LOCAL PRESS 

Vucic:  How recognizing Kosovo would help with stabilization or bring anything good to the region (Tanjug/RTV/RTS) 

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said today that regional stability is impossible if the Serbs are humiliated and defeated. “If anyone thinks that the stability of the Western Balkans can be built by humiliating and defeating the Serbs, that is not possible,” he said answering a reporter’s question about the coming NATO exercises which will include the Kosovo Security Forces and construction of their base in Mitrovica South. Speaking during a tour of a highway construction side in western Serbia, Vucic said that “this is not the first attempt by the Kosovo Albanians to show that they can do what they want without taking too much responsibility”. “If there is any serious danger or if the Serb people are in danger …. I don’t have to say anything else. The Kosovo Serbs know it all,” he said. Vucic said that he can’t see how recognizing Kosovo would help with stabilization or bring anything good to the region.

Ambassadors of Quint, EU convey concern over state of media (Beta) 

The Ambassadors of the Quint countries and the Head of the EU Delegation in Serbia have in a meeting with Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic expressed their concern over the state of the media and suggested that the government work on creating a climate in which there will be no threats to journalists or leaders of civil society organizations, US Ambassador to Serbia Anthony Godfrey said on Wednesday. In a statement posted on the US Embassy Facebook page, Godfrey said that the interlocutors agreed that practical steps were important and that implementation of the government’s Media Strategy should be a good foundation for improving the state of the media in Serbia. Brnabic’s meeting with the Ambassadors of the Quint (Great Britain, France, Italy, Germany, and the US) and the Head of the EU Delegation took place on 30 March.

Godfrey said that the Prime Minister had informed them about Serbia’s efforts toward progressing in reforms within the European integration process, with a focus on problems in the rule of law, and that the ambassadors highly appreciated the fact that they were able to openly discuss important topics with the Serbian government. He added that helping Serbia advance toward its EU integration goal was at the center of the US local policy.

Selakovic: Dialogue with Pristina most complex issue; Serbia to base its policy on international law and UNSCR 1244 (RTS/Tanjug) 

Serbian Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic stated on Wednesday in Rome that relations between Serbia and Italy can serve as an example of successful cooperation, and pointed out that our country sees Italy as an important partner in the European integration process. Selakovic began his address in the Italian parliament, and on that occasion conveyed his gratitude to that country for its dedicated support to Serbia's European path since the beginning of the accession process, assessing that the mentioned institution played a very important role in that regard. He said that Italy has so far shown itself not only as a friend of the EU enlargement process, but also as one of its most vocal advocates. During his official visit to Italy, Selakovic addressed the members of the Committee on Foreign and European Affairs of the House of Representatives, saying that the government of Serbia remains consistent in the implementation of its foreign policy priorities.

According to him, full membership in the EU is one of the key strategic goals, and Serbia's interest is to preserve good neighborly relations and regional stability, as well as a just and peaceful solution to the issue of the southern Serbian province. Also, as he conveyed, traditional relations with the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China remain high on the list of priorities, as well as advocating for a new level of partnership with the United States. He pointed out that the previous year, in terms of the European perspective, was a year of challenges, estimating that the progress that Serbia deserved is missing. Stating that our country has opened 18 of the 35 chapters and has accepted the new methodology of accession negotiations, he said that he expects that the new “cluster” method will be more efficient and will recognize the results achieved in all fields, especially in the field of the rule of law. Selakovic emphasized that the dialogue with Pristina is the most difficult and complex issue, and that solutions must be sought through a dialogue under the auspices of the EU, for which there is no alternative, noting that Serbia welcomes the activities of the EU Special Envoy Miroslav Lajcak and that it is ready to resume the dialogue as soon as it received an invitation. Selakovic pointed out that permanent political instability in Pristina and the counter-productive rhetoric of its representatives aimed at Serbia was slowing down the process and often leading to a dead end. Selakovic said that Serbia, as before, would base its policy on a responsible and constructive approach and attitudes based on the principles of international law and UN Security Council Resolution 1244. He underlines that the most important decree of the Brussels agreement, the establishment if the Community of Serb Municipalities, has not been implemented to this day, noting that one cannot speak about building trust or reaching a compromise without the resolution of this and other issues of crucial significance for the Serb people and the Serbian Orthodox Church.

