Undeserved Plagia

On 15 August, Education Minister Arberie Nagavci issued a decision on academic staff's scientific works and publications.

Under the decision, all institutions of Kosovo's higher education are obliged that, in the case of the academic staff's declaration on the e-accreditment platform of the Kosovo Agency for Accreditation (AKA) to do the uploading of doctorate and publishing in index magazines.

This decision takes effect on October 1st.

Meanwhile by Rectorate of UPP told Free Europe Radio that after the annual holidays, the Senate will handle cases suspected of plagiarism by the university professors.

University Senate is the highest academic organ in the UP.

According to the University of Pristina statute, the scientific academic doctorial framework “can be revoted in case of evidence that it is plagia or copyright violation”.

So far, dozens of UP professors have been suspected and in some cases proved to have published scientific works and plagiarized books. But, they never received adequate punishment for these academic violations, say representatives of organisations monitoring the higher education system.

Plagiarism is the use of words, ideas, or other person's data without citing it.

Dentations From Civil Society

According to a research done by the platform “Academia”, of 37 academic staff doctoral work selected for verification, nearly 85 percent were considered plagiarism.

In 2016 the platform '%Academia created the anti-plagjiature platform and system that allows interlingual analysis in order to contribute to the development of quality and protection of academic integrity.

For cases of plagiarism conducted by academic staff at Pristina University “Hasan Pristina” (UP) has also been reported by civil society.

The Education Growth Organisation (ORCA) reported eight professors to the UP Faculty of Mechanical Engineering that they have works or textbooks.

This organisation had denounced these cases to the Ethics Council at the UP, but no measure was taken against them.

O RCA, founded in 2016, has missions that contribute to increased the quality of education in Kosovo, with a leading focus of university education.

This organisation is active in overseeing academic processes in higher education in Kosovo, and in coordinated responses to improving the quality of teaching at public university.

In 2018, even the nongovernmental organization "Admoverre," had published the names of 16 professors who were suspected of having books or scientific plagia works.

And there is also an organisation that engages in increased quality of higher education in Kosovo, with particular emphasis on UP. This organization identifies the problems in this area and offers recommendations for their solution.

Minimum Punishments

Within just two months of this year, after the O pleas RCA for plagiarization conducted by seven professors two at the Faculty of Philosophy and five at the Education and Sports Faculty .

To these professors, the Ethics Council has pronounced penalties, banning the management of diploma topics for all levels of studies for two years.

But, Adea Kondrolli, project manager and director of research at ORCA, tells Radio Free Europe that these council decisions are unadequate.

The “Professors who verify they have plagiarization must be attracted to academic titles they have acquired and should be expelled from the university. It doesn't happen anywhere in the world that a professor is plagiarized and keeps his job”, says Kondiroll.

So far, according to her, The UP has not made such a decision against any professor.

Among the professors for whom the Ethics Council at the UPP has found that there are plagiarisations in their works and punishments for Bujar Dugolli and Ardian Kastrati, both professors at the UP's philosophical faculty.

Free Europe Radio has contacted Professor Bujar Dugolli, but he has not wanted to comment on the matter. But, in a post on the social network Facebook, she has been told that the Ethics Council's decision is “armir and non-professional”.

REL has also tried to contact Professor Ardian Kastrati, who is also an MP in the Kosovo Assembly, but he was not available for the declaration.

Is there legislation that punishes the plagiarists?

In Kosovo, except for the Ethics Council at the University of Pristina, which can take measures for plagiarist professors, there is legislation which in one form or another punishes plagiarism.

These penalties are included in the Law on copyrights and rough rights.

Although this law does not use the term plagiarism, it has fine sentences of between 500 and 25 thousand euros for all persons who use copyrights without permission.

Education Affairs expert Nehat Mustafa from the Centre for Education Advancing, says that “no one can reason with that there is no legislation to condemn cattle”.

