Young people should be able to recognize that Montenegro became NATO member so that they can live in a safe country, with greater democratic capacities and respect for human rights, it was said at the finishing conference of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights (CEDEM), organized as part of the project entitled “Let’s adopt the attitude for future perspectives: association of the youth and NATO”.
CEDEM director, Ms Milena Bešić, pointed out that security was one of the fundamental prerequisites for establishment of democracy, rule of law and human rights in every society.
“For 20 years, CEDEM has been implementing a great number of projects within Security and Defense program, in which special emphasis has been put on the participation of young people”, said Ms Bešić.
According to the latest CEDEM research conducted in July, support for NATO is in slight decline.
“According to our research, society is generally divided regarding this question, and citizens’ interest in NATO has declined. It is, therefore, very important to work on the education and raising awareness”, said Ms Bešić.
Specialized research “Young people and meeting the contemporary security challenges”, which was carried out last year, showed that general knowledge of this topic is very low.
“That fact inspired us to design special project aimed at raising awareness and educating young people about NATO and its advantages”, said Ms Bešić .
Defense Minister, Mr Predrag Bošković, pointed out that NATO was not just about the army and security. NATO is, he said, is the most powerful military and political alliance and all member states have got very developed democratic standards.
“Young people should be able to recognize that Montenegro’s NATO accession is for their own good. We rendered that decision so that they can live in peaceful environment, form families in a safe country, a country with greater democratic capacities and full respect for human rights”, said Mr Bošković.
He said that benefits of NATO membership were numerous.
“Membership will provide Montenegro’s protection from any form of enemy action”, said Mr Bošković.
Economic development is closely connected to security.
“A society needs to be safe if it wants to attract investment. After we became NATO member, investment from NATO members soared. Security is the first of all conditions”, said Mr Bošković.
NATO membership will enable Montenegro’s accelerated growth and development.
“NATO membership was one of the most important decisions we could make, as it will enable Montenegro to become part of modern Europe and it will stimulate the entire Western Balkans region and encourage it to forget about misunderstandings, conflicts and disparagement and to lead us all towards European and Euro-Atlantic integration”, said mr Bošković.
Lecturer in the Humanistic Studies of the University Donja Gorica, Ms Nikoleta Đukanović, pointed out that security challenges were serious, numerous and very unpredictable.
“That’s why it’s very important to emphasize NATO’s role. Education of young people is essential”, said Ms Đukanović .
According to her, there are three key segments when it comes to NATO.
“First and foremost, they are security and stability, which lead to development. NATO’s role in the process of the democratic consolidation of Montenegro is very important, but it’s often neglected”, explained Ms Dukanović.
Citizens should be familiar with common values NATO shares: peace, stability, security, solidarity, rule of law, individual freedoms and well-being.
Project coordinator and program manager in CEDEM, Mr Ognjen Marković, said that the first and key activity of the project was conducting the campaign on social media.”
“The whole team tries to bring this topic closer to young people, through visual representations, posters, video recordings and animations”, said Mr Marković.
“We’ve also formed a three-day school for young staff. It took place in June in Petrovac and it gathered around 30 representatives of youth organizations, NGOs, judiciary, prosecutor’s office and state institutions in the field of security”, said Mr Marković.
Apart from that, they formed a set of interactive workshops in gymnasiums in Mojkovac, Nikšić, Podgorica, Kolašin and Bijelo Polje. They also conducted interviews with those who have nothing to do with security area but could tell what NATO represented for them and what benefits it brought.
Student of Humanistic Studies, Ms Milica Đukanović, said it was very important to understand that integration processes “ do not refer to politicians, but also on government and decision –makers, but they rather require active and responsible engagement of all social groups”.
Winner of the essay competition “What NATO means to me”, and student of the Faculty of Law, Jovan Dabović, says that NATO is based on three fundamental principles: openness, equality and security. For him, NATO i the guarantee of peace, security, economic prosperity and development.
“I call on young people to take part in similar competitions, as they are very important for the society as a whole”, concluded Mr Dabović.
