Incoming premier promises economic revival and fight against corruption.
By Petre Dimitrov in Skopje
Macedonia 's future prime minister has pledged to lead his impoverished country out of the wastelands of economic muddle to the sunny uplands of a boom through a 100-point reform plan.
Ten days after the inaugural session of the new parliament on July 26, President Branko Crvenkovski will grant a mandate to the leader of the rightist VMRO-DPMNE, Nikola Gruevski to establish a government, after his party beat the Social Democrats in the July 5 elections.
Gruevski has said no parties will be invited to join his coalition unless they support his economic manifesto, "Revival in 100 steps".
"The economy is the number-one priority," said Gruevski - repeatedly.
Economic experts say the appointment of a leader familiar with market logic comes not a moment before time.
About 40 per cent of the adult population is officially unemployed and foreign direct investment is minimal, not least on account of rampant corruption.
The future prime minister has based his renewal plans on a few main pillars.
One is a new, flat, ten per cent income tax, along the lines of the flat taxes established in several former communist countries in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union .
At present profit taxes in Macedonia range from 15 to 24 per cent, while VAT is 18 per cent.
Another pillar is to improve the investment climate by changing the country's foreign image through an invigorated fight against corruption.
The government promises that these changes will lead to annual economic growth rates of six to eight per cent within four years. The current one is around four per cent.
Experts say the promises are attainable, as they are mostly based on the experience of other countries in similar economic situations.
However, they note that Gruevski will head a government of more than 18 parties, which could provide an obstacle.
Vanco Uzunov, an economics professor in Skopje , said Gruevski's programme could end the long-term recession that began after independence in the 1990s.
"The measures ... are not a novelty, as they have been implemented in other countries and have given results," he said. "The most important thing is not to retreat before political interests."
This relative optimism is based on Gruevski's record as a successful minister in Ljubco Georgievski's right-wing government from 1998 to 2002.
As trade minister, Gruevski launched a successful campaign to encourage the purchase of Macedonian products, and as finance minister he introduced a new VAT in only three months.
Dimitar Bogov, of the Centre of Economic Analysis, said that as a minister "Gruevski proved himself a liberal economist, committed to a market economy, free of monopolies and state control of the market".
Many maintain it was this business-friendly image that brought Gruevski's party to victory on July 5.
The pillar of the new economic programme, the planned flat tax, aims to make Macedonia a country with one of the lowest tax rates in Europe .
The basic principle is that the application of a single, low rate of tax on profits, as well as exemptions from taxes for profits that are reinvested, will yield a higher income for the government in the long term than high tax rates and complicated and variable tax bands.
This model has already been tried and proved successful in Estonia , Latvia and Lithuania , which experienced booms after low taxes began to draw in massive foreign investment.
The first stage of Macedonia 's plan is expected to begin in January 2007, when a flat tax of 12 per cent will be introduced. This will be cut to 10 per cent a year later.
Vanco Uzunov said the tax reform could be implemented relatively easily, would reduce labour costs and "stimulate businessmen to hire more people", as they would have more profits left over to spend on the workforce.
Bogov agreed that a flat tax would also help solve another key problem - the untaxed "grey" economy, which is estimated to absorb about 40 per cent of the country's economic activity.
"With the reduction of employment costs, businessmen will feel encouraged to register their employees," he said. "The flat tax will be an incentive for many people who run businesses to legalize them."
Bogov added that tax changes would stimulate competitiveness in the economy and thus stimulate exports.
"The resistance of the business sector to the [current] taxes is huge, so this measure should release the burden and bring in investments," said Bogov.
The economic programme promises to stimulate foreign investments also through administrative and educational reforms and the involvement of foreign consultants.
Gruevski said he intended to hire up to 50 international consultant companies, tasked with bringing in more direct investment.
Past governments have failed to lure much investment. Statistics shows only 1.9 billion euro were invested in Macedonia in the past decade.
The only European countries with lower investments were poverty-stricken Albania and Moldova and troubled Bosnia and Herzegovina .
"If they [the consultants] succeed in bringing in an investor they will get a bonus - this will be their motivation to do their job successfully," Gruevski told the economic weekly, Kapital, just before the elections.
Two ministers without portfolio will be given responsibility for attracting investments.
Not everyone is optimistic that Macedonia 's long-term failings can be rectified with a few structural adjustments.
Dimitar Eftimov, of Skopje 's Economic Institute, said modifying taxes would not change much if the state continued to intervene in business through the National Bank of Macedonia , which has a restrictive monetary policy, setting high interest rates that discourage investment.
"There will be results only if the existing economic policy of the country changes and the influence of the National Bank is reduced," said Eftimov.
Such experts warn that no simple "magic formula" will succeed in attracting investments without other deep-seated reforms.
"The new government will succeed only if it continues to improve the business environment and finishes the reforms started by the previous government in the judiciary.. and public administration," said Uzunov.
The government says it will tackle Macedonia 's high unemployment by encouraging more young people - who represent the bulk of the jobless - to start businesses and gain further qualifications.
While the official unemployment rate is almost 40 per cent, the real figure is around 25 per cent, once those employed in the "grey" economy are subtracted. But it is still far too high.
"There is a significant number of people who are poorly qualified and the only solution for them is to obtain further qualifications," said Bogov.
A key part of the Gruevski programme is the fight against corruption, which is rife, and deters many investors.
The widely-read corruption perception index of Transparency International lists Macedonia in 103rd position - next to Swaziland - in a survey of 158 countries. Of the Balkan countries, only Albania is seen as more corrupt.
"The fight against corruption will start from the lowest levels," the future premier said in the election campaign, "from those working at the counters up to the level of ministers who must be role models for everyone."
The centrepiece of the new campaign will be the establishment of a new body, the Agency for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime.
This will be empowered to seize assets and property and even ban people from pursuing political activity.
Experts agree that the fight against corruption will be a litmus test of the government's seriousness in implementing all the other measures.
But, at this stage, most are very reserved in predicting whether the new premier will be successful against such an endemic feature of Balkan society.
"When we speak of the fight against corruption," said Uzunov, "the real issue is whether the institutions truly function, and not declarations about fighting corruption."
Monday, July 24, 2006
Fouere hints at DUI for coalition partner in new government
It would be beneficial if the new government "reflects the will of the majority in all social spheres", Erwan Fouere, the EU Representative in Macedonia said.
"Any statements related to forming a coalition government would be premature, since talks with all parties, including Ali Ahmeti's DUI, are under way. We need to be patient and wait for the negotiations to wrap up", Fouere said while attending the opening the Summer School at the SEE University in Tetovo.
He added that "it is very important all parties" both Macedonian and Albanian ones, "that won significant number of votes to take part" at negotiations for forming the new government, "including of course the party that won majority of votes of the Albanians", Makfax Agency reported.
"It is not up to us to determine what parties will form a coalition", Fouere said, underscoring that "the new government should be resolute in implementation of the reforms, necessary for admission of the country in the European Union and NATO".
"Any statements related to forming a coalition government would be premature, since talks with all parties, including Ali Ahmeti's DUI, are under way. We need to be patient and wait for the negotiations to wrap up", Fouere said while attending the opening the Summer School at the SEE University in Tetovo.
He added that "it is very important all parties" both Macedonian and Albanian ones, "that won significant number of votes to take part" at negotiations for forming the new government, "including of course the party that won majority of votes of the Albanians", Makfax Agency reported.
"It is not up to us to determine what parties will form a coalition", Fouere said, underscoring that "the new government should be resolute in implementation of the reforms, necessary for admission of the country in the European Union and NATO".
For Dream Jobs in Europe, the Line Forms in Bulgaria
STARO KONJAREVO, Macedonia — Pance Nikolov and a dozen or so other young men from this rich and fertile village have plans to do something many Macedonians only dream of — they will soon pack their bags and cross into the European Union, hoping to find jobs.
A Bulgarian passport will soon allow work in the European Union.
Yet Macedonia is not a member of the union.
Most European states give few visas here, particularly to young single men, out of fears of inviting an inundation of poor migrants. But Mr. Nikolov and his friends expect to get passports in September across the border in Bulgaria, which is to join the European Union on Jan. 1.
They will be able to travel within the union without a visa; in some of the countries, Bulgarians may soon be permitted to work. “We are all young people,” Mr. Nikolov said of his group, as he picked sticky green tobacco leaves at his parents’ farm under a hot sun. “We haven’t seen anything outside Macedonia.”
“Even if we don’t find a job there, I would like to see what Europe looks like. It’s like being locked up in quarantine here.”
Bulgaria occupied much of Macedonia three times between 1878 and 1913, regarding it as part of an extended nation. In 1999 each nation renounced any claims to the territory of the other, but Bulgaria has still not formally recognized the existence of a Macedonian language or culture.
Bulgaria, which is larger than Macedonia, is willing to grant citizenship to Macedonians who prove Bulgarian ethnicity. Doing so requires providing their family name and birth certificate, and completing complex paperwork. Under Bulgaria’s rules, perhaps two-thirds of Macedonia’s population of two million could be eligible for citizenship. Tens of thousands have applied, and at least 7,000 have already been approved.
About 300,000 members of Bulgarian communities in Moldova and Ukraine may also be eligible for citizenship. There are no restrictions on which people in which country are permitted to apply.
The European Union asked Bulgaria to tighten the rules, and Bulgaria recently agreed. Its vice president, Angel Marin, said only 6,000 passports would be given annually to applicants outside the country.
But many Macedonians fear the success of the Bulgarian program. Some fear an exodus of young men from an already depopulated region. Some — including some senior politicians — fear that Bulgaria may be plotting to claim part of Macedonia.
One is Zoran Ristov, the leader of the city council for the regional authority of Strumica, which is near Staro Konjarevo; it is an area where many Macedonians have applied for passports. “There could come a time when Bulgaria can say to international authorities, ‘See how many Macedonians have shown themselves to be Bulgarian,’ ” he said. “It is undermining Macedonian sovereignty.”
Farther north in Veles, an agent who helps Macedonians applying for passports said the police had pressured him to identify his customers. “They are particularly interested in anyone in the army or police,” said the agent, who asked for anonymity to avoid the authorities’ attention.
The matter of the passports is touchy. Macedonia is committed to joining the European Union, although it has no clear timetable, at a point where its fragile identity is under attack from several directions.
Greece disputes Macedonia’s name — it says the only area that should be rightfully known as Macedonia lies in northern Greece — and so since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 Macedonia has agreed to use the awkward formal name the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, or Fyrom, in its international dealings.
The Orthodox Church in Serbia disputes the authority of Macedonia’s church.
Five years ago, ethnic Albanians rebelled in the north in the hopes of carving out a breakaway state, in a dispute patched up in an internationally brokered agreement.
In Staro Konjarevo, the signs of exodus are clear.
For three decades leading to the implosion of Yugoslavia, many Macedonians left for Europe. Most of the village’s 350 or so houses were built or renovated with the money those workers sent home.
But last year the village’s main cafe, Riki, closed after its owner obtained a Bulgarian passport. More and more fields lie untended, lacking the hands to cultivate them.
“Soon, only the old people will remain, and they will do their best to live as they can,” said Zoran Ivanov, a manual laborer. He plans to leave. Mr. Nikolov’s parents, too, are resigned to seeing three of their sons leave home, even if that means no help with next year’s tobacco crop.
“We haven’t been paid yet for last year’s crop,” said his mother, Makedonka. “This is our fate.”
His father, Slobodan, added, “There’s no future here for young people.’’
Mr. Nikolov said, “There’s no money in being a patriot.”
Diplomat helps Macedonia with EU ambitions
A Connemara-born EU envoy in Macedonia is striving to take the tiny Balkan republic into the EU and Nato.
Career diplomat Erwan Fouere is the EU’s special representative in the landlocked country, which held trouble-free elections earlier this month.
The 25-member bloc accepted Macedonia as an EU candidate in December and is due to review its progress on key economic and judicial reforms in October.
Mr Fouere said: “The parliamentary elections were a key test of the political maturity of the country and I was impressed to see how people were determined to come out to vote and not feel intimidated.”
“We are currently progressing well with judicial and economic reforms that have been requested by the European Commission.
“Macedonia is also ensuring that its foreign policy contributes to continued stability in the Balkans region.”
Mr Fouere, 60 from Cleggan, also liaises closely with the US ambassador in the region as well as Nato reresentatives.
Macedonia, about the size of Wales, has a multi-ethnic population comprising 64% Slav and 25% ethnic Albanian, with 11% from other minorities.
It split from Yugoslavia peacefully in 1991 but ethnic conflict broke out in 2001 when a six-month revolt by Albanian rebels drove it close to civil war until the EC and UN intervened.
Mr Fouere was previously head of the EC delegation in Slovenia.
In a long career, he also led the first EC delegations in Mexico and Cuba in 1989 and later fulfilled the same role in South Africa in 1994.
He also served as head and deputy head in Latin America in the mid-1980s.
A graduate of UCD, Mr Fouere studied in Brussels and Nice during his career.
The Irish Defence Forces have military observers stationed in Macedonia.
Career diplomat Erwan Fouere is the EU’s special representative in the landlocked country, which held trouble-free elections earlier this month.
The 25-member bloc accepted Macedonia as an EU candidate in December and is due to review its progress on key economic and judicial reforms in October.
Mr Fouere said: “The parliamentary elections were a key test of the political maturity of the country and I was impressed to see how people were determined to come out to vote and not feel intimidated.”
“We are currently progressing well with judicial and economic reforms that have been requested by the European Commission.
“Macedonia is also ensuring that its foreign policy contributes to continued stability in the Balkans region.”
Mr Fouere, 60 from Cleggan, also liaises closely with the US ambassador in the region as well as Nato reresentatives.
