Pundit: Baku’s experience can further prompt more effective fight against corruption in Tirana’s law

The arrest of Meta is an outstanding testimony of Albania’s judiciary fight against corruption; Tirana must further embolden its judges and district attorneys assigned to fight corruption. I think Azerbaijan's successful experience and its constant fight against corruption since 1993 should be a valuable lesson for Albanian authorities to highly consider. In these critical times, Baku’s experience can further enlighten the knowledge and prompt a more effective fight against corruption in Tirana’s law and order institutions.

This was told by Peter Tase, the American political analyst, in a comment for Azernews on the recent arrest of former President Ilir Meta on suspicion that the left-wing Freedom Party leader engaged in alleged corruption, money laundering, and hiding of personal income and property.

"The Republic of Albania has greatly suffered from endemic corruption and organized crime strongly cooperating with incumbent government authorities since 1991; as the country closed the saddest political chapter of the most ruthless communist dictatorship in Europe. Meta's arrest is the most symbolic event in the history of the Albanian Judiciary system since 1991, as Tirana is struggling to encourage its democratic institutions. Albania's judiciary must study closely the successful fight against highly corrupt officials that the Government of Azerbaijan has administered over the last twenty years," he added.