The Albanian Constitution states that all individuals are equal before the law and that “no person will be unjustly discriminated against due to his or her sex”. Legislation makes provisions for treaties to supersede national law and the parliament has ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Article 18, 2003 CEDAW). Despite these signs of progress, Albanian society remains essentially patriarchal.
Albania’s Family Code, which is currently in review, generally provides a favourable level of protection to Albanian women. The legal age of marriage is 16 years for women and 18 years for men and the average age of marriage is close to the global average. Early marriage is not widespread in Albania, but does occur. A 2004 United Nations report estimated that 8 per cent of girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed. Despite the legislation in place, forced marriages are frequent. Polygamy is not a common practice in Albania.
Albanian parents share more or less equal parental authority, as long as both spouses are alive and the couple stays together. If the father dies, Albanian custom typically awards custody of children to the paternal family, rather than to the mother. In the event of divorce, judges grant custody to men in four out of five cases. In rural areas, male domination is very prominent, both over the household and over women more generally.
The Civil Code gives men and women equal rights to inheritance of property and recognises two types of inheritance. Under legal succession, the first line of succession is granted to the remaining spouse (husband or wife), who inherits at least 50 per cent of the property. Testamentary succession allows individuals to decide who will inherit which assets. In both cases, the surviving spouse will keep 50 per cent of joint property. In most cases, men inherit family-owned land, mainly because women move to the husband’s family home upon marrying. The phenomenon of disinheritance in favour of men is rare, but not because discrimination against women does not exist: rather, it reflects the fact that women have poor access to land and property in the first place.
The physical integrity of Albanian women is poorly protected. The Albanian Constitution does not contain any specific provisions regarding domestic violence, spousal rape, sexual harassment or female genital mutilation, although Albanian law does condemn these practices.
Violence against women is very prevalent in Albania. Many men, especially in the northeast, still adhere to a traditional code (known as Kanun) that establishes the superiority of men over women. In a survey by the US Department of State, 64 per cent of women questioned said they had been victims of physical, sexual or emotional abuse. The survey also reported that in 2005, 56 women were killed and 74 seriously injured in cases of domestic abuse. Rape is punishable by law and carries a prison sentence of 5 to 15 years, but women seldom press charges. According to ethnic Albanian values, rape is considered a dishonour to the families of the victims, who receive little support.
Human trafficking is a serious problem in Albania, even though it was formally criminalised in 2001. According to UNIFEM, the situation is improving, thanks to government action and enhanced border protection. In recent years, various organisations have established an anti-trafficking centre and a women’s refuge for victims (including temporary social assistance and repatriation), but many problems persist. Women victims are often arrested, treated like criminals, and accused of prostitution and illegal entry into the territory. The practice of female genital mutilation is not common in Albania. In contrast, available statistics indicate that it is a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Women in Albania do not have complete rights of ownership. After marriage, it is rare for Albanian women to have access to land. Rural women attest to the fact that men rule the majority of households and are typically the official owners of the household land. Many women have difficulty exercising their right to access to property other than land, even though the right to private property is guaranteed by both the Constitution and the Civil Code. The Civil Code goes so far as to prohibit all forms of expropriation (except in the interests of public utility), provide a definition of joint property and grant identical rights to all parties in terms of transfer and administration of such property.
Although Albanian women do have access to bank loans, it is rare to see them establish businesses.
Albania falls short of providing women with full civil liberties. Freedom of movement is restricted by tradition that expects women to move to the husband’s family home once married. There is no data to indicate that Albanian women do not have freedom of dress.
Beci, L., Danaj, E., Ekonomi, M., Gjermeni, E. and Lula, E. (2006), Creating Economic Opportunities for Women in Albania: A Strategy for the Prevention of Human Trafficking, Gender Alliance for Development Center, Tirana.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (2003), Considerations of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Albania, Initial and Second Periodic Reports of States Parties, CEDAW/C/ALB/1-2, CEDAW, New York, NY.
ECOSOC (United Nations Economic and Social Council) (2003), Integration of the Human Rights of Women and the Gender Perspective: Violence Against Women, UN, New York, NY.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development), ILC (International Land Coalition) (2004), Rural Women’s Access to Land and Property in Selected Countries: Progress Towards Achieving the Aims of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, FAO Gender and Population Division, IFAD Technical Advisory Division, and ILC, Rome.
UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women) (2006), Violence Against Women — Facts and Figures, UNIFEM, New York, NY.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York, NY.
• US Department of State (2007), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Albania, US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington, DC.
