Monday 13 May 2013

Serbia: Nearly 40 p.c. in favour of the Monarchy

According to an opinion poll done by Belgrade-based SAS Intelligence agency 39.7 percent of the Serbians believe that a renewal of a parliamentary monarchy would be a good idea. 32.2 percent of those who replied were strongly against the monarchy while 27.4 percent did not have an opinion on the issue.

Youth Radio Broadcasting B92 attended a press conference, where SAS Intelligence Executive Director Miljan Premović explained the poll which was carried out between 11th and 16th April: a total of 1,615 people in 16 Serbian towns, Kosovo excluded, had participated in it. He said that the poll had been carried out in all regions, in both urban and rural areas and that it covered both sexes and citizens of various aged and that it had a 95 percent trust interval “which makes it good enough for scientific publications”.

The main person who inspired us to conduct the poll was in fact world’s leading nation-branding expert Simon Anholt who believes that Serbia is one of the countries with the highest chance to renew the monarchy. Therefore we decided to give the public an insight into one of the social topics that have not been researched and show the mood regarding the renewal of monarchy. The question resembles a possible referendum question: Should Serbia be a parliamentary monarchy?”

The opinion poll was conducted before the repatriation of the remains of Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia (* 25th March 1921 in Athens - + 30th January 1993 in East Sussex, U.K.). 

At the Tatoi Palace Royal Cemetery the Remains of HM Queen Alexandra were seen off by representatives of the Greek Orthodox Church His Eminence Metropolitan Athinogoras and Archimandrite Patrikio.

On 9th May the remains of  Queen Alexandra were disinterred at the Tatoi Palace Royal Cemetery in the presence of Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine, HRH Princess Irene of Greece, Mr. Vassilis Koutsavlis, President of Friends of Tatoi, together with Their Excellences Ambassador of Serbia Mr. Dragan Zupanjevac, Ambassadors of Montenegro Mr. Ivo Armenko, Hungary Mr. Jaime Barberis, Jordan Mr. Saker Malkawi, Switzerland Mr. Lorenzo Amberg and Mrs. Christiane Amberg, Ambassador Mr. Dionyssis Kodelas, Ambassador of Poland – Mr. Maciej Krych, Mr. Chronis and Goodwill Ambassador of UNESCO Mrs. Marianna Vardinoyannis and other dignitaries.

A memorial service for HM Queen Alexandra was officiated by His Holiness Patriarch Irinej of Serbia at the Royal Chapel of St Andrew the First Called at the Royal Compound in Dedinje. In his address afterwards, the Patriarch has emphasized: “We are grateful to the Lord that time when they have been forbidden to come back to their country, and to have a final rest at the country that members of Karadjordjevic Royal Family lived for is finally over. The huge injustice has been rectified, praise the Lord!”

HRH Crown Prince Alexander gave a moving speech: ”Thank you all for gathering here today to pay respect to my mother, HM Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia. I wish to express my special gratitude to His Holiness Patriarch Irinej for being here today and for all his prayers. My mother got married to my father King Peter II while he was in exile during World War II. She shared with him the tragedy of being torn away from his country and his people. Soon they will be together in their eternal place of rest in Oplenac, thus fulfilling my great-grandfather’s King Peter I legacy to have all the members of Karadjordjevic family buried there.

"We have brought the Queen to her country. Welcome home, mother! Eternal glory to her!

Queen Alexandra was the daughter of HM King Alexander of the Hellenes and HRH Princess Aspasia of Greece and Denmark (née Aspasia Manos). Queen Alexandra was educated at Westfield, the junior school of Heathfield, then she went to Heathfield. Following schooling in England Queen Alexandra went to Mademoiselle Ozanne in Paris. The Queen was previously buried at Tatoi Palace Royal Cemetery near Athens.

HM King Peter II, HM Queen Alexandra and HM Queen Mother Maria will remain at The Royal Chapel of St. Andrew the First Called until the State Funeral on 26th May in the Church of St. George Royal Mausoleum in Oplenac.

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