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Deficiencies with the independence and integrity of the judiciary; lack of independent media; and corruption at all levels of government, in law enforcement and local institutions, continued to be major problems in Albania over the past year, according to the US State Department's report on human rights, published on Monday.

DASH underlines that there have been no significant changes in the human rights situation in Albania during 2023. The report states that the government took credible steps to identify and punish officials who may have committed human rights violations.

Regarding corruption, the State Department notes that in general the Government of Albania effectively implemented legislation that provides for criminal penalties for corruption by public officials and that prohibits individuals with criminal convictions from serving as mayors, deputies or in other positions government or state, however, says there were numerous reports of corruption in the government.

"Corruption was present in all branches and levels of government, including through public procurement and public-private partnerships, although authorities made progress during the year in the fight against corruption and ending impunity," the report said.

DASH- mentions the high-level arrests by SPAK and the convictions for corruption cases, including the convictions for corruption and abuse of office of the former Minister of Environment Lefter Koka and his former Secretary General Alqi Blako.

"In July SPAK issued an international arrest warrant for the former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance (and deputy of the Socialist Party) Arben Ahmetaj. He left the country after the parliament accepted SPAK's request for the removal of Ahmetaj's immunity so that he could be arrested on charges of corruption, money laundering and concealment of wealth," the report states.

The report also mentions the case of former Prime Minister Sali Berisha.

"In October, SPAK announced that it was officially investigating former Prime Minister Sali Berisha for passive corruption related to a land deal from which his son-in-law benefited about 5 million dollars. "SPAK arrested Berisha's son-in-law, ordered Berisha to report regularly to the judicial police and forbade him to leave the country," says DASH.

Also, the High Inspectorate for the Declaration and Control of Assets and Conflict of Interest announced that until August it had referred six new cases for criminal prosecution, which included a deputy, a prosecutor, three directors in government agencies and an administrator in a company governmental. The charges included refusing to declare assets, concealing assets or falsifying asset declarations; Cleaning money; and tax evasion.

Speaking of police corruption, the report says it continued to be a problem, especially among front-line police officers.

Independence of the Judiciary

"Although the constitution provides for an independent judiciary, political pressure, intimidation, corruption, and limited resources prevented the judiciary from functioning fully, independently, and efficiently," the State Department report said.

DASH further adds that the implementation of the vetting process for judges and prosecutors continued, in order to exclude from the system those who had unexplained wealth or ties to organized crime.

"The People's Advocate assessed that the judiciary had made progress towards creating a more independent system, but added that more resources were needed," the report says.

According to the report, the judicial system is becoming more independent thanks to the vetting process and the actions of SPAK, however, it is noted that citizens have complained about lack of transparency in investigations, significant delays in processes and unfair court decisions.

The State Department says that although the constitution and law provide for the right to a fair and public trial, and that the judiciary generally enforced this right...

"The Albanian Helsinki Committee noted that the backlog of cases accumulated, vacancies in the judiciary and the systematic lack of efficiency, undermined citizens' confidence in the justice system", the report states.

Most of the complaints from citizens concerned the lack of response from government bodies to their concerns, violations of due process, unfair trials and punishments.

The report mentions the concerns about the administrative judicial processes related to the lawsuit filed by the Gulistan Foundation for the closure of the "Mehmet Akif Ersoy" girls' high school and the "Zubeyde Hanim" kindergarten in 2022.

DASH says that the Albanian Helsinki Committee observed that "the parties were not treated equally during the trial" and that there were questions about the impartiality of the judges.

Irregularities in the last elections

DASH refers to the ODIHR report, according to which the local elections of May 14, "were generally well-administered, competitive and peaceful", but that they were also accompanied by problems, including

"The report also put apparently the misuse of administrative resources at the central and local level, complaints of pressure on public sector employees and voters, as well as notices of vote buying", says the State Department.

DASH continues that "the rules for media coverage of the campaign strongly favored the main parties" and that the media's continued use of campaign materials prepared by the parties in news broadcasts "undermined a comprehensive and objective coverage of the campaign."

"The final report of the ODIHR Election Observation Mission for the May elections identified cases of misuse of state resources at the central and local level, allegations of pressure on public sector employees and voters, as well as allegations of vote buying," it says. in the report.

DASH also refers to the findings of the Albanian Committee of Helsinki, according to which this Committee observed "intimidation of voters, political parties observing the activities of voters" and the lack of media coverage of the campaign of small parties.

Concerns about the state of the media

The report expresses concern about the state of the media, noting that "independent media organizations and professional journalists claimed that the government, political parties, businesses and criminal groups tried to influence the media in inappropriate and non-transparent ways." .

"There were credible reports that senior media representatives used their media outlets to blackmail businesses by threatening them with negative media coverage. "Political pressure, corruption and lack of funds limited the independence of the print media, and journalists reportedly practiced self-censorship," the report states.

The State Department says the lack of regular employment contracts reduced the independence of journalists and contributed to biased reporting.

DASH mentions delays in payments to journalists in many media, "including at least eight television stations, in some cases up to five months", referring to the Union of Albanian Journalists.

According to the report, financial problems forced some journalists to rely more on outside sources of income, calling into question the independence and integrity of their reporting.

Although citizens were free to criticize the government openly, including in traditional and social media, DASH notes concerns that "open criticism of the government could have negative consequences."

"The Albanian Institute of Political Studies reported that individuals who publicly criticized the government and leading politicians faced smear campaigns from government supporters and political leaders," the report says.

According to the report, politicians used the popular media to spread fake news about their rivals and critics, and that political and business interests put pressure on journalists.

The report mentions several cases of violence and intimidation against journalists, including the case of Report TV's Elvis Hila and his wife who were attacked in Lezha, after Hila published a report, according to which one of the perpetrators of the attack.

The report also lists the arson attack on Top Channel television, where a security guard lost his life.

Various organizations, according to the report, have claimed that in the last two years, "changes in television ownership resulted in more favorable coverage of the government".

DASH also says that after ABC News changed ownership, there were reports that programs directed by journalists critical of the government were shut down and those journalists left the station.

Another example is the public television, Radio Televizioni Albanian, where the report states that after the change of senior managers, some media reports said that there were unjustified dismissals.

The report also states that senior managers of private media outlet Syri.net reportedly monitored journalists' and editors' communications electronically to ensure they respected the owners' political leanings.

The Union of Gasters also expressed concern about the increase in lawsuits against journalists.

Until October, there were 12 defamation cases against journalists.