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| Former Montenegrin Prime Minister Dusko Markovic and his supporters in the protest in Podgorica, December 28, 2020. |
Opposition supporters in Montenegro gathered in front of the Parliament building in Podgorica on Monday to protest the announced changes to the Law on Religious Freedom.
These changes were drafted by the new Montenegrin Government, at the request of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
The protest, which started at 12:00 pm, was not reported to the police and, at the moment, there are no organizers.
Participants with Montenegrin flags in their hands gathered from several cities.
"We do not give the state", "Chetniks", "This is not Serbia" are some of the slogans that are called.
Protesters also threw insults against the new parliamentary majority and Deputy Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic, whose party has said it will support changes to the Law on Religious Freedom.
At one point, members of the opposition Democratic Party of Socialists and former Prime Minister Dusko Markovic appeared in front of the parliament building and were greeted by protesters.
The Human Rights and Freedoms Committee of the Montenegrin Assembly is expected to hold a session, in which the amendments to the law will be discussed and those amendments will then be submitted to the Assembly.
The Law on Religious Freedom was adopted by the previous government, led by Markovic, at the end of 2019.
Under this law, religious buildings and lands that belonged to the state until 1918 will be transferred to the state if there is no evidence that they are religious.
Since the adoption of this law, the Serbian Orthodox Church and the then opposition have organized protests, which have resulted in the change of the Montenegrin Government.