Good morning! You are reading a daily contextual review of the news that marked the previous day.
By Ljubomir Filipović, CdM observer
Cohabitation and External Influence
The President of Montenegro met with U.S. Ambassador, Ms. Judy Rising Reinke and discussed the state of affairs in the country, the change of administration in the United States, the importance of cohabitation for the stability of policies in the country. They also discussed the malignant external influence on the political situation in the country. I am not sure in what context the latter was mentioned, but given the developments in Nikšić, it would be very important to have the support of partners in preventing further degradation of democracy in the country.
Reactions to the announced abolition of the SDT
Professor Dr. Đorđije Blažić provided the CdM with an extensive analysis of the position of the Special State Prosecutor’s Office (SDT) in the Montenegrin judicial system and its constitutional order. In the analysis, Professor Blažić clearly states that changes in the law designed solely to remove prosecutors would disrupt the entire judicial system. Special Prosecutor, Mr. Saša Čađenović worries about the consequences of the abolition of the SDT, and a legal void that would be left should that happen.
From political circles, the SDP and LP reacted, assessing the abolishment of the SDT as a threat to Montenegro’s progress towards the EU.
The point being, we may or may not like the work of the SDT and the prosecution, and we can characterize it as being politically staffed (although the DPS in Budva would not agree with that), but by resorting to quick fixes and setting precedents, we are doing a disservice to the fight against corruption and organized crime. That is why the support of a part of the NGO sector for such a political solution is worrying, and can only be understood as a showdown with those who have lost their political power.
The legal determinism and neglecting the political context open the way for the accumulation of political power by the new majority, who will then be able to quietly abuse its functions and political power, under the guise of showdown with the former government. And it already does so.
Vaccines and the virus
The Institute of Public Health released record data yesterday, wherein 600 new cases were reported for one day. As the number of infected and deceased rises, the Ministry is still in great disarray. After the Minister’s interview with Vijesti, which was strongly criticized in public, the Office of the President of Montenegro issued the statement condemning the Minister’s attempt to shift responsibility to Mr. Đukanović, who has no authority in the procurement of vaccines. As the Minister also tried to shift the responsibility to the former minister, he also spoke out.
Along with the opposition parties, supporters of the new government are increasingly criticizing the Ministry for their incoherent actions – from refusing donations to failing to provide accurate information about the start of vaccination – said majority MP Mr. Nebojša Medojević, who sharply criticized the government for these omissions.
Threats to the Opposition – continued
Student and opposition activist Ms. Miljana Krivokapić from Kotor has been a target of digital violence by so-called meme pages for days now. This stalking and targeting resulted in gruesome threats that Krivokapić made public. Officials of her party, Mr. Duško Marković and Mr. Jevto Eraković, as well as the Women’s Lobby, reacted.
Removal of Zoran Lazović
Police official Mr. Zoran Lazović wrote a very harsh letter to Minister Mr. Sergej Sekulović, not mincing his words in expressing opposition to his announced dismissal, which he considers an act of political revenge. Mr. Lazović reproaches Mr. Sekulović and other officials for not personally informing him that they intended to remove him, but for delegating this task to the Ministry’s chief of cabinet. He also expresses his suspicion, for the fact that “Sekulović’s decisions coincide with the intentions and interests of criminal clans”.
Mr. Jovan Vučurović from the DF reacted to push Minister Sekulović to put political pressure on Lazović to be removed as soon as possible.
For days, Minister Sekulović has been the target of a campaign on the Internet by trolls of the Democratic Front and clerical organizations that pejoratively call him a woman because of his alleged indecision to make changes in the police. Particular pressure was put on him after the expulsion of Vučić’s activists and persons of interest found in Nikšić. It is interesting that Lazović also used a rather problematic misogynistic verse from Montenegrin history in his letter, which, in my opinion, has a place exactly there – in the past.
Recommendations for reading
Mr. Dragan Koprivica from CDT warned of the events in Nikšić and invited the Agency for Prevention of Corruption (ASK) and the competent prosecutor’s office to perform all necessary activities as soon as possible and inform the public about allegations of misuse of state or municipal resources to achieve better election results in the city’s local elections, as well as the allegations of illicit political and financial influence from foreign countries.
Read Mr. Danilo Marinović’s conversation with Skala Radio and Mr. Nebojša Batrićević’s column for Antena M.
That’s it for today. Tomorrow – same time, same place.
