Brussels, 27 September 2022
A team from the High Inspector of Justice Office was part of the Albanian delegation, which participated in the explanatory meeting organized in the framework of Albania’s negotiation process with the EU in Brussels by the European Commission, on chapter 23 “Judiciary and Fundamental Rights”, Acquis Progress and Relevant Standards from September 2018 onwards.
The Albanian delegation was headed by Ms. Majlinda Dhuka, chief negotiator and Ms. Adea Pirdeni, deputy Minister of Justice, as the negotiating institution for chapter 23, as well as representatives of the institutions of the justice system. The High Inspector of Justice Office was represented by the director of the Directorate of Legal Analysis and Drafting of Acts Ms. Eljona Bylykbashi and the Cabinet assistant Ms. Linda Saliu.
The European Commission technical team from the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations as well as from the Department for Justice presented to the delegations of Albania and North Macedonia the EU principles and standards for the judicial system, its independence, quality and efficiency; the requirements of the EU legislation compared to the national one; the independence of the judiciary, its requirements; the appointment, promotion and evaluation of magistrates; accountability of magistrates within disciplinary proceedings; judicial training; non-compliance with EU principles, standard measurement instruments, and also anti-corruption policies, personal data protection, non-discrimination, children’s rights, gender equality and media freedom.
The explanatory meetings are the first stage of the screening process, which includes the entire spectrum of EU legislation policies, conceived in 6 groups for all 35 chapters of the EU law body (Acquis), which enables candidate countries to familiarize themselves with EU laws and standards and their obligations, as the first step in the process of accession negotiations.
The second phase will include bilateral meetings, where each candidate country is invited to present, according to the assigned chapter, the progress of the preparations for the adoption and implementation of the EU laws body.
