3. THE STATE OF EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW: A COMPARATIVE APPROACH From what follows, it is evident that the Albanian legislation- in content- reflects the presence of the principle of equality before the law and related principles such as non­discrimination. In terms of the first meaning of the notion of equality before the law, very little can be done to improve the legal framework. Regarding the second meaning, the quality of equal application of the law by public authorities, the situation is not so encouraging. In this section, we will use data extracted from the Albanian Security Barometer to analyse the perception of citizens on this matter and compare it with the situation in the region of the Balkans and European Union. To compensate for the methodological difficulty of the comparison, as each survey has its own methodology and questionnaire, we will use data obtained from similar studies such as the Rule of Law Index, a notion closely related to the principle of equality before the law. 3.1 ALBANIAN SECURITY BAROMETER The Albanian Security Barometer provides an intriguing situation of the state of perception of Albanian citizens about the equal application of the law by public authorities. Sections on‘EU Integration and Perception of Key Priorities’ and‘Integrity and Trust in Institutions' show a mixed perception about the equal treatment of citizens by public authorities and security institutions. 10F 6 The State Police, being one of the institutions in closest contact with citizens, is considered to have a mixed record on human rights, as shown in graph 1. The data shows that the percentage of those who think that the police respect human rights during the exercise of their duty have decreased by about 4 percentage points. The decrease is slightly higher, among those who think that the police respect these rights to a great extent. This change can be explained by the increased society"; Law no. 18/2017"On the rights and protection of children"; aw no. 111/2017"On legal aid guaranteed by the state"; Law no. 93/2014"On the Inclusion and Accessibility of Persons with Disabilities"; Law no. 44/2012"On mental health"; Law no. 8328, dated 16.4.1998,"On the rights and treatment of prisoners and detainees", amended. 6 Arjan Dyrmishi,“Albanian Security Barometer National Survey 2020”, Center for the Study of Democracy and Governance, Tirana, November 2020, 65. Accessible at: http://csdgalbania.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Security_barometer_2020_ENGLISH­WEB.pdf 11