Back Montenegro advances implementation of the victims’ rights strategy

Podgorica 16 March 2026
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Montenegro advances implementation of the victims’ rights strategy

Montenegro has taken further steps to implement its  Victims’ Rights Strategy and Action Plan, establishing a Council to monitor progress across key institutions involved in the protection of victims’ rights.

The first coordination meeting of the Council, chaired by the Ministry of Justice on 16 March 2026, reviewed achievements in implementing the planned activities and discussed the main challenges in strengthening a victim-centred approach within the justice system.

Participants highlighted several key achievements over the past year, including but not limited to the adoption of the Guidelines on the victims right to compensation, efforts to harmonise penal policies related to gender-based violence and the specialisation of lawyers to provide free legal aid to victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.

Looking ahead, the revision of relevant criminal legislation and its full alignment with the EU Directives and standards of the Council of Europe, remains a priority, alongside measures aimed at ensuring its effective implementation in practice.

The effective implementation of the Strategy ensures that Montenegro continues aligning its legal and institutional framework with international standards on victims’ rights, as well as with the recommendations of international monitoring bodies. In doing so, Montenegro reaffirms its commitment to strengthening procedural guarantees for victims and advancing best practices in the protection and support of victims of crime.

The implementation of the certain aspects of the Victims Rights Strategy and Action Plan is supported through the action “Strengthening accountability of the judicial system and enhancing protection of victims’ rights in Montenegro,”, part of the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.

 

 

Horizontal Facility III

The joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” (Horizontal Facility III) is a co-operation initiative, running from 2023 until 2026. The programme covers actions in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Türkiye. It enables the Beneficiaries to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with European standards, which is also a priority for the EU enlargement process.

The envelope of this facility amounts to ca. 41 million EUR (85% funded by the EU, 15% by the CoE).

Find out more about the Horizontal Facility III programme >>

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.