While the draft Spatial and Urban Plan for the municipality of Žabljak proposes luxurious tourist complexes, golf courses and hotels – often within the boundaries of Durmitor National Park – locals find themselves stripped of their rights to build basic structures on their ancestral land. During the public debate, which took place from March 17 to April 11, citizens expressed strong opposition to the plan, claiming it serves narrow political and business interests rather than local community development. The Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism, and State Property insists all objections will be considered according to the law, but the dissatisfied residents of Žabljak remain skeptical about the outcome. If their petition, signed by over a thousand people, is not addressed, they warn of escalating protests, including road blockades during the tourist season.
Responsibility lies with the Ministry
Žabljak’s Mayor, Radoš Žugić, argues that the responsibility for the disputed draft lies not with the local government but with the Ministry of Spatial Planning and the planner contracted via a public tender. He points out that the plan is a continuation of previous documents and that the municipality has already provided a written statement, expressing readiness to create a new plan once the law allows.
However, public trust has been severely damaged. If their petition is not accepted, residents are prepared for more radical actions, including protests and road blockades during the summer.
Local NGOs and citizens’ initiatives argue that the “development” plan is really a land redistribution favoring the privileged, while the true locals of Žabljak have been systematically erased from the region’s future.
Political and business interests behind the plan
Dane Novosel, a tourism expert with 20 years of experience in rafting, told Pobjeda that their petition was submitted to the Ministry within the legal timeframe, signed by nearly a thousand people. He claims that if they had more time, two thousand people would have signed it. Novosel accuses close individuals to the authorities in Žabljak of marking tourist zones on their private properties within Durmitor’s third protection zone, specifically in Gaj, Razvršje, and Virk. Meanwhile, areas long recognized as tourist zones, like Pitomine, were erased and marked as green zones to allow construction on new locations belonging to a small group of people.
He criticizes the plan as a land redistribution scheme, not development, pointing out that the interests of local residents who have waited years to develop their properties as tourist zones were ignored. Instead, someone buys land within the national park for a few euros, marks it as a tourist zone, and suddenly the value skyrockets. Meanwhile, local landowners are left with nothing. Novosel also expresses concerns about proposed hotels being located on flood-prone land and the unnecessary construction of gondolas.
Lack of a clear strategy
Novosel also highlights contradictions within the plan, such as plans for schools in villages with fewer than ten children and a hospital, despite Žabljak not having a functional hospital for decades. He asserts there is no coherent strategy, just private interests. He warned that if the Ministry does not accept the citizens’ objections, they will be forced to take action.
Žabljak’s Mayor Žugić acknowledges the legitimate concerns of the residents but defends the plan as a continuation of previous planning documents. He admits the plan’s shortcomings, such as insufficient capacity for new buildings in the municipality and the lack of necessary infrastructure. However, he insists the plan was developed at the state level, and the municipality is not responsible for its current form.
Opposition to corruption and land redistribution
Milovan Mišo Vojinović, from the NGO Friends of Durmitor and Tara, challenges the mayor’s statements, accusing him of trying to delay the plan for two more years. Vojinović argues that the plan submitted to the Ministry does not meet the needs of local residents and was crafted without sufficient consultation. He claims that the plan’s backers, including government officials and businessmen, are benefiting from it, while locals are being excluded.
Vojinović also denounces the illegal land conversions taking place in Tepačko Polje, where agricultural land is being turned into construction sites with the alleged support of the local government. Despite these claims, the local cadastral office has not confirmed these allegations.
Calls for fair development
Vojinović insists that Žabljak has the potential to become a sustainable tourism gem, but this will not happen as long as planning continues to favor a small group of people with vested interests. He urges for the inclusion of local residents in shaping the future of the area, warning that the current plan could lead to civil disobedience if their demands are ignored.
