Eurojust and Albania take major step to strengthen the fight against cross-border organised crime

Ms Etilda Gjonaj, Minister of Justice of the Republic of Albania, and Mr Ladislav Hamran, President of Eurojust, the European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit, signed a cooperation agreement to enhance operational and strategic judicial cooperation between Albania and Eurojust. It will be the third cooperation agreement between Eurojust and a State in the Western Balkan region and is a further important step in the joint fight against serious transnational crime, since it will unlock the possibility of a safe and efficient exchange of judicial information and sharing of evidence. The signing ceremony took place in the context of this year’s EU-Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs in Tirana, and in the presence of Dr Josef Moser, Minister of Constitutional Affairs, Reforms, Deregulation and Justice of Austria, and Ms Věra Jourová, European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality.

Mr Hamran said: ‘In our globalised world, criminals cross borders and so must our criminal justice systems. I warmly welcome the conclusion of today’s cooperation agreement, which will consolidate our partnership and bring Albania fully into the Eurojust family. It will unlock the full possibilities for Albania to take part in and benefit from all the practical cooperation tools offered through Eurojust to prosecute serious, cross-border crime cases, bring suspects to justice and protect our citizens. Only together can we make Europe a safer place.’ Dr Moser said: ‘On an international level, we can only crack down on crime if we act together in a global effort. Eurojust promotes and facilitates the coordination and cooperation among the national judicial authorities in prosecuting serious cross-border crime in the EU. Yesterday, we saw in the framework of the Western Balkans Conference that Albania is now ready to cooperate more closely with the EU — also in the area of criminal law. The Austrian Presidency greatly welcomes the cooperation between Eurojust and Albania. In this context, we have importantly set the course for better and more intensive cooperation of Albania with the EU.’ Ms Jourová said: ‘I welcome the signature of the Eurojust-Albania cooperation agreement. Closer ties between the Albanian and European judicial authorities will help improve the fight against transnational crime. The aim is simple: we want to make life of organised crime groups more difficult by exchanging information and evidence faster. The agreement will strengthen cooperation and mutual trust between Albania and its EU partners, contributing to Albania’s European perspective.’ Fast and efficient exchange of information and evidence between Albania and EU Member States in international crime investigations With today’s agreement, Albania will benefit from accessing Eurojust’s information systems as well as from sharing personal data and evidence with prosecutors and investigators from all over Europe. The agreement creates also the possibility to appoint a Liaison Prosecutor to Eurojust in the near future to further improve cooperation. Since 2015, Albania has been involved in 36 international investigations into serious cross-border crime, supported by Eurojust, mainly concerning organised crime groups that engage in drug trafficking and crimes against life, limb or personal freedom, such as murder, kidnapping and illegal trade in human organs. Since 2017, Albania has also participated in two joint investigation teams (JITs), including one with Italy. The formal negotiations to enter into a cooperation agreement were initiated in 2016 A strong hands-on partnership with the Western Balkans Since 2008, Eurojust has established an increasingly strong framework for structural judicial cooperation between EU Member States and the Western Balkan States in the area of serious crime. Eurojust has cooperation agreements in place with fYROM since 2008 and with Montenegro since 2016. These States also have Liaison Prosecutors appointed at Eurojust in The Hague, who work side by side with magistrates from the EU Member States to facilitate ongoing investigations. There are contact points for Eurojust in five Western Balkan States, including in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Facilitation of nearly 200 joint criminal investigations between EU Member States and Western Balkan States From January 2015 to September 2018, 193 cases were registered with Eurojust involving Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, fYROM, Montenegro and Serbia. The most common crime types were swindling and fraud, drug trafficking, as well as crimes against life, limb or personal freedom. During the reference period, 9 joint investigation teams (JITs) between EU Member States and Western Balkan States were established.

