Kryeshefja ekzekutive e Agjencisë për Barazi Gjinore (ABGJ), Edi Gusia gjatë raportimit në Komisionin për të Drejtat e Njeriut, Barazi Gjinore dhe Peticione, ka folur për kompetencat e institucionit në trajtimin e rasteve të dhunës në familje, masat ligjore për mbrojtjen e grave dhe përgjegjësitë e institucioneve, pas vrasjes së Arlinda Zekajt. Ajo ka theksuar se mekanizmat koordinues në nivel lokal nuk po funksionojnë siç duhet dhe se takimet e tyre janë pothuajse inekzistente, raporton Ekonomia Online.
Speaking to the members of the commission, the CEO of AGE clarified that the institution she leads does not have a legal mandate to directly address individual cases of domestic violence or discrimination, emphasizing that institutional responsibilities are separated by law.
"I will share with you here, that today you need to get the opinion of the agency regarding this issue, although we need to clarify, the Agency for Gender Equality, based on the Law on Gender Equality, does not have a mandate to handle cases, whether of domestic violence or cases of discrimination. That is, the legal framework of the Republic of Kosovo has very clear mandates regarding gender equality. There is the commission in the Assembly, there is the agency as an executive, policy-drafting and monitoring agency, and there is the institution of the Ombudsman, which deals with handling cases of discrimination based on gender in general. That is to say, the competencies are very separate, they are well separated", she said.
The CEO of AGE mentioned the institution's work in drafting the legal framework for protection from domestic violence, emphasizing that the agency drafted the first law on this issue in 2010, as well as standard operating procedures for handling cases.
"Regarding the engagement of the Agency for Gender Equality in general in drafting the legal framework, it is worth noting that the agency drafted the first law on protection from domestic violence in 2010, when, let's say, perhaps none of the Western Balkan countries had a law on protection from domestic violence. We are the drafters of standard operating procedures for handling cases of domestic violence, which describe the duties and responsibilities of the entire institutional chain. Those procedures are still in force. This year we have reviewed these procedures and they remain to be approved by the national coordinator, the Ministry of Justice," Gusia stated.
She also recalled that in 2013, the AGE had proposed to the Government the establishment of a national coordinator mechanism, with the aim of strengthening institutional coordination for addressing issues related to gender equality and violence against women.
"It is worth noting that in 2013 it was precisely the Agency for Gender Equality that proposed to the Government the establishment of a mechanism such as the coordinator or national coordinator and that we insisted that that task be given to a person with a political mandate, since the Agency for Gender Equality, with the Law on Gender Equality, is led by the civil service. That is, the head of the agency is a civil servant, who reports directly to the Prime Minister. It is a kind of, let's say, independent institution, recommended by the Beijing Platform of 1995, where it is insisted that we have such an independent mechanism, but that it is counted one in four alongside politics", said the CEO of the AGE.
Speaking about inter-institutional cooperation, she said that the AGE has worked closely with the Ministry of Justice in reviewing legislation on protection from domestic violence, violence against women and gender-based violence.
"As you mentioned, we have collaborated very closely with the Ministry of Justice in reviewing the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence, Violence against Women and Gender-Based Violence. And over the years we have collaborated and continue to collaborate with the Ministry of Justice in drafting the entire legal framework and bylaws regarding the treatment of domestic violence cases. It is worth noting that the Ministry of Justice, in the last four years, has amended, supplemented, changed and drafted 22 normative acts, laws, bylaws and regulations regarding the treatment of domestic violence and violence against women," she stated.
The Chief Executive Officer also spoke about the Kosovo Police's training on handling domestic violence cases, saying that the agency has trained around 11,300 police officers since the entry into force of standard operating procedures in 2013.
However, she stressed that the agency's limited human capacities make it difficult to expand these trainings.
"Now, if we go back specifically to the mandate of the agency, I said, over the years we have trained the Police of the Republic of Kosovo to the extent that we have the capacity. The Legislation Division in the agency, which leads these trainings, has a minimum staff of only three people, which has not increased over the years. And if we look at it, since the entry into force of the standard operating procedures in 2013, the Agency for Gender Equality has trained somewhere around 11 thousand 300 police officers of the Republic of Kosovo. This is not a sufficient number, but I am saying it again, with the number of staff that we have at our disposal, these are the capacities of the agency", she said.
She also highlighted the responsibilities of municipalities for the functioning of coordination mechanisms, which should bring together responsible institutions to discuss cases of violence against women.
"On the other hand, we have also trained the coordination mechanisms at the local level, because all municipalities of the Republic of Kosovo have the responsibility to establish the coordination mechanism based on the regulation drafted by the Ministry of Justice, and the head of the coordination mechanism is the mayor. I will stop for a moment to bring to your attention why this coordination mechanism is important, because there is an obligation that at least three times a year, every mayor of a municipality must invite the director of the CSW, the directorate of health, the director of the police station, the basic court and the prosecutor's office, the victims' advocates, the free legal aid in the municipality in which he or she leads, and to be informed precisely about all cases of violence against women in his or her municipality. In these cases, there is a failure to implement this regulation. If you, as a parliamentary committee, address the 38 mayors about how many times they have invited the coordination mechanism, you will see that the meetings are almost non-existent", she said.
She spoke about the financing of shelters for victims of violence, saying that the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare has allocated 1.5 million euros for ten shelters in Kosovo. According to her, municipalities also have an obligation to contribute to their financing.
“Në anën tjetër, strehimoret kanë një financim të qëndrueshëm. Do të thotë, Ministria e Punës dhe Mirëqenies Sociale ka disbursuar 1.5 milion euro për dhjetë strehimoret e Republikës së Kosovës, njëra nga të cilat është strehimore për trafikim me qenie njerëzore, të cilën e udhëheq Qeveria, ndërsa nëntë të tjerat janë organizata të shoqërisë civile. Po, në anën tjetër, komunat kanë përgjegjësi që të financojnë. Normalisht, është e pamundur që 38 komunat të kenë secila nga një strehimore, sepse nuk ka mjete buxhetore, mirëpo komunat kanë për obligim t’i financojnë strehimoret në të cilat, domethënë, strehohen viktimat e rajonit. A e bëjnë të gjitha komunat këtë? Jo. Dikush financon, dikush nuk financon, por kjo është përtej kompetencave tona. Kjo është një pyetje që ndoshta është dashur të zgjidhet nëpërmjet Ministrisë së Pushtetit Lokal dhe të shihet cilat janë ato komuna të cilat nuk i financojnë strehimoret”, tha tutje ajo. /EO