The issue of the Serbian language, after the publication of the results of the population census, became not only a political issue, but also an issue of elementary human dignity and human rights, said the President of the Assembly and leader of the New Serbian Democracy Andrija Mandić.
He said in an interview for "Večernje Novosti" that there is no country in Europe, and probably not even in the world, with the possible exception of some totalitarian regimes, where the language spoken by the majority population is not the official language of that country.
"I think that this speaks volumes about the daily calls of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and their allies from the political, media and non-governmental sectors that, despite the results that showed that more than 43 percent of the population of Montenegro speaks the Serbian language, they still insist on some quasi - theses that Montenegrin should remain the only official one", stated Mandić.
According to him, the DPS is also to blame for the fact that in 2007, by a narrow two-thirds majority, Montenegrin was declared the only official language, as well as an article of the Constitution that all changes must be confirmed in a referendum by a majority of all voters in Montenegro.
"If we take into account that at this moment, after matching the census results and the voter's list, we have about 90 thousand people whose right to vote is already doubtful, we come to the point that DPS nailed that member and made any changes impossible," he said. Mandic.
Now, as he stated, there is a new parliamentary majority "which wants to state what the people have clearly and unequivocally said, which is that the majority speaks the Serbian language and asks to be given official status".
"If we are not able to make an agreement, according to the achievements and best practices of the developed world, there is a solution, and that is to create a Constituent Assembly," said Mandić.
Speaking about dual citizenship with Serbia, he said that the opposition tries to manipulate various falsehoods and half-truths every day.
Mandic said that he sees nothing objectionable in allowing people who have and feel ties to Montenegro to obtain citizenship.
"The opposition presents it as if hundreds of thousands of new voters will magically be created instantly, even though they know very well that the current law requires that a person, along with citizenship, must also have a residence in Montenegro for a full ten years," said Mandić.
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