Montenegro's Luksic Attends Global Forum in New York

balkan insight
21 SEP 2011 / 09:20

Montenegrin Prime Minister Igor Luksic took part in the inaugural meeting of the “Open Government Partnership”, hosted by US President Barack Obama and his Brazilian counterpart Dilma Rousek yesterday.

The partnership is comprised of eight founding governments- among them the UK, South Africa, US and Mexico- and aims to boost transparency and accountability among governments across the globe....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/pm-luksik-attends-global-forum-in-new-york

Montenegro's Vujanovic Criticised over Anthem Comments

balkan insight
20 SEP 2011 / 09:02

Montenegrin President Filip Vujanovic's recent comments about the country's national anthem have been met with strong criticism from one of the country's ruling coalition parties.

Podgorica Beta/B92

According to Podgorica media, Social-Democratic Party official Rasko Konjevic reacted by insisting that Vujanovic either use his presidential powers to launch procedures to change the anthem or tender his resignation....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/vujanovic-criticised-over-anthem-comments

Montenegro to bury remains of German war dead

bbc news

10 August 2011 Last updated at 16:07 GMT

Germany and Montenegro have signed an agreement on burying the remains of German soldiers killed during World War II.

The agreement was reached during a visit to the Balkan state by the German Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle.

A site containing more than 400 bodies was excavated in Montenegro's capital Podgorica in 2007....more....

read more: bbc
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14479805

Fighting hunger with hunger

se times
20/07/2011

In economically challenging times, Montenegrins have embraced hunger strikes to affect change.
By Mirjana Boskovic for Southeast European Times in Podgorica -- 20/07/11
Hunger strikes have been on the rise as a means for Montenegrins to effectively exert pressure on employers and the government to claim back salaries, unpaid contributions, benefits, and accrue seniority.

"It turns out hunger striking is the only way to achieve our rights. It does not exist in the labour law, it is not covered, but it is the only way to solve something," Federation of Trade Unions of Montenegro (SSCG) employee Vukadin Cupic told SETimes.....more....
read more: se times
http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2011/07/20/feature-03

Montenegro's Marovic Resigns from DPS Post

balkan insight
18 JUL 2011 / 15:29

Svetozar Marovic, the number-two man in Montenegro’s ruling Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS, resigned as party vice-president after receiving information that the National Security Agency was monitoring his family members.

RTS
According to the Montenegro daily newspaper Vijesti, Marovic informed the party’s president, Milo Djukanovic, and three DPS vice-presidents of his resignation.....more....
read more :balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-s-marovic-resigns-from-dps-post

Djukanovic Excoriates Sebian Nationalism

balkan insight
14 JUL 2011 / 12:45

Milo Djukanovic, leader of the Montenegrin ruling Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS, claims that Serbian nationalism is denying Montenegro its identity.

B92, Pobjeda, Balkan Insight

“As the dominant ideology of the local political public, Serbian state nationalism is still claiming Montenegro and denying Montenegrin national, cultural and religious identity,” Djukanovic told the Podgorica-based daily Pobjeda on Wednesday....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/djukanovic-serbia-denies-montenegrin-identity

Montenegrin Serbs Refuse to Accept Census Data

balkan insight
13 JUL 2011 / 14:00

Serbs in Montenegro are rejecting the latest census figures from the Statistical Office.

Podgorica
Unpleasantly surprised by the numbers released on Tuesday, members of Serbian organizations and pro-Serb political parties say they will not accept census results related to ethnicity, religion and mother tongue....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegrin-serbs-refuse-to-accept-census-data

Montenegro Releases Census Data

balkan insight
 12 JUL 2011 / 18:10

Fewer than half of Montenegro’s inhabitants are Montenegrins, according to census figures released by the Statistical Office.

Tanjug

While 45 percent of the country’s residents declared themselves to be Montenegrins, nearly 30 percent said they were Serbs.
The language numbers were also skewed toward Serbs. While 37 percent of the country’s 625,266 inhabitants said they speak Montenegrin, about 44 per cent speak Serbian....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-publishes-population-census-data

Montenegro Depoliticises Public Administration

balkan insight
08 JUL 2011 / 12:18

The government of Montenegro has taken another step toward EU membership by adopting the Draft Law on Civil Servants.

Podgorica Emg.rs
The law is part of an action plan to meet EU requirements for government reform.
According to Interior Minister Ivan Brajovic, it aims to depoliticise the state administration by creating professional standards for civil servant positions and strengthening fair employment and merit-based promotion policies. ...more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-promotes-depoliticised-administration

Montenegro Resort Town Seeks €21 Million From Builders

balkan insight
07 JUL 2011 / 15:52

In an effort to solve their financial problems, local authorities in the seaside resort town of Budva are working intensively to collect communal taxes owed by investors who have constructed buildings in the city.

