Macedonia backtracks on LGB protections

The government of Macedonia unveiled revised anti-discrimination legislation Jan. 29 that deleted sexual orientation as a covered ground.

Deputy Minister for Social Policy Spiro Ristovski downplayed the change, saying LGB people still would be protected via a category of "other grounds" that applies to everyone.

Conservative forces had pressured the government to drop the "sexual orientation" language.

The European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights denounced the deletion.

"If Macedonia is serious about joining the European Union, it must ensure that its laws match those of the European Union - and that explicitly includes nondiscrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation," said Intergroup Co-President Michael Cashman. "There is no opt-out on fundamental rights."

Human Rights Watch's Boris Dittrich said: "Silence equals inequality. Vague references to 'other grounds' simply aren't good enough."

Countries that want to join the EU are required to specifically protect LGB people from discrimination - and citizens of member nations that procrastinate in doing so are denied the perk of visa-free travel within the EU.

Letters from prisoners confirm the horror at Idrizovo, Ljube Boskoski’s party stated

Justice Minister Mihajlo Manevski must seriously take to solving the problems at the Idrizovo Penitentiary in Skopje and the Government must stop infringing relations with international institutions as this damages the country’s reputation. The latter call was made yesterday by Aleksandar Dastevski, member of Ljube Boskoski’s political party United for Macedonia, as cited today by the daily newspaper Dnevnik. According to Dastevski prisoners’ letters addressed to their party headquarters confirm the assessment made by the head of the EU Delegation to Macedonia, Erwan Fouere regarding the horrifying situation at Idrizovo facility.
‘International community representatives are only provided access to the ‘dignified’ areas. The rest of the facility as well as the female section of the prison have never been seen up until now. According to some female convicts they are living in damp concrete rooms without any sanitary facilities at all’ Dastevski pointed out.

Athens, Skopje vie for EU support in name dispute

Macedonian prime minister Nikola Gruevski has attempted to raise the stakes in his country’s name dispute with Greece by writing to European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso complaining about the plight of a “Macedonian minority in Greece” – irking Athens and sparking a diplomatic counter-offensive by Greece at European level.

Negotiations between Skopje and Athens on the use of the name “Macedonia”, to which Greece objects because it says that it reinforces Skopje’s territorial claims in northern Greece, appear to be making no progress. Gruevski’s attempts, in letters to Greek prime minister Costas Karamanlis and now Barroso, to introduce other issues have sparked allegations that Skopje is trying deliberately to obstruct the negotiations process.

In his letter to Barroso, Gruevski raises the same issues that he put in his earlier letter to Karamanlis, including the recognition of a “Macedonian minority” in Greece and the granting of rights and compensation to citizens of the former Yugoslav republic who left Greece during the 1946/49 civil war.

On July 23 2008, Macedonian newspaper Utrinski Vesnik said that Greece was setting off on a quest to hamper the consequences of Gruevski’s letter to Barroso, Bulgarian news agency Focus reported.

Macedonian and Greek media noted on the same day that Greek deputy foreign minister Yannis Valinakis has met French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner, French European affairs minister Jean-Pierre Jouyet (France currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU) and European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn to tell them that Athens was prepared for talks only on the name of Macedonia, and rejected attempts to introduce other issues.

The online version of Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported that Greek foreign minister Dora Bakoyannis “appeared unconcerned” when asked about Gruevski’s letter to Barroso. “The EU and all its members already have a full and detailed briefing on Greece’s position,” Bakoyannis said.

Macedonian news agency Makfax reported that the EC was delaying responding to the Gruevski letter.

“All I can tell you for the moment is that Commission has received it on Friday last week and currently it’s being looked at, among other things to determine whether any issues raised in the letter are within the competency of the EU or not,” Makfax quoted an EC spokesperson in Brussels as saying.

The same source said that “it’s a Commission policy never to respond off the cuff to subjects that haven’t been looked at in great detail, technically or politically speaking”.

Kathimerini said that diplomats in Athens said they would be surprised if Barroso honoured the letter with a response as “the supposed existence of a ‘Macedonian minority’ – in Greece or anywhere else – has never been debated in Brussels”.

Greece’s main opposition party PASOK criticised the Greek government’s strategy, saying that it had been wrong of Karamnalis to honour Gruevski with a response in the first place.

“The government has managed to open a dialogue on a non-existent issue,” said PASOK’s shadow minister for foreign affairs, Andreas Loverdos.

After Gruevski wrote to Barroso, the Greek media reacted with indignation.

