If the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) had remained in power in 2020, some arrests would probably have taken place, but not the fight against corruption and institution building.
This follows from the answers given to "Vijesti" by the interviewees, commenting on the statement of the president of the strongest opposition party. Danijela Živković who said on Thursday, in the show "Načisto" on Television Vijesti, that some arrests would have taken place even if there had been no change of government.
The DPS leader said that "the collapse of all the values we have today would not have occurred" if it had not been for the four MPs from the URA GP in 2020, to which the host replied Petar Komnenic reacted by saying that "there wouldn't even be an arrest."
Živković denied these allegations.
"There would be arrests because no one would exempt themselves from responsibility, neither the prosecution nor the courts nor anything else... No one can exempt themselves from responsibility. Not you, not me. No one can escape justice. They can't, remember. You can have all the political patronage you want," he pointed out...
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BIRN Director Vuk Marash believes that Živković's statement should be welcomed, but that there is no evidence to support this claim.
"So, it should absolutely be welcomed. I would say that this is the new position of the DPS - that arrests would have occurred if they had controlled the institutions, because they controlled them for 30 years during which we saw chronic tolerance of crime and corruption, and that is something that caused their regime to fall in the first place. So, hindsight is good. I believe that some people in the DPS realized that supporting crime could no longer go on, but we have no real-life evidence that this would have actually happened."
Docent at the University of Donja Gorica Nikoleta Djukanovic He points out that there would have been some arrests, but that the former government did not create the prerequisites for a rule of law state:
"Would there have been any arrests if the DPS had remained in power? There probably would have been some, as there were certain processes up until 2020. However, the former system and the then government did not build the basic prerequisites for establishing a legal state, equality before the court and the rule of law, so it is difficult to expect that their survival in power after 2020 could bring what the then opposition promised, which is still not fulfilling its promises today."
However, she points out that the arrests seen after the dismissal of the DPS are not proof of the existence of an unequivocal political will to fight corruption and crime and the existence of appropriate capacities for that.
"Until we receive concrete verdicts, independent and depoliticized judicial institutions, and build accountability among those holding judicial and other positions, we can talk about the change that was expected after the 2020 elections, which de facto did not happen," said Đukanović, adding that "it is almost irrelevant whether any of today's ruling or opposition parties will be in power because they have all had the opportunity to exercise power and have shown their 'will' and 'ability' to 'improve' society, and it is almost non-existent."
Marović's arrest coincided with a political split
Maraš highlights the case of a former DPS official Svetozar Marović as an example of an arrest during the rule of that party, but adds that it coincided with a political split:
"I will remind you that the only serious case we had was the case of Svetozar Marović. And that was at the moment when he politically parted ways with Milo Đukanović and the then leadership of the DPS. So, all that with him, with whom they parted ways, and that somehow very conveniently for Đukanović and that team coincided with the proceedings that were opened against Marović. On the other hand, it is undeniable that the DPS controlled the police, the prosecution and the judiciary and we did not see any positive developments, and the European Commission has been looking for them for years and that was one of the main obstacles to progress in European integrations.
Maraš believes that the main reason why there were no "major" arrests during the DPS rule, except for Marović, lies in the fact that the state tolerated corruption and organized crime, and that the best indicator of this is that the Kavača and Škaljara criminal clans were created during that period:
"Unfortunately, a good part of these corrupt and criminal practices continued with the new government. They took over certain mechanisms and this system of impunity has largely been carried over into the new period."
Maraš pointed out that the DPS government "has really shown with very concrete examples that they do not want to fight corruption."
"On the contrary, they did everything they could to ensure that none of those cases were prosecuted, and on the other hand, they accused and campaigned against all those who pointed to corruption."
They give up politics, not people.
Both interlocutors point out that DPS still does not renounce any of its officials individually, but only collectively for the mistakes that were made.
"I believe that it is indeed true, as Mr. Živković says, that we would now already see in DPS a move away from some cadres who are undeniably burdened, I would say, with suspicions of corruption and serious accusations that have existed for years. DPS has not renounced these people. They may have been sidelined in terms of public appearances or something similar, but we have not seen them renounce them or say that such individuals are no longer welcome in the party," says Maraš.
As he adds, the strongest opposition party may not control the institutions of the system at this moment, but it has intra-party control, so it could, at least at that level, send some concrete messages to stop this practice.
