In Montenegro, 41.1 percent of citizens declared themselves as Montenegrins and 32.9 percent as Serbs. These figures are based on the results of the last census, which was carried out in December 2023 by the country’s statistics directorate, MONSTAT.
Compared to the penultimate census in 2011, 45 percent were Montenegrins and around 29 percent Serbs.
When asked which language they speak, 36.2% of respondents said Montenegrin and 43.5% said Serbian.
Montenegrin political scientist Ljubomir Filipovic reacted to this decline in the number of those who call themselves Montenegrins, saying that the campaign by Serbia and the Serbian church against Montenegrin identity was responsible for this.
“The number of Montenegrins (citizens who identify nationally and ethnically as Montenegrins) has dropped significantly from 45% in 2011 to 41% in 2023, according to census results published today by Montenegro’s National Statistical Office. “The campaign against Montenegrin identity, pushed by the Serbian state and the Serbian Orthodox Church, seems to be effective, with a decrease from 62% in 1991. Moreover, only 34.5% still call their language Montenegrin,” he noted with concern.
By religion, the citizens of Montenegro are divided into 71.1% Orthodox, 20% Muslims and 3.2% Catholics.
The latest data also show that the population of Montenegro consists of 9.45% Bosniaks, 4.97% Albanians, 2% Russians and 1.6% Muslims.
Compared to the penultimate census, the number of Albanians appears to be stable: In 2011 it was 4.91% or 30,439, now it is 30,978.
In the last census, around 2.8% of the population did not provide any information.
Montenegro, on the other hand, has 623,633 inhabitants.
Serbia and its ally Russia, as well as the Serbian Orthodox Church, are constantly trying to influence the Montenegrin people through pro-Russian and pro-Serbian political forces in order to align them with Moscow and Belgrade. This alignment was also commented as a risk for Montenegro’s integration into the European Union and also as a risk for inter-ethnic relations and stability in the region.
Concerns about this increased when the pro-Russian Democratic Front (DF) party entered the Montenegrin government in the last elections.
The chairman of the Montenegrin parliament is Andrija Mandić, the leader of the right-wing Serbian New Democracy.
When this pro-Russian party entered the government, the representative of the Democratic Party of Socialists, Andrija Nikolic, said that the government was run by Moscow and Belgrade.
“The head and the brain are in Moscow. The head of this government is [parliamentary speaker] Andrija Mandic, so there is no Montenegrin in it.”
Then the Embassy of the United States of America in Podgorica responded, expressing concern about the inclusion in the government of parties and leaders who do not condemn Russian aggression against Ukraine and are against the European Union’s sanctions against Russia.
Even the European Union had reacted and “strongly warned against any decision that could jeopardize the country’s strategic path towards the EU, which is supported by the vast majority of Montenegrin citizens.” /The Geopost/