15 Amendments of Andrey KOVATCHEV related to 2016/2309(INI)
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Continues to be deeply concerned about the polarised domestic climate and the boycott of parliamentary activities by members of the opposition; urges again allopposition political forces to re- engage in constructive cooperation within the Montenegrin parliament in order to reduce the backlog of laws pending in the parliament and take advantage of the offer of the Prime Minister to participate in the government in exchange for ending the boycott; calls for further reinforcement of the parliament’s scrutiny of the accession process and capacity for budget oversight; insists repeatedly on the need for a due follow-up on the ‘audio-recording affair’; commends the parliament for continuing to exhibit a high level of transparency and replying to all information requests;
Amendment 80 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Welcomes the new public administration reform strategy (PAR) 2016-2020, the public financial management reform programme, the entry into force of the new law on salaries and the simplification of administrative procedures; calls on the need for further policy coordination on issues of substance; calls for measures to allocate the appropriate budgetary resources for PAR’s implementation, as well as for consistent political will to rationalise public administration, also in view of accession preparations; encourages the government to further improve the participation of stakeholders in Montenegro's accession process; encourages further depoliticisation of the public administration, and considers it essential to adhere to the principles of merit, accountability and transparency, timely regulatory impact assessment and to ensure the citizens’ right to good administration, free of corruption and their right to information, free of corruption; encourages self-sufficiency of local self- government;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Notes progress in judiciary reform, including improved institutional capacities; remains concerned about undue influence on judicial independence, especially with regard to the appointment of judges; emphasises the need to strengthen the accountability of the judiciary by developing a track record of implementation of codes of ethics and of the new disciplinary systems for judges and prosecutors; stresses the need to rationalise the judicial network, and to further improve capacities to monitor backlogs at courts and to reduce further the number of pending cashighlights the urgent need to tackle the non-implementation of court decisions regarding access to information and to counter the prevalent practice of declaring documents as confidential - while not necessarily warranted - in order to restrict access; stresses the need to rationalise the judicial network, and to further improve capacities to monitor backlogs at courts and to reduce further the number of pending cases; highlights the importance of raising public awareness to the existing complaint mechanisms; while some progress was made in the follow-up of war crimes, expresses regret that the judicial decisions reached so far have contained legal mistakes and shortcomings in the application of international humanitarian law; furthermore, Montenegro needs to ensure unfettered access to justice and compensation for victims of war crimes;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. WNotes with concern that corruption remains prevalent in many areas, but welcomes the further strengthening of the anti-corruption framework, inter alia by making the Anti-Corruption Agency fully operational and by appointing special anti- corruption prosecutors as well as addressing the needs for specialised long- term training; considers it essential to ensure their independence in investigations; emphasizes the importance of making the confiscation of assets routine during corruption proceedings; stresses repeatedly the need to establish a track record on successful investigations and convictions, in particular in high-level corruption cases, and on measures to prevent corruption including applying sanctions provided for by law effectively; calls on the new government to make combating corruption one of its priorities by allocating sufficient human and budgetary resources to the task; calls for an effective investigation into potential whistle-blowing cases and their adequate protection; calls attention to the fact that illicit enrichment has not been made a criminal offence in Montenegro and calls on the government to do so;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Notes the adoption of an action plan for fighting money laundering and terrorism financing, and the signing of the Additional Protocol to the Council of Europe’s Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism; stresses the need to continue to develop the track record in organised crime cases, especially as regards trafficking in human beings and money laundering, as well as to improve the identification and protection of victims of trafficking; to ensure stronger inter-agency cooperation and to further intensify regional and international cooperation in the fight against organised crime; highlights the need to launch financial investigations systematically in parallel with regular investigations;
Amendment 108 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Welcomes the new strategy to combat violent extremism in 2016-2018, which complements the national strategy for preventing and combating terrorism, money laundering and the financing of terrorism; notes the setting up of a new intelligence unit tasked with identifying and monitoring potential members of violent extremist groups; considers it important to identify people in the early stages of radicalisation in order to prevent them from being recruited by violent extremist groups; calls on the importance of raising institutional awareness to monitor possible terrorist threats;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Remains concerned about continued gender-based violence, the lack of prosecutions and the inefficient support to, and protection of, victims; calls for measures to establish adequate protection services, enhance relevant inter- institutional coordination, make effective use of the new unified database of cases of domestic violence, and implement the 2016-2020 strategy on combating domestic violence; stresses the importance of encouraging women’s representation in politics, as well as their access to the labour market; notes the continued implementation of the 2013-2017 action plan on gender equality; highlights the fact that challenges remain in coordinating policies concerning children and that violence against children remains a concern;
