Defamation Laws and Practice in the Age of Internet in Albania

Abstract

The picture of recent legal developments concerning defamation in Albania is mixed. On the one hand, several criminal defamation and insult statuteshave been abolishedsince 2012, following strong lobbying of human rights organizations. On the other, the application of criminal defamation laws has not stopped, while government officials and other high profile persons have discovered the power of civil defamation claims. Faced with intense criticism, the government has tried to re-introduce the abolished criminal defamation laws and has faced the same strong opposition and international outcry. In the meantime, defamation claims or threats thereof are routinely being used against the media or against the political opponent for the only purposes of creating tension and diffusing the attention of the public. The vagueness of the laws and the inconsistencies of judicial interpretation, helped in no little measure by judicial corruption and the political control of the judiciary, have widened the gap between constitutional and international guarantees of the freedom of speech and the actual enforcement of those guarantees. This article will briefly expose the history of defamation laws in Albania, the difficulties of their application, and the status of affairs concerning defamation laws and claims.