Families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison today told Justice Minister Bojan Božović and Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović that they will not remain silent, while, as they state in a statement, pressure, disrespect for human rights, and the presumption of innocence are clearly visible.
The statement from the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison was delivered to the media today by lawyer Nikola Tomković.
The statement states that "the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison, after warning that they would gather in cities across Montenegro in protest, in front of the gates of the Administration for the Execution of Criminal Sanctions (UIKS) and in front of the High Court in Podgorica, until their demands, which have been made public, are met, are now directly addressing official institutions."
"We call on institutions to take action and not allow us to gather on the streets of Montenegrin cities, because we will not allow our family members who are in pre-trial detention to starve without anyone hearing them. It is enough that they have been locked up 23 hours a day for years. We are primarily addressing the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Internal Affairs and sending a message that we will not remain silent while pressure, disrespect for human rights and the presumption of innocence are evident," reads a statement from the families of detainees at UIKS, submitted through lawyer Nikola Tomković.
As they point out, "their family members who reside in Spuž have been on hunger strike and have written letters to the Ministry of Justice and the President of the High Court in vain, as there has been no adequate response, just as it is unacceptable that those responsible for this situation are defending and accusing each other and not doing anything to change this situation."
"As far as we can see, everyone is responsible for you except yourself. You did not come to these positions by inheritance, but by the votes of our families, because we are also citizens of this country, and you are here to do your job according to the Law and Constitution of Montenegro, not by your own will, and as you accuse those before you. It is not our children, parents, husbands, brothers' fault that you have no legs, tell the public that. It is not their fault that state officials do not do their job. You allow public appearances where police leaders openly say that they do not want anyone to get out of prison, so are there no innocent people or that everyone is imprisoned, so that the police can deal with hunters and traffic and not field work and operations," the statement of the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison reads.
The families of detainees are asking themselves: How come you invite us for informational interviews when you couldn't do it for Miloš Medenica, at least that's what we understood from the TV show? Isn't the law the same for everyone?
They call on the Minister of Justice to "take action and resolve the pressing problems."
"This is not a political issue, but his obligation as the Minister of Justice. And it is a political problem when he publicly puts pressure on judges with his statements of 'what he wants' and 'what he expects', because his words as the Minister of Justice carry weight; let the courts, as an independent branch of government, make decisions in accordance with the Law and the Constitution, and not according to the wishes of individuals and politics. If our loved ones are guilty, let them answer in court, but to ensure that they are provided with conditions worthy of a human being and the right to defense and a fair trial, and not according to the wishes of the political scene, this is only possible in Montenegro," the statement from the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison reads.
They emphasize that they will not allow their family members to "lack the right to a fair trial and the right to defense."
"We call on all political actors to speak out, not to calculate, because before the elections we are important to all of you and you are all visiting us to gain our support. Read the CPT report on Montenegro, as we have read, and everything will be clear to you. We call on judges to start applying alternative measures and thus help us not to wait 2-3 hours to see our loved ones, and some after several years by applying alternative measures, primarily bail, we can even physically touch our family members," the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison stated in a statement.
They appeal to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to support them in these demands.
"We expect the support of Ms. Gorjanc Prelević and all other NGOs. And we expect the Minister of Justice to talk to the detainees or their lawyers, so that they are not forced to protest and so that someone hears them," the families of detainees at the Spuž Remand Prison said in a statement.
Families of detainees in Spuž who signed the statement: Mićić, Miranović, Milačić, Jasnić, Bošković, Lambulić, Burrć, Brnan, Drešić, Drašković, Sekulović, Drenazović, Lalević, Radović, Ćuzović, Janković, Božović, Mijatović, Strugar, Brajović, Rogač, Perović, Nastović, Jovović, Pejović, Simanić, Popović, Kovačević, Vujošević, Backović
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