The First Meeting of DPS and SDP with the Liberal League

New Ruling Trio?

After long hesitation, talks of Djukanovic's coalition with the Liberal League have finally started

AIM Podgorica, May 11, 2001

On May 10 the first meeting on the establishment of post-election coalition and the new government in Montenegro at the Gorica residential villa in Podgorica was at the same time the first official meeting of the leaders of "bitter enemies" during ten long years - Djukanovic's Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the until now the oppositionist Liberal League. Rakcevic's Social Democrats (SDP) were also present, but that is no news - they are in a coalition with DPS for a long time.

>From that, impatiently expected meeting, Montenegrin public could see only the "acted" television film which is usually made in situations when the official part of the talks is closed to the public. None of those present at the negotiating table bothered to even force a smile, not even for the sake of cameras.

On the one side of the table - Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic, who is also President of DPS, with Vice-President of the party and Chairman of Montenegrin parliament Svetozar Marovic, and his until recently coalition partner, Zarko Rakcevic, leader of Social Democratic Party, and Rifat Rastoder, Vice-President of this party. (Later, due to the demand of the Liberals who insisted on the parity of representatives, Rastoder was not present at the talks.)

On the opposite side of the table - Miodrag Zivkovic, political leader of the Liberal League of Montenegro (LSCG), President of that party Miroslav Vickovic, and deputy and the true leader of the Liberals, Slavko Perovic. Especially the face of the latter was like that of a person who had come to set conditions that could not be questioned.

But, everything was already known. Djukanovic's coalition which ran in the elections with the slogan "The Victory of Montenegro" which is in fact a quotation from a national romanticist theatre play "Princess Ksenija", had already unwillingly and generally said "yes" to the conditions of the Liberals. And they, for somebody who won just slightly more than seven per cent in April 22 elections, indeed do not at all act as members of a minor party.

The Liberals demand the post of Montenegrin minister of police and that of the minister of justice, as well as the post of state prosecutor. They also wish to take up the post of assistance ministers of finance, foreign affairs, tourism and environment organisation, but also in secretariats of development and information, and high posts in the Central Bank and Customs Administration.

Will they get it all?

The leaders of the future Montenegrin coalition alliance of three parties came out of the meeting in Gorica villa with a joint statement for the public in which they presented the conclusions of this meeting “at the top” which was expected with great trepidation and numerous calculations in Montenegro. “In the next few days 'Victory of Montenegro' coalition and the Liberal League will prepare a draft coalition agreement on post-election cooperation and establishment of the new coalition government. This draft will be discussed in the beginning of next week”.

It is stated in the statement that conditions were discussed of post-election coalition “starting from the publicly presented proposals of the Liberal League which were publicly accepted by the members of Djukanovic's coalition”.

“In view of the commitment of the newly established coalition partners to strengthening of democratic and reformist processes in Montenegro, the reconstruction of Montenegrin state and readiness to reach an agreement on post-election coalition”, it was concluded, therefore, that the mentioned draft agreement on post-election cooperation and establishment of coalition government be prepared.

Perhaps it is not a pure coincidence that the commitment of the new partners from this Montenegrin “marriage of convenience” to democracy and reform is mentioned first and only after that the “reconstruction of Montenegrin state”. Because reconstruction of Montenegrin state is the main political goal of the Liberal League of Montenegro, its conditio sine qua non. That is why the post-election calculations and public offers to the Liberals by Bulatovic's “For Yugoslavia” coalition, should they turn to it for the establishment of the ruling coalition and the new government, sounded like science fiction. Because regardless of the narrow (or rather insufficiently convincing) April election results between the Yugoslav and the Montenegrin block, the new coalition seems like a guarantee to the supporters of Montenegrin independence that this goal will be achieved. This is in fact a union of Djukanovic's means (power) with the political goal of the Liberals.

The main goal of the new coalition government and the new Montenegrin parliament will be to prepare Montenegrin public opinion and constitutional and legal regulations for the referendum on the state and legal status of Montenegro. There is some historical justice in the fact that Djukanovic is forced to do it with the Liberals, because they were the ones who had sown this seed.

And in the meantime – reforms and democracy (!?). This demagogical phrase in the new Montenegrin political situation can also be interpreted as follows: political monopoly has been lost. Minor parties have started to set conditions and ultimatums, to raise their own price out of proportions. When the Liberals demand for themselves the post of the minister of police it is more than just the mentioned post. It is in fact a demand that one of the pillars of Milo Djukanovic's power, but also of all his predecessors, but especially in the version of the previous demand of the Liberals that their candidate be given even the post of the head of state security service. DPS, however, could not swallow a pill that was that bitter.

“The Liberals have gone too far”, it was heard from the ranks of Djukanovic and Rakcevic's coalition. “This is re-establishment of a monopoly, when things should in fact move towards demonopolisation”, said Zarko Rakcevic, leader of SDP in his comment of this demand.

The police department was until now the untouchable monopoly of Djukanovic's party. Nobody is predicting, nor can anybody imagine what Montenegrin Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP) will look like with a Liberal at its head instead of the current minister, Vukasin Maras, since one of the main oppositionist attacks (both from the side of the Liberals and that of SNP) against the current Montenegrin regime was the allegation that Montenegro was a “police state” with everything that this implies. It was the Liberals who kept asking in Montenegrin parliament for opening of “secret police dossiers”. Will power, as some members of “For Yugoslavia” coalition are already predicting, blunt their keenness on reforms?

The general stand of the public in Montenegro is that the Liberals will introduce a new, different spirit in Montenegrin regime. Unlike the other political parties on Montenegrin political scene, the Liberals have a quite spotless past without a shadow. They bring as their dowry uncompromising anti-war engagement, struggle against Milosevic and Greater-Serbian hegemony, advocating multi-ethnic Montenegro...

That is why the well-meaning people in Montenegro are full of trepidation. The current bitter struggle among the parties for important posts in state administration indicates that one thing will not change – that single-party autocracy will just be replaced by another. Montenegro can “boast” with a negligible number of persons at a prominent or leading post, from the kindergartens to economic mega-systems who do not belong to any party. Nothing to say about ministerial posts.

New Montenegrin coalition government will not be a step towards interruption of such practice. Everything else is a great mystery. A new meeting will be held in the beginning of next week.

Gordana BOROVIC

(AIM)