DPM Koprivica meets with human rights activist Aleksandar Saša Zeković

Deputy Prime Minister for Political System, Judiciary and Anti-Corruption Momo Koprivica met with human rights activist Aleksandar Saša Zeković. The discussion, focused on the systemic integration of human rights and democratic values, is part of the regular dialogue within the EU integration process.

It was jointly assessed that genuine commitment to the rule of law and the protection of human rights strengthens social cohesion, accountability and trust in Montenegro, while also reducing corruption.

Deputy Prime Minister Koprivica recalled that the European Commission, in its 2025 Montenegro Progress Report, commended the work of the Montenegrin judiciary. Progress was recognised in addressing war crimes, including credible and sustainable results in investigations, prosecutions and trials, in line with international standards. Continued efforts to ensure a proactive approach to justice were recommended, including compensation for victims, while the implementation and reporting on the Strategy for the Investigation of War Crimes were also positively assessed.

It was noted that further efforts are needed to combat the denial of serious human rights violations from the past. In this regard, the issue of memorialisation was highlighted as particularly important. Deputy Prime Minister Koprivica supported the initiative to mark the site of the war crime in which the Klapuh family was killed in 1992.

Human rights activist Aleksandar Saša Zeković provided a detailed overview of the ongoing broad and diverse discussion on restoring posthumous dignity to innocent civilian victims of the Second World War and the socialist revolution. Views were exchanged on a number of issues, particularly on how to improve procedures for exhumations and burials, as well as on possible institutional responses to these challenges.

Drawing on comparative experiences from EU Member States, it was emphasised that an adequate institutional response to concealed mass graves – several of which exist in Montenegro, including sites such as Kotor-jama in Nikšić, as well as locations in Cetinje and Bar – represents a key prerequisite for establishing the truth, ensuring justice and strengthening public trust.

Deputy Prime Minister Koprivica was also informed that the Special State Prosecutor’s Office has been presented with new, previously unknown information regarding the fate of Albanian and Bosniak recruits from Kosovo who were executed en masse in Bar on 1 April 1945, including data on the locations of their remains.

Respect was jointly expressed for these victims, and the work of the Albanian National Council and the Bosniak Council in Montenegro was commended for organising the international scientific symposium “Bar Massacre 1945 – The Hidden Truth”, aimed at fostering understanding of human rights, encouraging a process of dealing with the past, raising awareness of the crime, and promoting public acceptance of established facts regarding human rights violations.