15 October 2019 - Montenegro has made serious progress on its path to the European Union and will be its next member, said new European Parliament rapporteur for Montenegro Tonino Picula, reports Fena News Agency.

According to Picula, Montenegro will be the first in line as a new EU member state, but there’s still a lot to do until then. The EU has been facing numerous issues and it seems that the enlargement policy is not its top priority. Some EU member states clearly state that now is not the time to speak about the enlargement, which calls the whole story about the expected 2025 enlargement into question.

In an interview for CdM, the newly-elected European Parliament Rapporteur on Montenegro Mr Tonino Picula claimed the enlargement policy hadn’t been the EU’s topmost priority anymore. He said that some EU member states categorically refuse further EU enlargement until the Union consolidates.

“No one will state loud and clear to be against the enlargement, it’s a part of a political game, but there’s a strong resistance within the EU member states, that is, they do not want the enlargement to happen until the rearrangement of power relations takes place, and some new models are adopted,” Mr Picula explained.

"In any case, the next enlargement of the Union, when it happens, will not occur without Montenegro. Whether Montenegro will enter alone or with another country is an open question. Still, if it continues this kind of work as it has done for ten years, then the next expansion will not be possible without Montenegro, "Picula said in an interview with Nova M. He said that the work that Montenegro has done so far must be noted, but it must also continue with reforms and next projects, because if there is no further progress, it can lead to serious frustration for both sides.

He also added that the enlargement policy reached a peak in 2004 when ten new states joined the EU and in 2007 – when Bulgaria’s and Romania’s accession took place.

Mr Picula continued: “Currently, the enlargement policy is not one of the EU’s top priorities as the Union needs to consolidate itself first.”

"Montenegro has procedures in place, mechanisms to move forward with the conclusion of the negotiations, but what has not been done so far will have to be done in circumstances that will not always be easy. At the moment, the political scene in Montenegro is polarized; there are serious disagreements between the authorities and the opposition on how to proceed. However, I will try to overcome this gap with my experience in order to reach a common goal - Montenegro's membership in the EU, "Picula concluded.

Read more about politics in Montenegro at TMN's dedicated page.

"Durmitor, you are the leader of all mountains" - so goes a 1980s song about a spectacular mountain in Montenegro, a Unesco World Heritage Site, which survived the uncertainties of the last century, though it faces a new threat just as the Western Balkan country moves closer to the EU.

The Black Lake, in the heart of Durmitor national park, narrowly avoided playing host to a sprawling tourist compound - 30 bungalows, an adventure park, a bar, and a restaurant on the lakeshore - in April.

It would have been a clear violation of Unesco rules and might have triggered international legal proceedings.

The contractor had already felled dozens of 100-year old trees when the government revoked its permit. But the project, which included a Durmitor ski resort, would probably have gone ahead if not for protests by local activists - a campaign group called "Enough is enough" - and a wider outcry by Montenegrin civil society and public figures.

Developers have also threatened Durmitor's high-altitude plateau, Sinjajevina. The site is Europe's second-largest natural pasture and hundreds of local families depend on it, but it has been slated to become a military training ground.

Government-backed firms have spoken of building hydro-electric plants on the pristine Bukovica river in the region.

And the government has proposed new oil rigs off Montenegro's Adriatic Sea coast.

The environmental alerts come after the Western Balkan country made progress in leaps and bounds in its EU accession process in recent years.

EU accession

It has opened negotiations on 32 out of 33 "chapters" of the EU's legal rulebook, putting it in pole position to be the next country to join Europe after Croatia did so.

One of those chapters deals with the environment.

And "potential investments in hydropower and tourism developments need to comply with nature protection ... legal requirements", the European Commission said in its last progress report on Montenegro.

"Work continued" on designating EU-protected sites, it added, mentioning other endangered ones - the Ulcinj Salina wetland, the Skadar Lake, and the Tara River.

The commission report also mentioned concerns on the rule of law, democracy, and media freedom in Montenegro.

But it did not mention Durmitor or the broader anti-environmental trend, and it would be a staggering irony if the "leader of all mountains" was ruined just as the EU opened its door.