EU: Serbia must work on reforms to speed up accession negotiations (FoNet/N1) 

European Union Commissioner for Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi said on Wednesday he hoped the negotiations on Serbia's EU membership would be faster, but only if Belgrade implemented reforms, particularly those fundamental. “The swing will be reached only if we work together. Serbia must focus on reforms,” Varhelyi told the online debate “Serbia on Shaky Road to EU”.

He added the new methodology would enable predictability, i.e. for the countries to know what they had to do and the EU to understand what it needed to do when a candidate met expectations.

He said the inter-party dialogue in the Serbian parliament mediated by the European Parliament (EP) was necessary for talks between the government and the opposition. Speaking about the parliament, Varhelyi added the parliament had re-launched constitutional reforms in the field of justice. He referred to media freedom, saying the EU welcomed the adoption of the action plan for the media strategy, as well as the formation of working groups and the SOS line for attacks on journalists. But he added there was still much to do and that it was in Serbia’s interest to work on that. Varhelyi also insisted on the importance of the Belgrade-Pristina and expressed hope it would be a priority for Kosovo’s new government. He added the business environment had improved, unemployment reached a record low level and that Serbia’s economy had shown resilience in the pandemic. However, further reforms were needed, and that better administration and improvement of legislation should be made. Serbian Minister for EU Integration Jadranka Joksimovic said that since the beginning of negotiations on Serbia’s EU membership, she had witnessed a change in the atmosphere and interpretation of the enlargement policy. She added Serbia accepted the new methodology last year, while it was not yet known how it would be applied to countries that were already in the process. Still, she believed the decision was correct and that Serbia had shown confidence because the process at the time was of a “sclerotic bureaucratic” and now turned to a more credible, politically driven process. Joksimovic said the clusters provide a more dynamic approach by opening several chapters. The rule of law and fundamental rights from the set would be the main instrument for measuring progress, and that had already been the case in the current framework for Serbia. She added the new methodology was not entirely new for Serbia but that she understood that special attention would be paid to the rule of law, judicial reform, freedom of media, and the fight against corruption. Joksimovic said Serbia remained committed to European integration and that that was a foreign policy and domestic policies’ goal. Asked why people are Eurosceptic, Joksimovic said that it was not only Serbia’s case and charged that declaratively pro-European parties offered false expectations after the changes in 2000 about Serbia’s EU membership soon. On the other hand, many Serbia citizens associate the EU with seeking recognition of Kosovo’s independence, which is not the position of the state, she has said. Joksimovic added that if asked if they want Serbia to be a member of the EU, about 55 percent would favor it.

REGIONAL PRESS 

 

Nelson, Sattler discuss electoral reform with leaders of SDP, NiP, NS (Dnevni avaz)

US Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Eric Nelson and Head of the EU Delegation and EU Special Representative Johann Sattler met on Wednesday with leaders of SDP, NiP and NS Nermin Niksic, Elmedin Konakovic and Predrag Kojovic respectively. According to the statement published on US Embassy’s official Twitter account, the officials discussed key work in this “non-election year to produce freer and fairer elections through a transparent electoral reform process that meaningfully includes all stakeholders and other reforms to safeguard citizen rights and B&H’s EU path”.

