Montenegro and the Fall of Milosevic's Regime

Whose President is Kostunica?

Removal of the last bastion of dictatorship in Europe was welcomed by all democratic forces in Montenegro, but they also warned that the new president of FRY is not legitimate in the smaller member of the federation

AIM Podgorica, October 5, 2000

Removal of Slobodan Milosevic was received in Montenegrin political public, as expected, with unconcealed relief, but also with considerable reservation towards the new president of FRY Vojislav Kostunica who had not been very popular in Montenegro. The citizens of Serbia and Serbian opposition elite achieved big success with the victory over the last bastion of dictatorship in Europe which inflicted great evil to everybody in the region, but most of all to the Serb people - this is the undivided assessment of democratic forces in Montenegro. Nevertheless, they warn that this is just the first step in democratic transformation of Serbia in which political energy had for a long time been suppressed and the critical mass was created for the day in which "the freedom loving spirit of its people made itself heard". Special satisfaction is expressed because the police and the Army of Yugoslavia refused disobedience to the regime during mass protests in Belgrade.

"Democratic Montenegro like the whole democratic world, supports new, liberated Serbia. I believe that with the victory of democratic politics in Belgrade a chance is created for the establishment of new and healthy relations between Montenegro and Serbia and that this will contribute to stable democratic prospects for the whole region", declared Montenegrin president Milo Djukanovic to agency Montena-Fax from Podgorica in the evening of Wednesday, October 5.

Prime minister of Montenegro Filip Vujanovic assessed the protests in Belgrade as "expected reaction of the citizens" to the, as he put it, stolen will of the voters of Serbia in the election for the president of the federal state. Stressing that Vojislav Kostunica was robbed of his victory by election manipulations of the Federal Electoral Commission and the Federal Constitutional Court, in a statement for London BBC, Vujanovic said:

"I believe that due to developments in Serbia the crisis in Montenegro will not be intensified, because political relations in it are stable. I believe that a part of the Socialist People's Party which is devoted to peace, democracy and development of Montenegro, will finally have the strength and capacity to fight for what it has been declaring for a long time and find a way to disassociate itself from Belgrade bloc which has linked its political destiny to the fall of Milosevic".

However, a part of Montenegrin administration immediately showed that it had reservations because of the behavior of the leader of Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) Vojislav Kostunica. "Removal of Milosevic still does not mean that Milosevic's era is over, and certain messages that arrived from Belgrade yesterday open the possibility of Milosevic remaining even after Milosevic, that is, of essentially the same politics but in a different form", president of Social Democratic Party Zarko Rakcevic fears and warns that Democratic Opposition of Serbia is a coalition of 18 very different parties. Rakcevic assessed at today's press conference that the greatest value of the changes in the federal regime was "that the stick above the head of Montenegro was removed and that possibilities were opening for peaceful resolving of accumulated problems in relations between Montenegro and Serbia".

President of Social Democrats claims that "after the decision of the parliament of Montenegro, neither the federal parliament nor the federal government have legitimacy, and the coalition regime in Montenegro cannot recognise or consider legitimate either the future parliament or the future federal government". That is why for us there is no such thing as the president of FRY because there is no FRY", Rakcevic concludes, with the following comment: "It really is illogical for someone to congratulate the future president of FRY based on illegitimate elections and without having recognised elections".

A few days ago head of Montenegrin diplomacy Branko Lukovac declared the following in an interview to New York Times and Toronto Star: "Candidate for president Vojislav Kostunica will not have legitimacy in Montenegro if he comes to power because 80 per cent of the citizens of Montenegro boycotted presidential elections. Kostunica will have only the legitimacy of Serbia where majority of voters voted for him, but not of Montenegro".

Socialist People'e Party, the bulwark of Slobodan Milosevic's policy in Montenegro, recognised the victory of Vojislav Kostunica in the elections, but it still remains in the coalition with Socialist Party of Serbia as stated by its vice-president Predrag Bulatovic at today's press conference.

