The agreement between Montenegro and the United Arab Emirates means that an investor can lease land, evict people, and build gated resorts – all under the pretext of “public interest” and development. If the government’s vision is to profit by selling off what is most valuable to us, then this is not about development – it’s about selling out the state.
Let us recall that according to the 2007 Tourism Development Master Plan, prepared by the German Investment and Development Association, around 30.000 beds are planned for the Big Beach with 100 m² of green space per bed and the preservation of a third of the beach closer to Bojana as an ecologically vulnerable and valuable zone.
Today's announcements are moving towards complete urbanization, regardless of the limitations of nature and the needs of the local community. Even if this plan and the money were from the local community, such a project would sooner or later be doomed to failure due to the high risk of the area from major flooding and the disappearance of beaches.
If the Government had a vision, this area would already be a Bojana Basin Biosphere Reserve, in cooperation with Albania – as envisaged in the project approved by UNESCO in 2021. But in our country, visions last the longest until the project is approved, and most often until the first investment offer.
We also know why – because the state administration has been turned into a napkin for investors. By looking at the area exclusively as a source of profit, the local population has been excluded, and nature has been devastated.
Examples like Buljarica, then estimated at around 100 million euros, and capable of generating over 30 million annually, show that there is a different model of development. A model in which the local community remains at the center, as a guide, host and creator – and not as collateral damage. Ulcinj and its surroundings can develop health and rural tourism, small eco-resorts, campsites, hiking and cycling routes and fishing tourism. Such development generates income throughout the year, stimulates domestic production, reduces pressure on resources and, most importantly, the income stays in the country. The social benefit also grows, people connect, stay where they are, proud of their heritage instead of leaving. And nature remains preserved, ready to respond to the challenges of climate change.
The campaign against Vanja Ćalović Marković, and all those who tell the truth, is an indication that this government cannot stand criticism, and the same patterns of confrontation with dissenters are proof that there has been no fundamental change, but only a replacement of the bearers of the system. But love for the homeland means defending it – both from greed and from domestic corruption. And that is why it remains unquestioned: Velika plaza is not for sale.
Velika Plaza is a natural monument. That's why development is possible – but not at any cost. Our voice must be stronger than secret deals and "lex specialis" laws.
Today, when decisions are made without consulting citizens, we must say clearly: A government that bypasses citizens to serve exclusively profit has lost its legitimacy.
Instead of turning Velika Plaza into a closed complex of privileges, let them announce an international competition for conceptual solutions with clear conditions: eco, local, open, public.
We need to create a new, domestic vision, carried by locals, not foreign companies with a map in one hand and a building permit in the other.
That's why Velika Plaza must remain open and revitalized, and not be turned into another resort for rich foreigners.
Montenegro deserves a government that understands that power does not come from above – but from the citizens, and that the strength of a state is measured by how well it knows how to preserve what is most valuable: people and nature.
The author is a doctoral candidate in biological sciences.
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