Montenegrin students are threatening to block one road per day in protest until two ministers are dismissed over the mass shooting that occurred in Cetinje on January 1.
The informal student group “Kuda Sutra?” (Where to Tomorrow?) announced their plan to escalate demonstrations, accusing the government of ignoring their demands regarding the tragic New Year’s Day attack.
Student representative Milo Perović stated on Monday that Prime Minister Milojko Spajić’s recent assessment of ministerial performance did not address their demand for the removal of two security-related ministers.
“We believe our protests can bring change in the security sector. We are here to fight until we achieve something,” Perović told TV Vijesti, stressing that students would not back down.
Students have already staged four protests in the capital, Podgorica, calling for the resignation of Interior Minister Danilo Saranović and Deputy Prime Minister for Security Affairs Aleksa Bečić.
Both politicians have refused to step down, claiming they bear no responsibility for the tragedy. Their party, Democrats, led by Bečić, accused the former ruling Democratic Party of Socialists and ex-president Milo Đukanović of orchestrating the protests. After Saranović and Bečić rejected resignation calls, students shifted their demand from voluntary resignation to direct dismissal by Prime Minister Spajić.
Spajić had invited the students for a meeting, but they refused to attend. On February 1, he informed them that all government ministers would undergo a performance evaluation.
The January 1 attack saw 45-year-old Ako Martinović go on a shooting spree in Cetinje, evading police for hours before committing suicide. The massacre left 12 people dead, with another victim succumbing to injuries later in the hospital.
