Parliament renews ban on motorized boats

TIRANA, Feb. 6 – Last week parliament adopted another three-year ban on motorized boats as part of the government’s efforts to help fight illegal trafficking.
Tourist boats and jet skis will be excluded from the ban but will also be subject to a set of rules.
The first four years of the moratorium reduced the amount of illegal drugs crossing the Adriatic to neighboring Italy, as well as human trafficking.
The ban has been continuously criticized by the opposition for hurting local fishermen and tourism.
Albania’s government has extended a four-year-old ban on the use of most private boats and yachts, as part of efforts to fight widespread smuggling.
A decision was taken last December by the government that renews the ban until 2012.
The ban applies to the use of all small vessels, yachts and speedboats owned by Albanian nationals, on pain of confiscation.
Exceptions are made for craft licensed for fishing and transport, as well as foreign vessels.
Albania has pledged to crack down on smugglers taking people, drugs and weapons into the European Union, as part of its efforts to join the bloc.