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Home Newsroom News and press releases Guidelines on general principles regarding non-punishment provision of victims of trafficking presented at OSCE-supported event in Podgorica
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Guidelines on general principles regarding non-punishment provision of victims of trafficking presented at OSCE-supported event in Podgorica

12 December 2018
Maryse Daviet (centre-left), Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, and Zoran Ulama (centre-right), National Co-ordinator and Head of the THB National Co-ordinator's Office within the Interior Ministry, presenting the Guidelines on general principles regarding non-punishment provisions for victims of trafficking in human beings (THB) for Montenegrin police officers, state prosecutors and judges, Podgorica, 12 December 2018. (OSCE/Marina Živaljević) Photo details

Guidelines on general principles regarding non-punishment provisions for victims of trafficking in human beings (THB) were presented to Montenegrin police officers, state prosecutors and judges on 12 December 2018 in Podgorica.

The guidelines, developed by the National Co-ordinator’s Office within the Interior Ministry in co-operation with the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, are designed to assist the authorities to ensure that the human rights of trafficked victims are fully respected.

The Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, Maryse Daviet, said that trafficking in human beings continues to be a major concern for the OSCE participating States and national and international organizations.

“Today’s challenges are global in nature and can only be managed together,” said Daviet.  “This issue is currently treated as both a human rights issue and as a major security threat impacting organized crime across borders.”

Daviet assessed that Montenegro has taken constructive and important steps forward in establishing strategic measures in the fight against THB.

Zoran Ulama, National Co-ordinator and Head of the THB National Co-ordinator's Office within the Interior Ministry, said: “We have proven, not only through our strategic documents, but also through our activities that we are ready to lend a hand to all positive forces aimed at preventing trafficking in human beings,” said Ulama.

Ulama said that Montenegro has the capacity to truly fight THB challenges: “We must ensure the dignity of victims is respected and give them all the necessary help and protection; we must also ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice and severely punished,”  he said.

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro has been assisting the National Co-ordinator’s Office to implement the 2012 - 2018 National Strategy and current Action Plan to fight trafficking in human beings. The Mission has also assisted with the development of the new 2019-2024 strategy regarding Trafficking in Human Beings strategy, which the government plans to adopt soon.