Politicians prefer to maintain a system full of "loopholes" that enable abuses, rather than creating control mechanisms, so it is clear that most parties thus try to create a reserve space for survival in power, while illegal activities remain unpunished and without adequate solutions.
This is how the interlocutors of "Vijesti" interpret the fact that even four and a half years after the fall of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), the ruling parties did not pass some of the regulations that they ardently announced and promised, such as the so-called the anti-mafia law, and the laws on the Parliament and the Government.
Those political subjects, both before and immediately after the dismissal of the three-decade-old government of the DPS, said that such regulations are elementary for the functioning of the state. However, the work of the executive and legislative authorities has not yet been regulated, the act that would comprehensively define the fight against crime has been withdrawn from the parliament, and some other proposals for regulations that would contribute to the improvement of the rule of law (law on lustration, amendments to the Law on Earnings) employed in the public sector, etc.).
Office of the President of the Assembly Andrije Mandić, but his New Serbian Democracy (NSD), Europe Now Movement (PES), Democratic People's Party (DNP) and Socialist People's Party (SNP) did not respond to the "News" questions about why the announced laws have not been adopted.
Member of Parliament of Democratic Montenegro (Democrats) Momcilo Leković, claims that there is a "clear commitment" in that party to have these regulations adopted as soon as possible, in the best possible form.
"All these laws are very complex and require broad social and political consensus. Their application will significantly contribute to transparency and justice in Montenegro," he told "Vijesta".
Program associate at the Center for Civic Education (CGO) Nikola Đurašević, assesses that by not adopting the promised laws, a message is also being sent to the undemocratic political culture in which, he says, much more is attached to the system "that enables (un)controlled chaos, than to order and control mechanisms".
They would control others, not themselves
Speaking about the procrastination of the adoption of the law on the Parliament and the Government, Đurašević states that it seems that the decision-makers like to control many, but that they do not like their work to be regulated.
"It is one of the constants of all parliamentary majorities, which is why even today we do not have two important systemic laws - the law on the Assembly and the law on the Government. Time emphasizes their necessity, in order to regulate numerous shortcomings, but it seems that our politicians like such structural holes...", said Đurašević.
The interlocutor states that most parties are declaratively in favor of adopting the announced laws, but that stronger public pressure is necessary in order for these regulations to be adopted.
"Keeping in mind that all the current parliamentary parties participated in the government at some point, and in the process of passing these laws they did not actually move, it is indisputable that they do not want them and that stronger pressure from the interested public is necessary in order to finally process them". indicates the interlocutor.
The legal team of the head of the Assembly announced in mid-May last year that a draft law on the Assembly was being prepared, but since then he has not responded to several media inquiries about what is happening with that text.
When it comes to the law on the Government, the Minister of Public Administration Marash Dukaj he recently said that the draft of that act "passed all the prescribed procedures", that it was aligned with the recommendations of the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO), and that it is currently being harmonized in the Secretariat for Legislation of the Executive Power. He added that the Ministry of Public Administration (MJU) has done everything in that department.
The MJU told "Vijesta" that, since Montenegro is the only one in the region that does not have a law on the Government, they are of the opinion that the adoption of this regulation will systematically regulate all issues of importance for its composition - mandate, way of working, decision-making, relations with other bodies , as well as other issues of importance for the work of the executive power.
"Which will be the basis for any future executive power to perform its function in accordance with the best practices and principles of good management", they said.
The majority "liked" the system
Nikola Đurašević states that in the case of the law on the Parliament and the Government, it is less about inefficiency or lack of capacity, and much more about the intention of the ruling majority to maintain a system that, according to him, is suitable for various forms of abuse.
"This situation further undermines citizens' confidence in the work of the executive and legislative authorities. In addition, this reinforces the already dominant perception that politicians primarily deal with party and personal interests, as opposed to public ones, and deepens citizens' doubts about the government's ability to make key decisions in the interest of society. Such a perception can further weaken trust in already fragile institutions, making it difficult to legitimize them in the eyes of the public," he adds.
Đurašević believes that these two laws are of key importance for the smooth functioning of institutions and the development of the political system.
"We have witnessed many times how resistant our institutions are to various types of crises and bad political influences. These two systemic laws could significantly limit the arbitrariness of certain political entities and prevent the transformation of state institutions into training grounds for the indoctrination of party personnel," he said.
Momčilo Leković states that the focus of these two laws must be on detailed analysis and harmonization of all key aspects, so that they contribute to a better functioning of the system in the long term.
"Their adoption will definitely bring a significant step forward in improving the country's legal framework. Considering that, we expect their adoption in the Assembly very soon", said Leković.
Legal loopholes intentionally "installed"
The most promising regulation is the so-called the anti-mafia law, that is, the law on the origin of property. Instead of passing a new regulation, which could not be applied retroactively, post DPS authorities announced the amendments to the current Law on Confiscation of Property Gains from Criminal Activity, from 2015.
The application of that act proved to be ineffective, with only 15 final judgments on permanent confiscation of property until 2023, according to data from the report on the work of the Special State Prosecutor's Office (STP) for that year.
In February 2023, the Government he headed Dritan Abazovic proposed changes to the law, called the "anti-mafia" law, with the aim of more effective confiscation of illegally acquired property. However, after sharp criticism from the non-governmental sector, the European Commission and some parties, the executive power withdrew the proposal not long after.