On July 20, Eleftheri Ora wrote: “Gruevski’s letter changes recipient – they were awaiting it in Athens, but the postman took it to Barroso in Brussels. The newspaper said that on the pretext of the name issue, Skopje was bringing to light “its irredentist claims, the territorial demands, the “Macedonian”' language, and everything else entailed”.

The same day, Eleftheros Typos described it as “Gruevski's new, provocative lies against Macedonia, in letter to Barroso,” adding that Skopje was seeking backing in the EU, resorting to “blatant lies and ungrounded claims in speaking of a ‘political assimilation’ of the ‘Macedonians’ by the Greek state, systematic measures prohibiting the use of the ‘Macedonian’ language, and of discrimination”.

Greece has not limited its diplomatic moves to Europe. In Washington, Greek ambassador to the US Alexandros Mallias briefed the White House, secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, members of the US congress and the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain on the Greek positions. Greek media reported that a letter also had been sent to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

Aegean refugee children attend reunion in Skopje amid controversy

Refugees who left Aegean Macedonia as children during the turbulence of the Greek civil war gathered in Skopje on Friday (July 18th) to commemorate the 60th anniversary of their exodus. The four-day event took place against the backdrop of the ongoing name dispute between Greece and the Republic of Macedonia and amid a push by Skopje for recognition of an ethnic Macedonian minority in Greece.

From 1946 to 1949, a bitter struggle took place in Greece as communist partisans -- with support from Tito's Yugoslavia -- sought to win control of the country. During the turmoil, tens of thousands of children from the region were evacuated and later placed in orphanages in Yugoslavia and elsewhere in Eastern Europe. Although some have returned, Greek laws currently offer amnesty only to ethnic Greeks.

This month's reunion drew 6,000 evacuees, coming from countries such as Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and the United States. Participants drafted a declaration to the international community, demanding restoration of their citizenship and property rights.

"We are not asking any more than the respect of such defined rights in the constitution of Greece," it said.

Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski and Parliament Speaker Trajko Veljanovski attended the event. "National identity cannot be erased administratively," Veljanovski said in his speech. "We are Macedonians and … we won't give up our identity."

With negotiations between Athens and Skopje over the name issue still at an impasse, the government of Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski has sought to up the ante by bringing minority issues to the table. On July 14th, Gruevski sent a letter to his Greek counterpart, Costas Karamanlis, urging him to acknowledge the existence of an ethnic Macedonian minority in Greece.

Athens should correct the "historical mistakes of the past" to pave the way for better ties, he wrote. Gruevski also sent a letter to European Commission (EC) President Manuel Barroso urging the EC to ensure that Greece respects the right to free expression of ethnicity.

Greece has long disputed such claims, saying that while there are Slavic-language speakers in northern Greece, there is no basis for describing them as a "Macedonian" ethnic group.

"There is no and there was never a Macedonian minority in Greece. Any allegation of the existence of such a minority in Greece is groundless, politically motivated and doesn't respect political realities in the region," said the official response to Gruevski's letter.

Athens has no intention of discussing such issues, Karamanlis said, adding that they fall outside the scope of the name talks.

Prime Minister Karamanlis Rebuffs Gruevski’s Letter

Greece rebuffed claims of FYROM raised in a letter sent to Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis by Prime Minister Nicola Gruevski, accusing the leadership of the neighboring country of trying to derail Macedonia name talks. In his provocative letter, Nikola Gruevski spoke of the existence of a "Macedonian" minority in Greece and Greece to pay individual reparations -- ones linked to the Greek civil war (1946-49) -- to citizens of FYROM.

Greek Ambassador to the United States Alexandros Mallias informed the White House, Secretary of State Rice, prominent members of Congress and the presidential campaigns of Senators Obama and McCain on the Greek positions. A letter was also said to Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, by the Greek Permanent Mission to the United Nations.

The Department of State refused to comment on the substance of Gruevski’s letter. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Bryza in an interview with the Greek News criticized the raising of issues other than the name, that complicate the process. “We must stick on the Nimetz process because we are very close”, Bryza told Greek News correspondent in Washington, Lambros Papandoniou.

Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis is expected to send letters to a handful of international leaders regarding the latest eyebrow-raising diplomatic developments in the still festering FYROM "name issue", on the heels of a written response this week by Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to his counterpart from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

According to reports, Bakoyannis will address letters to her French counterpart, Bernard Kouchner, who currently chairs the EU Council, EU Commissioner responsible for enlargement Olli Rehn, as well as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Meanwhile, in a related development, the foreign ministry underlined that Greece is not interested in "throwing up walls" on its borders, in response to various press articles referring to visitors from the neighbouring country arriving in Greece for a festival in the village of Meliti, in the border prefecture of Florina.