 

  By Urmat Kalmanbetov, Attache of the Embassy of the Kyrgyz Republic to Benelux and France, Permanent Representation to the EU, NATO and UNESCO This year Kyrgyzstan hosted III World Nomad Games, which are now considered by many countries and organizations as nomadic Olympics. The World Nomad Games is the biggest international project held in the Kyrgyz Republic, a project initiated by the government in 2012 for the revival and preservation of the culture of nomadic civilization. The mission of the World Nomad Games covers the revival, development and preservation of the ethno-culture, diversity and originality of the people of the world in order to foster a more tolerant and open relationship between people. We can see now that the goals were achieved by the scale of the III World Nomad Games, which far exceeded the previous games, demonstrating the growing popularity and attention to the event. The Games with its’ grandeur and spectacle attracted attention of many people from near and far abroad.

This year delegations from over 90 countries, including such countries as Netherlands, France, Great Britain, USA took part in the games in 37 types of etnosports, which were covered by more than 600 foreign mass media representatives from 56 countries. Sportsmen from all over the world, including Europe, America and Africa competed in horse races and games, different types of wrestling, martial arts, archery, intellectual games, hunting and many other games. Such big representation of countries in the World Nomad Games says that they are not only for countries with nomadic past. The Games have the global goal to show and share the rich nomadic culture to the world. Nomadic world connects hundreds of people together. Their culture is original, unique, shows the entire way of life and traditions of the people. If we take a look at the history, we discover that because of nomads, cultural exchanges happened between different people. In the past, when there were no tourists, no international forums, people lived in their certain location, nomads were brave to relocate from one place to another, from one area of continent to another. Due to such movement, they shared their knowledge, which they had with settled people, learned something new from specialists and carried to new regions of the world. Nomadic civilizations coexisted harmoniously with nature. Nomads, adapting to the ecological niche of their residence, did not change the land scape of the earth. Culture and traditions of nomads were not only war like, contrary to stereotypes; nomads spent their free time and holidays by performing different games of physical and intellectual nature.These games have survived to the present day. It is important to mention that this year for the first time in its history, the World Nomad Games were declared a smoke-free event. The introduction of the smoke-free initiative during the III World Nomad Games provided a unique opportunity to leave a long-lasting and sustainable public health message for the community and country. Of course, a big part in the World Nomad Games played its’ cultural and scientific components. Games are aimed at strengthening and further developing interfaith and intercultural dialogue, understanding, friendship, harmony, and cooperation between the people of the world, and demonstrating the cultural diversity of the world, as well as supporting the scientific and methodological foundation of the ethnosport movement, including ethnosports, traditional games, and traditional competitions. Third world Nomad Games’ scientific forum «Historical heritage and the future» had the tasks of researching the role and place of the culture of nomadic peoples in the development of human civilization and the theories of human civilization and forming theories and forming theories of nomadic civilizations; the development of culture and the connection between traditional games and the lifestyle and traditions of peoples, as well as forming a permanent platform as part of the World Nomad Games for researchers, academics, and the organizers of the Games. As it was said earlier, the Games are now considered by the world community as Nomadic Olympics. And to maintain its growing popularity the mission to host 4th World Nomad Games was given to Turkey. So we can confidently say that nomadic culture is alive and will keep to foster a more tolerant and open relationship between people around the world.      

Presented by​ Bahrain National Gas​ at Saatchi Gallery Curated and produced by Éva McGaw and Tatiana Palinkasev.

  3-21 October 2018 ​ ​Penumbra : Textured Shadow, Coloured Light , held at Saatchi Gallery from 3-21 October 2018, brings together new three-dimensional works by artist Rashid Khalifa. His London debut invites the viewer to experience the beauty of textured shadows and light cast through polychromatic metal structures. Aluminium mesh wall works, suspended steel grid columns, and a monumental maze form the basis of this immersive exhibition inspired by architectural grids and geometric lattices. ​ In recent years, Rashid has experimented with metal surfaces, creating openings in his aluminium wall works and revealing the intimate space behind the surface, usually kept out of view. Penumbra takes this approach a step further, exploring changes in spatial experience depending on the viewer’s position. Upon entering the first exhibition space, the audience encounters convex wall works adorned with colourful flaps that suggest a feeling of movement. Rashid refers to the wall-mounted aluminium pieces, whose intricate patterns are based on complex mathematical geometric design, as ‘parametric sculptures.’