It is unacceptable for opposition at B&H level for B&H Election Law to be changed only by parties that make up B&H CoM; Opinions in majority at B&H level also differ when it comes to this issue (Glas Srpske/Nezavisne)

The daily reports that the first official parliamentary discussion on formation of a new interdepartmental working group for changing the B&H election legislation confirmed previous suspicions that this task will not be completed neither easy nor quick because it is unacceptable for the opposition at the B&H level for the B&H Election Law to be changed only by parties that make up the B&H Council of Ministers (CoM). The daily noted that it has also been shown that opinions in the majority at the B&H level also differ when it comes to this issue. The daily recalled that a proposal according to which the interdepartmental working group for changing the B&H election legislation would be made up of three delegates and three representatives of SNSD, three delegates and three representatives of HDZ B&H and three delegates and three representatives of SDA, as well as three representatives of the B&H CoM, was discussed in the B&H House of Representatives (HoR) this week. The abovementioned proposal, put forward by the Joint Collegium of both Houses of the B&H parliament, does not stipulate for the B&H Central Election Commission (CEC) members to be active members of the working group, as was the case in earlier convocations of working groups. Ultimately, the B&H HoR adopted a conclusion not to vote on the proposal of conclusion on the establishment of the interdepartmental working group, but to forward all proposals of conclusions put forward by MPs to the Joint Collegium for consideration and declaration. During the discussion in the B&H HoR, SDA MP Alma Colo, who was nominated for a member of the new working group, stated that she believes that the CEC best knows election rights and shortcomings and that it should have its representatives in the working group. Colo confirmed that there is no consensus on participation of the CEC, but instead of proposing for members of the CEC to be part of the new working group, Colo proposed for representatives of opposition parties to be part of it. SDS MP Mirko Sarovic assessed that the proposed path is bad and that this is a system law for which consensus of all is required. PDP MP Branislav Borenovic said that the real intention is to do nothing and for the elections in 2022 to be held in accordance with "the old, bad rules." HDZ B&H PM Borjana Kristo said that the CEC is not legal and that she will not accept for B&H CEC members to be part of the working group. Head of SNSD Caucus in the B&H HoR Snjezana Novakovic-Bursac told the daily that the B&H HoR ultimately made a good move. "It is acceptable for SNSD that opposition MPs should take part in work, but it is necessary to see the details so that we would not have a too large body and possible other problems. The key stumbling block is a political agreement in the Federation of B&H and when it comes to the CEC, the new composition is illegal," Novakovic-Bursac concluded.

HDZ B&H Presidency discusses changes to Law on Elections (Dnevni list)

The HDZ B&H Presidency held a session via video-conference on Wednesday to discuss issues pertaining to the Law on Elections of B&H and dynamics of all processes in the future period. HDZ B&H President Dragan Covic presented activities of working groups, which have been formed in order to maintain intensity of talks. According to Covic, it is the cohesion of the working groups that should offer a concrete solution, which guarantees stability in the continuation of the European path of B&H, and most importantly, resolves all discriminatory provisions contained in Ljubic and Sejdic-Finci cases. The HDZ B&H Presidency noted that maximalist goals cannot be a part of constructive talks and will not be a mechanism to buy time and maintain the status quo. President Covic also expressed satisfaction with a recently held international scientific conference in Neum, which offered referent frameworks for the European and Euro-Atlantic path of the country. HDZ B&H Presidency stressed that the EU and NATO remain key foreign policy goals and priorities of legitimate representatives of the Croat people.

Dodik’s initiative to merge functions of RS President and B&H Presidency member continues to spark reactions (Oslobodjenje)

B&H Presidency member and SNSD leader Milorad Dodik stated recently that he will propose electoral legislation changes in order to allow the Republika Srpska (RS) President to automatically be also member of B&H Presidency representing the RS. “We have the right to decide how we are going to elect our member of B&H Presidency and I believe that the President who has the dynamics and who is familiar with all details in the RS should be member of B&H Presidency,” Dodik said. His statement caused different reactions. RS President Zeljka Cvijanovic said that the goal of Dodik’s initiative is to strengthen the RS. However, B&H Presidency member and DF leader Zeljko Komsic stated that the European Commission’s Opinion on B&H’s membership application clearly states that B&H Election Law needs to be harmonized with the EU standards, which primarily means that all rulings of the European Court for Human Rights (ECHR) on election legislation in B&H must be implemented. Komsic underlines that Dodik’s wishes do not correspond with the EC Opinion or the ECHR rulings. Komsic said that Dodik’s ideas resemble autocratic and totalitarian systems which are not in line with the EU standards. SDS Main Board President Milan Milicevic stated that Dodik’s initiative cannot be realized. According to him, Dodik’s motive is to centralize all power and claim it for himself. He ironically commented that since Dodik is already B&H Presidency member, RS President, Head of Crisis Headquarters and many more things, his initiative could even be seen as an attempt of democratization. SDA Vice President Adil Osmanovic stated that Dodik’s initiative is not serious. He noted that B&H Constitution clearly prescribes how B&H Presidency members are elected, and B&H has the task to change the election legislation in order to implement the rulings of ECHR and B&H Constitutional Court. Member of the election monitoring coalition ‘Pod lupom’ Vehid Sehic stated that Dodik’s initiative represents an attack against the parliamentary democracy and democratic principles in general. He noted that Dodik already wields significant power in the RS, and he is now trying to institutionalize it.

Kalabukhov: Russia wants OHR to close because it believes this is good for B&H (FTV)

Russian Ambassador to B&H Igor Kalabukhov stated that Russia wants the OHR to close because it believes that this is good for B&H and that now is the right situation for the constituent peoples to decide on how to proceed. Kalabukhov stressed that if the constituent peoples in B&H and their political representatives talk, they will perhaps find a way to ease the current situation in B&H even without the OHR. He noted that possible referendum on independence of Republika Srpska (RS) would have to be in line with B&H's regulations. "We support dialogue in B&H and I believe that if there was genuine dialogue, there would be no mention of secession of the RS, and as far as I know that is the position of (B&H Presidency Chairman and SNSD leader) Milorad Dodik," Kalabukhov told FTV. Kalabukhov explained that the statement of the Russian Embassy in B&H on possible membership of B&H in NATO was not a hostile act towards the peoples in B&H. "That was only our position in the military sense that if someone today joins an organization such as NATO that those countries have to fulfill certain obligations regarding military-technical aspects, then Russia has to take that into consideration, only in the military sense," Kalabukhov underlined. He noted that membership in NATO is a matter of B&H and its constituent peoples, the Presidency and the authorities which have to decide on that in accordance with the Constitution.

EU, US Embassy, OSCE and Swedish Embassy issue joint statement on recent criticism of Office of the Disciplinary Counsel (O kanal)

The EU in B&H, US Embassy to B&H, OSCE Mission to B&H and Swedish Embassy to B&H, as the OSCE Chair in 2021, issued a joint statement on recent criticism of the Office of the Disciplinary Counsel. The statement reads: “An impartial, accountable, and efficient judiciary is essential for B&H to make progress on its EU path. In that sense, the Office of the Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) within the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) is essential in guaranteeing that all judicial office holders and HJPC members in B&H promote these principles and adhere to the highest ethical standards’’. It was also stated that restoring citizens’ trust in their judiciary “requires, among others, ensuring that the Office of the Disciplinary Counsel can enforce its mandate independently and impartially, free from any undue pressure and personal attacks on the integrity of its members. We support the functional independence of the ODC and its important work and we support all efforts to ensure it remains free from interference with its investigations”.

Larson: Corruption is like plague destroying B&H (BN TV/RFE)

 

