Montenegro has outlawed plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct, Retraction Watch reports.
It spoke with Mubera Kurpejović, the director of higher education at Montenegro's Ministry of Education, about the recently approved law. Kurpejović tells Retraction Watch that plagiarism is a widespread problem, affecting not only Montenegro, and that one hope is that this law brings issues of academic integrity to the forefront. In addition to making plagiarism illegal, Kurpejović says the law also covers instances of research fabrication as well as cheating on exams. She adds that the law additionally calls for the creation of a national ethics committee to oversee institution-level ethics.
"Adoption of the Law on Academic Integrity is an affirmation of the state's determination to deal with integrity in a quality manner and thus influence citizens' awareness of this important issue, as well as their awareness of the harmfulness of the violation of academic integrity," Kurpejović tells Retraction Watch.