Contributed by: Vanja Mikulic and Irena Milatovic, Montenegro National VAW Monitors
Comments by The Advocates for Human Rights on the use of mediation in domestic violence situations: Mediation diminishes offender accountability for violent behavior and reflects an assumption that both parties are equally at fault for violence. It also may further endanger victims of domestic violence since, if seen as an alternative to criminal prosecution, it may allow for violent offenders to avoid criminal prosecution and sanctions for their behavior. Finally, as discussed in the OFPs and Family Law Issues section of this website, mediation is based on an assumption that both parties in a relationship have equal power to negotiate. This is usually not the situation in domestic violence cases and mediation may actually present additional risk of danger to victims.
The British organization Save the Children and the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Montenegro have initiated the program, "Mediation in Family-legal proceedings." This pilot project, supported by the Canadian Government, will provide free-of-charge mediation in court proceedings for the next two years.
Mediation is a confidential process, a compatible and recommended way of solving family conflicts, regulated by the adopted Law on mediation (attached to the article) according to which two parties voluntarily accept the help of a third party to get to an acceptable agreement. This law also regulates rules in mediation processes in civic-legal legations, including those from economic, family or other property-legal relations of psychological and legal entities.
Mediation is to be conducted in the basic courts of Montenegro, while mediators are lawyers, social workers, psychologists or pedagogues who had additional training for mediation in domestic proceedings. In domestic proceedings, which cover marital legations, proceedings regarding parent-children relations and regarding custody, the mediator will pay special attention to the best interests of children. The reached agreement, as stated by the Law, has the power of a court in the mediation process if the protocol takes over the judge, but not in cases when regulated in some other ways.
Within this program, the roundtable "Family Mediation in Montenegro" was held on 2 July 2007, in Hotel "Crna Gora" in Podgorica. Besides the presentation of mediation program in Montenegro, the experiences of the Republic of Slovenia in developing and conducting the mediation institute in civic-legal legations, as well as experiences of the Republic of Serbia in developing and conducting the mediation institute in family-legal legations, have been presented.
Source: Save the Children UK – Montenegro Program