Speech by Prime Minister Edi Rama at meeting with highest-ranking State Police officials:

Honourable Minister,

Honourable Mr. General Director of State Police,

Honourable heads of State Police and participants,

Thank you!

Thank you on my behalf, on behalf of the Albanian government and every ordinary citizen of this country who feel today relieved and liberated from the threatening and anxious shadow over fate of the June 30th election, which haunted Albania for months, entering homes, the minds and hearts of this country’s citizens due to the implementation of an anti-national political plan against elections, justice and Albania itself, right on the eve of the log-waited decision to open the European Union membership negotiations.

Thank you for the hard work and sacrifice made by the State Police officers, who showed strong commitment, dignity and professionalism in dealing with an extraordinary physical and psychological pressure over all these past months. I would like to express gratitude and respect for every police force member, who contributed to the consolidation of the profile of a well-organized and well-trained police force, ready to effectively and proportionally react in any moment of growing aggressiveness against the state and the institutions. Special thanks and gratitude to 50 state police officers, who have been wounded during the crazy protest season and aggressive and anti-state attacks that were repelled decisively, sustainable and through exemplary self-restraint.

I am particularly pleased that police officer Ina Nuka, the symbol of your resistance throughout this extremely tough time for each and every one of you, your colleague and your friend, and now my friend too, is here with us today.

Ina fell prey to a blind assault by a prohibited explosive device that could have claimed her line while in the line of duty. Fortunately, she reacted promptly and escaped the worst, yet she could not avoid her hand mutilation. A young and beautiful girl, a passionate and very good performing student, a young and committed State Police officer, Ina was severely injured, not while fighting the street crime, but because she found herself in the face of the street politics. Today is the right day to dedicate Ina and every other women and girls serving under the State Police Uniform and each and every one of you who decently coped with the anti-state aggression during this period of national turmoil, a symbolic expression of gratitude by awarding the Prime Minister’s “Star of Public Gratitude.”

Today I would like to tell you and the public that one of the things that concerned me most during whole this troublesome period triggered by the street politics was its encouraging impetus to crime, its motivating impetus to unlawfulness, but I am happy that, despite the work overload imposed by the indispensability to ensure safety and order during protests and to defend state institutions from vandal and dangerous attacks even to the lives of police officers, as well as to ensure the safety conduct of a complex electoral campaign due to organized groups everywhere seeking to stop the electoral campaign. The State Police have managed to handle and deal with their daily tasks too.

The crime rate has been kept under control during this whole troubled half of the year. Two more premediated murders compared to the same period of the previous year were recorded over this half of the yea. Three family murders have been recorded.  Number of armed robberies gas dropped to five compared to 8 robberies recorded last year, while zero robbery-related deaths were recorded, compared to three deaths during same period of the previous year. Number of violent robberies has dropped to 45 from 55 cases registered last year. Cases of home and business burglaries have also declined, while number of car thefts has increased. The number of explosive blasts has fallen, of course if we are not to take into account the explosions of Molotov bombs, firecrackers and fireworks during the illegal madness of violent protests.

In short, considering the circumstances, data on public order are satisfactory. Thanks to you, the critical political and social atmosphere, which favours crime and unlawfulness, has failed to have a significant impact.

Thank you very much each and every one of you!

However, I wouldn’t say the same as to the control over the territory, along the coastline in particular, where negative signals of illegal construction activities have been noticed. Likewise, it is not positive the fact that not every police structure and not every police officer have fully grasped the concept that this illegal activity is direct object of the duty they are tasked with, it is full legal responsibility of the State Police, just like it is the duty of the State Police to tackle and fight criminal activities and offences. Therefore, today I call for immediate actions to identify, ban and penalize every company or individual involved in illicit construction activities, including not only walls and roofs of village homes, but every urban space where public and private property is violated, or in any strategic development area, starting with the entire coastline stretch.

Tremendous progress has been made in terms of territory control, including this aspect, yet I would like to see police stepping up efforts as part of a systemic, well-planed, organized offensive that need to be implemented just like the anti-cannabis offensive was implemented. Every police station and police officer working on the ground should be aware of the area he covers to monitor this phenomenon and, just like it was the case in the fight against cannabis, the performance of every police officer should be checked and be dismissed or sent to prosecution if found that he or she has taken a blind eye to this phenomenon.

Albania is a tiny country and it has wasted a lot over the past decades because of the undermining and destructive phenomenon of illegal construction. The positive turn over the past few years should be maintained and such an indispensable impetus to move forward should begin immediately in collaboration with the National Territorial Protection Inspectorate, an institution depending on the Ministry of Interior, as well as with the local government officials, primarily in coastal areas.

