Udenrigsudvalget 2018-19 (1. samling)
URU Alm.del Bilag 127
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Non Paper
On
Albania’s
progress in fulfilling the five key priorities
for the opening of EU accession talks
Introduction
Since the Council conclusions in June 2018, Albania has maintained and deepened the reform
momentum and consolidated its progress in the fulfilment of the five key priorities. Justice
reform is the main instrument driving forward reforms especially the fight against corruption and
organised crime. It is the most comprehensive reform undertaken in Albania or in other Western
Balkan countries. Following the unanimous vote in the Parliament on the constitutional
amendments in 2016, the justice reform has delivered results that confirm its irreversible path.
The re-evaluation process for judges and prosecutors (vetting) has delivered tangible results,
including on high-ranking members of the judiciary, under the oversight of the International
Monitoring Operation.
The following report aims
to inform the EU member states and the EU institutions on Albania’s
continued and sustained results in fulfilling the five key priorities for the opening of EU
accession talks, providing up-to-date information covering the period until February 2019.
Recent Key Achievements
A crucial step in the implementation of the justice reform was the
establishment of the
High Prosecutorial Council and of the High Judicial Council
in December 2018. This
key step confirms the irreversibility of the reform and the success of the vetting process.
The
substantial results achieved by the vetting process
are the basis for establishment
of all new judicial institutions. The constitution of the two pillars of the justice system
now allows for the establishment of the Special Anti-Corruption and Organised Crime
Structures and the National Bureau of Investigation, as well as the election of the
Permanent General Prosecutor.
In the fight against organised crime, the special
Task Force “Power of Law”,
established
with the specific goal to fight organized crime, has finalized 24 operations,
dismantled
13 criminal groups, arrested 203 individuals and seized 27.3 million euro in criminal
assets
over the period November 2017
–
January 2019.
Over the period May
–
December 2018, the
Anti-corruption Task Force conducted
administrative investigations in 70 institutions
and 452 disciplinary actions were initiated,
108 officials
have been
dismissed,
of whom
36 middle and high level officials have
been referred to prosecution
on charges of corruption and abuse of power.
In 2018 there was a
decrease by 81% in the amount of cannabis from Albania seized
in Italy,
compared to the previous year.
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Justice reform
Progress of the vetting process
- The re-evaluation of judges, prosecutors and legal advisors,
conducted by
the Independent Qualification Commission,
is carried out on the basis of asset
assessment, background assessment, and proficiency assessment.
The
overall number of decisions
delivered by the Commission until 4 February 2019 is
99:
46 decisions on confirmation in duty of 20 judges, 20 prosecutors and 6 legal
advisors/candidates for magistrate;
38 decisions on dismissal from office
of 25 judges and 12 prosecutors and 1 legal
advisor at the First Instance Administrative Court/candidate for magistrate;
For
15
judges, prosecutors and legal advisers that
resigned from duty,
the vetting
process was terminated as provided by law.
The
Appeal Chamber
reviews appeals against decisions of the Commission. Until 31 January
2019, there have been
registered 45 cases of appeals in the Chamber. There remain 33 pending
cases, out of which 7 are under trial. For the 12 (twelve) cases that have been concluded, the
Special Appellate Panel decided:
to uphold the Decision of the Independent Qualification Commission - in 8 decisions;
to amend the Decision of the Independent Qualification Commission in 3 decisions;
to terminate the case review due to the withdrawal of the complainant's appeal in 1
decision.
Speeding up the vetting process-
In October 2018, aiming to speed up the vetting process, the
Parliament adopted the new organisational structures of the Independent Qualification
Commission, Appeal Chamber and Public Commissioners. In total, 24 new employees were
added at the three vetting institutions.
School of Magistrates-
The budget of the School of Magistrates has tripled in 2019 and each year
the number of academic and administrative staff has increased.
As regards the establishment of the new justice institutions, in December 2018 the Conference of
Judges elected the members of the
High Judicial Council
(HJC). The HJC is thus established. It
ensures the independence, accountability and appropriate functioning of the judiciary. The HJC
is composed of 11 members, six of which were elected by the judges of all levels and five
members were elected by the Assembly among the ranks of lawyers.
In December 2018 the General Meeting of the Prosecutors elected the members of the
High
Prosecutorial Council
(HPC). The HPC guarantees the independence, accountability, discipline,
status and career of prosecutors. It is composed of 11 members, six of whom were elected by the
prosecutors of all levels and five members were elected by the Assembly among lawyers. In its
meeting of 7 January 2019 the HPC announced 15 vacancies for the position of prosecutors on
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Special Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime Structure (SPAK).
Prosecutors all over the
country can apply for membership in SPAK until 21 February 2019.
The
Council of Appointments in Justice
(CAJ) was established following the selection of
members in December 2018. The CAJ is responsible for verifying the fulfilment of legal
requirements and assessment of professional and moral criteria by the candidates for the High
Justice Inspector, as well as for the candidate members of the Constitutional Court. The CAJ
examines the candidates and ranks them according to their professional merits. It consists of nine
members selected by lot from the ranks of judges and prosecutors, who are not under disciplinary
measures. They serve a one-year term beginning on January 1 of each calendar year.
