Vuković: I have resigned as chairman of the Committee on European Integration

Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) MP Ivan Vuković announced today that he has resigned from the position of chairman of the parliamentary Committee on European Integration.

He said this at a press conference in the Parliament of Montenegro.

"I have just resigned as chairman of the Committee on European Integration. You are witnesses that at the end of last week, this parliament adopted the Law on Internal Affairs and the Law on the National Security Agency, two legal solutions that are contrary to the Constitution and elementary democratic norms. We warned our colleagues from the parliamentary majority not to do this, to return to the negotiating table and to wait for the harmonization of legal solutions with what is the European acquis. We have come to the conclusion that democracy is the rule of the majority, and if you are the majority, you can do whatever you want. It has rendered parliamentary dialogue meaningless," said Vuković.

He pointed out that the declarative consensus on European integration has been shattered.

"I am particularly sorry because this was preceded by the Resolution on European Integration. With it, we said that the European goal is the most important. It has turned out that particular interests and the best possible positioning ahead of the elections are more important for the parliamentary majority," he said.

Vuković also said that the work of the Committee for European Integration has lost its meaning.

"Instead of all of us working together and dedicating ourselves to Montenegro closing the chapters and creating the conditions for it to be the first next EU member, our colleagues from the majority are more driven by the desire for revenge against all political dissenters, whether it be the parliamentary opposition, representatives of the media community, including your colleagues. Last night you saw the latest example of threats against a man who is employed at a university. It is obvious that an environment has been created where anyone who dares to criticize a legal solution adopted by the parliamentary majority is a potential target. As far as we are concerned, everyone is obliged to resist such a practice and we in the DPS will certainly do so," said Vuković.

He added that "we have been recognized both in the country and abroad as a positive example."

"In this situation, it is clear that the continuation of the committee's work would be a mere formality. If we had stayed, we would have been the setting for a sad reality. I thank my colleagues who represent the government and the opposition in the committees, we have done some good things. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my hard-working colleagues from the committee secretariat, but also those of you who have been following it," he said.

When asked by a "Vijesti" journalist, Vuković reiterated that they had left their positions on the committees and thus sent a message that "the majority cannot have legitimacy."

He did not specify whether other opposition parties would leave the committees, but said he expected their solidarity.

"These legal solutions are so bad that they managed to bring together people who couldn't agree on anything," he said.

He added that the protest against these solutions was "expressed by Dritan Abazović, Milan Knežević, Miodrag Laković."

"We are obliged to provide strong resistance to all this. And this will be both in the parliament and outside the parliament," said Vuković.

Asked to comment on Minister Gorčević's allegations that their departure "will neither help nor hinder", Vuković said that he would have liked the minister to have stated what she had told him - that the laws were not fully aligned with the European agenda.

"I think she had a duty to inform the citizens of the situation," he said.

Vuković said that they requested that a general provision on the protection of personal data be adopted first, and then that these laws be voted on.

He did not specify what the fight outside parliament would be, and reiterated that they were leaving their position as co-chairs of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform.