Strujić-Harbić: I welcome the decision to ban Mirko Pajčin's concert

I welcome the decision of the Montenegrin Police Administration and its director Lazar Šćepanović to, based on an assessment of the risk to the security and multiethnic harmony of Pljevlja, ban the holding of Mirko Pajčin's concert, Bosniak Party (BS) MP Kenana Strujić-Harbić announced today.

"As a member of the Committee on Security and Defense and a BS MP in the Parliament of Montenegro, I addressed the heads of the relevant department and pointed out the serious risks that holding the 'concert' could pose in an environment like Pljevlja - a city that must remain an example of coexistence and mutual respect," Strujić-Harbić emphasized in a statement published on the BS website.

The Police Administration (UP) today banned the concert of Mirko Pajčin, better known as Baja Mali Knindža, for which the organizer requested permission to gather on May 21st in Pljevlja.

"On this occasion, I would like to commend the professional, responsible and statesmanlike attitude of the Director of the Police Administration and the entire UP team, who have shown that preserving stability, the dignity of citizens and interethnic harmony is above any political or entertainment sensationalism. I am proud to belong to a political and value corps that does not have such 'artists' in its ranks, nor ideologies that built their popularity on warmongering, nationalistic, and even fascist and Nazi lyrics," Strujić-Harbić said.

She stated that music that glorifies hatred, division, and crimes cannot and should not be presented as culture.

"Unfortunately, even today in Montenegro there are those who publicly or tacitly enjoy the kitsch and poisonous messages of performers like Baja Mali Knindža or Thompson, but the state of Montenegro has clearly shown with this decision that such narratives, politics and 'art' have no place in modern, European and anti-fascist Montenegro. PS 'Organizer' is left with hope of organizing the same in some other time, but in his local community - and not Pljevlja Bazaar. Because this is a city of culture and tolerance, which has survived many, perhaps even worse people, and so will he and his friends," Strujić-Harbić stated.