It is crucially important, Mr. Interior Minister, that we speed up progress with the technological revolution in order to build and enhance the State Police’s intelligent capacities, just like it is time to reform and restructure the mechanisms of the country’s intelligent service in collaboration with our international partners and in line with the best European standards.

The Power of Law operation should transform into the core of a State Police’s intelligent service with the due funding and adequate human resources in order to give a fresh qualitative impetus to its proactive investigations into the organized crime and economic crime.

I am well aware that urging the State Police for more is an imperative of today, while greater support, not just financial and logistical, but also legal support for the State Police is needed. The overwhelming effort over the past months showed that an admirable moral and professional capacity is running the State Police, but that there are also large objective gaps in every aspect that need to be filled as soon as possible if we want the State Police to perform much better.

By publicly thanking the State Police Director General Mr, Ardi Veliu and the team of highest-ranking police officers for the great example force, I have to acknowledge that in order to do more we have to better answer and meet the police needs.

It is urgent to put into effect the proposal forwarded by the General Director and the governing body for the early retirement of police officers who, for objective reasons, cannot live up the basic requirement to increase work effectiveness.

Lowering the average age of the police force, enhancing the medium knowledge and physical parameters, as well as increasing number of officers controlling the territory is a long-time emergency that has now become a daily emergency.

On the other hand, time is high to finalize the legislative process to ensure the inviolability of the police uniform while on duty. With the changes we will introduce to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Albania this week, any assault on the policemen, acts of opposing the police officers will be considered criminal offenses carrying imprisonment sentences and no fines.

We have had enough with the “occupied land” shows with human bodies being used to block roads and public spaces in Albania! No opposition from a group of people, however legitimate, can no longer be tolerated as a reason to obstruct the free movement of all people on the roads of the country, or public investments in the territory of this country.

Mr. Interior Minister, I want no further delays in implementation of the high-tech roads monitoring project across the country and increasing control and transparency over the drivers, and the origin and legality of any vehicle in use. Stolen or uninsured vehicles should be prevented from moving freely in the Republic of Albania. The system of fines should be reformed and the notorious appeals commissions, which are a source of corruption and rusty dragging mechanisms for citizens, must be eliminated through technological modernization.

On the other hand, Mr. Director General, it is imperative to work on daily basis and step up efforts to improve quality and conduct of the police officers with the citizens. The Code of Ethics of the State Police should further stiffen and be well learned by every member of the police force and whoever fails to learn how they should behave towards the citizens should be disgracefully dismissed from the State Police as an unworthy member.

Significant improvements have been made in this aspect, yet they are insufficient. The traffic police and the community police officers should primarily serve as a model of good conduct and manners towards any citizen. The offences are legal reasons to fine the offender, but in no case they can be a motive to behave rudely and impolitely. I invite you to draft and implement a working plan on the continuing education of the police officers, including the indispensable teaching of legal and civic education along with the professional and physical training.

It is high time also to review the State Police salary level and the first next government decision on pay hike will include the State Police.

I would like to especially thank the special troops and their commanders who, in this delicate period, made a great contribution and dealt with a much larger volume than their objective logistical capacities. Their salaries the logistical support for them will increase. This will be a primary priority within the overall priority of State Police’s overall support.

I am aware of the still serious situation of many State Police facilities across territory of the country, especially the police directorates and police stations, where no interventions have taken place for so long and where one can smell degradation and often decay. In parallel with the Police Academy modernization project, which will be funded as part of the framework of the major infrastructure package under the Pact for the University, the voluminous infrastructure project of the departments and police directorates should also finalize.

Honourable participants, pushing yourselves to become more effective is the prerequisite for any fresh accomplishment and by calling for more effectiveness from the State Police, the government and I personally pledge to do utmost to support you in every respect.

The June 30 Albania rewarded what is right and just, not the country’s left-wing, but love and dedication to the country, and not the anger and harm to the country, the labour forces and respect for the law, not the force of violence against the law, but God forbid that we don’t realize that it is enough to be on the right side of history and law to be worthy of serving your people and your country, because those who saved the country, democracy, state-building are exactly the ones who want this country be a lot better, they want democracy be a lot more functional, the want the state be much more just and we deserve all these. Therefore, the good sense of a joint effort for the right, for democracy, for lawfulness being paying off should be worth energy new to improve in the first place ourselves, our work, our relationship with the ordinary man of this country.

In this sense, the State Police and you really have a lot to learn from your work’s shortcomings, much to correct in your daily work, much to do with regards to your relationship with the citizens while I have lot more than you to learn, correct and do much more as to the relationship with you and with all the people of this country.

Thank you very much!