As part of the so-called set IBAR law, in mid-June last year, the Parliament adopted amendments to the Law on Confiscation of Assets Gained from Criminal Activity and the Law on Prevention of Corruption, but this was criticized by part of the public, claiming that the voted solutions were a step backwards. The amendments to the first act introduced, among other things, the institute of financial intelligence.
Leković states that the Democrats gave conditional support when voting on the changes, because, as he said, of the importance of receiving the IBAR (Report on the Assessment of Fulfillment of Temporary Criteria).
"At the same time, we pointed out that additional work on this law and its amendments must be started immediately after its adoption, after all, just like the Law on Prevention of Corruption. As far as we know, that process of changes is still ongoing," he said.
In the 2025-2026 EU accession program of Montenegro, it is foreseen that the Law on Confiscation of Assets Gained from Criminal Activity will be amended in the third quarter of this year.
Speaking about the "anti-mafia" law, the executive director of the Network for the Affirmation of the Non-Governmental Sector (MANS) Vanja Ćalović Marković she told "Vijesti" that there are "holes" in the Montenegrin legal system that were purposefully and deliberately installed, so that those involved in criminal activities could be enabled to carry out these illegal activities.
The interlocutor assesses that those "holes" have not been repaired to this day, and that the Law on the Prevention of Corruption and the Law on Confiscation of Property Gains from Criminal Activity have not brought any positive changes.
"In those laws, I see many negative changes that will still come into effect, both when it comes to proceedings against the highest public officials from the previous period in which the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (ASK) did not act, and when it comes to confiscation of property," he says. Ćalović Marković.
He reminds that it has been said several times that changes to those regulations will be worked on, but that six months after their adoption, there are still discussions about how some basic issues will be regulated.
Confiscation of property is a big deal for the state
Ćalović Marković says that during the rule of the DPS, in the period when huge assets were acquired through various forms of smuggling (cigarettes, narcotics, etc.), the then rulers "resisted for years that such behavior, which was declared a criminal offense in all other states, will be declared in Montenegro as well". He adds that because of this, according to the existing legal solution, it is not possible to deal with confiscation of property from persons in criminal circles.
"Although it is quite obvious that they absolutely could not justify that huge property with their official income, although there is information about their participation in various smuggling activities..." said Ćalović Marković.
She states that confiscating the property of wealthy criminals would be a big deal for a small country like Montenegro.
"Imagine how much money our country could take from these people, when only one of them, whom most have not even heard of, I'm talking about Ljub Milović, has hundreds of millions of euros in just one account. Imagine how much money we, as a small country, could get if we managed to track him down, if we could take him away," the interviewee points out.
He notes that the question of how these funds are used is even more important than the issue of illegally earned money.
"Society continues to be criminalized, those who make decisions, judges, prosecutors, police officers, officials of various parties are bribed... The ideas of criminals are being pushed and they are provided with immunity," states Ćalović Marković.
Ćalović Marković: DPS is blocking reforms from within
When asked why there was no political will to adopt a comprehensive "anti-mafia" law, the executive director of MANS says that the reason is that "the August 30th majority liked the government".
"And because the DPS infiltrated the new government in various ways, including through its administration, which still remained intact. They just 'glued' their party and relative staff over the DPS staff, because the DPS staff still have the main say, they know the system...", she explains.
He states that the staff of the DPS "from the inside" is holding back elementary reforms.
"It is obvious that most of our parties see that they have some reserve just to stay in power, and they do not hesitate to make that reserve be the DPS, which certainly has some conditions of its own," said Ćalović Marković.
The Law on the Assembly is a solution for expensive ideas
Citizens of Montenegro could allocate at least one million euros annually for the gross salaries of MP advisors, which parliamentarians should hire in the future.
There are no special items in the budget for future advisors, and Finance Minister Novica Vuković left it to parliamentarians to decide.
Commenting on this initiative, Nikola Đurašević believes that the law on the Assembly is important, "so that those who have political power do not have different expensive and undeveloped ideas every now and then".
He adds that it would represent just another unnecessary blow to the budget.
"At the same time, it is forgotten that the Assembly has services that are available to MPs, as well as the ability of all parliamentary clubs to hire advisers, and additionally that the President of the Assembly and the Vice-Presidents also have their own advisers. One gets the impression that the authorities are quite alienated from the citizens and their real needs with this attitude towards resources", Đurašević assesses.
Lustration forgotten
The lustration law was heralded as one of the key after the August 30, 2020 elections, but little has been said about it since then.
In the Program for the Accession of Montenegro to the European Union, published on the Government's website at the end of January 2022, the Law on Lustration was supposed to be adopted at the end of that year, and to enter into force at the beginning of 2023.
Momčilo Leković says that lustration will definitely enable further democratization of the country.
"In which we will finally find out who and in what way abused their legal powers and massively violated human rights, and that is why it is very important," said Leković, without directly answering what is happening with that law.
Lustration is the process by which former officials, usually from undemocratic or authoritarian regimes, are removed from public office during a period of transition to democracy. This process is often carried out to ensure that individuals who have been involved in abuses of power, human rights abuses or cooperation with repressive regimes do not continue to influence social and political processes in the new, democratic system.
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