The number of cases of domestic violence, femicide and hate speech is still worrisome and is a consequence of the lack of an adequate, timely and decisive reaction in the preventive dimension of prosecuting these offences, warned Ombudsman Siniša Bjeković.
In this year's Report for Montenegro, the European Commission (EC) stated that the most vulnerable groups in society were still exposed to discrimination, hate speech and hate crimes.
The Commission stated that the increasing trend in the number of femicides, with an insufficient response from the authorities, cases of publicly expressed misogyny, gender-based violence and violence against children are still serious reasons for concern.
Commenting on human rights assessments in Montenegro, Bjeković told the MINA agency that the Ombudsperson institution is continuously warning about the same drastic trends, such as the number of cases of domestic violence and femicide, as a consequence of the lack of an adequate, timely and decisive reaction in the preventive dimension of prosecution. those delicacies.
"It's not just a consequence of the lack of reaction from state authorities, because society as a whole shows us indifference to this phenomenon, and in some places conditions that the victim becomes a social problem, and not the perpetrator," said Bjeković.
He said that to that should be added various forms of hate speech and other forms of abusive treatment towards women, especially those from public life, primarily politics.
"Of course, men are also frequent targets, but the morbidity and persistence shown in the attitude towards women in this position turns into a pathological phenomenon that threatens much worse consequences than just suffering humiliation in public discourse," stated Bjeković.
Speaking about hate speech, Bjeković said that one can get the impression that it has become a manner with an incredibly high level of support in the public, especially in the internet space and social networks.
"The enormous degree of politicization and polarization of society and the uncontrollability of the so-called cyberspace seriously threaten to undermine the already threatened social stability, and what's worse is that young people are increasingly reporting as a source of hate speech because they use social networks the most," warned Bjeković.
He said that this is not and cannot be an incident, but a serious systemic social deviation that needs to be worked on a lot and immediately.
"Even now there are many reactive mechanisms which unfortunately are rarely used precisely because of the lack of wider social support and the fact that we only condemn "theirs" and always protect "ours" in the ever-present Montenegrin divisions", stated Bjeković.
He said that children, women (especially those in rural and less developed areas), people with disabilities, the LGBTIQ population, members of minorities, are groups at the highest risk of human rights violations, on which the serious work of the institution of protectors is based.
According to Bjeković, there is often no understanding of why the protector insists on the rights of those groups, rather it is perceived as pressure on the administration.
"There is certainly pressure, but also an obligation when it becomes obvious that one's own regulations and international standards are not respected," added Bjeković.
He said that, when it comes to the system of protection against torture, it cannot be disputed that a lot has been done, but that there are still many cases and that the reaction to these phenomena and the obligation to prosecute the perpetrators can be a concern.
"It seems that there is still so-called negative solidarity, because how can a citizen be informed of the legal obligation to report a criminal offense, if the public authorities respond to these occurrences in their ranks by remaining silent or relativizing what is happening," said Bjeković.
He said that, when it comes to the institution of the Protector, a lot of work is being done on that front, and that sometimes there is an unjustified lack of information that the ombudsman has known the public about certain cases a long time ago, just as it is the case with some cases about which the public has only recently become aware. learned something more from the photos that got to the public.
According to Bjeković, there is documented evidence of this in the case files of the Protector with an evaluation of the conduct.
When it comes to vulnerable groups of people with disabilities, victims of violence, migrants, Roma, Bjeković said that they agree with the assessment from the report that public authorities must be much more responsible in relation to the demands of the ombudsman and the recommendations they receive.
"This does not necessarily mean that these acts should be given a legally binding character in the way of execution, because this would create new competition among the bodies for the protection of human rights. But it is not even necessary for a responsible government. I guess the goal is to protect the citizen, not to create a dilemma as to who should do it and when," said Bjeković.
In the EC report, he said, the need to strengthen inter-institutional cooperation was clearly highlighted. Bjeković said that the institution of the Protector is completely open for cooperation, which, he added, is not the case with some bodies that create the impression that they are supranational and without the need to cooperate in the field of strengthening the protection of human rights.
"If the European Court of Human Rights found it appropriate to refer to the acts of our institution and that on several occasions, is there an additional impetus for cooperation on strengthening the system of protection of human rights and freedoms?" As for the ombudsman, there is no need to knock on the open door," Bjeković pointed out.
In the Report for Montenegro, the EC assessed that the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms is still perceived as one of the institutions most trusted by citizens, and its views are often quoted in the media.
The EC noted that the Ombudsman's capacity to act on complaints and the quality of its decisions continues to improve, but that the Ombudsman's decisions and recommendations remain non-binding. The Commission stated that Montenegro should improve their systematic monitoring in all public institutions.
Bjeković said that every member of the collective is impressed by the fact that they continuously receive good and even excellent evaluations of the work of the Protector's institution.
"However, it is also an obligation to ensure continuity in the following period as well," added Bjeković.
He said that the lack of personnel and material resources is a chronic problem, especially if one takes into account the broad mandate and high expectations of the public.
"To that should be added constant calls for preventive work and a proactive attitude towards negative phenomena, including campaigns that refer to the problem and seek its solution. Likewise, we are among the rare institutions of this type in the immediate and wider environment that has been a tenant for all these 20 years of existence, that is, it does not have its own business premises", said Bjeković.
He said that they intend to raise the status of the institution of the Protector among the bodies for the protection of human rights of the United Nations from the current "B" to "A" status.
"In short, the current status, apart from essential independence which is obvious, still does not allow for completely independent action in the formal sense, starting from the selection of staff to financial independence," said Bjekovic.
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