The Human Rights Action (HRA) is launching a new project called “Judicial Monitor – Monitoring and Reporting on Judicial Reforms”. The project is supported by the United States Embassy in Podgorica through the Democratic Commission’s Small Grants Programme.

The project will be analysing and concisely informing the public about the challenges and reforms of the judicial system of Montenegro. Every month, via a newsletter which will be translated to English, we will inform the public about important problems and their resolution or proposed solutions.

According to the State Department’s Human Rights Report on Montenegro, despite the constitutional and statutory guarantees of the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, the Government of Montenegro did not fully respect those principles. Similarly, the European Commission emphasises the low level of the population’s perception of the independence of the judiciary (35% of the citizens), which, along with political pressure, is pointed out as the key problem.

In Montenegro, there are currently 10 criminal proceedings pending against judges and state prosecutors on organised crime and corruption charges, while attempts to elect a new president of the Supreme Court following the resignation of Vesna Medenica have been going on for three years. The courts suffer from a lack of staff and the situation is particularly difficult in the Special Department of the High Court in Podgorica, which adjudicates in the most serious cases of organised crime. The Judicial and Prosecutorial Councils are not in full composition. The recommendations of the European Commission, the Venice Commission and the Council of Europe’s GRECO have not been implemented in full.

The objective of the Project is to help strengthen the rule of law by monitoring judicial reforms and influencing the improvement of transparency and accountability of the judicial system. The HRA will also contribute to a greater visibility of civil society in monitoring and advocating judicial reform.

This Project is financed by the United States Embassy in Podgorica. The opinions, findings, conclusions and recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the US State Department/Government.