Violence, again!

 15 October 2004

The correspondent of the Albanian Helsinki Committee in the city of Korça notified that on 11 October 2004, in the vicinity of the "Valbona" Hotel, Mr. Stathi Lako was maltreated. Following the due verifications, it resulted that the violence against him was exercised by three civilian police officers and the chief of severe crimes of the Police Directory in the Circuit of Korça, Mr. Bajram Hyka. It was said that the cause of the violence was the meeting of Mr. Lako with the daughter of Mr. Hyka. A medical report on the maltreatment is also available. In spite of all interventions made so that this case would not be prosecuted, a denunciation has been filed with the prosecutor's office.

The Albanian Helsinki Committee has reacted publicly several times to not only make police officers exerting violence on citizens bear responsibility, but also to undertake the appropriate corrective and preventive measures.

The AHC, finds with dismay that cases like these are recurring, which shows that the assessment on this negative phenomenon leaves much to be desired. It is a known fact that when something happens, there are interventions, measures are taken, but the most important thing, as is known, is prevention. It is essential to enhance the fight against criminality, but this can in no way justify the violation of citizens' rights, health and lives.

On 14 October 2004, the AHC also verified on the spot another case, whereby there are claims that violence was used against detainee Artan Pjetri in the pre-trial detention facilities of the Durrës police commissariat. The defendant appeared in court with bandages on his head, whereas his mother, present in the proceedings, declared that her son had been maltreated. Artan Pjetri himself told Albanian Helsinki Committee observers that he suffered from epilepsy, that he had fainted and fallen, thus hurting different parts of his face.

The AHC does not wish to prejudice the case, but given that conflicting data was provided in the course of verifications, there is room for further, objective investigations.

It is worth mentioning that during the confidential conversation of Artan Pjetri with AHC observers, he had confided that at the moment of his detainment, although he had turned himself in, violence had been used upon him.

The AHC is of the opinion that although this may be a delayed claim, there is every interest to make the appropriate verifications, because there have been multiple cases when the use of violence at the moment of detainment or arrest in flagrance or immediately after has been verified. We would request that the Ministry of Public Order, spurred by numerous cases of maltreatment of citizens, order that this problem become an issue of review for all police directories across the country.