The Council of Appointments in Justice held its first meeting in January 2019, and is finalising
its Rules of Procedure and the by-laws regarding the lot for the selection of the rapporteurs, the
verification and evaluation of candidacies. Their adoption allows to initiate the review of 40
candidacies (magistrates and non-magistrates) running for the vacant positions in the
Constitutional Court
and
High Justice Inspector.
To date the Parliament has adopted 20 laws, part of the package of 27 draft laws of the justice
reform and is examining the remaining draft laws.
Fight against corruption
The fight against corruption made further progress both on the legislative and institutional front,
to ensure further tangible results through a continued positive trend towards a solid track record
of investigations, prosecutions and convictions. In the framework of the ongoing justice reform,
the forthcoming establishment of the specialised institutions to fight corruption and organised
crime underpins efforts in these areas.
The
Anti-corruption Task Force
was set up in May 2018. This inter-institutional task force is
responsible for inter-institutional inspections under the action plan of the Cross-Sectoral Anti-
Corruption Strategy. It is chaired by the Minister of Justice and it is composed of representatives
of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister; General Director of the Public Procurement Agency;
Inspector General of Central Inspectorate; Director of the Department of Resources,
Transparency and Administration
at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Referrals to prosecution on corruption
charges
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Over the period May
–
December
2018, the
Anti-corruption Task
Force conducted administrative
investigations in 70 institutions
and 452 disciplinary actions were
initiated,
108 officials have been
dismissed, of whom, 36 (middle
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and high level officials) have been referred to prosecution on charges of corruption and abuse of
power.
In the context of
Sector Budget Support by the EU to assist in implementing the inter-sectoral
strategy against corruption,
Albania fulfilled three indicators and
can now disburse the base
tranche of 1,000,000 Euros and the variable tranche of 1,040,000 Euros.
Albania has taken measures to implement the recommendations of the fourth evaluation report of
GRECO
on the prevention of corruption of members of parliament, judges and prosecutors. On
its 80
th
plenary meeting, GRECO concluded that Albania has implemented satisfactorily (or dealt
with in a satisfactory manner) four of the 10 recommendations contained in the Fourth Round
Evaluation Report. The remaining six recommendations are partly implemented.
The
track record and consolidated statistics
for corruption and organised crime cases are reported
regularly to the European Commission, according to standardised templates.
There has been a growing
number of court cases in the
second instance courts from
2013.
Over the past 5 years, 1,303
persons have been convicted
for corruption by the Court of
Appeal, or 3.5 times more than
in 2009-2013.
400
300
200
100
0
Corruption sentences of the Court of
Appeal
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Fight against organised crime
Albania made further determined efforts towards establishing a solid track record of pro-active
investigations, prosecutions and final convictions in the fight against organised crime. Albania
continued its efforts to reduce cannabis cultivation, with further significant results in 2018.
The Action Plan on Combating Organised Crime named
Task Force
‘Power
of Law’,
which was
approved in November 2017, includes intelligence gathering, investigation and striking of
criminal organisations, targeting illegal assets deriving from criminal activity. During November
2017
–
January 2019, the Task Force carried out 24 operations against 13 structured criminal
groups, arrested 203 of their leaders and members and seized
27.3 million euro in seized criminal
assets.
Whereas the
‘Anti-Hawk’
Task Force
which focuses on Albanian citizens involved in
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theft crimes in EU countries, finalized 3 joint operations with Belgium, France and the European
Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation during January - October 2018.
The momentous and tangible results in the
fight against narcotics
were an outcome of further
strengthened commitment of the government in implementing concerted measures planned in the
Action Plan against Cannabis Cultivation and Trafficking 2017
–
2020, which was amended in
May 2018.
Albania has been removed from the map of the main cannabis-cultivating countries.
The implementation of the Action Plan against Cultivation of Cannabis is being supported by the
EU SANCAS Project.
In 2018 there have been 11 more aerial surveillance missions to detect cultivation of narcotic
plants, with 43 hours more than in 2017, whereas the monitored surface area has almost tripled.
Air surveillance was thus conducted over 25.52% of Albanian territory. While the detection
efforts were strengthened, the number of identified suspected cannabis plantations dropped from
88 in 2017 to 27 in 2018. The number of cannabis plants that were destroyed dropped from 4844
in 2017 to 675 in 2018. This demonstrates the steady trend of drastic reduction in cultivation.
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The following data of the Italian Ministry of Interior show a
decrease by 81% in the amount of
cannabis from Albania seized in Italy.
They demonstrate the steady trend of drastic reduction
in trafficking.
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Regarding
the
drug-related
criminal offences, the annual
statistical data show that during
2018, 1,972 cases with 2,435
perpetrators were referred to
prosecution, out of which 263 for
drug
cultivation
with
220
perpetrators involved.
cases
perpetrators
In the fight against
money laundering,
the amount of the seized criminal assets in the last 5
years was
around 158.5 million euro,
with 2016 being the peak year, with
47.6 million euro
seized. During 2018,
415
money laundering cases with 523 perpetrators were referred, and
Euro
21.5 million
in criminal assets was seized.
