Montenegro Releases Bishop and Priests After Protests

By Stefan J. Bos, Special Correspondent Worthy News

(Worthy News) – Montenegro has released a Serbian Orthodox Church bishop and at least seven priests whose detention sparked protests and riots with police.

The church leaders were held for violating coronavirus lockdown measures by organizing a procession attended by several thousand people. If found guilty, they could have faced up to 12 years in jail.

So far, Montenegro has reported 324 cases of coronavirus infections and nine deaths. That is far less than its neighbors with dozens and, in some cases, hundreds of coronavirus-related deaths.

The detention of the church leaders on Wednesday sparked protests throughout the Balkan country, ending in clashes in two towns with more than 50 protesters arrested and 26 police officers slightly injured. Neighboring Serbia also expressed concern.

One of the protests occurred in Montenegro’s western city of Niksic, where Bishop Joanikije and the other priests came out of detention over the weekend. “Thank you for your support and love!” the bishop told a crowd of supporters who gathered in there to welcome him.

The arrests added to tensions between the government and the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro, after the adoption of religious freedom legislation in December.

The denomination, whose seat is in neighboring Serbia’s capital Belgrade, fears the law will strip it of its status and properties. But the Montenegrin government denies this. It accuses Serbia and Russia, which are closely aligned with the church, of fueling tensions to undermine Montenegro’s independence.

The Serbian Orthodox Church remains Montenegro’s largest denomination, although the tiny nation of 620,000 people split from neighbor Serbia in 2006 after nearly 90 years.

The church has about 12 million followers, mainly in Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia.

Montenegro became a member of the NATO military alliance despite Russian opposition and is a candidate to join the European Union.

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