LAW ON CITIZENSHIP OF THE FRY

Podgorica Nov 18, 1995

TO MEASURE OF THE AUTHORITIES

AIM Podgorica, November 11, 1995

For the first time in the short history of the Serb-Montenegrin federation, the federal police will have the exclusive jurisdiction over a law: it was the one to write it, and - after it passes the assembly procedure - it will the one to implement it. After two years of comprehensive consultations, the Draft Law on Yugoslav Citizenship has been prepared for a debate in the federal parliament. The authorities have decided not to be caught in the trap of Western-European democratic practice: Ministry of Justice was not entrusted with elaboration and conception of the law - as uninformed legal experts had expected - but Federal Ministry of the interior. Citizens of Serbia and Montenegro can, therefore, feel relieved: "depoliticized" federal police headed by Vukasin Jokanovic, one of the key people of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), will take over attending to their citizenship.

"The procedure itself is illogical. The Law was drafted by the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is unacceptable. In any lawfully organized state, ministry of justice would be entrusted with this project", Dr Gaso Knezevic, professor of international private law at the Belgrade Law School stresses.

Federal policemen were faced with quite a problem while working on the Draft Law: how to formulate a law that would resemble European stndards and meet ideological and at the same time political requirements of the regime? Apart from that, this Law is expected to arrange relations within the federation, especially the hierarchy between the republican and federal citizenship. Setting of requirements for acquiring and revoking citizenship are not less important, especially now when it has become topical due to the arrival of an enormous number of refugees to the territory of Serbia and Montenegro.

Judging by the drafted solutions, people in Belgrade have decided to to put a stop to the threatening independence of the republics. The Federal Ministry of the interior will be in charge of issuing and annulment of Yugoslav citizenship, and not as until now the republican ministries. This, big "innovation" was commented by the drafter as follows: "This solution has its advantages from the practical aspect"! Namely, it is claimed that in this way "the federal law will be implemented in a more efficient and rational way, and the considerably more active role of the federal agencies will contribute to arranging the situation in this sphere". The team of the Federal Ministry will, therefore, be the main filter for determining who is apt to be awarded the title of a citizen of FRY.

An analysis of the Draft shows that, apart from "more efficient operation ", the drafter's task was to centralize relations in the federation. Based on provisions included in the 1974 Constitution, the federal ctizenship was the result of that of the republic. It was self-understood that is someone was a citizen of Montenegro, he would at the same time be the citizen of the FRY. Preporagitives of such sovereignty are deleted by the new Draft Law on Yugoslav citizenship! The logic is quite the opposite: from now on, federal citizenship will have priority. "The moment a Yugoslav citizen quits claim or is deprived of Yugoslav citizenship, his/her citizenship of the republic-member ceases", interpretation of this Draft Law reads. A fear of statehood of the republics as prescribed by the 1974 Constitution is more than obvious.

"Serbia and Montenegro, as federal units will be deprived of properties of sovereignty. The law on citizenship is a road to unitarism, because provisions of this Law eliminate Montenegrin sovereignty, equally as Serb", Dr Gaso Knezevic comments on the newly established relations in the two-member federation.

The drafter did his best to make the confusion total. For acceptance of foreigners into the citizenship of a republic, decision of republican authorities is not needed at all. "A foreigner acquires citizenship of a member-republic the moment he/she is accepted into Yugoslav citizenship", this is written in the interpretation of the Draft Law on Yugoslav citizenship. Thereby, by a decision of the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs, for "special merits for Yugoslavia" (quotation!), someone who is defined as a "verified friend of the FRY" by federal policemen, may become a Yugoslav citizen. After that, republican citizenship is within reach. According to this, the philosopher-humanist Danielle Schiffer, could, for instance, become a citizen of Montenegro; or the everlasting candidate for a member of the British Parliament John Kennedy; or someone else, not less meritorious for the "general cause". Being granted Yugoslav citizenship by the Federal Ministry of the interior, it would be sufficient for him to register a place of residence in Montenegro. He could even register as a candidate for the President of Montenegro in the next election cycle, in view of the one-year time limit.

The five-year war surroundings, numerous nation-building projects - in which the local authorities played a significant role - which implied creation of single-nation states with the help of "humane migration of nations", turned a large number of former citizens of the SFRY into homeless people who, in front of a charge of violent national militias, have sought refuge in the space where at least their bare life was not directly threatened. According to unofficial data, there are about 800 thousand people in Serbia, and about 50 thousand people in Montenegro who have fled from Croatia and Bosnia & Hezregovina. Although states which were created after dissolution of the SFRY, forced by dictation of the international comunity, declaratively advocate return of refugees to their "century-old homes", reality is quite the opposite: a large number of people have nowhere to return - their homes were demolished or burnt to the ground. Life of the majority of refugees will therefore continue in the countries they had fled to.

How is it possible to incorporate the refugees into the being of the two-member federation without causing major political disturbances while doing it? Who will these people vote for, these people who were pushed into the war by the authorities, promising "all-Serb" borders, and the people who have for the sake of that very idea been left without practically everything they had ever had? Half a million of votes, and that is how many voters there are in the mass of refugees according to assessments, is more than ten per cent of the electorate of Serbia. As an illustration: the ruling SPS won 22.5 per cent of the total electorate in the last elections in Serbia.

Apparently the lawmakers have successfully resolved a difficult political enigma. Everything appears to be democratic, but apart from the classical ways of acquiring a citizenship - origin, birth on the territory of Yugoslavia, receptance, and by international contracts - the Draft Law introduces the institution of admittance into the Yugoslav citizenship. This is in fact a way for obtaining citizenship "under facilitated conditions for citizens of the SFRY who have fled to the territory of Yugoslavia due to their ethnic or religious membership and because they advocated respect of human rights and freedoms", the lawmaker clarifies the "concession" made in respect to citizens of former SFRY. At first sight, it appears that the state is very concerned about the future status of refugees, because it enables them, as interpretation puts it, to "simply and with no special procedure" acquite Yugoslav citizenship.

But, like any other ideologically cunningly conceived legal project, this "simple procedure" includes a political and procedural "catch". Namely, it is easy to acquire the citizenship, "if acquisition of Yugoslav citizenship does not jeopardize security, defence and international position of Yugoslavia". The Federal MInistry of Internal Affairs will, indeed, be in charge of security and protection from undesirable political elements. It will report about its actions solely to the Federal Government. In practice, the "simple procedure" means that a refugee claimant of Yugoslav citizenship will have to be subjected to a highly detailed police authentication and political/psychologicl tests. Only after the "depoliticized" federal policemen are completely assured that the individual is loyal, it may be expected that this person will be awarded the title of a Yugoslav citizen.

Contrary to refugees, the Draft Law treats emigrants in "diaspora" with special piety. They are the former Yugoslav citizens whose citizenship of the former SFRY has expired mostly due to two reasons: due to long absence or because the postwar communist authorities had deprived them of citizenship due to their "contribution" to the struggle against anti-fascist movement. Aware of the concealed political interests of the federation, the authors of the new Law believe that most of these people have retained "lively links with the homeland and strong patriotic feelings", and that - without dismissal from foreign citizenship and without approval for permanent residence on the territory of Yugoslavia - they should be enabled to adorn themselves with the title of Yugoslav citizens.

"Unbelievable logic. For instance, it will be easier for someone who fled in 1945 as a supporter of Ljotic or Nedic (collaborationists of the enemy) to get a citizenship than people who have always lived in this space, but had the misfortune to be born in some other part of the former SFRY", Dr Gaso Knezevic concludes.

One logically wonders why the state is striving with all its might to enable them to get Yugoslav citizenship? It seems that very specific, economic reasons have prevailed, because one should not forget how many emigrants have financially and politically helped the project of the "all-Serb state", so probably this provision is just a state award for the expressed patriotism during these five war years.

The authors of the Law took care about other, subtle, political details of exceptional interest for the ruling regime. The institution of depriving citizens of their citizenship is nevertheless introduced underhandedly. Namely, the competent agency, that is, the federal police, is entitled to check and annull the already acquired citizenship. "If it is determined that a person has acquired Yugoslav citizenship not pursuant to relevant legal regulations, the decision on acquiring the citizenship will be annulled", the lawmaker stresses. This provision enables consequent police verification of all citizens who had automatically acquired Yugoslav citizenship. Federal police was given quite broad authorizations to annul retroactively "disputable" previously issued decisions on citizenship. In view of the fact that the authorities in Serbia have claimed for years that a large number of people in Kosovo were holders of irregular certificates on Yugoslav citizenship, this provision has a recognizable political background.

The law on Yugoslav Citizenship which will by the end of the year most probably be adopted by the federal parliament is a reflection of the nature of the current political system. Behind a false front of formal democracy, respect of European standards, a law was created which enables the powerful state apparatus total control and enormous quantity of self-will which is difficult to check. The job was, one should say, quite successfully completed. At the next assembly session, federal deputies will already have on the agenda the Draft Law on Yugoslav Citizenship which is by measure of the authorities: formally it seems quite liberal, but it allows "free interpretation" as the competent authorities will see fit.

Drasko DJURANOVIC