The new Macedonian government will manage to achieve good results, especially in the field of economy

Vlado Popovski is a Professor in Law with the “St. St. Cyril and Methodius” University in Skopje. He was a Minister of Defense in two Macedonian cabinets, as well as a Minister of Justice. Popovski had also been an adviser to the late Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski and had taken an active part in drafting the Ohrid Framework Agreement that was signed in August 2001.
FOCUS News Agency talked with Vlado Popovski about the situations after the recent general elections in Macedina, the new cabinet, and his expectations about future developments.

FOCUS: Mr. Popovski, what is your estimation about the end of the process of cabinet formation in Macedonia?
Vlado Popovski: I think this process was actually a successful one since now the government has the support of 67 MPs, without the participation of VMRO-People’s Party. This means that now it has a comfortable majority. This will allow the cabinet in its attempts to realize their election program, especially in its economic part …where Nikola Gruevski’s cabinet has the potential to achieve positive results.

FOCUS: Are there any surprises in the new government?
Vlado Popovski: There are some personal surprises that no one had expected. VMRO – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) has stated that there will be surprises, and they came up – mostly in personal aspect for certain ministries. There were no surprises about the structure since the coalition was already known.

FOCUS: What are your expectations from the new government considering its members?
Vlado Popovski: I think the new government will manage to achieve good results in the field of economy. A new structure in the field of investments will also be formed, which will open new job positions. If it is successful in this direction and there are some results that could be felt in a positive way, and which to different from those achieved by the previous government, I would say this would be pretty enough.
As far as other spheres are concerned, I think that some political relations will be established, which will not soothe the situation since the conflict relations between the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) and VMRO-DPMNE will intensify further. This will make the realization of the Ohrid Agreement difficult. On the other hand, this will also lead to some intensifications in the international relations – of not violations, it would at least be a stagnation of international relations, and they need to be developed.
In an international aspect – the international community will not be pleased with such a course of events in Macedonia, i.e. the stagnation in the realization of the Ohrid Agreement. DUI has already stated that they will prevent the implementation of the Badenter principle in parliament. This means that the development of the positions of minorities will be in stagnation, and this will inevitable lead to some tension among the different communities.
On a local level, in the municipalities where DUI has mayors – they are 15 and this is not a small number, and where Macedonians are a minority, as in the Cair municipality, the Badenter principle will be ignored and decisions will be imposed through the Albanian community, which will cause tension in the Macedonian and the rest of the communities. The arrogance will have a boomerang effect not only on a local, but on a national level as well, and that is why I consider things are as not as good.
Considering Macedonia’s neighbors, and judging from the statements on the issue about the name of the country, there will be some stagnation. But I think that if the political and economic relations and cooperation with the Republic of Greece develop, this would be a kind of a compensation for the name problem. But I think this issue is as topical right now since Macedonia is not close yet to an EU or NATO membership. I expect that Greece will bring the issue to the fore before Macedonia’s accession to the Euro-Atlantic structures. But since this moment is still well ahead for us, the name issue will also fall into stagnation in contrast to the economic and political cooperation.

FOCUS: What would be the course of foreign policy that the new government will adopt and what would be the accents in its policy regarding the neighboring states?
Vlado Popovski: The foreign policy will preserve the course towards meeting the requirements for Macedonia’s accession to the EU and NATO – first in the field of economy, and perhaps, in some democratic institutions – in the filed of judiciary.
Reforms and reconstruction in the field of defense will also be made. The Police Law is also expected to be adopted considering the already suggested draft, but the very text of the bill was not satisfactory enough and I hope this government will draft a new text. The new government will get closer more radically to the European standards – structures, competences, and on the level of functions, as it is expected a new law in the sphere of civil and human freedoms to be adopted as well.
Macedonia will continue participating in international missions, as well as its friendly relations with the EU and the USA, and the development of the cultural and historical relations with Russia and China. I hope that the philosophy of the new Minister of Foreign Affairs (editor’s note – Antonio Milososki), who is young and well educated, will have some balance in these relations and will not lose the EU and NATO perspective.
I think the new government will stablize the relations with the neighboring states since there is no such great problems. Now, there are much smaller problems compared to 10 years ago, regarding Serbia, Bulgaria, Albania. In deed the problems that existed back in 1994, 1995, and 1996 do not exist any more. They were overcome in the mean time with the signing of different agreements and that is why I expect the cooperation and friendship with these states to be strengthened further.
…

