The civil movement URA, CIVIS and the parliamentary club Crno na bijelo will launch an initiative to call a referendum in connection with the exploitation of oil, the head of the parliamentary club Crno na bijelo announced at today's press conference in the press center of the Parliament of Montenegro, on the occasion of oil exploration in the Montenegrin seabed. Miloš Konatar.
"As is well known, URA is part of the Greens of Europe family and as such stands for an ecological Montenegro, as stated in the Constitution. It goes without saying that we cannot support any project that will threaten nature, sustainable development, the environment and an ecological Montenegro" Konatar said.
As he stated, it is within the competence of the Parliament of Montenegro to call a referendum, for which at least 25 deputies, the President of Montenegro or at least 10 percent of citizens who have the right to vote must submit an initiative.
"We will submit a formal proposal to all MPs to support the calling of a referendum, as well as to the Government of Montenegro. In addition, we inform the public that we will soon start collecting signatures. We must build Montenegro as an ecological state, and that is why we invite all environmental activists, citizen associations and organizations who deal with environmental protection to participate in the action", Konatar said.
He also said that Sinjajevina and the rivers of Montenegro are jointly defended, and that, as he says, if necessary, the same will be done for the Adriatic.
"Has anyone asked the citizens if they want a base on Sinjajevina or if the rivers are drowned? Has anyone asked them that the most beautiful parts of Montenegro be handed over to tycoons and privatized? Surely, if they had been asked, they would not have allowed it. Now is the turn for the citizens to decide on the exploitation of oil and gas. That issue can determine the future of Montenegro. That is the most democratic way, and what the citizens decide should be respected," said Konatar.
He also said that the Oil and Gas Concession Agreement was signed by the former DPS government in 2016.
"Then my colleague Dritan Abazović and I voted against the contract. In this way, I would like to praise the attitude of the Ministry of Capital Investments (MKI) and their openness to talk with the citizens, and I invite them, as well as the Government of Montenegro, to open all contracts concerning exploitation of oil and gas, to remove the mark from them secretly and for the entire Montenegrin public to have the opportunity to see them," Konatar said.
According to the announcement, Konatar pointed out that the process in front of the Black and White coalition and URE will be led by the coordinator for legal and green issues Ljiljana Jokić and that they will be expected to campaign in the coming period.
Member of Parliament from the Crno na bijelo list Božena Jelušić pointed out that no political entity can transfer to itself the role of deciding on such an important issue, such as the exploitation of oil and gas, but, as she said, it should be decided by all citizens on fair referendum.
"Montenegro needs diversification of the economy, and oil exploration can be seen as an opportunity for that. The division in the public on this issue is justified, and in such circumstances, the language of the profession is needed. Then the citizens can decide. We have no right to justify the actions of the previous government , we already want to listen to the advice of the profession," said Jelušić.
She said that she is personally on the side of environmental interests.
"The Adriatic is a seriously seismically active area, but also a shallow and closed sea, and any ecological disaster would have serious consequences. At this moment, we cannot afford the luxury of "imagining" the large revenues that we would potentially receive. We did not even imagine that "a pandemic can happen, so it happened. That's why we have to keep in mind and predict what Montenegro could lose if there is an ecological disaster," Jelušić said, according to the press release.
Jelušić also said that Montenegro has great water potential, but also the possibility to develop wind and solar energy.
"It is necessary to put everything under detailed analysis, and then present it to the citizens. That way, no one will be able to justify the bad decisions of previous governments. This decision will be the decision of the profession and citizens, and we, together with CIVIS and all interested parties citizens ready to organize public debates and round tables, and at the end, at the referendum, make a joint decision," concluded Jelušić.
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