In an interview for Radio Free Europe (RFE), Sarajevo Canton (SC) Anti-Corruption Office’s Senior Advisor Erik Larson said that corruption in healthcare sector in the area of public procurements is like plague destroying B&H. Larson stated that during work on the fight against corruption in 2020 he realized an important thing: that corruption in the healthcare sector is a huge problem in B&H, especially in the period of COVID-19 pandemic. He expressed content with the fact the US has been helping SC in the fight against corruption by forming one anti-corruption working group that will be focused on healthcare sector. Larson underlined that corruption exists everywhere, adding that the situation in this region is poor due to one reason: fake patriots have been using ethno-nationalism to divert attention of the public from corruption they have been committing. He went on to saying that complex political situation, concretely in B&H makes the entire situation even worse. “This leads to the lack of institutional capacities to approach the problems strategically by using an integrated approach”, explained Larson, adding that fake patriotism is the main problem. Larson emphasized that he met many corrupted politicians in B&H who have been pretending to be nationalists in order to divert attention from corruption. Reporter noted that dysfunctional and slow system of procurement of vaccines as well as process of immunization that is yet to start on the territory of entire B&H showed numerous deficiencies, but also resulted in number of conclusions, comments and justifications. Larson emphasized that corruption concerning public procurement is like plague destroying B&H. “This country is literally dying due to corruption. People are leaving because they think they cannot get jobs without some connections. Other part of this problem is the fact unqualified people at public functions result in poor public services” explained Larson.  He also said that B&H has weak mechanisms to protect those who dare to report corruption. Larson underlined that these mechanisms need to be strengthened at all levels.

US State Department publishes report on human rights in B&H; Reactions (FTV)

 

FTV reports that according to the US State Department Annual Report on Human Rights in B&H, B&H authorities made no progress in processing war crimes in 2020, the judiciary is under political pressure, discrimination against women and LGBT population was not reduced. It was outlined in the report that political parties sometimes influenced the judiciary, particularly in cases related to corruption and governments in the country did not treat corruption as a serious problem. The High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) was in the center of corruption scandals, responsibility of judges and prosecutors was low and appointments were not based on merits often. The political and financial pressure on media continued in 2020. Secretary General of the Association ‘BH Journalists’ Fedzad Forto stated that the US State Department report which highlights political pressure against media is objective and its conclusions are correct. He noted that the objections raised by the State Department are the same as the objections raised by ‘BH Journalists’. Commenting the section of the Report which refers to the problems in B&H judiciary system and corruption, Court of B&H judge Branko Peric stated that the situation is even worse than depicted in the US State Department Report. “Only part of it comes to the surface, what remains hidden is even worse. The reality is worse than the Report. Our politics invests in corruption and our politics is based on corruption,” said Peric. Brcko District Chief Prosecutor Zekerija Mujkanovic stated that corruption perception in B&H is very high, and prosecutor’s offices cannot run away from their responsibility. However, he underlined, nothing is being done to prevent corruption, and all attention is focused on processing of corruption cases. According to Mujkanovic, prevention of corruption should be the main priority, and prosecutor’s offices should focus on high-level cases.

 

Krivokapic offers compromise, DF doesn’t even want to hear about it (Pobjeda)

 

Montenegrin Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapic offered the Democratic Front (DF) leaders Andrija Mandic and Milan Knezevic a compromise according to which the key recommendations of the Venice Commission (VC) on prosecutorial laws would be implemented in stages, through amendments by the government and the parliamentary majority, Pobjeda has learnt. Several Pobjeda sources say that Krivokapic‘s offer, which is currently unacceptable to Knezevic and Mandic, envisages first the adoption of recommendations that are easy to adopt, such as the changes in the composition of the Prosecutorial Council. “No country would follow the VC recommendations. The chief special prosecutor must leave – that is the red line below which the DF won’t go,” says the Pobjeda source close to the DF. The source adds that the Prime Minister’s offer relating to 3 deputy prime minister seats is still on the table. According to Pobjeda, the compromise was offered before the PMQs, at which Krivokapic said that “with the VC recommendations, the acting chief special prosecutor can be dismissed”. Meanwhile, the situation has not changed. “Since then, there hasn’t been any progress, so we are still in a stalemate,” the Pobjeda source says.

