Prohibition of Trade in Products for Torture and Inhumane Treatment
Torture and inhumane or degrading treatment have been considered among the most brutal crimes against humanity, not only during centuries of wars, but are still practiced today in many countries of the world, even though they are absolutely prohibited by international acts such as ECHR, UDHR, etc.
The field of trade in goods and services which have no other use, except for the execution of the death penalty, torture and other cruel, humiliating or inhuman punishments, is not regulated in the Republic of Albania.
For this reason, the Council of Ministers has proposed and submitted to the Assembly, the Draft Law “On the control of the trading of products that can be used for death sentences, torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading punishments or treatments” which aims to regulate the trading of products that can be used for capital punishment, torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment as well as the provision of mediation services, technical assistance, training and advertising related to these products.
Such goods are absent from the military, dual-use, or other strategic export control lists and may be produced or traded without authorization or licensing and may be sold without restriction to all citizens.
The regulations proposed in this draft law limit this market and regulate it, conditioning the trading of these products with a regime of authorizations, which will be issued by the State Export Control Authority (AKSHE), as the state structure responsible for issuing export authorizations. defined in relation to export, import, transit, provision of technical assistance and intermediary activity.
Goods that can be used for capital punishment or torture are categorized into two major groups:
- Goods that are inherently abusive and should not be traded at all (import/export/transit). These goods and their components are designed or used for the execution or torture/ill-treatment of human beings;
- Goods that must be subject to certain restrictions. These goods can have legitimate uses, such as equipment used by law enforcement authorities, as well as certain pharmaceutical chemicals, but they can also be used to execute or torture/abuse human beings.
Exceptions to the provisions of this draft law will be:
- Use of these products for museum purposes;
- Firearms, controlled according to the legislation in force;
- Dual-use articles, controlled according to the legislation in force;
- Military goods, controlled according to the legislation in force.
The EU export control system applies high control standards and serves as a reference point for many countries in the world, including Albania. Dual-use controls directly complement controls on arms exports and pursue largely similar objectives. Restrictive measures (sanctions) play an important role in combating the proliferation of weapons of war and terrorism and also promote regional security and human rights.
For more about this bill, find the relevant link below: