7 October 2021
Even though Albania has not yet held the first intergovernmental conference in the framework of the opening of negotiations with the EU, the country is at the forefront in terms of justice reform. On October 7, 2021, Cooperation and Development Institute organized in the framework of the 7th edition of Tirana Connectivity Forum, part of the calendar of activities of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU Council – a side event on “Justice Reform and Enlargement in SEE6”. This side event was part of the initiative “Monitoring and supporting Albania’s reform path to EU”, supported by the Dutch Embassy in Tirana within the MATRA program and it served to discuss about the challenges throughout the reform cycle and share the experience with the neighbors.
The first part of this side event consisted of the ministerial panel with three justice ministers from the region – Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Albania. The high-profile level of this event with the presence of the justice ministers from the Balkan region is an indicator of the specific profile of Albania in reforms in the field of rule of law. Approved in July 2016, the justice reform is known mainly for the vetting process and the long time it took to put the new justice institutions into operation. But the Albanian experience is much broader. It first involves mobilizing political will as a prerequisite for the successful start and implementation of any reform, and not just in the justice sector.
The event kicked off with the welcome note from Mr. Ardian Hackaj, Coordinator of Tirana Connectivity Forum who highlighted the reasons as to why such event fitted perfectly within the portfolio of activities of TCF2021, where among others, Mr. Hackaj added that the justice reform is a key component of the new enlargement methodology included in the cluster of fundamentals, and as such the justice reform conditions all the other chapters, and therefore it conditions the whole process of enlargement.
Likewise, the event was greeted by the Dutch Ambassador to Albania, H.E. Reinout Vos, who emphasized that the Netherlands will continue its approach to bring strict, fair, and engaged as regards the reform process of Albania, especially when it comes to the judiciary reform and highly supports the active engagement of the CSOs as a resilient partner supporting the progress of reforms.
The governance of the new justice institutions is another innovation where the Albanian experience offers useful lessons for the neighboring countries. Launched as an effort to modernize the justice system, the reform focused on vetting by mobilizing human and financial resources as well as the attention of policymakers, the media, and citizens. The needs of the newly established institutions in human resources, financial support, or logistical facilities were considered secondary.
As a result, while the citizens waited to catch the “big fish”, new institutions tried to recruit new staff, find and furnish new offices, connect to the internet and the necessary infrastructure, and draft the institution’s internal regulations. and provide the necessary financial resources.
The initiative “Monitoring and supporting Albania’s reform path to EU” is focused precisely on the challenges that the newly established institutions have with governance and mainly with budgets, human resources, and internal procedures. Therefore, this side event is the third part of a broader study on justice reform that includes the conception and implementation phase.
While introducing some of the vetting main statistics, the Albanian Minister of Justice, Mr. Ulsi Manja, stated that this process created problems and vacancies in the system, as the number of dismissed or resigned judges and prosecutors were high. Mr. Manja expressed Albania’s readiness for regional cooperation in the judicial system to be done in the spirit of the “Open Balkans” in order to integrate into the EU. “We are already in the second and most important phase, that of consolidating justice reform aiming at full finalization of everything needed to be and allow me for modesty, the first model in the region and beyond of the Reform on complete in the Justice system. A unique reform of its kind. The School of Magistrate remains key to fill in the new justice institutions”, Minister Manja concluded.
During the panel where three Ministers of Justice exchanged experiences and the progress of the Justice Reform so far, the Minister of Justice of Kosovo, Ms. Albulena Haxhiu said that throughout the meetings with the EU representatives, they have expressed their reservations about the implementation of the reform according to the Albanian practice, especially on the fact that the justice institutions may remain unstaffed and may have vacancies that make these institutions not functional. However, Ms. Haxhiu added that there are also very important lessons learned such as the government-opposition cooperation in Albania with regard to the adoption of a comprehensive justice reform
In an online intervention, the Minister of Justice of North Macedonia, Mr. Bojan Marichikj added: “Although in the conditions of the blockade to hold the first Intergovernmental Conference, North Macedonia continues reforms in all fields. To keep the focus on the European agenda, the Government has made a plan called “Europe at Home” and applies to implementing reforms in many areas. “North Macedonia is applying stricter criteria with regard to the appointment and dismissal of judges and prosecutors, along with investing in reinforcing the mandate and capacities of the judiciary institutions”, Marichikj said.
In the second part, the event continued with the presentation of the study on “Sustainability and Resilience of Justice Reform Outcomes in Albania: the good governance factor” presented by the CDI Expert Ms. Fjoralba Caka. During her presentation, Ms. Caka offered a snapshot of the background on which the justice institutions have performed in terms of key indicators such as Human Resources, Internal Procedures, and budget, and how they have responded to facing new challenging and unforeseen circumstances. The findings will be incorporated in an upcoming publication. The presentation was later followed by a discussion with local think tanks and CSOs actively engaged in the area of rule of law and in the process of monitoring the justice reform in Albania. The experts provided their analysis of the situation, focusing particularly on the challenges and perspectives for the new institutions of the justice system and the way forward.
To consult the agenda of the event, please click here. The official press release (in the Albanian language) can be consulted here.
The video-streaming of the side event can be watched here.
The full gallery of this Side Event can be viewed here.
