“I should like to underline that the Council of Europe is working very closely with the European Union in supporting the ongoing reforms in Albania so that the country lives up to the European standards since we believe that Albania has its place in both our Organizations,” said Head of the CoE Office in Tirana Jutta Gutzkow
By Genc Mlloja
Senior Diplomatic Editor
“Preparations for the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Convention on Human Rights in Albania have started but it is too early to disclose details. But I can tell you that we have a lot of ideas and will actively contribute to the celebrations,” has said the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Tirana, Jutta Gutzkow.
Ms. Gutzkow praised Albania for achievements in the field of human rights but, however, she said there were concerns over some issues like hate speech, inequality when it comes to violence against women, discrimination and anti-Gypsyism etc. “As human rights organization, the Council of Europe has a longstanding legacy on protecting the rights of vulnerable groups, such as Roma as well as fighting discrimination and anti-Gypsyism,” she said.
Dwelling on the phenomenon of corruption the Head of the CoE Office in Tirana, said Albania, like other countries, needs to make continuous efforts and develop solutions to address corruption and money laundering. “Yet I would like to stress that the fight against corruption and economic crime is not a sprint; it is a marathon.”
In a comment on the expected decision on the opening of the EU accession talks with Albania she said it will be known more about the calendar at the latest at the Zagreb Summit. “I should like to underline that the Council of Europe is working very closely with the European Union in supporting the ongoing reforms in Albania so that the country lives up to the European standards since we believe that Albania has its place in both our Organizations,” Head of the Council of Europe Office in Tirana Jutta Gutzkow said in the following interview:
Albanian Daily News: 2020 marks the 70th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights. Madame, what is the meaning of this anniversary and how will it be celebrated in Albania?
Ms. Jutta Gutzgow: Indeed, 70 years have passed since the European Convention on Human Rights was signed on 4 November 1950 in Rome by twelve countries – and now all 47 member states of the Council of Europe are parties to the Convention, have the obligation to protect the rights enshrined in the Convention and to implement the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights. Since 1998 individuals can apply directly to the Court once all the domestic remedies are exhausted. This mechanism for the protection of human rights is unique in the world! The rights and freedoms secured by the Convention include the right to life, to a fair hearing, to respect for private and family life, the freedoms of expression, thought, conscience and religion and the protection of property. The Convention prohibits, in particular, torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, forced labor, arbitrary and unlawful detention, and discrimination.
A look at the statistics for 2019 shows that the European Court of Human Rights delivered 884 judgements concerning 2187 applications. Nearly a quarter of the violations concerned the right to a fair trial (Article 6), on account of the fairness or the length of the proceedings; more than 20% concerned serious breaches of the Convention, namely the right to life or the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (Articles 2 and 3). Until now, the Court delivered 80 judgments concerning Albania and found in a significant number of cases violations of the right to a fair trial (article 6), the right to an effective remedy (article 13) and protection of property (Protocol 1 to the Convention).
The 70th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights is a reason to celebrate and to emphasize the enduring value and necessity of the Convention and the Court, especially in the face of new threats to democracy, human rights and rule of law.
Preparations for the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Convention in Albania have started but it is too early to disclose details. But I can tell you that we have a lot of ideas and will actively contribute to the celebrations, probably by organising public debates and activities with Albanian institutions and international partners.
– Madame, Europe is facing a shocking reality: anti-semitic, anti-Muslim and other racist hate crimes are increasing at an alarming rate. Can the tolerant Albanian society give an example for other European countries?
– Already in 2012, Albania took as motto for its Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe “United in diversity”, what shows the firm belief that diversity is a genuine asset for European democratic societies. It seems to me that this motto guides not only Albanian policies at the European level but reflects the respect for diversity, multiculturalism and tolerance as a traditional value of the Albanian people. When I first came to Albania, I noticed for example in ‘Kavaja’ street and ‘Bulevardi Zhan D’Ark’ that Muslims and Christians are sharing the same street and that the Orthodox church, the mosque and the catholic cathedral are located just a few meters from one another.
