On the occasion of tomorrow’s session of the Parliamentary Gender Equality Committee, when MPs will discuss the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination, Human Rights Action states that the proposed Law significantly improves the existing Law, particularly in terms of the mechanism of judicial protection from discrimination.

Nevertheless, today we submitted three proposals for amendments to this Draft Law to MP groups and the Proposer of the Law – Ministry of Human Rights, in relation to:

1) adding a provision on Hate Speech, as a special form of discrimination;

2) adding a provision on the Discrimination of Children as special form of discrimination;

3) amending Art. 19 of the Draft Law and Art. 34 of the Law, which prescribe fines for offenses, particularly in relation to adding fines for the violation of specially prescribed forms of discrimination – “Harassment and Sexual Harassment,” “Segregation” and “Discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation”. We particularly proposed adding fines for preventing expression of gender identity or sexual orientation, or for forcing public declaration of one’s gender identity or sexual orientation, in violation of Article 19 of the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination.

HRA also proposed that the Law should prescribe that Aggravated forms of discrimination should be punished accordingly.

Proposed amendments (in Montenegrin) are available here.