The diaspora is no longer treated as a resource for voters, who, through individuals, abused and manipulated patriotic feelings, used political structures from Montenegro, said the director of the Administration for Cooperation with the Diaspora. Seid Hadzic.
"And to be completely clear, this was not done only by the former government, but also by the former opposition," said Hadžić in an interview with "Vijesta".
Hadžić was appointed acting director of the Administration in June of last year and says that upon coming to the head of the Administration, he encountered a certain type of political pressure both from Montenegro and from individuals from the diaspora who, through the Administration, tried to influence political trends in the country, which turned out to be counterproductive. .
Additional problems, as he stated, were made by hasty and thoughtless announcements by certain politicians, including ministers in the Government, which were later additionally abused.
How do you evaluate cooperation with diaspora organizations since you have been at the head of the Administration?
Considering the problems caused by the covid 19 pandemic and all the limitations and difficulties that, unfortunately, have been an integral part of our lives for the past two years, I can say that I am satisfied with the communication and cooperation with our associations and associations from the diaspora. In addition to the above, when I came to the head of the Administration, I encountered a certain type of political pressure both from Montenegro and from individuals from the diaspora who, unfortunately, through this Administration, tried to influence the political trends in the country, which turned out to be counterproductive, as I emphasized. From the beginning. Additional problems were caused by hasty and thoughtless announcements by certain politicians, including ministers in the Government, which were later further abused. I would say that we paid the price of insufficient awareness of the importance of the diaspora, but also that we showed openness and flexibility. In general, the society in Montenegro, but I will be free to say that the diaspora itself, is maturing in this matter and today we approach that layer of our society more maturely. This makes me happy, I consider it one of our biggest successes in the seven months that I have been at the head of the Management Board. The diaspora is no longer treated as a voter resource, and the diaspora no longer views Montenegro as a society of one person on whom everything depends. To summarize, despite all the mentioned problems and challenges, we managed to present our vision of cooperation to the diaspora and as a result received positive feedback. In a relatively short time, we put the Administration on a sound foundation, freed it from political influence and built a partnership with the diaspora. We managed to do what seemed impossible to many - we raised the Administration and the whole concept of cooperation with the diaspora high above daily politics.
Citizenship cannot be taken at will and changes to the law on citizenship must be made in the Parliament. I responsibly assert that there is not a sufficient number of votes in the Assembly that are ready to harm the diaspora or deny them some of their acquired rights
For a long time, the former government had a great influence on a good part of associations from the diaspora, especially during the elections because it counted on the votes of our emigrants. Has the situation changed?
If we take the total number of the diaspora and those who came to vote in the elections, we come to the conclusion that a very small number of the diaspora used that right. So, not even close to the influence that certain political entities have forced through media appearances. It is true that individuals in the diaspora were represented on behalf of the entire diaspora, and that they were essentially an extension of the former government. It is also true that by abuse and manipulation of patriotic feelings, political structures from Montenegro in the diaspora exclusively built party ties with the aim of voting in elections. And to be completely clear, it was not only the former government that did it, but also the former opposition. True, the opposition with fewer resources was focused on Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but the system is completely the same, religious and national feelings that were often raised in a targeted manner in Montenegro during the pre-election period, statements, attacks, graffiti... had for the purpose of animating the diaspora to come and vote. Since I have been at the helm, the administration is building a completely different role for the diaspora in our society. A diaspora that will be above daily political games and manipulation. A diaspora that politicians from Montenegro will have to charm and address with respect and appreciation like the one they show to European and world representatives. Because the diaspora certainly deserves that. Unfortunately, daily political games from Montenegro spilled over to the diaspora, so we have a situation where many associations do not communicate with each other, accuse each other and, I can say, degrade the institution of our citizens' associations. I do not blame anyone individually, the system was imported and transferred from Montenegro, but we must put an end to these phenomena. Neither the state nor the diaspora needs it. We respect and appreciate the personal attitude and commitment of each individual, including the political one, regardless of what it is, but we will not allow exclusivity to anyone. Our diaspora is a collection of different nations, religions, cultures and customs, as well as political attitudes. We do not dispute anyone's right to an opinion, but we are sure that all of them have two facts in common - they are originally from Montenegro and they all fall under the definition of diaspora. Our approach to the diaspora makes it impossible for anyone to represent the entire diaspora and to express views on behalf of all, which is the initial stage of programmatic unification of the diaspora. The same rights for everyone and a common struggle for those rights and status in Montenegrin society.
After the change of government and the announcement of changes to the Law on Citizenship, a large part of the diaspora worried that they would be left without Montenegrin citizenship. In your communication with diaspora associations, did you manage to clear up all the doubts in this regard?
I have spoken about it many times. I will repeat briefly, I understand and justify the concerns of the diaspora when it comes to topics such as citizenship and I am absolutely determined to protect their rights regardless of who is in power and who is the opposition in Montenegro. I will also repeat that citizenship cannot be taken by anyone and that changes to the law on citizenship must be made in the Parliament. I responsibly claim that there is not a sufficient number of voices in the Assembly who are ready to harm the diaspora or deny them some of their acquired rights. On the other hand, when I was elected to this position, I made it clear to everyone that while I am at the head of the Administration, it will be for cooperation with the diaspora, and never against it. Of course, we are in communication with our associations and respond in a timely manner to everything that concerns the diaspora. We proved this recently when we reacted clearly and loudly to the announcement of the abolition of the legal provision on the mandatory percentage of financing cooperation with the diaspora, i.e. Administration. Although we were, so to speak, collateral damage in the sea of other budget allocations, we reacted immediately upon learning, and the result was visible the next day - our Administration, along with a few other budget items, was exempted from the cancellation announcement. What is good about the whole situation is the flexibility of the Government to admit and correct the mistake. This is proof that as a society we made a step forward with the change of government last year, and that is certainly to be commended. To summarize, the Administration, in cooperation with our associations and associations, will do everything for the diaspora to significantly improve and improve its role in Montenegrin society without the obligation to adhere to any political option. The promotion and acquisition of new rights and not the abolition of achieved ones - that is the policy of the Administration.
