(22 May 2006) MONTENEGRINS VOTE IN FAVOR OF INDEPENDENCE. (Balkan Watch)

• 2006-05-23
• Europa in de wereld

Montenegrins narrowly voted in favor of declaring independence from Serbia on Sunday. Voters who participated at the polls were asked the question: “Do you want the Republic of Montenegro to be an independent state with full international and legal legitimacy?” In order for the referendum to pass, the European Union demanded a vote of fiftyfive percent in favor of independence as a requirement for Montenegrin independence to be accepted by the EU. Voters passed this mark with a vote of 55.4 percent in favor of independence with turnout rates estimated to be around 86 percent. Before the vote, EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak reminded Montenegrins to hold the referendum peacefully and to respect its outcome.

International election monitors praised the voting as free and fair. Nonetheless, there have been calls for a recount because of a dispute over 19,000 votes from 37 voting places in Podgorica. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and other European officials have stated they will respect the vote. Many Montenegrins have expressed disappointment at Serbian unwillingness to apprehend indicted war criminal Ratko Mladic, and to cooperate with the UN war crimes tribunal at The Hague. Cooperation has been considered necessary for the EU to be willing to hold prospective membership talks with the country. Pro-independence Montenegrins have lamented that Serbian non-cooperation has made it more difficult for them to achieve their goal of EU membership. The EU’s decision earlier this month to end talks with Serbia on prospective membership might have also given impetus to the pro-independence movement in Montenegro.

Montenegro’s Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic participated in a television debate with Predrag Bulatovic, leader of the anti-independence movement, in which Djukanovic described Serbian policies toward Montenegro to be “hegemonist,” while also trying to intimidate Montenegrins into voting against independence. Bulatovic, however, stated he felt that Djukanovic was trying to encourage anti-Serb hysteria in the republic.

To help ensure the election ran smoothly, large numbers of foreign observers oversaw operations at the polls. Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observer Jorgen Grunnet, heading the mission in Montenegro, described the competing campaigns as operating within the “limits of decency.”

While on a trip to Estonia, Montenegrin Foreign Minister Miodrag Vlahovic noted he was confident that Montenegro would be able to overcome potential financial sanctions from Serbia that could have arisen from a successful independence vote. Vlahovic also remarked that Montenegro would be sufficiently viable financially to handle independence from Serbia. Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, however, who opposed independence for Montenegro, remarked that the small Adriatic republic would be at a disadvantage because of its inability to access the Danube River, while Serbia would be disadvantaged by not having access to the Adriatic Sea, which it is able to access now through Montenegro. Sea access, however, might be one factor encouraging Serbia to cooperate with a newly independent Montenegro.

Western diplomats noted they expected Kostunica to accept the results of the referendum; however, they said they would not be surprised if he were to obstruct the secession process. He has, thus far, refused to consider an EU-supported proposal about talks between Montenegro and Belgrade that could be arranged following the referendum. On the eve of the vote, Kostunica traveled to Berlin, where he met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier. Kostunica encouraged the German leaders and other European officials to help Serbia “preserve its borders,” in light of the pending independence referendum and ongoing Kosovo political status talks.