“False decentralization; political regions needed”

More and more regional parties that support the government in parliament are showing opposition to the proposed decentralization plan, a daily writes. After the Sandzak parties of Rasim Ljajic and Sulejman Ugljanin opposed the “inefficient and false” regionalization, the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians (SVM) and Together for Sumadija parties have also opposed it, Belgrade-based Danas newspaper says. “False decentralization; political regions needed” The latter party is present in the Serbian parliament on the ruling G17 Plus ticket. “SVM supports the initiative of the Bosniak [Muslim] parties for all Sandzak municipalities to be in the same statistical region, and we believe that it is completely rational and that it is not a matter of aspirations that would go against the interests of the Serbian people in that part of the country,” SVM MP Balint Pastor said. He added that should the government agree to the demand of the Sandzak parties, that his party will “initiate a similar solution for northern Vojvodina”. “During the time of Milosevic, on Seselj’s proposal, Vojvodina was separated into district with the goal of breaking apart historical and ethnic wholes. This division, unfortunately, remains today, so we have municipalities that historically, economically and geographically gravitate towards Subotica—Ada, Kanjiza, Mali Idjos, Senta—having Kikinda as an administrative center. This halts the economic development of these areas,” Pastor believes. SVM is convinced that this concept of regionalization will not be able to function successfully, writes the daily. Meanwhile, officials of the Together for Sumadija party severely criticized the “faking” of a decentralization process by the government. “In the context of the debate on the formation of statistical regions, we are clearly stating that it is a non-issue. Serbia needs political regions. We support the stances of the Bosniak and Vojvodina Hungarian parties and we believe that their objections are to another form of making Serbia Belgrade-centric and integrationist all-Serbian nationalism, which threatens to destroy Serbia,” party leader and MP Sasa Milenic was quoted as saying.

“False decentralization; political regions needed”

The latter party is present in the Serbian parliament on the ruling G17 Plus ticket.

“SVM supports the initiative of the Bosniak [Muslim] parties for all Sandžak municipalities to be in the same statistical region, and we believe that it is completely rational and that it is not a matter of aspirations that would go against the interests of the Serbian people in that part of the country,” SVM MP Balint Pastor said.

He added that should the government agree to the demand of the Sandžak parties, that his party will “initiate a similar solution for northern Vojvodina”.

“During the time of Milošević, on Šešelj’s proposal, Vojvodina was separated into district with the goal of breaking apart historical and ethnic wholes. This division, unfortunately, remains today, so we have municipalities that historically, economically and geographically gravitate towards Subotica—Ada, Kanjiža, Mali Iđoš, Senta—having Kikinda as an administrative center. This halts the economic development of these areas,” Pastor believes.

SVM is convinced that this concept of regionalization will not be able to function successfully, writes the daily.

Meanwhile, officials of the Together for Šumadija party severely criticized the “faking” of a decentralization process by the government.

“In the context of the debate on the formation of statistical regions, we are clearly stating that it is a non-issue. Serbia needs political regions. We support the stances of the Bosniak and Vojvodina Hungarian parties and we believe that their objections are to another form of making Serbia Belgrade-centric and integrationist all-Serbian nationalism, which threatens to destroy Serbia,” party leader and MP Saša Milenić was quoted as saying.