Culture
Montenegrin and Serbian culture are largely intertwined, but in connection with the Montenegrin independence movement in the 2000s, more and more Montenegrins asserted their cultural distinctiveness. They emphasized that they not only have their own language but also their own Montenegrin culture and history separate from the Serbian one.
In the middle of the 19th century, Bergskransen – the Serbian national epic written by Montenegro’s Archbishop Petar II Petrović Njegoš – became widespread. Newer Montenegrin writers include the prolific Borislav Pekić, whose novel A Lifeguard’s Defense Speech is available in Swedish (2003).
When literacy was not yet so widespread, troubadours wandered around and performed long poems about dramatic events to the accompaniment of a single-string gusle or a flute. Today’s Montenegrins like to listen to singers like Sergej Ćetković and Rambo Amadeus (both can be heard on Spotify online) – the latter was by the way Montenegro’s representative in 2011 in the popular Eurovision Song Contest.
In the many monasteries and churches you will find beautiful old frescoes and icons. Contemporary artists, such as the surrealist Dado Ðjurić and Petar Lubarda, who depict Montenegrin history in large oil paintings, can be seen at the art museum in the old capital Cetinje or at the city museum in Podgorica.
Montenegrin film is not yet so well developed but at the Balkan Film Festival, which took place in several places in Sweden in early 2013, two Montenegrin films were shown: The local vampire, a black comedy by Branko Baletić (2011) and the action film Spader äss (Drasko Ðjurovic, 2012 ).
2020
June
Parliamentary elections in August
June 20
President Milo Đukanović announces that parliamentary elections will be held on August 30. The political opposition has refused to take part in preparatory talks before the elections because it is argued that the conditions for a fair election are very poor. The announcement of the August election comes despite Montenegro having just been hit by a second wave of covid 19 infection, a few weeks after the prime minister proclaimed the country as “corona free” (see May 2020).
- Countryaah: Overview of the capital city of Montenegro, including information about its population, economy, geography, history and map.
May
“Corona free” Montenegro opens the borders
May 28
According to Abbreviationfinder, Prime Minister Duško Marković declares that Montenegro is “Europe’s first corona-free country” and that it is now opening its borders for the coming tourist season. According to the country’s health authorities, no new domestic cases have been discovered since May 5 and no one is considered to be infected anymore. To avoid setbacks, only travelers from low-infected countries will travel to Montenegro.
April
Opposition activist is arrested for coronary report
April 10
An activist belonging to the opposition party Democratic Front, Radovan Rakočević, is arrested accused of spreading fake news, after writing in social media that President Milo Ðukanović is infected by the new corona virus. Even before, people have been arrested for publishing data related to the pandemic. A man was detained for a month in mid-March, after he alleged that the state was blacking out the true number of coronary cases in the country. So far, more than 250 cases of infection have been reported in Montenegro and two people have died in covid-19.
March
The last country in Europe with corona fall
March 17
The first two cases of the new coronavirus sars-cov-2 are reported. In both cases, women have traveled to the country, from the United States and Spain respectively. Montenegro is the last country in Europe to detect the infection.
Thousands in protest against church law
March 1st
Several thousand people take part in the biggest protest so far in Podgorica against the church law adopted in December 2019. The Serbian Orthodox Church continues to claim that the law aims to humiliate the church and that the state wants to seize its churches, monasteries and land. The Serbian Orthodox Church has led regular protests in several cities since the turn of the year.