Macedonia, about the size of Wales, has a multi-ethnic population comprising 64% Slav and 25% ethnic Albanian, with 11% from other minorities.
It split from Yugoslavia peacefully in 1991 but ethnic conflict broke out in 2001 when a six-month revolt by Albanian rebels drove it close to civil war until the EC and UN intervened.
Mr Fouere was previously head of the EC delegation in Slovenia.
In a long career, he also led the first EC delegations in Mexico and Cuba in 1989 and later fulfilled the same role in South Africa in 1994.
He also served as head and deputy head in Latin America in the mid-1980s.
A graduate of UCD, Mr Fouere studied in Brussels and Nice during his career.
The Irish Defence Forces have military observers stationed in Macedonia.
Saturday, July 22, 2006
SDSM Will Be Ruthless and Constructive Opposition: SDSM Leader
Macedonia (SDSM) is facing reality and from July 26th, when the first session of the new Parliament will be held, SDSM will start acting as a ruthless and constructive opposition, SDSM leader Vlado Buckovski stated cited by Macedonian TV station A1.
Vlado Buckovski announced that the election results will be thoroughly analysed at the party’s conference in October and that in the beginning of 2007 SDSM will hold a party congress. Until then the party will work on its consolidation and reforming. Then the reformed SDSM will prove it really is a political alternative in the Republic of Macedonia, the SDSM leader pointed out.
Vlado Buckovski announced that the election results will be thoroughly analysed at the party’s conference in October and that in the beginning of 2007 SDSM will hold a party congress. Until then the party will work on its consolidation and reforming. Then the reformed SDSM will prove it really is a political alternative in the Republic of Macedonia, the SDSM leader pointed out.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Macedonians should go in Macedonia, says Blagovgrad mayor
"Macedonians should go in Macedonia," Makfax news agency quotes this chauvinistic statement released by Blagoevgrad mayor Lazar Prickapov.
Asked to comment the founding assembly of OMO Ilinden-Pirin, Prickapov told radio Focus-Pirin he knows nothing about this initiative, nonetheless, he remains steadfastly opposed.
"I have no information on establishing an ethnic Macedonian party in Goce Delcev," Prickapov said. "Macedonians should go to Macedonia. Such assembly is illegal," Blagoevgrad mayor said.
The Sofia-based Focus agency, which also runs the Focus-Pirin radio, quotes Bulgarian MEP Boris Jacev, a local frontman of VMRO Bulgarian National Movement led by Krasimir Karakacanov - a former collaborator of Bulgarian secret police, as saying that competent authorities should take an immediate action.
"The competent authorities should undertake measures. If ordered, the members of VMRO BND will hamper any provocation targeted at Bulgaria's national security and sovereignty," Jacev said.
He showed off by saying "some 10 days ago, we did not allow formation of a party of ethnic Turks of Menderes Kungyon.
Focus news agency and radio quotes MEP Elijana Maseva of the Democrats for Powerful Bulgaria, led by ex-prime minister Ivan Kostov, who objects formation of OMO Ilinden as ethnic Macedonian party.
Asked to comment the founding assembly of OMO Ilinden-Pirin, Prickapov told radio Focus-Pirin he knows nothing about this initiative, nonetheless, he remains steadfastly opposed.
"I have no information on establishing an ethnic Macedonian party in Goce Delcev," Prickapov said. "Macedonians should go to Macedonia. Such assembly is illegal," Blagoevgrad mayor said.
The Sofia-based Focus agency, which also runs the Focus-Pirin radio, quotes Bulgarian MEP Boris Jacev, a local frontman of VMRO Bulgarian National Movement led by Krasimir Karakacanov - a former collaborator of Bulgarian secret police, as saying that competent authorities should take an immediate action.
"The competent authorities should undertake measures. If ordered, the members of VMRO BND will hamper any provocation targeted at Bulgaria's national security and sovereignty," Jacev said.
He showed off by saying "some 10 days ago, we did not allow formation of a party of ethnic Turks of Menderes Kungyon.
Focus news agency and radio quotes MEP Elijana Maseva of the Democrats for Powerful Bulgaria, led by ex-prime minister Ivan Kostov, who objects formation of OMO Ilinden as ethnic Macedonian party.
Still not too late for Macedonia - US, EU and NATO appeal
Despite the bad start of the campaign, it is still not too late for Macedonia to win these elections.
This is said in the statement given by US Ambassador Gillian Milovanovich in the name of the representatives of the international community on Tuesday in Skopje's village of Rasce, the scene of the latest violent incidents in the election campaign.
The United States Ambassador came to Rasce together with EU Special Representative and Head of EC Delegation Erwan Fouéré; British Ambassador Robert Chatterton Dickson; and NATO Senior Military Representative Brigadier General John Durance.
"Parties that failed to prevent such incidents, parties that participated in those and parties that tried to use them, including the parties not directly involved in the physical incident, are acting selfish and disregarding ordinary citizens of Macedonia", is said in the statement.
Representatives of the international community on Tuesday visited the scene of the incident in Rasce, in order to, as stated, "emphasize our disappointment from the inability or the lack of will of involved political parties to put an end to the election-related incidents."
Ambassadors sent a message that "incidents and provocations connected with the election campaign, at least signal the failure of the leadership of those who caused them, participated in them or tried to use them, as well as their party members and followers."
"All those who refuse to act fully responsible will prove that they are not worth of the election mandate they are seeking and the power they are demanding for their party", is said in the statement.
Ambassador Milovanovich reiterated the support of the US Government for police authorities to clear out with the instigators of the incidents.
This is said in the statement given by US Ambassador Gillian Milovanovich in the name of the representatives of the international community on Tuesday in Skopje's village of Rasce, the scene of the latest violent incidents in the election campaign.
The United States Ambassador came to Rasce together with EU Special Representative and Head of EC Delegation Erwan Fouéré; British Ambassador Robert Chatterton Dickson; and NATO Senior Military Representative Brigadier General John Durance.
"Parties that failed to prevent such incidents, parties that participated in those and parties that tried to use them, including the parties not directly involved in the physical incident, are acting selfish and disregarding ordinary citizens of Macedonia", is said in the statement.
Representatives of the international community on Tuesday visited the scene of the incident in Rasce, in order to, as stated, "emphasize our disappointment from the inability or the lack of will of involved political parties to put an end to the election-related incidents."
Ambassadors sent a message that "incidents and provocations connected with the election campaign, at least signal the failure of the leadership of those who caused them, participated in them or tried to use them, as well as their party members and followers."
"All those who refuse to act fully responsible will prove that they are not worth of the election mandate they are seeking and the power they are demanding for their party", is said in the statement.
Ambassador Milovanovich reiterated the support of the US Government for police authorities to clear out with the instigators of the incidents.
NATO calls for end of electoral violence in Macedonia
NATO called for putting an end to the electoral violence in Macedonia, because it won't help the country to join the Alliance.
NATO spokesman James Appathurai said that no suspending of negotiations in compliance with Membership Action Plan will take place, noting however that "one of the Alliance's requirements is holding fair, upright and violence-free elections".
"The violence occurring over the last couple of days is harmful for the electoral process and besmirches the international image of Macedonia. It does not help the country's efforts for approximation to NATO", Appathurai said.
"All sides should work towards putting an end to the violence", Alliance's spokesman said.
NATO spokesman James Appathurai said that no suspending of negotiations in compliance with Membership Action Plan will take place, noting however that "one of the Alliance's requirements is holding fair, upright and violence-free elections".
"The violence occurring over the last couple of days is harmful for the electoral process and besmirches the international image of Macedonia. It does not help the country's efforts for approximation to NATO", Appathurai said.
"All sides should work towards putting an end to the violence", Alliance's spokesman said.
CNN to air Macedonia commercial
CNN will air commercial videos on Macedonia, starting from Friday, June 16.
The country's flagship project aims to encourage tourism and build confidence in multinational corporations and foreign investors.
It's scheduled to air two times a day throughout the summer. The commercial will be aired in a total of 253 outlets in the next three months, the government said, adding that over 117 households worldwide can see the video.
The video will air on CNN International - Europe, Middle East and Africa, as well as in Larry King talk-show, Business, World News, Sports, Art of Life etc,
The government expects the EUR 300.000 worth of project, sponsored by the European Agency for Reconstruction, to give a boost to country's economic development through creation of new jobs.
CNN's team worked out Macedonia travel guide video. Macedonia's companies Zona, Idea Plus, K-15 and National Broadcasting Council have provided video materials for free. Dragan Dautovski, senior lecturer at the Faculty of Music Arts in Skopje, created the TV spot music.
The country's flagship project aims to encourage tourism and build confidence in multinational corporations and foreign investors.
It's scheduled to air two times a day throughout the summer. The commercial will be aired in a total of 253 outlets in the next three months, the government said, adding that over 117 households worldwide can see the video.
The video will air on CNN International - Europe, Middle East and Africa, as well as in Larry King talk-show, Business, World News, Sports, Art of Life etc,
The government expects the EUR 300.000 worth of project, sponsored by the European Agency for Reconstruction, to give a boost to country's economic development through creation of new jobs.
CNN's team worked out Macedonia travel guide video. Macedonia's companies Zona, Idea Plus, K-15 and National Broadcasting Council have provided video materials for free. Dragan Dautovski, senior lecturer at the Faculty of Music Arts in Skopje, created the TV spot music.
Paris says Macedonia has chance to join EU in 2009
Macedonia can enter the European Union along with Croatia, but the first condition will be fair and democratic parliamentary elections, said the Head of the OSCE Mission to Skopje, Ambassador Carlos Pais.
If you conduct fair and free elections, you could catch the train along with Croatia and move on to the EU, said Ambassador Pais while opening the sixth roundtable meeting entitled Political Dialogue 2006.
The meeting, co-organized by OSCE Spillover Monitor Mission to Skopje and the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, aims to foster dialogue between political parties, civil society experts and international experts on the role and responsibilities of political parties in the forthcoming election process.
Ambassador Pais said the EU rarely admits one country at a time, therefore, the democratic elections will give Macedonia a chance to join the EU along with Croatia.
The US Ambassador Jillian Milovanocic, who took part in a series of roundtable meetings related to Political Dialogue 2006 initiative, stressed that election fraud will have a negative impact on Macedonia's image and will slow down country's accession into NATO and EU.
It is of crucial significance how the people will be chosen in the forthcoming elections. If they are elected with fraud, it would be bad and it would have a negative impact on Macedonia's commitments for NATO and EU membership, Ambassador Milovanovic said.
According to Ambassador Milovanovic, there are two election scenarios. The negative scenario, based on negative campaigning, lies and accusations would drive the foreign investors away.
The positive scenario, based on presentation of programmes and platforms of political parties, would contribute to creation of positive atmosphere, it would motivate the people to cast their ballots, and would create a better investment environment.
British Ambassador Robert Chatterton Dickson said the forthcoming elections are litmus paper for development of democracy in the country.
To make our arguments on EU enlargement win, Macedonia should do its homework, and conduct fair elections, British Ambassador said.
If you conduct fair and free elections, you could catch the train along with Croatia and move on to the EU, said Ambassador Pais while opening the sixth roundtable meeting entitled Political Dialogue 2006.
The meeting, co-organized by OSCE Spillover Monitor Mission to Skopje and the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, aims to foster dialogue between political parties, civil society experts and international experts on the role and responsibilities of political parties in the forthcoming election process.
Ambassador Pais said the EU rarely admits one country at a time, therefore, the democratic elections will give Macedonia a chance to join the EU along with Croatia.
The US Ambassador Jillian Milovanocic, who took part in a series of roundtable meetings related to Political Dialogue 2006 initiative, stressed that election fraud will have a negative impact on Macedonia's image and will slow down country's accession into NATO and EU.
It is of crucial significance how the people will be chosen in the forthcoming elections. If they are elected with fraud, it would be bad and it would have a negative impact on Macedonia's commitments for NATO and EU membership, Ambassador Milovanovic said.
According to Ambassador Milovanovic, there are two election scenarios. The negative scenario, based on negative campaigning, lies and accusations would drive the foreign investors away.
The positive scenario, based on presentation of programmes and platforms of political parties, would contribute to creation of positive atmosphere, it would motivate the people to cast their ballots, and would create a better investment environment.
British Ambassador Robert Chatterton Dickson said the forthcoming elections are litmus paper for development of democracy in the country.
To make our arguments on EU enlargement win, Macedonia should do its homework, and conduct fair elections, British Ambassador said.
Mitreva - Macedonia stands ready to help Indonesia quake victims
Macedonian sympathizes with the victims and stands ready to help those affected by the earthquake that hit Central Java on Saturday, claiming thousands of lives and causing enormous material damages. This is said in the telegram of condolence sent by the Macedonian Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva to her Indonesian counterpart Noer Hassan Wirajuda. It was with deep grief that I received the news on the loss of so many lives and the destruction suffered by the Indonesian people. Macedonian Government stands ready to provide assistance to the Indonesian people in these hard moments, the telegram says.
Old lady dies in fork truck accident
Bitola, 18:23
An elderly woman died in an accident that took place in Bitola today, when a fork truck operated by a employee of a construction company run over her.
The tragic event occurred at about 11:00 hrs on the street "Lavcanski Pat", in the vicinity of the late Bitola resident Blaguna Stojkovska (72), Makfax Agency reported.
The fork truck hit Blaguna while she was standing at the roadside, chatting with her neighbors.
The vehicle was operated by Vebi Jusufovski, 46, who suddenly lost control of the fork truck, while returning back to the company's premises after completing the construction works in the village of Lavci.
The police set out an investigation for determining the cause of the incident.
