The Coalition for Peace and Tolerance ( sr-cyrl, Коалиција за мир и толеранцију, Koalicija za mir i toleranciju, abbr. KZMT) is a

political coalition This is a list of political groups by country. A political group also known as a political alliance, coalition or bloc, is cooperation by members of different political parties on a common agenda of some kind. This usually involves formal agree ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hung ...

, consisting of political parties that advocate

minority interests An ethnic party is a political party that overtly presents itself as the champion of one ethnic group or sets of ethnic groups. Ethnic parties make such representation central to their voter mobilization strategy. An alternate designation is 'Pol ...

. Formed in April 2023, KZMT participated in the

2023 Serbian parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Serbia on 17 December 2023 to elect members of the National Assembly. While they were initially scheduled to be held by 30 April 2026, Aleksandar Vučić, the president of Serbia, called a snap election in N ...

under the name "Together for the Future and Development – Coalition for Peace and Tolerance", with Jahja Fehratović of For the Future and Development as its main representative. It failed to cross the threshold.

History

Formation

A group of political parties and organisations that advocate

, which included

Democratic Party of Macedonians Democratic Party of Macedonians ( mk, Демократска партија на македонци, , DPM) is a political party in Serbia representing the Macedonian ethnic minority. History Democratic Party of Macedonians was founded in 20 ...

(DPM),

Vlach National Party The Vlach National Party ( ro, Partia Neamului Rumânesc or , PNR; sr-cyrl, Влашка народна странка, Vlaška narodna stranka, VNS), formerly known as the Vlach Democratic Party of Serbia or , PDRS; sr, Влашке демо� ...

(VNS), Hungarian Civic Alliance (MPSZ), Tolerance of Serbia (TS), Bosniak Civic Party (BGS), Party of Montenegrins (SCG), and Vojvodina Movement (VP), held a meeting in

Pančevo Pančevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Панчево, ; german: Pantschowa; hu, Pancsova; ro, Panciova; sk, Pánčevo) is a city and the administrative center of the South Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is located on ...

on 26 April 2023. The parties and organisations formed the Coalition for Peace and Tolerance (KZMT) and announced that they would take part in the upcoming

provincial Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...

local Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

, and

parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

elections. KZMT held its first press conference on 15 May at the

Association of Journalists of Serbia Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

, also with the presence of the "We Need You" association. At the press conference, they revealed "we are building the future together" (''budućnost gradimo zajedno!'') as its slogan.

2023 elections

Following the formation of KZMT, Jahja Fehratović also left the

Justice and Reconciliation Party The Justice and Reconciliation Party ( bs, Stranka pravde i pomirenja; sr, Странка правде и помирења; abbr. СПП or SPP), formerly known as the Bosniak Democratic Union of Sandžak ( bs, Bošnjačka demokratska zajednica ...

(SPP). Fehratović accused SPP of being subdued to "personal interests, populism, and small and mundane actions". Fehratović continued to serve in the

National Assembly of Serbia The National Assembly ( sr-cyr, Народна скупштина, Narodna skupština, ) is the unicameral legislature of Serbia. The assembly is composed of 250 deputies who are proportionally elected to four-year terms by secret ballot. The a ...

as an independent member. Later in October, Fehratović announced the formation of the For the Future and Development (ZZBR). He said that his party would be based on the principles of traditional values, spirituality, and rule of law, and that it would include the founders of the SPP, a party he co-founded with Muamer Zukorlić. Parliamentary and local elections were called on 1 November and the provincial election was called on 16 November, setting 17 December 2023 as the date for the elections. KZMT subsequently announced that it would contest the parliamentary and local elections with Fehratović's ZZBR under the name "Together for the Future and Development – Coalition for Peace and Tolerance". Besides ZZBR, the signatories of the 10 November coalition agreement included VNS, MPSZ, TS, BGS, SC, VP,

Democratic Union of Croats The Democratic Union of Croats ( hr, Demokratska zajednica Hrvata, sr-cyrl, Демократска заједница Хрвата, Demokratska zajednica Hrvata, DZH) is a political party in Serbia representing the Croat ethnic minority in t ...

, Civic Party of Greeks of Serbia, Union of Yugoslavs, Union of Female Roma Network and Non-Roma Network of Serbia, and Union of Banat Romanians. Fehratović was also named as its main representative and as its ballot holder for the parliamentary election. KZMT's electoral list was initially declined on 18 November by the

Republic Electoral Commission A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

(RIK). KZMT collected 6,093 signatures of support in total but RIK confirmed that only 4,937 collected signatures are valid. On the same day, KZMT collected 436 more valid signatures and RIK confirmed its electoral list and gave it the status of a minority list due to all parties that compose the election being registered ethnic minority parties. The KZMT electoral list contains 60 candidates. KZMT's electoral list for local elections in

Novi Pazar Novi Pazar ( sr-cyr, Нови Пазар, lit. "New Bazaar"; ) is a city located in the Raška District of southwestern Serbia. As of the 2011 census, the urban area has 66,527 inhabitants, while the city administrative area has 100,410 inhabi ...

was confirmed on 23 November. Writer Zehnija Bulić was announced as its ballot holder for the local election in Novi Pazar. KZMT failed to cross the threshold for the parliamentary election.

Ideology and platform

In a report after its formation, KZMT said that "our name ..clearly defines us as a political option that fights against conflict, hatred, intolerance, divisions and quarrels". KZMT also presented its "three points" which includes the "Scandinavianisation of the Balkans, democratisation of the political system, and the protection and promotion of the rights of national minorities". KZMT defined its ideology as

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaig ...

, pragmatic,

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

, tolerant, and solidary. KZMT supports the

accession of Serbia to the European Union The accession of Serbia to the European Union (EU) has been on the current agenda for the future enlargement of the EU since 2012, when it became a candidate for accession. Serbia officially applied for European Union membership on 22 Decembe ...

, cooperation with

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

, and opposes

sanctions on Russia Sanctions, economic or international, that have been imposed on Russia include: * International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War (2014–) ** Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, US legislation (2017) ** International ...

Members

Current composition

Former members

Electoral performance

Parliamentary elections

References

{{Serbian political parties 2023 establishments in Serbia Political party alliances in Serbia Political parties established in 2023 Political parties of minorities in Serbia