New interior minister, Saimir Tahiri, replaces most of the personnel in the traffic police department, urges law enforcement officials to do more. International partners vow to keep up assistance.
TIRANA, Sept. 25 – New Interior Minister Saimir Tahiri appeared to be the busiest member of the new government last week, attempting to address key law and order concerns that had led to growing worries among Albanians during the transition period between the two governments.
Tahiri first fired some top police officials who had been accused of being very much affiliated with the previous government. He also formally fired former top commander and an officer of the National Guard who are being in trial for the four dead in the then-opposition Protest in January 2011. Tahiri has been visiting different police institutions every day.
The Socialists have pledged to bring back the country’s security situation under control and to take the country out of the black maps of the illegal trafficking.
Road traffic has been another headache in the country and that was where Tahiri also seemed to pay much attention. Earlier this week he removed 88 traffic police officers and replaced them with new officers who he says have the proper qualification, education and training to do a better job. He brought the average age of the department down to 33, from the previous 47.
On Wednesday, Tahiri also met with heads of the intelligence service and prosecutor general, saying that cooperation among the law-enforcement institutions was the key to better fight crime – from petty to organized.
In all these steps, Tahiri has had the full support of all the international organizations and main western countries.
European Union Ambassador Ettore Sequi met him to learn all the set of important reforms planned from the new cabinet, which he said would make the police and the ministry more efficient and successful.
“The Interior Ministry has a critical role on a series of priorities which are very important for Albania in the European integration process, fight against corruption and organized crime among them,” said Sequi, after meeting with Tahiri.
They also talked on the coordination of the work among the law-enforcement agencies in order to make investigation more efficient, “one of the demands of the EU’s progress report,” according to Sequi.
“I assured the minister of the strong and sincere support we would like to give to him personally and the ministry,” said Sequi.
The new Pameca 4 European assistance mission will start in the next few days, funded with four million euros. That will serve to offer equipment, among other things, to police and also reconstruct border crossing points in Hani i Hotit (with Montenegro) and Morin련Kosovo).
Twin projects will be held to fight against corruption and organized crime, financed in total by three million euros.
Robert Wilton, OSCE’s Ambassador-in-Charge, also assured the new cabinet of support in the future. He mentioned the long-term program of work between the OSCE Presence in Albania and the Albanian State Police, also part of the long-term work across the region.
“We are working in this mission with the Albanian State Police to build the kind of institution that they want to be in the service of their democracy,” he said, with “a particular focus for the police force.”
The United States has also showed willingness to help.
U.S. Ambassador Alexander A. Arvizu hosted a ceremony to mark the donation of a considerable amount of essential protective equipment for Albania’s law enforcement forces and military, as well as educational support materials for K-6 grades.
The equipment was donated by the New Jersey’s National Guard and civilian police forces. The shipment included 317 bullet-resistant vests ranging from small, concealable vests to be worn under normal clothing to the heavier military-style vests, and 200 Kevlar helmets to protect officers during tactical police operations.
Part of the donation was also educational support materials provided by the Egg Harbor Township Board of Education.
This is the second donation event which resulted from a long-standing State Partnership between New Jersey National Guard and the Albanian Armed Forces, the first being the delivery in 2011 of more than 2,000 bullet-resistant vests.