Seized assets in Million EURO
30,9
19,5
13
7,5
2,2
2010
2011
2012
1
2013
2014
2015
47,6
38,8
21,5
2016
2017
2018
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In 2018, under the
Law “For the prevention and fight against organized crime, trafficking and
corruption” (Anti-mafia
Law), assets for a value of
€16,530,000
were sequestrated (in movable
property and bank accounts).
As a result of the successful efforts of the members of an
Italian-Albanian joint investigation
team,
43 people were arrested for large-scale drug trafficking. To date, more than 2 300 kg of
marijuana, cocaine and heroin were seized, with an estimated total value of EUR 15 million.
The joint investigation team (JIT) between Italy and Albania was established in 2017. Key to the
success of this operation is the support of Eurojust, which played a major role in setting up and
financing the JIT.
In January the State Police successfully finalized a long and complicated operation for handing
over the
accused international drug trafficker
Kelmend Balili.
He is notoriously one of Albania’s
most wanted drug traffickers declared wanted since 9 December 2016. Balili is accused of being
the head of a large criminal network trafficking drugs from Albania to Greece and other
European countries.
The Department for Economic and Financial Crime Investigation of the State Police successfully
concluded an operation in Lezha on 21 January 2019, with the case of two Albanian citizens,
accused of money laundering
referred to the Prosecutor’s Office
and the seizure of EUR
5,269,551 and their immovable properties.
State Police, in cooperation with the Serious Crimes Prosecutor's Office and with the assistance
of the US diplomatic secret service, finalized on 2 February 2019 the operation code-named
‘Wrong
path’,
which resulted in the arrest of 32 Albanian citizens, including 1 police officer, and
the seizure of four laboratories which produced forged documents, of equipment, and of a large
amount of cash money. The police operation was conducted in different locations in Albania.
The structured criminal group provided people with forged travelling documents, through
Albania, Montenegro, Italy, Greece, France and Norway. Investigation of assets for all the
arrested citizens was initiated.
Human rights, including property rights
Albania significantly improved the legal and policy framework for the
protection of minorities
by adopting in October 2017 a specific Law on Minorities. The Law provides the definition of a
national minority and abolishes the differentiation between national and ethno-linguistic
minorities. It provides for the formal recognition of minorities on the basis of subjective (self-
identification) and objective criteria. The implementing legislation is being approved. In
September 2018, the Council of Ministers approved two decisions on providing textbooks to
pupils, initial and continues training of teachers and the functioning of classes in the languages of
national minorities, and on suitable measures to support knowledge on the culture, history,
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language and religion of the national minorities during the learning process at the higher
education institutions. The new Law on cultural heritage and museums, adopted in May 2018,
includes provisions on the protection and promotion of the cultural rights of national minorities.
In relation to
property rights,
the implementation of the law on restitution and compensation of
property has further advanced. Until 10 August 2018, the Properties Treatment Agency has
verified and evaluated 25,147 decisions issued during the period 1993
–
2013. During the period
of July 2017
–
10 August 2018, the Agency completed the financial evaluation process of 14,116
final decisions which had obtained the compensation right during the period 1993
–
2013. In
January 2017
–
April 2018, legalisation permits were issued for 34,650 illegal objects. For 2017,
26,451 permits were issued and for the period January
–
April 2018, 8,199 legalisation permits
were granted.
Starting from April 2019, the Immovable Property Registration Office, the Agency for the
Legalization, Urbanization and Integration of Informal Areas and
the Agency for Inventory and
Transfer of Public Properties
will be merged into a single institution, the State Cadastral Agency.
Following the approval of the State Budget for the year 2019 and the accompanying Fiscal
Package, the Albanian Parliament continued the work in competent committees to review the
two draft laws for the completion of the transitional ownership process and the fiscal cadastre.
For the period of January 1
st
–
September 30
th
, 2018, the European Court of Human Rights
passed no decisions related to property rights. The enforcement of the judgments in this field is
adequate as reflected by the resolution of the Committee of Ministers issued in its 1324
th
meeting
of the Ministers’
Deputies on 20 September 2018 which closed the supervising process of Driza
Group and Manushaqe Puto vs Albania cases (16 cases).
Public Administration Reform
Albania is strongly committed to the implementation of the Public Administration Reform aimed
at a professional and merit-based civil service. After the
reorganisation of the administrative
structures
carried out in the last quarter of 2017 in accordance with the Law on Civil Servants,
the Albanian government has started the reorganisation of the subordinate institutions and
agencies by clarifying their typology, structures and processes, following the Methodological
Approach for the reorganisation of government institutions prepared by SIGMA/UNDP.
An Order of Prime Minister, in October 2018, setup the
Integrated Policy Management
Groups
aiming to implement the sector approach in programming, implementation and
monitoring of public policies. These Groups will also programme and monitor the EU assistance.
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