<\/p>\n
Lawmakers vote 50-1 against Prime Minister Abazovic’s government weeks after he signed a pact regulating the position of the Serbian Church.<\/p>\n
Montenegro’s parliament has passed a no-confidence motion, following a rift over a long-disputed agreement governing ties with the powerful Serbian Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n
The motion, which paves the way for the end of the current government and the start of a new round of political upheaval in the Adriatic nation, was passed shortly after midnight on Saturday (22:00 GMT Friday) with 50 votes.<\/p>\n
Only one lawmaker voted against it, while the rest of the 81-seat parliament boycotted the measure.<\/p>\n
“We need elections and a stable government,” said MP Danijel Zivkovic, who introduced the motion and triggered the vote of confidence.<\/p>\n
The motion came just months after a no-confidence vote in February ended the rule of another coalition government.<\/p>\n
It was not immediately clear whether the fall of the government would lead to early parliamentary elections or whether the parties would try to form a new governing coalition.<\/p>\n
Political tensions have been simmering in Montenegro for weeks after the government signed a controversial new deal with the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC).<\/p>\n
The agreement covered a range of issues, including measures to provide a regulatory framework for the hundreds of properties, including churches and monasteries, owned by the SPC.<\/p>\n
The country’s prime minister, Dritan Abazovic, has welcomed the agreement, saying the deal is expected to ease relations between the country’s divisive groups, particularly pro-Serbia and pro-Western parties.<\/p>\n
Criminal groups sponsoring some political parties were behind the no-confidence motion to prevent his government’s anti-corruption campaign, Abazovic said after the vote.<\/p>\n
“This country will be ruled by criminals or by citizens,” he said. “And I’m sorry … that organized crime in Montenegro still uses its tentacles to regulate political relations.”<\/p>\n
“I am very proud of everything we have done in 100 days,” added Abazovic. “We will be remembered as the government that lasted the shortest but made the hardest decisions.”<\/p>\n
The SPC is the dominant religious institution in the state, but opponents accuse it of serving the interests of neighboring Serbia.<\/p>\n
The issue is sensitive for many in the Balkan nation of 620,000 people that split from Serbia in 2006. However, a third of the population identify as Serbs and some deny that Montenegro should be a separate entity.<\/p>\n
President Milo Djukanovic has long been a fierce opponent of the SPC, and has been accused of wanting to nationalize the church’s properties.<\/p>\n
For weeks, Djukanovic, who is currently in the opposition, has used the deal as a club to destabilize the government and push for early elections.<\/p>\n
Religious issues have been a perennial focus in Montenegro, with past governments toppled over SPC-related disputes.<\/p>\n
The country has long seen identity clashes, including last year when protesters calling themselves “Montenegrin patriots” tried to block the inauguration of a new SPC leader in Montenegro.<\/p>\n
Djukanovic, the architect of independence, has been eager to curb the power of the SPC in Montenegro and consolidate a separate national identity, including its own independent Orthodox church.<\/p>\n
Political infighting in Montenegro has blocked progress towards integration into the European Union. In 2017, Montenegro challenged its former ally Russia to become a member of NATO.<\/p>\n