TIRANA, Aug. 24 – Albania’s Parliament will convene on August 30 in a special session to vote a draft law that will vet all judges and prosecutors in vote expected to bring back political deadlock after last month’s unanimous approval of the justice reform.
The new political row comes after the ruling Socialist Party-led coalition approved this week on its own a draft law on the ‘transitional qualification assessment of judges and prosecutors’ known as the vetting law that will scan all judges and prosecutors for their professional proficiency, moral integrity and independence from the influence of the organized crime, corruption and political power.
The opposition Democrats claim the bill drafted under EU and U.S. assistance violates the the newly adopted constitutional changes on the justice reform and has warned of taking it to the Constitutional Court if its amendments are not taken into consideration.
“What’s severe and important is the fact that the Democratic Party although proposing a big number of amendments on part of the law, these amendments were turned down by the majority with no argument. The sole goal is that this important draft law, on which there is no international standard and good practice, returns on track to comply with the constitutional amendments approved on July 22, 2016,” said opposition Democratic Party MP Oerd Bylykbashi, the deputy chair of the parliamentary ad hoc committee on the justice reform.
“We are sure this draft law will not stand the test before court and elsewhere,” added Bylykbashi.
Ruling Socialist Party MP Pandeli Majko said the draft law included all remarks made by the opposition that had been accepted by Eualiaus, the European Assistance Mission to the Albanian Justice System funded by the European Union.
“The majority approved the Democratic Party’s remarks that received the Euralius approval. A good job was done and the law was improved. I don’t think technical details can turn into political details. Vetting is the reform’s Achilles’ heel,” said Majko, adding that the reform’s other organic laws will be approved as soon as possible.
The August 30 vote will also be a test for the ruling majority after frictions with the Socialist Movement for Integration, the ruling Socialists’ junior ally, ahead of the July 22 unanimous vote on the justice reform.
The ruling SP-led majority, which also includes the Party for Justice, Integration and Unity, on paper has the necessary 84 votes to approve the vetting law, but a unilateral vote or failure to approve it could bring back a political deadlock over one of the country’s most important reforms in the past 25 years of transition.
Albania’s political leaders needed 18 months of talks and mediation by U.S. and EU diplomats to reach a last-minute deal on a long-awaited justice reform on the country’s highly perceived corrupt judiciary and pave the way for the country to launch EU accession talks.
While the constitutional changes unanimously approved last July have already entered into force, the justice reform implementation requires the approval of seven organic laws, the first of which a law that will vet all current judges and prosecutors.
Last week, President Bujar Nishani postponed drawing lots for the selection of members of the Justice Appointments Council, a body that will vets candidates for the Senior Justice Inspector post and members of the Constitutional Court, until a vetting law has been approved.
