[1] According to a 2008 study, the government of Montenegro engages in a very small amount of discrimination against its Muslim minority and breakaway Orthodox groups present in the country.
[2] However, according to a 2017 survey conducted by the Council of Europe in cooperation with the Office of the Ombudsperson of Montenegro, 45% of respondents reported having experienced religious discrimination.
[1] Montenegro has historically been at the crossroads of different cultural regions, and this has shaped its unique form of co-existence between Muslim and Christian populations.
[5] For much of the second half of the 20th century, Montenegro was part of Yugoslavia, which established a nominally secular state (although at times it displayed favoritism toward the Serbian Orthodox Church), and did not engage in anti-religious campaigns to the extent of other countries in the Eastern Bloc.
[9] In 2012 a protocol passed that recognizes Islam as an official religion in Montenegro, ensures that halal foods will be served at military facilities, hospitals, dormitories and all social facilities; and that Muslim women will be permitted to wear headscarves in schools and at public institutions, as well as ensuring that Muslims have the right to take Fridays off work for the Jumu'ah (Friday)-prayer.
Ensuing controversy led to public demonstrations of several tens of thousands of people, as well as disruption in parliament by ministers belonging to the Democratic Front trying to prevent the passage of the new law.
Representatives of other religious groups stated some concerns with the new law, but recognized that the primary point of contention at the time only affected the Serbian Orthodox Church.
[4] A 2012 law establishes that Muslim religious needs, such as halal food or the right to not work on Fridays, are provided for in the military and public institutions.
[10] The constitution states foreign nationals fearing persecution in their home countries on the grounds of religion have the right to request asylum.
Failure to comply with the ombudsman’s request for corrective action within a defined period is punishable by fines of 500 to 2,500 euros.
New religious groups must register with local police within 15 days of their establishment to receive the status of a legal entity, although there is no penalty specified for failing to do so.
Registration entitles groups to own property, hold bank accounts in their own name, and receive a tax exemption for donations and sales of goods or services directly related to their religious activities; however, lack of registration or recognition does not affect a group’s ability to conduct religious activities.
[1] The government has agreements with the Islamic and Jewish Communities and the Holy See further defining the legal status of the respective groups and regulating their relationship with the state.
[3] According to a 2008 study, Montenegro engages in a very small amount of discrimination against its Muslim minority and breakaway Orthodox groups present in the country.
This dispute dates back to the original establishment of the Montenegrin Orthodox Church as a separate entity, a process which began in 1993 and which was completed in 2000.
[1] A survey published in March 2017 and carried out by the Council of Europe and the Office of the Ombudsperson, as part of the council’s “Support to the National Institutions in Preventing Discrimination in Montenegro” project, found increases in perceptions of religious discrimination since the previous study (2015) across all five areas surveyed (employment, education, health care, public services, and culture).
According to the survey, perception of discrimination were highest by a significant margin among Serbian Orthodox Church members, followed by Catholics, those with no religious affiliation, and Muslims.