Brussels.
“Officials of different levels, prosecutors, judges and criminal groups have been held legally responsible. Also, current ongoing investigations, if proven successful, can have an impact on the country’s future,” Llalla said.
The comments came after a meeting with Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri, who was trying to push him to conclude on hundreds of files against senior officials accused of corruption.
Fighting corruption and justice reform seem to be the two main targets of the new cabinet in power since mid-September last year.
Prime Minister Edi Rama said Monday justice reform was a key issue of their daily agenda. He said that there should be no more immunity for judges and prosecutors and senior officials who are involved in corruption.
While the country is waiting for a positive answer to its request to become a candidate member of the European Union, a negative answer is likely to be related to lack of the fight against corruption and trust in the justice system, integration experts say.
The new eight-month-old government has said they have sent more than 300 cases to the prosecutors’ offices accusing former senior officials of abuse of post and public money.
But that fight is not that easy. In one investigation, that against Gjin Gjoni, a judge in central Elbasan region, another judge turned down a request from the prosecutors on lifting his judicial immunity for further investigation of accusations that Gjoni abused his public post as a judge.
Justice is the weakest power in post-communist Albania always mentioned negatively in the international reports.
“Punishment of impunity is the European standard that more than any other standard we are missing nowadays Šbut it cannot go on forever,” said the prime minister.