Federal Republic of Yugoslavia: Decree of 1992 on the Providing for Dislocated Persons (Montenegro)

Date of entry into force:30 July 1992

I. INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS

Article 1

The present Decree regulates the issues of temporary shelter, providing for, protection, and registration of dislocated persons, and settling of their status.

Article 2

Persons considered to be dislocated persons, in terms of the present Decree, are citizens of former Yugoslav republics and other persons who had to leave their homes because of persecution based on national, religious, and political grounds, and flee to t he Republic of Montenegro (hereinafter referred to as: the Republic).

Article 3

Providing for dislocated persons includes: organized shelter, temporary accommodation, aid in nourishment, appropriate health protection and schooling, material and other kinds of aid.

Dislocated persons shall exercise their rights and obligations pursuant to Paragraph 1. of the present Article according to their place of residence in the Republic.

II. ORGANIZATION AND MANNER OF EXTENDING AID IN PROVIDING FOR DISLOCATED PERSONS

Article 4

A Commissariat for Dislocated persons with the Government of the Republic of Montenegro (hereinafter referred to as: the Commissariat) shall be established for the purpose of discharging professional and other tasks relating to the providing for dislocated persons and administrative affairs related to them, and shall act as a separate organization.

Article 5

The Commissariat shall perform tasks relating to: the keeping of records of dislocated persons; adjusting of the providing of aid by other authorities and organizations and seeing to it that the aid is extended in a uniform and timely manner; providing of accommodation for dislocated persons and lodging in different places, respectively; providing conditions for their return to the areas they have left or to other areas specified by the Government of the Republic of Montenegro (hereinafter referred to as: the Government), i.e. until they have been provided for on a permanent basis and it shall perform other tasks within its sphere of activity defined by the present Decree.

Article 6

In performing the tasks relating to the providing for dislocated persons, the Commissariat shall have the status of a legal entity.

The Commissariat shall cooperate with the Red Cross organization, humanitarian, and other organizations andcitizens.

Pursuant to the provisions of the international conventions ratified by Yugoslavia regulating the position and rights of refugees, the Commissariat shall take the initiative to ask for international aid from the institutions of the United Nations and other organizations which provide aid to dislocated persons.

Article 7

The activity of the Commissariat shall be managed by the Commissioner.

The Commissioner shall have a deputy who will substitute him in case of his absence or in case he is not able to discharge his duties.

The Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner shall be appointed by the Government.

Article 8

Professional and other tasks relating to the care for dislocated persons which fall within the sphere of activity of the Commissariat defined by the present Decree, shall be performed by professional services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, Ministry of Finance and other authorities and organizations, in accordance with their spheres of activities.

Article 9

Direct aid to dislocated persons shall be extended by the Red Cross organization, other humanitarian organizations and other kinds of organizations and citizens, in accordance with their purposes and interests, respectively.

Assemblies of municipalities and of the capital shall form special bodies for the purpose of performing organizational and other tasks relating to the providing for dislocated persons in their territory and shall appoint a person in charge of maintainingcontacts with the Commissariat (hereinafter referred to as: the Agent).

Article 10

In performing the organizational and other tasks relating to the providing for dislocated persons, the special bodies in a municipality or the capital shall perform the following tasks, either directly or in cooperation with the Red Cross organization, humanitarian and other organizations and citizens:

(1)provide first shelter for dislocated persons and inform the Commissariat thereof;

(2)gather information significant for the exercising of rights by dislocated persons and members of their families, their property and its condition in their residence, as well as other data significant for providing for these persons and shall submit same to the Commissariat in order to provide for the recognition of their status of! refugees and issuing of documents specified by the present Decree;

(3)refer dislocated persons to households to be provided temporary accommodation or to other facilities assigned for that purpose;

(4)take care of procuring free capacities for providing shelter and lodging for dislocated persons;

(5)collect and distribute to aid in food and clothing, material and other kinds of aid to dislocated persons and shall inform the Commissariat thereof;

(6)propose a plan of employment of interest in providing for dislocated persons;

(7)extend aid to dislocated persons with a view to providing for a continuation of their schooling and for their direct joining a course of studies, respectively.

(8)direct dislocated persons to public health, social and other institutions so that such persons may be provided aid within the competence of such institutions;

(9)propose to the Commissariat the manner of providing permanent social security for dislocated persons.

Article 11

The Agent shall:

(1)maintain contacts between the special operative bodies in a municipality and the capital on one side and the Commissariat on the other;

(2)see to it that all participants working on the providing of shelter and care for dislocated persons act in a coordinated manner;

(3)take care of the gathering of information relating to the providing for dislocated persons for the purpose of defining their status and providing for their return to their former place of residence;

(4)see to it that appropriate information on dislocated persons is regularly submitted to the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Republican Statistics Bureau;

(5)provide for timely informing of the public of the care taken of dislocated persons.

Article 12

Data referring to the identification of a dislocated person, members of his/her family, property and its condition in their residence, as well as other data relevant for exercising the rights specified by the present Decree, shall be kept record of in accordance with the provisions of the present Decree.