Covic and Simonovic dismissed from Intelligence and Security Directorate (Pobjeda)

Defense Minister Olivera Injac has passed decisions on dismissing Majors Radule Covic and Ivica Simonovic from the Intelligence and Security Directorate (OBD) and reassigning them to other duties, even though they were appointed to the OBD sector less than 2 months ago, Pobjeda has learnt. According to Pobjeda, Minister Injac was forced to make such a move after several urgencies of NATO security experts towards the Ministry of Defense and the Government of Montenegro. This has confirmed that with a series of wrong moves, all according to instructions from the top rungs of the Montenegrin government, Minister Injac practically collapsed the security system in the army in a short time and significantly compromised the almost flawless cooperation with Western allies.

Knezevic: Possible criminal responsibility of Committee members for access to secret data (CdM)

Speaking about the leak of secret data during the control hearing of the Deputy PM Dritan Abazovic and the acting director of the National Security Agency (ANB) Dejan Vuksic on 19 March, the president of the parliamentary Committee on Security and Defense and one of the Democratic Front leaders Milan Knezevic said that the possibility of criminal liability of MPs, i.e. 12 members of the Security and Defense Committee who were familiar with the material, was opened. Knezevic believes that this is an omission or oversight of people from the ANB, and that internal control is underway within that security institution. He emphasizes that it is not up to him to say whether disciplinary or other proceedings will be initiated against those persons.

 

Zaev congratulates Kurti on new Kosovo government (MIA)

The Prime Minister of North Macedonia Zoran Zaev congratulated the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti for the formation of the new government, while praising the friendly relations between the two countries. Zaev said further progress will be ensured in achieving common goals. In the letter to Kurti, he has expressed the desire for a meeting as soon as possible. "It is my special pleasure to express my sincere congratulations on your re-election as Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo and wish you success in performing this responsible function," it is written in the letter. Zaev praised the friendly relations between the two countries, whose cooperation is characterized by an open political dialogue, based on mutual respect and appreciation, intensive economic and trade cooperation. He expects this cooperation to continue with the same energy in the coming period, which will enable their deepening in other areas of mutual interest. In the end, Prime Minister Zaev expressed the desire for a meeting with Prime Minister Kurti as soon as possible.

 

Xhaferi obstructs the move to postpone the census (Republika)

Parliament speaker Talat Xhaferi announced that he returned the draft bill to postpone the census to the government because it had “technical issues”. Xhaferi already announced that he will obstruct the move to postpone the census that was agreed between VMRO-DPMNE and SDSM leaders Hristijan Mickoski and Zoran Zaev. I was not present at the meeting when the political deal to postpone the census was made and I have no responsibility for the timing. You can’t count your chickens before they hatched, Xhaferi said. The Albanian parties insist on having the “corona census” Zaev promised them go ahead in April as planned, and have already put in place infrastructure to register as many ethnic Albanians in the diaspora as possible. VMRO-DPMNE condemned Zaev’s move to allow that the diaspora is counted along with the actual residents of Macedonia, and also his idea to hold the census in the midst of a major Third Wave of the pandemic, that is sure to drive down turnout in the country. Albanian parties are hoping that these two effects combined will greatly increase their share of the overall population and are now trying to cancel Zaev’s belated agreement with Mickoski to postpone the census for September.

Xhaferi’s move in parliament means that the census is legally still supposed to start today (Republika)

The State Statistics Bureau census teams are going to be in a difficult situation tomorrow, as under law, the planned census is supposed to begin. Prime Minister Zoran Zaev accepted the demand from VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski to postpone the “corona census” for September, when hopefully the infection rate will be lower and some of the citizens will be inoculated, but this political agreement has not been put to law. Speaker Talat Xhaferi sabotaged the session where a bill to postpone the census was supposed to be discussed. Xhaferi returned it to the government, claiming that there are some technical issues with the bill. Nikola Micevski from VMRO-DPMNE said that another attempt will be made on Thursday.

 

State Department human rights report notes the persecution of journalists critical of the Zaev regime (Republika)

The annual State Department report on human rights in Macedonia notes the persecution of two critical journalists by the PM Zoran Zaev regime. Both Aleksandar Mitovski from the Infomax news site and Ljupco Zlatev from Lider.mk were charged after publishing leaked, confidential reports that pointed to abuse of power and criminal activities by the Zaev regime and Mitovski was given a suspended prison sentence. The government prosecuted journalists during the year for disclosing confidential or classified documents. On 4 March, the Skopje Criminal Court convicted journalist Aleksandar Mitovski and sentenced him to a six-month suspended prison sentence for leaking confidential documents related to the “Racketeering” criminal investigation. He published the first page of a witness deposition on his portal, Infomax, in August 2019. On July 30, the PPO filed a summary indictment against Ljupco Zlatev, the editor of Lider, a financial news portal, for disclosing classified documents from the National Security Agency in two texts the portal published in July, the report notes. Mitovski published an excerpt from the testimony of businessman Jordan Orce Kamcev during the major Racket trial. The excerpt showed that officials from the ruling SDSM party were involved in the scandal – despite best efforts by the prosecutors to cover up their involvement. Zlatev published a document from the ANB security service which showed that an agent was not rehired by the service because his father is a supporter of the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party. Both journalists said that the documents they published reveal serious abuse of office – involvement of top officials in racketeering and political abuse of the main secret police service.

Karakacanov: Only schizophrenic American bureaucrats see a Macedonian minority in Bulgaria (Republika)

Bulgarian Defense Minister Krasimir Karakacanov reacted angrily after the US State Department, in its annual human rights report, noted that Bulgaria continues to refuse Macedonian minority organizations to even register, let alone become active. The report cites OMO Ilinden and other Macedonian organizations who sought to be registered by the Bulgarian state but were denied. It also notes the recent reaction from the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture on this issue. It was Karakacanov’s nationalist party who used the Bulgarian judiciary to prevent the registration of Macedonian organizations. They view Bulgaria as Zanzibar, they don’t know our problems but write as if they do. Let me ask those scoundrels in the US State Department, where did they see this Macedonian minority? They take into account the reports from some Soros funded organizations and NGO groups who are made to spit on Bulgaria. Where are these repressed Macedonians in Bulgaria? Let them write what they want. Will they recognize a Texan or an Arizonian minority in America? No, because their policy is to integrate all and to make them Americans. Why should they enhance their statehood and we splinter ours? Karakacanov said.

 

Impunity remains serious problem in Albania; US State Dept. (ADN/VoA)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken presented the world human rights report for 2020, saying he reaffirmed the United States' commitment to putting the human rights issue at the center of the country's foreign policy. He said that by documenting the human rights status of the world every year, the State Department provides objective and comprehensive information to Congress, civil society, academics, activists and others wherever they are. Mr. Blinken said the 2020 report reflected the specific challenges faced by different countries. Some governments, he said, used the crisis as a pretext to restrict rights and consolidate authoritarian rule. Other governments relied on democratic values ​​and processes, such as a free press, transparency and accountability, to inform and protect their citizens. During 2020, the report says, Albania faced several important human rights issues, such as: the independence of the judiciary; restrictions on free expression and the press; widespread corruption in all branches of government and institutions; and non-enforcement of juvenile labor laws. Impunity remained a serious problem, the report said. "The prosecution, and especially the punishment, of officials who commit abuses were sporadic and not continuous. "Officials, politicians, judges and people with strong business interests were often able to avoid prosecution." The report mentions the event of December 8 in Tirana, when the State Police shot dead a person who was in violation of the curfew for COVID-19. Impunity for illegal police actions, the report said, remains a problem, although the government made greater efforts to address it, increasing the use of cameras to document and prosecute illegal police conduct. The report says poor physical condition and lack of medical care, especially for mental health, were serious problems, as was corruption in prisons. "Conditions continued to be below proper standards in some police detention facilities outside Tirana and other major urban centers," the report said.