Ambassador Fouere to visit Bitola
EU Special Representative and Head of European Commission's Delegation to Skopje, Ambassador Erwan Fouere, will be visiting the city of Bitola on Friday, 5 May, for talks with local authorities, Makfax correspondent said. The talks with Bitola Mayor Vladimir Talevski and the local councillors will focus on decentralization process, the problems that the municipality is undergoing, and the regional co-operation with the Lerin (Florina). Ambassador Fouere will make a statement to media upon completion of meetings with local authorities in Bitola.
Local Government in Bitola facing blockade
The normal functioning of the Council of Municipality Bitola became uncertain after today's decision of VMRO-NP to break the agreement for cooperation on local level with the coalition of VMRO-DPMNE.
This decision of Narodna Partija party, reports Makfax's correspondent, comes after the Mayor Vladimir Talevski, despite the inter-party agreement, changed Nikola Jovanovski from the position of director of Public Enterprise Niskogradba and replaced him with independent councilor Dragi Grozdanovski.
VMRO-DPMNE holds 12 positions in the Council and provided majority with five councilors from VMRO-NP, according to the agreement concluded after March elections.
"For now, we do not plan to make coalition with SDSM - LDP, but we are only breaking the cooperation with DPMNE. We will wait after the elections to see what we will do", said Kire Klimeski, parliamentary candidate of VMRO-NP in 5. Election unit.
The coalition SDSM - LDP has 12 councilors, together with independent councilor Kirco Taskov. DUI has one councilor, and the 31st one is the independent Dragi Grozdanovski, now appointed for director.
Currently aggravated relations of the two parties with prefix VMRO reminds of the conditions in 1996, which led to extraordinary elections due to obstruction and disfunctioning of the Council for 6 months.
This decision of Narodna Partija party, reports Makfax's correspondent, comes after the Mayor Vladimir Talevski, despite the inter-party agreement, changed Nikola Jovanovski from the position of director of Public Enterprise Niskogradba and replaced him with independent councilor Dragi Grozdanovski.
VMRO-DPMNE holds 12 positions in the Council and provided majority with five councilors from VMRO-NP, according to the agreement concluded after March elections.
"For now, we do not plan to make coalition with SDSM - LDP, but we are only breaking the cooperation with DPMNE. We will wait after the elections to see what we will do", said Kire Klimeski, parliamentary candidate of VMRO-NP in 5. Election unit.
The coalition SDSM - LDP has 12 councilors, together with independent councilor Kirco Taskov. DUI has one councilor, and the 31st one is the independent Dragi Grozdanovski, now appointed for director.
Currently aggravated relations of the two parties with prefix VMRO reminds of the conditions in 1996, which led to extraordinary elections due to obstruction and disfunctioning of the Council for 6 months.
Macedonia holds limited election reruns
SKOPJE, Macedonia-Macedonians were voting again at several polling stations on Wednesday because of irregularities in the July 5 parliamentary election.
Following complaints by political parties about irregularities, the electoral commission ordered reruns at one percent of polling stations, which is not expected to affect the overall result.
International observers and the European Union said the election was generally fair, a key condition for the tiny Balkan nation's hopes of future membership in the EU and NATO.
But they also pointed at some "serious irregularities" mainly in the ethnic Albanian-populated western parts of the country. Irregularities included intimidation outside polling stations and alleged attempts to stuff ballot boxes.
Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. (0500GMT) and were due to close at 7 p.m. (1700GMT).
The rerun will not affect the overall result, which saw Nikola Gruevski's conservative party poised to return to power after four years of Social Democrat rule.
According to provisional results, the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party is leading with 32.4 percent of the vote, while outgoing Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski's Social Democrats have 23.3 percent.
Buckovski conceded defeat hours after the polls closed.
Gruevski failed to win an outright majority and will have to form a coalition with one or both of the two main parties representing the country's ethnic Albanian minority, the DPA party and bitter rival DUI.
Surprise! U.S. won't help Germany investigate illegal U.S. seizure
Lebanon-born Khaled al-Masri, a German citizen, claims to have been abducted/seized in Macedonia in December of 2003, then taken by the CIA to an Afghanistan detention center, where for five months he was interrogated and abused. In fact, al-Masri has filed a civil lawsuit against the CIA.
But Germany, for some reason, wants to know what happened to one of its citizens, why, and the other reasonable questions about the case.
And, also for some reason, the U.S. has just informed Germany that we will not help them in their investigation. Not because the investigation may reveal some serious illegal activity by us, involving citizens of our allies, perish the thought. We'd love to cooperate, but dang it, that darned al-Masri filed suit against the CIA, and now we just can't help.
But that's only temporary, of course. Once the lawsuit is resolved, come back and see us some time.Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Misreading Macedonia's Elections
The jaundiced view of the Western media
by Christopher Deliso
balkanalysis.com
On July 5, Macedonian citizens went to the polls to elect a new government for the first time since September 2002. Since all previous elections in the country's 15-year history have been marred by violence and fraud, it was no surprise that the "international community" was holding its breath. Ominously, the run-up to the campaign had been characterized by a small war of attrition between the main ethnic Albanian parties, the ruling DUI of Ali Ahmeti and challenger Arben Xhaferi's DPA.
It thus indeed seemed that election day was in danger of going up in flames and, with it, Macedonia's hopes of ever joining NATO and the European Union; the West had warned bluntly that the country's fate in this regard depended on its ability to conduct "fair and free" elections.
Nevertheless, despite the cultivation of a certain Wild West atmosphere in some of the Albanian-populated parts of the country, in the end very heavy Western pressure prevailed, and the elections went off almost without a hitch. Senior figures such as U.S. Ambassador Gillian Milovanovic and EU Special Representative Erwan Fouere were dispatched to potential trouble spots, and the baby-sitting seemed to have achieved the desired results.
I admit that I was somewhat surprised by the utter placidity of the event, not only considering the checkered history of Macedonian elections but also in light of the fact that a very high Albanian politico had recently astonished me by saying that neither his party nor his people respected the U.S. ambassador, since she was a woman, and that in any case the West had sent "fourth-rate" diplomats to supervise the proceedings- showing just how much they cared for the current political contenders.
A Deep Dissatisfaction
This frustration, I believe, derives essentially from the fundamental contextual difference between this election and its 2002 predecessor. The latter was held barely a year after war had engulfed the country, with the West fearful that it could resume in the future. In an attempt to mollify the men with guns, it helped to create a political party out of the former terrorists/freedom fighters in the Albanian NLA. Those were heady times indeed to be a freedom fighter: plenty of meet-and-greet cocktail parties with foreign luminaries, fulsome talk of democracy and integration, the endless press conferences featuring Western symbols wedded with Albanian ones, and so on, all inspiring a sense of uniqueness and entitlement in a dubious group of well-armed aspiring civil servants.
Finally, an interventionist campaign of unprecedented ferocity was waged to ensure the defeat of the incumbent government (the Macedonian VMRO-DPMNE and Albanian DPA). However, though they got the result they wanted, it had less to do with their clumsy and heavy-handed propaganda barrage and more to do with the dynamic of cyclical change that has always seen the people neatly depose their rulers every four years – as happened in last week's vote.
The major difference from the election of 2002 is that this year's was not framed against the backdrop of a war. The frustration of the Albanian politicians, especially the DUI of former golden boy Ali Ahmeti, stems ultimately from this fact. Five years have passed since the unprovoked war they started. Peace has long been restored to the land, and they thus find themselves somewhat less vital to the powerbrokers. Ahmeti's dubious transformation from warmonger to peacemaker owed entirely to his ability to "contain" the situation. It might seem odd to most of us that a person could claim to be an ardent peacenik deserving of gratitude simply by saying that he could have shot you in the head, but didn't; yet this is – or was – the logic in Macedonia. Nevertheless, even to the most ardent sympathizers such peacemaking by racketeering grows tiresome after a while.
The tactic wasn't exclusive to DUI, however. At various times, most notably last summer with the "Kondovo crisis," DPA has gotten into the act. During that adventure, DPA local leader Agim Krasniqi threatened to bomb Skopje if his demands were not met. They weren't. Negotiations quieted the situation and, though Krasniqi is technically on trial, he was allowed to run as a candidate last week for the party. If there is one thing the outgoing government can be credited for, it is that despite numerous violent provocations from Albanian extremist groups since early 2003, it has conducted quick police operations and never taken the bait by getting bogged down in a larger conflict.
This was helped, of course, by the fact that the West was slavishly supportive of the now-deposed SDSM-DUI regime; nevertheless, it should be pointed out, in fairness, that the outgoing government did generally keep the peace, even if it did not raise the standard of living. Indeed, as was predicted, they were thrown out on their ear last week because the main issue was not war or ethnicity but a sluggish economy.
Relying on a Flawed Precedent
Yet you would almost not have known it from the Western media articles pumped out in the aftermath of the election, which implied that since the election winners (the VMRO-DPMNE of Nikola Gruevski) were last in power during the 2001 war, that Macedonia somehow risked backsliding into ethnic strife. By far the worst offender in this category was the Times of London. Its July 6 broadside by Europe correspondent Anthony Browne darkly warned that "the last time the VMRO-DPMNE party was in power in 2001, its hardline nationalist policies provoked an insurgency among ethnic Albanians, almost plunging the country into a civil war that was averted only by Western diplomacy."
Aside from being blatantly false in many ways, this statement insinuates that the "troubled" country is in danger of more conflict between "Slavs" and Albanians. And from the tone of the article, it seems that for whatever reason the author relishes such a scenario.
However, despite the claims here and elsewhere that a "nationalist" party has won, the fact of the matter is that nationalism was nowhere to be found, at least not among the Macedonian parties in the campaign. Gruevski's campaign centered entirely on the economic situation – not surprising considering that the VMRO-DPMNE president received international praise as a finance minister for the pre-2002 government. And even those frequently associated with nationalism, most notably former prime minister Ljubco Georgievski, who broke away to form the VMRO-Narodna (People's) Party, campaigned primarily on economic concerns. Indeed, while some articles noted that Gruevski's party had "shed its national image," they did not state that the party had actually broken apart, sending the nationalist and old-guard elements out several years ago. So the war comparisons don't hold water, since Gruevski's current lot is hardly even the same party that existed in 2001.
In contrast, the Albanian parties as always centered their campaigns on nationalism, pointing to hollow symbolic "victories" such as the right to officially use the flag of the Republic of Albania, language rights, and even the construction of mosques and statues of national heroes. Depressingly, the Albanian political leadership across the board continues to play on their people's nationalist sentiment rather than their economic well-being and daily sustenance. Yet as one disaffected local Albanian cynically puts it, "The people are still poor and hungry – but you can't really eat a statue."
With a campaign slogan of "forward, not backward," the incumbent SDSM did, however, resort to the sort of cheap fear-mongering that, judging from the voters' choice, only the Western media still seems to believe. Nevertheless, the voters didn't fall for it, and the increasingly desperate pleas of the incumbent losers became simply pathetic by the end.
The Real Potential for Violence
The recent election was not only interesting for the fact that it passed so peacefully. It was most portentous for the future implications that will be drawn from the new ruling coalition's make-up. A few hours after the polls closed, when Gruevski's party was claiming victory, supporters of both the Albanian DUI and DPA were cheering. The former had taken the majority of the Albanian vote, and therefore laid claim to a clear mandate and thus a position in the new government. But the DPA, despite getting less votes than its rival, felt that its role as the historic coalition partner of VMRO-DPMNE meant that it would get the nod as the new government's junior partner.
The negotiations are still going on, but it is already clear that what is being put to the test here is no less than the clarification of Macedonia's status as a political entity. Should the DUI be chosen for the coalition against the will of the majority vote-getter, simply because it won the majority of the minority vote, it will mean that the country is officially an ethnic federation. Should DPA be chosen, on the other hand, the government will be tarnished from the start since its president, the crafty old Arben Xhaferi, is known for extremist views, such as that Macedonia should be ethnically partitioned in anticipation of a future Greater Albania.
Such views are anathema to Western policymakers, whose foolish 15 years of Balkan intervention have resulted in a proliferation of weak and even failing states. With Montenegro and Kosovo gone or going independent, and the Serbian half of Bosnia threatening to do the same, the powers-that-be are not eager to see the Balkan disintegration intensify. By unwritten directive the new Macedonian government will thus be crippled in advance, having to choose between the overt xenophobia of the DPA and the creeping secessionism of the DUI, whose leader Ahmeti quietly harbors grand designs of making Albanian an official language even where no Albanians reside, and eventually, perhaps, becoming president himself – since no ministerial post is apparently good enough for a demagogue who prefers to pull the strings from offstage, thus avoiding criticism and political responsibility.
Yet this has all been lost on an ignorant Western media, which has, since 2002, pulled out almost all of its correspondents from the country. It thus becomes understandable that when making a rare revisit to Macedonia the only precedent that springs to editors' minds is the dated one of inter-ethnic conflict. Yet the real post-election danger is one of intra-ethnic violence between the Albanian parties; whichever is excluded from the new government will feel that it has been wronged unfairly, and may well resume the internecine violence that marred the run-up to the election. While the Western diplomatic community took credit for defusing the volatile situation before the election, the DUI-DPA showdown may not be over. The current quiet may just be the calm before the storm.
Making (Sense of) a Coalition
The prevailing conditions are thus. DUI has the advantage of four years of governance and since 2002 has been able to place its people at all key levels of the bureaucracy. If it becomes the "junior" coalition partner of VMRO-DPMNE, it will in effect actually be the senior one. Gruevski's party will have to play catch-up from day one, while also facing even greater demands from DUI for ever more ministerial appointments and ethnic concessions. The latter will justify these demands by claiming the Albanian voters have given it a mandate two elections in a row.