In the centre of the room, three-tiered columns wreathed with geometric flaps, cutouts and monitors showing street scenes and coastlines are suspended from the ceiling, drawing the viewer closer. There is tension created between the vibrant and ornate steel grids and the calmness of the voids within, just out of reach of the viewer in a realm of semi-privacy. In the second exhibition space, the viewer is confronted with a colourful maze and a colossal grid structure that reimagines the shapes and tones of an urban environment, and explores architecture, city planning and memories. Rashid comments: ‘I was inspired by winding narrow alleyways and traditional architecture. I would like the audience to experience the maze as a conceptual entity – a spiritual journey with no fixed destination.’ ​ About Rashid Al Khalifa Rashid Khalifa (b. 1952) began painting at the age of 16 and held his first exhibition at the Dilmun Hotel, Bahrain in 1970. He travelled to the UK in 1972 where he attended the Brighton and Hastings Art College in Sussex and trained in Arts and Design. ​ Rashid’s artistic practice has evolved over time: from landscapes in the 70s and early 80s, to merging elements of his figurative and abstract work in the late 80s, progression towards abstraction and experimenting with the ‘canvas’ in the 90s, and recent mirror-like chrome and high gloss lacquer pieces. ​ His solo exhibitions include Hybrids , Ayyam Gallery, Dubai, UAE (2018); Convex: A New Perspective , Bahrain National Museum, Kingdom of Bahrain (2010); Art Department, Shuman Arts Organisation, Jordan (1997); De Caliet Gallery, Milan, Italy and El Kato Kayyel Gallery, Milan, Italy (1996). ​ Biennials include: Bridges, Grenada Pavilion, 57th Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy (2017); 3rd Mediterranean Biennale: OUT OF PLACE – Sakhnin Valley, Israel (2017); Arab Delegation, TRIO Biennial – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2015); and In The Eye of the Thunderstorm, Collateral Events, 56. la Biennale di Venezia – Venice, Italy (2015). ​ ​Rashid has also taken part in various group shows, international art fairs, and exhibitions alongside the Bahrain Arts Society. He is founder of Royal Bridges. For further Information:

• https://www.saatchigallery.com/art/penumbra.php

 

• http://royalbridges.org/home/project/he-shaikh-rashid-bin-khalifa-al-khalifa/

 

• http://metamorphosis-artprojects.com

 

• https://rashidalkhalifa.me

 

The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets is about to come into force. What does it mean? By Reinier W.L. Russell, LL.M. The Dutch government is currently in the process of implementation of the European Trades Secrets Directive. The Directive aims at protecting non–public company information & knowhow from being obtained, used or disclosed unlawfully. The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets (Wet bescherming bedrijfsgeheimen; WBB) will soon enter into force for the purpose of implementation of the Directive. Prior to the entry into force of this Act the European Trades Secrets Directive will have direct effect in the Netherlands.

Trade secrets

The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets ensures better protection of trade secrets. A trade secret is considered information which is:

• Not known or easily accessible to persons that are usually dealing with the information concerned;
• Of commercial value, as it is secret; and
• Subject to reasonable measures in order to be kept secret.

A trade secret is not necessarily technical knowledge of models or products. Marketing strategies, business plans and trade information fall under trade secrets too.

Obtained, used or disclosed unlawfully

The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets provides that obtaining a trade secret without the permission of the holder of the trade secret is unlawful if:

• A person has gained unauthorised access to the trade secret;
• A person has taken it unlawfully;
• A person has copied documents, files or suchlike including trade secrets or from which trade secrets can be deduced; or
• Obtaining them is in violation of fair trading.

The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets stipulates that, the use or making known to the public of a trade secret could be unlawful if the trade secret is used or disclosed without consent of the holder of the trade secret by a person who:

• Has obtained the trade secret unlawfully;
• Violates a confidentiality agreement or another requirement regarding non-disclosure of a trade secret, or
• Violates an obligation restricting the use of the trade secret.

