Extract from the Monitoring Report, read out in the press conference

27^th February 2012 marked precisely 20 years from the ratification by Albania of the UN Convention “On the Rights of the Child”. This Convention is referred as the first international act signed after the collapse of communism in Albania. This year the anniversary of the Convention coincides with the 100^th anniversary of the Albanian state.

During 20 years of democracy Albania has ratified hundreds of conventions, treaties and protocols.  Their principles are embodied in the vast majority of the domestic legislation in force.  The Convention for Children’s Rights is the best illustrating example: its principles are “embodied” in precisely 68 laws, including the Constitution and 8 most important national Codes.

Unfortunately, in these 20 years no focus of attention was placed for the publication in the Official Journal of these acts, which determined the democratic path of Albania during the years of transition. Thus, for instance the Convention for the Rights of the Child (UN) was never published in the Official Journal as a text officially translated in Albanian language. Also, the ratifying law of this Convention is not published.

In the best case (and there are only 2 similar cases in 20 years), the texts of Conventions in Albanian language are published after many years such as the UN Convention “On elimination of all forms of discrimination against women”. Its publication in Albanian language was made possible only 15 years after the ratification (Additional Official Journal 33, dated 15/10/2008).

In 1996, Albania signed the EC “Convention for Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms”. This vital convention ratified by a law which entered into force immediately, was translated in Albanian language and was published in the Official Journal after 12 years. It should be stressed that in the area of human rights, the Constitution of 1998  sets ECHR directly in motion, classifying it at the top of the body of international acts  signed by the Albanian state. This is one of the rare cases in Europe where the international act, even formally, is at the same hierarchy with the national establishing act.

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Being specialized to trace acts “rescuing“the publication in the Official Journal, from September 2011 to early February 2012 CPII launched a comprehensive assessment of the situation about the unpublished international acts during the period 1992-2012.

About 2046 Official Journals were reviewed and 187 international acts signed by the Albanian state were identified, whose texts are still unpublished. In theory, this number may be even larger, considering that some of the ratifying laws have not been included in the Official Journal (as the case of the Convention for Children’s Rights).

In this stock of 187 conventions, 25 are UN Conventions and 10 are Council of Europe Conventions. The remaining documents are mainly bilateral treaties which still remain crucial in terms of the relations built by the Albanian state with other countries during these 20 years of democracy. Of these, we may highlight the bilateral treaties with the neighboring countries, i.e. Italy, Greece or Macedonia.

Interestingly, the Albanian State has never published the text of the agreement “On demarcation of the continental shelf with Italy”, ratified by Law No 7685 dated 15.03.1993.

Fortunately, the same type of agreement which was concluded in principle with Greece two years ago was brought to the spotlight of public opinion before being “frozen” by any ratifying law which, unsurprisingly, would not have at all the text of agreement. Also, it is noted that a growing number of bilateral treaties of Albania with its eastern neighbor, Macedonia, are not published in the Official Journal (about 7 ones identified in the framework of this monitoring).

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In 2002 the issue of unpublished stock of international acts was introduced in the agenda by the Ombudsman. He required the publication of 75 UN and EC acts signed by Albania before and after 90-s. Only after four years, in 2006, the Ministry of Justice submitted a concrete proposal: at a financial cost of about 2 million ALL, the Ministry of Justice assumed to propose the Ministry of Finance to foresee it as a budget fund for the second half of 2006.

Billions of ALL of the state’s budget are spent since that time for a variety of issues, including the lobbying about new international agreements, celebrations of memberships in Northern Atlantic Treaties or regional initiatives but the stock of conventions in question still continues to not be published, thus being rotten in the mold of negligence and darkness. Billions of ALL are planned to be spent this year for the celebrations of the 100^th anniversary of the state. To our knowledge, no ALL is allocated for the publication in the Official Journal of this stock of international acts. By an in-depth analysis, only two singers less would be needed in these celebrations for the 100^th anniversary of independence to secure the money for the translators of the Ministry of Justice, so as they would begin work under pressure and urgency, and the image of the 100-year state of Albanians until 28 November 2012 would be attached the required level of seriousness.

This special monitoring is conducted by CPII in the framework of the 100^th anniversary jubilee of the Albanian state, in cooperation with Partnership for Transparency Fund, with central headquarters in Washington D.C.