Analysis/ How long can Albin Kurti ignore the Special Prosecution?

Last month, the Special Prosecution Office invited Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to appear as a witness in an open case related to suspicions of misuse of state reserves.

But, to the two invitations from the Prosecution, the head of the Kosovo executive responded with one request: that the prosecutors go and interview him in his office, at the Prime Minister's Office.

Neither the Special Prosecution Office nor the Government of Kosovo have responded to Radio Free Europe's questions about whether the parties have agreed on a date for the prime minister to testify.

Although more than a month has passed since the first invitation, legal experts say that there is no set time limit on how long the Prosecution can expect Prime Minister Kurti to testify.

Viona Bunjaku, legal researcher at the FOL Movement, tells Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that, despite there being no legal deadline, Kurti must give his testimony as soon as possible.

"In the principles of the Code [of Criminal Procedure], the principle of economizing the procedure is embodied, which means that it should happen as soon as possible, and at the same time the Prosecution is bound by the investigation deadline, which is two years. But, in this case, this should be done as soon as possible," she says.

Meanwhile, Ehat Miftaraj, director of the Kosovo Law Institute, says that in every case the Prosecution must maintain the integrity of the investigations and act in accordance with the law, and take measures against the witness as provided for in the Criminal Procedure Code.

According to him, "if prosecutors lack professional courage," then not only the prime minister, but also ordinary citizens "may mock and disrespect the authority of the Prosecutor's Office."

How long this whole situation can last depends on when the Prosecution Office made the decision to launch the investigation, and this then affects the legal deadline when the prosecutor in the case must make a decision to dismiss the criminal report or file an indictment, explains Miftaraj.

"However, the prosecutor, under no circumstances, should allow the witness to obstruct the administration of the criminal procedure, but should take procedural actions to uncover the truth regarding the case at hand," he says.

What does the law say about the failure of witnesses to appear?
The Code of Criminal Procedure states that a judge, ex officio or at the request of the State Prosecutor, may compel a witness to appear. If he does not appear at the Prosecutor's Office, the judge shall fine him 250 euros each time he refuses. However, if he refuses even after the imposition of fines, he may be imprisoned, but not for more than one month.

On December 16, 2024, Kurti did not go to the Special Prosecution Office, which said he was on a trip abroad.

Government Spokesperson, Përparim Kryeziu, stated to REL that Kurti "has expressed his willingness to welcome the prosecutors of the case to his office on a day and time agreed upon by both parties to fulfill the request arising from the Prosecution's invitation."

Four days later, it was announced that Kurti had been sent a new invitation.

The clash between the executive and the judiciary.
The issue of the invitation for Kurti has brought the Government and the Prosecution Office into conflict.

The Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, stated that she agreed with the Prime Minister that all of this was allegedly planned by the Chief State Prosecutor, Blerim Isufaj, to make news "in local and international media that Kurti had been invited for a corrupt affair."

Haxhiu said that, in the past, senior government officials – without mentioning names – have been interviewed on government premises. But Isufaj said that, in the five years he has been in office, such a thing has not happened.

Interview in the office, "illegal"
Kurti's request to be interviewed in the office, according to Viona Bunjaku, is wrong and not "sound practice", as the aim should be to build a system of the rule of law, on "well-established practices, and not by committing illegal actions".

The refusal by any state official to appear before the Prosecutor's Office, according to her, is a dangerous practice, which in "one way or another violates legal certainty" and creates "a precedent of a revolt against the prosecuting institution."

Ehat Miftaraj also agrees that, if an exception is made for Kurti to give testimony in his office, this would be in violation of the Criminal Procedure Code and cases "when the witness or defendant can be questioned in places outside the offices of the Prosecutor's Office."

State Reserves Case
In 2023, three people were arrested in the state reserves case. Among them were employees of the Ministry of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Trade (MINT), led by Rozeta Hajdari, who, during her appearance as a witness at the Special Prosecution Office, chose to remain silent.

In 2023, raids were carried out at this ministry after the publication of audio recordings by the Nacionale portal, which claimed that a quantity of oil, purchased in Poland, and a quantity of wheat, purchased in Turkey, had never arrived.

The government has said that payments for state reserves were made in accordance with the law./ REL