Indeed, on Saturday, Ahmeti and Abduljadi Vejseli (the leader of smaller coalition partner PDP) said that their bloc is the "legitimate" representative of the Albanian population since it won more of their votes than its rival. For the VMRO-DPMNE to deny such "legitimacy" would be to not only unleash controversy from day one – it would also serve to fire up the same bunch that started the 2001 war and whom a NATO officer recently mentioned as having strong influence in neighboring Kosovo at a particularly tumultuous period in its development. And it is not at all certain that a party created four years ago from a paramilitary outfit has the political maturity to peacefully accept a role in the opposition.
However, should DPA be excluded from power, the results could be even worse. The party of Xhaferi and vice president and strongman Menduh Thaci was ostracized for its ultranationalist rhetoric by the West and spent much of 2005 boycotting parliament over perceived electoral fraud in the March 2005 local elections. It was partially rehabilitated for last week's elections and made a better than expected showing, picking up 11 seats in parliament to DUI's 18. For DPA to be relegated to the political wilderness for another four years, given all the violent incidents they have perpetrated recently, would leave them with nothing left to lose. In such a situation, violence and mischief become distinct and amply precedented possibilities.
Creating a coalition thus becomes a thankless task where the only choice is between bad and worse – without knowing for sure which party represents which. To his credit, Gruevski has called the bluff of those outsiders who define governing Macedonia as a sort of charity project, infused with affirmative action by Western-mandated obligation. Indeed, Gruevski's spokesman, Antonio Milososki recently stated that any party that agrees with VMRO-DPMNE's platform of economic development is welcome to be a possible colleague. Neither nationalism nor ethnic issues were stipulated, and for good reason – the main concern of all citizens is to raise the standard of living and develop a functioning market economy. Yet such goals are apparently not "sexy" enough for the cynical, conflict-hungry foreign media.
Indeed, in its ignorance and spite, the Western media seems to be enjoying focusing on issues that are either nonexistent or insignificant, while distorting reality in a way that tarnishes the country's reputation and guarantees that, should new trouble arise in the future, the real causes and significance of it will not be correctly understood. And the outside world will continue to have unnecessary apprehensions about a country that is actually friendly, safe, and stable, a welcoming destination for tourists and investors alike.
by Christopher Deliso
balkanalysis.com
On July 5, Macedonian citizens went to the polls to elect a new government for the first time since September 2002. Since all previous elections in the country's 15-year history have been marred by violence and fraud, it was no surprise that the "international community" was holding its breath. Ominously, the run-up to the campaign had been characterized by a small war of attrition between the main ethnic Albanian parties, the ruling DUI of Ali Ahmeti and challenger Arben Xhaferi's DPA.
It thus indeed seemed that election day was in danger of going up in flames and, with it, Macedonia's hopes of ever joining NATO and the European Union; the West had warned bluntly that the country's fate in this regard depended on its ability to conduct "fair and free" elections.
Nevertheless, despite the cultivation of a certain Wild West atmosphere in some of the Albanian-populated parts of the country, in the end very heavy Western pressure prevailed, and the elections went off almost without a hitch. Senior figures such as U.S. Ambassador Gillian Milovanovic and EU Special Representative Erwan Fouere were dispatched to potential trouble spots, and the baby-sitting seemed to have achieved the desired results.
I admit that I was somewhat surprised by the utter placidity of the event, not only considering the checkered history of Macedonian elections but also in light of the fact that a very high Albanian politico had recently astonished me by saying that neither his party nor his people respected the U.S. ambassador, since she was a woman, and that in any case the West had sent "fourth-rate" diplomats to supervise the proceedings- showing just how much they cared for the current political contenders.
A Deep Dissatisfaction
This frustration, I believe, derives essentially from the fundamental contextual difference between this election and its 2002 predecessor. The latter was held barely a year after war had engulfed the country, with the West fearful that it could resume in the future. In an attempt to mollify the men with guns, it helped to create a political party out of the former terrorists/freedom fighters in the Albanian NLA. Those were heady times indeed to be a freedom fighter: plenty of meet-and-greet cocktail parties with foreign luminaries, fulsome talk of democracy and integration, the endless press conferences featuring Western symbols wedded with Albanian ones, and so on, all inspiring a sense of uniqueness and entitlement in a dubious group of well-armed aspiring civil servants.
Finally, an interventionist campaign of unprecedented ferocity was waged to ensure the defeat of the incumbent government (the Macedonian VMRO-DPMNE and Albanian DPA). However, though they got the result they wanted, it had less to do with their clumsy and heavy-handed propaganda barrage and more to do with the dynamic of cyclical change that has always seen the people neatly depose their rulers every four years – as happened in last week's vote.
The major difference from the election of 2002 is that this year's was not framed against the backdrop of a war. The frustration of the Albanian politicians, especially the DUI of former golden boy Ali Ahmeti, stems ultimately from this fact. Five years have passed since the unprovoked war they started. Peace has long been restored to the land, and they thus find themselves somewhat less vital to the powerbrokers. Ahmeti's dubious transformation from warmonger to peacemaker owed entirely to his ability to "contain" the situation. It might seem odd to most of us that a person could claim to be an ardent peacenik deserving of gratitude simply by saying that he could have shot you in the head, but didn't; yet this is – or was – the logic in Macedonia. Nevertheless, even to the most ardent sympathizers such peacemaking by racketeering grows tiresome after a while.
The tactic wasn't exclusive to DUI, however. At various times, most notably last summer with the "Kondovo crisis," DPA has gotten into the act. During that adventure, DPA local leader Agim Krasniqi threatened to bomb Skopje if his demands were not met. They weren't. Negotiations quieted the situation and, though Krasniqi is technically on trial, he was allowed to run as a candidate last week for the party. If there is one thing the outgoing government can be credited for, it is that despite numerous violent provocations from Albanian extremist groups since early 2003, it has conducted quick police operations and never taken the bait by getting bogged down in a larger conflict.
This was helped, of course, by the fact that the West was slavishly supportive of the now-deposed SDSM-DUI regime; nevertheless, it should be pointed out, in fairness, that the outgoing government did generally keep the peace, even if it did not raise the standard of living. Indeed, as was predicted, they were thrown out on their ear last week because the main issue was not war or ethnicity but a sluggish economy.
Relying on a Flawed Precedent
Yet you would almost not have known it from the Western media articles pumped out in the aftermath of the election, which implied that since the election winners (the VMRO-DPMNE of Nikola Gruevski) were last in power during the 2001 war, that Macedonia somehow risked backsliding into ethnic strife. By far the worst offender in this category was the Times of London. Its July 6 broadside by Europe correspondent Anthony Browne darkly warned that "the last time the VMRO-DPMNE party was in power in 2001, its hardline nationalist policies provoked an insurgency among ethnic Albanians, almost plunging the country into a civil war that was averted only by Western diplomacy."
Aside from being blatantly false in many ways, this statement insinuates that the "troubled" country is in danger of more conflict between "Slavs" and Albanians. And from the tone of the article, it seems that for whatever reason the author relishes such a scenario.
However, despite the claims here and elsewhere that a "nationalist" party has won, the fact of the matter is that nationalism was nowhere to be found, at least not among the Macedonian parties in the campaign. Gruevski's campaign centered entirely on the economic situation – not surprising considering that the VMRO-DPMNE president received international praise as a finance minister for the pre-2002 government. And even those frequently associated with nationalism, most notably former prime minister Ljubco Georgievski, who broke away to form the VMRO-Narodna (People's) Party, campaigned primarily on economic concerns. Indeed, while some articles noted that Gruevski's party had "shed its national image," they did not state that the party had actually broken apart, sending the nationalist and old-guard elements out several years ago. So the war comparisons don't hold water, since Gruevski's current lot is hardly even the same party that existed in 2001.
In contrast, the Albanian parties as always centered their campaigns on nationalism, pointing to hollow symbolic "victories" such as the right to officially use the flag of the Republic of Albania, language rights, and even the construction of mosques and statues of national heroes. Depressingly, the Albanian political leadership across the board continues to play on their people's nationalist sentiment rather than their economic well-being and daily sustenance. Yet as one disaffected local Albanian cynically puts it, "The people are still poor and hungry – but you can't really eat a statue."
With a campaign slogan of "forward, not backward," the incumbent SDSM did, however, resort to the sort of cheap fear-mongering that, judging from the voters' choice, only the Western media still seems to believe. Nevertheless, the voters didn't fall for it, and the increasingly desperate pleas of the incumbent losers became simply pathetic by the end.
The Real Potential for Violence
The recent election was not only interesting for the fact that it passed so peacefully. It was most portentous for the future implications that will be drawn from the new ruling coalition's make-up. A few hours after the polls closed, when Gruevski's party was claiming victory, supporters of both the Albanian DUI and DPA were cheering. The former had taken the majority of the Albanian vote, and therefore laid claim to a clear mandate and thus a position in the new government. But the DPA, despite getting less votes than its rival, felt that its role as the historic coalition partner of VMRO-DPMNE meant that it would get the nod as the new government's junior partner.
The negotiations are still going on, but it is already clear that what is being put to the test here is no less than the clarification of Macedonia's status as a political entity. Should the DUI be chosen for the coalition against the will of the majority vote-getter, simply because it won the majority of the minority vote, it will mean that the country is officially an ethnic federation. Should DPA be chosen, on the other hand, the government will be tarnished from the start since its president, the crafty old Arben Xhaferi, is known for extremist views, such as that Macedonia should be ethnically partitioned in anticipation of a future Greater Albania.
Such views are anathema to Western policymakers, whose foolish 15 years of Balkan intervention have resulted in a proliferation of weak and even failing states. With Montenegro and Kosovo gone or going independent, and the Serbian half of Bosnia threatening to do the same, the powers-that-be are not eager to see the Balkan disintegration intensify. By unwritten directive the new Macedonian government will thus be crippled in advance, having to choose between the overt xenophobia of the DPA and the creeping secessionism of the DUI, whose leader Ahmeti quietly harbors grand designs of making Albanian an official language even where no Albanians reside, and eventually, perhaps, becoming president himself – since no ministerial post is apparently good enough for a demagogue who prefers to pull the strings from offstage, thus avoiding criticism and political responsibility.
Yet this has all been lost on an ignorant Western media, which has, since 2002, pulled out almost all of its correspondents from the country. It thus becomes understandable that when making a rare revisit to Macedonia the only precedent that springs to editors' minds is the dated one of inter-ethnic conflict. Yet the real post-election danger is one of intra-ethnic violence between the Albanian parties; whichever is excluded from the new government will feel that it has been wronged unfairly, and may well resume the internecine violence that marred the run-up to the election. While the Western diplomatic community took credit for defusing the volatile situation before the election, the DUI-DPA showdown may not be over. The current quiet may just be the calm before the storm.
Making (Sense of) a Coalition
The prevailing conditions are thus. DUI has the advantage of four years of governance and since 2002 has been able to place its people at all key levels of the bureaucracy. If it becomes the "junior" coalition partner of VMRO-DPMNE, it will in effect actually be the senior one. Gruevski's party will have to play catch-up from day one, while also facing even greater demands from DUI for ever more ministerial appointments and ethnic concessions. The latter will justify these demands by claiming the Albanian voters have given it a mandate two elections in a row.
Indeed, on Saturday, Ahmeti and Abduljadi Vejseli (the leader of smaller coalition partner PDP) said that their bloc is the "legitimate" representative of the Albanian population since it won more of their votes than its rival. For the VMRO-DPMNE to deny such "legitimacy" would be to not only unleash controversy from day one – it would also serve to fire up the same bunch that started the 2001 war and whom a NATO officer recently mentioned as having strong influence in neighboring Kosovo at a particularly tumultuous period in its development. And it is not at all certain that a party created four years ago from a paramilitary outfit has the political maturity to peacefully accept a role in the opposition.
However, should DPA be excluded from power, the results could be even worse. The party of Xhaferi and vice president and strongman Menduh Thaci was ostracized for its ultranationalist rhetoric by the West and spent much of 2005 boycotting parliament over perceived electoral fraud in the March 2005 local elections. It was partially rehabilitated for last week's elections and made a better than expected showing, picking up 11 seats in parliament to DUI's 18. For DPA to be relegated to the political wilderness for another four years, given all the violent incidents they have perpetrated recently, would leave them with nothing left to lose. In such a situation, violence and mischief become distinct and amply precedented possibilities.
Creating a coalition thus becomes a thankless task where the only choice is between bad and worse – without knowing for sure which party represents which. To his credit, Gruevski has called the bluff of those outsiders who define governing Macedonia as a sort of charity project, infused with affirmative action by Western-mandated obligation. Indeed, Gruevski's spokesman, Antonio Milososki recently stated that any party that agrees with VMRO-DPMNE's platform of economic development is welcome to be a possible colleague. Neither nationalism nor ethnic issues were stipulated, and for good reason – the main concern of all citizens is to raise the standard of living and develop a functioning market economy. Yet such goals are apparently not "sexy" enough for the cynical, conflict-hungry foreign media.
Indeed, in its ignorance and spite, the Western media seems to be enjoying focusing on issues that are either nonexistent or insignificant, while distorting reality in a way that tarnishes the country's reputation and guarantees that, should new trouble arise in the future, the real causes and significance of it will not be correctly understood. And the outside world will continue to have unnecessary apprehensions about a country that is actually friendly, safe, and stable, a welcoming destination for tourists and investors alike.
Review: Mirage
The Film:
Friedrich Nietzsche
In the city of Veles, Macedonia twelve-year old Marko dreams of being a poet. At the local school however instead of learning poetry he learns how to survive-day after day the young boy is kicked in the stomach by the leader of the local punks; at home his drunken father would repeatedly spare a fist in his teeth. Determined to escape the "cesspool" Veles has become Marco befriends a mysterious stranger who will teach him that in real life you "Eat or be eaten"!
