The temporary homeless shelter in Podgorica, operated by Human Rights Action since January and majorly funded by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare and selfless dedication of the shelter coordinator, Ms. Silvana Miranović, will cease to operate on Tuesday, 30 April 2013.

From 30 April, the homeless shelter in Pljevlja will remain the only shelter in Montenegro.

Users of the temporary homeless shelter, who are residing in its premises until 30 April, have been provided, or at least offered, with a solution of their social status in different ways.

Unfortunately, taking care of the homeless in the future will depend on the good will of state authorities and local self-governments, because the Draft Law on Social and Child Protection does not provide for mandatory establishment of shelters.

Although the Draft Law on Social and Child Protection provides for definitions of terms homeless person and shelter, it stipulates that the shelter shall be established only if “there is a need”.

Our concern is that the Government, despite the definition of terms homeless and the service of placing homeless people into a shelter, did not recognize that “there is a need” for the mandatory establishment of shelters in Montenegro. During the four months of its operation, the temporary shelter in Podgorica has provided shelter for 16 homeless people. According to information received from users of the shelter, there are many other homeless people living in train cars at the railway station in Podgorica.

Now is the last moment to amend the Draft Law so that it clearly prescribes mandatory establishment of shelters for the homeless, thus ensuring minimum standards of adequate housing as guaranteed by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It is necessary to ensure continuous operation of shelters, at least in the largest municipalities of the State, where the socially most vulnerable may spend the night, take a bath and get a free meal.

We believe that this is the only way for us as a society to show a minimum care for the homeless, so that the situation from November of last year, when a homeless person lost his life in the centre of Podgorica trying to warm up on the street, never happens again.

Human Rights Action Team

(for more information, contact Mirjana Radović: 067 351 595)