Gorjanc Prelević on the upcoming talks between Montenegro and Croatia: Let's talk about "Lora" too

We don't see why that wouldn't be a topic of the meeting if "Morinj" is also being discussed, says Tea Gorjanc Prelević

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not directly answer what topics it plans to open at the consultations, but claims that Podgorica and Zagreb will continue to discuss "all issues"

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State Secretaries of the two ministries will soon be at the same table: Ibrahimović and Grlić Radman during a visit to "Jadran", Photo: Government
State Secretaries of the two ministries will soon be at the same table: Ibrahimović and Grlić Radman during a visit to "Jadran", Photo: Government
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

In the upcoming bilateral talks with Croatia on resolving open interstate issues, Montenegro should at least mention the topic of the Split "Lora" camp and express the expectation that the State Attorney's Office there will announce the results of the investigation it has been conducting in this case for over 16 years.

This is what the executive director of the Human Rights Action (HRA) told "Vijesta" Tea Gorjanc Prelevic, answering the question - does she expect Podgorica to raise some topics that it considers open, such as the suffering of Montenegrin citizens in "Lora" in the early 1990s, during the consultations announced for the end of January?

"Montenegro should act openly, with the aim of protecting the rights of all victims of war crimes - both its own and Croatian citizens, and expect the same approach from Croatia," said Gorjanc Prelević.

Political talks between the foreign ministries of the two countries are set to begin on January 27, at the level of state secretaries - the foreign ministers of Montenegro and Croatia announced three days ago, Ervin Ibrahimovic i Gordan Grlić Radman.

At the end of November last year, Zagreb sent Montenegro a non-paper (informal diplomatic document) in which it set out demands for resolving several issues it considers unresolved. Among other things, the issue of ownership of the training ship "Jadran", mutual demarcation, the prosecution of war crimes, the search for missing persons, the issue of the name of the city swimming pool in Kotor...

Ibrahimović's department did not directly respond to "Vijesti" yesterday when asked whether they would open up some topics at the consultations that are being sought by a part of the Montenegrin public, such as the issue of the "Lora" camp, but they stated that Montenegro and Croatia, "sharing European and Euro-Atlantic values, as neighboring countries and NATO allies", will continue to discuss "all issues, counting on Croatia's full support for Montenegro's integration into the EU (European Union)".

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Montenegro assesses that the upcoming consultations are "an important step forward towards further strengthening the overall bilateral relations between the two countries, recalling that the last consultations between the two MFAs were held in March 2020."

"Therefore, we have continued bilateral contacts in this format, which is very important for the relations between these two countries, after five years. The aim of bilateral political consultations is to discuss current issues, with the aim of strengthening mutual trust and cooperation, which will contribute to the overall improvement of interstate relations," said Ibrahimović's department, adding that, when it comes to negotiations with the EU, the Croatian minister clearly stated after the meeting with Ibrahimović that Zagreb will continue to provide "strong support to Montenegro on its European path and be an advocate for the earliest, successful completion of our European path."

From the meeting of the Montenegrin and Croatian delegations
From the meeting of the Montenegrin and Croatian delegations photo: Saša Matić/Government of Montenegro

The ministry told "Vijesti" two days ago that it is public knowledge that Montenegro and Croatia have different positions on certain issues, including the ship "Jadran", but that this is not a reason not to discuss these, as well as all other issues important for improving mutual relations.

After visiting the training ship "Jadran" in Bar on Monday, Grlić Radman announced that the state secretaries of the two ministries would coordinate all open issues, including compensation for camp inmates, returning the name to the Kotor swimming pool, and border issues. He reiterated Croatia's position on ownership of the ship "Jadran".

"We consider the training ship to be Croatian, since it was registered in the home port of Split and was sent here for repairs in 1991, but was never returned to its home port...".

