Montenegro’s Contentious Politics: How Clerical Protests brought Down the Government

Parliamentary elections in Montenegro in 2020 marked an end of Milo Đukanović’s ruling Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS. The defeat was an outcome of clerical protests led and organized by the Serbian Orthodox Church, SOC. This paper explores the contentious politics used by SOC to bring down the DPS-led government over the controversial Law on Freedom of Religions. SOC used its well-rooted repertoires of contention in nonviolent religious processions and channeled the discontent that was present among the people in Montenegro to its advantage. Montenegro’s democratic deficits and systemic corruption helped mobilize the people against Đukanović and DPS. First part contextualizes the evolution of relations between SOC and the government in the past thirty years, to determine the internal dynamics that would define religious revolt in 2020. Second part looks specifically at religious processions traditionally used by SOC as a type of modular collective action for achieving its political aims. Finally, we discuss how the strategy of non-violent protests of 2020, changed discourse and general monopolization of anti-government sentiments led to a successful outcome at the elections. SOC not only accomplished its goal of terminating the Law, but continues to behave as a state above the state.