Civic Montenegro was and remains the guiding idea of a large number of citizens, but its realization was not possible due to the lack of awareness within state institutions about the importance of this concept, and the difficulty in implementing the values of civic democracy due to political, ethnic and social divisions.
This was assessed by the interlocutors of "Vijesti" when answering questions about whether a civic Montenegro ever existed or whether it was just an unrealized ideal to which a part of society aspires.
According to the Constitution, Montenegro is a civic state, in which the bearer of sovereignty is the citizen. But what does the civic concept actually represent in reality, or what should it represent if it does not exist, as some political actors claim?
Sociologist Biljana Maslovaric states that civic Montenegro is the Montenegro in which national identity is irrelevant, while other layers of individual identity are built by respecting laws, institutions, fighting for justice and fairness, the common good, sustainability, humanity, nature... He adds that this idea was certainly an ideal that many citizens and political forces aspired to during different historical periods.
"There were moments in our recent history when the values of civil democracy, equality and individual rights were intensively established, and of course promoted, as was the case during the referendum on the independence of Montenegro (in 2006). However, the actual implementation of these ideals was often hampered by political, ethnic and social divisions," Maslovarić told "Vijesti".
Parties to return what was appropriated
She said that a civic Montenegro can be seen as a goal that is still in the development phase and is far away.
"Our challenge is to continue working towards achieving that goal and overcoming the divisions that separate us," the interviewee stated.
Several parliamentary parties claim to represent the ideals of a civic Montenegro and fight for them, while some political actors say that this idea does not live up to reality and that some of these parties are hiding their real, nationalist nature with such narratives.
Maslovarić's assessments are on a similar note. She stated that the only parties to blame for the destruction of the ideas of civic democracy are those that most often have the prefix "democratic" in their names, and which, in her words, were essentially "nationalist-chauvinist selfish bastions for the accumulation of individual power."
"That's why it's very important to force them to 'give us back' the idea of a civic Montenegro, by demanding, or rather insisting, that they establish open electoral lists. At this moment, I would say, it's vitally important to force politicians to work in our favor, for the general social good," said the sociologist.
Speaking about what a civic Montenegro should be, an educator and activist Neđeljko Necko Đurović He told "Vijesti" that "civic community" represents the entirety of social relations that are devoid of exclusivity and conflict, but also a decision-making system in which everyone participates equally and in which ability, conscientiousness and knowledge are valued.
"Of course, apart from Scandinavian countries, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, there are almost no states that have a civil society in their functioning. Montenegrin society must constantly encourage tolerance that enables the acceptance of differences and interculturality in order to respect each other as equal and free members of the social order. Of course, all public statements about a certain individual or collective vulnerability must be considered, but also sanctioned, both for violating someone's civil rights, and for tendentiously incorrect interpretations and self-victimization," he said.
The civil state has not breathed a sigh of relief.
Đurović claims that calls for the restoration of the "former civic Montenegro" sound absurd at this point, "because such and such civic Montenegro has never 'breathed'."
"The state bodies were and still are mostly made up of suitable and inactive people, not capable and eager for change. Outside the institutions were, and still are, mostly all free-thinking and working citizens whose voices and ideas were never carried by any (in)dependent media...", he added.
The interlocutor said that the Montenegrin reality is determined by a combination of "existential populism and the aggressive right", and therefore one should not be surprised by absurd claims such as the one (made by some political actors) that "civic Montenegro does not exist, but we are, nevertheless, in favor of its full integration within the EU".
"This oxymoronic thesis of certain political entities is confirmed in its own peculiar and infantile way by the EU (European Union) representatives in Montenegro," Đurović stated, assessing that rhetoric that resembles that of the pre-referendum or that "irresistibly 'smells' of those topics from the 90s (of the last century) should not be surprising."
"Because in Montenegro, no one has been held accountable for ethnically motivated crimes, no one has apologized for numerous examples of hate speech, no final determination of guilt for privatization robberies has been made, and the persecution of political dissenters continues," he said.
When asked how realistic it is to expect the restoration or construction of a civic Montenegro, Biljana Maslovarić responded that, given the current tensions and divisions, "building an authentic civic Montenegro" seems like a challenging task, but not impossible.
