Today, members of the “Plavi Jadran” tourist boat association from Bar staged a protest in front of the Coastal Zone office in the city. They are voicing their concerns over the government’s decision to initiate a tender for beach leases that does not include provisions for tourist boats and their docking facilities throughout the Bar municipality.

According to the association’s president, Peđa Adžić, such actions are intolerable and jeopardize their livelihoods, as there is no planned access for passenger vessels in Bar.

On behalf of the group, he submitted a letter to the Coastal Reserve officials clarifying that they are not affiliated with any criminal organization, responding to remarks made by Minister of Urbanism and Spatial Planning, Slaven Radunović, who described the new tender as a means to combat mafia activities.

“All 19 of us are registered and operate legally, with no involvement in illegal activities. That’s why we are here today. If our request for docking facilities is not addressed, we will have no choice but to block port access with our boats,” he stated.

The association emphasized that this issue needs to be resolved within the next “ten to fifteen days” because preparing for the summer season incurs significant costs, amounting to several thousand euros for technical inspections of the boats.

They communicated to Morski Dobro representatives the range of issues this state-owned company’s current policies would create for them, with the primary concern being their livelihoods—risking the jobs they rely on to support their families.

They argued that without proper access, they cannot perform their services, as the tender fails to allocate even a single docking area in both Bar and Buljarica. Furthermore, the Bar marina lacks an operational berth, making it impossible for them to accommodate passengers at the piers.

The locals in Bar feel particularly disadvantaged compared to other cities, as places like Budva, Kotor, and other regions in Boka Bay have far better conditions for docking and passenger transport, even without direct sea access.

“We contribute significantly to the tourism sector in our city and provide value to the community. We ease road congestion and play a crucial role in rescue operations and locating missing persons, acting as the first line of defense at sea,” Adžić added.

Members of the association noted that they have contracts with international agencies that facilitate tourist visits to Montenegro, so any halt in their operations would negatively affect the tourist season in Bar.

They are requesting 15 meters along the Bar coastline for their operations on the most popular beaches, willing to pay for this area rather than expecting free access, which they believe is a reasonable request that the Public Company for Coastal Zone Management should be able to accommodate.

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