Time journalist, Saranda Ramaj, has stated that judges in Kosovo fall under the influence of the public, adding that judges must have professional courage and work in line with the principles of justice.
According to Ramaj, the integrity of the judge means that he also goes against the free opinions of the citizens.
"The judiciary is subject to public pressure both for better and for worse. I think judges should be independent in their opinions. If five citizens complain on social media, the judge will be influenced by that case. I think they are afraid of public pressure, and he should not be afraid of it. If all of Kosovo thinks that something is wrong and the court is not deciding where the judge with free conviction has come to that decision, he must be brave enough because this is the integrity of the judge, to go against the free opinion of the citizens ", Ramaj stated in KTV's "Konfront".
She stressed that in Kosovo, public pressure is misunderstood because "the decisions of the court should not be based on what the citizens think".
Meanwhile, lawyer Hashan Shala, former president of the Court of Appeal, said that if the judge falls under the influence of the public, he is no longer a judge.
According to him, the biggest attack on the justice system in Kosovo is made by those of public officials.
"The judge who falls prey to foreign intervention does not have the name of court. A judge must not fall prey to public opinion attacks. When a member of parliament, minister or prime minister comes out and says this is a rotten system, these are things that should be taken care of... All the international remarks that come are that we have interference in the justice system since even the statement of the executive is considered interference". said Shala.
Shala: There are prisoners before death, bad for the state if someone dies in prison
Lawyer Hashan Shala has said that prisoners who are assessed by doctors as being on the verge of death should be released. According to him, it is not good for the state when prisoners die in prisons.
Shala sees the death of prisoners in correctional centers as a problem.
"Today you have prisoners who are on the verge of death and there is no possibility in this justice system for him to be released, not to die in prison. Death in prisons is a big minus for the state. The case when it is found that he is sick and almost at the end of death that the doctors find, he should be released. It is not possible to release him if we send him to the hospital, but he should be released either on bail or be pardoned by the president so that he does not die in prison, and I believe there are many such cases", he said.
Escape of prisoners, director Dibrani: We are leaders in the region for security in prisons
The general director of the Correctional Service of Kosovo, Ismail Dibrani, said that in terms of security in prisons, Kosovo leads the region.
He assessed the level of security in correctional institutions as "satisfactory".
"The last escape from prisons happened in 2018, there are cases when the law allows such persons to use the weekend or transfer to an open-type institution where the level of security is low, these persons may not return. Since 2007 alone, there have been around 70 cases of not returning from the weekend or leaving the open-type institution", said Dibrani in "Konfront".
