Monarchist movement in Serbia
Monarchism
in
Serbia
details the history of monarchist government in the country and its predecessors, and encompasses modern advocacy of restoring Serbia's form of government to a
constitutional monarchy
. Monarchy in Serbia was abolished after
World War II
with the deposition of
Peter II of Yugoslavia
by the new communist government of
Josip Broz Tito
.
[1]
Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia
, head of the
Karađorđevi? dynasty
, the most recent former royal house of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
and
Kingdom of Serbia
, is a proponent of re-creating a constitutional monarchy in Serbia and sees himself as the rightful king.
[2]
He believes that the monarchy could give Serbia "stability, continuity and unity".
[3]
[2]
History
[
edit
]
Serbia as an independent
territory
was ruled under a monarchy from its obtaining autonomy and subsequently independence from the Ottoman Empire in the early 19th century until the installation of the provisional government of the
Partisans
-led
Democratic Federal Yugoslavia
in the mid-1940s, first as
Revolutionary Serbia
, then as the
Principality of Serbia
,
Kingdom of Serbia
, and finally a part of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
. After being forced to flee and form a
government-in-exile
following the
Axis invasion of the country
in 1941, the monarchy was officially abolished following the end of
World War II
, giving rise to the
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
.
Movement to restore the monarchy
[
edit
]
The
Centre for Research of Orthodox Monarchism
is a Serbian monarchist association from
Belgrade
, founded in 2001 and registered with the Ministry of Justice of
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
in May 2002.
Following
Montenegro
's successful independence referendum on 21 May 2006, the re-creation of the Serbian monarchy found its way into daily political debate. A monarchist proposal for the new Serbian constitution has been published alongside other proposals. The
document
approved
in October 2006 is a republican one. The Serbian people have not had a chance to vote on the system of government.
The
Crown Prince
raised the issue of a royal restoration in the immediate aftermath of the vote. In a press release issued on 24 May 2006 he stated:
[4]
It has been officially confirmed that the people of Montenegro voted for independence. I am sad, but I wish our Montenegrin brothers peace, democracy and happiness. The people of Montenegro are our brothers and sisters no matter what if we live in one or in two countries, that is how it was and that is how it will be forever.
I strongly believe in a Constitutional Parliamentary Kingdom of Serbia. Again, we need to be proud, a strong Serbia that is at peace with itself and with its neighbors. We were a proud, respected and happy country in the days of my great grandfather King Peter I. So, we can do it! Only if we have a form of governance close to the Serbian soul: the Kingdom of Serbia.
Simply, the King is above daily politics, he is the guardian of national unity, political stability and continuity of the state. In Constitutional Parliamentary Monarchies the King is the protector of public interest: there is no personal or party interest. What is most important is the interest of Serbia.
I am ready to meet all our politicians; we have to work together for the common good of Serbia, and to be friends in the name of the future of our country. I appeal for the end of the continuous political wrangling, division and arguments. I appeal for mature democratic debate in the interest of Serbia. Serbia must have clear and realistic objectives.
A number of political parties and organizations support a constitutional parliamentary monarchy in Serbia. The
Serbian Orthodox Church
has openly supported the restoration of the monarchy.
[5]
[6]
Polling
[
edit
]
In 2011 an online
open access poll
by Serbian
middle-market
tabloid
newspaper
Blic
showed that 64% of Serbians support restoring the monarchy.
[7]
Another poll in May 2013 had 39% of Serbians supporting the monarchy, with 32% against it. The public also had reservations with Alexander's apparent lack of knowledge of the Serbian language.
[8]
On 27 July 2015, newspaper
Blic
published a poll "Should Serbia be a monarchy?", 49.8% respondents expressed support in a reconstitution of monarchy, 44.6% were opposed and 5.5% were indifferent.
[9]
Parties
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
Monarchism in Europe
|
---|
Sovereign states
| |
---|
States with limited
recognition
| |
---|
Dependencies and
other entities
| |
---|
Other entities
| |
---|