Members of Delegation of the Parliament of Montenegro to Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today visited the Reception Centre for Foreigners in Spuž. The visit was organised on the occasion of marking 18 December - International Migrant Day, in order to be informed on the work, accommodation, and other capacities of the Reception Centre.

During the visit, members of Delegation met with Mr Dejan Bojić, Senior Police Inspector of I class at the Department for Foreigners, Visas, and Prevention of Illegal Migration at the Police Administration and Mr Drago Petričević, Senior Police Inspector at the Reception Centre for Foreigners, who informed them on procedure of providing accommodation and duration of stay at the Reception Centre, as well as the manner of operations of this institution. They said that the Reception Centre, with capacity of 46 persons, was used for accommodation of foreigners who enter Montenegro illegally and stay in it without authorisation, then foreigners whose identity could not be determined, and foreigners without authorisation for temporary stay, and who could not immediately leave Montenegro. Since the opening of the Reception Centre in December 2013, 147 persons have stayed in this institution.

By organising the visit, members of Delegation of the Parliament of Montenegro to PACE have joined the activities organised by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, via the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons, in order to mark the International Migrant Day.

By decision of the General Assembly of the United Nations, the International Migrant Day is being marked on 18 December ever since 2000, on the day on which in 1990 the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their Families was adopted.