Albania Political Briefing: a Presidential Impeachment and the Constitutional Court Marsela Musabelliu

ISSN: 2560-1601 Vol. 42, No. 1 (Al) July 2021 Albania political briefing: A Presidential Impeachment and the Constitutional Court Marsela Musabelliu 1052 Budapest Petőfi Sándor utca 11. +36 1 5858 690 Kiadó: Kína-KKE Intézet Nonprofit Kft. [email protected] Szerkesztésért felelős személy: CHen Xin Kiadásért felelős személy: Huang Ping china-cee.eu 2017/01 A Presidential Impeachment and the Constitutional Court Summary 2021 has been a year of “firsts” for Albanian politics. For the first time in three decades of transition, a party wins three mandates in a raw. For the first time as well, an Albanian president is actively involved in the electoral campaign. On June 9th, the Albanian Parliament impeached and formally discharged the President of his duties with an overwhelming majority of the votes (104 out of 122). This briefing will interpret the events leading up to this case, current behaviors and future potential ramification of a peculiar presidential story standing at an intersection of political and legal arguments. Introduction According to the Constitution of the Republic of Albania, a President can be impeached on the bases of three main allegations: treason, mental unfitness or serious violations of the Constitution. If the entire process initiates, there would be needed 93 votes of the Members of the Parliament (MP) as well as the approval of the Constitutional Court. Trying to dismiss a president of his duties is not something normal in Albania, but also, the current President Ilir Meta, is everything but ordinary. No president before has had a public presence as deep and peculiar as him. Usually, the President position is an honorary job. However, since Meta was elected on July 2017, the presidency as such would embody a different style and approach to internal politics. An unusual presidency Albanian President Ilir Meta, 51 years old, is career politician who first entered the Parliament at the age of 23. He is one of the most active and controversial Albanian politicians of the last decades. In 1999, at the age of 30, Meta became Prime Minister (PM) for the first time. He was re-elected in 2001, but resigned in early 2002 after a feud with then-Socialist Party leader Fatos Nano. In 2004, Meta left the Socialist Party to form the Socialist Movement for Integration (LSI). Although the LSI constantly pursues Albania's two major parties, the Socialists and the Democrats, it has consistently secured a piece of power, with one or the other. Appreciated by some as a cunning political operator, Meta and his party have also faced frequent allegations of corruption. 1 It was the Socialist Party in 2017 that granted him the votes to become President, of course with the blessing of PM Rama. However, the relations between the two (Rama and Meta) is bizarre to say the least. The have become allies and adversaries so many times that it is difficult to count. However, it was visible in the pandemic year that PM Rama had the upper hand in this political struggle. This animosity became very clear during the electoral campaign for the last elections. It appeared that Rama was mostly targeting the President rather than his actual opposition. In February 2021, Rama would state: “[…] for a long time our President is no longer a President.” In the same declaration the PM continued: “He is merely an abuser of the presidency in favor of the enterprise formally administered by his wife.” The wife being the leader of the LSI could verbally oppose the PM, but the President in theory could not, because the Constitution does not allow any political involvement of the Head of State. On May 26th, the Inquiry Parliamentary Commission "On the investigation of serious Constitutional violations by the President of the Republic of Albania" met and deliberated their findings. Some of the Commission's claims entail Violation of the President's oath, of the constitutional obligations of the President to be a representative of national unity, constitutional obligations not to exercise party activity. Of course there also claims of obstruction of justice, electoral process and violation of the image of the President's Institution and abuse of the President's constitutional powers. And one of the most important: Violation of relations with Albania's strategic partners. The latter comes after a very heated declaration of President Meta in regard to the United States (US) and their military capacity. He went even further (on live television) in stating that the US is taking sides politically by endorsing Rama and asked the US not to interfere in Albania’s internal affairs. In this platform it has been argued before that in Albania going against the US is de facto a “political suicide” and the dismissal of the President falls in the same line. The Parliament has decided On June 9th, the Parliament approved the final report of the Inquiry Commission with 104 votes in favor, 7 against, 2 abstentions and 1 ballot that was invalid. After a (not very impressive) debate that lasted about four hours the ruling Socialist Party MPs who set up this parliamentary Inquiry Commission, found 17 violations of the Constitution by the president. 2 The initiative for dismissal, according to the Constitution, must be supported by not less than two thirds of all its members or 94 MPs. The Constitution then stipulates that the decision of the assembly should be sent to the Constitutional Court. The court declares the dismissal of the President when he is found guilty by majority, or the constitutional violations that the report has revealed and the assembly has voted on are proven to be true. The main arguments were that President Meta has flagrantly violated the Constitution of Albania and that "with actions, behaviors and messages given to the public has not guaranteed national unity, has not moderated the political conflict, but rather has promoted it in such terms”. According to the Inquiry Commission, the Presidents’ actions resulted in the organized emergence of political party militants on the streets. The same would terrorize citizens to the point of carrying out armed conflicts. President Meta, states that the move is illegal and unconstitutional, and via his spokesperson persisted in claiming that he will fight this decision. Some analysts believe that this attempt to topple the President under the current government is nothing more than another political move in the long-troubled relationship between Meta and Rama. Crises of authorities and a brand new Constitutional Court The next, and final step to actually have the President relieved of his duties relies upon the Constitutional Court. By all consideration there is nothing similar in the past to be considered as a precedent, thus, it will be a first for a very “new” Constitutional Court. Under the blueprint of the Justice Reform, and especially due to the vetting process, since 2018 Albania did not have a Constitutional Court. The necessary quorum was reached in late 2020, and started operations in January 2021. Currently the Court is short of two members but decisions could be carried out. On June 23rd, a very surprising non-verdict came from the Constitutional Court, and the case under scrutiny was the legitimacy of the local election of 2019 (where the opposition parties did not participate). Considered by many as a political “hotspot” the public was awaiting the decision. In a surprising turn of events the Albanian Constitutional Court delayed the decision by arguing that it would need further recommendations and expertise from the Venice Commission. If this is a testing ground for the very strength and impartiality of the Court, the mission is failed. 3 Why should a fully functional court seek opinion elsewhere? These judges are perhaps the most payed and most privileged of any other Albanian official, and yet when they were asked to their job, they suspended their work. The decisions of this court, are supposed to be based on the attitude, positioning and reasoning of its members. This in the future will establish the basis of the constitutional judicial practice of the country. Of course the pressure is high for this members because the cases they have to judge are delicate, unprecedented and political, thus they have to be up to the task. But while the public opinion was expecting this court to demonstrate professionalism and authority, in relation to these issues, it chooses to avoid responsibility. Therefore, the uncertainty or avoidance of taking over decision-making, whether delicate or complicated, calls into question the authority of this Court. The case of the dismissal of the President of the Republic, at the request of the Parliament, is the next controversial issue to be presented to the court. Indeed, the parliament’s main arguments to dismiss the President were a series of alleged violation to the constitution. What if, also in this case to be presented in the very near future the Constitutional Court decides to ask outside opinion before deliberation? – Best case scenario: the political narrative will get fiery again. Worst case scenario: there might be (another) constitutional crisis. Conclusions The conflict between the PM Edi Rama and President Ilir Meta has gone beyond political animosity, it has taken the traits of institutional divergence. The issue has become mostly a battlefield of narrow personal and political interests rather than a principled dispute. This struggle will be in full display for Albania by September 2021, and autumn will also decide the fate and the future of the President. As of July 2021, with third term in power sealed, the odds are that the PM will manage to officially discharge the President. But, narrative aside, one thing is sure, Meta is not the usual president and Rama is not the usual PM.

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