Albania’s top justice officials raise red flags over new Penal Code draft
Albania’s Ministry of Justice convened a high-level consultative meeting on Wednesday to discuss the draft of the country’s new Penal Code, bringing together heads of key constitutional and judicial institutions impacted by the proposed reforms.
Why is this important: The new code, which contains over 950 articles, aims to modernize Albania’s criminal law, but has already sparked concern among top judicial leaders. Critics warn that the draft risks undermining legal clarity and civil liberties and blurring the lines between criminal and procedural law.
Context: Present at the meeting were General Prosecutor Olsian Çela, SPAK head Altin Dumani, High Court Chief Justice Sokol Sadushi, and Arben Rakipi, who leads the working group that drafted the new code.
Chief Justice Sadushi delivered a detailed critique, revealing that the High Court had prepared a 50-page document outlining specific inconsistencies and problematic provisions.
“We noticed a mixing of substantive and procedural provisions,” Sadushi said. “Articles on medical and educational measures for minors, conditional release, or suspension of legal entities should be in the Code of Criminal Procedure — not the Penal Code.”
He also criticized the language and structure of the code, describing many articles as overloaded, poorly formulated, and open to misinterpretation.
“With more than 950 articles, the current draft risks shifting focus from protecting freedoms to expanding state intervention. Key provisions are unclear and risk inconsistent application by courts,” Sadushi warned.
Freedom of expression concerns: Sadushi called for a full revision of the draft’s articles dealing with freedom of speech and the right to information, warning that the current formulation may endanger constitutional rights.
Additional criticism came from Prosecutor General Olsian Çela and other legal experts, who voiced similar reservations about the legal soundness and potential implications of the draft code.
What’s next: The Ministry of Justice is expected to continue consultations and possibly revise the draft based on institutional feedback before submitting it to parliament for approval.
Go deeper
EU hands progress report to Albania, urges completion of key reforms to stay on 2027 track
Published on November 5, 2025
Why is this important: The clear call for action underscores that while Albania is among the frontrunners in the EU enlargement process, unresolved reform priorities could block the provisional closure of negotiation chapters, potentially derailing the 2027 accession goal.
Albin Kurti: Serbia abducted Kosovo citizen for opposing Vučić’s regime
Published on November 4, 2025
Why is this important: The incident risks escalating already tense relations between Pristina and Belgrade, with Kosovo accusing Serbia of violating its territorial integrity and using cross-border operations to intimidate Kosovo Serbs who don’t align with Belgrade.
Trump’s campaign advisers earned over $1.6M from Albania’s opposition — and lost
Published on November 4, 2025
Why is this important: The report comes days after Albania’s Central Election Commission (CEC) released official campaign finance disclosures. Despite being in opposition, the DP topped all parties in total spending, but the revelation that more than 200 million ALL (approx. $1.62 million) went to Trump-linked American consultants, for a campaign that ended in total failure, is already raising political and public backlash.