BLOG Protest of the group "Where Tomorrow?": "Crime in Cetinje is a consequence of a collapsed system"

The protest began at 19:30 p.m. in front of the Ministry of Interior.

184727 views 530 reactions 0 comment(s)
Citizens walking towards the Government building: Photo taken at 19:55, Photo: Aljoša Turović
Citizens walking towards the Government building: Photo taken at 19:55, Photo: Aljoša Turović
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.
Ažurirano: 16.01.2025. 22:14h
Finished
22: 12h

Marko Vukčević, a representative of the organization "Kamo Śutra?", joined the show Načisto on Television Vijesti and said that the first demand is the resignation of the Minister of Interior Danilo Šaranović and Deputy Prime Minister Aleksa Bečić.

"The second demand is to reduce the number of weapons on the street. The third demand - we believe that it is necessary to review the way the police treat citizens. The fourth demand, concerns civic education. The fifth, a new demand - we believe that institutions need to be more proactive when promoting mental health," he said.

He said he could not say exactly how many people were at tonight's protest.

He said there seemed to be more than 5.000 people, and that he thought there were twice as many people as at the previous protest.

When asked if they were demanding Šćepanović's resignation, Vukčević said that he did not know where that information came from and that they never mentioned Šćepanović and that they never demanded his resignation.

When asked why they are demanding the resignations of only Šaranović and Bečić, he said that they believe that the security sector played a large role in failing to prevent crimes in Cetinje, but that a serious investigation is needed, and that the crimes in Cetinje that occurred in the Medovina settlement in 2022 and on January 1 of this year are never repeated.

He said that the group was not formed on January 1st, but that there were announcements in December.

"First of all, we looked at the situation in Serbia on the blockades and decided to write a letter of support that was signed by over 1.000 students from Montenegro. During that period, protests regarding sexual harassment in schools were also active. We believed that the main comment on our letter of support to our colleagues from Serbia was that we should deal with our own backyard. That is exactly what we are doing. On December 26, we gathered in front of the Faculty of Law and then we gave the name Where Tomorrow?", he said.

He said that in 2001, Rad Rapid's hip hop album "Kamo Śutra?" was released and that they thought it was significant to name it that way.

He also said that they have no connections to parties.

He said that he thought it was morbid and distasteful that Milo Đukanović, the former head of state and the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), was the first to address the security sector after the crimes in Cetinje.

"We are surprised that the former president and prime minister did not have someone to advise him that this is neither the time nor the place to buy political points and address the public in this way," said Vukčević.

He said that it is additionally problematic when those who previously destroyed the security system are now commenting on it.

"Those in power today came with the promise to reform all systems. At the end of the day, they did the same thing as DPS, took over the system and turned it in their favor," said Vukčević.

He said that in the next two days they will announce when the next gathering will be held, and that they are against division into camps, religious or national.

21: 27h

Acting Director of the Police Administration Lazar Šćepanović said in the show "Načisto" on Television Vijesti that he received a message from an associate that, according to the police estimate, there were around 6.000 people at tonight's protest by the organization "Kamo Śutra?".

20: 34h

The protest ended with 13 minutes of silence as a sign of respect for the victims of the tragedy in Cetinje, and the organizers thanked those gathered.

Change: 20:37 p.m
20: 21h

At 20:20 PM, a 13-minute silence for the victims of the tragedy in Cetinje began.

 
 
Change: 20:27 p.m
20: 05h

The demonstrators gathered in front of the Government building, where they called for 13 minutes of silence as a sign of respect for the 13 victims of the tragedy in Cetinje.

protest in front of the MUP
photo: Aljoša Turović
Change: 20:12 p.m
19: 53h

The gathered people began walking towards the Government building.

Those gathered chant "murderers" and "Bečić, Vučić".