Budva Vijesti
The most indebted investors in Budva are those who took advantage of an old law allowing them to obtain a building permit prior to paying utility costs. Budva Municipality is owed around €21 million by such companies, with the biggest debtor identified as Podgorica-based Fab Lajv company, which will have to pay more than €8.2 million, Vijesti reports.....more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/budva-municipality-owed-e37-million-for-communal-services

Super-rich party people say: Let's go to Montenegro

independent
Billionaire financier Nat Rothschild has planned a £1m 40th birthday bash in a tiny Adriatic hotspot

By Andy McSmith

Thursday, 7 July 2011
This week, it was Monte Carlo. Next week, Montenegro. Nat Rothschild, who has one of the best financial brains in a family renowned for business acumen, will be 40 next Tuesday, and intends to make this a weekend to remember....more....
read more: independent
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/superrich-party-people-say-lets-go-to-montenegro-2308101.html

Montenegro Mulls Curbing Officials' Enrichment

balkan insight
05 JUL 2011 / 14:12

Montenegro's Ministry of Justice has decided to include "unjust enrichment of public officials" into the existing criminal code.

Directors of police, tax and customs administration are trying to find a mechanism which would make their staff reveal their assets and prove how they had obtained wealth beyond their regular income. ...more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-mulls-curbing-officials-enrichment

NATO Secretary General Visits Montenegro

balkan inisight
30 JUN 2011 / 11:19

NATO's secretary general met top Montenegrin officials in Budva on Wednesday, marking the first anniversary of Montenegro’s Membership Action Plan, MAP, for the alliance.

nato.int

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO Secretary General, met Montenegrin President Filip Vujanovic and Prime Minister Igor Luksic to discuss progress made in the first year of Montenegro’s Membership Action Plan (MAP). The agenda also included discussion of the situation in the Western Balkans and NATO-led operations in Afghanistan and Libya....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/nato-secretary-general-visits-montenegro

Vujanovic: Serbia, Montenegro Should be the Closest

balkan insight
28 JUN 2011 / 12:43

Montenegrin President Filip Vujanovic has said that Montenegro and Serbia should be the two closest countries - not only in the region, but in the whole world.

Vecernje Novosti

"We keep forgetting that brother nations [Serbia and Montenegro] sometimes have different interests and move away from one another, but with a commitment to overcome those [differences] quickly, because their of closeness," said Montenegrin President Vujanovic in an interview for Belgrade-based daily Vecernje Novosti. ...more...

read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/vujanovic-serbia-montenegro-should-be-the-closest

NGOs Welcome Montenegro's Decriminalisation of Libel

balkan insight
27 JUN 2011 / 07:33

Decision, taken in line with European advice, should improve freedom of expression and reduce workload on judiciary.

Podgorica Pobjeda, Dan
After months of debate, Montenegro's parliament has deleted libel as a criminal act. The government had previously noted that decriminalisation of libel was one of the European Union's recommendations as a means to improve media freedom. ...more....
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/ngo-applauded-parliament-decision-to-decriminalise-libel

Montenegrin ruling coalition's break up raises questions

se times
27/06/2011

Analysts contend the ruling DPS party will run independently during the likely early parliamentary elections to take advantage of monopolies it has gained.
By Mirjana Boskovic for Southeast European Times in Podgorica -- 27/06/11
Montenegro's ruling coalition comprised of the dominant Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and Social Democrats Party (SDP) may have practically collapsed, but the two parties say it will not jeopardise their ability to rule at the state level until the next parliamentary elections....more....
read more: se times
http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2011/06/27/feature-06

Vatican and Montenegro sign historic concordat

tportal.hr
MONTENEGRO - VATICAN
25.06.2011 13:28

Author: Radio.net
Vatican State Secretary Tarcisio Bertone and Montenegrin Prime Minister Igor Luksic signed in the Vatican on Friday an agreement regulating relations between the Holy See and Montenegro, which is the first such agreement the Vatican has signed with a country whose population is predominantly Orthodox, news agencies reported....more...
read more: tportal.hr
http://daily.tportal.hr/135218/Vatican-and-Montenegro-sign-historic-concordat.html

Request that SPC is registered in Montenegro - new provocation

bilc online
AUTHORITIES IN PODGORICA TRY TO EQUAL CPC AND SPC

Ivana mastilović jasnić

24. 06. 2011. - 00:02h
Comments 0
Incidents by authorities in Montenegro concerning Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) are going on. The stories over church property and expel of priests and monks are still fresh, however, Montenegrin Home Ministry has made the situation even more difficult by announcing that the Serbian Orthodox Church does not legally exist in that country....more...
read more: blic online
http://english.blic.rs/News/7777/Request-that-SPC-is-registered-in-Montenegro--new-provocation

Montenegro to Raise Salaries in Public Sector

balkan insight
23 JUN 2011 / 10:31

Finance Ministry announces public sector pay rise as from July 1.

Podgorica
Salaries to which the general collective agreement applies will grow by about five euros a month from July. Wages are supposed to rise every six months till the end of 2012.
This means that salaries which stood at 49.5 euros a month in the first half of this year will increase to 63 euros by the end of this year....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-to-rise-salaries-in-public-sector

Montenegro Ranked Third Riskiest Country

balkan insight
22 JUN 2011 / 11:36

Montenegro is the third riskiest country in Central and Eastern Europe, judged by political, economic and structural risk criteria, according to a recent report.

Podgorica
Montenegro is ranked 107th out of 184 countries in a global country risk report that includes opinions from economic experts and is based on political, economic and structural risk criteria....more...
read more: balkan insight
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/montenegro-ranked-third-riskiest-country