The Albanian Helsinki Committee (AHC) has addressed an open letter to Minister of Interior Bledar Çuçi criticizing a decision to exclude the human rights organization from a commission that reviews asylum requests.
“We express our regret about this change, which represents regress in terms of previous standards of transparency, responsibility, and accountability, for the representation of the civil society sector in the composition of this Commission,” the organization writes.
The letter argues that AHC had often found itself in the minority in approving asylum requests, including in the case of Selami Simsek whose request the government rejected.
Simsek is Turkish citizen who fled his country of origin due to fears of being persecuted for being considered a sympathizer of religious leader Fethullah Gulen.
In October 2021, AHC received a draft of the new law on asylum which foresaw a reduction in the number of asylum seekers that would nevertheless not compromise AHC’s involvement.
The original decision of the Council of Ministers which established the committee required that it have seven members, five government representatives, one representative from the State Intelligence Service, and one representative from AHC specifically.
Following months of silence to AHC’s reply, AHC decided to inquire into its status and found out that the law had been passed and its position with the commission removed.
“On this occasion, AHC conveys that pursuant to its mission, we have made positive contributions, in the capacity of a member, with constructive and professional opposition in those cases appealed by asylum seekers, for which we have been minority members of the National Commission on Asylum and Refugees,” the letter concludes.
Albania has been criticized for its decision to deport Turkish citizens who had requested political asylum following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s crackdown on the alleged followers of Gulen, whom he considers responsible for the failed coup of 2016.
During his last visit to Albania in January, Erdoğan addressed the Albanian Parliament making an unequivocal call for support in Turkey’s fight against cleric Gulen and his followers.
