The Chairman of the Management Board in Institute Alternative Stevo Muk believes that the control of power has never been more difficult, while the opposition continues to be stuck in the darkness.
"We testify to the general social indifference that is the result of long exhaustion, the consumption of great ideas and phrases. The Alternative circle is limited to a number of actors of the democratic opposition, several critical NGOs and the media with a few lonely independent votes. Far from the minimum required for an influential alternative," Muk says.
Although in October 2016 it requested repetition of parliamentary elections and resolution of the "state strike" affair, the opposition over the last two years did not make any political profit by boycotting the parliament. After an unsuccessful attempt to force the authorities and the international community to repeat the elections, the opposition parties gradually returned to parliament where they have not been able to impose themselves as an eligible political force.
This was contributed by constant media quarrels and division in the parties, which is why there are five opposition members in the parliament who are not controlling their party's center while nine are still outside the Assembly.
The opposition has further destabilized the defeat at the presidential and local elections, which brought certain parties to the verge of a census. While pointing out that the results of the elections have shown that the opposition is unable to defeat the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), Muk believes that part of the political, media and the public scene has not pulled out the lesson but is still seeing the politics in the "dark".
Muk PHOTO: Savo Prelević
"For two years, the opposition has failed to link the ranks, find the smallest common demand and bring a unique request to the authorities. On the contrary, it went on wandering, splitting and confronting in public. Even the boycott in which they all swore to take part failed to endure longer than the first challenge. The boycott without a strategy of active out-of-parliamentary action could not have succeeded except that it still destroys the parliamentary oversight of the government," he claims.
Thanks to the fact that the ruling coalition functioned for almost a year without opposition "control", rigid changes to the law on free access to information and laws about public gatherings, abolition of maternity allowances and increased VAT were adopted. Despite the demands of the European Union Delegation (EU) to adopt the OECD recommendations, due to the boycott of the opposition, the presidential and local elections were held in accordance with current electoral legislation.
Due to the "state strike", the prosecution has in the meantime filed indictments against individual Deputies of the Democratic Front (DF), which has further radicalized the political scene. While the public remained almost silent on the party's takeover of the Public Service, the authorities strengthened media attacks and critical non-governmental organizations.
The Executive Director of the Center for Civic Education (CGO) Daliborka Uljarević points out that the political scene has remained frozen by the trench entombment. "There are a lot of tactical games and deceptions that keep the vicious cycle of the same positions, rhetoric, and increasingly visible worn-out of political actors to open and lead a serious and argumentative dialogue. This is a matter of multiplying but not solving numerous big issues and affairs, so the case of the "state strike" becomes more of a color than something that dominantly determines relations on the political scene," Uljarević believes.
One of the accused: Šišmakov PHOTO:
The affair "state strike" in election campaigns was used in a great measure by the President of DPS Milo Djukanovic, who returned after a one-year break to his state function. By taking over the position of the President of Montenegro, Djukanovic has returned on the political scene with the ruthless rhetoric towards the opposition, but also to the European Union, and tried to push in the second plan of the Prime Minister Duško Marković. Muk believes that from the chair as the president of the state, Djukanović managed to return the attention of the international community.
One of the accused: Vladimir Popov (on the right) PHOTO:
"The usual long-standing speculation about the last days of Djukanovic, which the "west" will store in political history, is at least premature, it was concluded after his visits to Rome, the Vaticanproceedingsand the European Parliament. Djukanovic seems to have persuaded a part of the international community to be of assistance in overcoming certain regional disputes. In the end, Djukanovic skillfully plays on political differences within the EU, building the alibi for a substantial lack of will for reforms," Muk said.
SDT believes that with the recognition of guilt terrorism is proven, the trial is still ongoing
"Vijesti" was told yesterday by the State Prosecutor's Office that nine convictions or guilty verdicts, and one witness associate in the proceedings confirmed that there terrorism took place. Now the court only determines whether anyone else participated in that process," the Prosecution said.
The trial of the accused for attempting the state strike, which began more than a year ago, has not gone so far as to clarify the facts about who is behind the events in October 2016. The Special State Prosecution has accused several people of attempting a violent shift of power, among whom Russian and Serbian citizens, but also the leaders of DF Andrija Mandic and Milan Knežević. Before the judge, Suzana Mugoša at the Supreme Court for the criminal offense of terrorism attempt were charged the Russian citizens Eduard Šišmakov and Vladimir Popov, who are tried in absentia, as well as Serbian citizens Nemanja Ristic and Predrag Bogićević. Bratislav Dikić, as well as Mandić's driver, Mihailo Čađenović, are on the Accused's bench. The indictment also covers Serbian citizens Kristina Hristić and Branka Milic, who are defending themselves in liberty, as well as their compatriots - Srboljub Đorđević, Dragan Maksić, Milan Dušić who are in custody. There is a separate procedure against the translator from DF Anan Nikić.
In the indictment, among other things, it is stated that Šišmakov, at a meeting with witness-collaborator Aleksandar Sinđelić, asked to find a person who would kill the former Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic.
Vučurović: The opposition was also participating in the destruction of DF deputy Jovan Vučurović states that in the past two years, "a shameful and deadly state terror" was launched over this political alliance.
Vučurović PHOTO: DF
"In addition to being a part of the prosecution and the judiciary, some of the international community, i.e. some NATO states and embassies, are involved. DF has shown great courage and determination to withstand all temptations, harassments, arrests, and to disarm that regimentation, and we have fully succeeded. Most of the opposition not only showed a minimum of solidarity with the Front but instead, working with some NGOs and some media, they did everything to break us down, classifying themselves in this way directly as the regime and its services with the aim of demolishing DF," he argues pointing out that DF is expecting new temptations. "We are determined to endure and even more strongly fight for the free Montenegro and its traditional values that are endangered by the action of political and other structures in the regime and opposition. It may sound like a truism, but let our opponents know that we can get out of this fight stronger, that nothing can break us, and that we will eventually win. And after the change, justice and the rule of law will knock at the door of all those who have violated the laws and abused their functions and positions in order to deal with us."
Katnic: I did not mention Russia, but certain GRU individuals
Chief Special Prosecutor Milivoje Katnic said to ”Vijesti” that neither he nor the Special Prosecution Office has ever mentioned that Russia had something to do with the attempted state strike. "I've never mentioned a Russian state, it is not 50 people. The indictment clearly states that they were GRU officers (Russian intelligence agencies) who participated in the actions mentioned by the witnesses," Katnić said.
Nine confessed that there was terrorism involved: Kantić and SDT Saša Čađenović PHOTO: Savo Prelević
Moscow again rejected, as they stated, attempts to accuse Russia of participating in the state strike attempt in Podgorica in 2016, the ministry of foreign affairs of the country said. In a statement by the Tas agency, it is reported that the recent comments by the chief special prosecutor are "absurd and ungrounded".
"In the case of the state strike trial, the defense recently presented the response from the Russian ministry regarding Saša Sinjelić's stay in Moscow. Katnić then expressed doubts about the origins of the document and asked for a chemical analysis because, as he said, it was delivered by the Russian intelligence agency GRU and there is a risk of posing those who come into contact with the document. Such a GST procedure only shows the sad state in which the Montenegrin judiciary is at the moment," the Russian ministry said.
Text by Mila Radulovic and Samir Kajosevic, on October 16th, 2018, read more at Vijesti