"On the contrary. It takes time, patience and will to bridge differences and build institutions that will represent all citizens, regardless of their ethnic, political or any other affiliation. Education, dialogue and mutual understanding are key to achieving such a society. It is important that all stakeholders are included in this process, so that we can reach a solution that will be acceptable to all," she said.
Asked who could lead such a process and whether there are political forces that have the capacity and true will to work on overcoming divisions and affirming civic identity, the interviewee replied that she believes that such forces and individuals exist.
"True leaders are those who will put the interests of citizens ahead of their political ambitions and who will act as a bridge between different groups," Maslovarić underlined.
“Authentic representation” is disastrous
Đurović told "Vijesti" that the civic concept, although proclaimed by the Constitution, has never been given a real chance because the prerequisites for it are the completion of the process of democratization of society and the establishment of the rule of law in the state.
He explained that experiences from the development of political systems indicate that internal problems and external influences within a society are best channeled through encouraging the development of “participatory democracy.” He added that countries in which there are various forms and levels of direct and indirect participation of citizens in decision-making processes of public importance, as well as clearly established ways of controlling their public services, do not have “high-tension situations” because during controversial events, the shortcomings of officials are more easily identified.
"Civil society cannot function when, during the management of state administration, you have more telephone government sessions where vital national interests were 'decided upon' than you have had regular sessions of the Government of Montenegro during which draft laws and planning documents were adopted after properly conducted public debates," notes the civic activist.
He stated that, "when you have public officials who are actually obedient to their eternal political leaders and parties that, due to closed electoral lists, have actually become narrow-minded associations, then you get a state government that is guided, among other things, by its own insatiable need to be criticized as little as possible."
"Objective criticism of any government starts from satisfying the most diverse private needs and interests that can be satisfied non-violently and in a civilized manner only in an organized community. That is why irresponsible state authorities in multinational communities reject models of civil society, and in doing so often refer to national, religious, cultural or some other collective threat," Đurović concluded.
He assessed that the example of Bosnia and Herzegovina best confirms the fact that every irresponsible and dysfunctional government hides behind some vague collective goal.
"The civic concept of society is directly harmed by the so-called 'authentic representation', and its pernicious practice is also very effectively used by political oligarchies in Montenegro. These hypocritical representations of alleged national, religious, and even foreign policy priorities, such as in our case the insincere pursuit of EU values, actually represent a screen behind which the plunder of the state is carried out, while inciting differences and identity conflicts," said Đurović.
The interlocutor also said that the continuation of building Montenegro as a civil and open society is today burdened by numerous challenges, but that this process cannot currently be carried out by the existing civil parties, and should not be.
"The real potential lies in the civil sector and active citizens who eagerly await the reform of our electoral system and its so-called opening, while our education system should develop the awareness of future generations through the introduction of civic education and media literacy modules," Đurović underlined.
“Civil Montenegro is not an illusion”
Some ruling and opposition parties say that work needs to be done on the concept of a civic state, adding that they could be part of the vanguard of the process of overcoming divisions and affirming civic identity.
The ruling Socialist People's Party (SNP) told "Vijesti" that civic Montenegro is a fundamental value to which they have been consistently committed since its founding.
“Over the past decades, there have been attempts to build a society of equal citizens, but these attempts have often been declarative and burdened with political manipulation. Instead of sincere civic politics, we had a regime that used identity issues to preserve power, thereby undermining trust among people. However, civic Montenegro has never been an illusion. It is a value we strive for and which, despite the challenges, remains realistic and achievable.”
Head of the media team of the opposition Civic Movement (GP) URA Bosko Laketić He reminded that Montenegro is defined by the Constitution as a civil state, but that “it is clear to everyone that this has not been implemented in practice and that this goal is still far away.” He claims that the political elites are to blame for this situation.
"Unfortunately, for decades, dominant political elites have been pushing us to count ourselves on national and religious grounds, and thus making it impossible for us as a society as a whole to step outside those frameworks and move towards a society that would be intercultural in terms of values. Certain political structures certainly find such a situation convenient, because when they have nothing else to offer citizens, they usually, as if on command, shift the public's focus to national and religious issues."
