Eighteen years after the declaration of independence, one of the questions is whether Montenegro managed to use all its potential, develop into a democratic society and improve the lives of its citizens.
Analysts say that the decision on independence was good for our society, but that many mistakes were made in the meantime.
18 years ago, the citizens of Montenegro decided by majority vote that they wanted an independent state.
Analysts with whom Televizija Vijesti spoke do not have a dilemma that it was a good decision, but the question arises whether all the expectations of the citizens have been met, i.e. are we better off living independently or would it be better if we remained in the union with Serbia?
"I don't see any rational, strong argument that would support the thesis that we were better off until 2006," said political analyst Sergej Sekulović.
"So that Montenegro stabilized itself politically, it could have done more if those who ruled wanted to rule in the interest of the entire community. Also in the field of economy, there was still an increase in wages. That standard could have increased much more." said economic analyst Zarija Pejović.
Pejović says that economic development started after the split of the single DPS in 1998.
"And it really starts to strengthen the standard of living in Montenegro. And it lasted until 2010. Then after that we have a period of stagnation because earnings stagnated for a whole decade. And then we reached the year 2020 - very tense, almost to the point of conflict in society and now we should learn some lessons," he said.
After that, there was a significant increase in salaries and pensions, but also an increase in inflation.
The public debt, which grew considerably during the rule of the DPS, has now been reduced and is within acceptable limits, but the announced borrowing in the coming years, to pay back old debts, is a concern.
Sekulović says that there are many lessons that Montenegro has yet to learn.
"What was certainly not good during the past 18 years is that we did not work on strengthening institutions, on the contrary, at one point those institutions became trapped, corruption was systemic, endemic in nature. So, it spread to unprecedented proportions and in a terminal phase under the huge influence of organized crime," said Sekulović.
And although the referendum division in Montenegro took place in 2006, it seems that it is still going on for some citizens.
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