As expected, the informal protest group “Kamo Śutra” made a strong statement once again. On Saturday at 7 PM, another protest took place in response to the unfulfilled demands following the Cetinje tragedy, where 13 people lost their lives. The protest began with 13 minutes of silence in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Knowing that Montenegro`s Prime Minister speaks Japanese and has lived and studied in Japan, the organizers decided to get their message across in a humorous way. After marching from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, across the Millennium Bridge, where they tied red ribbons to the statue of King Nikola in front of the Parliament, they made sure their demands were heard loud and clear.
At the statue, the organizers read out their demands and them played them as a Japanese voice message to ensure Prime Minister Milojko Spajić understood. Kamo Śutra representative Itana Dragojević thanked everyone for marching and for keeping the Cetinje tragedy from being forgotten.
“Since our Prime Minister didn`t seem to understand our demands in Montenegrin-Serbian-Croatian-Bosnian, we`ll repeat them tonight in his mother tongue Japanese,“ she said.
To recap, the protestors are demanding the resignation of Minister of Internal Affairs Danilo Šaranović and Deputy Prime Minister for Security and Defence Aleksa Bečić. They are also calling for police reform, the reintroduction of civic education, and better attention to mental health issues.
Student Milo Perović raised key questions: Who decided there should be only nine police officers in Cetinje that day? Why have the questions from the Human Rights Action group been ignored? Where did the perpetrator get the weapon? And has his phone been properly examined?
Protesters carried signs reading:
“Is that chair comfortable?”
“A crisis of morality”
“23 lives are not just a number”
“Black and suffering Montenegro”
“Peace is our reason”
The protest ended around 9:20 PM, but the fight continues. The group also announced their initiative #TieItSoltCanBeSeen on “X“, encouraging citizens to join them by tying red ribbons on the Millennium Bridge as a symbol of unity.
“This gesture is our reminder of the power of connection and standing together! Tie it so it can be seen so they know we`re here and we`re not backing down!“ that was the group`s final message!
Reading this, it`s hard not to feel the power of what these young people are doing. They`re not just protesting they`re fighting for justice and reminding everyone that when we stand together, we`re impossible to ignore. It`s inspiring to see such determination, especially in a world where it`s easy to feel like your voice doesn`t matter. But Kamo Śutra and all those marching show that, even when things seem impossible, the will of the people can make waves. Their message of unity, represented by the red ribbons, isn`t just a symbol, it`s a call for change that can`t be ignored. It`s a powerful reminder that no matter the obstacle, we should never back down from what`s right.
Written by our correspondent A.A.
