GA called on the Government to analyze the US recommendations: There were no significant changes for the better

The Civic Alliance (GA) yesterday called on the Government to carefully analyze the recommendations from the State Department's report on the state of human rights in Montenegro and act decisively to ensure full protection and respect for human rights for all citizens.

In the State Department's annual report on the state of human rights in the world, it is stated that there were no significant changes in the state of human rights in Montenegro last year, and that the government did not respect the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, although this is provided for by the Constitution and laws. Among other significant rights violations, serious problems with the independence of the judiciary, restrictions on freedom of expression - including threats to journalists, corruption, widespread gender-based violence, trafficking, violence or threats of violence against members of the LGBTQ+ community, and the existence of the worst forms of child labor - were listed.

The GA stated that the report mainly contains the expected grades, which is an objective and realistic presentation of the situation and indicates the situation and problems that are continuously pointed out.

"The shortcomings of our system have been recognized when it comes to the judiciary, the security sector and the fight against corruption and organized crime. It is evident that there were no fundamentally important changes for the better in the mentioned areas", the GA announced.

Tihomir Dragaš, a member of the Presidency of the ruling Europe Now Movement (PES), said that the report of the State Department confirmed the abuses of the former Government Dritan Abazović.

"This report is fully consistent with the report of the European Commission for 2023, which pointed to the political blockade and constitutional crisis caused by the (non)work of the Abazović Government in the technical mandate," Dragaš said in the announcement.

Slavko Janković, a member of the Presidency of the Civic Movement URA, answered him.

"If Dragaš had stayed in the parliament instead of running away, he would have known that the decision about the blockade he mentions was not made by the government, which worked 'like a violin', but by the parliament, which was closed for more than a year. For that, contact your current partners from the government," said Janković.