MONITORING REPORT ON HATE SPEECH IN MONTENEGRO – 2025

Montenegro is a culturally diverse society, in terms of its multiple religious and ethnic communities, and political tensions, hate speech, and disinformation represent a serious threat to society’s well-being. Over the past years, the country has repeatedly faced waves of misleading narratives and hostile rhetoric, particularly during moments of heightened social tensions. According to Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom index, Montenegro made a slight improvement in press freedom, moving from the 40th position in 2024 to 37th in 2025. Although the constitution and laws guarantee freedom of speech and expression, the index noted that “press freedom continues to be threatened by political interference, unresolved attacks on journalists, and economic pressure.”

In October 2024, the Government of Montenegro adopted the country’s first Media Strategy, following a prolonged process. The strategy pledged to improve gender-sensitive reporting, combat disinformation, support media literacy, strengthen the independence of public broadcasters, improve the socioeconomic position of journalists, and enhance fair competition in the media market. However, Montenegro’s media landscape remained highly polarised, and no progress was made in strengthening media self-regulation to overcome divisions within the media community.

Data collected by the Safe Journalists network show that over the past year, the trend of attacks on journalists, columnists, and photojournalists has escalated. Over the past year, there has been a noticeable increase in the authorities’ tolerance toward the glorification of Greater Serbian politics, the Chetnik movement, and similar ideologies. This is reflected in the actions of decision-makers toward the leaders of the Serbian Orthodox Church, who organised prayer services for representatives of the Chetnik movement and erected a monument to Chetnik leader Pavle Đurišić. All of this was reported in Serbian media by portrayals glorifying the Chetnik movement, as well as attacks on the civilian and media sectors that condemned such actions.

Download MONITORING REPORT ON HATE SPEECH IN MONTENEGRO – 2025