Prince Nikola Petrović Njegoš said that for him the word "annexation" remains a historical fact that "erased Montenegro from maps and threw my family into the pain of exile," and that he leaves it to historians to discuss the events of 1918.
Prince Nikola said that he was "deeply saddened" by the controversy caused by the Law on Amendments to the Law on the Status of Descendants of the Petrović Njegoš Dynasty, and said that the name Petrović Njegoš should unite Montenegrins, not divide them.
The proposed amendment would remove the word "violent" from Article 1 of that regulation in the formulation on the annexation of the state from 1918, and the proposal was submitted to parliament by MPs from the ruling Europe Now Movement (PES), Gordan Stojović and Miloš Pižurica.
Prince Nikola, in a statement delivered to the media by the Petrović Njegoš Foundation, also said that the term "annexation" itself implies the word "violent".
He also said that he found Prime Minister Milojko Spajić's (PES) intention to "calm down passions and find new compromises" to be sincere, as well as Spajić's intention to "honor the Montenegrin dynasty by returning a symbolic place."
We transmit the announcement in its entirety:
"The controversy caused by the Law on Amendments to the Law on the Status of Descendants of the Petrović Njegoš Dynasty from 2011 deeply saddens me.
I would like to remind you that the revision of this law became necessary due to the failure to fulfill a certain number of obligations, the most important of which for us is the allocation of residence to our family.
My commitment for 35 years for peace and human rights during the difficult period of conflict in the former Yugoslavia, and then for the recognition of Montenegro and its independence, is known to everyone.
I acted, in my conscience and heart, throughout that entire period, only out of a desire to be of use to Montenegro and to honor the memory of my glorious ancestors. The conflicts and political rivalries that tear apart our dear Montenegro have marked all that time, and I again state that it is difficult to escape their influence.
I would like to remind you that the process that led to the adoption of the 2011 Law lasted seven years. Seven years of difficult negotiations, the most important result of which was the moral and historical rehabilitation of our dynasty, thanks to the tireless engagement, along with me, of my advisor and long-time loyal friend of our family, Tanja Turquin-Spičanović.
What was most important to me then was justice – justice given to the dynasty that defended the freedom, honor and independence of Montenegro. Yes, we were very proud when the 2011 Law was adopted.
Even then, the term 'violent' caused controversy and prevented the law from being adopted by a majority of MPs...
For me, then as now, the word 'annexation' remains a historical fact that erased Montenegro from maps and threw my family into the pain of exile.
As for the rest, I leave it to historians to discuss the events that took place almost 127 years ago.
However, I would like to remind you of one important fact – that France, during an official speech at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Quai d'Orsay, given by Mrs. Mangent in 2017, upon awarding her the Order of Knight of the Legion of Honor, acknowledged the great injustice done to King Nikola and Montenegro.
We were proud and moved to tears, because this was also the result of our continuous efforts to finally tell the truth at the highest level, where a different version of the same events had previously been created.
Let me convey the most important part of that speech – the one that concluded our quest for the moral rehabilitation of my ancestors.
'I would like to tell you first of all that here at the Quai d'Orsay (French Foreign Ministry) we have a kind of ancient moral debt to your family. I will not recall the entire history of your country, which, alone in the southeast of Europe, has victoriously resisted Ottoman pressure for more than three centuries. But despite that, here, within these walls, in the euphoria of victory in 1918, we sacrificed the Kingdom of Montenegro to what we cynically call 'higher interests'. Your great-grandfather, King Nikola, was, from the very beginning of the war in 1914, an ally who fought bravely against a numerically superior enemy, for which he was poorly rewarded, a fact that was forgotten at the Versailles Peace Conference. We decided during that period to reconstruct a new Europe and to create a great Yugoslavia that was to become the pillar of a new and strong political and military alliance, the Little Entente, destined to oppose all vengeful and revisionist attempts by those who had previously been defeated. And this was done to your detriment.
Using as an excuse a hastily convened assembly and a 'referendum' organized in your country, also hastily, our then Minister, Stéphane Pichon, was tasked with announcing the terrible news to the King, 'since your people have declared, the Government of the Republic of France no longer has any reason to continue to maintain relations with His Majesty King Nicholas and his Government.' A sovereign who had chosen our country to continue the fight and represent the interests of Montenegro, with the Government that had consulted with its ministers in Neuilly.
It will take 70 years to begin to right the wrong, when the Government of the country that is still the socialist republic of Montenegro will organize the return to the homeland of the remains of the king, who in the meantime died in humble and alienated exile in Antibes, very far from his Royal Capital.
Here are 'my' facts...
The proposed amendments to the law envisage the deletion of the word "violent", while retaining the term 'annexation', which already implies this in itself.
You may consider me naive, but the Prime Minister's intention to calm passions and find new compromises seemed sincere to me.
His intention to honor the Montenegrin dynasty by returning a symbolic place – too.
Having my own home in my own country, the one that belonged to my grandfather Mirko, and where my father Mihajlo was born, represents for me and my family a fair respect for the provisions of the 2011 law, which have not been implemented for 15 years.
I know that our memories and recollections are selective and are connected to the stories and traditions of our families. Mutual wounds are difficult to overcome.
Historical sources are also selective, because we choose what confirms our already formed opinions.
Few are those who can free themselves from these bonds and accept hearing, seeing, or reading a version of events that is not theirs. And nothing is closer to the truth than a lie.
I dare to hope that, in light of this new controversy, constructive dialogues could finally begin.
With all my strength and conviction, I call for voices that will seek what unites us, not what divides us.
Personally, I am much more concerned about the future of Montenegro than about its painful past, which, unfortunately, we cannot change.
"How to build a sustainable future together for our children and new generations – that is the only real question for me. The name Petrović Njegoš should unite Montenegrins, not divide them."
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