Hope is the worst of evils, for it prolongs the torments of men.
In the city of Veles, Macedonia twelve-year old Marko dreams of being a poet. At the local school however instead of learning poetry he learns how to survive-day after day the young boy is kicked in the stomach by the leader of the local punks; at home his drunken father would repeatedly spare a fist in his teeth. Determined to escape the "cesspool" Veles has become Marco befriends a mysterious stranger who will teach him that in real life you "Eat or be eaten"!
If there ever was a Balkan film that matched the intensity Mathieu Kassovitz's La Haine (1995) revealed then Svetozar Ristovski's Iluzija a.k.a Mirage (2004) must be it. A carefully observed production about maturation Mirage combines the poetic brutality of La Haine with the absurd humor of Emir Kusturica's Underground (1995). Anger, disappointment, and desperation are closely intertwined in this Macedonian film which does not shy away from showing the spiritual corrosion of a society where hope is nowhere to be found.
Even though there is hardly much in this film that you have not seen before, certainly as far the story goes there is nothing surprising, the splendid acting by the Macedonian crew elevates Mirage into one of the best Balkan films to be released in North America in a long time (Ivo Trajkov's Golemata Voda a.k.a The Great Water considered). In recent years I felt that the kitsch which Kusturica would always emphasize on in his work somewhat clichéd most of the films Balkan directors produced. Everyone wanted to imitate what worked before, even Kusturica himself I felt reached its limit in Zivot ja Cudo a.k.a Life is a Miracle (2004). With Svetozar Ristovski's Mirage however it seems like a new formula has been found where the director has managed to balance perfectly Balkan absurdity with realism.
Awards/ Nominations:
In 2004 the film was nominated for Grand Prix at the Tokyo International Film Festival, and was part of the official selection at the Sofia International Film Festival, Bulgaria.
Trailers:
Domestic:
http://www.comingofagemovies.com/titles/mirage/index.html#
International:
http://www.eastwest-distribution.com/trailer_mirage.htm
How Does the DVD Look?
Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and enhanced for widescreen TV's Mirage looks quite good. The print herein reviewed does not offer any damage, edge enhancement is at a tolerable level, and the actual print appears to have been properly converted. Colors are lush and well-saturated. I must however point something which I noticed with other released by Picture This! DVDs. It appears that when blown through digital projector the image becomes slightly unfocused (in fact I think that it breaks down rather noticeably). I am unsure if this has anything to do with the master the Macedonian company has provided but it becomes evident that compression is indeed not at the highest possible quality. Aside from that I am quite pleased with the rest of the treatment Mirage has received.
How Does the DVD Sound?
Presented with a Macedonian 5.1 track and optional English subtitles (yellow) the audio treatment is spectacular. The dialog is easy to follow, the rears are used quite well, and I could not detect any sound distortions (hissing, pop-ups). Furthermore, the sound has a great density (what I mean is that is sounds full with great overtones where music is being used).
Extras:
Unfortunately aside from the original theatrical trailer (as well as a section of trailers for other upcoming Picture This! Releases) and a photo gallery there is nothing else to be found on this DVD.
Final Thoughts:
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Macedonia, EU to sign visa concession agreement
SKOPJE -- By the end of 2006, Macedonia will sign a visa concession agreement with the EU.
According to the head of the European Commission's Delegation in Macedonia Erwan Fouere this decision was made by the EU Council of Ministers in Brussels today, Macedonia’s TV station A1 reports. According to him Macedonia is the first Western Balkans state to sign such an agreement.
“We must negotiate with all the countries in the region starting with Macedonia. The Finnish EU Presidency insists the visa agreement to be signed by the end of the year. This is a very important step for the country in carrying out its long-term goals and namely – the visa regime liberalisation,” the European diplomat said.
The visa concession agreement will include conditions which Macedonia will have to fulfil and which are already known, new protected passports, readmission contracts and integrated security system along the borders, A1 notes.
According to the head of the European Commission's Delegation in Macedonia Erwan Fouere this decision was made by the EU Council of Ministers in Brussels today, Macedonia’s TV station A1 reports. According to him Macedonia is the first Western Balkans state to sign such an agreement.
“We must negotiate with all the countries in the region starting with Macedonia. The Finnish EU Presidency insists the visa agreement to be signed by the end of the year. This is a very important step for the country in carrying out its long-term goals and namely – the visa regime liberalisation,” the European diplomat said.
The visa concession agreement will include conditions which Macedonia will have to fulfil and which are already known, new protected passports, readmission contracts and integrated security system along the borders, A1 notes.
Asefi felicitates Macedonia on parliamentary election
Iran-Macedonia-Asefi
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi here Tuesday congratulated the newly independent state of Macedonia for its successful holding of parliamentary elections.
"Iran felicitates the government of Macedonia, nation and winning parties for their parliamentary election held recently in a free and democratic atmosphere, and expresses its willingness to bolster ties with this country," Asefi said.
Macedonia held its 5th parliamentary election on Wednesday in the presence of European and other international community observers.
The parliament of Macedonia has 120 seats. Two thousand six hundred twenty candidates from 33 parties and coalitions competed in the election.
Vreme: Macedonia Should Request from Ljupco Georgievski to Give Away Bulgarian Citizenship
Skopje. The former Macedonian Prime Minister and informal leader of VMRO – Narodna Ljupco Georgievski has had Bulgarian citizenship for six months, the Macedonian daily Vreme reports on Tuesday.
The daily cites Boyka Bashlieva, the press secretary of the Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov. According to Bashlieva Georgievski received Bulgarian citizenship on February 23, 2006. Bashlieva did not give any further details as this would contradict the Personal Information Protection Law.
“Macedonians can have more than one citizenship and the state cannot do anything because this is a subjective right to any person”, the International Law Expert Toni Deskovski from the Law Faculty of the University of Skopje said.
Deskovski refused to comment on the political aspects for Georgievski to receive Bulgarian citizenship, but said that according to him traditions in international private law call for the country to request that Georgievski gives away his citizenship in another country when it comes to a high-standing state posts.
“In such cases the sovereignty of the country is questioned, because the person in question has shown loyalty to another country”, Deskovski said.
The daily cites Boyka Bashlieva, the press secretary of the Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov. According to Bashlieva Georgievski received Bulgarian citizenship on February 23, 2006. Bashlieva did not give any further details as this would contradict the Personal Information Protection Law.
“Macedonians can have more than one citizenship and the state cannot do anything because this is a subjective right to any person”, the International Law Expert Toni Deskovski from the Law Faculty of the University of Skopje said.
Deskovski refused to comment on the political aspects for Georgievski to receive Bulgarian citizenship, but said that according to him traditions in international private law call for the country to request that Georgievski gives away his citizenship in another country when it comes to a high-standing state posts.
“In such cases the sovereignty of the country is questioned, because the person in question has shown loyalty to another country”, Deskovski said.
Monday, July 17, 2006
We are not China and Japan to each other anymore
COMMENTATOR: Ljubisa Georgievski was born 1937 in Bitola, Republic of Macedonia. He is a theatre and film director, screenwriter, essayist, theatre theoretitian, journalist. He was ambassador to Bulgaria between 2000 and 2004 and is currently the head of VMRO-DPMNE’s commission on foreign affairs.
Recently, there were problems in Bulgaria with the registration of UMO Ilinden PIRIN (The United Macedonian Organisation Ilinden–Party for Economic Development and Integration of the Population. The Bulgarian transliteration spells out as PIRIN), the party of ethnic Macedonians. Some Bulgarian-Macedonians claim they can’t openly declare themselves Macedonian. Macedonia also has Bulgarians who cannot declare themselves Bulgarian. What do you think of all this?
I think Bulgarians are not (that well) culturally and politically organised in Macedonia.
There was an attempt (to organise the pro-Bulgarian RATKO) six years ago.
Yes, but it didn’t happen. There wouldn’t be any problem to do that now – Macedonian ethnic freedoms are exemplary. The two governments say that there are some 5000 (Bulgarians in Macedonia and Macedonians in Bulgaria) on each side. I know that there was an argument going on in Strasbourg (about the prohibition to register the then OMO Ilinden Pirin) while I was an ambassador. (The argument was decided in favour of Macedonians) and now they will participate in elections. I think that this was their purpose – to win at local elections.
In Pirin Macedonia.
Yes. They could probably have a couple of mayors.
How do you see relations between the two countries developing from now on?
Some 10 to 20 years ago, cultural relations in the whole of the Balkans were catastrophic, but things are improving. A book of Macedonian poetry and anthologies of Macedonian prose and drama were recently published in Bulgaria. So we are not China and Japan to each other any more. Unfortunately, economic relations are still catastrophic, even if there is good political will on both sides. But the problem, I think, is that our economies are too alike and don’t complement each other. (As to nationalism), the closer Bulgaria gets to Europe, the less prominent nationalism will be. This is valid for Macedonia, too. We are now in a process of reconciliation with Albanians. As to Bulgarians, we don’t have any pronounced nationalist sentiments. There is no person who would have a problem saying that he or she is Bulgarian in Macedonian.
Some weeks ago Macedonia arrested Bulgarian journalist Yovo Stefanovski – one of those involved in the failed RATKO.
I was in Sofia back then (when RATKO was being established) and I don’t have detailed information about this – I was informing myself from Macedonian and Bulgarian newspapers.
What do you think of Albanian nationalism in Macedonia? I know the story of an Albanian who, when asked about the reasons for the 2001 war, started talking about human rights. Only when prompted to cut to the point, he pointed to a spot in the distance and said: “Do you see (the village of) Grupchin over there? This is where the Bulgarian–Albanian border has to be”. Do sentiments like this still run underground in Macedonia?
The phenomenon of Albanian nationalism was more pronounced amid politicians than the masses. The masses don’t want war. Even while the conflict went on, there was no crisis point. This is a sign that multi-ethnic sentiments are already inbuilt in Macedonia, which has always been multiethnic. Branislav Sarkanjac, a professor in philosophy, wrote this book Komsi kapicik. It’s a Turkish name and it means a small door. In earlier times, each house in Macedonia was separated from the other with a wall that had a door in it – kapicik. If they went through this door, the comitadji (revolutionaries) could walk the whole city without ever stepping on the street. In Macedonia, these doors were often between two religions, too. Komsi kapicik is the traditional Macedonian logic of co-existence. And it would last another 2000 years if politicians don’t set it afire (laughs).
Will the European Union and NATO cure Balkan nationalisms?
They should be careful not to import it because the Europeisation of the Balkans is possible only if Europe doesn’t Balkanise.
We see it happen in Kosovo.
We see it in Holland, what Kosovo? It happens in the centre of Paris, too. But the problem is hidden – no diplomat will tell you that. And this is exactly why Europe is closing its doors at the moment, right in front of our nose and the nose of Croatia. Some say that this is a measure to protect Europe from immigration or protect the European labour market, but the essence of things is that Europe wants at least 10 years to strangle the vital Balkan nationalisms. In 10 to 15 years, I don’t think they will be that virulent as to infect Europe.
Should NATO should hurry to accept Albania, Croatia, Macedonia, for the sake of security?
NATO is a different thing. NATO should hurry to include these countries within the next two, three years because of the economical development of the Western Balkans. Only then can the Balkans start to speak of fading nationalism.
We are hearing voices that Macedonia should be first to recognise Kosovo’s independence.
It is normal that the neighbours are first to recognise a new country. It was the same with Macedonia – Bulgaria was first to recognise us. Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Montenegro, I think, would be first to recognise Kosovo – after the Serbian “amen”. Kosovo can become a country only after the Serbian amen. It is either war or an amen. But the amen will be given – these are the realities of Kosovo. So Kosovo is no problem for us. It would be a problem if it becomes a grey criminal zone. So, from this point of view, it is better for us to have Kosovo take over the responsibilities of a state and evade that.
Macedonians who want Bulgarian citizenship have to go through a very long procedure.
And it will become even longer because of Europe. There are Bulgarian citizens who want Macedonian citizenship, too, but the figure is manifold on the side of Bulgaria. Three years ago (Bulgarian political scientist Ivan) Krustev came out with five or seven examples of Macedonian-Albanians who took Bulgarian passports and signed themselves up as Bulgarian. He said that a Schengen passport is more important than national feelings and made me laugh a lot. We, frustrated Balkan people, think that national feelings are much more important.
National sentiment is a mobile thing. Today you feel a Turk, tomorrow you feel whatever you want. It is not the 19th century. We have an agreement about double citizenship with Serbia, Albania and the US as well. So what if a Macedonian takes an American passport? He will become a national traitor? The young generation laughs at this stupidity. Nationalisms are funny. There is no nationalism that is less funny or less tragic – tragic in its effects on others and funny in its effect on you. And in the past 200 years, it is like we had this clown in the Balkans, who would take the knife and slaughter serious people. It’s just terrible, terrible and funny. People work their land, do business, theatre, write books, and a funny guy comes and slaughters them – it is frightful. This is the Balkans.
Steps have been taken to take the RATKO case to the International Court in the Hague, IMRO-BNM (Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation – Bulgarian National Movement) leader Krasimir Karakachanov told The Sofia Echo. On June 13 2006, Bulgarian journalist Yovo Stefanovski and Macedonian citizen Alexander Markoski were charged to six months in jail for causing provocations and are now in custody pending appeal. According to Bulgarian-Macedonian sources, it was Macedonians who had thrown smoke bombs in the building where RATKO was being established, trying to provoke unrest.
The IMRO-BNM recognises the right of 5000 people in Bulgaria to call themselves Macedonian.
