A convoy of Serbian Orthodox Church clerics headed from Belgrade to the Jabuka monastery on the border with Montenegro on August 23 in protest against Montenegro’s new law on religions that may strip the Serbian church of hundreds of religious sites. 

In recent weeks, many Montenegrin citizens have expressed their support for the Serbian Orthodox Church and their displeasure over the adoption of the controversial Law on Freedom of Religion, as the authorities also banned liturgies and gatherings around shrines due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The convoy of cars that arrived at Jabuka around 3 pm local time is about five kilometers long and several hundred citizens are participating in the protest, Serbian broadcaster N1 reported.

Participants are wearing T-shirts and slogans with inscriptions "We do not give holy things" and "Montenegro - Serbia, one family".

The president of the Association of Montenegro’s Serbs in Serbia, Zeljko Curovic, said that the convoy from Belgrade will be joined by convoys from Novi Sad, Vrbas and other cities, and will merge into one convoy in Preljina in order together to arrive in Prijepolje near the Montenegrin border.

Montenegro seceded peacefully from its loose union with Serbia in 2006 following a referendum. Two-thirds of its population of around 620,000 is Orthodox Christian and the main church is the Serbian Orthodox Church.

A separate Montenegrin Orthodox Church was set up in 1993 but has not been recognised by other Orthodox Christian communities to date. The local branch of the Serbian Orthodox Church controls most holy sites, some of which are popular among tourists and bring in significant revenue.

At the end of July, Montenegrin PM Dusko Markovic said that the new round of talks between Montenegro’s government and the Serbian Orthodox Church ended without progress after the two parties failed to agree to a compromise.