The term "fascism" is often misused, and some fascist tendencies are not recognized as such

Equating Chetniks and partisans, singing the songs of Mark Perkovic Thompson, denying the genocide in Srebrenica, declaring critics of the government to be enemies of the state, and parts of the new government to be traitors, fascist graffiti in Berane, the announcement of the expulsion of priests, calling the participants of lithium a lunatic movement... These are just some of the examples that are often qualified as fascism in Montenegro.

Sociologist Balša Lubard from the British Center for the Analysis of the Radical Right considers it wrong to use the name of one of the darkest ideologies in the history of mankind for every negative phenomenon in our society.

"Where fascism becomes everything, and when something becomes everything, it is both everything and nothing at the same time. An example is that we had journalists and political commentators from various spheres who called the previous government fascism to those who call the current government fascism. Both are quite far from the truth. In principle, fascism is where we do not know and do not acknowledge other people's suffering... which is occasionally present, but I underline, it is not as widespread, it is not as strong in Montenegro as we often like to think," says Lubarda .

Professor of philosophy and civil activist Stefan Đukić also agrees with Lubard. Along with, as he says, throwing around the term fascism, he observes another tendency

"It is especially bad when the anti-fascist story is actually equated with fascist tendencies, where a discourse is used that is completely in line with what fascism is: it is a constant story about traitors and a constant search for some 'fifth column', where you call them fascists, and in fact that rhetoric is originally and purely fascist, where traitors are sought in your ranks. That 'hunting for traitors' is the main thing of that narrative".

Lubarda lists some of the ideas that are or lead to fascism.

"That's what happens when you hear 'Serbia for Serbs', 'Montenegro for Montenegrins', 'Romania for Romanians' and choose the name of your choice, certainly authoritarianism, i.e. the fetishization of the leader, from those that are somewhat tragicomic, such as the fact that some of our leaders are smooth while the second is comical, to the open desire for centralization in governance. The tendency to observe the world through two moral blocs, there are good and bad people, and there is an ongoing struggle between the good and the bad, there is no reconciliation between them and there can be none".

Lubarda warns that there can be many nationalisms, but fascism is always one. He explains that, for example, Serbian nationalism is an intellectual tradition, and its bearers are university professors, but also the bureaucracy and the working class. However, it also points to Montenegrin.

"What is characteristic of Montenegrin nationalism, in contrast to Serbian, which is clearly ethnic, is that it presented itself as a kind of liberal nationalism. We cannot constantly defend ourselves from someone. During the nineties in Montenegro, representatives of that liberal nationalism raised their voices, primarily against the war, and against the way of making decisions, because the decisions related to Montenegro were not necessarily always made in Montenegro. However, the time of that liberal nationalism has long passed. Montenegro is an independent country and we do not need to defend it from others state or other nationalism, we should already defend it by defending the economy of that country, by defending our own citizens from the corona virus," says Lubarda.

The political elite has a special responsibility in the fight against fascism, but also the nationalism that often leads to it.

"People on the public stage, especially public officials, should be more aware of their importance and when they target political dissidents or an entire nation or any collective by collectiveizing their guilt or some determination, they introduce a fascist discourse into our society," Đukić points out.

On the occasion of November 9 - the International Day of the Fight against Fascism and Antisemitism, Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapić announced that there are thin and dangerous boundaries that can be crossed in the name of patriotism, patriotism and higher interests, and that is why it is the duty of the institutions of the system to monitor, recognize and proactively participate in fencing off and sanctioning every type of chauvinism, discrimination, totalitarianism, revanchism, hatred and violence.