Rovčanin condemned Radonjić's comments: After the statement of the EPCG Ethics Committee, I will take further steps

The Executive Director of the Electric Power Company of Montenegro, Nikola Rovčanin, condemned the hate speech that the director of the Piva Hydroelectric Power Plant, Radomir Radonjić, expressed in comments on the Facebook social network.

"I strongly condemn hate speech, completely independent of who, when, where and in what way it is used. Montenegro is a country where people of different confessions, nationalities and beliefs live and, in this regard, I believe that we must all take care about respecting the integrity and identity of others. EPCG employees, in accordance with the Code of Ethics, are obliged to take care of their behavior, both at the workplace and in their free time. This principle also applies to social networks and the media, and is in this regard, it is absolutely unacceptable for a person employed at EPCG to incite or create inappropriate content, especially one in which hate speech can be recognized, anytime and anywhere," Rovčanin said in a statement.

He adds that EPCG as a company respects the right to freedom of expression of every individual, including its employees, with the fact that it unreservedly condemns and refrains from any act that goes against the provisions of the Code of Ethics and legal regulations in this area.

"The objectionable comments were posted on a private profile and do not in any way support the position of EPCG. Although EPCG is in no way responsible for the objectionable comments, I feel the need, as CEO, to apologize to everyone who connected the given comments to our company. I informed the members of the Ethics Committee of EPCG about the violation of work duties in the case in question, after whose statement, in accordance with the Statute of our company, I will take further steps," Rovčanin said in the statement.

He added that neither EPCG nor he, as executive director, "will encourage activities or participate in actions that could, in any way, be qualified as hate speech or discrimination against any individual or group in Montenegro or abroad".