The Rector of the Cetinje Seminary, Gojko Perović, assessed that chaos in Montenegro cannot bring anyone good.
As it was published on the website of the Metropolis of Montenegro and the Littoral, he "explains how the riots in Montenegro happened" for tonight's show "Together Tonight" on Radio Belgrade.
"On the one hand, to such legitimate and clear demands of the church that the Law on Freedom of Religion is bad and that a better one should be passed, you have a single-minded reaction of the Montenegrin authorities, where there is no question whether they might have made a mistake and whether 250 thousand people on the streets are a sign that perhaps they should not have passed that law. In such a tense situation, it is completely normal and natural for the spontaneity of youth, wit, and creativity to protest in this way," Perović pointed out.
He added that, on the other hand, space is being opened, and there are planned actions aimed at provocations and escalation, so that the Law and peaceful church processions are not the subject.
"To quote a friend, if we from the church did not call for liturgies to be free of party and political symbols, then the sea was not salted either. Everything that favors putting the Law on the back burner is not good, neither for the church nor for the people. , someone from the government would rather deal with riots, conflicts and fights than to be asked if you passed a good law and if you want to fix it. I openly claim that the authorities in Montenegro prefer to have conflicts, because they show a complete lack of desire for dialogue. And now these last messages they sent us, it's an invitation to talk about the application of the Law. It looks a bit like some inappropriate trade. We have a more normal, legitimate demand - change the law. And chaos in the country can't bring anyone good." Perovic said.
He said that the church continuously calls for a calm and prayerful tone of liti, but yes, the very fact that an increasing number of people are on the street means that it is more difficult to maintain order.
"The church is responsible for its liturgies, and they are still in the tone of the church and prayer. However, the liturgies have also raised other citizens and youth who want to express other dissatisfaction. Thus, in recent days we have painted the walls in the colors of the Serbian tricolor, which at the same time, the colors of the Kingdom of Montenegro. Those colors were found when we were transporting the remains of King Nikola from France to Montenegro. So, it's nothing against Montenegro, it's an awakening of awareness among that youth. And we have a senseless, repressive reaction to that of the police, who disperse those youth with tear gas. And then we have an even funnier scene where the police patrol is guarding the white wall. Not to mention all the graffiti there is, all the ugliness and immorality, that's not touched," said Perović.
The rector of the Cetinje Theological Seminary says that, of course, the tricolor is not older than the French bourgeois revolution, but, if it is, it represents universal symbols of freedom, brotherhood and equality.
Perović emphasizes that the rallies organized by the MCP for a month since the Law was adopted are a legitimate civil protest.
"Some will say that the people have woken up, some will say that it is a miracle, some, like the authorities in Montenegro - political demonstrations dressed in church clothes, but everyone who follows the events of these months agree that so many people on the streets in Montenegro have never there were not. There were musical events and sports competitions, there were also political rallies, but for the squares of all Montenegrin cities to be full at the same time and for everything to take place in a peaceful and prayerful tone, we have not yet had that. I talked about this with some NGOs. and civil activists, they all have only one opinion - that it is a legitimate civil protest of believers and not only believers, but also people who advocate for Montenegro to have normal laws, laws that do not violate the Constitution and basic human rights. Then many people gathered there and we are all in the same tone. Someone will say this is a fight for the church, and I would definitely add to that the fight for Montenegro, which will have normal laws, respect basic human rights and the Constitution," said Perović.
He also said that it must be said that the Government in Montenegro did not want any dialogue for the past year, that it (in)expertly avoided situations to discuss, and that is why this is the first argument against the Government's statement.
"Because if our remarks were unfounded, we would certainly have easily talked and they would have easily pointed it out to us. So they were afraid of something. Our remarks are well-founded. We are talking about the violation of basic human rights, about equality before the courts, about the right to a trial, about the constitutional provision that discrimination is prohibited and the provision that the church and the state are separated. All of this is violated by this law, and it is easy and readable even by a non-lawyer. These days, you also have a fact from the Montenegrin media - it almost does not exist a lawyer, who is willing and able to defend such a law," Perović told Radio Belgrade.
Soon, the legal objections of the SPC
Perović said that their legal team is preparing their objections very carefully, as well as that they have just recently been checked by the biggest experts on these legal issues, university professors.
"We contacted all the people from that branch and right now we are in the stage before presenting those objections. Will they be adopted or not? You have a country where the same government has ruled for 30 years, and the first person in that government, even though he should be the president of all citizens, even though there should be separate legislative, executive and judicial powers, that president even before our initiative explicitly says that the Law will not be withdrawn. Now imagine the situation the judges of the Constitutional Court are in, when the president who should at least be silent now while the process doesn't end, and he says the protests are crazy," said Perović.
There is no disagreement
"There is no disagreement, but also the housewives when they prepare the feast, when the flour and eggs are spread around the house, and there is some disagreement, but it always ends with a rich feast. It is completely normal that we who live in Montenegro share good and evil with that people and with those authorities, so that perhaps we understand the situation better than any well-intentioned Serb in Belgrade. But there cannot and must not be disagreement," said Perović.
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