The Parliament of Montenegro will sit on August 19, 2022 in the capital Podgorica. STEVO VASILJEVIC / Portal
On Saturday, August 20th, the Parliament of Montenegro passed a motion of no confidence that resulted in the government losing a majority and paving the way for new political upheavals in this Balkan country.
The motion received 50 votes, while the other elected members of parliament, which has 81 seats, decided to boycott the text, with the exception of one who voted against. “We need new elections and a stable government,” said the initiator of the motion of no confidence, MP Danijel Zivkovic. That vote came a few months after another no-confidence motion that toppled a coalition government in February.
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Political tensions in Montenegro have been at their peak for several weeks. In question is a controversial agreement signed between the government and the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), the country’s majority religion. In particular, this agreement provides for the regulation of ownership of hundreds of SPC monasteries and churches in Montenegro, but part of public opinion considers that it does not adequately protect the interests of the state.
Sensitive religious issues
Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic has long been a staunch opponent of the SPC and has been accused of wanting to nationalize church property. For weeks, Mr Djukanovic, now in the opposition camp, used this deal to destabilize the government and press for the organization of early elections.
As the architect of Montenegro’s independence, he is determined to reduce the SPC’s influence in the country at all costs and strives to consolidate a strong national identity, even if it means creating another independent Orthodox Church.
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Religious issues, very sensitive in this small country that borders the Adriatic Sea and gained independence from Serbia in 2006, are one of the main reasons behind the fall of the last two governments. A third of the 620,000 inhabitants identify themselves as Serbs and some nationalists deny that Montenegro has its own identity. The SPC is the dominant religious institution alongside a Montenegrin Orthodox Church, which is not recognized by the Orthodox world, but its opponents accuse it of serving Belgrade’s interests.