Politicized justice and what SPAK should learn from the American experience

From Agim Nesho

In a survey presented by Euronews Albania, SPAK had increased its credibility in the eyes of Albanian public opinion from 14% to 26%. This is something to be welcomed as it is in the desire of a people to have an independent justice system. The justice that this people sought and the regime made possible, remained in its favorability lower than the presence of an organization like the OSCE, whose activity in Albania can be understood by 0.01% of society. But for both the OSCE and SPAK, this credibility comes from their activity with the international factor.

I. SPAK as an independent Albanian prosecution body or a body commanded by our partners

SPAK is one of the main bodies of the new justice reform in Albania, and as such should in principle be supported for its activity. There are capable and dedicated prosecutors, but also compromised elements, used and included by the Renaissance regime to carry out the cleansing of the political chessboard from the opposition leaders and to realize the unlimited power of his regime. This thing is not a secret now, when the head of the Rama regime himself declares 'that this reform was not done by the Americans, but I initiated it'. This reform was initiated by Rama and the Soros Foundation to strengthen the political power of Renaissance in the name of fighting corruption, organized crime and strengthening the rule of law. The implementation of this reform created a great confusion in Albania in the justice system, in the absence for two years of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, in the alarming increase of untried cases, in the arrogance that the political majority dictated the terms of the game and the fulfillment of vacancies. What accompanied the reform in justice were the empty spaces of the legal institutions to realize the state capture by the regime, the return of Albania to a Colombia of Europe as a country of drug trafficking, the cannabisization of the country, the increase in the influence of the mafia and Ndrageta and the return of country in a large money laundering machine. Throughout this decade, Albania has fallen in all the main indicators of democracy, being compared to the most backward countries in Africa. What accompanied this reform was the creation of a Putinesque, autocratic regime, which has nothing to do with the rule of law.

The question arises: Within such a captured state, controlled by the regime, is it possible for a new institution like SPAK to function normally and in compliance with the principles of justice?! Is SPAK turning into an institution directed by the autocrat Rama?

SPAK claims to be an independent institution supported by the Americans. If it were so, it would be good, especially in the conditions where an autocratic regime has been installed in Albania, where the rule of law is a joke. He is proving that he is in an activity commanded by the regime. If it were different, today he would bring the Albanian Government to justice for the affair of the incinerators, the PPP in health and the misuse of state budget funds for infrastructure, but also the debts of hundreds of millions of dollars that our state owes to businessmen like Beketi, debts created from governmental arrogance and passions.

SPAK would be trusted when justice would be started by those who continue to rapidly destroy Albania today, rather than dealing with provocateurs to reopen cases judged 15-20 years ago; Investigate issues in principle and equally for everyone when it comes to political lobbying, where FARA (American justice) has reflected government lobbying many times more than opposition lobbying, even with American lobbyists who simultaneously represented the Republic of Turkey and the Party Socialist!; SPAK would be reliable if, before investigating health operations, it looked at the wealth of the new governors in millions of euros, since age makes it unjustified; SPAK would be respected if, before being used to hit the opposition leaders, it investigated the OSCE document distributed to the diplomatic corps and the accusations about the '200 million' wealth, it investigated the off-shore companies for the Durres Port affair , etc., etc.

To be credible, SPAK must attack the corruption system in Albania, which is basically expressed in the McGonigal case. This system, which in its philosophy has the corruption of people to maintain its autocratic regime, operates in Albania, but also everywhere in the world with representatives of the regime and its lobbyists. Public opinion needs to know how pro-bono government advisors like Tony Blair are rewarded and how much their family members earn from Albania.

Një gjë duhet të jetë e qartë për opinionin publik Shqiptar: Cdo shtet partner ndërkombëtar flet në parim në mbështetje të drejtësisë. Asnjë nuk përzgjedh individualisht se kush duhet të goditet. Këtë e bëjnë individë dhe zyrtarë që kanë axhendë personale dhe duan të avancojnë karrierën e tyre. Për fat të keq në Shqipëri kemi parë diplomatë që kanë kërkuar goditjen e personaliteteve politike në Shqipëri për ‘hir të progresit të vendit’, por nga ana tjetër kanë mbyllur sytë dhe kanë brohoritur ‘për sukseset e qeverisë Rama’ në luftën kundër kanabizimit të vendit, kur kanabisi ishte përhapur kudo në Shqipëri. Dhe pikërisht për këtë veprimtari mbështetëse u sponsorizua nga Fondacioni Soros për karrierën e tij. Kemi njohur diplomatë që kanë kërcënuar opozitën ‘do hani bar’, që as nuk mund të imagjinohet të përgatitet nga institucionet amerikane, por e sugjeruar nga spin-doctors të regjimit. Por veprimi ishte fatal dhe kontribuoi në ndarjen e opozitës dhe avancimin e pushtetit të korruptuar të Rilindjes. 

Projekti Rama-Vucic për të realizuar një zgjidhje politike në Ballkan, projekt i sponsorizuar dhe i lobuar edhe nga disa grupe interesi në SHBA, krijoi kushtet për të goditur edhe liderat e opozitës në Shqipëri, të cilët parimisht mbrojtën stabilitetin ballkanik dhe interesat e kombit Shqiptar. Dëshira e Ramës, por edhe e Vucic, për të goditur Berishën dhe Metën si figura të forta, fatkeqësisht i është imponuar edhe SPAK. 

SPAK nën presion godet për të justifikuar baraslargësinë e tij nga polet e politikës, por fatkeqësisht bëhet pjesë e një skenari politik për pushtet të pakufizuar të Ramës. Jo se liderat e opozitës janë të pagabueshëm, por momenti politik dhe ekzistenca e regjimit të korruptuar i kthen ata në një organizëm të politizuar.

II.Politizimi i drejtësisë në SHBA dhe reagimi i ashpër i institucioneve të shtetit Amerikan

Even in the USA, the phenomenon of politicization of justice institutions is a phenomenon produced by politics. There are many cases of politicization of these institutions, but the most classic case is the case of the report of the member of the British intelligence, Christopher Steel, regarding the compromising of the candidate for president of the USA D. Trump. The report was passed by the State Department to the Department of Justice as a credible report. In fact, it was learned that this report was paid for by the Democratic presidential candidate's staff to damage her opponent. Many members of the Department of Justice were used for this case, as well as for the spectacular arrest of one of President Trump's strategists, Roger Stone, where the media was present during the search of his apartment at midnight for propaganda effect. But the USA is the most democratic country in the world and with an extraordinary system of checks and balances. All the American justice officials used were fired, even the senior State Department official who only forwarded the letter to the Justice Department was investigated by the Senate and denied the diplomatic post in Albania. The polarization of justice is a phenomenon that the institutions of the American state hate and hit hard. Therefore, the American policy does not favor political strikes. 

Instead of ending

The politicization of justice institutions is a dangerous sport that Rama is doing successfully. SPAK's selective strikes, which are propagandized as 'American demands', are fairy tales with a king and justifications of the people who support Rama's corrupt power to leave Albania without an alternative. SPAK before the euphoria of work has a great responsibility in the polarization of Albanian politics by the command justice, but also the future of his institution itself.

On the contrary, the political processes will not be shared with Albania and the processes will be reopened with the same falsifiers that are being used today, but for other political opponents and why not for the SPAK prosecutors themselves. Albania does not have the luxury of always starting from scratch. The task of our society is to restore functional democracy and the rule of law, where SPAK must remain the inspiration of our battle.