06 December 2018 - The National Tourism Organisation of Montenegro is dedicated to the promotion of Montenegro's winter tourism offer. In this respect, this year the organisation is also focused on development within the country and countries of the region, which are Montenegro’s target markets when this segment of the offer is in question. In anticipation of the winter season, NTO of Montenegro will present the offer for the New Year's holidays and the winter season in Belgrade to the most important media from the Serbian market. This presentation will be held on December 7th, and the Montenegrin representatives will organise an all-day promotional event for visitors of the shopping centre “Big Fashion Shopping Centre” on Saturday, December 8th, which will include rich entertainment program, gifts, and animation for the youngest. NTO will invite guests from Serbia to enter the New Year 2019 enjoying the events, dinners, and parties with the music of the most popular singers and groups of the region, both in town squares and hotels and discotheques on the coast and north of Montenegro.

After multiple presentations in Belgrade, similar promotional events will be organised in Albania, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. As in the previous years, the presentations will be organized in Sarajevo, Tirana, Dubrovnik, and Trebinje in cooperation with local tourism organisations and local businesspeople. Montenegrin offer will be also presented through PR activities, online promotion through the official portal, social networks, through "outdoor" campaigns - placing billboards at the most beautiful locations of major cities in the country and the region.

Representatives of NTO expect that Montenegro will, based on a program that is already prepared, justify the epithet of a destination that is most recognizable in the region after the New Year's Eve. You can read about the New Year’s Events on the Montenegrin coast here. The rich offer for the holidays is prepared for the northern cities of the country as well. NTO is expecting great interest in the offer and prices of ski centres that are increasingly visited by tourists during the winter season, as well as for the costs of New Year's arrangements in hotels on the coast. Montenegro is entering the winter season with optimistic expectations based on the readiness of mountain tourist centres, new exclusive, luxurious hotels, rich festive programs along the Montenegrin coast and already significant confirmed booking.

December 6, 2018 - UBRZAJ 2018 (Fast Forward 2018) IX Human Rights Film Festival will be held from 10-14 December 2018. According to the practice of the traditional December festival organized by the NGO Centre for Civic Education, the program will be held in three addresses – in Podgorica, Berane, and Kotor.

Human Rights Film Festival UBRZAJ, the first and only one of its kind in Montenegro, aims to contribute to raising the awareness of the importance of human rights and their protection and improvement, as well as a value framework that promotes harmonious relationships on any ground. UBRZAJ 2018 brings an excellent selection of 15 film achievements to be premiered in Montenegro and "movies that do not fear, who carry out the imaginative vivisection of social injustice, ironize powerfully and dream loud." That is why the motto of this year's festival is GLEDAJ I PAMTI! (WATCH AND REMEMBER!)

“The talk of human rights, whether in politics, science, or arts, sometimes comes across as a moving tale that the humankind tells while tucking itself to sleep, murmuring it almost by heart, terrifying and inspiring itself in turns by the wickedness of monsters and the revolts of the brave. Lulling itself, every time, by the certainty of the happy end and the inevitability of progress. And yet if we had learned anything on our laborious trudge towards full awareness of the inalienability of human dignity, it is that there is nothing certain or inevitable about this path and that falling behind is much easier than forging ahead. Have we watched carefully enough, do we remember enough of those times when we traded the humanity of others for our comfort when we surrendered the victims instead of sheltering them when we choose not to see the camps and not to remember places of suffering? How did we understand humanity then? Who counted as human and who did not? And what were we playing, refusing responsibility? We would like to have left far behind the obstinate ghosts of fascism, slavery, poverty, exploitation, disease, and war. Maybe would have done so, but we did not. They are our present too, and our reality. This is what the films of the ninth selection of the FAST FORWARD 2018 Human Rights Film Festival are telling us, each in its way. These films are not afraid: with courage and imagination, they cut to the quick of social injustices, mock the powerful and dream aloud. Films that fight and in which people fight. Is it enough to just watch and remember? Of course not, but this minimal entreaty already lifts the thin alibi of ignorance and represents, perhaps, the first step towards accountability," explains this year’s edition motto Paula Petricevic, philosopher.

UBRZAJ 2018 is realized in cooperation with KIC Budo Tomovic, Beldocs - International Documentary Film Festival, SARAJEVO FILM FESTIVAL, Cultural Center "Nikola Djurkovic" Kotor, Municipality of Kotor, Municipality of Berane, Center for Culture Berane and Gymnasium "Panto Mališić" Berane. The European Union supports UBRZAJ 2018 in Montenegro, as well as the Commission for the allocation of part of the incomes of the Games of Chance of the Montenegrin Government and the Ministry of Culture of Montenegro. Media Sponsors of UBRZAJ 2018 are RTCG, Television Vijesti, and daily newspaper Vijesti. Friends of UBRZAJ 2018 are also Metropolis, PG TAXI 19704 and Compania de Vinos Montenegro.