Zoran TALEVSKI

OFFICIAL CALLS FOR A 'NATURAL ALBANIA'

Tirana, 22 August (AKI) - Albanians living in the Balkan region should unite and be integrated into a "natural Albania" by 2013, a senior Albanian official said on Tuesday. Neighbouring Macedonia, with a 25 percent Albanian population, is likely to be partitioned first, if its authorities fail to honour the five-year-old Ohrid peace agreement - which gave Albanians more autonomy and increased their political representation - Koco Danaj, political adviser to Albania's prime minister, Sali Berisha, told Pristina-based Albanian language daily Epoka e Re.

“In politics it’s easier to face the painful truth, than the painful lies,” said Danaj. “Therefore, I emphasise again that disrespect of the Ohrid agreement would mean partitioning of Macedonia,” he added.

Danaj said the greatest threat to the Ohrid agreement - which in 2001 ended ethnic Albanian rebellion in Macedonia - to power of the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE, the Macedonian political party that won the 5 July general election.

VMRO-DPMNE leader, Nikola Gruevski is expected this week to form a coalition government with the Democratic Party of Albanians, triggering protests from the biggest ethnic Albanian party, the Democratic Union for Integration, which also wants to participate in the government.

With Serbia’s southern Kosovo province seeming to be moving towards independence, Danaj said that ethnic Albanians in Macedonia and Montenegro should also have the right to choose with whom to live. Instead of having Albanians participate in those countries' governments, it would be more natural that they had one government in the Albanian capital, Tirana, Danaj said.

After Montenegro, with population of 620,000, voted for independence and separation from Serbia at a referendum on 21 May, 500,000 ethnic Albanians in Macedonia should have the same right, Danaj said. Neither Serbia, nor Macedonia and Montenegro were "natural creations," Danaj pointed out.

Giving apparent credence to the fears of Serb and other Slav politicians in the Balkan countries that the creation of a Greater Albania is the main threat to the region, Danaj said all Albanians will be united “in natural Albania” by 2013.

DUI-PDP Coalition Declares End to Blockades

Tetovo. End of protests and blockades caused by exclusion from the Government was announced today by leaders of DUI-PDP coalition Ali Ahmeti and Abduladi Vejseli, reports Makfax.
The aim of the blockades, according to Ahmeti, was to demonstrate that not only their voters, but all Albanians were humiliated by PM designate Gruevski, aided by DPA, which, according to Ahmeti, is not trusted among Albanians.
Ahmeti emphasized that the protests were aimed towards alarming all citizens in Macedonia, as well as public and political figures, not to remain indifferent to injustice, but also to inform the international community about the disrespect of the will of most Albanians, expressed on the elections, to choose their representatives in the Government.
"The war of 2001 did not deepen the gap of distrust between Macedonians and Albanians, because it didn't even exist. Only, after 2001 Albanians started thinking that Macedonia will become their state too, while today, by stealing the voice of Albanians, a dilemma is opened as to what have we learn from the past", said Ahmeti.
Commenting the proposed composition of the new Government, DUI leader said that he doesn't expect anything special.
"It is clear that in this Government there are such partisans that until yesterday were presented as independent or severe fighters in various NGOs, like the proposed Minister of Justice, who was in the Anti-Corruption Commission. All other names are holding a white flag behind their back and the PM Designate will have an easy task to sign capitulation with such a team", said Ahmeti.
PDP leader, Vejseli, said that they will continue the activities with other forms of democratic political action.
"We are not particularly power-thirsty, but we are pressured by our members and voters to promote and protect Albanians and their interests in the future Government.