The Montenegrin diaspora is considered the largest direct investor. How much money did the diaspora send to Montenegro this year?
As I have already stated, the diaspora is directly and indirectly responsible for a quarter of Montenegrin GDP. Through transactions on various bases, through remittances, the diaspora annually sends over half a billion euros with a growing tendency. We can only guess how much money the diaspora directly gives to their families here when they come on vacation, but it is certainly a serious figure. And these are common knowledge. What we in the Administration have set as one of the goals of our activity is to channel part of that money into development projects, the opening of small and medium-sized enterprises. If we keep in mind that a large part of the funds that the diaspora sends to their families in Montenegro relate to the reconstruction and construction of family houses, but also urgent help for literal survival due to the really difficult economic situation, especially in the north of the country, the statement that the diaspora preserves social peace in Montenegro has coverage.
There are very few development projects initiated by people from the diaspora. I don't want to go into the reasons, they are numerous, but I think it's time to change that. We are preparing programs that will help the diaspora to take that path and make it easier for themselves, as well as their family and friends here, to make them independent of anyone's help, to work and earn money here, on their doorsteps. As the Board, we have committed ourselves to providing professional assistance to every initiative of the diaspora for the opening of small and medium-sized companies, on the one hand, and on the other hand to protect it from any unwanted processes such as corruption, political pressure, institutional business barriers, etc.
In short, we will be a service and protection for the diaspora. In partnership between the state - the diaspora - local self-governments, we can increase the direct investments of the diaspora several times. The potential exists, the desire is obvious, the interest of all parties is also there. By implementing such projects, we will save the youth in Montenegro, the diaspora, so that instead of exclusively giving and sending to Montenegro, they will also be able to earn money, and in that way they will be additionally tied to the state. It is possible to write dozens of scientific papers on the topic of the diaspora as an investor, the role and benefits that such an investment cycle brings, so I will stop here. I will summarize with a conclusion, the Administration will start a process from which everyone will benefit, the diaspora, the state and the local population. And long-term and stable. We do not yet have official data for this year, but estimates are above 600 million euros, and if we add to that the tourist consumption of those who have physically stayed in Montenegro, that figure will surely exceed one billion euros. So, 25 percent of Montenegro's GDP is contributed by the diaspora. I claim that with full responsibility. And I also claim that this amount can be increased two or three times. Therefore, our goal is that the direct investments of the diaspora, along with transactions and participation in tourism, reach two billion euros in the next two to three years.
Did you agree with the Montenegrin diaspora on the terms of investment in Montenegro, especially the underdeveloped areas in the north? Are there any specific agreements?
It is a process in which all relevant addresses in Montenegro must be involved. The period of 7-8 months that the Administration functions in a completely different way is really short to respond to the numerous challenges that accompany this category of society. Personnel is extremely small, I would say unacceptably small, the Administration works in numerous fields of cooperation. Business cooperation is only one segment of our interests and obligations that we have. Despite everything, we managed to make some progress in that field as well. We have intensified discussions with state institutions, agencies and directorates in order to look at the possibilities. The program we are preparing, which concerns the promotion and support of diaspora investment in Montenegro, is intended for all municipalities, but we certainly have a focus on underdeveloped municipalities, and in discussions with other state institutions, we ask that they do the same. I can't talk about the concrete results of the talks yet, but I hope for a positive outcome. As for the diaspora, it mostly comes from the areas that are currently the most underdeveloped in Montenegro. Their absolute commitment to helping their region never comes into question. In cooperation with them, we will act towards state and local authorities, we will represent their interests, demands and needs, all for the common good. And on this occasion, I invite them to contact us, to be part of the diaspora business club, to propose and suggest to us. In addition to the above, in the coming period we have also planned discussions with international institutions that support diaspora integration projects, investment assistance.
All that's left is to adapt
Considering the covid crisis and the lockdown in many countries, how much does it affect our diaspora, i.e. did it prevent a significant number of our emigrants from coming to Montenegro this year?
The covid pandemic has created huge problems around the world in many walks of life. It made our work much more difficult for us in the Administration, it prevented many of our people from visiting Montenegro, it limits communication with those in the diaspora... There were indeed difficulties, but here's hoping that it will soon be a thing of the past. In any case, we are not able to influence global processes, so all we have to do is adapt.
Our people live on all meridians
In which countries are there the most Montenegrin emigrants?
Neighboring countries, then Turkey, the EU, the USA... Despite the number of people who certainly play a role in the process of cooperation with the diaspora, we opened the door to every individual, wherever he was, to get involved in the process. Our people literally live on all the meridians of the world and we have an obligation to everyone equally. The projects we are planning in the coming period will additionally involve individuals.
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