Environmental Protests Halt Military Exercises in Montenegro

Sinjajevina is an area known for its sprawling highland pastures and biodiversity. (Wikimedia Commons)

Environmental activists, farmers, and local citizens gathered at Mount Sinjajevina in Montenegro on October 16 to protest the militarization of highland pastures. The Montenegrin military has regularly frequented Mount Sinjajevina for its military exercises, alarming protesters who argued that the explosives used during the military drills are devastating the local environment.

Besides damage to habitats for numerous organisms, the protesters contended that the explosions would contaminate the water and could harm local citizens and ecotourism. The protesters organized watch-guards to prevent the military exercises from being carried out. For several days, they challenged the mortar shootings and stayed on-site during both the day and night. 

In response to the protests, the military has halted its exercises in Sinjajevina. “We will not clash with the citizens. We want to convince them that what we are doing is for the benefit of all. We should meet and talk about this issue,” said Montenegrin Minister of Defense Predrag Boskovic. However, he also added, “We have to find a way to get the military training done. It is impossible to have an army without a military training ground on our territory.”

According to the Montenegro National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan for 2016 to 2020, Sinjajevina functions as a national park and a center of biological diversity, especially for mammals. It also potentially will serve as a bird protection area and an Area of Special Conservation Interest in the Emerald Network, an ecological network of Areas of Special Conservation Interest to protect nature in Europe. 

Military activity may harm traditional and environmental communities in Montenegro, argued an international alliance campaign called Land Rights Now. In a statement released on July 15, they condemned the militarization of Sinjajevina and the areas surrounding it. They further recommended that the government immediately stop the militarization of Sinjajevina, provide shelter and protection to ecosystems, start implementing European environmental standards as described in the Green New Deal for Europe, and make collaborative efforts with representatives of Sinjajevina communities to protect the pastures.

Environmental protests are nothing new to Montenegro. Over the past two years, activists have protested the oil drilling in the Adriatic Sea, calling attention to the harm it will cause to marine wildlife and local jobs. 
Yet some activists have made it clear that they do not stand against the government. “Don’t turn the story around and say that we are against the Army of Montenegro. We are not against VCG [the Armed Forces of Montenegro], but against the wrong decisions of the Government of Montenegro,” said Milan Sekulović, a member of the civic initiative Let’s Save Sinjajevina.