PODGORICA, 28.10.2021 – The preparatory hearing on the lawsuit of President Milo Djukanovic against businessman Dusko Knezevic and the daily “Vijesti” ended today in the Basic Court in Podgorica, while the beginning of the main hearing is scheduled for December 13.
In 2019, Djukanovic sued Knezevic and “Vijesti” for publishing an interview, in which the businessman accused the president of the state and the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) of illegally receiving money. This was preceded by the publication of a secretly recorded video in which Knezevic allegedly handed over 97,500 euros in an envelope to a high-ranking DPS official, Milutin Simovic.
In the lawsuit, Djukanovic demanded 50,000 euros from both defendants for violation of honor and reputation.
While Knezevic’s representatives stated that the only goal of the procedure against their client was to intimidate him, the president’s representatives stated that the civil procedure was “the usual procedure for the protection of personal rights”.
“In the lawsuit and in the submission, we have clearly pointed out the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, which warns that there must be a clear factual basis for accusations, even from the highest state officials,” the defendant states.
Lawyers of Knezevic also announced his hearing, to which the prosecutor asked how the hearing would be held, because he was inaccessible to the authorities.
The representative of “Vijesti” proposed the expertise of experts who will determine whether the journalist influenced the interlocutor in any way during the interview on what he will announce.
The research of the Trade Union of Media of Montenegro showed that from 2011, when defamation was decriminalized, until 2021, as many as 210 cases were initiated against journalists and the media due to violation of the honour and reputation. The total amount requested is more than three million euros, and Djukanovic’s lawsuit is among the largest.