Kotor Movement proposes referendum regarding pool name

Kotor Movement councilor Boris Katurić submitted an initiative to the President of the Kotor Municipal Assembly to include a proposal for a decision to call a local referendum regarding the name of the "Zoran Džimi Gopčević" swimming pool on the agenda at the next session.

The referendum question, according to that proposal, would be: "Are you in favor of the public facility winter swimming pool in Kotor retaining its name - Zoran Džimi Gopčević?"

"Conflicting opinions have emerged in the public and among political entities regarding the retention or change of the name of this public facility. Given the fact that it is a memorial, any possible change requires a broader social consensus and a careful approach. The goal of this decision is to enable citizens to express themselves directly, so that the Kotor Municipal Council will have a clear and legitimate position of the local community in any further proceedings," said Siniša Kovačević from the Kotor Movement, who is also the president of the Primorac Water Polo Club.

Kovačević also notes that, in August 2021, 23 councilors in Kotor, "which is more than two-thirds," voted to name the pool after Gopčević.

Croatia condemned the Kotor assembly's decision that year, claiming that Gopčević had been a guard at the Morinj camp. The country's government then recommended that its clubs and national teams not play in the Kotor pool.

Earlier this month, after the decision was made by the European Aquatics umbrella organization, Primorac played the Eurocup match against Jug in Podgorica instead of Kotor, while the return match was played in Zagreb, not Dubrovnik.