More information on projections and films can be found at the festival site: http://ubrzaj.me/

December 6, 2018 - In the shopping mall "Delta City" in Podgorica, a three-day event titled "Be a part of us" organized by the Ministry of Defense and the Army of Montenegro was held to affirm military jobs.

"Numerous visitors got to know the activities and projects of the Ministry of Defense intended for youth: employment in the Montenegrin Army (VCG) and volunteering in military service, education at foreign military academies, scholarships for faculties in Montenegro, promotion of gender equality in the army, and the Summer Military Camp for youth," said the department.

Also, like last year, some military skills, such as fighting and climbing were demonstrated.

"On the plateau in the ground floor of Delta, a tent with facilities was installed, as well as counters with EOD equipment (for the removal of explosive devices) and diving equipment, EOD equipment of the Engineering squad, and alpine and ski equipment for training in rapid waters. Particular attention was paid to the youngest. In a corner arranged for them, they put together a puzzle with military motives and they drew them as well," said the Ministry.

For this occasion, the Ministry of Defense and the Army of Montenegro have also prepared significant quantities of promotional and informative material, as well as gifts with military motives, such as caps, notebooks, and pens.

After the manifestation, at 8 p.m. in the hall No. 5 of the Cineplex, the presentation of documentary-educational film "Our Force, Army of Montenegro" was held.

Text by CdM, on December 5th, 2018, read more at CdM

December 6, 2018 - Cultural and tourism cooperation is of particular importance to Montenegro, said Minister of Culture Aleksandar Bogdanovic during the panel that was held within the Third World Conference on Tourism and Culture under the slogan "Culture and Tourism: For the Good of All" in Istanbul.

"Given that tourism in Montenegro represents one of the central economic branches, and that cultural heritage, material and intangible, testifies to the millennium past, whose traces today represent exceptional cultural and tourist potential, through the cooperation of the cultural and tourism sector in Montenegro, there have been developed cultural trails 'Between Two Magical Shores', which include a visit to the National Park Skadar Lake, as well as numerous cultural goods in this area. Also, the 'Circle around Korita' route has been developed, which besides the exceptional natural environment, enables visitors to get acquainted with museums, memorials and famous places that are an integral part of the route. Such projects make lesser-known heritage sites visible to the broader community, at the same time provide tourists with the opportunity to visit unknown destinations of exceptional cultural and historical significance," the minister said in his presentation.

As stated by Bogdanović's office, participation in the conference is an opportunity to strengthen the relations of the participating countries, exchange experiences and practices in the field of tourism, as well as to stimulate economic cooperation. The ministerial session, on which Bogdanovic spoke, gathered the ministers of tourism and culture to exchange examples of positive practice on policies that can be networked to achieve sustainable development. Speaking on the thematic panel titled "Strengthening cooperation among all participants in the field of tourism and culture", Bogdanović emphasized the importance of cultural tourism through the aspect of economic benefits that can be achieved in this way, primarily in terms of generating income and new jobs, training for jobs and maintenance of traditional crafts, the revival of city centers, the increase in value of assets, the improvement of small entrepreneurship and much more. During his presentation, he emphasized that cultural tourism cannot be treated as a separate and isolated segment, but, on the contrary, that in cooperation with creative industries, the issue of heritage can be comprehensively addressed, and that it contributes to sustainable development and creation of additional values.

"The economic significance of cultural tourism is reflected in the financial support of preserving, revitalizing and promoting cultural goods on the one hand, and enabling the financial and organizational independence of cultural institutions on the other. This is precisely why cultural tourism is the driving force behind the development of cities, regions and countries. The social impact of cultural tourism is material, but it also has intangible effects, such as the development of awareness and the care of cultural heritage, its own cultural values and the creation of a cultural identity. Cultural sites that are attractive to the local population are also striking for tourists," the minister said.

He is convinced that intersectoral connectivity will provide favorable socio-economic and socio-cultural effects.

"Also, in order to make the effects of the cultural tourism more important, it is necessary to observe cultural resources as market products that are becoming more and more important, because tourists are, above all, customers and therefore should be treated as such," Bogdanović said.

Bogdanović also spoke about the area of protection and preservation of cultural goods, as one of the main priorities in the work of the Ministry of Culture, but also about the modality of moving from massive to exclusive tourism, in which culture and cultural heritage play the most important role.

Text by CdM, on December 4th, 2018, read more at CdM

December 6, 2018 - After the big win over Turkey, the Montenegrin basketball players have come closer to placing in the World Cup, and at the moment, their trip to China is in their hands.

