Tuzi Municipality in Montenegro Is Not Bosnian Sarajevo!

Tuzi Municipality in Montenegro is not Bosnian Sarajevo, therefore, comrade Nedzad Dresevic (Council member of Bosnian Party in Montenegro) can not seek the rights and freedoms for himself, discriminating against the rights and freedoms of Albanians in Montenegro. It cannot be done, ever. He should forget this idea because of the fact that Albanians in Montenegro are indigenous people, not immigrants or refugees at all. Therefore, he should take into account this important historic truth i.e. that Albanian Tuzi isn’t Bosnian Sarajevo.

This is the main reason, why there’s no way to make Bosnian official language in Tuzi because there’s no respective percentage of the Bosnian muslim minority in Tuzi. What Nedzad Dresevic wants does not comply with the Montenegro Constitution, Law and Municipality Status of the use of official languages of the national minorities in Montenegro.

This is the valid legal and constitutional reason why in the municipality of Tuzi, the Bosnian language can not be the official Montenegrian and Albanian language. This truth should be understood and be clear for Bosnian minority political representative, Nedzad Dresevic in Podgorica capital of Montenegro.

“Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves … ” – (Abraham Lincoln)

Nedzad Dresevic seeks to discriminate Albanain official language in Tuzi Municipality of the Republic of Montenegro, violating Article 16, paragraph 2 of the Statue of the capital city Podgorica in which it is stipulated that beside Montenegrin language and Albanian language is in use as an official language in Tuzi Municipality .( See in: “Sl. List RCG – opštinski propisi,” br. 28/06 od 21.07.2006).

Dresevic’s “intiative” against the legal use of the official Albanian language, sent to the Republican Constitutional Court with his objection, that : “Provision under Article 16, paragraph 2 of the Statue of the capital city Podgorica is not in accordance with the Law on Local Government, which guarantees the protection of national minorities and promotion of human rights in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro.” [CDM].

nedzad dresevic.
Nedzad Dresevic.

Dresevic’s observation is not true and is a political manipulation sui generis because his “contested provision” Article 11, paragraph 2 of the Statute of the Municipality capital city of Podgorica is not in contradiction with the Law of Local Self-Government nor with the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro.

Dresevic’s big lie, in set form was rejected by Veselin Vukcevic, Secretary of the Assembly of the capital Podgorica, who appealed to the Constitutional Court to reject “the initiative,” because legally it is invalid, without legal and constitutional grounds. The “contested provision” (Article 11, section 2) by Nedzad Dresevic isn’t violating any provision of the Statute of the Municipality capital city of Podgorica providing the official use of the Albanian language in the Tuzi Municipality. In this way, only it materialized provision of Article 11, paragraph 2 of the Law on national minorities rights and freedoms. Being that the region of the municipality of Tuzi is populated with the vast majority of the Albanian people, thus it is clear that the provision contested by Nedzad Dresevic is not illegal, at all. [CDM].

Thus, based on the legal acts and the Constitution, Veselin Vukcevic (Secretary of the Assembly of the capital Podgorica) “proposed to the Constitutional Court of the Montenegro does not accept the “initiative” of the Bosnian minority representative, Nedzad Dresevic, because the disputed provision by him is in accordance with law on national minorities in Montenegro. This Vukcevic’s statement unanimously adopted by the members of the statutes and regulations.” [CDM]

As above, it is completely clear that the official use of the Albanian language in the municipality of Tuzi, is based entirely legally, statutorily and constitutionally, as concluded by the Secretary of the municipality of the capital Podgorica, Veselin Vukcevic.

Therefore, Nedzad Dresevic (Council member of Bosnian Party in Montenegro) can not become the “legal supervisor,” “Head interpreter” or “Chief prosecutor” over the Montenegrin legislators, legislative institutions and political leadership of the government and Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro.

In this case, neither Nedzad Dresevic nor other members of the Bosnian minority in Montenegro have no legal right to complain that allegedly their rights and freedoms are breached contrary to the internal laws and Constitution as well as to the international and the European juridical instruments on the human rights and freedoms, being that according to Dreshevic’s “petition” addressed to the Montenegrin Constitutional Court that the “Bosnian language” is not included as the “official language in the municipality of Tuzi!”

This is a false statement apparently with the intention to deteriorate the image of the democratic state and rule of law of Montenegro in the face of democratic Europe and America.

As a conclusion, neither Bosnian minority nor their representative Nedzad Dreseviq couldn’t be over the laws and Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro, but just as equal with the other ethnic minorities. In Montenegro, the Bosnian Muslim minority has all human rights and freedoms. However, in the municipality of Tuzi with the vast majority of the Albanian national minority, Bosnian Muslim minority’s language, legally is not, and can not be the official language as the Albanian and Montenegrin languages are.

Mehdi Hyseni is an Albanian Ph.D. in International Political Relations, residing in Boston.