The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets also refers to situations in which obtaining, use or disclosure of trade secrets can be lawful. For instance, in investigative journalism, which is protected by freedom of expression or regarding disclosure of misconduct, mistakes or illegal activities by whistleblowers.

Safeguarding trade secrets

If a trade secret is obtained, used or disclosed unlawfully, a civil procedure can be initiated in court. The Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets provides that the holder of a trade secret can either apply for measures to the court in interlocutory proceedings or to the ordinary court. That way, suspension of the unlawful use can be imposed or a ban on production issued. Also, the holder of a trade secret may claim damages and full reimbursement of court fees similar to other matters regarding intellectual property. To be able to show that a trade secret was violated, the trade secret will have to be disclosed, which is not the intention of the holder of the trade secret. By the implementation of the Directive the court can, upon application, specify exhibits as confidential and limit the number of persons with access thereto. In addition, upon request a non-confidential version of the decision can be published online where the parts including trade secrets have been deleted or edited. The new Act will not make the confidentiality clause in an employment contract dispensable, as this clause may have a broader scope than what is defined as a trade secret in the Act. In the event of theft of trade secrets a report can also be filed with the police in addition to a civil procedure of the Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets. About the author: Reinier W.L. Russell, LL.M. managing partner Reinier Russell advises national and international businesses on all facets of their day-to-day business operations. He has a broad range of specializations in questions regarding businesses, personnel, real estate, and government. He has been a lawyer since 1990. In addition, Reinier is certified as a mediator. @: reinier.russell@russell.nl t: +31 20 301 55 55