Denial of fair public trial 

Although the constitution provides for an independent judiciary, political pressure, intimidation, rampant corruption and limited resources sometimes prevented the judiciary from functioning independently and efficiently, according to the State Department report on Albania. "Court hearings were often not open to the public. "Court security officials often refused to admit observers to hearings and regularly called the presiding judge to ask if he or she should accept this or that individual seeking to attend a hearing."

Freedom of speech, including the press 

According to DASH, during 2020 there were reports that the government, businesses and criminal groups tried to influence the media in inappropriate ways. The independent media were active and expressed a variety of views, the report said, but "there were attempts to exert direct and indirect political and economic pressure on the media, including threats and violence against journalists trying to investigate crime and corruption." The report states that “Business owners freely used their media to gain favors and promote their interests to political parties. "Most private television station owners used the content of their broadcasts to influence government actions against their other businesses." The report on Albania also states that there have been credible reports that senior media representatives used them to blackmail businesses. "Political pressure, corruption and lack of funding put restrictions on the independent print media, and journalists reportedly practiced self-censorship. "Economic uncertainty due to the lack of enforceable employment contracts reduced the independence of reporters and contributed to bias in their reporting," the report said.

Corruption and lack of transparency in government  

The law provides for criminal penalties for corruption by public officials and prohibits individuals with criminal convictions from serving as mayors, parliamentarians, or in government or state positions, but the government did not enforce the law effectively, the report said. "Corruption was widespread in all branches of government, and officials were often involved in corrupt practices with impunity. Examples include a mayoral candidate in 2019 previously convicted of drug trafficking.” The Constitution of Albania, according to the DASH report, requires judges and prosecutors to be vetted for unexplained assets, related to organized crime and professional skills. The Independent Qualification Commission conducted the vetting and the Appeals Chamber reviewed the challenged decisions. The International Monitoring Operation, composed of international judicial experts, oversaw the process. "By November, 125 judges and prosecutors had been dismissed, 103 confirmed, while 48 others had resigned from vetting," the report said. "Some government agencies investigated corruption cases, but limited resources, leaks of investigative data, real or perceived political pressures hampered investigations. Between January and September, the attorney general's office registered 20 new corruption cases and dismissed seven of them. The Department of Administration, Transparency and Anti-Corruption investigated 29 cases, resulting in 115 administrative measures and 153 disciplinary measures." The establishment in December 2019 of the Special Prosecution Office for Corruption and Organized Crime, one of the two entities that make up the Special Structure for Anti-Corruption and Organized Crime (SPAK), the report said, resulted in 327 new criminal investigations and 65 requests for sent to court since November. "While prosecutors made significant progress in prosecuting low-level corruption cases, including corrupt prosecutors and judges, prosecuting high-level suspects remained rare due to investigators' fear of retribution, lack of resources. and corruption within the judiciary itself.” "The High Inspectorate announced that by August, it had referred 60 new cases for criminal prosecution, including two MPs, a deputy minister, three mayors, 32 general directors of public agencies, a head of public procurement at customs and five heads. of regional customs,” the report says.

Rape and domestic violence 

Rape, including spousal rape, is a crime and the law also includes provisions for sexual assault, the report said. The report adds that “The government did not implement the law effectively. Authorities did not share data on prosecutions related to spousal rape. "The concept of spousal rape was not well understood, and the authorities often did not consider it a crime." As of November, the report said, investigators and prosecutors had registered 81 cases of alleged sexual assault. Also, as of November, investigators and prosecutors recorded 4,313 cases of domestic violence, six of which were homicides.

Government slammed for not fighting corruption (ADN)

Chairman of the Democratic Party (DP) Lulzim Basha has accused Prime Minister Edi Rama of not keeping his promise to fight corruption. Following what Basha calls "Rama's 100 failures in 8 years", he mentions the latest report of Transparency International, which says that Albania is a country caught by corruption. "Rama promised to fight corruption. Did he keep that promise? The answer is: No. According to the latest report of Transparency International, Albania is a country caught by corruption," it is said in the post of the DP leader.