The Albania-EU Parliamentary Committee of Stabilization and Association
held its seventh meeting in Strasbourg. The meeting was led by Eduard
Kukan and Taulant Balla, respectively representing the European and
Albanian Parliament Delegations.
After discussing several matters, the members of this organization gave their conclusions. First they greeted the successful high-level dialogue which started last year between the European Commission and Albania, regarding key reforms required for Albania’s European Union integration.
By showing full support to this adherence, the Committee expressed its regret for the decision taken by the Council of Europe, which postponed the candidate status. They asked the council the follow the recommendations of the European Commission without further delays.
The document issued after the meeting underlined the need to continue the political dialogue, and appealed the ruling and opposition parties to support the accession reforms. The authorities are encouraged to implement them in the most complete and efficient way, and are advised to submit accurate performance data before the meeting in June. The political forces are encouraged to refrain from offensive rhetoric and avoid boycott or blockage of parliamentary and institutional procedures.
The Committee welcomes the constant commitment of the government to reform the judiciary and fight corruption, which will be the focus of the next report of the European Commission. The Committee welcomes an agreement between political parties on the necessity to realize the administrative-territorial reform. They request a quick application of this reform by being hopeful that all parties will play a constructive role in the work of the ad-hoc Parliamentary Commission.
The document reminds that the public administration reform is a key priority of Albania’s progress in its European Union integration path. On the same time, the document expresses regret for the delayed announcement of the Constitutional Court verdict on the civil employee normative act. The document underlines that a transparent and efficient public administration is one of the basic foundations for the functionality of a democratic state, and it is essential for a country that aspires to become part of the European Union.
Albania is praised for the results achieved in its fight against the organized crime, and is encouraged to continue the efforts. However, there is concern that Albania is still considered a country of origin for human traffic, including minors. The report also shows regret for the fact that the majority and opposition were unable to find consensus for the composition of the Directing Board of the Public Radio&Television and the Audiovisual Media Authority. The document greets the decision for inviting international experts for assistance (CoE, Electoral Campaign and OSCE) on drafting the amendments to the audiovisual laws.
The document also greets Albania’s improved position on the freedom of speech report issued by “Reporters Without Borders”, jumping from the 102nd place to the 85th. There is a negative trend on the document about the economy, as it mentions the 2.3% drop of the Gross Domestic Product. Albania is also praised for its constructive and stabilizing role in the region and for its efforts to guarantee good relations with our neighbors.
But the meeting continued through debates between the majority and opposition MPs, who held opposite stances on a many matters. The opposition published a series amends for the independent institutions, the law for the civil administration and the partial elections of Korce, which, according to the Democratic Party, were not mentioned in the declarations and were blocked by Socialist Party MPs.
After the meeting, the majority declared that the representatives of the Socialist Party and Socialist Movement for Integration expressed their readiness to approve the draft-declaration based on the variant proposed by the co-leader of the Committee, Eduard Kukan. The declaration of the Socialist Party says that the majority gave its consensus for the draft proposed by the European Parliament, and showed positive will to accept the opposition’s amends, despite their destructive spirit.
According to the Socialists, based on the good will for having a final declaration, they agreed to continue reviewing the amends proposed by the Democratic Party MPs in another meeting in Tirana, next week.
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