 
Change: 20:38 p.m
19: 47h

A representative of the informal student group "Where's Tomorrow?" presented the group's demands:

1) Resignation of the Minister of Interior and Vice President for Security

2) a more up-to-date approach to gun ownership

3) reform of police structures

4) the return of civic education

5) (new) improving institutional access to mental health care

"We demand the urgent opening of new jobs for psychologists and psychiatrists, we demand that the Public Service Broadcasting promote mental health through weekly shows and contribute to the destigmatization of psychological examinations," she said.

She emphasized that they join the demands proposed by the Women's Rights Center and the Human Rights Action.

"We have been taught since childhood that our voices will not be heard enough. That there is always someone higher up. Now, here, there are many individuals standing pointing fingers at problems. We must not allow ourselves to be deceived by politicians of any party," she said.

"We demand respect for the constitutionally guaranteed civic order of Montenegro. In this student group, every party is viewed equally. Politicians have shown that their seat comes first. We have taken up the fight for a free, civic and safe Montenegro. Our weapons are love and empathy. Students will save the world," she said.

19: 42h

One of the protest participants said that they had provoked a revolt within them.

"The end of excuses is the beginning of answers," she said.

She stressed that security should not be a political instrument.

"Our collective security should be a priority for all of us... The crime in Cetinje is a consequence of a collapsed system," she said.

protest in front of the MUP
photo: Nikola Saveljić
19: 39h

One of the representatives of the group "Kamo śutra" said that she was grateful for the support and trust shown.

"Thank you to everyone who sent letters of support... Our fight is for a society without violence in any form. Unfortunately, not long after our formation, a crime occurred in Cetinje... Our country has once again shown that it has done nothing to protect our citizens," she said.

protest in front of the MUP
photo: Aljoša Turović
19: 38h

One of the protest participants, Milo Perović, told citizens to document the protest, so as not to allow others to politicize the protest.

The crowd chants "Resignation, resignation."

19: 37h

Civic activist Maja Gardašević is also at the protest.

Maja Gardašević
photo: Nikola Saveljić
19: 23h
protest in front of the MUP
photo: Nikola Saveljić
19: 16h

The protest, among others, is attended by psychologist Radoje Cerović, civic activist Aida Petrović, journalist and activist Darko Ivanović, actors Davor and Lazar Dragojević, Mišo Obradović...

Change: 19:36 p.m
18: 57h

Banners placed in front of the Ministry of Interior building:

18: 51h

The banners read "Resignation is the minimum responsibility", "Normal life?", "Department not Department"...

Change: 18:56 p.m
18: 49h

Students and citizens began gathering in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP) to protest. The informal student organization "Kamo śutra" had earlier said that the peaceful protest would begin at 19.30:13 p.m. and end with a XNUMX-minute silence in front of the government building.

Change: 18:56 p.m
18: 47h

A new protest, organized by the informal student group "Where to Tomorrow?" in connection with the tragedy in Cetinje, will be held tonight at 19:30 PM in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP) building in Podgorica.

The group "Where Tomorrow?" announced that they will continue their protests today, demanding the resignation of the Minister of Interior Danilo Šaranović and the Deputy Prime Minister for Security and Defense Aleksa Bečić.

They announced that they had declined Prime Minister Milojko Spajić's invitation to a meeting to discuss the demands of the protest held on January 5th.

"We have decided to reject this invitation because we do not want to negotiate on the demands. Our demands are clear, so we have asked the Government to make it public if they wish to adopt them," stated the group "Where Tomorrow?".

The protest will begin at 19:30 p.m. in front of the Ministry of the Interior, and half an hour later, those gathered will walk to the Government building.

The group "Where Tomorrow?" emphasized that this was a peaceful and dignified protest and asked all citizens to refrain from any form of violence - verbal, physical, or psychological.

"Which also applies to the words/sentences that will be written on the banners. Thank you for standing together in the fight against all forms of violence," the group "Kamo Śutra?" stated.

The first protest held on January 5th in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, among other things, demanded the resignation of the heads of the security sector.

On January 1, Cetinje resident Aco Martinović killed 12 people, including two children, and wounded four, one of whom died on January 9 at the Clinical Center of Montenegro.

Bonus video: