The Ministry of Labour, Family and Liberation War Values has identified a series of violations in the way the Center for Social Work in Peja handled the case of Arlinda Zekaj.
According to the report drafted after the inspection, failure to respect court deadlines, negligence in fulfilling duties, failure to act in accordance with official responsibilities and a lack of professional supervision were established.
The report notes that documentation was submitted to the Court outside the seven-day deadline, while the case manager was absent from the court hearing on 5 October. Also, according to the Ministry, the required monitoring after the court decision was not carried out and standard case management procedures were not implemented.
The Inspection Division has recommended to the Mayor of the Municipality of Peja, Gazmend Muhaxhiri, that disciplinary measures be taken against the case manager and the head of Social Services. It also recommends increasing and retraining professional staff, as well as continuous supervision for Arlinda Zekaj’s 12-year-old son.
Arlinda Zekaj was killed on 25 October by her brother-in-law, after she had returned from the police station, where she had reported her ex-husband for domestic violence. According to reports, the 49-year-old had continuously sought help from institutions.
