Rundtischgespräch zu den Herausforderungen der Geldwäschebekämpfung in Kosovo am 14. Juni 2023 in Pristina. Kosovo
In cooperation with the Office of the Prime Minister of Kosovo, IRZ was involved in an advisory project on combating money laundering in Kosovo from November 2022 to the end of 2023. The Federal Foreign Office financed the project.
The consultations focused on a comprehensive analysis of the legal and institutional framework for combating money laundering in Kosovo, with a particular focus on the general conditions for effectively combating money laundering as well as the legal framework of criminal money laundering law and asset recovery. Based on this analysis, a report with concrete and practical recommendations for action was submitted to the Kosovo Prime Minister's Office in November 2023.
The report was written by a team of three experts: Dr Stefan Trunk, Senior Public Prosecutor at the Duisburg Public Prosecutor's Office and Chairman of the Examination Commission at the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court, Prof Dr Mohamad El-Ghazi, Professor of German and European Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure Law and Commercial Criminal Law at the University of Trier and Director of the Trier Institute for Money Laundering and Corruption Criminal Law (TrIGeko), and Mr Thomas Seidel, former police officer in the Federal Criminal Police Office and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Senior Compliance Officer in universal banks, lecturer in anti-money laundering and founder of the non-profit organisation antifinancialcrime.org gGmbH.
In addition to the document-based assessment of the legal framework, the team of experts travelled to Pristina three times within a year to hold in-depth expert discussions with representatives of a total of fifteen Kosovan and international institutions. In addition to a meeting with Prime Minister Albin Kurti in March 2023, working visits were made to the Special Prosecutor's Office, the General Prosecutor's Office, the Court of Appeal, the FIU, the police, the Central Bank and the customs authority, among others. In addition, two cross-institutional roundtables were organised to discuss challenges and discrepancies in the interpretation and application of the law in practice.
Another integral part of the project included the organisation of training events in the area of money laundering investigations related to crypto-assets. In this context, a 15-member delegation – mainly representatives from Kosovan public prosecutors' offices, police authorities, the FIU and the central bank – travelled to Germany in December 2023 and hold working discussions with German institutions, including the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) in Frankfurt, the Central Office for Financial Transaction Investigations – Financial Intelligence Unit in Cologne, the Central and Contact Point Cybercrime North Rhine-Westphalia (ZAC) of the Public Prosecutor General's Office in Cologne, the Central Office for Combating Cybercrime (ZIT) of the Public Prosecutor General's Office in Frankfurt and the Federal Criminal Police Office in Wiesbaden.
Despite the high priority that the current Kosovan government attaches to combating money laundering and corruption, the EU Commission's latest progress report from November 2023 once again denounces the urgent need to reform the Kosovan law on combating money laundering and terrorist financing. The analyses of the team of experts and the recommendations for action derived from them can make an important contribution to aligning Kosovan legislation with the EU acquis and international standards, while at the same time strengthening the efficiency of investigative structures and promoting more effective application of the law by Kosovan law enforcement and judicial authorities.
Regional expert exchange of the Constitutional Courts and Supreme Courts of Kosovo and Albania on the topic "The balance between legality and constitutionality control", December 14, 2023 in Pristina (Kosovo). Kosovo and Albania
The regional exchange between the Constitutional Courts and Supreme Courts of Kosovo and Albania on the balance between legality and constitutionality control took place for the second consecutive time on 14 December 2023. Approximately 80 judges and legal advisors from the four courts participated in the conference held in Pristina (Kosovo).
In her keynote address, Professor Dr Gabriele Britz, former judge at the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany and Professor of Public Law and European Law at Justus Liebig University in Giessen, presented the German approach to balancing legality and constitutional control at the invitation of IRZ. During two panel discussions, the participants delved into selected legal questions, discussed ongoing developments in their case law, and deliberated on the associated challenges.
The cross-border exchange of experiences facilitated dynamic discussions and fostered an environment of mutual trust. The insights from German practice enriched the in-depth analysis of the legal framework, the prevailing case law across the four courts and the examination of established best practices.
Seminar on “Internal and external communication of judicial authorities – the use of social media”, 24-25 October 2023 in Pristina (Kosovo). Kosovo
The IRZ has been supporting the Kosovo Public Prosecutor's Council (KPC) for several years to address topics around internal and external communication. The press spokespersons of the Kosovo courts have also been actively participating in this exchange since December 2022. Against this backdrop, two workshops on the topic of internal and external communication of judicial authorities were held in Pristina, Kosovo, in October and November 2023.
The aim of these workshops was to strengthen judicial transparency in Kosovo by improving the professionalism and the promotion of active press and public relations work by judicial authorities and thus further strengthen the population's trust in the judiciary In addition, the aim is to extend internal communication and institutional cooperation between the judicial authorities.
The use of social media by judicial authorities
Press spokespersons from the Kosovo Public Prosecutor's Council, Kosovar Public Prosecutors’ Offices and courts discussed the use of social media by judicial authorities during an event held on 24-25 October 2023.
The seminar was led by Ms. Brigitte Koppenhöfer, former Presiding Judge at the Düsseldorf Regional Court, and Ms. Katrin Latki-Baier, PR and communications consultant.
In addition to the fundamental aspects regarding aims, strategies, formats and content, the speakers also discussed the common challenges and dangers associated with the use of social media by public prosecutors and courts. In particular, they addressed how to deal with “fake news” and disinformation on social media, and discussed the civil and criminal aspects of the use of social media with participants and the question of how new technologies and AI will influence press and public relations work of judicial authorities in future.
The event primarily offered participants the opportunity to discuss various topics, exchange experiences and to consolidate what they had learned using numerous examples and practical exercises.
Justice crisis communication
The press spokespersons of Kosovo's courts met again during the following week, on 1-2 November 2023, as part of a workshop on the topic of crisis communication in the judiciary. A tailor-made crisis communication concept was developed during the workshop under the guidance of Ms. Koppenhöfer and Ms. Latki-Baier using the example of a hacker attack on the IT structure of a court.
The joint exchange of expert knowledge and experiences was intensified during the week 13-17 November 2023 as part of a study trip on press and public relations issues in Düsseldorf and Wuppertal. The 10-member delegation took part in media training in addition to expert talks at the Düsseldorf Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Düsseldorf Local Court, the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of Justice and the State Office of Criminal Investigations.
