TIRANA, March 12 – The United Stated Department of State published its annual 2007 report on human rights, with an evaluation of human rights in Albania.
The report noted that Albania had “generally respected the human rights of its citizens; however, there were problems in some areas, including societal “blood feud” killings, security force abuse of prisoners and detainees, poor prison and pretrial detention conditions, police corruption and impunity, discrimination against women, children, and minorities, and human trafficking.”
The following are excerpts from the report.
The State Department publication said there were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.
Societal killings continued during the year, resulting from vigilante action (including both generational “blood feud” killings and revenge killings), criminal gangs, and organized crime.
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
The Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC) and the Albanian Human Rights Group (AHRG) reported that police sometimes used excessive force or inhumane treatment.
Prison conditions did not meet international standards.
There were some reports that police occasionally arbitrarily arrested and detained persons.
The overall performance of law enforcement remained weak. Unprofessional behavior and corruption remained major impediments to the development of an effective civilian police force.
Low salaries and widespread corruption throughout society made police corruption difficult to combat. The government prosecuted corrupt officials and managed complaints regarding corrupt police through an ombudsman.
Political pressure, intimidation, widespread corruption, and limited resources sometimes prevented the judiciary from functioning independently and efficiently.
There were no reports of political prisoners or detainees.
The restitution of property confiscated during the communist regime remained a significant problem.
Unlike previous years, there were no reports of destruction of housing of the Roma or other minorities.
There were reports that the government and businesses exerted indirect pressure on the media. While the media was active and largely unrestrained, there were serious problems with the use of the media for political purposes.
Journalists practiced self-censorship.
Politicization of the media remained a concern.
At times political pressure, limited professionalism, and lack of finances constrained the independent print media.
Political intimidation of the media persisted.
Access to the Internet increased during the year, but remained limited, particularly outside major urban areas.
Government control over academic appointments and a culture of corruption in the education system undermined academic freedom.
Unlike in previous years, there were no reports that police mistreated protesters.
The predominant religious communities, Sunni Muslim, Bektashi Muslim, Orthodox, and Roman Catholic, enjoyed a greater degree of official recognition (for example, national holidays) and social status than other religious groups.
In July, parliament elected Bamir Topi president, in accordance with constitutional guidelines.
In February, local elections were held. Conflicts between political leaders caused extended negotiations and resulted in postponed elections. The delays led to poorly organized elections and cumbersome rules and regulations. As in the 2005 parliamentary elections, family and proxy voting continued to be problems. Election observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) declared that elections only partly met international standards.
Despite several arrests of high-level local and central government officials, corruption remained a major obstacle to meaningful reform.
A number of domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases.
Discrimination against women, Balkan-Egyptians, Roma, and homosexuals persisted.
Domestic violence against women, including spousal abuse, remained a serious problem.
The government’s commitment to children’s rights and welfare is codified in domestic law; however, in practice there was limited commitment.
Persons, particularly women and children, were trafficked to, from, and within the country.
Albania remained a source country for trafficking of women and children for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor, although less so than in recent years.
There were no reports of police violence against members of minority groups, but there were reports of societal discrimination. As visible minorities, members of the Roma and Balkan-Egyptian communities suffered significant societal abuse and discrimination.
