SP-PD return to Justice Reform, despite international criticism

2024-05-02 16:38:00, Politikë CNA

SP-PD return to Justice Reform, despite international criticism

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EU experts reject some of the proposals of the working group - made up of the majority and the opposition, which aims to patch up the Law Reform laws.

The majority and the opposition are expected to return for discussion the review of the Reform in Justice as the working group set up for this purpose has a package of proposals that affect the laws that organize the justice system.

The working group made up of MPs from the Socialist and Democratic Party of Laws stopped discussing these changes in July 2023, after many of their initial proposals were opposed by experts from EU-JUST and OPDAT – the two aid missions legal of the European Union and the United States of America.

But, after the partners have sent the final recommendations based on the "screening" report of the European Commission on the reform laws in justice, the discussion is expected to resume next week.

This was confirmed for BIRN by the head of the Laws Commission, Klotilda Bushka.

"The technical group will meet with the experts next week and we will decide how we will proceed", she said on Wednesday.

Bushka did not comment on the process, calling it more technical, while reiterating the position taken in September 2022, when this working group was created, that the changes will not affect the essence of the laws but aim to improve the efficiency of the justice bodies.

The process started at the request of the heads of the justice institutions was interrupted in July after the experts of EU-JUST and OPDAT – the two missions for legal assistance of the European Union and the United States of America, overturned the proposals of the deputies in their majority.

The final project-amendments of the deputies propose interventions in the law on the status of judges and prosecutors, the law on Governance, the law on the Judiciary, the law on SPAK and the law on the Prosecution.

The final recommendations of EU-JUST experts, which BIRN has, suggest 'revision' in most of these amendments, basing their compatibility with the findings of the European Commission's "screening" report for Albania and maintaining the standards of established in the justice reform.

The comments are related to the legal changes that affect the powers of the Prosecutor General, the recruitment of non-magistrates in the ILD and SPAK, the career criteria for council members, the operation of the School of Magistrates, etc.

It is recommended to maintain the standards of the reform

The Justice Reform was approved in 2016 with political consensus, but after 8 years, the new justice bodies continue to have problems with their full functioning and filling vacancies with judges and prosecutors due to the vetting process.

The Working Group established in 2022 by the Law Commission consists of 3 MPs of the SP, Klotilda Bushka, Toni Gogu and Klevis Xhoxhi, as well as 2 Democratic MPs, Gazmend Bardhi and Dhurata Çupi.

The recommendations of the experts of 'EU-Just' affect several articles in various laws, which have been proposed to be amended by the working group, including the promotion of magistrates.

The law in force does not allow parallel transfers of members, but the KLJ and KLP, contrary to legal prohibitions, have taken several decisions on the transfer of their members from the district courts in Tirana.

Both councils asked the Assembly to reduce the duration for the promotion of members and to change the ban on parallel transfers.

According to EU experts, the reformulation made by the Working Group does not provide for a clear ranking of the criteria that must be taken into account for the promotion and therefore can be randomly considered as a basis for the decision on promotion".

"Such criteria should be provided in the law so that they not only depend on the decisions of the Council, but also establish a guarantee for the judicial career, as recommended by the EC" - they suggest.

Meanwhile, in the amendments that regulate the selection process of the members of the councils who come from the ranks of pedagogues, the experts ask for the strengthening of the criteria and the preservation of the standard for vetting the wealth and image of the candidates.

"This would require a review of the Law on Governance for non-magistrate members of the councils, for judges of the Constitutional Court, the High Inspector of Justice, as well as the Law of Status for magistrates" - experts state, adding that "the proposed changes address this issue only partially.

Meanwhile, the experts support the changes in the law that would regulate the powers of the Prosecutor General in the management of the prosecution administration, in accordance with the constitutional provisions.

"Therefore, granting the competence of the KLP to make decisions for prosecutors' officials risks not being in accordance with the Constitution," the document says, suggesting that in order to bring it in line with the Constitution, changes should be made to other provisions of the law on governing bodies and the law on the Prosecutor's Office.

But, on the other hand, they do not advise the legal change related to the competences of the Constitutional Court in reviewing appeals against the decisions of the High Inspector of Justice to archive the appeal or close the investigation against a member of the KLP.

According to experts, this proposal "aims to limit the competence of the Constitutional Court in the disciplinary misconduct of Council members".

Regarding the recruitment of new inspectors, a process for which the High Inspector of Justice has complained to the Parliament that it is encountering difficulties, EU-JUST experts recommend several options to attract the applications of magistrates with a suitable salary scheme and increase in career, or encouraging magistrates with a very high reputation to serve for a certain time as "ice breakers" for other magistrates.

EU experts also suggest that changes in the way the School of Magistrates operates ensure that judges and prosecutors dismissed from the vetting are not reinstated as lecturers.

"Legislative changes should be introduced to strengthen the integrity of the teaching staff at the School of Magistracy, ensuring that former magistrates dismissed through vetting or who resigned before it, will not train future generations of magistrates" - the screening report of EC.

The training of legal advisers is recommended to be done according to EU standards, while it is accepted that the increase of staff is necessary to reduce the workload in the courts.

The experts also see the provisions for the creation of a group of legal advisors at the Special Prosecutor's Office, SPAK, but demand that they also be subject to monitoring and training criteria like the rest of the staff of this institution.

The Assembly decided to start a process of revising the reform laws after the demands of the justice institutions aimed at more privileges, such as extension of the mandate, expansion of powers, less supervision and guarantees after the end of the duty.

The Assembly of Albania unanimously approved in July 2016 a package of constitutional amendments, which paved the way for the establishment of a new justice system in the country./ Reporter.al