Ministry officials merely noted that whoever has valid Schengen Pact travel documents and respects Greek law is more than welcome to visit the east Mediterranean nation.

KARAMANLIS
The Prime Minister in his two page letter stresses that there never has been a "Macedonia" minority in Greece.. In this respect, any allegations regarding the existence of such a minority are totally unfounded, politically motivated and disrespectful of the historic realities of the Region. Mr. Karamanlis also stressed that the letter does not promote negotiations and relations of good neighboring; it raises non-existing and totally unfounded issues which block the efforts of our country, targets at intervening our internal relations and deviates from the goals of the negotiations which are in progress. Mr. Karamanlis concluded that the future of Balkan countries lies in the European and Euro Atlantic institution and not to national rationales, in an era which has passed by and must stay in the past.

The Content of the Letter

Mr. Prime Minister,
As you are aware for the last fifteen years Greece and your country, pursuant to the relevant decisions of the UN Security Council, have committed themselves to negotiations in the framework of the United Nations regarding the name issue which “needs to be resolved in the interest of the maintenance of peaceful and good neighbourly relations in the region” as stipulated by the Security Council in Resolution 817.

In the past few weeks the Special Envoy of the United Nations Mr. Matthew Nimetz presented some ideas that could move the negotiations forward. I regret that it is precisely at this critical moment in the negotiating effort that you have chosen to send your letter dated July 10th, 2008.

I take this opportunity to underline Greece’s firm commitment to the promotion of friendly and good relations with all its neighbouring countries, especially with the countries of the Western Balkans, and the creation of the necessary conditions that will allow them to join, in the near future, the Euro-Atlantic and European families.

Greece, since 1993 has demonstrated good will, under the auspices of the U.N., to find a mutually acceptable solution on the name issue, which would take into consideration the legitimate interests and sensitivities of both our countries. This is within the mandate of the relevant U.N. Security Council Resolutions, but also the wish of all countries participating in the Euro-atlantic and European institutions as was also unequivocally stated in the Bucharest NATO Summit and in the EU European Council in Brussels respectively.

Mr. Prime Minister, your letter far from promoting the negotiations and the good neighbourly relations with my country raises a number of non-existent and unsubstantiated issues that militate against the strenuous efforts made by Greece .It also aims at interfering in the domestic affairs of a neighbouring state and deviates from the objectives of the ongoing negotiations.

There is no Macedonian minority in Greece. There never has been. In this respect, any allegations regarding the existence of such a minority are totally unfounded, politically motivated and disrespectful of the historic realities of the Region. As for any properties issue, any individual could make use of any legal recourse before the Courts, including the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Mr. Prime Minister,
Times have changed. I am convinced that the future of the Balkan countries lies within the European and Euroatlantic institutions and not in nationalist formulas of a bygone era which must be left behind once and for all. Greece remains firmly committed to working towards that goal.

History judges leaders by how they rise to the challenge and assume their responsibilities. Much will depend on your positive attitude and constructive spirit».

Gruevski's letter to Karamanlis - I expect you to take measures in amending injustice caused to Greek-born ethnic Macedonians

Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski sent a letter to his Greek counterpart Costas Karamanlis, in which he focuses on the issue involving ethnic Macedonians born in Greece regarding the return of their properties, the possibility of traveling to Greece and obtaining citizenship, as well as on the recognition of the Macedonian minority in Greece to enjoy basic rights in line with international standards.


MIA distributes the letter integrally.

Dear Mr. Karamanlis,

I write to You with respect to two exceptionally important topics. If resolved, I am convinced they will amend many historical injustices; injustices that can be felt even today, and will improve the lives of many individuals. Surely, it will positively influence towards bringing the ties between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Greece closer.

Namely, in late 1940s, during the civil war in Greece, several hundreds of thousands of citizens and entire families in the whirlwind of war abandoned their homes, properties and the country in which they were born, as refugees.

A huge portion of these people, most of the ethnic Macedonians born in Greece, came to live in then SFRY (Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), more precisely in the part of present Republic of Macedonia, and stayed here forever, probably due to the fact that they spoke the same language and felt they belonged with the Macedonian people. Some of them had displaced in other European states, and in USA, Australia and Russia, but those who had moved are also mostly ethnic Macedonians, they speak the same language as our own, they feel they belong to the same Macedonian nation, whereas most of them own double citizenship - Macedonian and from the country they reside in.