By the end of the qualification round, Zvezdan Mitrovic's team will play two more matches, against Ukraine away, and then at home against Latvia.

These two victories would surely take Montenegro to the World Cup for the first time.

After nine matches, Montenegro has five victories and four defeats, just like Ukraine and Latvia, their direct rivals for the third-place battle that leads to the World Cup. 

In the next round, Montenegro will visit Ukraine. In the first part of the qualifications, Montenegro defeated Ukraine.

Latvia could also help Montenegro. If they win Spain, who have already qualified for the World Cup, then Montenegro could lose in Ukraine with more points, and defeat Latvia in the last round to go to the World Cup. 

If Latvia loses to Spain and Montenegro wins in Ukraine, then they could lose by eight points to Latvia at home because they defeated the same rival by nine points.

There are many scenarios, but it is essential that Zvezdan Mitrovic and his team stay at the top until the end. 

The decisive matches are scheduled for February 22^nd in Ukraine, which is three days after Montenegro plays against Latvia.

Text by CdM, on December 3rd, 2018, read more at CdM

05 December 2018 - During an official business breakfast, the Mayor of Podgorica, Ivan Vuković, had a discussion with representatives of the diplomatic corps and foreign businesspeople in Montenegro about the planned capital projects and investment potentials of the Capital City, inviting them to help their realization in the domain of their competencies.

At today's discussion, the Mayor pointed out the ambition of the Capital to continue the accelerated development that was started during the mandate of the former mayor, Miomir Mugoša, and remained during the mandate of Slavoljub Stijepović. Among the projects whose realization is ahead, besides the most important one - the wastewater treatment plant - Mayor Vuković also pointed out the planned construction of boulevard access to the city from all sides, a project to convert biogas from landfill to electricity and the plan to build a solar power plant. In the field of sports, the Vuković highlighted the construction of the eastern segment of the City Stadium, the construction of a tennis academy, the reconstruction of the Small Sports Stadium, and the construction of a national football stadium.

Stating that one of the biggest challenges in Podgorica is solving the problems of public transport, the Mayor said that in that field, the Capital would look up to the solutions already implemented by Belgrade, mentioning the possibility of introducing electric buses. When it comes to the need to revive the city centre of Podgorica, the Capital representatives will use the example of Ljubljana which opened its centre for both pedestrians and cyclists.

The Mayor informed the guests about the possibilities of building an expo centre, shopping malls, an aqua park, as well as more hotels in different parts of the city. In addition, Vuković drew their attention to areas in which investors are granted favourable benefits - Industrial Zone A, Agro-Industrial Zone and Service-Warehouse Zone with a marshalling station. “We are trying to attract investors through various models such as private-public partnership, foreign direct investments, and through the new ESCO method that will be very significant from next year,” said Vuković.

He specifically referred to the ongoing struggle with the problem of unemployment, stating that projects such as a business incubator, Center for Competences and others - aim to motivate, first of all, young people to run their business instead of seeking employment from the state.

The Mayor concluded the meeting with expectations of support for numerous social projects initiated by the Capital, especially in the area of environmental protection, sport, and culture.

December 5, 2018 - Johnny Depp will stay in Tivat in March of next year to film material for his new movie, announced the Municipality of Tivat Information Services.

President of the Tivat Municipality, Dr. Siniša Kusovac and his associates, held a meeting with Aleksandar Tadic, the Work in Progress / WIP Production director, about the possibility of shooting a new Johnny Depp movie at several locations in Tivat next year, the municipality said.

Johnny Depp will play a leading role in the film "Minamata." The primary production begins in Japan and will be filmed in January in Serbia. At the end of February, in early March, a film crew, including Johnny Depp, will shoot for two weeks in Tivat.

President Kusovac said that the interest of productions behind big film achievements is a significant opportunity for the global promotion of Tivat.

"We are interested in filming in Tivat, and so far it has been a practice to assist in administrative and booking and location arrangements. In that respect, we will provide maximum support," the Mayor said.

"We are looking for locations to film the American movie Minamata, in which Hollywood star Johnny Depp interprets the main role, and we are interested in taking part of the filming to the Ostrvo Cvijeća and the park of Zupa. We are ready to talk to all interested parties so that we can fully acknowledge it. We also want the Municipality of Tivat to be informed about it and to help us provide any license for filming. Tivat is fantastic, and even more interesting is its ambiance and nature. That is why we want some of the scenes meant to represent Japan to be filmed here," Tadic said.

Producer House WIP has worked on the films "November Man," "The Last Panthers," "The Raven," "Papillion" and many others in the previous years.

Johnny Depp plays the first war photographer of the newer era, Eugene Smith. After the Second World War, Smith begins working for Life magazine and reveals the poisoning of people from the Minamata factory in Japan. The director of the film is Andrew Levitas. Minamata is based on a joint book by Aileen Mioko Smith and Eugene Smith in the adaptation by David K. Kessler.

