On Monday, 26 May 2025, a meeting was held at the Municipality of Herceg Novi regarding the initiative of non-governmental organizations Action for Human Rights (HRA), the Centre for Civic Education (CCE), and the Center for Women’s and Peace Education ANIMA, for the erection of a memorial to the victims of the 1992 deportation.

The President of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, Stevan Katić, and the President of the Municipal Assembly of Herceg Novi, Miloš Konjević, encouraged us to, in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and with their support, restart the initiative for the construction of the monument. We will do so as early as tomorrow.

Below we share the full statement from the Municipality of Herceg Novi, published on their official website:

Meeting held regarding the initiative to erect a memorial to the victims of the 1992 deportation

On the occasion of marking the 33rd anniversary of the deportation of Bosnian-Herzegovinian refugees from Montenegro and the resubmission of the initiative to erect a monument to the victims of deportation, the Presidents of the Municipality and the Municipal Assembly of Herceg Novi, Stevan Katić and Miloš Konjević, met with representatives of the NGOs Action for Human Rights, Centre for Civic Education (CCE), and the Center for Women’s and Peace Education – ANIMA, the initiators of the initiative, as well as with the families of the victims.

The local government, as in previous years, expressed condolences for the suffering of the victims, showed readiness to support the initiative, and pointed out to the initiators the procedural steps that must be fulfilled for the memorial to be erected.

With respect to the victims and their families, it was emphasized that the local government, the city of Herceg Novi, and its citizens were not the decision-makers, but that it was the state that determined that in 1992 Herceg Novi would be the place where this terrible act was carried out.

It was also pointed out that, according to the Law on Memorials, the request by the NGOs ANIMA, HRA, and CCE must be formalized and accepted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (which owns the plateau in front of the Clinical Hospital Herceg Novi where the memorial is planned) and the Ministry of Culture and Media, i.e., the Government of Montenegro, which must give consent for the memorial to be erected before the expiration of 50 years from the date of the event, as provided by law.

In this way, the Municipality of Herceg Novi is ready to include the request for erection in the comprehensive Program for the erection of memorials within the territory of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, which will be reviewed by the municipal assembly councillors.

The meeting was also attended by the Chief Administrator of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, Nenad Đorđević, the Secretary for Culture and Education, Ana Zambelić Pištalo, Alen Bajrović, son of the deceased Osmo Bajrović, Sejda Krdžalija, mother of the deceased Sanin Krdžalija, and Hikmeta Prelo, who lost her son Amer, brother Himzo Čengić, and son-in-law Smail Hasanbegović.