The fragile ecosystem survived Yugoslavia's communist era and the 1990s Balkan Wars.

Podgorica's first post-communist government even sang its praises in a special declaration in the local town of Zabljak in 1991.

But its fate remains uncertain so long as local activists are left alone to defend it.

Montenegrins do not lack the passion for fighting for what they love.

Durmitor is "nature's masterpiece" and "must remain a [Unesco] world heritage site," Aleksandar Dragićević, one of the activists who took part in April's anti-industry protests, said at the time.

"We will not let anyone destroy it [the Sinjajevina plateau]", Aleksandar Milatović, another local activist, said.

"We drink water from the Bukovica [river]. We swim in it, as have generations of our ancestors. We won't let them take it from us," said Mihailo Bulatović, who spent 30 days and nights in a camp in front of construction equipment.

Steep price

If European politicians and civil society leave people like them alone on the front line, then Montenegro's EU and Nato accession might come at a steep price.

Montenegro joined Nato in 2017, and now one of its beauty spots risks becoming a no-go military bomb site.

It might join the EU by 2025 if things go well.

But by then, Durmitor, called "nature's Mona Lisa" by Dragićević, might already bear the scars of industry.

And in this situation, not just Montenegrins but all Europeans have "a clear choice", Dragićević said.

"Either we keep Mona Lisa intact, or we turn her into a Disneyland with catastrophic consequences," he said.

Text by Aleksandar Perovic, NGO Ozon,  published for www.euobserver.com

Tivat Municipality will host an Open Fun Football School - a sporting and educational project for boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 12 years that also brings together dozens of trainers and coaches.

The Open Football School will be held on Friday, 18th November at 10.30 am, at the main Stadium of the Arsenal Football Club in Tivat.

The main idea behind the Open Football School is to get together, play and improve your football skills, as well as to enjoy the game, Tivat Municipality states.

Partnering with the Tivat Municipality in the project is the Arsenal Football Club, which brings together over 200 children of various ages, and NGO “Sport Spaja” (Sport Connects), an organisation that works with the Danish “Cross Cultures Project” football school, responsible for organising fun football schools around the world.

Last year, six open football schools were organised in Montenegro, and sporting equipment was distributed in six towns, in total 750 footballs and 90 sets of kit for coaches and school instructors.

Over 1,600 boys and girls have so far participated in the football schools.

The event will be opened by Darka Ognjanović, MA, Secretariat for Youth, Sport and Social Affairs, Tivat Municipality.

Source: Radio Jadran

15 October 2019 - The following article represents the personal perspective of author Stevan Perović on cryptocurrencies and the views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Total Montenegro News. Stevan Perović was born and lives in Montenegro, and he is currently working as a Market Developer for Southeastern Europe in Kyrrex, a company that serves as a crypto exchange platform.

A cryptocurrency exchange or digital currency exchange (DCE) is an exchange where one can buy or sell cryptocurrencies. They can be traded using electronic monetary units, tokenized fiat currencies, or other digital assets. Modern technological solutions such as encryption (cryptography) make sure that the transactions are ultra-secure. Cryptography is the art of creating and deciphering code.

"Cryptocurrency has come to change things once and for all. The advent of the internet has created an entirely new dimension, and the new digital population now has children of its own. The crypto environment is quite young, but it has stirred quite a commotion during its decade-long history. It is not about the tech framework alone: we are witnessing the rapid growth of a qualitatively new community, with its own values, beliefs and socio-economic particularities. Community is the spine and support for the healthy development of any industry. But in the case of crypto, the sentiment of classical financial moguls matters a lot. It defines the pace in which the domain moves forward," pointed out Viktor Kochetov in an introductory speech for Kyrrex.

TMN: How crypto exchange generate revenue?
SP: We generate revenue from trading fees, withdraw fees, MAM account management fees, payments for new tokens listing, and subscription fees for the advanced + modules of the trading platform.

TMN: What is your vision?
SP: Our vision is to become the first world level regulated and licensed сrypto exchange and wallet. Maximum openness, trust, transparency, institutional level of liquidity, high technology trading instruments, and payments are our main priorities in this market.

