Democratic Montenegro demands that it be immediately made public who is holding the appeal of the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) proposing to order the detention of Vesna Medenica and why it was not forwarded to the Court of Appeal, announced the general secretary and head of the party's parliamentary group, Boris Bogdanović.
"We demand immediately: that it be publicly announced who is holding the SDT appeal and why it was not forwarded to the Court of Appeal, by name and surname; that the exact dates and times be published: when the decision was sent, to whom, when it was delivered, who signed the receipt, who retained the case; that an investigation into information leaks be opened immediately: who had access to the file, who knew the date of the verdict, who communicated with the convicted and their entourage," he said.
He says that this is the last moment for the judiciary to "show that it is not a club of the privileged", and if it fails now, citizens will "rightly conclude what is most dangerous for the state: that in Montenegro the law is not the same for everyone".
Former Supreme Court President Vesna Medenica was sentenced to ten years in prison by the High Court in Podgorica on January 28. The police are searching for her son Miloš, who was also sentenced to ten years and two months in prison by a first-instance verdict, and who, after the verdict was pronounced, was not found in the apartment he was not allowed to leave. The court, along with the verdict, issued a decision ordering his detention, while Vesna Medenica was prohibited from leaving Kolašin and her passport was confiscated.
"The SDT's appeal for the detention of Vesna Medenica 'has not yet reached' the Court of Appeal. 'Awaiting submission and statements'. 'Procedural assumptions'. Enough of fairy tales. When it comes to an ordinary citizen, everything can be done 'immediately'. When it comes to Vesna Medenica, the system suddenly turns into a snail and starts hiding behind paper. This is a shame for the state and spitting in the face of justice. Vesna Medenica was sentenced in the first instance to about 12 years in prison, and the Higher Court imposed a measure on her that essentially means: 'don't go far.' This is a sign that there is still a caste in Montenegro that is not imposed measures, but is granted privileges. And worst of all, the SDT is warning of the danger of Vesna Medenica escaping, after Miloš Medenica had already escaped from house arrest before the verdict was pronounced," Bogdanović announced.
He says that the system has "already been humiliated and ridiculed in front of the citizens once," and now "the same recipe is being repeated."
"Whoever presents this as a 'coincidence' is knowingly insulting the intelligence of the public. That is why we ask directly: who in the High Court made the decision that Vesna Medenica does not need detention and that it is enough for her to 'stay in the municipality'? And let that person say publicly: I guarantee that she will not escape. And let her bear responsibility if she escapes. Who is responsible for Miloš Medenica not being ordered to have 24/7 electronic monitoring? Did someone from the High Court report that a guilty verdict was coming? Because you don't run away from freedom. You don't 'disappear' right then and there, if you don't know what is coming. Either someone reported it or someone helped. There is no third option. This is a question of the elementary security of the legal order: are the courts enforcing the law or protecting their former bosses," Bogdanović said.
DON'T MISS IT
Bonus video:
