The Impact of the Council of Europe and the Process of European Integration on Protection of Human Rights in Albania

Abstract

The European integration process of Albania is bound to fulfillment of the accession criteria, a political criteria related to stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, rule of law and protection of human rights. Protection of human rights is a core value for the EU as well as a pre- condition for candidate countries. The European Commission, through the annual progress reports, monitors protection of human rights and compliance of the domestic legislation with international human rights instruments; particularly the European Convention of Human Rights. Also, the Commission evaluates cooperation with the European Court of Human Rights and executions of the Court’s decisions. The paper aims to analyze implementation of the acquis and European standards on the abolishment of the death penalty and on prevention of torture and ill-treatment. The paper considers the progress reports and some of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on prevention of torture and ill-treatment. According to the progress reports, the main conclusion is that Albania has an adequate legal framework that guarantees human rights, but the main concern is still the implementation of legislation.