Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Minister of Justice Albulena Haxhiu on Sunday handed over the document and file for the vetting of the justice system to the Speaker of the Assembly, Glauk Konjufca.

Before handing over the file, Kurti told a press conference that since getting a mandate to form a government, his team had been committed to reform of the justice system as the core of a governance system based on the motto “employment and justice”.

“Vetting is a product of the needs of the government, that is, of the state. Faith in justice includes faith in the state, and the latter is at the service of the citizen,” Kurti said.

Justice minister Haxhiu said the vetting proposal was being submitted after intensive work done in the past months. She added that the vetting process will enable only those who have high integrity and can justify their wealth.

“We continuously witness negligence, inaction and impunity. Our judges and prosecutors are considered to have the highest salaries in the region. Because of their inaction and wrong actions, women are being killed, minors are being sexually abused and major corruption remains unpunished,” Haxhiu told the press conference.

According to her, the version they had submitted is in full compliance with the recommendations of the Venice Commission.

In May, President Vjosa Osmani, Speaker of the Assembly Konjufca and PM Kurti hosted the ambassadors of the so-calld QUINT countries and the head of the EU Office in Kosovo to discuss the vetting proposals and the importance of strengthening the rule of law.

The Presidency said that, in the meeting, the coordination of Kosovo institutions with the QUINT and EU countries on the vetting process was discussed.

Vetting will include all judges with the exception of those on the Constitutional Court. 

The process aims to unfold in three phases within five years. The first phase will include all the members of the Judicial Council and the Prosecution Council, the five members of the Supreme Court and the chief state prosecutor.

Vetting is a process of re-evaluation of prosecutors and judges and aims to focus on their professional growth, the fight against corruption and the influence of organized crime, politics or other illegal elements in the delivery of justice. Vetting in justice is one of the promises of the government of Kurti.