She has said that the book presented on the International Anti-Corruption Day has been the result of a project that has brought together a group of students from different parts of Montenegro, as well as NGOs Juventas and ATAK and American organisation dealing with scenic art, The Moth, MINA news agency carried.
“We were lucky to have two representatives of The Moth organisation participating in the project. They have worked for a week with a group of students from Montenegro to shape their personal stories about the ethical dilemmas they faced, in order for them to finally present them live and without notes to audience in Cetinje and Podgorica,” Uyehara has said.
The book is printed in the Montenegrin, English and Albanian language, which, as she has said, illustrates the intention of the Embassy to strengthen communication between the different groups.
“Regardless whether these stories are told live or written, all of them carry a strong message. They all underline the struggle to make the right ethical choices,” Uyehara has said.
Executive Director of the NGO Juventas Ivana Vujovic has said that during the project they visited high schools and asked students whether there were some among them who had never cheated on the exams or tried to get a better grade in an easier way.
“Wherever we asked that, no student in the classes stood up and said ‘I have never made anything that would be contrary to a common ethical standard’ and that it was not allowed to cheat during their education,” she said.
According to her, education of the youth about corruption is crucial in the fight against this phenomenon, and young people, ad she said, represent the best partner when learning about the values at stake.
“Young people in Montenegro are exposed to multiple and often conflicting messages. While the rule of law and democracy are presented to them through formal and informal education, young people are witnessing various acts that do not fit into acceptable behaviour, but go unpunished,” Vujovic said.
As she said, corrupt and discriminatory behaviour is acquired, and respect and integrity are learnt.
“Therefore it is necessary to work with young people in the way they find inspiring and involve them as much as possible,” Vujovic said.
Vasko Raicevic from the ATAK said that, while preparing stories for the book, they had tried to shape the personal experiences of young people in the right way.
He said that young people had learnt what to tell at the beginning, and what to leave until the end of the story.
“Almost every story deals with some of the problems in society, even though it was not our initial intention,” Raicevic said.
Project participant Milica Perovic said that her main motive to apply to participate in the project was “a joy to write”.
“I have always wanted to write and I wanted to see how stories are created in interaction with peers and people who are trained to write,” she said, explaining that her story was related to the problem of discrimination against minorities.
The book “Stories about everyday ethical dilemmas” has been written within the same project of NGOs Juventas and ATAK and with the financial support of the US Embassy to Montenegro.
