Political elites and their business partners are profiting from high rents and the fact that renting apartments is not regulated, according to the Association of Tenants. They assessed that tenants in Montenegro are the most neglected and unprotected group in society.
"They have no legal protection, they are exposed to the will of landlords and a real estate market that is raging without any control. Rent prices have jumped by up to 50 percent, and the state has done nothing to protect citizens. Most apartments are rented out without a contract, without any legal security for tenants. There is no law regulating the rental market, nor limiting uncontrolled price jumps. Why?
"Because political elites and their business partners make money from this. In Montenegro, real estate ownership is not treated as a responsibility, but as a tool for enrichment at the expense of those who cannot afford an apartment," the Tenants' Association said in a statement.
At times when citizens' dissatisfaction is growing, those in power are not trying to solve problems - but to divert attention from them, the Association states. They say that instead of a real fight for economic and social rights, citizens are being offered "safe outlets" for frustration, through staged movements and useless initiatives.
"Informal student movements - organizations like 'Kamo sjutra' talk about the economic problems of young people, but they are not allowed to name the real culprits. Their purpose is not change, but the controlled channeling of dissatisfaction. Boycotting trade and similar actions - calls to stop shopping in certain markets for a few days do not solve the causes of the problem. Inflation, taxes and monopolies are not the result of traders, but of state policy that favors big capital," the Tenants' Association assessed.
They ask why no one is talking about the tenants and why no political party, public official, or "spontaneous initiative" has supported the tenants' justified anger.
"Because it would mean a blow to those who control the real estate market - and among them are many who make decisions in this country. Tenants in Montenegro are not poor because they do not work, but because the system works against them," the statement said. The Association said that it is time for a real fight, and that they will not allow them to be distracted from the real problems.
"If we want changes, we must demand them ourselves! That is why we are demanding: legal regulation of the rental market - long-term contracts, limiting price jumps, legal protection for tenants; taxation of real estate monopolies - so that those who own dozens of apartments finally start paying fair taxes, an end to false initiatives - citizens must stop falling for movements that do not touch the real sources of injustice," the statement reads.
The Association said that Montenegro has been operating for decades according to a simple principle: politics does not serve the people, but those who have money.
"Every decision, law, reform or regulation is made to suit those who have already become rich - whether through politics, real estate or other monopolies. And ordinary citizens? They are left to fend for themselves, faced with uncertainty, rising prices and constant messages that 'this is how it has to be'," they state. The Association says to all tenants, workers and ordinary citizens that enough is enough.
"It is time for us to become the force that will force politics to follow our interests, not the interests of wealthy elites," the statement concluded.
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