The Albanian Constitutional Court has suspended the ratification of the controversial agreement between Edi Rama and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the creation of reception and repatriation centers for migrants on Albanian soil, financed and managed by Italy. The reactions of Albanian politics
With a lightning decision, the Albanian Constitutional Court suspended the ratification of the protocol on the transfer of migrants stipulated between Prime Minister Edi Rama and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni on 6 November. The ratification procedure, scheduled for Thursday 14 December, had been included in the parliament’s agenda with an accelerated procedure by the socialist majority in government.
In the preliminary exam, the three judges of the Constitutional Court deemed it admissible the appeal presented by the centre-right opposition, submitting the case to the decision of the plenary session scheduled for January 18th. The Court will have to pronounce the final decision within three months from the date of submission of the appeal, i.e. by 6 March 2024.
The reactions of the two opposing political sides were immediate. While the exponents of the Socialist Party reiterated respect for all the procedures in force for the signing of the agreement, the opposition rejoiced at the partial victory.
Upon his return from the EU-Western Balkans summit, Prime Minister Rama cut the issue short during the press conference . “It is a right of the Constitutional Court […] that of examining an agreement with a foreign state. I have nothing to add regarding my duties.”
Common front against the agreement
28 deputies of the “Rifondazione” fraction of the Democratic Party (PD), led by former prime minister Sali Berisha, and two of the Freedom Party of former president Ilir Meta presented an appeal on 6 December for the unconstitutionality of the bilateral protocol on the transfer of migrants.
The group of deputies claims that the procedure for the negotiation and signing of the agreement was not respected, as its object falls within the categories of agreements that require prior authorization from the President of the Republic.
In addition to the issue of the temporary cessation of the territorial sovereignty of the Port of Shëngjin and the Gjadër area to Italy (where the migrants were expected to arrive), the appellants highlight a violation of at least two articles of the Constitution, respectively Art. 16 on the principle of equality between foreign citizens present in Albania and Albanian citizens, and Art. 27 on the unjust limitation of personal freedoms, considering that migrants will be detained in a confined area for a period of up to 18 months without just cause.
“We filed the lawsuit to protect the interests of citizens. The fate of our country cannot be decided by violating human rights. We are grateful to the Italian people, but this does not concern them.” he has declared for the media Lindita Metaliaj, the deputy leaves PD.
In its press release, the Constitutional Court reiterated that the applicants had submitted three consecutive requests for the suspension of the parliamentary ratification procedure of the agreement.
On the morning of December 6th, in addition to Rifondazione’s appeal, a second appeal was also presented by the moderate fraction that officially represents the Democratic Party, led by Lulzim Basha.
In a press release, vice president Kreshnik Collaku said that “the agreement [con l’Italia] was announced in a strange way, without warning, arousing a logical reaction of concern, and becoming the subject of profound public debate both in [Albania] than in Italy”, and specified: “In Albania there was a lack of transparency on the part of the prime minister. Rama managed to hide several times by exploiting the parliamentary chaos, avoiding public debate.”
The moderates of the PD ask the Constitutional Court to declare the Rama-Meloni agreement unconstitutional, the suspension of the ratification procedure in parliament and its incompatibility with Articles 3, 4 and 7 of the Albanian Constitution.
One of the first “effects” of the agreement on migrants was to calm the clash between the two factions of the PD, deeply divided and fragmented in the last two years.
The compact majority
The opposition attempted in various ways to block the work of the parliamentary commissions in which the agreement with Italy was expected to be approved at first reading. To counter resistance, the parliamentary commissions met online and approved the agreement with only the votes of the majority.
In his speech Interior Minister Taulant Balla underlined that through the protocol a surface area of land is made available to the Italian government for the construction of host structures for irregular immigrants. “This is not any form of cession of territories, since they remain territories of the Republic of Albania, but we grant the right to temporary use of an area previously determined in the agreement.”
For his part, the president of the security commission Nasip Naço defined the opposition’s reactions as attempts at personal protagonism by those who have lost their sense of politics.
Following the suspension of the agreement, the president of the socialist parliamentary group, Bledar Çuçi, he has declared that the majority will implement every decision of the Constitutional Court, believing that the agreement is very important “to demonstrate that we are a European country”.
Over the last few weeks, Prime Minister Rama has addressed the issue of the agreement with Italy on several occasions, reiterating the thesis of solidarity, although recognizing the limited contribution that Albania can provide to the migratory challenge that the country is facing. ‘Eu.
“Albania cannot be the solution to solve this problem, but we can help”, Rama pointed out in an interview for the Albanian media. “By accepting the agreement we are simply acting as a European country that shares this concern. From a political point of view, Albania’s reputation increases.”
The reactions of civil society
Several civil society activists have publicly shared their skepticism about the practical implementation of the agreement, reiterating the widespread tendency among EU countries to want to externalize migration issues to the detriment of respect for human rights. There are fears that the construction of two centers in the province of Lezha could have a negative impact on tourism, as well as a potential serious problem for national security.
An alliance of 29 non-governmental organizations wrote an open letter to the government asking for its withdrawal from the agreement with Italy. The organizations express their concern about the lack of transparency and consultations with interest groups.
In the first days following the announcement of the agreement, some sporadic, low-participation civic protests took place in Lezha and Tirana. The leader of Rifondazione Berisha also initially spoke out in favor of organizing national protests, but was then forced to turn around following a call from Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
Voices out of the chorus
With a surprise effect, of the 7 municipalities led by the center right, two mayors – one of the municipality of Fushë Arrëz in the north and the other of Memaliaj in the south of the country – publicly asked the prime minister to host a certain number of migrants in the spaces made available in the respective municipalities, as required by the agreement with the Italian government.
“It’s time to show our hospitality, based on the experience and hospitality that we immigrants ourselves have found for many years in European countries,” reiterated Albert Malaj mayor of Memaliaj, in his open letter.
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