The celebrated days of the Second World War are far from Smith when his old friend, Life's editor Ralph Graves, is convinced to return to Japan to find a great story: devastating destruction of the coastal community by poisoning.

05 December 2018 - Coal Mine Pljevlja produced 1.247.975 tons of coal from the beginning of the year until October. That is by 7% more than in the same period last year.

“Generated income was above the amount planned and it amounted to around 35 million EUR. Around 75% of total production accounted for the export,” said the representatives of the Coal mine.

In recent years they have extended the market to the region. The Coalmine can satisfy all the required quantities for the needs of wide consumption at a much higher level than they are now. Currently, reserves of coal amount around 62 million EUR.

In the next year, prices of coal will not change.

“Coal prices for wide and industrial consumption is different, depending on the caloric value. Prices range from 31,50 EUR per ton for fine coal to 48,27 EUR per ton for a cube or a piece. (VAT not included)”.

In the middle of July of this year, the ownership structure of Coal mine changed and Electric Power Company of Montenegro became the complete owner of the company in Pljevlja.

“It was quite logical and almost inevitable that two business entities whose capacities are directed towards each other and mutually dependent should integrate into a group or one common company. The existing model is functioning well, for now, business results in the first ten months are better than expected,” said the representatives of the company.

Text by Dnevne Novine, on December 5th, 2018, read more at CdM.

December 5, 2018 - The Central Bank of Montenegro sent the Government recommendations for economic policy in 2019, which, among other things, proposes introducing taxes or revenues on plastic products to reduce their use. An independent consultant, organized by Zero Waste Montenegro, Masha Tomkovic, believes that the introduction of a fee on plastic products, especially disposable ones, would certainly reduce the use of such products.

"The proposal of the measure is quite general, but it shows a clear focus on the goal, which is a reduction in the use of plastic products on the territory of Montenegro. In principle, I support the measure of introducing a tax on a group of plastic products, but I think that the fees for importers of disposable bottles, mostly packaging products should be significantly higher," says Tomkovic for CdM. This incentive measure would, she says, if adopted, come at the right moment.

"Because according to the new Strategy on plastic waste in the circular economy on the EU market from 2030, only plastic products of design and composition which enable the complete recycling of products be possible. Countries outside the EU, including Montenegro, will become, I believe, an attractive market in the future for the placement of those plastic products that do not correspond with the quality of the market in the countries of the European Union," Tomković warned. It advocates a significant increase in the price of disposable plastic products, as they account for 59% of the total plastic waste and precisely the products from this group are, explains, the dominant polluters of our environment, and especially the sea. 

“Reducing the use of these products and moving to more sustainable solutions would have many positive multiplier effects on human health, our environment, and the country's economy itself. Therefore, we should not neglect the need for continuous education of citizens about the harmful effects of plastic products," explains Zero Waste Montenegro consultant. He reminds that this organization launched a petition in July last year for banning plastic disposable bags in Montenegro which was signed in more than a month by more than 3,500 citizens. 

"This campaign was aimed at voting to ban plastic bags for single use, as well as the so-called oxo-biodegradable bags. A large number of collected signatures speaks in favor of a significant part of our citizens noticing the problem of excessive use of plastics and plastic bags for our nature, and expecting healthier alternative and long-term solutions," Tomković adds.

Maša Tomković

According to her, after this action on the Montenegrin market, linen bags began to appear spontaneously, as a good substitute and a long-term and healthier solution. "The ban on the distribution of free bags, especially those of the thinner ones, as well as the significant increase in the price of the bag, would contribute to the fact that the trend of replacing plastic bags with a linen bag will come to life in full scope," Tomkovic assured.

Prohibitions around the world

The use of plastic bags is banned in several countries around the world, in some, they are taxed, and in some, their production, sales, and carrying are punished in cash, or even in prison. At the end of October, the European Parliament's representatives supported the proposal of the European Commission on the complete ban and reduction of certain plastics products, and it is expected that within a period of two years from the end of the adoption of the directive in the territory of the EU, the production of many products, such as plastic Q-tips, plates and cutlery, drinking straws... These products make up as much as 70 percent of the total waste found in the seas. Have we destroyed the Earth?

Scientists are increasingly warning that the planet has inflicted irreversible damage in the last few decades. Some go so far as to claim that in the 1950s it was Anthropocene - a geological epoch, characterized by the influence of man on Earth, radioactivity and plastic contamination began, which brought human survival into question.

Experts still debate this issue, but one thing is sure - we have to start to act more responsibly towards ourselves and the environment.

Text by Ž. Novović, on December 4th, 2018, read more at CdM