On Montenegro's largest and Europe's largest pasture, Sinjajevina Mountain, a gathering was held on Rašačka Glava on October 26, 2024. Here, on the traditional threshing floor, the local herding community, activists, and citizens expressed their profound dissatisfaction with recent attempts to turn the mountain into a wind farm site. The main conclusion of the gathering was that this plan is being carried out behind the backs of the people and the herding community, just as there was a previous attempt to turn Sinjajevina into a military training ground.

The gathered citizens were clear in their message that Sinjajevina should be neither a military training ground nor an energy facility but should remain what it is—a “factory of the finest organic food” and a paradise for herding and tourism.

It was particularly emphasized that the plan to build wind farms is being implemented illegally and without any genuine consultation with the local community and other Montenegrin citizens, violating international conventions and basic citizens' rights. “People live here. For centuries, we have used this land as a pasture, as communal land, a shared resource, and it is our right to participate in public discussions and decisions about the use and management of this space. Furthermore, energy transition laws have been abused in a way that has us subsidizing private wind farms with our own money while privileged individuals profit. Someone wants to drive us off, devastate our mountain, and make us pay for it,” stated one speaker.

Numerous criticisms were also directed at former and current governments, who, contrary to the Spatial Plan of Montenegro and other lower-ranking plans, and without public discussion, signed 30-year concession agreements for 8.5 million square meters on Sinjajevina with private companies for the construction of wind farms. “When public discussions were held earlier this year on the Draft of the New Spatial Plan of Montenegro, many citizen objections were raised about the mountain being converted from a protected area and nature park to a military training ground. At the time, there was silence about wind farms, and we later realized that the government had already leased Sinjajevina to concessionaires and even issued urban-technical conditions. This is a gross violation of procedures and citizens' rights in Montenegro!” said one of the speakers. Another speaker cautioned, “Wind turbines might be good, but they don’t belong here. Sinjajevina’s natural wealth and biodiversity even exceed the strict European Natura 2000 standards, making it part of the world’s network of precious ecosystems.”

One participant’s speech included, “Sinjajevina doesn’t belong to you or me; this treasure belongs to humanity. Our duty is to preserve what belongs to nature and future generations. We didn’t inherit Sinjajevina by chance—someone preserved it for us, and we must do the same for those who come after us!” Concerned about the plans to install dozens of wind turbines on Sinjajevina, the gathering highlighted that such projects would not only disrupt the natural balance but also the lives of people who have lived in harmony with nature on these lands for centuries.

The gathering demanded an immediate halt to all work related to the installation of wind farms and called for an urgent meeting with representatives of the Montenegrin Government and Assembly. The idea of seeking a local, or even a national referendum was also proposed to allow the people of Sinjajevina and other Montenegrins to decide the future of this area. “The government should serve the people. Sinjajevina and Montenegro are not a playground for tycoons and concessionaires.”

Participants also emphasized that further secret and arbitrary reclassification of land on Sinjajevina is unacceptable, demanding the fulfillment of the 2016 plan, which proposed Sinjajevina be declared a nature park managed by the local community, in line with recommendations from the Nature and Environment Protection Agency and the European Union.

The conclusion of the gathering was that wind turbines cannot be considered progress when they threaten the basic sources of livelihood for local communities. “If some of us don’t want to engage in herding today, that’s no reason to destroy this unique herding and natural resource. Who guarantees that our grandchildren won’t be wiser and want this? We must not take away their opportunity,” it was emphasized at the gathering.

The attendees concluded that the local community and other citizens would oppose the land reclassification and the construction of wind farms on Sinjajevina through all legal means, including protests. It was specifically highlighted that “Sinjajevina belongs to the people who live here, to the citizens of Montenegro who want to protect its treasures, not to companies and concessionaires.”

Speakers at the gathering included Mileva Gara Jovanović, Stanija Cana Braunović, Novak Tomović, Petar Glomazić, Zoran Knežević, Vesko Krcunović, Miroslav Mališić, Dragan Sošić, Mijomir Rakočević, Zoran Milošević, Miljan Minić, Milan Sekulović, and others.