On Thursday, 19 December, spokespeople for the European External Action Service and the European Commission highlighted the EU’s regret regarding the lack of political dialogue in Montenegro.
The previous day, the temporary parliamentary committee for comprehensive reform of electoral legislation had not been able to complete its work before the end of its mandate due to the absence of a quorum. According to the spokespersons, “this represents a missed opportunity for Montenegro to re-establish political dialogue in the parliament, to review in a comprehensive and inclusive manner the electoral framework, to enhance trust in the conduct of next year's parliamentary elections and to reach cross-party agreement on a number of deliverables which are important for Montenegro’s EU reform agenda, in particular with regard to the negotiation chapters 23 and 24 related to the Rule of Law”.
The spokespersons reiterate that political debate should take place in the parliament and that parliamentary boycotts, which have been going on for months, are not a solution. They note that “the EU has consistently encouraged all political actors in Montenegro to take their responsibility and bring the political debate back to the parliament”.
And, while the government of Montenegro has submitted the draft Law on Freedom of Religion or Belief and the Legal Status of Religious Communities to the parliament, the spokespersons believe that, although regulating religious communities is a national competence, this should be done in an inclusive way, bringing together all relevant stakeholders, and in line with relevant international and European human rights standards, in particular with all recommendations of the Venice Commission's opinion of 24 June 2019.
The Venice Commission asked for further consultation, while the Serbian Orthodox Church is strongly opposed to the new law, which proposes registering all religious buildings and sites that belonged to Montenegro before 1918 as government property. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)