Read more news about business in Montenegro at TMN's dedicated page.

A large number of elementary and high school students, but also students of Montenegrin faculties, had the opportunity to learn about "technologies of the future" for the first time at the Science Days last week.

Among them are two of which Montenegro and the region could greatly benefit from shortly - three-dimensional (3D) printing and hadron cancer therapy.

All those interested in the 3D printing booth were greeted by many items made with the help of a special printer, including a bust of Nobel Prize winner Albert Einstein.

Visitors of the Science Days had the opportunity to become familiar with the application of 3D printing, learn the basics of modeling in specialized software, and look directly at the printer to create 3D figurines.

According to the Master of Science student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Luka Radunovic, interest in 3D printing has been overwhelming, partly attributable to the fact that this technology is relatively new.

"It is a new area in Montenegro. Even in the world is a new area and is under-explored. 3D generators are now being created for printing metal-based on generative design. This is a new method of element optimization. For example, if some mechanical elements, such as wheels, are taken, using certain wheelbase programs will completely disperse - they will have up to 20, 30 percent less mass and higher strength," Radunovic explained.

Radunovic with one of the made objects (Photo: Luka Zekovic)

For the last two years of the respective studies, he has been involved in 3D printing and its application in the university projects.

He added that in this area, they focused mostly on mechatronic devices, that is, they made various gears for transmitting power and energy and the like.

Radunovic is now on his master's degree in the direction of mechatronics.

He told “Vijesti” that he has already noticed progress in the direction of developing this technology in Montenegro.

“Starting from last year with the opening of the Open box studio and 3D room and other businessmen who produce certain elements of plastic, as far as I can see, it has been tremendous growth over the past year. And factories are about to open. Firstly because it is a lucrative business from their point of view, and secondly is useful from the point of view of a consumer," he explained.

Visitors to last week's Science Days had the opportunity to peer into one of Europe's largest research centers and beyond. The center that is the dream of all physicists - CERN.

One of those who has repeatedly visited this center based in Switzerland and has worked on several of its projects is Master of Physics Itana Bubanja.

Visitors at the booth where she was located had the opportunity to see animations from CERN in one place, as well as a demonstration of how to use particle therapy software for cancer treatment.

"The technique used at CERN - particle acceleration - is applied. So high-energy particles, high enough that they can be applied to humans, are sent to cancer cells where they ionize the environment and kill those cells," Bubanja explained.

She also had the opportunity to introduce high school students to the opportunity to attend a masterclass in Podgorica, which should be held this year.

3D printing interested even the youngest (Photo: Luka Zekovic)

"Where they will have the ability to treat the patient in a simplified way by using certain applications, i.e., to choose the mode and intensity of the beam, set the required angle, etc. "

State-of-the-art hadron cancer therapy is at the heart of the project to establish the International Institute for Sustainable Technologies in Southeast Europe (SEEIIST).

The location of the Institute should be known by the end of next year, or beginning of 2021, construction would start in 2023, and some five years later, the first patients would be treated.

The SEEIIST Managing Committee is chaired by the Minister of Science Sanja Damjanovic.

Text by Milos Rudovic, on October 13th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

The Ministry of Interior will spend close to five million euros to cover cities with video surveillance.

The tender documentation, in addition to the cities being covered, does not specify how many cameras are required or their technical characteristics.

"The part of the tender documentation relating to the technical characteristics or specifications of the subject matter of the public procurement shall contain classified information ... and a statement by the authorized person of the interested person that he will take over part of the tender documentation to be kept and protected in accordance with the Law on Classified Information," it is stated in the tender.

A month ago, “Vijesti” reported that the Agency for Personal Data Protection and Free Access to Information had given its consent to Mevludin Nuhodzic’s department to set up cameras over public areas in Podgorica, Bar, Budva, and Cetinje.

Nuhodžić (Photo: Savo Prelević)

The Agency's council agreed to set up cameras in four cities at its session on August 12^th. The decision states that the period of use and storage of data is 30 days and that the exempted videos are used until the completion of criminal or misdemeanor proceedings, after which they are kept for three years for the offenders, the perpetrators of the offense for one year, for the wanted persons, until they are found.

