Democratic Montenegro (Democrats), which controls the security sector within the Government, responded to lawyer Veselin Radulović’s announcement that he would file criminal charges against its leaders for exceeding their authority during the suspension of police officers by threatening that he would “cry” and accusing him of not writing the criminal charges himself, but rather that they were being written by the Kavač and Škaljari criminal clans.

The lawyer who is warning about procedural violations in the Ministry of Interior is being labeled by the Democrats as an associate of criminal gangs, and they promise to make him cry.

Let us recall that the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite, recently warned the Montenegrin Government that it must ensure that lawyers can perform their profession freely and without intimidation, and urged government representatives to refrain from inappropriate statements.

Open threats from a political party whose president is the Deputy Prime Minister for Security (as well as for internal politics, European, and foreign affairs), and whose members include the Ministers of Interior and Defense, directed at a lawyer pointing out legal violations, represent an inappropriate show of force and an attempt at intimidation.

If the authorities threaten a lawyer in such a manner, what can everyone else expect?

Lawyer Radulović challenged the legality of the so-called “vetting” process in the Ministry of Interior, which the Ministry has been conducting arbitrarily, without oversight, and even, as Radulović claims, without the mandatory opinion of the National Security Agency, which the law requires.

A truly democratic response to a lawyer’s announcement of criminal charges would be a fact-based rebuttal of his claims — not vulgar threats from powerful ministers and MPs that they’ll make him cry.

Human Rights Action calls on all those who have influence over the Government of Montenegro, especially international partners, to help stop the ongoing undemocratic treatment of its critics.

Let us also recall that the Democrats previously, without evidence, labeled the student group Kamo sjutra as an extension of criminal gangs — merely because they demanded the resignations of the Minister of Interior and the Deputy Prime Minister. Yet, demanding resignations is a democratic right of every citizen, who, according to the Constitution, is the bearer of state sovereignty. Now, they are similarly targeting a lawyer for questioning the legality of the Ministry’s actions.

Montenegro, as the most serious candidate for EU membership, must demonstrate commitment to European standards.

The European standard of freedom of expression demands that government members endure a high level of criticism and respond with arguments — not threats, especially not toward lawyers — from positions of power such as those held by the Ministries of Interior and Defense, run by the Democrats.

“He whose strength lies in a club leaves a trail that reeks of inhumanity,” said Njegoš — a message for all times, including ours.

Tea Gorjanc Prelević, Executive Director of NGO Human Rights Action