GI "21. maj": Civil society dedicated to the common good to be part of the political action for the change of government

Referent non-governmental organizations should modify their activities, and civil society dedicated to the common good, Europeanization and humanization of society should become part of the political action aimed at the fastest possible change of the current government, announced the Civic Initiative "21 May".

They believe that this should be done because, as they say, parties that are opponents of progressive and most important NGOs are in power, and the constructive role of civil society is being rendered meaningless and marginalized.

"With the adoption of the first and highest-quality Law on Non-Governmental Organizations in 1999, conditions were created in Montenegro for the free and unhindered development of civil society. The law enabled the formation of numerous associations and foundations and the development of a number of respectable non-governmental organizations. Thanks to the material support of international organizations, private foreign foundations and Western embassies, Montenegrin non-governmental organizations formed the most influential civil sector in the region in a short period of time. This was reflected in professional activism, reasoned criticism of the authorities and dedication to issues of public interest. Non-governmental organizations often had an influence on legislative policy and the improvement of public policies during the DPS rule," the statement reads.

Some of the NGOs, as they said, were also "informal allies" of certain opposition parties that "grabbed power five years ago."

"Shortly after the dismissal of the DPS, it became obvious that the post-August authorities continued the worst practices of the previous regime. So today, parties in power, such as the Democrats and a number of Vučić's party branches or URE when it was part of the government, are opponents of progressive and most significant non-governmental organizations. It turns out that the constructive role of civil society is being rendered meaningless and marginalized. This is also the reason why reference non-governmental organizations should modify their activities. Civil society dedicated to the common good, Europeanization and humanization of society should become part of the political action aimed at the fastest possible dismissal of the current government. Everything else is a waste of time and wasted energy," they said.