The decision also stated that “personal data contained in the said records, or videos, are stored electronically on the servers at the premises of the MOI Data Center, which was declared as a safe zone”.

The MOI has agreed to display notices at video surveillance locations prominently.

The cameras, according to the tender available on the Public Procurement Portal, should be installed within one year from the date of contract conclusion.

When it comes to up to five million euros, it is stipulated that half of the contracted price should be paid in advance, within five days of signing the contract and submitting an advance guarantee, and the remaining part within 15 days of submission of the invoice, which must be verified by MOI.

The camera on a pole at 6th Montenegrin Brigade Street in Niksic (Photo: Boris Pejovic)

The subject procurement involves the preparation of design documentation, delivery, installation, connection, commissioning of equipment at the required locations and training users.

The guarantee period is at least one year and starts from the date of commissioning the equipment and signing the handover protocol, which must be verified by the Ministry of Interior and the bidder.

The Ministry of Interior is obliged to provide all the conditions for the delivery and installation of the technical protection system, which implies the provision of all site conditions (use of existing infrastructure-construction structures for the installation of equipment where possible, telecommunication and energy) as well as all necessary permits.

The cameras have been illegally placed in Kotor and Niksic, as stated by “Vijesti” several times.

More than three years ago, Vijesti found that the mafia was taking records of Kotor with cameras set up at numerous locations. Since then, video surveillance has been removed and reinstalled several times after the first actions of the AZLP, the police and the prosecution. During the summer, the authorities found that most of the "new" cameras in Kotor had not been installed in accordance with the law, but only one they do not know who is responsible for - it is installed on the lighting pole in front of the tunnel Vrmac.

When it comes to Niksic, the prosecution is investigating who has installed cameras at multiple locations (streets Nikola Tesla, Jole Piletic, Voja Deretic).

Text by Milos Rudovic, on October 15th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

In the future, children and young people will play a more active role in creating cultural policy strategies for the youngest audiences, and the Ministry of Culture will always support any cultural activity related to children and their creative activities. The Minister of Culture Aleksandar Bogdanovic promised this in an interview with UNICEF volunteers - young reporters of the media campaign "Let's Choose What We Watch", which was taken over by the Ministry of Culture in celebration of the 30th birthday of the Convention on Children's Rights.

“The current five-year Cultural Development Program expires next year, and we are about to begin creating a new five-year strategic document. I take this opportunity to invite you to join us and actively participate in the programming of our obligations in the field of cultural needs of children and young people, because it is important for us to hear your voice," said Bogdanovic.

A survey of a media literacy campaign found that two-thirds of children in Montenegro had not been to the theater during the past year; 75% of the children have not been in a museum; 85% have not visited an art exhibition; almost two-thirds have not attended a music concert.

Young reporter Nadja Lalovic pointed out that this data points to the significant educational and cultural poverty of children and, therefore, the spiritual poverty of a country. The Minister also agreed with this assessment and asked the young people for help in order to identify the reasons why children and young people have such an attitude towards consuming cultural and artistic content in our country.

Today at the Ministry (Photo: Duško Miljanić)

"In this way, we could jointly find a good solution and the right answer to this attitude of young people towards cultural activities. I also believe that we must approach this challenge systematically, more precisely, to involve the wider social community and multiple different sectors," said Bogdanovic.

Young reporter Jovana Popovic reminded the minister that there are many children in our country who would like to go to music concerts, theatrical performances, see the ballet or opera, but simply do not have this opportunity, because such programs are not offered or rarely offered in their cities, especially in the north of the country.

Answering this question, Bogdanovic promised that the programs of all cultural institutions within the competence of the Ministry would be accessible and visible in all Montenegrin cities, and not only on the home scene.

"Thus, the Montenegrin National Theater and the Royal Theater "Zetski dom" will play their performances alongside Podgorica and Cetinje, and on the stages in other cities of southern and northern Montenegro. The same rule applies to concerts of the Music Center and exhibitions of the Center for Contemporary Art,” said Bogdanovic.