Macedonia in chaos as power company starts cutting debtors off

Skopje - Macedonia plunged into chaos as the power company ESM started cutting off debtors - including government ministries, courts and municipal authorities in the capital Skopje, reports said Friday.

Scuffles broke out as outraged people tried to prevent ESM workers from approaching the switchboards, many of them illegally drawing electricity from the grid.

One of the incidents occurred earlier this week in the Macedonian Supreme Court, which is among the debtors.

'Half of the country is without power,' a headline in one of the newspapers said.

The Vienna-based energy company EVN, which acquired a 90-per-cent stake in ESM last year for 225 million euros (290 million dollars), confirmed the measures against debtors and said they were necessary to protect the grid ahead of the cold winter days.

'If we don't curb the theft of electricity and if we fail to start reducing the debts, we will have dramatic supply problems no later that this winter,' spokesman Stefan Zach told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Local reports say that ESM is owed 40 million euros by clients used to ignoring their energy bills.

The Macedonian Government alone, with virtually all its ministries, has an 11-million-euro backlog.

Among those who owe money is also the army headquarters and the chiefs of staff.

Many debtors have reacted quickly since the cuts started last week and started paying, with ESM often agreeing to reschedule the debts, reports said.

The thousands of households owing money - many of them poor - were spared so far, at least directly. Indirectly they were hit - like in Bitola on the country's southern border with Greece - where the local bread factory had to shut down.

The problem of non-payment of electricity is also common in neighbouring Serbia and Albania, both of which have so far refrained from taking drastic measures - but neither of Macedonia's two neighbours has so far privatized its energy sector.

Union Warns of Ruin by Electricity Cuts

SKOPJE, Macedonia — Macedonia's farmers union warned Monday that threats by an Austrian power company operator to cut off supply to customers behind on bill payments could endanger tens of thousands of rural households.

Austrian energy company EVN AG bought a 90 percent stake of the Macedonian state electricity company last year for euro225 million ($290 million), and began cutting off power to businesses which had failed to pay their bills.

"We'e not asking EVN to write off debts from manufacturing industries which buy farmers' goods, but to postpone cuts until October. If not, the livelihoods of tens of thousands of farmers' households will be threatened," farmers' union chief Veljo Tantarov said.

So far, cuts have included government departments, courts, municipal offices and even street lights in parts of the capital Skopje and other Macedonian towns. Also hit are factories processing farm products in the towns of Bitola and Negotino.

The previous state-run operator generally avoided cutting off supplies despite amassing large debts.

EVN's action followed warnings to government institutions and ordinary customers that tens of millions of euros (dollars) in debts had accumulated, EVN spokeswoman Lence Korpuzovska said.

"We won't say what the total debt is, because of company policy, " Korpuzovska told the Associated Press. "It's not the company's job to consider the social aspect (of power cuts) ... It is up to the government, if it is willing, to cover part of the bills for the poor."

She said power cuts were required to recover debts and protect the grid ahead of the winter.

The power company is owed euro40 million ($52 million), including euro11 million ($14 million) from government agencies, according to local media reports.

Debtors also include the country's military.

Power cuts could also affect two major mobile phone operators, as well as national and local TV stations.

Many ordinary households have so far been spared supply cuts. Worst affected would be parts of western Macedonia, home to the country's ethnic Albanian minority.

Relations between many minority leaders and the government remain tense following a 2001 insurgency by ethnic Albanian guerrillas and violent rivalries between minority factions seeking a role in the government.