However, diversity, multiculturalism and tolerance are under threat in Europe. The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), the Council of Europe’s independent expert body against racism and intolerance found in its annual report 2019 “…increasing influence of ultra-nationalistic and xenophobic politics across Europe, hate speech setting the tone in social media, rampant anti-semitism and anti-Muslim hatred, as well as an increasingly hostile environment for NGOs working with vulnerable groups.” The most recent example for this trend is the shooting in Hanau, a city in my home country Germany, where nine people were killed and several wounded.
Hate speech, whether online or offline, and its impact on European societies are a major cause for concern for the Council of Europe as it is often a manifestation of discrimination, can lead to other human rights violations and to hate crime. We believe that countering hate speech helps stopping hate crimes from happening.
To counter hate speech in Albania, the Council of Europe supports the “No Hate Alliance” which was established by the People’s Advocate, the Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination, the Audio-Visual Media Authority and the Albanian Media Council in December last year. The Alliance engages key stakeholders involved with various aspects of preventing hate speech, it coordinates efforts and organises joint interventions to raise awareness and advocate against hate speech as one front. We believe that cooperation is key to success in countering hate speech and hate crimes. Therefore in this mission we support various actors including close cooperation with youth and academia, police and civil society organisations. This action is part of the project on “Promotion of diversity and equality” under the European Union and Council of Europe joint programme named “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey” which is currently in the second phase and will last until 2022.
–Roma people are an integral part of the Albanian society, yet, Roma communities feel often marginalised. Is the Council of Europe active in the support of Roma?
-As human rights organisation, the Council of Europe has a longstanding legacy on protecting the rights of vulnerable groups, such as Roma as well as fighting discrimination and anti-Gypsyism.
Roma in Albania are officially recognised as a national minority since the adoption of law No. 96/2017 on the “Protection of National Minorities in the Republic of Albania” in 2017. This formal recognition marked an important achievement since Roma were previously considered an ethno-linguistic community.
Currently, we implement the“ROMACTED” programme, another joint European Union and Council of Europe initiative on “Promoting good governance and Roma empowerment at local level” in seven Albanian municipalities, namely in Elbasan, Pogradec, Korca, Fier, Roskovec, Vlora and Permet. This action has been embraced by both local Roma communities and authorities and has already produced tangible results. On the one hand, it focuses on how people from the Roma community practice their basic rights, expand their capacity and skills and get better organised to voice the interests and needs of the community. On the other hand, the programme involves municipalities as the main local institutions responsible for Roma social inclusion.
Thus, local action plans for the Integration of the Roma and Egyptian minorities have been prepared jointly by the beneficiary municipalities and local community action groups which are composed of Roma youth, women and community leaders. All the plans have been submitted to the municipal councils for endorsement and application. These local policy documents are guiding Roma friendly policies in fields such as water supply and sewage, waste collection, health, education etc. We have very good cooperation with local authorities who need to engage budgetary resources to enable the implementation of the local action plans. To generalise this practice, a Guideline on Roma responsible budgeting at Local Level is being developed to help local governments and budgetary institutions responsible for Roma inclusion in their work. Close collaboration with central and local government is expected to lead to Roma responsible budgets and better living conditions for Roma and Egyptians all over Albania.
As you can see, the particularity of the ROMACTED programme is that it changes the way of policy making and develops tools such as the local action plans and the guideline for Roma responsible budgeting for effective inclusion policies. In addition, to support these processes, a small grant scheme is in place for financing selected local projects developed by the municipality together with the Roma community that aim provide solutions for facilitating access to the labour market, offer training and enhance their professional skills, improve local infrastructure and social services and promote cultural heritage.
–This month, Albania marked two dates: Teachers’ day on 7 March and Women’s day on 8 March. What are the Council of Europe’s main objectives in these fields?
-In the beginning of the year Albania published its “Gender Quality Index” to measure performance, monitor progress and identify gender gaps. Based on findings of this report, Albania achieved a score of 60.4 out of 100 – just 7 points below the 2019 the average of 67.4 of the European Union countries. Women’s presence in politics and civil service is high and Albania is close to gender parity in education and health. However, women face more obstacles than men, simply because they are women.
This inequality is particularly true when it comes to violence against women. This is a form of gender-based violence that is committed against women because they are women. The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence is based on this understanding. It is the obligation of the state to fully address it in all its forms and to take measures to prevent violence against women, protect its victims and prosecute the perpetrator. In the last week of February, it was reported that one man killed his former spouse and her brother, and another man killed his spouse. The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence has a strong focus on prevention because prevention can save lives and reduce human suffering. Among the preventive interventions recommended by the Convention are the awareness-raising campaigns and education of new generations such as gender equality and non-violent conflict resolution in teaching material. I am mentioning these two measures because addressing gender inequality in general and violence against women in particular requires a transformative change in society and communities’ beliefs and perceptions. Working with young people is the best way to change stereotypes and mind sets and education has an important role to play in addressing these challenges.
In this context, the Council of Europe’s work on fostering education for democratic citizenship and human rights is important. Recently we started a project on “Strengthening Democratic Citizenship Education” which is funded by the Swedish Agency for International Development.
The concept of the project includes sharing of values, attitudes, competences, knowledge and critical understanding that are necessary for a democratic and inclusive society. Concretely, the project addresses three dimensions: A review of the policies, curricula, materials and teacher training to see how to enhance the capacity of the formal education system to develop competences for a democratic culture in school children. Second, cooperation with 75 primary and secondary pilot schools to develop and implement democratic governance policies and practices in order to create a more inclusive and enabling learning environment for all children. Last but not least, support to teachers to enhance their professional competences, attitudes and practices so that they are better able to develop democratic competences in learners. Allow me to mention some of the most important topics chosen to be addressed in the project implementation such as digital citizenship, media literacy, fake news, staying safe online, fighting bullying in schools, teaching controversial issues, and climate change.
–Corruption is a serious problem in Albania. What is the Council of Europe contribution to addressing this scourge?
-First, I would like to acknowledge that a number of reforms are underway in Albania and the political commitment to pursue them is visible. This is important since a real, effective fight against corruption, money laundering and organised crime is key not only to ensure respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, but also to boost economic growth.
Council of Europe support to member states in fighting corruption and economic crime has three dimensions: Standard setting through Conventions and other “soft law” instruments, monitoring their compliance, in particular the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL). Both bodies have a clear methodology for evaluation and provide recommendations to all member states to address any identified shortcomings. This approach is supported through cooperation and technical assistance made possible by our Office in Tirana in close coordination with colleagues in the Headquarters. Indeed, the Council of Europe has been a strong partner in providing specific and tailored support over the years in the fight against corruption and economic crime. This cooperation continues under the joint European Union and Council of Europe Programme named “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey”, notably the “Action against Economic Crime in Albania”. We are continuing to provide advice for reform to the Albanian authorities in areas such as reforms in the electoral code, review of the anti-money laundering legislation, strengthening of the system for asset declarations, building capacities and creating strong links among homologue practitioners, professionals and government structures that share common goals and objectives when tackling economic and organised crime and its cross-border effects.
Thanks also to our technical support, the effects of the reforms are acknowledged and recognised in GRECO and MONEYVAL reports. By the way, the 5th round of GRECO Evaluation will be focused on “Preventing corruption and promoting integrity in central governments (including the top executive functions) and law enforcement agencies”. Albania will be evaluated on this aspect in May 2020, so stay tuned.
Yet I would like to stress that the fight against corruption and economic crime is not a sprint; it is a marathon. Albania, like other countries, needs to make continuous efforts and develop solutions to address corruption and money laundering and this includes introducing strong legislative and institutional frameworks, and make them work effectively in practice. We expect that the Specialised Anti-corruption Prosecution and Court (SPAK) will deliver justice for the citizens of Albania and eliminate impunity.
-Madame, the European Commission reconfirmed this month its firm stand by Albania to open the European Union accession talks. What is your expectation for Albania to get a positive answer?
-Well, the decision on opening accession negotiations pertains to the governments of the member States of the European Union and at the latest at the Zagreb Summit we will know more about the calendar. I should like to underline that the Council of Europe is working very closely with the European Union in supporting the ongoing reforms in Albania so that the country lives up to the European standards since we believe that Albania has its place in both our Organizations./ADN
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