Author: Dallandyshe Xhaferri
In Albania, hundreds of citizens and detainees are waiting for decisions which seem to be dragging on for a long time, causing deep concerns about the country's justice and judicial system.
Redi writes worriedly on the platform "Sinjalizo" about his father, who has been in detention for a long time, awaiting the communication of the court's decision after being accused of domestic violence.
Redi is a pseudonym, but his father is not the only detainee awaiting the Justice's decision.
The People's Advocate, Erinda Ballanca, tells "Sinjalizo" that for 10% of the people who are in detention, despite the fact that there is a court decision, the decision has not been disclosed!
"The part of clarifying decisions is evidently problematic in the conditions we are in, as many judges who underwent vetting left files unclarified," says Ballanca, which has meant that for years Albanian courts have had thousands of files in stock, also violating the deadlines for the process of clarifying court decisions.
"Depending on the different decisions, there is a different duration. But, within a 30-day period, all decisions must be clarified," says Ballanca, while Erida Skëndaj, Chairwoman of the Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC), says that the delays are inexplicable.
"The AHC has submitted to the Assembly for the High Inspector of Justice, so that a delay of up to 120 days in the disclosure of decisions should not be tolerated, as long as the laws provide for shorter and mandatory deadlines for judges," says Skëndaj.
According to official data from the High Judicial Council (HJC), Albania has 247 judges, or 8.94 judges per 100.000 inhabitants. "This ratio is 60% lower than the European norm (22.2 judges per 100.000 inhabitants)," the 2023 report published by the HJC states.
Delay in clarifying decisions even before Vetting in Justice
12 years ago, Ilir Xhakja, known in the world of crime in Albania, fired a volley of bullets at the former Chief of the Shijak Police Station, Adem Tahiraj, during a police patrol in Katund Sukth, Durrës.
This event attracted the attention of the Justice institutions not only for the murder of the former Chief of the Police Station, but also for the first criminal proceedings against a judge in the country. The NT judge, who had previously followed another case of Ilir Xhakaj, had not clarified the decision for months.
According to data made public in one of the annual reports of the Center for Public Information Issues (INFOÇIP), the investigation conducted by the Ministry of Justice revealed that the review of a criminal case against Xhakaj at the Durrës Court had not yet been completed, as the reasoning and submission of the decision to the judicial secretariat had been delayed for several months.
"In the criminal case against the defendant Xhakja, it results that the court process lasted about 1 year and 7 days, while the reasoned decision was submitted after 1 year, 7 months and 5 days from the date of its announcement," the report states, emphasizing that the reasoning of the case significantly exceeded the time of the court hearing itself.
"The issue of Judge NT's failure to clear criminal decision no. 98, dated 9.2.2011 for such a long time would probably not have been noticed, and even less would it have become a problem, if Police Commissioner A. Tahiraj had not been killed in the line of duty," it further states, adding that similar delays by the same judge were also applied to about 60 other cases.
Citizens complain about Justice
Over the past three years, citizens and legal entities have filed hundreds of complaints with the High Inspectorate of Justice for reasons related to claims for unfair decision-making by magistrates during the review of cases, for delays in the reasoning of decisions, for delaying the trial by the side of the judges, but also for procrastination of the investigative activity by the prosecutors;
According to official data from the ILD, during the past year 879 complaints were filed by citizens and legal entities, while thousands of complaints remain from previous years.
"A total of 3703 complaints are subject to review for 2023, including complaints filed during this year (879). Of these complaints, 2340 complaints were reviewed during 2023, of which 1268 are complaints filed with the ILD and 1072 are complaints from the backlog fund," the report published by the ILD states.
The issue of judicial delays has also reached the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg.
"On October 12, 2021, the ECHR sentenced the Albanian state to 3500 Euros, plus court costs for the delays caused in the judicial review of two of its citizens (Barra and Kola Vs. Albania)" - stated in the official publication of INFOÇIP during 2023, which emphasizes that the phenomenon of complaints to the ECHR for judicial delays beyond a reasonable time is expanding, based on the empirical observations of this organization.
Justice vs Self-Judgment
Enkelejda is just one of the citizens of Elbasan who has been knocking on the doors of the Court of Elbasan for 5 years to seek justice. Kuri addressed the judge, she could not think that she would be in the courtroom for 20 sessions and that 3 judges would be changed.
"I sued my employer for unfair dismissal. In the lawsuit I filed, I asked for a full year's salary, because the employer gave us half of the salary through the bank and the rest in cash," says the 28-year-old, adding that she is now awaiting the decision of the Court of Appeal in Tirana.
"I had delays because the first two judges left the justice system during the vetting process, while the third judge ruled that I was the winner of the case, but the other party appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal in Tirana . "
The Reform in Justice and the implementation of the New Judicial Map on February 1 of last year have influenced the slowing down of the handling of various court cases throughout the country. Today, Albania has 13 Courts of First Instance and only one Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction in Tirana.
Durim Bajrami, lawyer and Chairman of the Chamber of Advocates in Vlora, tells "Sinjalizo" that the Reform in Justice was necessary, but not the way it was carried out.
"More than half of the magistrates were dismissed, leaving the courts empty. The court of Vlora had 18 judges, it reached 5 to 6 judges and today there are 12 of them, but the stack of cases carried have made them unable to catch up."
4 years ago, says Bajramaj, a criminal case in the Court of Vlora took 3 to 8 months to get a decision, while today only in the Court of First Instance citizens have to wait up to 2 and a half years.
"Today, the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction in Tirana is trying cases from 2017. So, we are 7 years behind and this gap will deepen, because the files are increasing while it is expected that a case will take up to 15 years," lawyer Bajramaj tells "Sinjalizo", adding that delayed justice poses a risk to citizens, who resort to self-justification.
"Clients come to us for various issues. When I explain the process to them, that the case can take up to 2 years in the Court of First Instance, 10 years in the Court of Appeal in Tirana and up to 6 years in the High Court, that is, that it must wait 20 years for a decision, the customer leaves. There may be issues with conflicts and he says: I do not turn to the court, I will solve it by self-judgment".
Inaccessibility in Justice
Erinda Ballanca, the People's Advocate, says that for the first time in the country, there are fewer cases filed in court. At the national level, the number of filed cases, claims-lawsuits has decreased by 5%, an indicator of which can be the new judicial map.
According to a survey conducted by KSHH, where the participants were a sample of 612 individuals, it turns out that for most of the respondents, about 39.4%, distance completely or partially prevents them from opening a judicial process.
The financial impossibility to open a court process was not seen as a reason for 75,3% of the respondents.
"However, 1 in 4 people report that there have been cases where, due to the financial inability to pay the court fee or hire a lawyer, they have not sought to resolve their disputes through the court," it is written in the response that AHC gave to "Sinjalizo".
The problems of the judicial system require immediate attention and solutions to avoid serious social and legal consequences. Justice reform is a necessary step, but it must be accompanied by concrete actions to improve citizens' access to and trust in justice. Meanwhile, citizens remain waiting for justice, hoping that the day of fair and quick decisions will come soon.
This article was created based on input provided by individuals who have chosen to speak up. Share your story, empower others and be an agent for change. Visit the website: www.acqj.al/sinjalizo-dhe-ti/
