A protest is happening in front of the Ministry of Social Welfare, Family Care, and Demographics in Podgorica under the slogan “We Are Reality, You Are a Myth.” It’s organized by the Association of Youth with Disabilities of Montenegro (UMHCG) because Minister Damir Gutić hasn’t responded to their proposals for changes to the Law on Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of People with Disabilities.
Goran Macanović, the executive director of the Blind Union, said they heard that the working group received analysis reports they were supposed to publish but didn`t because, apparently, they don`t even have them.
He also accused Gutić and his ministry of creating the law “based on lies.“
“They ignored the previous working group`s reports because those wouldn`t support their bad law. The ministry is working with false data,“ Macanović said.
He then called on Minister of Labor and Social Welfare Nadia Nišić to listen to their demands, saying, “We`re not leaving until they do.“
``Nišić is the first minister to bring people with disabilities to the streets for a protest. She must not be the first to make them sleep outside in protest,`` he added.
Milijana Ćirković, president of the Montenegro Paraplegic Association, said that more than €10 million has been taken from people with disabilities.
UMHCG also said they keep uncovering new details that show serious flaws in the proposed law.
“This time, as we prepare for the protest, we`re sharing just one example: the official records on the number of employed people with disabilities and their employers at the end of 2024 don`t even match. And that`s just the tip of the iceberg,`` the association stated.
Honestly, it`s wild that in 2024, people still have to fight this hard just to get a fair shot at employment. It`s not like they`re asking for a luxury they just want a law that actually works for them, not against them. If the ministry is really using bad data, that`s a huge problem.
How can you make fair policies when the numbers you`re using aren`t even real? At the very least, they should sit down with these organizations and actually listen.
Written by our correspondent A.A.
