Chief Prosecutor of Albania Olsian Çela demands tougher measures against domestic violence

Olsjan Çela at a Conference on Justice Reform, March 3, 2020

 Prosecutors need to be tougher in seeking punishment for perpetrators of violence against women, domestic violence or gender-based violence. It is this request that the Chief Prosecutor Olsian Çela makes to his subordinates through an instruction compiled on December 23, 2020.

His suggestion is related to the punishment of the perpetrators of the violence, which in his instruction states that it can not be considered in mitigating circumstances, although during the investigation it is noticed that the crime was committed in aggravated psychological conditions that may have been instigated by the victim.

The instruction also provides for cases when the author shows remorse or when the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim is normalized. The latter is related to the way the prosecution body operates in cases when the victim withdraws from the lawsuit filed with the police, which automatically leads to the termination of the case.

According to the Chief Prosecutor, even in these cases, the prosecution body should continue the investigation to go further under what conditions the lawsuit was withdrawn and whether the perpetrator is a repeat offender. Immediately, Olsian Çela asks the management that the work done by prosecutors on violence issues be reflected in work reports every 6 months.

This guidance comes at a time when the phenomenon of violence continues to be a concern for the authorities. From January 1 to June 6, the state police has received 23 reports of domestic violence.