The form for the data to be kept record of as well as the record form shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Republican Statistics Bureau, on the basis of their mutual agreement.

Proceedings for the recognition of the status of dislocated persons and issuing of the documents defined by the present Decree shall be considered to have been initiated by filling out the form mentioned under Paragraph 2. of the present Article.

Article 13

The manner and volume of the aid extended in providing for dislocated persons in accordance with the provisions of the present Decree, shall be kept record of on the cards maintained for dislocated persons.

The form of the card mentioned under Paragraph 11 of the present Article shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

III. ACQUIRING AND CESSATION OF THE STATUS OF A DISLOCATED PERSON

Article 14

The Ministry of Internal Affairs - the competent regional organizational unit shall decide on the recognition and revoking of the status of a dislocated person.

A complaint may be lodged against the decision under Paragraph 1. of the present Article within a period of 15 days as of the date of receipt of the decision.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs shall decide on the complaint lodged against the decision mentioned under Paragraph 2. of the present Article, within a period of 15 days as of the date of submitting the complaint.

Article 15

The Ministry of Internal Affairs - the competent regional organizational unit shall issue an identification card on the basis of the decision on recognizing the status of a dislocated person.

The identification card form for a dislocated persons and the manner of keeping records of dislocated persons shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Regulations on identity cards shall be applied accordingly to the issuing, keeping, and substitution of identification cards mentioned under Paragraph 1.

Article 16

A dislocated person who has lost that status in the manner defined by the present Decree, shall be deprived of his/her identification card by the Ministry of Internal Affairs - the competent regional organizational unit, at the request of the Commissariat.

Article 17

A dislocated person shall lose that status if such person:

(1)provides incorrect data when applying for acquiring the status of a dislocated person or when exercising certain rights;

(2)does not report changes in his/her status of a dislocated person which have a significant effect on the exercising of his/her rights or if such person does not register changes in his/her residence;

(3)refuses to perform a certain obligation, which has been prescribed, under the conditions defined for the citizens of the Republic;

(4)refuses to return to his/her place of residence when objective circumstances for that have been established;

(5)refuses a lodging offered to him/her or refuses to settle on a permanent or temporary basis in a place in which living conditions have been provided for;

The criteria for the cessation of the right to be provided for and diminishing or cessation of the right to material and other kinds of aid extended in providing for the dislocated persons, respectively, shall be established by the Commissariat, with the compliance of the Government.

IV. MANNERS OF PROVIDING FOR DISLOCATED PERSONS

Article 18

Accommodation with nourishment may be provided for dislocated persons with their relatives, friends, and other citizens in households or facilities owned by citizens.

Dislocated persons who cannot be provided accommodation under Paragraph 1. of the present Article, shall be provided accommodation and nourishment at the order of the Commissariat, in the facilities for collective accommodation (recreation centres, camps, hotels, etc.).

Article 19

Persons for whom the accommodation under Article 18. of the present Decree is not suitable due to their physical condition (old, disabled persons, and others), shall be provided accommodation by the Commissariat in an institution for social at the proposal of the authority for social protection welfare.

Article 20

Dislocated persons shall, from time to time, be provided material aid in the form of food, clothing, footwear, and items for personal hygiene, for their basic needs, as well as in the form of money or financial coupons.

Article 21

The Government shall define the kind and volume of aid by a special document which shall be proposed by the Commissariat upon its procuring the opinion of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.

The Commissariat shall propose, in cooperation with the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations, the kind and volume of material aid (food, clothing, footwear, and other material goods) which shall be provided to dislocated persons from time to time.

Article 22

Resources for the operation of the Commissariat shall be provided from the Budget of the Republic.

Resources for the providing for dislocated persons shall be obtained from:

(1)subsidies from the Federal Budget;

(2)the Republic Budget;

(3)contributions, presents, and other forms of voluntary aid;

(4)other resources.

The resources mentioned under Paragraph 1. of the present Article shall be kept record of on a special account of the Commissariat.

The Commissariat shall keep special record of the collecting of the financial resources mentioned under Paragraph 2. of the present Article, and their using in accordance with defined objectives. The Commissariat shall be obliged to submit, at the request of the Government, a report to the Government, once in six months at least, on the consumption of the resources for the providing for dislocated persons.

V. TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISION

Article 23

Persons who have fled to the territory of the Republic before the taking effect of the present Decree shall provide data mentioned under Article 12. of the present Decree in order to be entered in the records, obtain acknowledgement of their status of dislocated persons and be issued identification cards within a period of 30 days as of the date of taking effect of the present Decree.

Until the expiry of the deadline mentioned under Paragraph 1. of the present Article, persons who have immigrated by fleeing shall continue to exercise their rights in the manner and to the extent in which they have been exercising them until the date of taking effect of the present Decree.

Article 24

The present Decree shall become effective as of the date following the day of its publishing in the "Official Gazette of the Republic of Montenegro".