What the ombudsman said that moved them to nervous Kurti and Osman

Albin Kurti and Vjosa Osmani seem to disagree with each other over an issue in the law on parliamentary elections. The prime minister and president appear to have clashed for this law, which the ombudsman warned he could take for consideration to the Constitutional Court. Naim Celaj had many remarks about the institutions in his address to the heads of state at the Council for Democracy and Human Rights meeting.

President Vjosa Osmani invited Prime Minister Albin Kurti to the third meeting of the Council for Democracy and Human Rights, where they at one point had a tense discussion.

They discussed over two minutes after the ombudsman, Naim Celaj, addressed the institutions with full criticism.

This meeting seems to have spread in an unusual way a disagreement between them.

What the Ombudsman said

Initially, the ombudsman cited independence and impartiality as the attributes this institution should have, while saying his voice is the voice of citizens, whom they express by sending complaints and requests.

This year, he said that the Sʹe institutions have listened strongly to the ombudsman, ignoring recommendations for protecting human rights.

This year, data is not very encouraging. But we're still early to come to a conclusion. So far, 20% of the ombudsman's recommendations have been applied for recommendations addressed to authorities in 2023. 80% of the recommendations are pending implementation. So, we have a large number of recommendations that await implementation by the country's authorities and institutions”, Celaj said.

He added that institutions should have priority in implementing the ombudsman's recommendations.

The parliamentary commissions in no case during 2023 have referred to the ombudsman's recommendations”, Celaj said, among other things.

Two years ago, a practice has been created that the ombudsman's report was addressed in the Assembly by a late year”, he said further. So far, when we're at the end of the year, the 2022 report didn't sign your assessment, the report in the Parliament”.

He also cited a tendency of power for, as he said, “gave the ombudsman comment and responsibilities, but this was not followed by increased resources and financial support”.

This tendency undermines the work of the ombudsman”, he said. “Such a thing, such a tendency is without many adopted laws, adding the responsibilities and commitments of the ombudsman”, Celaj added.

His demands for increasing the capacity of this institution, Celaj said they were also ignored. They, he said, remained untested, untested, and without any reason why they were not approved” for three years.

He said he would exploit this case to express this concern to the prime minister and president.

The lack of response is not in accordance with the law, and it shows that it is not in accordance with either the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo itself, he said.

The cell cited the wage law, which, according to him, has damaged the ombudsman institution”. This law is being considered at the Constitutional Court.

He also stressed that the Ministry of Finance had not heard them, despite the ombudsman addressing the problems of that law.

I have expressed my will that I am not about to submit the law to the Constitutional Court because laws have to be passed, not procrastinated. Eventually, however, the law, at the request of the ombudsman, is subject to the assessment of its compliance with the Constitution, for reasons I've mentioned long ago, and we have also addressed written comments, which have not been taken into account and are ignoring”, he said.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti has shown not a bit of disgust that the laws the Government is adopting are being sent to the Constitutional for assessment, but Celay sees it as an added value.

“assessment of the constitutionality of executive and legislative decisions is undoubtedly of value added to democracy, and I consider that it does not harm democracy and human rights, but, rather, it is worth protecting the reports between the 48x1> institutions, said Celaj, expressing his concern even in terms of this law.

The ombudsman said he is considering the possibility of sending the election law to the Constitutional as well.

I don't see the representation of women on the electoral lists as a quota, I see it as a fair value, as a value built into the principles of our Constitution, so I say it's an addition to the Constitutional Court because I'm considering the possibility that this law with an address to the Constitutional Court, right on this basis”, he said.

The ombudsman said 1571 complaints were received this year. “29% of complaints are from women, the rest from men. This still shows a legal inequality”, he said.

What did the government say?

Celaj's words did not please Prime Minister Albin Kurti, who stated that the 10 Parliament laws containing important reforms for the state, for justice and employment, have remained to be assessed at the Constitutional Court, have been overturned or “interpreted”, as he said, by this court.

Government spokesman Progress Kryeziu wrote on Facebook that Kurti and Osman were discussing the ombudsman's warning that the election law could be submitted to the Constitutional Review.

When, after the prime minister, the ombudsperson, Naim Qelaj, he began to ponder the way he is considering sending another law to the Constitutional Court, this time the new Law for Elections, which was voted in second reading in the Parliament this year on June 8th, was released in the official newspaper on July 3rd and entered into force on July 18th 2023. In that shoot, Prime Minister Kurti is seen speaking to President Osmani about the Celaj People's Lawyer and this issue of his word”, Kryeziu wrote without specifying the discussion between Kurti and Osman.

What did the President say?

President Vjosa Osmani proposed to the ombudsman to deal with political parties to make an amendment “that deals with this incompatibility with the Law on Gender Equality”, in the Law on Elections and to proceed further, avoiding a reception for the Constitutional Court's decision. Thus, she said that “would solve this problem much better”.

Thank you, Mr. Lawyer. Perhaps a recent attempt before you send the law to the Constitutional Court, if political parties agree, we can make an amendment to the Law on General Elections and proceed as soon as possible in order to address the issue that I discussed, I and you. I don't know how much time there is. Perhaps even a month or two, roughly, so if both the majority and opposition parties would agree, this problem would be solved much better, so that we don't wait and maybe even a year until your request at the Constitutional Court is addressed and blocked by one of the laws that are fundamental to our reform process, and it was probably one of the few laws that have been voted by the majority and the opposition. So, it is one of the rare cases where the whole Parliament agrees about one law and this has been one of those”, Osmani said.

After Osman got out, he was asked about the discussion with Kurt. She said they were talking about the election law.

“For the law on general elections and the women's percentage on the list. So it's continuous” effort, the president/express said.