Taulant Balla

After a short visit to serious crime prosecutors, Rizzatto left Albania the same day, mission accomplished:

Within the year, money-laundering charges against Vladi and four others had been dropped, as one of Albania's most sensational criminal cases of recent years unraveled.

Albania Prime Minister Edi Rama speaking in parliament on 30 January. Photo: Malton Dibra/LSA

The head of the Socialist parliamentary group, Taulant Balla, said the vote would be postponed while the Council of Venice, the advisory body to the Council of Europe, carried out an express evaluation.

Pressure is growing on the Albanian government over its "anti-defamation" laws, after the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, CoE, said it had asked its advisory body, the Venice Commission, for its opinion.

Albania's opposition Democratic Party on Monday followed up its week-long attack on Interior Minister Fatmir Xhafaj by claiming that his brother, Agron Xhafaj, who has a previous conviction in Italy for drug dealing, is still in the same business.

Albania's ruling Socialist Party has been criticised over a proposal that would oblige the prosecution to submit incriminating evidence to parliament before an MP can be stripped of immunity and arrested.

Critics say the change would undermine the rule of law and endow parliament with powers that should rest with only with the courts.

Albanian opposition parties have laid out their five key conditions for political participation after signing a memorandum concerning the upcoming general election due on 18 June.

Socialist Party MP Taulant Balla on Tuesday criticised what he called "web portals used for electoral propaganda" and called for obligatory registration and the blocking of sites that fail to register during electoral campaigns.

A draft of the proposal, which Balla sent to BIRN, says that unregistered sites publishing 'electoral propaganda' will be closed down.

Analysts have criticised Albania's opposition Democratic Party for seeking to block the setting of a date for the opening of EU accession negotiations.

The Democrats have insisted that the government must first implement a law that seeks to oust people with criminal pasts from politics, and must also hold free and fair elections next year.

Albania's parliament is again in deadlock over judicial reforms because of an angry dispute between the parties over ridding parliament of people with criminal records.

Opposition MPs tried to stop the parliamentary session on Thursday by throwing eggs towards Prime Minister and Socialist Party leader Edi Rama.