Vojvodina Statute to go into effect fully in 2010

Novi Sad, Jan. 04, 2009 (Serbia Today) – The President of the government of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, Bojan Pajtic told B92 TV on Friday that it is to expect that new Vojvodina “Statute” goes into effect fully in 2010.
The new “Statute” is in effect, the law which grants certain rights, privileges, and powers, which were for last twenty years kept as the exclusive prerogatives of the Serbian government, to the provincial government and local administrations in Vojvodina, . In all, there is about 150 administrative powers that will be transferred from the Serbian government to regional Vojvodina administration. It is expected that most of these changes will be implemented in several months.
Vojvodina is industrially and culturally the most developed region of Serbia. It is also known as a “wheat-land” of Serbia, for its very developed agronomy in the fertile Pannonia Valley. The regional capital is Novi Sad, the second largest city in Serbia.
Residents of Vojvodina hope that new Statute will help faster economical development in industry and agronomy and easier access to international loans. Vojvodina is ethnically the most diverse region of Serbia and some of the new administrative powers will help local government address more fairly certain ethnic equality issues as well.
Some of the Serbian politicians are not quite happy with the new Vojvodina Statute, claiming it to be anti-constitutional. The representatives of the opposition DSS-NS party coalition, Milos Aligrudic and Velimir Ilic, filed a motion on December 24th 2009 with the Serbian Constitutional Court to determine the legality of the Vojvodina Statute and accompanying Laws, and to assess if they are in accordance with Serbian Constitution. Their claim is that Statute is unconstitutional and that the articles of the Statute contradict to at least 30 Serbian Laws. They also fear that Statute will open door for the separation of Vojvodina from Serbia. According to their understanding, some of the articles of Statute give too much of the “statehood” rights to the regional Vojvodina administration.
25 members of the Serbian Parliament from the opposition parties, have signed this motion