Belgrade Watchdog Queries Cash for Serbs in Montenegro

The Serbian government's decision to allocate another 600,000 euros [more than 65 million dinars] for the Serbian House in Montenegro - just a year after it approved 3.4 million euros for the same purpose - has sparked criticism in Belgrade from watchdogs.

Under the government decision, which BIRN has obtained, the cabinet of Ana Brnabic on August 9 approved 600,000 euros from the budget reserves for 2018.

The document said money was approved for the Serbian National Council in Montenegro, Matica Srpska, the Serbian Literary Cooperative [Srpska književna zadruga] and Serbian House.

The Serbian House is managed by a company called Serbian House Ltd, which is owned by 27 individuals, many of whom are officials of the pro-Serbian NOVA party or its coalition partners in Montenegro's pro-Russian opposition Democratic Front.

Media reported that the Serbian government bought the property in 2017 in which Serbian House is located from a Montenegrin businessman, Miodrag Davidovic, who reportedly has close links with the Democratic Front.

But Montenegro's Business Register and Cadaster list 27 persons as individual owners of the property - not the Serbian state.

The house is yet to be opened and used by organizations representing Serbs in Montenegro although its official opening was announced for September 2017.

Most of the new funds from Belgrade, according to the August 9 decision, around 500,000 euros [54 million dinars], have been allocated from the budget line for non-governmental organizations, which the Serbian watchdog Transparency International says is not lawful.

Nemanja Nenadic, from the Transparency Serbia, said that as Serbian House was not an NGO but a private company owned by 27 individuals and representatives...