When asked what language they speak, 70 per cent of Bulgarian-Macedonians say that they speak Bulgarian, diplomatic sources told The Sofia Echo.
The IMRO-BNM says that OMO Ilinden PIRIN is paid for by Skopje, and says that RATKO was not paid for by Bulgaria.
Macedonia's municipalities receive boost from EU project
Local self-government in Macedonia was the focus of a two-day conference last week in Skopje. Dubbed "Building the Foundations of the Future", it was the final conference to be held as part of an EU-funded project aimed at strengthening administrative and management practices as part of the decentralisation process.
Brussels has provided 3m euros for the project, which was launched in August 2004 and managed by the European Agency for Reconstruction. All 85 of Macedonia's municipalities have received assistance under the project, with the specific goal of ensuring the proper functioning of their urban planning units.
"This project represents a significant milestone for the country on the road to achieving effective decentralisation," European Commission delegation chief Erwan Fouere said at the conference's opening on Wednesday 12 July.
"It also marks a further step in the co-operation between the EU and the government, together with local authorities, in one of the key areas aimed at bringing economic and social development to the maximum benefit of the people at a local level."
The main achievement was the establishment of a sustainable urban planning system, meant to ensure equal development opportunities and lay the groundwork for adjusting to a competitive economic marketplace.
In addition, specialised IT equipment -- including sophisticated urban planning software -- has been provided to the municipalities, and a plan for co-ordinating its use has been put into place.
According to Fouere, local authorities must bear responsibility for managing funds and promoting a municipal decision-making process that is fair, transparent and inclusive. "Successfully meeting this challenge requires optimum urban planning skills," he said.
"The connections made between the local and central government with the installation of a central database in the Ministry of Local Self-Government enables information exchange between different stakeholders in the process of urban planning. Government institutions can now receive information, including urban excerpts and other documents, from the local self-government units," said Association of Local Self-Government Units President Andrej Petrov. .
Over the past two years, training centres for municipal staff have been established in Skopje, Gostivar, Bitola and Stip. These municipalities have hosted an extensive knowledge transfer-training programme covering such subjects as Urban Planning Tools, Municipal Planning, Land Development Planning and Implementation, Human Resource Management and Geo-Informatics.
Since 1999, the EU has spent some 50m euros on projects to support local self-government in Macedonia.
Brussels has provided 3m euros for the project, which was launched in August 2004 and managed by the European Agency for Reconstruction. All 85 of Macedonia's municipalities have received assistance under the project, with the specific goal of ensuring the proper functioning of their urban planning units.
"This project represents a significant milestone for the country on the road to achieving effective decentralisation," European Commission delegation chief Erwan Fouere said at the conference's opening on Wednesday 12 July.
"It also marks a further step in the co-operation between the EU and the government, together with local authorities, in one of the key areas aimed at bringing economic and social development to the maximum benefit of the people at a local level."
The main achievement was the establishment of a sustainable urban planning system, meant to ensure equal development opportunities and lay the groundwork for adjusting to a competitive economic marketplace.
In addition, specialised IT equipment -- including sophisticated urban planning software -- has been provided to the municipalities, and a plan for co-ordinating its use has been put into place.
According to Fouere, local authorities must bear responsibility for managing funds and promoting a municipal decision-making process that is fair, transparent and inclusive. "Successfully meeting this challenge requires optimum urban planning skills," he said.
"The connections made between the local and central government with the installation of a central database in the Ministry of Local Self-Government enables information exchange between different stakeholders in the process of urban planning. Government institutions can now receive information, including urban excerpts and other documents, from the local self-government units," said Association of Local Self-Government Units President Andrej Petrov. .
Over the past two years, training centres for municipal staff have been established in Skopje, Gostivar, Bitola and Stip. These municipalities have hosted an extensive knowledge transfer-training programme covering such subjects as Urban Planning Tools, Municipal Planning, Land Development Planning and Implementation, Human Resource Management and Geo-Informatics.
Since 1999, the EU has spent some 50m euros on projects to support local self-government in Macedonia.
Macedonia, EU to Sign Visa Concession Agreement by End of 2006
Skopje. By the end of 2006 Macedonia will sign a visa concession agreement with the European Union, Macedonia’s TV station A1 reports. According to the head of the European Commission's Delegation in Macedonia Erwan Fouere this decision was made by the EU Council of Ministers in Brussels today. According to him Macedonia is the first Western Balkans state to sign such an agreement.
“We must negotiate with all the countries in the region starting with Macedonia. The Finnish EU Presidency insists the visa agreement to be signed by the end of the year. This is a very important step for the country in carrying out its long-term goals and namely – the visa regime liberalization,” the European diplomat said.
The visa concession agreement will include conditions which Macedonia will have to fulfill and which are already known – new protected passports, readmission contracts and integrated security system along the borders, A1 notes.
“We must negotiate with all the countries in the region starting with Macedonia. The Finnish EU Presidency insists the visa agreement to be signed by the end of the year. This is a very important step for the country in carrying out its long-term goals and namely – the visa regime liberalization,” the European diplomat said.
The visa concession agreement will include conditions which Macedonia will have to fulfill and which are already known – new protected passports, readmission contracts and integrated security system along the borders, A1 notes.
U.S. balks in kidnap probe, official says
BERLIN, GERMANY
Germany said Sunday that the United States has refused to help investigate the alleged 2003 abduction of a German citizen, a case that has ignited criticism of U.S. tactics against international terrorism.
Khaled al-Masri, who was born in Lebanon, alleges he was seized in Macedonia in December 2003 and flown by CIA operatives to a detention center in Afghanistan. He says he was questioned and abused during five months in custody before he was dumped in Albania.
Prosecutors in Munich have opened an investigation, and Berlin asked Washington for assistance with it.
The U.S. Justice Department declined to help because of a lawsuit filed by al-Masri against the Central Intelligence Agency, a German Justice Ministry spokeswoman said Sunday.
Germany said Sunday that the United States has refused to help investigate the alleged 2003 abduction of a German citizen, a case that has ignited criticism of U.S. tactics against international terrorism.
Khaled al-Masri, who was born in Lebanon, alleges he was seized in Macedonia in December 2003 and flown by CIA operatives to a detention center in Afghanistan. He says he was questioned and abused during five months in custody before he was dumped in Albania.
Prosecutors in Munich have opened an investigation, and Berlin asked Washington for assistance with it.
The U.S. Justice Department declined to help because of a lawsuit filed by al-Masri against the Central Intelligence Agency, a German Justice Ministry spokeswoman said Sunday.
The dream of a Greater Albania
By Jean-Arnault Dérens and Laurent Geslin
The Albanian minister of foreign affairs, Besnik Mustafaj, caused alarm when he said in March, “If Kosovo is divided, we can no longer guarantee its borders with Albania, or the border of the Albanian part of Macedonia” (1). Kosovo’s changed status has raised again the question of Balkan borders: nobody can predict what will happen.
On the evening of 21 May Montenegrin and Albanian flags flew side by side in Ulcinj, the southernmost town of the Montenegrin coast. Montenegro has become independent mostly because of the way the national minorities voted. The 50,000 Albanians living in the tiny republic have long been convinced citizens of the Montenegrin state.
According to Ibrahim Cungu, former police commissioner for Ulcinj and local leader of the Social Democratic party: “It is possible to be Albanian and a citizen of Montenegro.”
But the Montenegrin Albanians are an exception in the Balkans. In Macedonia, Albanians and Macedonians view each other with suspicion. The political and cultural rights of the Albanians have been recognised, and the Ohrid agreement of August 2001 ended the violent conflict between Macedonian security forces and the ethnic-Albanian National Liberation Army of Macedonia. Like the Macedonian Slavs, the Albanians are now considered a “second constitutive people” of the Macedonian republic. Albanian is the second official language in any commune where Albanians are over 20% of the population. “Before 2001 Albanian high school pupils had trouble getting into university, but the situation has improved since then,” said Afrim Kerimi, headmaster of the Albanian high school in Kumanovo.
The 2001 conflict has left deep scars, however. Many people are disappointed by the peace agreement and the guerrillas are itching to fight again. An elastic amnesty further feeds resentment and small guerrilla groups, often linked to criminal interests, are constantly springing up. One group formed in 2003 is led by Avdil Jakupi,“Commander Cakalla”; another, headed by Agim Krasniqi, occupied the village of Kondovo outside Skopje for six months in 2004.
Albanians living in Serbia’s Presevo valley are also dissatisfied with the peace. They want to take part in the Kosovo negotiations as they fear they may be completely passed over in a regional settlement.
Albanian guerrilla movements arose in Macedonia and the Presevo valley in 2001 because of Kosovo. By igniting local conflict, radical militants and supporters of a Greater Albania sought to remind the world that the international protectorate did not solve the Kosovo question. If future international decisions on Kosovo do not suit them, they will have no problem inflaming the whole region.
The Albanian nationalist movement developed only at the end of the 19th century, far later than those of the other Balkan peoples. After the Balkan war of 1912-13 Kosovo was divided between Montenegro and Serbia, with Serbia also getting a large area of Macedonia. The Treaty of London established “little Albania” on approximately the territory now occupied by Albania, but it left many Albanian people outside the new state.
There are two distinct ideas in Albanian nationalist rhetoric: Greater Albania and ethnic Albania. Greater Albania designates the lands that at various times were peopled by Albanians or their supposed ancestors, the Illyrians. Ethnic Albania corresponds to the regions where Albanians are the majority of the population (2). The nationalists tend to forget an important factor: that other communities live side by side with the Albanians in those regions.
After the dangerous ambitions of a Greater Serbia and a Greater Croatia, is it now the time for a Greater Albania? A number of radical, but marginal, militant networks openly campaign for it, but they may not have much popular support. There is still considerable distrust between the citizens of the republic of Albania and the Albanians from former Yugoslavia, long separated by history.
The only response to the challenge of a Greater Albania, as with a Greater Serbia, is full European integration. The prospect of a national unity that requires border changes is potentially dangerous for the region. Nevertheless the issue of a national trans-border “Albania” is a reality.
It should be possible for anyone writing a book in Shqiptari to address likely readers in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, while an ethnic Albanian student should be free to study in Tirana, Tetovo or Pristina. But the borders will have to be far wider open than they are today.
The Albanian minister of foreign affairs, Besnik Mustafaj, caused alarm when he said in March, “If Kosovo is divided, we can no longer guarantee its borders with Albania, or the border of the Albanian part of Macedonia” (1). Kosovo’s changed status has raised again the question of Balkan borders: nobody can predict what will happen.
On the evening of 21 May Montenegrin and Albanian flags flew side by side in Ulcinj, the southernmost town of the Montenegrin coast. Montenegro has become independent mostly because of the way the national minorities voted. The 50,000 Albanians living in the tiny republic have long been convinced citizens of the Montenegrin state.
According to Ibrahim Cungu, former police commissioner for Ulcinj and local leader of the Social Democratic party: “It is possible to be Albanian and a citizen of Montenegro.”
But the Montenegrin Albanians are an exception in the Balkans. In Macedonia, Albanians and Macedonians view each other with suspicion. The political and cultural rights of the Albanians have been recognised, and the Ohrid agreement of August 2001 ended the violent conflict between Macedonian security forces and the ethnic-Albanian National Liberation Army of Macedonia. Like the Macedonian Slavs, the Albanians are now considered a “second constitutive people” of the Macedonian republic. Albanian is the second official language in any commune where Albanians are over 20% of the population. “Before 2001 Albanian high school pupils had trouble getting into university, but the situation has improved since then,” said Afrim Kerimi, headmaster of the Albanian high school in Kumanovo.
The 2001 conflict has left deep scars, however. Many people are disappointed by the peace agreement and the guerrillas are itching to fight again. An elastic amnesty further feeds resentment and small guerrilla groups, often linked to criminal interests, are constantly springing up. One group formed in 2003 is led by Avdil Jakupi,“Commander Cakalla”; another, headed by Agim Krasniqi, occupied the village of Kondovo outside Skopje for six months in 2004.
Albanians living in Serbia’s Presevo valley are also dissatisfied with the peace. They want to take part in the Kosovo negotiations as they fear they may be completely passed over in a regional settlement.
Albanian guerrilla movements arose in Macedonia and the Presevo valley in 2001 because of Kosovo. By igniting local conflict, radical militants and supporters of a Greater Albania sought to remind the world that the international protectorate did not solve the Kosovo question. If future international decisions on Kosovo do not suit them, they will have no problem inflaming the whole region.
The Albanian nationalist movement developed only at the end of the 19th century, far later than those of the other Balkan peoples. After the Balkan war of 1912-13 Kosovo was divided between Montenegro and Serbia, with Serbia also getting a large area of Macedonia. The Treaty of London established “little Albania” on approximately the territory now occupied by Albania, but it left many Albanian people outside the new state.
There are two distinct ideas in Albanian nationalist rhetoric: Greater Albania and ethnic Albania. Greater Albania designates the lands that at various times were peopled by Albanians or their supposed ancestors, the Illyrians. Ethnic Albania corresponds to the regions where Albanians are the majority of the population (2). The nationalists tend to forget an important factor: that other communities live side by side with the Albanians in those regions.
After the dangerous ambitions of a Greater Serbia and a Greater Croatia, is it now the time for a Greater Albania? A number of radical, but marginal, militant networks openly campaign for it, but they may not have much popular support. There is still considerable distrust between the citizens of the republic of Albania and the Albanians from former Yugoslavia, long separated by history.
The only response to the challenge of a Greater Albania, as with a Greater Serbia, is full European integration. The prospect of a national unity that requires border changes is potentially dangerous for the region. Nevertheless the issue of a national trans-border “Albania” is a reality.
