Although the new justice institutions are intensifying action against assets created through criminal means, these assets continue to remain an unresolved problem.
To broaden the fight against criminal assets, as well as to put them to use, the “Antimafia” law was reviewed by Parliament for the first time. In the Laws Committee, Ulsi Manja presented data on the use of this 15-year-old instrument, which is considered key in the battle against crime and corruption.
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“The analysis shows that the law has produced concrete results, but not uniformly across all the areas in which it is used. It has been properly used in organized crime and narcotics, but when it comes to corruption and autonomous use, this law remains partly underused,” Manja said.
Funded by the United Kingdom and drafted by a group of experts supported by the British embassy in Tirana, the report also highlights several issues, including the risk that confiscated assets could end up once again, indirectly, in the hands of the people against whom action was taken.
“The report highlights the need to strengthen the mechanisms for the management and reuse of confiscated assets, including prior oversight of the resale process,” Manja added.
This issue was also raised by majority and opposition MPs in the Laws Committee. Democratic Party MP Arjan Ndoja expressed doubts about third parties acting in good faith and called for changes to the antimafia law.
“Third parties one day unexpectedly find themselves faced with the fact that confiscation has taken place against them; perhaps a change is needed in this regard,” Ndoja said.
A similar concern was also raised by Socialist MP Damian Gjiknuri at Friday’s session, where SPAK chief Klodjan Braho was also present to report.
Meanwhile, the head of the Laws Committee, Ulsi Manja, stressed that the Asset Seizure Agency must increase its capacities, not only to standardize procedures in the handling of seized and confiscated properties, but also to actually put them to use.
