Tranaparency International: Kosovo is not fighting corruption, s '%s' has been moving for a year

Transparency International has published the report on Corruption Perceptions Index for 2023. According to the Transparency International organisation, Kosovo has had no result in fighting crime and corruption. Same as last year Kosovo has been assessed at 41 points from 100 points to total, writes Periscopi.

The index annually ranks 180 countries and territories of the world on the perceived level of corruption in the public sector, where Kosovo takes 83rd place in the world ranking.

Based on Transparency International Macedonia's data, North Macedonia has scored mostly progress in fighting corruption among Western Balkan countries, followed by Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

IKD: Fighting Corruption is moving at a slow pace

From the Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI), they have estimated that the fight against corruption in Kosovo is moving at a slow pace.

“Anyway, Kosovo's slow but steady progress in the last decade is largely the result of democratic progress, attributed to holding free elections and the peaceful transfer of powers over the years. The CPI, however, stresses that this progress has not been reflected even in anti-corruption performance. Despite continued efforts, reforms that are key to the independence and efficiency of the justice system, including the veto process and the Law on the Prosecutorial Council, are moving at very slow pace. Furthermore, the government's continued interventions in judicial cases, the dismissal of the Special Unit of Investigations in the Kosovo Police, followed by the prevention of parliamentary investigation into the alleged case of corruption for state reserves by MPs from the parliamentary majority, shows the lack of political will to give up the judiciary's control and strengthen independent oversight”, Eugen Cakoli from KDI has said.

The US State Department had released its report on Kosovo in 2023, where Government was criticised for not fighting corruption.

The report for 2022 mentioned that the law envisions criminal penalties for officials involved in corruption, but that Government has not implemented the law as a whole.

“has been several cases of government-level corruption reporting. Officials have sometimes engaged in corrupt practices, with no punishment. The lack of effective judicial supervision and fragility for law enforcement has resulted in this problem”, said the report.

It has been mentioned that several corruption cases have been repeatedly appealed and that the judicial system, on occasion, has allowed the expiration of the prescribing of cases.

“in December 2021, the Kosovo Institute for Justice has identified 11 corruption cases that have jeopardised the forecast; in January, seven of these cases have expired due to prescription”.