WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
Choose language:
AUTHOR.M.J. GDNUS
On behalf of the International Committee for the Preservation and Development of the Faculty of Montenegrin Language and Literature, I express deep shock at reports that police in Podgorica responded with brutal force to a peaceful civic protest last night, said academician Andrew Baruch Wachtel, university professor, member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and Chair of the Committee.
"Media reports from Montenegro have circulated worldwide, showing images of citizens, nearly unconscious from pepper spray, seeking urgent medical assistance.
Among those peacefully protesting the Montenegrin government's controversial handling of the July 13th Award were Aleksandar Radoman, Dean of the Faculty of Montenegrin Language and Literature, and Stefan Todorović, a teaching assistant at the same faculty. Tragically, both of our colleagues were injured during the indiscriminate use of pepper spray on the assembled citizens. Dean Radoman required emergency medical treatment and was rushed to the Emergency Center.
We are deeply concerned that the current Montenegrin authorities are suppressing civic activism and academic criticism in ways that are both undemocratic and unacceptable. This situation demands an immediate and decisive response from international human rights organizations.
We stand in full solidarity with our colleagues at the Faculty and wish them a swift and complete recovery. Our Committee will do everything in its power to rally a strong response from the academic and scientific communities of Europe and beyond, against this harsh repression of free speech and public engagement by scholars and independent intellectuals in present-day Montenegro”, Wachtel stated.
The International Committee for the Preservation and Development of the Faculty of Montenegrin Language and Literature was established on April 15, 2021, and its members include:
Prof. Dr. Vanda Babić (Department of Croatian Studies, University of Zadar)
Academician Andrew Baruch Wachtel (American Academy of Arts and Sciences), Chair
Prof. Dr. Robert Bonjkowski (University of Silesia, Katowice)
Academician Stjepan Damjanović (Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb)
Dr. Előd Dudás (Faculty of Philology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest)
Prof. Dr. Marko Dragić (Faculty of Humanities, University of Split)
Dr. Mječislav Đekonjski (Dziekonski Translation, Erfurt, Germany)
Academician Mark L. Grinberg (University of Kansas, USA)
Prof. Dr. Artan Hadži (University of Shkodër)
Prof. Dr. Sanjin Kodrić (Faculty of Humanities, University of Sarajevo)
Prof. Dr. John Cox (North Dakota State University, Fargo, USA)
Prof. Dr. Milica Lukić (Faculty of Humanities, J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek)
Academician Ranko Matasović (Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb)
Academician Hasnija Muratagić-Tuna (Faculty of Humanities, University of Sarajevo)
Prof. Dr. Mimoza Priku (University of Shkodër)
Prof. Dr. Jakov Sabljić (Faculty of Humanities, J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek)
Prof. Dr. Simon Sazdov (Faculty of Humanities, University of Skopje)
Prof. Dr. František Šistek (Institute of History, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague)
Academician Emil Tokaž (University of Silesia, Katowice)
Prof. Dr. Amira Turbić-Hadžagić (Faculty of Humanities, University of Tuzla)
Prof. Dr. Lyudmila Vasilieva (Department of Slavic Languages, Ivan Franko National University, Lviv)
Prof. Dr. Ilija Velev (Institute of Macedonian Literature, Skopje)
