Although they are part of the government that recognizes Kosovo and maintains diplomatic relations with it, the New Serbian Democracy (NSD) Andrije Mandić and Democrats Alekse Bečić At the local level, they support the adoption of a declaration that “annuls” the state recognition of Kosovo's independence.
Some of the Democratic councilors and representatives of the NSD helped to "recognize" Kosovo in the territory of that municipality in the Zeta parliament two months ago, and for such a decision to be made in Pljevlja, they should soon raise their hands in the local assembly.
Asked whether it is politically normal for a party as part of the executive branch to recognize Kosovo, and for its local councilors to vote against it, a member of the Presidency of the Democrats Velizar Kaluđerović He responded by saying that the personal views of individuals in support of the aforementioned initiative are not decisions of the competent bodies of that party, nor do they represent its policy.
He told "Vijesti" that there are no divisions in the Democrats, but that there are "individual actions that cannot be presented as party policy."
"Our position is clear - Montenegro needs less ideological ping-pong and more serious work. Fewer declarations that do not change the life of a single citizen, and more fighting crime, higher salaries and pensions, stronger institutions, better healthcare, better education and a faster European path," Kaluđerović said.
The NSD did not respond to the same inquiry.
Nikolić: Heating up the irrational
Journalist at the Podgorica weekly "Monitor" Predrag Nikolić, assessed that it is difficult to talk about normality in terms of consistency and principle on the political scene of Montenegro.
According to him, parties are often in a schizophrenic state of division at the state and local levels.
"So while at the state level they advocate for EU integration and everything that goes with it, at the local level and at the grassroots level they explain to their voters that it's not entirely true, and that they haven't deviated from their traditional values one iota," Nikolić told "Vijesti".
He stated that the problem with continuing this kind of political practice is misleading citizens (voters).
"Because in what way and how will the decision to revoke the recognition of Kosovo contribute to better life and functioning in individual municipalities? It is clear that, counting on some political gain at the local and state level, they are once again fueling irrationality," the interlocutor stated.
Milan Knežević's Democratic People's Party (DNP) submitted an initiative yesterday to schedule a special session of the Pljevlja Municipal Assembly (MA) to decide on the adoption of a draft declaration "on the annulment and non-recognition of the decision to recognize the unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo and Metohija".
The initiative, as announced by the party, was signed by 19 councilors, which means that there is a majority for its adoption (at least 18 votes are required).
All those who were offered the document for signature - except for the Europe Now Movement (PES) - are part of the government in the northernmost Montenegrin municipality. PES was that until recently.
The initiative was signed by all councilors of the DNP (two) and NSD (ten), three out of four representatives of the Democrats, both councilors of the Movement for Pljevlja, a representative of United Montenegro, and one independent councilor.
Five councilors did not sign - one from the Democrats, all three from PES, as well as one independent councilor.
A Democratic representative who did not sign the initiative, Milojica Tešović, previously stated that he believes that the local parliament should not discuss foreign policy issues, because they are within the jurisdiction of state institutions, i.e. the Government, while Miomir Drobnjak, an independent councilor who also omitted to sign, announced that he would not support the adoption of the declaration for the same reasons.
When it comes to PES, the head of their councilors' club Radoman Andesilić He recently stated that the initiatives to annul the decision to recognize Kosovo in Zeta and Pljevlja served as a cover for political developments in the capital (DNP left power), accusing Knežević's party of trying to raise national issues in order to divert attention from other political processes.
Kaluđerović: Tensions, not legal effects
Velizar Kaluđerović stated that it is clear that municipalities are not competent to decide on issues of foreign policy and international recognition of states. Therefore, initiatives like the DNP, he says, do not produce legal effect, but can create tensions and distract attention "from life's issues."
Kaluđerović emphasized that in Zeta, out of six Democratic councilors, none signed the initiative, and that one voted for it "for reasons that, as far as we understand, should not be politically abused, because they are personal, family and emotional in nature."
"In Pljevlja, the initiative was not signed by Milojica Tešović, the founder, long-time president of the Municipal Board of the Democrats of Pljevlja and one of the most respected officials of our party, who once again showed political wisdom and refused to participate in ideological games. And whose national identity is no weaker than anyone who signed the initiative in question, and every Pljevlja resident knows that," said Kaluđerović.
He added that since the beginning of their mandate, the Democrats have been committed to the Agreement on the Formation of the 44th Government, which "strongly leads Montenegro towards the EU", and which was adopted by the highest bodies of the Democrats.
"We will certainly not fall for tricks that can slow down our integration process," he said.
The Zeta Declaration is not in the Official Gazette
On May 12, the Zeta Municipal Assembly voted to adopt a declaration on the “recognition” of Kosovo, but it has not yet been published in the Official Gazette. The text of the declaration (point six) states that the declaration should be published in the Official Gazette.
In addition to DNP councilors, representatives of NSD also raised their hands in support of the declaration, Marko Vukcevic from Democrats and independent councilors Nikola Rajović, Svetozar Ulićević i Lidija Panic.
Democratic representatives left the room before the vote. Aleksandra Petricevic i Luka Krstović, while councilors from the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) did not attend the session.
However, the document adopted in Zeta - which should also be voted on in Pljevlja - does not contain what is stated in its title, and what was announced by the head of the DNP Knežević - the annulment and non-recognition of the Government's decision to recognize Kosovo.
The document, which contains six points, does not explicitly state the "recognition" of Kosovo in either Zeta or Pljevlja. However, it states that the Pljevlja parliament "remains committed... to the inviolability of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia, based on international law and the UN Security Council Resolution..."
Point one of the declaration states that the Pljevlja Municipal Council "notes with particular concern that the position of Montenegrins and Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija is deteriorating daily under the temporary Pristina institutions."
The second states that the Pljevlja Municipal Assembly “regrets that all previous governments of Montenegro, since gaining independence (in 2006), have ignored the majority position of the citizens of Montenegro that Kosovo and Metohija are an integral part of the Republic of Serbia.
Point three states that the Pljevlja Municipal Assembly calls on the Prime Minister's Government Milojko Spajić (PES) to pursue a "balanced foreign policy" and not to vote for decisions in international institutions and organizations "that are directed against the interests of the majority Montenegro and the neighboring and brotherly state of Serbia."
"The Pljevlja Municipal Council, in solidarity with the suffering Montenegrin and Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, issues this declaration as a form of support and efforts to resolve the crisis caused by the unilateral declaration of independence peacefully; the Pljevlja Municipal Council remains committed to respecting the UN Charter, the inviolability of sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, based on international law and UN Security Council Resolution 1244," it is stated in points four and five of the declaration.
After the former Democratic Front (DF), consisting of the DNP and NSD, unsuccessfully tried to have the Zeta parliament adopt a declaration on "recognition" of Kosovo three years ago, Knežević announced in mid-April that he would raise the issue - this time in other municipalities where the DNP is part of the government, but also at the state level.
NSD succumbs to pressure and signs initiative in Pljevlja
After a councilor from Mandić's party in the Pljevlja parliament told the newspaper at the end of May that he would be happy to sign the DNP initiative and that he believed that his colleagues would do the same, the head of the Pljevlja NSD committee Milan Lekić announced that they would wait to see "the scope and concrete results of the initiative to withdraw recognition of Kosovo in the territory of the Zeta Municipality" before signing.
However, after this - and several other moves by the NSD at the state level - led Belgrade tabloids to launch a campaign against Mandić, his party reversed its decision in Pljevlja and still gave signatures to the DNP.
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