In the end, what happened to premier Djindjic would have been a less likely prospect had we established the rule of law and built proper institutions. A report by the Commission that had made an inquiry into possible flaws in the premier’s security made this perfectly clear. It turned out that one flaw was more critical than all others combined: there were no laws or regulations to govern security measures. The law previously in force was rescinded because it was endorsed by the former regime, and the new one left much to be desired, since it was passed without necessary by-laws. The security of a head of government was not governed by specific rules. Instead, there was a legal vacuum in this field, of which organized criminal groups were clearly well aware, and within which they acted, free from inhibition.

With the wisdom of hindsight, I believe yet another correction should be made in the spirit of economic science. However detrimental the inflation of the law may be, its deflation is disastrous in the most literal sense of the word. Had the forces calling themselves democratic embarked enthusiastically on building a legal framework for the transition process immediately after the authoritarian regime had been toppled, we would have been far better off now. I dare go as far as to say that had this been the case, the premier would probably have been alive.

Regrettably, the willingness of most of the Serbian political elite to do so was overwhelmed by the simplicity and ease of ruling in an authoritarian way. The majority, which I was neither part of nor able to stop, was inclined to believe, encouraged, I am afraid, by some influential foreign friends, that reforms should be imposed from high up and forcibly, just like the Communists placed the principle of revolution above the principle of legality when they came into power. Obviously, this was very wrong, since a sort of continuity with the former regime was established, and non-freedom and force returned in different walks of life. The price we have to pay for that mistake is much too high.