Gorjanc Prelević points out that in March last year, HRA, together with the non-governmental organization "Documenta" from Zagreb, submitted testimonies about the cruel torture of prisoners from Montenegro in "Lora" to the competent County State Attorney's Office in Split.

"This is a documentary film by Television "Nikšić", "Evil Spring '92", in which witnesses describe scenes of torture and name the direct torturers of Montenegrin citizens, such as Tomislav Duic", who has already been convicted for torturing prisoners in 'Lora' under command responsibility. However, to this day we have absolutely no information about the status of that case, which leads to the conclusion that there is actually no will to prosecute, even though people died from torture in 'Lora'," the interviewee notes.

According to the Montenegrin Association of War Veterans, since 1990, 14 members of the former Yugoslav People's Army, from the so-called Nikšić-Šavnik group, who were captured on the Herzegovina battlefield in 1992, have been killed in the "Lora Military Investigation Prison".

The Split County Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the murder of a group of prisoners by members of the aforementioned group in late 2011, but the case has not yet reached a conclusion in court. The Montenegrin Prosecutor's Office handed over extensive documentation related to the case to Croatia more than a decade ago.

The Ministry of Justice announced earlier that the agreement between the prosecutors' offices of Montenegro and Croatia "exists asymmetry in rights and obligations", and that the agreement refers "only to the obligation of the Montenegrin authorities, primarily the prosecutor's office, to act upon the requests of the Croatian investigative authorities".

"We also expect that the revision of the agreement on cooperation between the state prosecutors' offices of Montenegro and Croatia will enable better communication on this case, but we do not see why this would not be a topic of the meeting if 'Morinje', a case that was processed in Montenegro in criminal proceedings and civil proceedings for compensation for damage, is also being discussed," Gorjanc Prelević underlines.

In recent years, relations with Croatia have deteriorated due to some open issues. Among other things, because of "Jadran" and the plaque at the former "Morinj" camp in Kotor.

The biggest "cooling off" occurred this summer, when the Montenegrin parliament adopted a resolution on the genocide in the Jasenovac camp, which Croatia strongly protested, shortly afterwards declaring the speaker of parliament Andrija Mandić (New Serbian Democracy), Deputy Prime Minister Alekse Bečić (Democrats) and leader of the Democratic People's Party Milan Knežević for the undesirables.

Sokol: The problem is not the open topics, but the forces in the Montenegrin government

Croatian representative in the European Parliament Tomislav Sokol (Croatian Democratic Union) announced yesterday that it is difficult to talk about Montenegro's pro-European, pro-Western path if its ruling majority "includes individuals who behave as representatives of Serbian hegemony and spokespeople for Russian policy in the Balkans."

At a regular meeting of members of the Delegation of the EU-Montenegro Parliamentary Committee for Stabilization and Association (POSP) with the Head of the Mission of Montenegro in Brussels, Petar Marković, he said that he was concerned about the behavior of a large part of the ruling majority and the Government, "which is anything but pro-European."

Marković responded that it is not true that the Government and the majority are like that.

"I must clearly object that the majority and the government are un-European, because we judge by actions, by this successful 2024, the most successful in European integration... We judge European character based on results," he said.

Sokol said that he was pleased that positive signals were being shown in resolving bilateral issues between Croatia and Montenegro.

"I would like to point out that the main problem is not the bilateral issues between Croatia and Montenegro - they exist and they need to be resolved, but what is a problem is that we see that within the ruling majority there are political forces that are anything but pro-European and anything but pro-Western, that are behaving in a manner that is not in good faith. I am referring to the individuals and political forces from the former DF (Democratic Front) and the Democrats, and in relation to them, Croatia, after the provocation regarding the resolution on Jasenovac, justifiably reacted by declaring them persona non grata," he stated.

He stated that there are many other events that are worrying, such as the announcement of possible changes to the Law on Montenegrin Citizenship, "which would lead to more people in Serbia being able to elect the government in Montenegro than in Montenegro itself."

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