Draft reports from Brussels expose 'government facade' towards integration

Through two unofficial documents sent to the Albanian government, the European Commission scans a worrying situation regarding the rule of law, the functioning of institutions, the fight against corruption and the situation of the media in Albania at a time when the basic group chapters in the accession negotiations have been opened.

Although still unofficial working documents, the reports express concern about a possible attack by the majority on the new justice institutions, for the non-implementation of Constitutional Court decisions, or for the violation of EU principles in the direct negotiation of public tenders.

Brussels' concerns are read by opposition representatives and integration experts as a call to attention to the government of Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Parliament for a real commitment to the integration process.

The chairwoman of the European Affairs Committee in parliament, Jorida Tabaku, told BIRN that the two documents sent to the Albanian government for the 'Fundamentals' show how far behind Albania is in achieving the criteria and objectives for the first chapter group.

This draft report raises concerns about 3 main elements, with Tabaku highlighting the one related to the role of the Assembly and its duties.

"The Assembly is the institution that has the most tasks to perform, but on the other hand, it is the institution that has violated all the standards that a normal parliament should have, from the legislative process, consulting on MPs' initiatives that have become a problem for the process, bypassing the normal legal procedure, to the election of heads of independent institutions, implementing the decisions of the Constitutional Court and culminating with the special 'Xhafaj' commission," says Tabaku.

According to Tabaku, this committee suppresses the work of the committee on European affairs, overlaps with the work of other parliamentary committees, and takes on responsibilities that do not belong to it.

The EC draft report is also assessed as a realistic document that clearly highlights the serious issues related to the fundamental chapters by Zef Preçi, executive director of the Institute for Economic Studies.

"In my assessment, the common denominator of this working analysis is the emphasis on the need to consolidate the achievements made, seeing this as closely linked to the continuation of the fight against corruption and organized crime, as the word 'corruption' is repeated 31 times followed by the word 'Parliament' 20 times," said Preçi, also mentioning other problems related to the rule of law, immigration management or media freedom.

Despite the fact that the document evaluates the achievements of the Special Prosecution Office, SPAK, according to Preçi, "for the EU, preventing corruption is important, which in turn is closely linked to the political will of the government and the activity of other state agencies, most of which are subordinate to it."

Preçi believes that the government uses a facade towards the integration process with approved strategies and legal initiatives, without having the financial means, human capacities and sometimes even the political will to implement them.

"From a similar perspective, the document dwells on the government's anti-corruption strategy, emphasizing the need for effective implementation with a focus on results, strong monitoring mechanisms, and institutional coordination for the success of this reform," he adds.

Preçi believes that the official report of the European Commission, which is expected to arrive officially in early July, will serve as a basis for the political-governmental program of the majority after taking office. Of course, he adds, "if there is sufficient political will to take governing steps for the benefit of a livable Albania."

For MP Jorida Tabaku, it is important that the government be serious in its commitments related to anti-corruption, focusing on the analysis that the documents drafted in Brussels make of the laws related to public procurement.

"Where there is higher corruption and sometimes corruption is done with laws in the procedures that are followed that allow for the violation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement, as in the case of the Vlora Airport, the Port of Durres," she says.

Tabaku also considers it important in the progress of the negotiation process to fulfill the criteria in the group of chapters related to the judiciary and the problems that justice reform has.

"It's time to do an analysis after 8 years, did it achieve its initial goals, is there less political influence in the system, has the number of files been reduced," she says, suggesting that the report raises the alarm about these chapters related to justice.

In this context, Tabaku emphasizes that the media and elections are issues that, according to reports coming from EU institutions, show a significant lack of results and are areas where the country has taken steps backward.

For Tabaku, fulfilling the objectives related to the fundamental chapters is crucial for progress in the negotiation process.

At the end of last year, the Albanian government held the second intergovernmental round table with the EU, where the 5 fundamental chapters for which the opening of negotiations is requested were opened.

The Albanian government's commitments relate to; 1) Functioning of Democratic Institutions; 2) Public Administration Reform, 3) Chapter 23, Judiciary and Fundamental Rights; 4) Chapter 24, Justice, Freedom and Security and 5) Chapter 5, Public Procurement./ BIRN