“Plagiarism in terms of the delta is a kind of robbery where all laws in Kosovo condemn robbery. Even with current laws without any need to issue other laws, the plagiates have room to submit to legal sanctions”, Mustafa tells Radio Free Europe.

He adds that if there are constantly denounced for plagiarisation and the University of Pristina does not take measures, it should be the Prosecution, which should initiate those cases reported by civil society or anyone else.

Meanwhile, Besart Konushevci director of the Platform '%Akademia says there is a lack of the will of institutions to address the problem of plagiarism and punish professors who commit the act.

The developed European countries that have taken steps to address plagiarism have come from higher-down logic: from the ministry ʹ from the government. If left alone in the hands of an institution it will be impossible to solve the problem”, says Konushevci.

Albania, Northern Macedonia with fines and prisons for plagiates

Unlike Kosovo, the two countries of the region -- Albania and Northern Macedonia -- have stricter measures for plagiarism. Except for fine, there's prison punishment.

In Northern Macedonia, fines behave according to the work of the physical or legal person.

In the meantime, if the person has achieved a greater benefit by exploiting the copyright of another person, then the prison sentence of between three months and three years is provided.

In Albania, according to the Criminal Code, plagiarism as a criminal offense could be fined by fines and up to two years in prison.

But even these two countries, according to a research conducted by the Platttforma Akademia, has proven the alarming level of plagiarism, says Radio Free Europe, Besart Konushevci.

Nagavci: UP's to ensure academic integrity

Prior to the release of the 15 August decision, Radio Free Europe had asked the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovations for how to solve the plagiarism problem. But according to this institution, this case belongs to the UP.

Following measures taken by the Ethics Council, Minister Nagavci, through a post on the social Facebook network, had considered them to be inadequate measures and had asked the UP to reconsider and ensure respect for academic integrity standards within the institution.

“Establishment of quality in higher education is one of the government's top priorities and AugustI for what we have been busy since the beginning of the” mandate, Nagavci said.

The minister has warned that the new draft law on higher education will have special measures for preventing all forms of violating academic integrity.

This bill, Nagavci wrote, envisions the formation of the Ethical Committee at the central level, as well as forcing all institutions of higher education to have ethical advice.

Is it difficult to verify plagiarism?

Besart Konushevci says that if there has been no solution to plagiarization by 2016, there is currently no such problem.

Platforma '%Academia, he adds, has an anti-plagiarism system that has access to more than 17 billion Albanian-language and foreign-language writings.

This system detects the similarities of the works, and in a very short time it confirms the plagiarization.

And we're basically focused on building an interlingual anti-plagjimental system that allows for translation of its contents and identification. This has been the goal of offering a solution that meets market needs, but there has been no interest in institutions fighting this”, he says.

University of Pristina, Konushevci adds, was offered this system, but from this institution they have not expressed interest.

This anti-plagisation system, he shows, has been installed by several universities in Albania and some private ones in Kosovo.

What causes high education plagiarism?

Plagiarism by academic staff at the UP, according to education experts, is a problem that directly affects the quality of students' teachings and studies.

Education Affairs expert Nehat Mustafa from the Centre for the Advancing of Education, says the phenomenon of plagiature by academic staff will leave great sleep in the education system.

When we have large numbers of plagiates, we have reduced the reputation of education, reputation will decline, Kosovo's scientific works of research will not reach the credibility that it deserves”, he says.

Adea Kondirolli from ORCA says the reason why professors do scientific work is for them to be up-to-date with new ones in contemporary science and to make their contribution to science.

“If they're doing plagiarism, they're not contributing, they're damaging”, Condrolli says.

The education ministry itself, Nagavci, has acknowledged that the situation at Pristina University is serious and that it urgently needs to become different.

This is unacceptable and can't go on”, Nagavci wrote on the social Facebook network.

In various international reports, Kosovo has been criticised for its poor quality in education, starting in the lower and higher cycle.