Montenegro Opposition Seeks Support For Crisis Govt

Opposition Democratic Front leader Miodrag Lekic will next week start consultations with various parties on an initiative to form a technical temporary government because of what he termed the "serious political and economic crisis" in Montenegro.

Lekic said he would seek the support of all opposition NGOs and parties as well as parties representing ethnic minorities in parliament.

He said he would also invite the junior ruling Social Democratic Party, SDP, led by the speaker of parliament, Ranko Krivokapic, to join the talks.

If the sought-for technical government is not formed, the opposition says it will radicalize its demands and stage mass protests against the government of Prime Minister Milo Djuknaovic.

"The people are demoralized by their living conditions ... We have an economic, moral, institutional, political and corruptionl breakdown," Lekic said.

While opposition parties root for the formation of a temporary technical government, the smaller ruling SDP has not made up its mind on whether to support the demand.

SDP chief Krivokapic cautiously said that Montenegro did not need a technical but a stable government.

His party colleague, Dzavid Sabovic, welcomed the proposal of the Democratic Front, however.

On Thursday, Sabovic said that he had long advocated the concept of a technical government, with a cabinet containing at least one minister from each parliamentary party.

"A technical government should be formed with a fixed-term mandate of up to two years. Such a cabinet would forgot all the issues about the language, flag, anthem and coat of arms and dedicate itself to [national] survival," Sabovic told the daily newspaper Dan.

The current government was...