The third day of the Access to Public Documents Week continued today with the Workshop “Increasing Transparency in the Prosecution System through Access to Public Documents”

With the support of the U.S. Embassy in Kosovo, the Agency for Information and Privacy, in this Workshop has brought together, Chief Prosecutors, Prosecutors and representatives of all the Institutions of the Prosecution System in Kosovo, to discuss and at the same time promote the right to access public documents, as a strong pillar of accountability and transparency, on the one hand and on the other for the exchange of best practices and international standards.

The conference was opened with the Commissioner of the Information and Privacy Agency, Krenare Sogojeva Dermaku, who emphasized that the proactive publication of public documents, as far as the legal framework of the scope of the Prosecutorial System allows, affects the performance and self-development of prosecutors, and consequently, it also increases their public responsibility.

John Hanley, Legal Advisor of the American Embassy emphasized that transparency of institutions is essential for a democratic society, because it enables citizens to access information and helps institutions increase responsibility and accountability for decision-making processes.

Regarding the importance of the implementation of the Law on Access to Public Documents, the Acting Chief Prosecutor of the State, Besim Kelmendi, emphasized that transparency and accountability, in addition to being a legal obligation, also reflect the integrity to present the work of the institutions in the most dignified manner.

The Deputy Chairman of the Prosecuttorial Council, Veton Shabani, also emphasized that the implementation of the Law on Access to Public Documents is of particular importance for institutions and that in the framework of strengthening transparency and accountability, the Prosecution Council of Kosovo is in the drafting phase of the Regulation on Access to Public Documents

Two experts from the U.S Department of Justice, Sean O’Neill and Bobak Talebian, presented U.S. perspective to Access to Public Documents Rules of the Prosecutorial System, highlighted the importance of record keeping, and best practices for access to complex requests for access to public documents.

The General Director of the Agency, Lumnije Demi, presented the three-year statistics for the period September 2021-September 2023 for complaints to the Prosecutorial System for Access to Public Documents, including the profile of the complaining party, the number, category and nature of complaints.

During the workshop, the participants were involved in a constructive discussion, where they had the opportunity to present their challenges and opportunities towards the realization of the Law on Access to Public Documents as a whole. The Commissioner, hoping that this workshop has served as a guide to raise the level of transparency and accountability of public institutions in the implementation of legal obligations, concluded the work of the workshop.