VOICE OF AMERICA

Jonathan CLARK: THERE IS A POSITIVE ATMOSPHERE FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF RESTORATION OF THE MONARCHY IN SERBIA

VOA TV Interview by Branko Mikašinović in Washington DC

A number of alternative drafts of the new constitution were presented to the public in Serbia. The Minister of Foreign affairs of Serbia and Montenegro and the President of Serbian Renewal Movement Vuk Draskovic called for the restoration of the monarchy, and Crown Prince Alexander Karadjordjevic in his recent statement on the occasion of Montenegro Referendum results emphasized that “it is time for Serbia to put itself in order, according to its measures. That measure is the Kingdom of Serbia”. In his exclusive interview for VOA, the Parliamentary Monarchy Expert of the CATO institute Jonathan Clark noticed that no democratically oriented party in Serbia did not oppose to the restoration of the monarchy.

CLARK: That fact is telling us that there is a good and positive atmosphere for the consideration of the restoration of the monarchy in Serbia. Of course, that is an important question and any constitutional change will demand certain consensus of the people and cooperation of the politicians. In any case, now is the time for the discussion about this issue and that is a good beginning.

VOA: Why are the monarchies, as old and traditional institutions successful in XXI century as well?

CLARK: That is true. The European monarchies in Britain, Sweden, Holland, Denmark, Spain, etc are developing and they seem to enjoy great support of the people. The reason for that is hidden in the fact that monarchies are considered as a source of stability, national identity and historical continuity. That provides stability in all segments of society. You have, for example, social-democrats in Sweden, socialists in Britain and Holland, and you would normally, think that they do not support monarchy, but they do support it. Monarchy gives them a strong sense of national identity and certain relation towards the past, history and the future of the country. Besides, in a monarchy you have the head of state, monarch, who is not a political person, but the leader that is above and out of politics and political activities. Many people think that is an excellent solution, because it contributes to the stability of the county in many cases of controversial issue of the head of the state.

VOA: What would be the perception of USA and Europe to the idea of the Monarchy restoration in Serbia?

CLARK: Americans love royal families, pomp and tradition. In Western Europe restoration of the monarchy in Serbia would be considered as the return of that country to the European family and to the tradition of the European monarchies. Besides, the Royal Family of Karadjordjevic is connected to Western European Royal Families. Prince Alexander himself lived in London for number of years and I think that reaction of the royal houses would be very positive.

VOA: Spain is an example for restoration of monarchy. Are there any similarities or differences with Serbia?

CLARK: That is a very interesting example and possibly a parallel case with the situation in Serbia. Spain was going out of the period of Franco dictatorship; it was in very difficult situation and on outskirts of Europe. That country needed a transition period from uncertainty, one might say dark period of Spanish history. They chose to use the institution of monarchy for that purpose. And that appeared to be successful. The influential intellectuals and politicians in Spain openly approached to resolve this issue and monarchy helped in calming the passions and provided a painless transition. As we can see, Spain has developed into a very successful and prosperous country since then.