Seminar on “Cybercrime – Hate Speech on the Internet” in cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates on 18-19 May 2023. Albania
The IRZ organised a seminar on 18-19 May 2023 on “Cybercrime” in cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates. The event built on previous discussions, and explored the adaptation of the Albanian legal system to the Budapest Convention on Computer Crime. The focus here was on the issue of hostility towards people relating to their origin, sexual orientation and physical and/or psychological limitations. The spread of religious extremism and Holocaust or genocide denials were also addressed.
The IRZ invited Mr. Frank-Michael Laue, Senior Public Prosecutor from the Central Office for Combating Hate Crime on the Internet / Lower Saxony (ZHIN), to present the German and European legal framework.
The main discussion topics included:
Crime phenomenon of hate crime on the Internet
Budapest Convention on Computer Crime
Substantive-legal norms and legislative changes to combat hate crime through criminal law in Albania and Germany
Approach of German law enforcement authorities in combating hate speech on the Internet
Criminal investigation measures and relevant criminal procedural regulations in Albania and Germany
Presentation of the reporting channels to the criminal prosecution authorities in Germany
Securing and using electronic evidence
The topics in the German-Albanian legal comparison were presented with the Albanian speakers, Ms. Denisa Asko (Public Prosecutor, Tirana Public Prosecutor's Office) and Mr. Edmond Koloshi (Public Prosecutor, Durres Public Prosecutor's Office), to provide the 18 judges and public prosecutors attending with starting points for questions and discussions.
While the Albanian contingent explained during their lectures that hate speech on the Internet is not generally liable for prosecution, Mr. Laue made it clear that a precedent was also required in Germany to enable the authorities to take more vehement action against such crimes: e.g. the murder of the Kassel District President, Walter Lübcke, in 2019. These events led, among others, to some federal states setting up specialist Public Prosecutor's Offices to combat hate crime on the Internet, and Mr. Laue reported on the structure and approach of such offices using the example of the Central Office in Lower Saxony.
The event was funded by the Federal Ministry of Justice and follows on from years of intensive cooperation with the School of Magistrates, which promotes the training and further education of the Albanian judiciary and Public Prosecutor's Office.
Conference on “The jurisprudence of the Supreme Court: from national identity to universal values” to mark the 110th anniversary of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania, 10 May 2023, Tirana (Albania). Albania
An international conference was held in Tirana on 10 May 2023 on “The jurisprudence of the Supreme Court: from national identity to universal values” to mark the 110th anniversary of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania. The IRZ and a judge at the Federal Court of Justice, Ms. Babette Pohl, were guests of honour at the anniversary celebration.
The conference focused on Albanian judicial reform, the EU integration process and the role of Supreme Courts in bringing national judicial practices in line with international standards.
The conference participants included judges from the Supreme Courts and Constitutional Courts of Albania, Italy, France, Azerbaijan, Turkey, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Germany, the European Court of Human Rights and the United States Tax Court.
In the opening speeches, the Vice-President of the Supreme Court of Albania, Mr. Sokol Sadushi and the President of the Constitutional Court of Albania, Ms. Holta Zaçaj, emphasised the importance of an independent judiciary as the foundation of the rule of law and as a basis to gain the trust of the people in the judiciary. President Bajram Begaj stated that the Supreme Court of Albania makes an indispensable contribution to aligning Albanian jurisprudence with the principles of European justice and ensuring the protection of human rights. Ms. Naureda Llagami, President of the High Judicial Council of Albania, again underlined the need for judicial reform in Albania, and also the ongoing challenges in this respect.
From the international side, Ms. Christiane Hohmann, Ambassador of the European Union in Albania, underlined the importance of a qualitative and independent judiciary as one of the most important pillars of EU integration. She emphasised that councils of judges and Public Prosectors should uphold the high standards of scrutiny to ensure the independence, accountability and efficient functioning of the judiciary. Ms. Yuri Kim, Ambassador of the United States of America to Albania, also reiterated that a strict separation of powers was essential.
During the conference, approx. 15 panellists discussed specific issues in front of over 150 participants regarding:
the role of Supreme Court case law in shaping national legal culture (Panel I)
the consideration of international standards in the case law of Supreme Courts (Panel II)
the road to EU integration: historical perspectives and current challenges in shaping the role of Supreme Courts (Panels III and IV)
The conference gave participants a valuable opportunity to share experiences and to discuss common challenges. The talks focused at all times on the importance of an independent, transparent and professional judiciary as the foundation of the rule of law and the EU integration process. In particular, the essential role of the Supreme Court of Albania was highlighted in the implementation of judicial reform.
The IRZ invited Ms. Babette Pohl, LL.M., judge at the Federal Supreme Court, to present a lecture on the relationship between the European courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union In her presentation, Ms. Pohl emphasised the preliminary ruling procedure under Article 267 TFEU to ensure the standardised application of Union law and emphasised the resilience of the European judicial system, despite recent disputes between national Constitutional Courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union. The lecture ended with the appeal that European case law is an essential instrument for the protection of fundamental rights, the protection of minorities and the preservation of the rule of law in Europe.
Ms. Pohl was accompanied by Ms. Dr. Frauke Bachler, General Director of the IRZ, and Ms. Anja Finke, Deputy Head of the South East Europe II / South Caucasus project area. The celebrations also included numerous talks with representatives of partner organisations of the IRZ from Albania and the region.
Study trip from 23–25 November 2022 to the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig for employees of the documentation centre of the Albanian Supreme Court. Albania
IRZ also supported the Albanian Supreme Court Documentation Office in 2022, which started work in June 2021. This cooperation is also within the framework of a project on “court organisation” funded by the Federal Foreign Office.
Study trip for employees of the Albanian Supreme Court Documentation Centre to the Federal Administrative Court
From 23–25 November 2022, the eight employees of the Albanian Supreme Court Documentation Centre were able to learn about the methods and processes of legal documentation at the Federal Administrative Court and to gain a practical insight into its diverse tasks.
Prof Dr Andreas Korbmacher, President of the Federal Administrative Court, opened the study trip. Mr. Benjamin Weber, Head of Legal Documentation at the Federal Administrative Court and his team presented the tasks and organisation of their department. The participants were then introduced to the first two in-house services, the journal content service and the article service as part of a tour of the courthouse.
On the second day of the event, the Albanian documentarians gained a comprehensive overview of the process of a decision document at the Federal Administrative Court and the documentation of a decision in juris – the legal information system for the Federal Republic of Germany. The delegation also gained an insight into the documentation and research options in juris.
The last day of the event was dedicated to the presentation of the “Documentation Office for Environmental and Planning Law” and European cooperation in the area of legal documentation. Here, the organisers presented the JuriFast database and the Judicial Network of the European Union (JNEU).
The participants enjoyed some lively and engaged exchanges with their colleagues from the Federal Administrative Court. They gained specialist knowledge, experience and ideas for the further development of the Supreme Court in the Albanian Documentation Office.
New documentation software for the Supreme Court
The start-up “jurmatix”, in collaboration with IRZ, developed software for a case law database at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania in 2022. The decisions of the Albanian Supreme Court will be documented here by the documentation department in the future. The judges can also access a research interface.
IRZ provided significant support for the judicial activities at the Albanian Supreme Court and made a contribution to more efficient and transparent court administration. IRZ will also support the documentation department of the Albanian Supreme Court and organise joint seminars on the subject of legal documentation in 2023.
