The nationalized enterprises

The new restitution law does not consider compensation for enterprises nationalized by the communist regime, namely there is no mean of indemnity for damages caused by nationalization of Zetska shipping company and of Serbo Albanian Bank.

  • Zetska shipping company (Zetska Plovidba)
    Nearly the only shipping company operating in Montenegro between the two world wars. Zetska shipping company counted a fleet of 37 ships connecting the ports of the Adriatic sea, the Mediterranean sea and North America. Zetska shipping company had its registered office in Cetinje and its operating office in Kotor with branches in Susak, Trieste, Venice, Split, Dubrovnik, Budva, Bar, Ulcinj, Drac, Skadar, Krf, Pirej, Istanbul, Smirne, Burgas, Varna, Constantza and Liverpool.
    Zetska shipping company employed more than 500 workers and another 500 people were involved in related business.
    In 1946 the Zetska shipping company was nationalized. From the original 37 ships, 22 survived the Second World War.
  • Zelenika shipping company of Herceg Novi, which provided local transportation services.
    60% of Zelenika shares were owned by Zetska Plovidba.
  • Serbo Albanian Bank, Cetinje
    Serbo Albanian Bank, an international business bank founded in 1922 in which Lale Zuber owned 98 % shares. For about 20 years the bank has been fully working in Cetinje, where it had its head office.
    Initially most of its business was related to Albania, in a second stage the bank became functional to the activities of the Zetska shipping company and supported local business.
  • Electric Power Plant in Cetinje now Technical Museum
    Bought by Lale Zuber in 1922 from the formal owner and founder Emanuel Kraus.
    Lale Zuber developed the Power station in order to match the increasing demand of electric energy.
    The Power station served the city of Cetinje and its suburbs until 1963, then it became a Technical Museum.
    On 19 August 2010 were celebrated its 100 years since its foundation.

The previous restitution law of 2004 did consider compensation for enterprises nationalized by the communist regime, but the new restitution law (2007) totally ignores damages brought to confiscation of economical and financial activities. Lawyer Marika Novakovic from Podgorica appealed (in 2008) to the Constitutional Court of Montenegro against this legislative gap, but the Court has not answered.

The forced cessation of a flourishing maritime transportation company such as Zetska shipping company and the forfeiture of its properties (palaces, buildings, warehouses, landplots, ships), as well as the cessation of an international business bank like the Serbo Albanian Bank and the forfeiture of its properties, is a damage that experts know and can evaluate.

March 2012: Official evaluation of the assets of the enterprises owned by Lale Zuber, made by the court financial expert Mr. Zoran Todorovic, with the approving stamp of the Montenegrin Ministry of Finance.

Below you can see two units of the Zetska shipping company fleet in Montenegro, the Morava and the Herceg Novi ships, as they appeared after their sequestration. Note how the Zetska Plovidba logo was replaced by the communist red star.