Croatian Interior Minister Ivica Kirin, Justice Ministers Ana Lovrin of Croatia, Anastasis Papaligouras of Greece and Georgi Petkanov of Bulgaria told the press the conference addressed the strengthening of cooperation and the fight against corruption, and the sharing of experience and the best practice in judicial reform.
Special attention was paid to national legislation and strategies, mutual support in fighting corruption, and various initiatives to advance cooperation.
We confirmed that the European perspective is the best incentive for institutional and legislative reform as the adoption of European Union standards in the judiciary and home affairs provides conditions for our countries' economic development, said Lovrin.
Participants highlighted the importance of an efficient and independent judiciary which must cope with the most complex criminal cases and the protection of human rights, she added.
The conference also considered the transformation of the Stability Pact for Southeast Europe within the context of the strengthening of regional ownership, it was said.
Lovrin said the signing of memoranda of understanding between the governments of states in the Anti-corruption Initiative would provide for the improvement of the capacities of the Regional Liaison Office in Sarajevo, which will become the Southeast Europe Anti-corruption Centre.
The Joint Declaration adopted at the end of the conference evaluates past activities and defines the common goals of future cooperation between SEECP countries.
Greek Justice Minister Papaligouras underlined that the Declaration included his suggestion that all convicts from the region should serve their penalties in the country of origin so as to make easier their time in prison and resocialisation upon release.
Croatian Interior Minister Kirin highlighted the importance of adjusting the border protection system with Schengen and of cooperation with EU bodies so that every country could draw up its own action plan for the establishment of the Schengen system.
We also highlighted the importance of devising a harmonised data protection system that will enable an effective exchange of information, and cooperation with specialised agencies such as Europol, Eurojust and Frontex plays an important role in this, said Kirin.
Apart from Croatian officials and representatives of international organisations, the conference gathered 15 ministers and state secretaries or deputy state secretaries from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Turkey.
The event was opened this morning by Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. The EU commissioner for justice, freedom and security, European Commission Vice President Franco Frattini, was also in attendance.