Amendment 135 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13 a. Emphasises the need to work constantly and seriously on the harmonization of the Montenegrin legal system with international legal standards of human rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities, in order to respect principles of rule of law and constitutionality and legality;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Remains concerned about the state of media freedom in Montenegro; and notes that while defamation was decriminalised in 2012, the number of defamation cases remains high which points to weak self-regulation; urges again the competent authorities to resolve the long-pending cases of violence against, intimidation of and threats made to journalists, to take measures to protect media professionals and to create a safe environment for free journalism; highlights the importance for the judiciary to align their decisions to the maximum possible extent with the case- law of the European Court of Human Rights; insists on transparent state advertising in private media, on the amendment of the Montenegrin criminal code and on the introduction of new criminal offenses aimed at preventing and punishing attacks on journalists discharging their professional duties; acknowledges the legal measures taken to provide greater financial independence and sustainability for the public service broadcaster RTCG, and calls for further steps to ensure its independence, including editorial independence;
Amendment 155 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. While noting favourable economic developments, urges the new government to launch further structural reforms with a view to improving the business and investment climate as well as move the country towards a competitive export- oriented industry, including measures aimed at reducing the informal sector, and to pursue efforts to diminish state involvement in the economy; calls for the rationalisation of public spending, as well as for intensified efforts to strengthen the rule of law and contract enforcement; calls for the need to tackle high external imbalances as well as the rapidly rising public debt, and calls for the re-evaluation of public infrastructure investment projects which challenge fiscal sustainability; calls for ensuring that further measures of financial and non- financial measures are available to support SMEs; welcomes the fact that the prices for regional roaming services further decreased;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Notes the modest decline in unemployment; welcomes the new 2016- 2020 national strategy for employment and human resources development and the accompanying 2016 action plan; continues to be concerned about high youth unemployment and poor labour mobility; calls for proactive labour market measures to increase employment and to support women, the vulnerable populations, people with disabilities and young people through education, career guidance, training and employment;
Amendment 164 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16 a. While some progress was made in developing transport infrastructure including through the South East Europe Transport Observatory, a lack of cross- border roads are hindering trade and tourism; welcomes efforts carried out so far in the interest of liberalizing the railway sector in Montenegro; calls on the need to coordinate with neighbouring countries on the issues of connectivity and allow it to become part of the planning process for infrastructure projects;
Amendment 167 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)
Paragraph 16 b (new)
16 b. Stresses the importance of strengthening the SME sector and providing support through better legislation, financing, implementation of industrial policy and reducing the informal economy as well as speeding up electronic registration of companies nation-wide;
Amendment 168 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Welcomes the new law on the environment, as well as the national strategy for the transposition and implementation of the EU acquis on the environment and climate change and its 2016-2020 action plan; stresses the need to reinforce implementation efforts, in particular in water, nature protection and waste management, as well as related administrative capacities at all levels; is concerned about the significant delay in establishing protection over the potential Natura 2000 site of Ulcinj Salina; calls for further efforts to preserve the biodiversity of the Salina and the sustainable development of the coastline; calls on Montenegro to introduce legislation implementing the Third Energy Package;
Amendment 174 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17 a. Acknowledges the good progress made in the area of energy, including in the area of interconnections with partner countries; calls on Montenegro to introduce legislation implementing the Third Energy Package; welcomes the fact that wholesale electricity prices are freely formed and that Montenegro has a favourable environment for energy investments; calls on the country to adopt the implementing legislation for the Renewable Energy Directive; highlights that the planning of new hydropower projects should take into account the relevant EU legislation on the environment, while taking note of incentives for the use of renewable sources;