This article first appeared in Balkan Insight

Samir Kajosevic – Podgorica – BIRN – November 9, 2021 – 13:33

November 9, 2021

The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Montenegrin authorities failed to protect prison guard Daliborka Spadijer from bullying by her colleagues after she reported some of them for abusing inmates.

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled on Tuesday that Montenegrin institutions failed to protect prison guard Daliborka Spadijer after she reported five of her colleagues for abusing inmates, and awarded her 5,500 euros in damages and costs.

“During the proceedings, an expert witness found that the applicant had psychological problems related to the conflict at work and that her capacity to function was permanently reduced by 20 per cent owing to post-traumatic stress disorder,” the Strasbourg-based rights court’s ruling said.

“Bullying at work affected the applicant’s psychological integrity while relevant domestic bodies failed to protect her,” it added.

In January 2013, Spadijer reported five of her colleagues for indecent behaviour at work on New Year’s Eve, claiming that some of them had entered the women’s prison and one of them had had “physical contact” with two inmates there, which had been tolerated by some of the female guards.

In March 2013, three police guards were fined for violating the procedures in the prison and one was temporarily suspended from work.

In August 2013, Spadijer requested Police Directorate to protect her against bullying and three months later instituted civil proceedings against her employer.

“Just over a week before the domestic court was due to rule in the ongoing civil proceedings, the applicant was assaulted in a car park. The attacker approached her from behind and inflicted several blows on the back of her neck and back, warning her to be careful what she’s doing,” the European Court’s ruling said.

In February 2015, the Basic Court in Podgorica ruled against Spadijer, saying she had offered no evidence. In June 2016, the first-instance judgment was upheld by the Higher Court and the Supreme Court respectively. After the Constitutional Court dismissed Spadijer’s appeal in November 2017, she went to the European Court.

The European Court said in its ruling that Montenegro violated Article 13 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which says that everyone must have an effective remedy before a national authority even if a violation has been committed by people acting in an official capacity.

Last year, a US State Department report on human rights practices warned about alleged police torture and the beating of inmates in prisons and detention centres in Montenegro.

The report said that NGOs alleged that several police officers who had been found to be responsible for violating the rules of their service, including cases of excessive use of force, remained in their jobs.

“Impunity remained a problem in the security forces, particularly among the police and prison officers,” the report said.