It should be possible for anyone writing a book in Shqiptari to address likely readers in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, while an ethnic Albanian student should be free to study in Tirana, Tetovo or Pristina. But the borders will have to be far wider open than they are today.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Macedonia’s Former PM Ljubco Georgievski Received Bulgarian Citizenship (REVIEW)
Sofia/Skopje. “Former Macedonian Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski has received a Bulgarian citizenship”, Bulgarian newspaper wrote, while in the meantime the Macedonian ones were denying the information. The news is true, but not quite – Georgievski received a Bulgarian citizenship almost a month before the parliamentary elections in Macedonia, which were held on July 5, 2006, a check up of FOCUS News Agency reveals.
Georgievski’s new address registration in the Bulgarian southwestern city of Blagoevgrad was completed last week, which was the reason why the media spread the information about the new national identity of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party) leader.
The Bulgarian Citizenship decree was issued and given to the former PM in Blagoevgrad. The document bears the signature of Bulgaria’s Vice President Angel Marin and was issued late May, the press office of the Bulgarian President confirmed for FOCUS.
Ljubco Georgievski adhered to all the necessary procedures as the presented documents bear a date from the end of 2005.
The address in the documents of the Bulgarian citizen Ljubco Georgievski is in the town of Blagoevgrad. The Bulgarian citizenship application of the former PM reads that his parents are Bulgarians by origin and he has attached the respective document issued by the Agency for Bulgarians Abroad.
Ljubco Georgievski won an MP seat in Macedonia’s new Parliament. He will continue living in Skopje and will have a double citizenship.
The Comments in Macedonia
Ljubco Georgievski denied the information about his Bulgarian citizenship, the Macedonian television Kanal 5 reported. Georgievski told the media that he was used to listening to lies against him, which were spread by police and political structures.
The spokesman for VMRO-Narodna (People’s Party) Alexander Georgiev refuted before FOCUS News Agency the information that the party leader and Macedonia’s former Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski has Bulgarian citizenship.
“In principle I do not want to comment on these statements as they are lies,” Alexander Georgiev said. According to him such statements aim at shifting the focus of attention from the formation of the new Macedonian government.
“Ljubco Georgievski is used to such speculations. He has acquired many citizenships through the years – he has been a Bulgarian, a Serb, a Greek,” VMRO-Narodna spokesman pointed out.
“The personal documents of Ljubco Georgievski are his own business”, Iljaz Halimi, deputy leader of the Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA), told FOCUS News Agency.
"The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) doesn't want to comment on the activities of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party), particularly the activities of its leader Ljubco Georgievski", VMRO-DPMNE’s spokesman Alexander Bicikliski told FOCUS News Agency. He was asked to comment on the news that the former Macedonian Prime Minister had received a Bulgarian citizenship.
“In principle, we do not comment on anything related to that party”, Bicikliski added.
“I don’t know whether Ljubco Georgievski has received a Bulgarian citizenship”, Vesna Janevska, acting leader of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party) told FOCUS News Agency. She was asked to comment on the information that the former Macedonian Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski had received a Bulgarian citizenship.
“At present Macedonia is forming a government, which is the most important event in the country now, not the documents of Ljubco Georgievski”, Janevska stressed. According to her, the personal documents of anyone should not be commented.
The Comments in Bulgaria
The fact that VMRO-Narodna (People’s Party) leader and Macedonia’s former Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski has received Bulgarian citizenship is something quite normal. This is what the Bulgarian historian and director of national Museum of History Professor Bozhidar Dimitrov told FOCUS News Agency from Macedonia.
It is a typical phenomenon MPs from anti-Bulgarian parties to have Bulgarian citizenship. The same is applicable for high-ranking police personnel and for many Ministers from different parties, the historian said.
“In my opinion Ljubco Georgievski has lawfully received a Bulgarian citizenship as he pointed to the fact that his parents are Bulgarians and at some point he felt like a Bulgarian,” Professor Dimitrov commented. He also said that the information curtain between the two countries is lifting and as a result we are getting closer to the historical truth.
To the question how this piece of news is being commented in Macedonia Professor Dimitrov replied that “two thirds of the people approve of it.”
“The ethnic Bulgarians have to receive Bulgarian citizenship by means of a facilitated procedure”, leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (VMRO), Krasimir Karakachanov told FOCUS News Agency.
“It’s two completely different things when a Chinese or a Palestine applies for Bulgarian citizenship and when an ethnic Bulgarian, no matter whether s/he lives in Macedonia, the Western Outskirts, Ukraine, Moldova or anywhere in the world, wants a Bulgarian citizenship. Bulgaria has to use the experience of Germany, Hungary and Greece, which give citizenship to their ethic co-citizens almost automatically”, Karakachanov stressed.
Georgievski’s new address registration in the Bulgarian southwestern city of Blagoevgrad was completed last week, which was the reason why the media spread the information about the new national identity of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party) leader.
The Bulgarian Citizenship decree was issued and given to the former PM in Blagoevgrad. The document bears the signature of Bulgaria’s Vice President Angel Marin and was issued late May, the press office of the Bulgarian President confirmed for FOCUS.
Ljubco Georgievski adhered to all the necessary procedures as the presented documents bear a date from the end of 2005.
The address in the documents of the Bulgarian citizen Ljubco Georgievski is in the town of Blagoevgrad. The Bulgarian citizenship application of the former PM reads that his parents are Bulgarians by origin and he has attached the respective document issued by the Agency for Bulgarians Abroad.
Ljubco Georgievski won an MP seat in Macedonia’s new Parliament. He will continue living in Skopje and will have a double citizenship.
The Comments in Macedonia
Ljubco Georgievski denied the information about his Bulgarian citizenship, the Macedonian television Kanal 5 reported. Georgievski told the media that he was used to listening to lies against him, which were spread by police and political structures.
The spokesman for VMRO-Narodna (People’s Party) Alexander Georgiev refuted before FOCUS News Agency the information that the party leader and Macedonia’s former Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski has Bulgarian citizenship.
“In principle I do not want to comment on these statements as they are lies,” Alexander Georgiev said. According to him such statements aim at shifting the focus of attention from the formation of the new Macedonian government.
“Ljubco Georgievski is used to such speculations. He has acquired many citizenships through the years – he has been a Bulgarian, a Serb, a Greek,” VMRO-Narodna spokesman pointed out.
“The personal documents of Ljubco Georgievski are his own business”, Iljaz Halimi, deputy leader of the Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA), told FOCUS News Agency.
"The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) doesn't want to comment on the activities of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party), particularly the activities of its leader Ljubco Georgievski", VMRO-DPMNE’s spokesman Alexander Bicikliski told FOCUS News Agency. He was asked to comment on the news that the former Macedonian Prime Minister had received a Bulgarian citizenship.
“In principle, we do not comment on anything related to that party”, Bicikliski added.
“I don’t know whether Ljubco Georgievski has received a Bulgarian citizenship”, Vesna Janevska, acting leader of VMRO-Narodna (People’s party) told FOCUS News Agency. She was asked to comment on the information that the former Macedonian Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski had received a Bulgarian citizenship.
“At present Macedonia is forming a government, which is the most important event in the country now, not the documents of Ljubco Georgievski”, Janevska stressed. According to her, the personal documents of anyone should not be commented.
The Comments in Bulgaria
The fact that VMRO-Narodna (People’s Party) leader and Macedonia’s former Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski has received Bulgarian citizenship is something quite normal. This is what the Bulgarian historian and director of national Museum of History Professor Bozhidar Dimitrov told FOCUS News Agency from Macedonia.
It is a typical phenomenon MPs from anti-Bulgarian parties to have Bulgarian citizenship. The same is applicable for high-ranking police personnel and for many Ministers from different parties, the historian said.
“In my opinion Ljubco Georgievski has lawfully received a Bulgarian citizenship as he pointed to the fact that his parents are Bulgarians and at some point he felt like a Bulgarian,” Professor Dimitrov commented. He also said that the information curtain between the two countries is lifting and as a result we are getting closer to the historical truth.
To the question how this piece of news is being commented in Macedonia Professor Dimitrov replied that “two thirds of the people approve of it.”
“The ethnic Bulgarians have to receive Bulgarian citizenship by means of a facilitated procedure”, leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (VMRO), Krasimir Karakachanov told FOCUS News Agency.
“It’s two completely different things when a Chinese or a Palestine applies for Bulgarian citizenship and when an ethnic Bulgarian, no matter whether s/he lives in Macedonia, the Western Outskirts, Ukraine, Moldova or anywhere in the world, wants a Bulgarian citizenship. Bulgaria has to use the experience of Germany, Hungary and Greece, which give citizenship to their ethic co-citizens almost automatically”, Karakachanov stressed.
U.S. Won't Help German Kidnap Claim Probe
Germany said Sunday the United States has refused to help investigate the alleged abduction of a German citizen, a case that has ignited criticism of U.S. tactics against international terrorism.
Khaled al-Masri, who was born in Lebanon, says he was seized in Macedonia in December 2003 and flown by the CIA to a detention center in Afghanistan. He says he was questioned and abused during five months in custody before he was dumped in Albania.
Prosecutors in Munich have opened an investigation and Berlin asked Washington for assistance with it.
The U.S. Justice Ministry declined to help due to a civil lawsuit that al-Masri has brought against the Central Intelligence Agency, the German Justice Ministry said Sunday.
"The American side has informed us that no legal assistance can be provided in the al-Masri case, at least for the time being, in view of the ongoing civil case," ministry spokeswoman Eva Schmierer said.
The letter did not address al-Masri's allegations, Schmierer said, and she did not know when Berlin received the rejection.
Human rights advocates have seized on al-Masri's story to press the United States to stop flying terrorism suspects to other countries, where they could face abuse.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other U.S. officials have declined to address the al-Masri case. However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the United States has acknowledged making a mistake with him.
German authorities insist they were unaware of al-Masri's case until after he was freed.
However, Germany's intelligence agency acknowledged in May that that one of its employees in Macedonia overheard at the time that a German citizen called al-Masri had been detained and passed to U.S. custody. It said the employee apparently failed to inform his superiors.
Khaled al-Masri, who was born in Lebanon, says he was seized in Macedonia in December 2003 and flown by the CIA to a detention center in Afghanistan. He says he was questioned and abused during five months in custody before he was dumped in Albania.
Prosecutors in Munich have opened an investigation and Berlin asked Washington for assistance with it.
The U.S. Justice Ministry declined to help due to a civil lawsuit that al-Masri has brought against the Central Intelligence Agency, the German Justice Ministry said Sunday.
"The American side has informed us that no legal assistance can be provided in the al-Masri case, at least for the time being, in view of the ongoing civil case," ministry spokeswoman Eva Schmierer said.
The letter did not address al-Masri's allegations, Schmierer said, and she did not know when Berlin received the rejection.
Human rights advocates have seized on al-Masri's story to press the United States to stop flying terrorism suspects to other countries, where they could face abuse.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other U.S. officials have declined to address the al-Masri case. However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the United States has acknowledged making a mistake with him.
German authorities insist they were unaware of al-Masri's case until after he was freed.
However, Germany's intelligence agency acknowledged in May that that one of its employees in Macedonia overheard at the time that a German citizen called al-Masri had been detained and passed to U.S. custody. It said the employee apparently failed to inform his superiors.
Macedonia Sends Helicopters, Officers Bosnia
SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP)--Macedonia sent two helicopters and 17 officers to Bosnia Friday, to join a European Union force there.
"This is the first time Macedonia is providing a direct contribution to ... part of the European common defense and security policy," Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski said, after attending a ceremony at Skopje's Petrovec airport.
Macedonia has also sent small troop contingents to Afghanistan and Iraq.
Macedonia's MI-8 and MI-17 helicopters will serve as part of a Belgian force in Bosnia, in the southern town of Mostar.
"Our contribution along with other participants ... will help further stabilize the region," Crvenkovski said.
NATO handed control of an international force in Bosnia to the E.U. in December 2004, nine years after the Balkan nation's three-year civil war.
About 6,000 personnel from 33 countries serve in the E.U.-led force.
"This is the first time Macedonia is providing a direct contribution to ... part of the European common defense and security policy," Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski said, after attending a ceremony at Skopje's Petrovec airport.
Macedonia has also sent small troop contingents to Afghanistan and Iraq.
Macedonia's MI-8 and MI-17 helicopters will serve as part of a Belgian force in Bosnia, in the southern town of Mostar.
"Our contribution along with other participants ... will help further stabilize the region," Crvenkovski said.
NATO handed control of an international force in Bosnia to the E.U. in December 2004, nine years after the Balkan nation's three-year civil war.
About 6,000 personnel from 33 countries serve in the E.U.-led force.
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Macedonia to hold some election reruns
SKOPJE, Macedonia-Macedonia will hold election reruns at about 1 percent of the country's polling stations because of irregularities in the July 5 parliamentary election, authorities said Friday.
The repeat voting at 29 polling stations on July 19 will not affect the overall result, which saw Nikola Gruevski's conservative party poised to return to power after four years of Social Democrat rule.
International observers and the European Union said the election was generally fair, a key condition for the tiny Balkan nation's hopes of future membership in the EU and NATO.
Macedonia's State Electoral Commission ordered the reruns Friday and will only announce final results after that process is complete, commission spokesman Zoran Tanevski said.
Irregularities included intimidation outside polling stations and alleged attempts to stuff ballot boxes.
Under the commission's provisional results, the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party is leading with 32.4 percent of the vote, while outgoing Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski's Social Democrats have 23.3 percent.
Buckovski conceded defeat hours after the polls closed.
Gruevski failed to win an outright majority and will have to form a coalition with one or both of the two main parties representing the country's ethnic Albanian minority, the DPA party and bitter rival DUI.