However, as he adds, a civic Montenegro "exists and will exist, although at the moment it only seems like an ideal, but an achievable ideal worth fighting for."
"Unfortunately, at this moment GP URA does not have many allies in this fight, but that does not mean that we will give up on this fight, quite the opposite."
The opposition European Alliance, which consists of the Social Democratic Party, the Social Democrats and the Liberal Party, stated that civic Montenegro "has existed and will exist", but that it is also an ideal that is constantly being strived for and that is being upgraded and developed in accordance with time and the won civil freedoms and rights, and socio-political circumstances.
"Even when the values of civil society are finally dominantly accepted in Montenegro, the struggle for their preservation and development will not stop. This is an eternal obligation and a struggle against destructive and retrograde nationalist and chauvinistic ideas, whose advocates in the Western Balkans will not rest for a long time and will strive to divide societies exclusively along ethnic lines for the sake of their dictatorial impulses."
The alliance says that the values of civil society were set three and a half decades ago by the very entities that make up that coalition today - parties, anti-war movements, media and organizations from the 1990s, independent intellectuals and social activists who inherit the values of freedom, anti-fascism, and individual rights regardless of religious, national, ethnic or any other affiliation.
"It is precisely thanks to these subjects that Montenegro is defined by the Constitution as a civil state in which the bearer of sovereignty is the citizen."
The European Union says that over the past three and a half decades, the influence of civic values and their representatives on trends in Montenegrin society has varied, but that "the fact is that we are now in a phase of regression and that we are heading towards the point from which we started in the early 20s."
"Nationalist and right-wing politics are on the rise again, there are strong attempts to ethno-federalize our society, the prefix 'civic' is increasingly being presented as a pejorative, and civic politics as inefficient and unconvincing. However, the model of an open civil democratic society is superior to any other model in Montenegro and we have no doubt that its values will prevail."
The ruling Europe Now Movement (PES), New Serbian Democracy, Democratic People's Party, Bosniak Party, and opposition Democratic Party of Socialists did not respond to "Vijesti's" questions on this topic.
Parties reportedly ready to overcome divisions
When asked who could lead the process of overcoming divisions and affirming civic identity, the SNP, GP URA, and the European Union said that they could be part of that process.
The SNP responds that certain parties have initiated divisions that have "retrograded" Montenegro, adding that "the rhetoric of exclusivity and division based on nation or religion lead to neither reconciliation nor development."
"The SNP believes that it is possible and necessary to restore mutual trust and build a truly civic state. This implies a society in which we are not divided along national and religious lines, but rather work together for economic progress, social security and the rule of law."
SNP, they say, is ready to be part of that process, "where unity, equality and justice are affirmed and they believe that Montenegro will succeed in this."
Boško Laketić, answering the question of whether the renewal or construction of the idea of a civic Montenegro is possible given the increased divisions in society, said that he was pessimistic if the current ruling majority remained in power.
"With the formation of the Government of Prime Minister Milojko Spajić (PES), the process of growing support for civic-centrist options was halted, and right-wing options began to take precedence again..."
Laketić said that the reason for this phenomenon lies in the fact that "the declaratively civic options of PES and Democrats have fallen into the complete shadow of the constituents of the former DF (Democratic Front) "in order to preserve the seats that are increasing every day", adding that many rightly claim that Andrija Mandić is the leader of the current ruling majority.
"In addition, to make matters worse, the government of Milojko Spajić has largely adopted the ruling manners of the former regime, and in certain segments even surpassed them, which culminated in the current agreement with the United Arab Emirates. Such a policy is certainly not encouraging for civic-oriented voters. Therefore, with such a government, it is certainly difficult to expect any significant support from citizens for the parties of civic Montenegro in the short term."
The European Union points out that the construction of an "authentic civic Montenegro" must occur, "otherwise there will be no stable, successful, democratic and developed Montenegro."
"... Although the values of civil society are superior to their opposites, advocates and promoters of civil policies must show citizens through concrete programs and activities why it is always better to choose these policies."
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