By  Corneliu Pivariu. The term, known primarily as illiberal democracy appeared reletively recently – in terms of historical time – and is most oftenly quoted as being used by the well known politologist Fareed Zakaria in the article The Rise of Illiberal Democracy, published in 1997 in Foreign Affairs. In a nutshell, the illiberal democracy is considered a system of governance whereby although elections are taking place the citizens are not aware of the activities carried out by those who exert the real power as a result of certain civil liberties being cut. A country ruled by illiberal democracy is not an open society and many countries are listed as neither free nor authoritarian, but presumably free and are placed somewhere between democratic or undemocratic regimes. And that also because although there are constitutional limits defining the executive power, those in power ignore the respective provisions or that there is not a constitutional framework appropriate for democratic freedoms in place. This is why the illiberal democracy is known as well as partial democracy, as low intensity democracy or hybrid regime. We find an interesting approach in Francis Fukuyama’s article The New Tribalism and the Crisis of Democracy, published in the 14th of August, 2018 issue of Foreign Affairs. He notices the transformations of the political world since the beginning of the 1970s until the first decade of the this century, when the number of democracies increased from around 35 to more than 110 while the number of people living in extreme poverty decreased from 42% of the total global population in 1993 to 18% in 2008. Fukuyama stresses nevertheless that in numerous countries and especially in the developed democracies the economic disparity increased dramatically since mainly the rich and the well educated enjoyed the benefits of economic growth. This transition towards an increasingly open society and towards the liberal world order witnessed a gradual slow down or even became reversible. It is true that during the last years a number of democracies failed all over the world and democracy is loosing ground. At the same time, many countries with authoritarian regimes, China and Russia ranked first among them, became increasingly attractive as template. Countries which seemed to be liberal democracies in the making or successful in the 1990s, including Hungary, Poland, Thailand and Turkey slipped back towards authoritarianism. In 1993 in Russia, Boris Eltsin assailed the parliament as a result of the unconstitutional acts it issued. He suspended the constitutional court, abolished the system of local governments and dismissed numerous governors. From the war in Chechnia to his economic program, Eltsin proved a total lack of interest towards the constitutional procedures and to the limits of his power. Maybe he was intimately a liberal yet his acts created a Russian super-presidency Vladimir Putin is successfully exerting today. Elections are being held regularly yet many foreign observers consider they are not free and correct. The assassination of journalists or of political opponents proves the limits imposed to the freedom of expression; the most important TV networks and newspapers are state owned or influenced by the government and support openly the government parties during the election campaigns. The state control over media is on the rise and its power is used as well for achieving certain foreign policy objectives while the actions of the political opposition are increasingly difficult. A representative of the illiberal order in Europe is Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban who described in July 2014 his vision on Hungary’s future as illiberal state. In his interpretation, the illiberal state does not reject the values of the liberal democracy yet it does not adopt them as central element of state organisation. In a Freedom House report titled Modern Authoritarianism: Illiberal Democracies some prerequisites are presented so that illiberalism will gain ground in different countries, among which: when the main ruling parties are defeated in elections and the illiberal forces succeed in taking their places; the fundamental weaknesses of the democratic institutions in the political sphere, including media, civil society, anti-corruption agencies and the judiciary. In practical terms, it is unlikely that illiberal forces manage to transform countries where the existing parties are strong, with loyal followers and where there is a power balance. If, however, the illiberal forces have enough political will and the defenders of the democratic institutions are not convincing and do not enjoy popular support, everything is possible, the Freedom House report underlines. As early as 2015 Fareed Zakaria said that Turkey under Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s leadership became a typical case of illiberal democracy and, after the so-called July 2016 coup attempt and the legislative changes which followed, it became a state evolving towards dictatorship, completing the specter of illiberalism. A notion and a reality existing for a long time and closely related to the emergence of illiberalism is that of the parallel state or the underground state (Deep State – the expression used in the USA). It is said that the origin of this term derives from Turkish language – derin devlet, the secret Turkish network founded in 1923 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk for undertaking clandestine operations in order to preserve the government structure. In our opinion, the earliest form of the parallel state is as old as democracy and it developed alongside the states’ democratic evolution. The term underground state was mostly used for describing certain situations in Russia or Turkey, only to spread thereafter to Europe, but also to the USA, and refered to actions favouring the conspiration theories. Yet there is a great reserve in openly approaching this phenomenon, most probably as a result of the actions that this parallel/underground state are carried out in accordance with other rules and principles than the democratic ones. A possible definition of the parallel state: a grouping of personalities with first of all important positions in the state administration – especially within the power institutions (intelligence services and the defense system, justice, economic decision makers, politicians), media, culture, education and non-governmental organisations, acting for the achievement of certain political, economic and of other nature objectives according to their interests or of some foreign powers as well, others than the national interests of the respective country decided by official documents. The 2010-2011 Arab revolts led to the disappearance of some dictatorial regimes in the Middle East (except for Syria) yet they did not led to democratization as strongmen regimes are still present and civil wars broke out in Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen. We are witnessing the triumph of the nationalism populism in many countries, one in one of the most durable liberal democracies in the world – Great Britain which in 2016 decided to leave the European Union (recent polls show that the population changed their mind and 59% of them would like to remain in the EU). The troubled European Union, with a dismissive Brussels bureaucracy or, worse still, unable to discern today’s world major geopolitical developments, dangling at the shelter of statistics underlying the relevance of the organisation worldwide yet without realizing enough what is going on in the east, west and south, will probably have the big surprise after the European elections to be held in May 2019. That is why the French president Emmanuel Macron, with a plummeting approval rate in his country had, on September 7th, in Marseille, a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel, a day after he paid a visit to Luxembourg for preparing the general offensive of the progress against the reactionary nationalism. The meeting was intended to achieve joint actions for halting the electoral rise of the Euroskeptics populists and of anti-migration parties. Maybe more, Macron would like to form a Pan-European vehicle of the type of his party – En Marche, for acquiring a strong position in the EU. On this background of political or even philosophical search, the world geopolitics tries to settle in a new equilibrium formula until which completion there will be economic and social convulsions and wars. A rather long period of time will pass until a new formula of global equilibrium is reached. ——————— About the author: Corneliu Pivariu, former first deputy for military intelligence (two stars general) in the Romanian MoD, retired 2003. Member of IISS – London, alumni of Harvard – Kennedy School Executive Education and others international organizations. Founder of INGEPO Consulting, and bimonthly Bulletin, Geostrategic Pulse”. Main areas of expertise – geopolitics, intelligence and security. ———— Corneliu Pivariu. Photographer: Ionus Paraschiv.