The Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) has avoided commenting on the agreements with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) because it essentially supports the government's arrangement, even though it publicly criticizes it, and not because, as its officials claim, it wanted to reveal who was in the parliamentary majority for the disputed documents.
Thus, the interlocutors of "Vijesti" comment on the absence of MPs from the strongest opposition party from the parliamentary session held three nights ago, at a time when decisions were being made on ratifying the agreement on economic cooperation and tourism and real estate development with the UAE.
Miloš Bešić, a professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, believes that the reason why DPS representatives did not want to speak out is very simple.
"They authentically and sincerely support foreign investments... This investment that has been announced is no different from the investments they have made, from 'Porto Montenegro' onwards," he said.
Bešić states that DPS should not have voted for the agreement in the legislative chamber for two reasons.
"First, they would be criticized by the public because it is obvious that they are now against the agreement. So, it was simply politically opportunistic (they did not vote). And the second reason is that it would be perceived as supporting the government, while they are an opposition party," he said.
Mrdović: Anyone who thinks that DPS is against is mistaken.
On Tuesday night, after a debate that lasted more than 12 hours, MPs ratified two agreements between the governments of Montenegro and the UAE. The less controversial document on economic cooperation was supported by 50 MPs, while 10 were against. The Agreement on Tourism and Real Estate Development, which, among other things, provides for the exemption of public procurement legislation during the implementation of projects, was voted for by 46 MPs, with ten against, while four abstained.
These documents were signed on March 28 in Dubai by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, after which he sent them to the parliamentary procedure in the form of a bill. Previously, he presented to the leaders of Ulcinj and local parties the intention of the Arab billionaire Mohamed Alabar to allegedly invest 35 billion euros in the construction of a tourist complex in that municipality and to lease the entire Ulcinj Velika Plaža for 99 years. Part of the public, parties and the non-governmental sector claim that the agreements are contrary to state interests in several areas and that they jeopardize Montenegro's path towards the European Union (EU). The Ulcinj authorities, part of the civil sector, as well as some Albanian parties in the state government protested against the agreements.
DPS MPs criticized the agreements with the UAE at the plenary session, but not as harshly as they attacked many previous moves and decisions of the current government. The party's honorary president, Milo Đukanović, recently spoke about the good relations he has with the Emirati royal family.
DPS leader Danijel Živković stated the day before yesterday that they are against "such agreements and the way this government imagines to bring investors to Montenegro...", and that they were not at the vote because they left the parliamentary majority "to show who is in favor of such an agreement."
The director of the Action for Social Justice (ASP), Ines Mrdović, said that DPS is not fundamentally against the agreement with the UAE, adding that the documents were written by "the toughest DPS hand", and that anyone who does not understand this is deeply mistaken. She claims that "all of Prime Minister Spajić's closest associates" "come from the DPS system".
"DPS has created a state where private interests have always prevailed over public ones, and it is unrealistic to expect that party to oppose the interests of big capital. They have developed similar projects as 'private' and allowed these formulations to be included in contracts. Does anyone wonder why the foreign tenant of Sveti Stefan has easily kept our pearl of tourism closed for several years? Because it is protected by norms that are privileging for it, to the detriment of the state," the interviewee said.
The strongest opposition party, Vijesti, did not answer the question of why, despite publicly criticizing the agreements, they did not support citizens' protests against the ratification of these documents, or why they did not themselves invite citizens to gatherings.
DPS MP Ivan Vuković announced last night on the show Načisto on Television Vijesti that the party's MPs left the assembly hall before deciding on the ratification of the agreement with the UAE because they did not want to legitimize the election of the Assembly.
Dupli pas PES-a i DPS-a
Asked whether DPS's behavior is influenced by Đukanović's ties to the UAE's ruling family, Mrdović replied that the factor is not just the former party leader's ties to the royal family, but his "overall influence."
"The Nikšić elections showed his continued dominant influence and rule 'from the shadows'. It should be recalled that the DPS government signed an agreement with the UAE in 2012 to avoid double taxation, and that the following year the domestic media public was buzzing about the sale of 'Prva Banka' to the Arabs, which ultimately did not materialize," said Mrdović, recalling that a loan with the Abu Dhabi Fund soon followed, realized through "Prva Banka", which is the subject of charges by the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT).
"In 2016, the state-owned Arab fund took ownership of 'Porto Montenegro'. There is a long history of various collaborations. In any case, DPS's projects were harmful to the public interest, and it is to be feared that the latest ones may only be a continuation of harmful practices," she concluded.
The Executive Director of the Network for the Affirmation of the Non-Governmental Sector (MANS) Vanja Ćalović Marković said last week that the agreements with the UAE were an agreement between part of Spajić's Europe Now Movement (PES) and DPS.
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At a session of the Parliamentary Committee for International Relations, where these documents were discussed, she asked why the DPS was not saying anything about this matter.
"Because Mr. Djukanovic likes him a lot. Because if he hasn't reached an agreement, there will be an opportunity to reach an agreement," she said.