Young reporters also recalled the fact that almost every cultural activity needs to be paid and given our standard, many parents cannot afford to enroll their children in art schools or centers to develop their talents, but also to become culturally literate. "That is why we believe the state must enable and support as many free cultural activities for children and young people across Montenegro as possible," said the young reporter Miljan Vlahovic.

The Minister, however, believes that the acquisition of cultural habits does not require a large amount of money, and that most cultural programs are available to children and adults free of charge.

"Visits to concerts of art music, art exhibitions, book promotions are free of charge, while for organized visits to theaters, film screenings or museums, the fee is symbolic," Bogdanovic said, adding that the Ministry would always support any activity in the culture related to children and their creative work.

Young reporter Dunja Sekulovic, a student at High Ballet School “Vasa Pavic”, said that young ballerinas did not have an adequate training room, and that the stage is not suitable for performing professional ballets. Minister Bogdanovic has announced that he will talk to Education Minister Damir Sehovic about resolving this issue.

The young reporters thanked Minister Bogdanovic for giving them his space in the Ministry of Culture for one day and reminded that children and young people develop creativity through art and learn to express emotions and attitudes initially and convincingly.

"That is why today when we took over the Ministry of Culture of Montenegro, we are saying - Culture for every child!" concluded the young reporter Dunja Sekulovic.

At the end of the interview, inspired by research data showing that every fifth child between the ages of 9-17 years had not read any books outside the school textbooks in recent years, he presented to young reporters the book “Montenegrin Dynasties”. He said: "Let's read more, let's choose what we read!".

The media campaign "Let's Choose What We Watch" was launched by the Electronic Media Agency of Montenegro and UNICEF in February last year. One year after its launch, every other citizen of Montenegro has heard of this campaign, which aims to encourage the development of media literacy of children and parents, as well as to strengthen the capacity of the media to produce quality media content with children and young people and to report in an ethically correct manner all issues of child rights in Montenegro. The campaign recently received a Global Media Literacy Award from the Global Media Literacy Association run by UNESCO in collaboration with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and the international network of universities.

Text by Vijesti online, on October 14th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

14 October 2019 - Prime Minister Duško Marković visited the construction site of the Đalovica Cave tourist complex and voiced his satisfaction with the works underway, noting that it is one of the most valuable Government projects that will create new jobs and stimulate other sectors of the Bijelo Polje region.

"I am here for the first time since 15 May 2018. In just a year, we have established an impressive track record. Novi Volvox, which won the cable car project to the Đalovica Cave, is doing a great job in difficult conditions. I do not expect that seven pillars of the cable car will be erected here in these conditions by the end of the year. Therefore, we have great contractors for this project - Novi Volvox and of course, Crnagoraput," said the Prime Minister, reports his Office.

He also visited the works on the substation, which is part of the new electricity structure for electricity supply of the cable car and the cave tourist complex, and drove from Bistrica to the Podvrh Monastery, where the cable car's base will be located.

"We saw a 5,5 km road, which is being built according to the highest standards. I have to admit that I am positively surprised that this time it is done with all the necessary facilities. This will be one of the highest quality roads in the country," Prime Minister Duško Marković stressed, congratulating Crnagoraput company and its subcontractors on high-quality works, which is also the case with all other infrastructure activities related to this project.

Speaking about the project that started a year and a half ago when the cable car construction agreement had been signed, the Prime Minister highlighted that the significance of this project could not be measured solely by the amount of money that had been allocated.

"This is one of the most valuable projects being implemented by the Government in the country. Not only because of the amount of money that will be invested in this project (18 million EUR) but because of the value this project brings with it and of course, the benefits that it will bring to Bijelo Polje, to this entire region, and the Montenegrin tourism and economy. I believe that with what we have already agreed on here, when it comes to the valorisation of the Đalovica Cave, in 2021 we will have an offer that will create new jobs and new opportunities for young people and, of course, give an incentive to other sectors to contribute to the making the best use of this area in terms of transport, agriculture, food industry and services," Prime Minister of Montenegro Duško Marković concluded.

Read more news about business in Montenegro at TMN's dedicated page.