Montenegro has initiated the development of its National Strategy for safeguarding victims' rights, aiming to establish a framework for systematic protection and support, especially for the most vulnerable groups. With the support of the EU and Council of Europe, the inaugural co-ordination meeting of relevant institutions and international partners convened in Podgorica to facilitate the exchange of diverse perspectives and experiences, as well as to deliberate on best practices and outline essential steps to ensure victims receive requisite support and protection, in line with European standards.

The  action on “Strengthening accountability of the judicial system and enhancing protection of victims’ rights in Montenegro”  has provided significant assistance to Montenegrin authorities in the process of enhancing the legislative and institutional framework to better safeguard victims' rights. This assistance involves aligning with the standards of the Council of Europe and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights in this domain. Despite notable progress, Montenegro still lacks a comprehensive and systematic approach to address victims' rights adequately. In response to this challenge, the first National Strategy for protecting victims' rights is being formulated.

In the forthcoming months, through the preparation of ex-ante analyses, the initial draft of the Strategy on protecting victims' rights will be crafted.

This initiative is conducted in the framework of 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” which is enabling the Beneficiaries to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with European standards.