Important decisions

Identification: ALB-96-2-001
a) Albania / b) Constitutional Court / с) / d) 31.01.1996 / e) 1 / f) / g) Official Gazette, 1/1996, 20-27 / h).

Keywords of the systematic thesaurus:
Sources of Constitutional Law - Categories – Written rules - International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
General Principles - Democracy.
Institutions - Legislative bodies - Political parties.
Fundamental Rights - Civil and political rights - Electoral rights - Right to be elected.

Keywords of the alphabetical index: Crimes against humanity / Lustration.

Headnotes:
The temporary exclusion of the perpetrators, conceptualisers and implementers of that fierce, inhuman dictatorship which the constitutional law denounces in its preamble from the right to be elected is constitutional.
The Constitutional Court is entitled to review requests, by Parliamentary Groups to have declared unconstitutional laws that conflict with the main Constitutional Provisions concerning the right to vote as well as additional fundamental rights.

Summary:
In the present case, the Constitutional Court reviewed requests made by the Albanian Socialist Party's Parliamentary Group and the Albanian Social Democratic Party's Parliamentary Group to have annulled certain legal provisions concerning limitations on the right to be elected of a certain category of persons that worked in certain positions during the period of the communist regime.
The Parliamentary Group of the Social Democratic Party of Albania and the Parliamentary Group of the Socialist Party of Albania argued that the restriction set out in Article 3 of Law no. 8001 dated 22 September 1995 "On genocide and crimes against humanity committed in Albania during the Communist regime for political, ideological and religious reasons", was unconstitutional. This restriction concerned the right to be elected to the central and local organs of power and to be nominated to the high State administration, the judicial system and the mass media until 31 December 2001, for persons who before 31 March 1991 were members of the Political Bureau and the Central Committee of the Party of Labour of Albania (and the Communist Party), Ministers, Deputies of the People's Assembly, members of the Presidential Council, Chairmen of the Supreme Court, General Prosecutors, First Secretaries of the Districts, employees of State security and collaborators with State Security and witnesses who denounced defendants in political trials.
In support of the complaint, they cited Articles 2, 4 and 8 of Law no. 7491 dated 29 April 1991 "On the major Constitutional provisions" and Articles 19, 25 and 41 of Law no. 7692 dated 31 March 1993 "On fundamental human rights and freedoms". These provisions provide for equality before the law, the guarantee of fundamental human rights and freedoms generally recognised in international documents, and the respect by the legislation of the Republic of Albania of the principles and norms generally accepted in international law, as well as for the right of election and the temporary limitation of particular rights.
Having regard to the above constitutional norms in the general context of Albanian constitutional legislation generally accepted international acts and norms, the unparalleled violation and denial of fundamental human rights and freedoms during the Communist regime as well as to the conditions of the transition, the Court considered the complaint of the parliamentary groups to be groundless, with respect to the limitation for a set time period of the right to be elected as well as of the exercise of several employment functions for the category of persons in question.
In its preamble, the Constitutional Law "On fundamental human rights and freedoms", in stating its purpose, stresses "... during the fierce and extremely inhuman 46 year dictatorship of the party state in Albania, civil and political, economic, social and cultural rights, as well as basic human freedoms, were violated and denied through state terror", and that "...the general respect for, the enjoyment of, these rights and freedoms constitutes one of the highest aspirations of the Albanian people and one of the necessary preconditions for guaranteeing the freedom of our society and social justice and democratic progress in it".

It is precisely the subjects specified in Article 3 of Law no. 8001 dated 22 September 1995 and Article 2 of Law no. 8043 dated 30 November 1995 who were the perpetrators, conceptualisers and implementers of that fierce, inhuman dictatorship which the constitutional law denounces in its preamble. Consequently, the temporary limitation of the rights of these subjects to be elected and nominated to specified State duties constitutes a guarantee for the implementation of all the constitutional provisions and international acts that have to do with fundamental human rights and freedoms.
It is true, as the Parliamentary Group of the Socialist Party propounds, that in Article 25, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights it is contemplated that every citizen has the right to vote and be elected and also to take part in the management of public affairs. But, as is specified in the first paragraph of the same Article, only "unreasonable limitations" may not be made to these rights.
In addition to the above, the Court notes that the second paragraph of Article 29 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides that: "in the exercise of his rights, every person is subject only to the limitations set by law and only with the purpose ... of responding to the demands of morality and general well-being in a democratic society".
Basing itself also on these provisions, the Court reaches the conclusions that the laws that are the object of investigation set out reasonable limitations that respond to the demands of the moral law of the democratic society of Albania.
The Court finds well-grounded the complaint of the Albanian Socialist Party's Parliamentary Group to repeal the point "j" of article 1 (this article provides for restrictions on the profession of mass-media employees) of Law no. 8043 "On the verification of the moral character of officials and other persons connected with the defense of the democratic State". Article 1 of this law provides for the positions where the subjects defined by Article 3 of Law no. 8001 "On genocide and crimes against humanity committed in Albania during the communist regime for political, ideological and religious reasons" cannot be placed.
By Article 2 of the Law "On fundamental human rights and freedoms" and Article 1 of Law no. 7755 "On the press", the right of the press is guaranteed. The profession of journalist is a free profession, based on initiative and personal activity, and has no connection to State duties.
The Court finds well-founded the complaint of the Albanian Socialist Party's Parliamentary Group to repeal Article 12 of Law no. 8043, dated 30 November 1995, which provides for the right of the Minister of Justice to make a request for the verification of the leadership of political parties and associations. Giving this right to the Minister of Justice is in conflict with the second paragraph of Article 6 of the Law "On the major constitutional provisions". According to this provision, political parties and other organisations are completely separate from the State. For this reason, the words "by the Minister of Justice or" shall be struck from Article 12.

Languages: Albanian.

Identification: ALB-96-2-002
a) Albania / b) Constitutional Court / с) / d) 09.05.1996 / e) 10 / f) / g) to be published in the Official Gazette /h).

Keywords of the systematic thesaurus:
Constitutional Justice - Types of claim - Claim by a public body.
Constitutional Justice - Types oflifigation – Electoral disputes - Parliamentary elections.
Constitutional Justice - Procedure - Parties – Locus standi.
Fundamental Rights -.Civil and Jablitical rights - Procedural safeguards - Access to courts.

Keywords of the alphabetical index:
Candidates / Electoral Comrnisrew / Sectoral entity.

Headnotes:
 The electoral commission оf a constituency is not entited to appeal to the Constitutional Court to set aside a decision of the Central Committee on Parliamentary Elections to the National Assembly.

Summary:
On 29 April 1996, the electoral commission of con-stituency no. 26 refused to register a candidate for the National Assembly proposed by the Socialist Party in its capacity as an "electoral entity" in these elections. On 4 May 1996, the Central Committee on Elections examined the complaint of the proposed candidate, decided to set aside the decision of the electoral commission of constituency no. 26, and ordered that the candidate be registered immediately. The commission of constituency no. 26, represented by its chair, brought proceedings in the Constitutional Court against the aforementioned decision of the Central Committee on Elections. The Court found that under Sections 36, 38 and 50 of Law 7556 of 4 February 1992 "On elections to the National Assembly", the institution of proceedings is a remedy which may only be used by electoral entities and candidates proposed by electoral entities, in order to ensure that the rights derived from constitutional and electoral law are respected. Accordingly it is the exclusive right of these electoral entities to bring their case before the Constituency Commission, the Central Committee on Elections or the Constitutional Court. Ultimately, the Court decided to reject the application from the Electoral Commission of constituency no. 26.

Languages: Albanian.

Identification: ALB-96-2-003
a) Albania / b) Constitutional Court / с) / d) 10.05.1996 / e) 11 / f) / g) to be published in the Official Gazette /h).

Keywords of the systematic thesaurus:
Constitutional Justice - Types of claim - Claim by a private body or individual - Political parties.
Constitutional Justice - Types of litigation - Electoral disputes - Parliamentary elections.
Constitutional Justice - The subject of review -Administrative acts.

Keywords of the alphabetical index: Parliamentary, elections, Central Committee, decisions / Electoral entity.

Headnotes:
The Constitutional Court is responsible for examining complaints by "electoral entities" against decisions of the Central Committee on Parliamentary Elections to the National Assembly. In this particular case, the Constitutional Court examined an application by an electoral entity, namely the Christian Democrat Party of Albania, regarding the setting aside of two decisions taken by the Central Committee on Elections refusing to register the party's candidates in two constituencies.

Summary:
As an electoral entity, the Christian Democrat Party of Albania appealed to the Constitutional Court to set aside two decisions of the Central Committee on Parliamentary Elections refusing to register its candidates in two constituencies. In both cases the Central Committee on Elections found that the applications for the registration of the candidates had been submitted after the deadline prescribed by law. The Constitutional Court, having examined the matter, found that, in the first case, the necessary papers for registration of the candidate as specified in the Law on Election to the National Assembly had been delivered to the Electoral Commission of the constituency on 27 April 1996, ie. before the statutory deadline. As regards the second case, the reason for the delay was a lack of organisation on the part of the constituency commission. In conclusion, the Court decided to set aside the decisions of the Central Committee on Elections and ordered that the candidates for the delegation of the Christian Democrat Party of Albania be registered in the aforementioned constituencies.

Languages: Albanian.

Identification: ALB-96-2-004
a) Albania / b) Constitutional Court / с) / d) 15.06.1996 / e) 24 / f) / g) to be published in the Official Gazette /h).

Keywords of the systematic thesaurus:
Constitutional Justice - Types of claim - Claim by a private body or individual - Political parties.
Constitutional Justice - Types of litigation – Electoral disputes - Parliamentary elections.
Constitutional Justice - The subject of review - Presidential decrees.
Constitutional Justice - The subject of review - Administrative acts.
Constitutional Justice - Procedure - Parties – Locus standi.

Keywords of the alphabetical index: Elections, Central Committee, decisions, setting aside.

Headnotes:
The Constitutional Court is responsible for examining complaints by "electoral entities" against decisions of the Central Committee on Parliamentary Elections to the National Assembly of the Republic of Albania. In the case in question, the Constitutional Court heard an application from two electoral entities, namely the Democratic Alliance Party and the Social Democratic Party of Albania, against the decision of the Central Committee on Elections and a Decree of the President of the Republic regarding the re-staging of the par-liamentary elections to the National Assembly in 17 constituencies.

Summary:
As electoral entities, the Democratic Alliance Party and the Social Democratic Party of Albania appealed to the Constitutional Court requesting it to set aside the decision of 26 May 1996 of the Central Committee on Par-liamentary Elections to the National Assembly, regarding the re-staging of elections in 17 constituencies, and, by extension, the annulment of the Decree of the President of the Republic setting 17 June 1996 as the day on which these elections would be held. The applicant argued that the Central Committee on Elections had already expressed its views and recognised the results of elections in all the constituencies of the Republic and that it was not entitled to go back on a previous decision. The Constitutional Court considered that the press release issued by the Central Committee on Elections on 29 May 1996 did not constitute a specific decision on its part. In response to the complaints lodged by various electoral entities and on the basis of the investigation it had conducted, the Central Committee on Elections had taken the appropriate decisions with regard to the annulment of the elections in the 17 constituencies. Therefore, this did not amount to going back on a previous decision of the Central Committee on Elections. Since the decision of the Central Committee on Elections on the annulment of the results of the elections in the 17 constituencies was lawful, the Decree of the President of the Republic on the re-staging of the elections was also legitimate. Ultimately, the Constitutional Court rejected the applications of the two aforementioned parties.

Languages: Albanian.