Unfortunately, many decades later, after abandoning their birthplaces and residences, even after the war was over, they were not allowed i.e. forbidden to return to their hometowns, in their own houses and properties. Neither they, nor their successors were allowed to come back. As far as I am informed, during the early 1980s, several laws were adopted in Greece, under which they were deprived of their properties. You would concur that these laws are not in accordance with the standards of EU, NATO and with international human right standards. Today these citizens, now nationals of the Republic of Macedonia, even though born in Greece, are discriminated on three accounts. Firstly, they are not able to claim back their properties; secondly, they face serious obstacles for traveling in Greece and thirdly, they cannot, as any other citizen born and raised in Greece, obtain the right of having double citizenship under Greek legislation - one Macedonian and one Greek - in times when Greece permits the right of double citizenship. Taking into consideration that in the past decades, the countries' democracy was developing, whereas your country become a member of EU and NATO - institutions where special attention is paid to human rights and standards for guaranteeing private ownership - I expect that You as Prime Minister will take measures to right these injustices caused to myriad of people whose destiny was painful.

In the Republic of Macedonia these people are organised in several civil associations. During several joint meetings, they urged me to address You as Prime Minister of the neighbouring country, they feel they are discriminated by.

The second topic for which I would like to ask You, and my belief is that You will be fully engaged in order to assist, is recognizing the Macedonian minority in the Republic of Greece and ensuring basic rights in compliance with international standards on education in the mother tongue (in Macedonian), nourishing cultural traditions and customs through various forms of organisations, regulating the use of the Macedonian language in local institutions in Greek municipalities with significant percentage of ethnic Macedonians, including other possibilities that any other democratic country ensures to their citizens, who are of ethnic origin that is different from the dominant one.

Mister Prime Minister,

My belief is that You will review theses issues with good will and I hope You will put forward a solution to these bitter issues in a sensible period of time. I, as well as the institutions in the Republic of Macedonia, are at Your disposal regarding any kind of communication on these issues, additional information, whilst a meeting of countries' expert groups may be organised, which I believe will be able to determine all the facts and details in a period of several months, thus contributing to overcoming these problems, which will surely impact the neighbourly relations.

We all know that in order to resolve these problems, first and foremost, a political will is needed which I believe you possess, since you are a member of EU and NATO. In fact, today, when human standards, guarantees for private ownership and minority rights are concerned, it is not a question of whether we are or aren't willing to solve them. Instead, we are obliged to strictly abide by international standards.

Mr. Prime Minister, both You and I are not able to change history and the past. But with good will, we can right many injustices from the past and certainly we can influence in establishing a much better future for our citizens, unless we deal the real issues unbiasedly.

I hope I would hear from you soon,

Nikola Gruevski

US State Department: It's a matter between Macedonia and Greece

U.S. State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said late Thursday the issue of the refugees and Macedonian minority in Greece is a matter between Macedonia and Greece, reports Voice of America-Program in Macedonian language. Thus, McCormack provided a response to the initiative of Macedonian PM Nikola Gruevski on resolution of the requests by refugees-ethnic Macedonians from the Greek Civil War in 1940s, and recognition of the Macedonian minority in Greece, contained in the letter sent to Greek counterpart Costas Karamanlis.

"This is a matter between Macedonia and Greece. I understand the correspondence was between those two parties, so I'd refer you to either party for comment about it", said McCormack at the daily briefing.

According to him, this is a completely different topic from the name issue.

"From our point of view, we would like to see Macedonia and Greece work out the name issue, which is a completely different topic. I know a lot of people are devoting a lot of time and energy to that topic. We certainly would like to see those negotiations come to a successful completion soon", added McCormack.

McCormack denied that USA would intervene regarding the issue of refugees and recognition of the Macedonian minority, reiterating this is a matter between the two countries, not involving the United States.

Skopje asks EC support for Macedonian minority in Greece

Skopje’s leadership is resolute on putting an accent on Macedonian minority in Greece and avoiding negotiations with Athens regarding the name issue, Greek-based newspaper Ta Nea reads Monday.
Newspaper claims that Macedonian PM Nikola Gruevski sent letter to EC President Jose Manuel Barroso requesting from Brussels to urge for improvement of living conditions of the Macedonian minority in Greece.
Gruevski’s letter to Barroso is a sign that Skopje is asking the support from the European Commission, Athens newspaper comments.
Several days ago PM Nikola Gruevski also sent letter to his Greek colleague Kostas Karamanlis requesting recognition of the Macedonian minority in Greece.
In his reply Karamanlis pointed out that there is no Macedonian minority in Greece and that there never has been. He said that the only dispute between Athens and Skopje referred to the name issue, which should be resolved in the frameworks of the negotiation procedure under UN mediation.
Ta Nea cited the academician Blaze Ristevski who said it is high time Government in Skopje to raise the issue of minority and with the letter to Athens, PM Nikola Gruevski presented exactness in conception of the Macedonian identity.