HL Deb 15 December 1920 vol 39 cc275-6
LORD LAMINGTON

My Lords, on behalf of Lord SYDENHAM, I rise to ask His Majesty's Government

  1. 1. Whether, in the recent elections in Montenegro, the Serbian authorities, under instructions from the Minister of the Interior at Belgrade, forbade the candidature of Montenegrins who upheld the restoration of their country.
  2. 2. Whether more than half the population of Montenegro, composed of refugees in other countries, prisoners in the hands of the Serbians, or insurgents in the mountains, was unable to vote.
  3. 3. Whether for these and other reasons the number of Montenegrins who voted was about 12,000.
  4. 4. And whether His Majesty's Government intend to treat these election as valid.

VISCOUNT SANDHURST

My Lords, on behalf of the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs I will give an answer to my noble friend, in the words of the noble Earl, Lord Curzon—

I regret that it is impossible for me to deal adequately with the points raised by the noble Lord, since His Majesty's Government are still awaiting the report of the representatives who were despatched to Montenegro as witnesses of the recent Elections. I understand that there was at one moment some question of a list of candidates in favour of King Nicolas, but this list appears never to have materialised for reasons of which I am ignorant. Those Montenegrins who were absent from their country at the time of the Election, were naturally unable to record their vote, but it appears that all political prisoners were ammested and released in time to participale in the voting.

As regards the alleged murder of Dr. Drlievitch, I am glad to say that the rumour has proved to be unfounded and that this gentleman is at present in good health and residing in his home near Belgrade.

On the whole, so far as can be gathered from the numbers of votes recorded, and the political complexion of the candidates returned, I am inclined to think that the Elections were in fact representative of Montenegrin opinion, and that no pressure was exerted from Belgrade of a nature to cause His Majesty's Government to question the result. I must repeat, however, that until we are in possession of the considered report of our representative on the spot it would be premature for His Majesty's Government to express any decided or final opinion in the matter.