The DPA party has accused the DUI of election fraud and submitted complaints to the electoral commission.
Trying to shake off its nationalist past, the VMRO said it would join forces with anyone except the outgoing Social Democrats provided they accept its economic program.
A partnership between VMRO and a minority party could bolster stability in Macedonia, five years after an ethnic Albanian uprising led to months of fighting against government troops and left some 80 people dead.
VMRO-DPMNE spokesman Antonio Milososki told the Associated press Friday that coalition negotiations with the two Albanian parties are progressing in the "right direction."
"We hope we will be able to reach an agreement for a new coalition government at the beginning of next week," Milososki said.
The new parliament is expected to convene by July 26, and after Macedonia's president has had 10 days to give the leading party the order to form the next government.
Buckovski's outgoing administration had partnered with the DUI.
The repeat voting at 29 polling stations on July 19 will not affect the overall result, which saw Nikola Gruevski's conservative party poised to return to power after four years of Social Democrat rule.
International observers and the European Union said the election was generally fair, a key condition for the tiny Balkan nation's hopes of future membership in the EU and NATO.
Macedonia's State Electoral Commission ordered the reruns Friday and will only announce final results after that process is complete, commission spokesman Zoran Tanevski said.
Irregularities included intimidation outside polling stations and alleged attempts to stuff ballot boxes.
Under the commission's provisional results, the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party is leading with 32.4 percent of the vote, while outgoing Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski's Social Democrats have 23.3 percent.
Buckovski conceded defeat hours after the polls closed.
Gruevski failed to win an outright majority and will have to form a coalition with one or both of the two main parties representing the country's ethnic Albanian minority, the DPA party and bitter rival DUI.
The DPA party has accused the DUI of election fraud and submitted complaints to the electoral commission.
Trying to shake off its nationalist past, the VMRO said it would join forces with anyone except the outgoing Social Democrats provided they accept its economic program.
A partnership between VMRO and a minority party could bolster stability in Macedonia, five years after an ethnic Albanian uprising led to months of fighting against government troops and left some 80 people dead.
VMRO-DPMNE spokesman Antonio Milososki told the Associated press Friday that coalition negotiations with the two Albanian parties are progressing in the "right direction."
"We hope we will be able to reach an agreement for a new coalition government at the beginning of next week," Milososki said.
The new parliament is expected to convene by July 26, and after Macedonia's president has had 10 days to give the leading party the order to form the next government.
Buckovski's outgoing administration had partnered with the DUI.
A1: Ethnic Albanian DPA Party Refuses to Join New Macedonian Government along with Rival Albanian DUI Party
Skopje. The Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA) has refused to join the next Macedonian government if Ali Ahmeti’s party, the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) was part of it, the Macedonian television A1 reported. Arben Xhaferi’s party grounded its stance on a decision by the Supreme Court of Macedonia to accept the party’s complaints and a date for a new voting to be fixed. DPA thinks that the new voting would provide it with more parliamentary seats. On Friday, DPA’s leaders, Zhaferi and Menduh Taci informed the leader of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) Nikola Grievski of their intention,
“I tried to explain to Gruevski that DPA and VMRO-DPMNE have compatible relations. DUI is a partner of another party”, DPA’s leader Arben Xhaferi stated.
“I tried to explain to Gruevski that DPA and VMRO-DPMNE have compatible relations. DUI is a partner of another party”, DPA’s leader Arben Xhaferi stated.
Dnevnik, Macedonia: OMO Ilinden – Pirin Collects 2,000 Signatures in Support of Party's Registration
Skopje. Supporters of OMO Ilinden – Pirin collected the first 2,000 signatures in support of the registration of the party that proclaims respecting the rights of Macedonians in Bulgaria, the Macedonian daily Dnevnik reports today. Stoyko Stoykov, OMO Ilinden – Pirin spokesman announced yesterday that the process of collecting signatures continued. The three months' term for collecting the necessary signatures ends at the end of September.
“I hope that we are going to be able to fulfill the condition for registration of our party required by the law. The Collecting signatures is running without any problems and we have no obstacles”, Stoykov stated.
OMO Ilinden – Pirin held a constituent assembly recently at which it was decided to continue the activity of the party. Several years ago the Constitutional Court in Bulgaria banned the activity of the party stressing its existence was in contradiction to the Bulgarian Constitution. The European Court in Strasbourg found Bulgaria guilty of that ban last year, the newspaper reminds.
“I hope that we are going to be able to fulfill the condition for registration of our party required by the law. The Collecting signatures is running without any problems and we have no obstacles”, Stoykov stated.
OMO Ilinden – Pirin held a constituent assembly recently at which it was decided to continue the activity of the party. Several years ago the Constitutional Court in Bulgaria banned the activity of the party stressing its existence was in contradiction to the Bulgarian Constitution. The European Court in Strasbourg found Bulgaria guilty of that ban last year, the newspaper reminds.
MACEDONIA: Municipality of Ohrid Sets Urban Plan
The Council of Ohrid Municipality on Friday, after a brief discussion, adopted unanimously the General Urban Plan - GUP for Ohrid, for the next 10 years, reports Makfax's reporter.
The Municipality of Ohrid was one of the last municipalities in Macedonia that lacked official GUP, which was being prepared since 1997.
The adopted GUP establishes the urban boundaries of the Municipality, as well as preservation zones determined by the Directorate for Protection of the Monuments of Culture and Ohrid's Institute and Museum.
The GUP, which regulates what and where will be built, which are public areas and protected zones, is a basis for adopting detailed urban plans that will determine the type of buildings that will be built and their size.
The Council of Ohrid Municipality adopted the Plan on the last day of the legal deadline. If this weren't completed by Friday, the cost for preparation of the urban plan of 5 million Denars would have been paid by the Municipality, instead of the State.
Lease of Bitola Cultural Centre Illegal
The informal coalition of several Bitola-based youth NGOs reacted on the decision of the Ministry of Culture to rent the space at the Bitola Cultural Centre and the “Army Club” for non-cultural purposes.
In February of this year, the Ministry decided to lease a total of 380 square meters of office space on a five-year lease, at extremely low rent and without completion of a proper tender competition. One month later, in March 2006, the lease was extended for another five years.
“We ask Minister Stefanovski, himself a Bitola man, to give an explanation of this decision. He should also address the allegations that the offices were rented to a close relative of one member of the Government Cabinet”, said Jasmina Tosevska from LINK.
The lease was issued for use of the space for purposes other than cultural production and presentation. Although the decentralization process prescribed that the property of the Cultural Centre and the Army Club will be transferred to the Municipality of Bitola, it never materialized.
In February of this year, the Ministry decided to lease a total of 380 square meters of office space on a five-year lease, at extremely low rent and without completion of a proper tender competition. One month later, in March 2006, the lease was extended for another five years.
“We ask Minister Stefanovski, himself a Bitola man, to give an explanation of this decision. He should also address the allegations that the offices were rented to a close relative of one member of the Government Cabinet”, said Jasmina Tosevska from LINK.
The lease was issued for use of the space for purposes other than cultural production and presentation. Although the decentralization process prescribed that the property of the Cultural Centre and the Army Club will be transferred to the Municipality of Bitola, it never materialized.
MACEDONIA: Fouere Hints at DUI For Coalition Partner In New Government
It would be beneficial if the new government "reflects the will of the majority in all social spheres", Erwan Fouere, the EU Representative in Macedonia said.
"Any statements related to forming a coalition government would be premature, since talks with all parties, including Ali Ahmeti's DUI, are under way. We need to be patient and wait for the negotiations to wrap up", Fouere said while attending the opening the Summer School at the SEE University in Tetovo.
He added that "it is very important all parties" both Macedonian and Albanian ones, "that won significant number of votes to take part" at negotiations for forming the new government, "including of course the party that won majority of votes of the Albanians", Makfax Agency reported.
"It is not up to us to determine what parties will form a coalition", Fouere said, underscoring that "the new government should be resolute in implementation of the reforms, necessary for admission of the country in the European Union and NATO".
Friday, July 14, 2006
Skopje's finest back in training
The countdown to the new season in F.Y.R. Macedonia has begun with three teams in European action and the league campaign beginning on 6 August.
Intertoto defeat
FK Pobeda became the first Macedonian side to kick a ball in anger in 2006/07 as they started their campaign in the first round of the UEFA Intertoto Cup. They were out of luck against Romania's FC Farul Constanta, losing out 4-2 on aggregate after a 2-2 draw at home in the first leg. Champions FK Rabotnicki have been back in training for some time as they look ahead to playing UEFA Champions League football. The club started their preparations with a training camp in Bansko, Bulgaria, and are readjusting their squad for the new campaign.
Aleksovski signs
FK Shkendija 79 forward Saso Aleksovski became their first signing of the summer, filling the gap left by Blaze Ilioski who has left to play in Korea Republic with Incheon United FC. The former Under-21 international player is also one of the key members of Srečko Katanec's Macedonian national side. UEFA Cup contenders FK Vardar and FK Makedonija GP Skopje have also been signing players for the new season. Vardar have brought in U21 international defender Nikola Tonev from FK Bregalnica Stip while Macedonian Cup winners Makedonija have signed former Shkendija player Artim Polozani.
New coaches
New coaches are also being appointed ahead of the new season with Serbo-Montenegrin coach Josip Pirmaer being replaced by fellow-countryman Slavko Jović after a disappointing campaign at FK Sileks. The 56-year-old Jović previously worked at OFK Beograd, FK Leotar, FK Kikinda and FK Napredok. Meanwhile, Nedzat Husein has resigned as coach of Shkendija following a terrific season which saw them reach the Macedonian Cup final and take fifth place in the table. The Tetovo club are expected to name his replacement in the next few weeks as the kick-off date for the new league campaign approaches.
Opening games
While the league's first fixtures will be played on 6 August, teams will be back in action on 30 July in the opening round of the Macedonian Cup. FK Pelister and Napredok are the two newly-promoted sides with the former taking on Makedonija at home in their first game back in the top division.
Intertoto defeat
FK Pobeda became the first Macedonian side to kick a ball in anger in 2006/07 as they started their campaign in the first round of the UEFA Intertoto Cup. They were out of luck against Romania's FC Farul Constanta, losing out 4-2 on aggregate after a 2-2 draw at home in the first leg. Champions FK Rabotnicki have been back in training for some time as they look ahead to playing UEFA Champions League football. The club started their preparations with a training camp in Bansko, Bulgaria, and are readjusting their squad for the new campaign.
Aleksovski signs
FK Shkendija 79 forward Saso Aleksovski became their first signing of the summer, filling the gap left by Blaze Ilioski who has left to play in Korea Republic with Incheon United FC. The former Under-21 international player is also one of the key members of Srečko Katanec's Macedonian national side. UEFA Cup contenders FK Vardar and FK Makedonija GP Skopje have also been signing players for the new season. Vardar have brought in U21 international defender Nikola Tonev from FK Bregalnica Stip while Macedonian Cup winners Makedonija have signed former Shkendija player Artim Polozani.
New coaches
New coaches are also being appointed ahead of the new season with Serbo-Montenegrin coach Josip Pirmaer being replaced by fellow-countryman Slavko Jović after a disappointing campaign at FK Sileks. The 56-year-old Jović previously worked at OFK Beograd, FK Leotar, FK Kikinda and FK Napredok. Meanwhile, Nedzat Husein has resigned as coach of Shkendija following a terrific season which saw them reach the Macedonian Cup final and take fifth place in the table. The Tetovo club are expected to name his replacement in the next few weeks as the kick-off date for the new league campaign approaches.
Opening games
While the league's first fixtures will be played on 6 August, teams will be back in action on 30 July in the opening round of the Macedonian Cup. FK Pelister and Napredok are the two newly-promoted sides with the former taking on Makedonija at home in their first game back in the top division.
OSCE Mission to Skopje fosters cooperation between police and citizens at local level
Skopje - Before, residents of Sopiste had to travel several kilometers to apply for personal documents or get police assistance at the police station in Dracevo. This is no longer a case thanks to the newly-opened police office in this municipality.
The idea of opening a police office in Sopiste Municipality was initiated by local residents and was supported by the OSCE Office in Skopje, which mediated the equipping of the office by the British Embassy. The equipment, in place as of today, will give the police officers working conditions in which they can function more effectively.
Dracevo Police Station Commander, Branislav Krstevski, whose station will help to man the new office, explained, “This is another step the police are taking to get closer to the citizens. The opening of the police office in Sopiste Municipality is essential for the police as it will have a strategic importance for building good relations between the police and the citizens. It will also help in creating a positive image for the police.”
This office in Sopiste will be used to better serve the community within the context of community policing, a policing concept supported by the OSCE in the country, which aims to increase the confidence and cooperation between police and citizens.
The office will be open three days a week and the citizens will have the opportunity to address their concerns on police related issues, as well as to file complaints and request police assistance.
(OSCE)
The idea of opening a police office in Sopiste Municipality was initiated by local residents and was supported by the OSCE Office in Skopje, which mediated the equipping of the office by the British Embassy. The equipment, in place as of today, will give the police officers working conditions in which they can function more effectively.
Dracevo Police Station Commander, Branislav Krstevski, whose station will help to man the new office, explained, “This is another step the police are taking to get closer to the citizens. The opening of the police office in Sopiste Municipality is essential for the police as it will have a strategic importance for building good relations between the police and the citizens. It will also help in creating a positive image for the police.”
This office in Sopiste will be used to better serve the community within the context of community policing, a policing concept supported by the OSCE in the country, which aims to increase the confidence and cooperation between police and citizens.
The office will be open three days a week and the citizens will have the opportunity to address their concerns on police related issues, as well as to file complaints and request police assistance.
(OSCE)
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