Centre for Civic Education (CCE) condemns the remarks made by Milan Knežević, Member of Parliament and President of the Democratic People’s Party (DNP), during the session of the Parliament of Montenegro held on 28 July 2026, and calls for proceedings to be initiated, in accordance with the Code of Ethics for Members of Parliament, to determine his responsibility. We call on the authorised complainants under Article 16 of the Code of Ethics to make use of the mechanisms provided by the Code without delay.
Freedom of speech in Parliament does not exclude political and ethical responsibility for speech that violates the dignity of citizens and incites prejudice and intolerance. The Code of Ethics requires MPs to act in accordance with the principles of responsibility, mutual respect, and the protection of Parliament’s integrity. Article 5 prohibits discrimination, including discrimination based on sexual orientation, while Article 6 requires MPs to perform their duties in line with moral principles, professional standards, and the public interest. Oversight of the implementation of the Code of Ethics is entrusted to the Committee on Human Rights and Freedoms.
CCE points out that none of the five draft laws debated yesterday concerned the regulation of same-sex life partnerships. The amendments in question were solely of a technical nature, intended to harmonise legislation with the Law on Same-Sex Life Partnership adopted in 2020, as confirmed during the debate by the Minister of the Interior, Danilo Šaranović.
The problem lies not only in the insults themselves – ranging from vulgar language to fabricated claims about same-sex weddings on the beaches of Budva. The entire speech was constructed to portray same-sex couples as competitors to citizens of Serbian nationality who do not hold Montenegrin citizenship, deliberately pitting two groups of citizens against one another. No one’s rights are diminished when someone else enjoys equal rights, and politics that claims otherwise does not solve problems but deepens divisions.
When the historical persecution of people because of their sexual orientation is presented in Parliament as an example of a desirable social order, the boundaries of acceptable public discourse are shifted. Such messages, delivered from the country’s highest political platform, contribute to the normalisation of discrimination and intolerance and therefore require a clear institutional response.
CCE recalls that the same MP publicly stated in May this year that he would kill anyone who called him homosexual. No institutional response followed that statement either. The absence of consequences after each such statement creates space for increasingly severe forms of hate speech. It is further alarming that Montenegro has dropped nine places in ILGA-Europe’s latest Rainbow Map compared to 2024. The report notes that the rights guaranteed under the Law on Same-Sex Life Partnership have still not been fully implemented six years after its adoption and recommends that the legislation finally be fully harmonised.
CCE also regrets that the presiding did not react to the content of the speech, interrupting the session only after mutual insults and the prevention of a physical altercation. Equally concerning is the fact that no parliamentary group publicly condemned the remarks, leaving public attention focused on the incident rather than on the discriminatory messages directed at one group of citizens.
The Parliament of Montenegro must not be a place where the dignity of citizens can be violated with impunity because of their personal characteristics. If the Code of Ethics is not applied when there are reasonable grounds to believe that its fundamental principles – prohibition of discrimination, responsible conduct, and protection of Parliament’s integrity – have been breached, then it loses its very purpose. We therefore expect the authorised complainants to initiate proceedings and the Committee on Human Rights and Freedoms to demonstrate that the rules apply equally to all Members of Parliament.
Equality is an obligation that Montenegro has undertaken through its own legislation and in the course of its European Union accession process. It is not a favour granted to some citizens, but a duty owed to all.