Monday, October 26, 2009

Albanian cabinet backs investigations against lawmakers, ministers

TIRANA, Albania -- The government has voiced readiness to strip immunity from any parliamentary member or minister, should they face legal proceedings. "Every request from legal institutions to remove a lawmaker's immunity will be accepted," Prime Minister Sali Berisha said on Saturday (October 24th), reacting to calls from the US and British embassies in Tirana to do more in this area.

The parliamentary majority led by Berisha's ruling Democratic Party has insisted that it is impossible to adopt such a law given the absence of the opposition. The Socialist Party has been boycotting parliament to protest what it describes as the "manipulation" of the June general elections.

At the same time, the SP and other opposition parties have criticised the government for obstructing legal proceedings against cabinet members accused of corruption

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