The Socialists of Momir Bulatovic strongly support the stand of Vojislav Kostunica that he will implement the Constitution of FRY and offer the mandate to establish the federal cabinet to Socialist People's Party of Montenegro.

From the People's Party of Montenegro, one of the members of Montenegrin coalition in power expect that Vojislav Kostunica will not make the same mistake as Slobodan Milosevic and offer the mandate of prime minister to SNP.

"For us it is not at issue that Kostunica should take over power, but before he offers the mandate of prime minister to anyone he should think well whether Predrag Bulatovic, vice-president of Socialist People's Party is the right person". "Difficult tasks lie ahead of us. The government of Serbia is still in the hands of Socialist Party of Serbia and that is where the main power lies". What has happened is symbolic overthrow of Milosevic, but the essential dismantling of the regime still awaits us", Soc says. "With Milosevic's departure space has been created for peaceful, patient, democratic arranging of relations between Serbia and Montenegro, internal reforms and creation of preconditions for full integration into a democratic community", said Soc at today's press conference.

Miroslav Vickovic, president of the Liberal League, expressed hope that by overthrowing the rigid dictatorial regime "new Serbia will revive all state institutions which are the only ones that can guarantee democracy and freedom, discard fatal deception of nationalism and become a true guarantor of peace and stability in the region".

Reminding that Montenegrin Liberals appeared and developed in the struggle by democratic means against the policy of Slobodan Milosevic and united Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro, Vickovic believes that the events in Belgrade will be a big warning to political forces in Montenegro "which prevent the process of democratisation, foundations of which must be free and fair elections, and free state and non-governmental institutions which must operate pursuant the Constitution and law and fundamental principles of justice and protection of human rights, and which must not put themselves in the service of any political monopoly".

On the occasion of the change of the regime in Belgrade, Union of Independent Montenegrin Writers addressed an appeal to the Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro demanding from it to initiate negotiations with legal representatives of Serbia on peaceful state disassociation and, if a mutually acceptable agreement is not reached, within three months reach the decision on scheduling the referendum on independence of Montenegro. The writers have also demanded from Milo Djukanovic to clearly declare his stand concerning the question of state independence, stating that FR Yugoslavia neither de jure nor de facto exists and because "whoever becomes the president of the so-called FR Yugoslavia cannot have the legitimacy of Montenegro".

The Central Montenegrin Cultural and Publishing Society addressed an open letter to the assembly of Montenegro indicating that "developments lie ahead that will lead to a new threat to Montenegrin national interests" and that tomorrow can be too late "if the state of Montenegro does not immediately set out on the road of sovereignty and democracy". Stressing that democratic Montenegro is happy because of the victory of the opposition in the elections and resoluteness of the people of Serbia to overthrow the authoritarian and militant regime with which majority part of Montenegro was not on friendly terms, the letter warns:

"The announcement of the new regime that it will observe the legitimacy of illegal federal institutions, primarily the Constitution and federal institutions which are basically anti-Montenegrin, puts Montenegro in a humiliating position. Bad experience with Belgrade regime, pressure of unitarianism, arbitrary amendments of the Constitution, undermining Montenegrin interests and rights, political use of the Army of Yugoslavia, forced the Assembly of Montenegro to pass the Resolution on protection of rights and interests of the Republic and its citizens which practically abolished federal jurisdiction on the territory of Montenegro and the only segment of federal authorities which is outside civilian control is the Army of Yugoslavia". That is why “this is the moment for Montenegro and Serbia to part in a civilised and just way and try to find a way out of hell of humiliation and absurdity, so that the ones and the others can build the future and healthy mutual relations with as little burden as possible” it is stated in the letter of Central Montenegrin Cultural and Publishing Society.

In other words, one story is over, but nobody in Montenegro wishes to forecast – what will FRY tomorrow be like and whether it will exist at all.

Veseljko KOPRIVICA

(AIM)