"However, I have not seen such messages in relation to specific activities, except for declarative messages."
Maraš reminds that the show did not mention which specific practices and individuals Živković was disavowing.
"It would be nice if we had heard, for example, whose practices of individuals from their period of rule were problematic and what they would no longer be happy with, and who are the people they would thank for their cooperation. Very likely starting with Milo Đukanović, who in many scandals figured as the leader of the entire system of downfall, but on the contrary, we have seen an absolute glorification of Đukanović and other individuals from the party," said Maraš, adding that he does not take this "that seriously, but rather as a platitude, and it should justify everything that is happening judicially."
Đukanović notes that Živković's possible renunciation of the official position would jeopardize his party position.
"Živković is right when he says that it is necessary to prove the scandals and the responsibility of DPS officials, but it should certainly be borne in mind that he himself has very limited possibilities for independent thinking and decision-making, so any criticism of former officials of that party would be fatal to his position. I see this as the reason why the new younger line-up of DPS is moving away from corruption politics as such, but not from those who have well established that policy in Montenegro."
Uncritical attitude towards Đukanović
Živković, among other things, said that he "believes that Đukanović has done nothing that would bring him into the zone of criminal responsibility."
Maraš points out that the former president and prime minister entered politics in shorts, and is coming out rich.
"30 years ago, the citizens of Montenegro saw Milo Đukanović in shorts and a pair of shorts without the dinars of the time, while today he and his entire family are millionaires, living off a state salary. If someone thinks that millions can be earned in Montenegro in this way, then every citizen of this country would be a millionaire, and that is not the case."
"Still, let's let the judicial institutions deal with it. It's far from the case that Milo Đukanović is not responsible for anything, but whether the institutions will have the courage to prosecute his actions and decisions and everything the authorities did while he led them is another story," adds Maraš.
Đukanović believes that Živković's allegations stem from the closed nature of Montenegrin parties, which do not allow for criticism.
"So, I think that this party (DPS) is still essentially, similar to other parties in Montenegro, an autocratic system in which even unforgiving criticism or critical thinking is not allowed. It is somewhat understandable that the current leadership of DPS expresses respect for what former President Đukanović has done for Montenegro in terms of foreign policy, but it will take a lot of time to change the patterns by which the party is claimed as private property, which is a necessary prerequisite for Mr. Živković to be independent in creating policies, without fear of possible consequences."
Presumption of innocence and compromised status
During the show, Komnenić mentioned the names of certain officials who were arrested on suspicion of abusing their position, but Živković responded that the presumption of innocence applies to all of them.
Maraš points out that it is valid, but that the parties can understand how compromised someone is even before the verdict.
"Everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but it's simple, and people in the party can assess to what extent someone has been compromised and at what point it's necessary to publicly thank that person for their cooperation, to let citizens know that they will no longer work with such people of those profiles," he says.
Đukanović assesses that this legal fact is important and must be respected, but also that it is necessary to prosecute the perpetrators of criminal acts:
"The presumption of innocence is very important in orderly systems and developed democracies and it should be respected in Montenegro as well. However, we must have strong institutions that are capable of prosecuting and adequately punishing perpetrators of criminal acts. What we have seen so far is that most often citizens pay damages in court proceedings and indictments that are not valid, for which no one is held responsible, instead of seeing only people who are involved in affairs being prosecuted."
Vukić: They had unlimited power for three decades
Reacting to Živković's allegations, SNP Main Board member Dragan Vukić said "that DPS was truly ready for justice and responsibility, it had three decades of unlimited power to do so."
He announced that "citizens have witnessed systemic corruption, criminal activities, party capture of institutions, and selective enforcement of the law."
"The SNP recalls that it was the changes after August 30, 2020 that made it possible to initiate proceedings against those who had been untouchable for years. If the DPS had remained in power, justice would have continued to be held hostage to political interests."
According to him, Živković's views look more like an attempt to diminish the role of the new government in strengthening judicial institutions than sincere self-criticism.
"Citizens know who destroyed institutions and who built them. SNP will always support the independence of the judiciary and the fight against corruption, regardless of who is in power and who is in opposition."
It should certainly be borne in mind that he (Živković) himself has very limited possibilities for independent thinking and decision-making, so any criticism of former party officials would be fatal to his position. I see this as the reason why the new younger line-up of the DPS is moving away from corruption politics as such, but not from those who have well established that policy, says Đukanović
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