Bodies for the promotion of equal treatment (article 13 Directive 2000/43)

• Author: Irma Baraku
• Pages: 69-78

69

7 BODIES FOR THE PROMO TION OF EQ UAL TREATMENT (Article 13 Directive

2000/43)

a) Body/bodies design ated for the prom otion of equal treatment irrespective of

racial/ethnic origin according to Article 13 of the Racial Equal ity Directive

Before the adoption of the Law on protection from discrimination, the People’s Ad vocate

(ombudsperson) was the only institution entitled to protect the principles of equality and

non-discrimination based on a broader mandate for the pr otection of human rights in the

public sector.

The Law on protection from discrimination, proposed by a group of MPs in support of

requests by civil society organisations, establishes an independent institution as the

Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination (CPD). The establishment of this

institution came as a result of the EU requirements for Albania ’s progress in the European

integration process and reflected the commitment of the Albanian authorities to

respecting human rights, equality and non-discrimination.160 It started operating on 21

May 2010 .161 In April 20 18, the new commissioner was elected by the Assembly of the

Republic of Albania.162 The CPD deals with cases of discrimination for an open list of

grounds in both the public and private sectors, takes decisions and can impose sanctions.

b) Political, economic and social context of the designated body

Generally, public and political debates are supportive of the body. In 2018, the Assembly

and the Albanian Government took some measures to ensure the fulfilment of the CPD’s

mandate, such as: locating the office in a building in the centre of the city with the

necessary space; changing the structure, which led to an increase in the number of

employees; and increasing the budget. The Gove rnment has increased the budget, from

ALL 36 458 400 (EUR 303 820) in 2018 to ALL 47 450 000 (EUR 395 416) in 2019.

c) Insti tutional architecture

In Albania, th e designated body d oes not form part of a body with multiple mandates. It

is an independent institution, elected by the Assembly.

From 2010 to 2018, t he institution had 23 employees, 17 of them dealing directly with

discrimination cases. From 2018, the structure of the CPD provided f or 34 employees.163

The organisational st ructure of the Office of the Commissioner has also been amended

through a decision of the Parliament. In the new structure, the Office o f the

Commissioner has five directorates:

- reception of complaints directorate (including three regional offic es);

- administrative investigation directorate;

- legal directorate;

- monitoring, reporting and communication directorate;

- supporting services directorate.

160 Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination (2011), Annual Report 2010, http://kmd.al/wp-

content/uploads/2019/03/Raporti-vjetor-KMD-2010.pdf.

161 Assembly of the Republic of Albania, Decision No. 33, dated 22.04.2010, on the election of the

Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination and Decision No. 34, dated 20.05.2010 on approval of the

structure, organisation and categorisation of job positions of the Office of the Commissioner for Protection

from Discrimination.

162 Assembly of the Republic of Albania, Decision No. 60, dated 05.04.2010.

163 Assembly of the Republic of Albania, Decision No. 88, dated 23.07.2018.