OSCE holds second national workshop on asset recovery in Montenegro
The OSCE Secretariat held the second national workshop on the effective management and re-use of confiscated assets in Montenegro on 18 July.
The workshop focused on how to improve the management and re-use of assets confiscated from organized crime and corruption cases. Participants included representatives from the Montenegrin Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance, the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office, the Supreme Court, the Cadastre and State Property Administration, civil society organizations, and asset recovery experts.
In addition to raising awareness on the importance of developing and establishing an effective asset management and re-use system, the workshop also served as a consultative meeting for the Montenegrin authorities to discuss the new draft law on the confiscation of proceeds of crime and subsequent bylaws. Experts on asset confiscation, management, and re-use from Albania, Croatia, Romania, and the UK presented legislative frameworks and processes in their respective countries as well as practices from EU countries.
Representatives from the Government of Montenegro and the international community welcomed the workshop and emphasized the importance of asset management and the re-use of confiscated assets in the fight against crime and corruption. James J. Arguin, the senior justice advisor at the U.S. Embassy in Podgorica, stated that “Social re-use of assets serves two goals: it ensures that criminals do not profit from their crimes, and helps rebuild community resilience and respect for the rule of law.”
The event was organized as part of a regional extra-budgetary project on asset recovery that supports criminal justice practitioners and other key actors in the asset recovery cycle. This project is supported financially by the United States, Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom and implemented by the Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities.