Press release – evaluation of the implementation of the AP for Chapter 24
The general assessment of the current implementation of the Action Plan for Chapter 24 is that there is continuity in implementation, but that measures are not always consistent and coordinated, and that in some segments there are no measurable and complete data on which to assess the impact of measures.
In the area of migration management, there is a lack of common understanding and application of standards in the treatment of migrants. Urgent search protocols have not yet been established with neighboring countries, which is an issue of great importance for managing irregular migration. The signed readmission agreements are being implemented quite slowly, especially the Agreement for the Republic of Kosovo. In the area of asylum, we face a lack of statistics in the report. We believe that it is necessary to provide an overview of numerical indicators on submitted and resolved asylum applications, as well as to make available the number of cases left over from the previous period. One of the bigger problems, having in mind the trend of increasing the number of asylum seekers, is the delay in putting the Asylum Seekers Accommodation Center into operation, which was planned to open in 2013.
When we talk about police cooperation, the main problems are the lack of coordination of different bodies. A single electronic network to ensure mutual access to databases, as well as the smooth flow of information between law enforcement agencies, including the state prosecutor’s office, has not yet been established. For this reason, there is currently no precise record of the number of controls performed in terms of secrecy and protection of personal data, and the number of received and rejected requests and complaints for access to such data. It is also late with the signing of the Protocol on Cooperation between the Ministry of the Interior – the Police Administration and the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office, which refers to cooperation in pre-criminal and criminal proceedings.
In the fight against organized crime, the concrete effects of the Department for the Suppression of Corruption, Organized Crime, Terrorism and War Crimes are lacking, and the cooperation between the police and the prosecutor’s office is not sufficiently developed. This level of cooperation is one of the reasons for the stagnation of the investigation in cases of criminal offenses against the “Vijesti” editorial office, as well as individual attacks on journalists. On the legislative side, there is a lack of innovation in the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, and adequate bylaws, as well as the Law on Witness Protection. The area of confiscation, custody and asset management remains unchanged; the results of the work of the competent state bodies in this area are still modest.
It is necessary to establish mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of the law in the field of judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters and to ensure further harmonization of the legal framework in this area with the acquis communautaire.