Speaking in early April about relations with the UAE, Prime Minister Spajić said that “no one went to the funeral of the founder of the Emirates (Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan)” in 2022, and that this was “strongly resented” by Montenegro. Đukanović denied this, explaining that he had no objection to Spajić’s intentions “to strengthen and further develop relations between Montenegro and the UAE” which, as the former head of state stated, “have long been established on a friendly basis”, but that it was not true that the founder of the UAE had passed away, but rather his son, then-President Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He added that he had expressed his condolences to the ruling family and congratulated Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed on his assumption of office.
"I considered it necessary to announce this also because of the relationships I still have with my friends in Abu Dhabi," Đukanović posted on the X network.
Spajić's office then announced that Đukanović's statement "confirms the need to maintain good relations with the UAE."
They are afraid that a good idea will fail.
When asked by "Vijesti" how she would comment on the fact that DPS "escaped" from deciding on the agreements, and that they are defending themselves from this criticism by saying that they "left the parliamentary majority to show who is 'for'", Ines Mrdović replied that it is hypocritical for DPS to publicly criticize the agreements and then avoid voting.
"DPS and its allies are the last address in the country to criticize, because they are the ones who have betrayed valuable locations in the country in similar ways, from 'Porto Montenegro', 'Porto Novi', Sveti Stefan, the ski resort in Kolašin... which are dominantly in favor of the profits of foreign investors, while the state is left with only a small piece of the pie," she points out.
During the debate in parliament, DPS MPs said that they were against the non-transparent approach to bringing investors into the country, but that they supported investments, and that the government's actions had caused damage to Alabbar and the UAE.
"The reputational damage is immeasurable for the state, because it is in economic problems. The only way to get out is through investments. They proposed a serious investor to be a competitor for the lease of the beaches. However, Spajić created a problem through a charlatan process," said Nikola Rakočević.
His colleague Nikola Milović stated at the plenum that the DPS is afraid that "nothing will come of it", because "one good idea will not be done the right way again".
"The model they gave to citizens is on its last legs, it is a model that has destroyed the economy and now we need to turn a blind eye," he stressed.
There were also those who had harsher messages. Jevto Eraković assessed that this was "one of the biggest frauds in Montenegrin history", and that the information they received from Spajić was unreliable.
"This is a government of chaos and disorder. People would lose their minds if they listened to your arguments every day," said Danijel Živković, adding that the investment amount has already been changed several times, and that such steps scare investors.
As Milo used to say: Landowners are racketeering the state
Some parties and the non-governmental sector that oppose the agreements with the UAE claim that these documents envisage the seizure of property from citizens in order to implement the project of an Arab investor.
A few days ago, Vanja Ćalović Marković indirectly told the ruling MPs that they planned to seize property in a similar way to what the DPS intended to do in 2015, when it was in power. At that time, through a proposal for amendments to the Expropriation Law, which was not adopted because there was no support for it in parliament, the party proposed the seizure of property if it was assessed to be in the state interest and if it contributed to reducing public debt.
"We did not save Velika Plaža, Buljarica and Jaz for politicians. We did not save them for functions, chairs and investment plans. We saved them for citizens, for nature, for generations to come. And we went through a golgotha because we did not remain silent. We defended them together. You were with us then, shoulder to shoulder. You called for protests against the former regime when they wanted to hand over the coast to their friends. And now you want to give away what we have together saved. To continue where they left off. And now you are the ones who want to silence us," she wrote five days ago in an open letter to government representatives.
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Former Prime Minister and DPS leader Milo Đukanović said ten years ago that owners of land that was to be expropriated were “racketeering the state” by not wanting to sell it at the price it had set for them. He said at the time that he was surprised by the “increased temperature” that had been created in the public over the proposed amendments to the Expropriation Law, adding that a fair formula for compensation for expropriation was not what “everyone imagined in their head so that they could blackmail the state and sell a square meter of land for a few thousand euros.”
"When this is done, an attempt is made to racketeer the state, and that's what it's called. This state has faced constant efforts to racketeer it throughout its history, including the most recent one. I can list dozens of such examples, and the only question is whether we will give legitimacy to this with new legal solutions," he said at the time.
Vuković: Investor is being given property worth 20 billion euros
Last night, Ivan Vuković said on the show Načisto that DPS MPs said in a parliamentary debate that this way of bringing investors to Montenegro is a way to de facto give 20 million square meters of state and private property worth 20 billion euros to a foreign investor.
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"We wanted to see what the majority that would make the decision looked like. Why did we choose to leave? For the same reason that we left the assembly hall in June last year, when the Resolution on the Genocide in Jasenovac, Mauthausen and Dachau, which we criticized the most, was on the agenda," said Vuković.
When asked by the show's author Petar Komnenić why the DPS's reaction was mild, Vuković replied that the party's MPs, along with the Social Democrats (SD) representative Boris Mugoša, "made the greatest contribution."
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