NAME GAME

Greece calls for new FYROM government to cooperate in talks

Deputy Foreign Minister Yiannis Valinakis said yesterday that he hoped “the new government of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will display the necessary spirit of cooperation so that a mutually acceptable solution [to the name issue] can be found.” Valinakis was speaking after FYROM’s prime minister in waiting, Nikola Gruevski, said that Greece’s neighbor would not negotiate over its constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia. Gruevski said FYROM would consider using another name in dealings with Greece. “If the question is what Greece will call FYROM, the decisions of the UN Security Council and negotiations at the UN would not be necessary,” said Valinakis.

Macedonia's ESM Distribucija cuts off power in hopes of collecting debts

The Macedonian power utility ESM Distribucija has begun taking action to collect outstanding bills, cutting off the electricity supply to debtors across the country. Debts of the central and local government to ESM are estimated at 11m euros. Over 50 per cent of the Macedonian ministries do not regularly pay their bills, according to the utility.

Macedonia seeks aid after floods

he Government of The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has requested international support to assist people affected by recent floods and mudflows in that country.

In early August 2006, heavy rains caused floods and mudflows in the two poorest suburbs of Skopje, the capital. The floods damaged two suburbs, Cento and Singelic, which were built after the earthquake of 1963. The affected areas are northeast of the capital in the municipality of GaziBaba, as well as in the rural community of Ingikovo. According to a first assessment undertaken by the municipal authorities, approximately 1,500 people (300 families) have been affected and have been evacuated to their friends’ or relatives’ houses in other districts.

While no deaths have been reported, extensive damage to homes has been registered, and most of the infrastructure in Cento and Singelic has collapsed. Many houses were flooded and electricity was disrupted. The floods also destroyed household vegetable gardens, and the population is reportedly in need of food. Because of the combination of water, mud and high temperatures, the possible outbreak of diseases is one of the authorities’ major concerns.

National authorities including the Directorate for Protection and Rescue, the Municipal Public Company and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Red Cross have jointly responded to the emergency. According to these institutions, the most urgent needs are for food supplies and non-food items including hygiene kits, mattresses, blankets and kitchen-sets.

OCHA is prepared to accept cash contributions to be used for immediate relief assistance, in support of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in the country.

The Bulgarian-Macedonian brew

Author: GOD: “If in my hands I had a gun and a bullet and before me - a Serbian and an Albanian, I would shoot the Serbian with a smile! I hate the Serbians because of Macedonia!”

Author Vasilev explains GOD’s ill will: “Kosovo is to Serbians what Macedonia is to us. In 1918 Serbia did all it could to tear Macedonia off Bulgaria. It will not stop at anything to wipe the Bulgarian spirit out of Macedonia. Now it is being paid back to. With the interest rate! Kosovo will never again be part of Serbia! There is a God!”

Author: Umko: “What the Serbians have done with Macedonia is irrelevant. If Kosovo splits from Serbia, some day the Kurdjali region will split from Bulgaria. The precedent will be set. That is why we should unreservedly support Serbia.”

Author Pitbulla is more clear-headed: “You are wrong, my man... no precedent will be set because we have not been at war against the Kurdjali region, as were the Serbians against Kosovo...”

This comes from a Mediapool forum following an article about Kosovo’s difficult status that was originally published in Der Berliner Zeitung under the headline Embers of a Balkan fire (the translation is The Sofia Echo’s).

So why quote bloggers on Balkan issues?

Because Bulgarian-Macedonian relations, that politicians would call excellent and that ordinary people would call historically strained, have been brewing rather awkwardly lately, with dubious results.

And because the above has such reminiscence of the unhealthy Balkan speculation about who might do what to whom if this or - God forbid - the other, happens.

This article is dedicated to the Gorani who, along with some Serbs and many Kosovars, also live in Kosovo. And which Albanian linguist Skender Gashi recently called the historical and political apple of discord of the Balkans (in a lecture given at the Bulgarian cultural institute in Vienna).

The Gorani are 2000 or so people who live in 24 villages in the Gora region in the Shar mountain in Kosovo, mostly, but also in Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia (see map). And also sometimes in central Serbia, Italy, Turkey...

The Gorani, geographically and linguistically, are an island of Slav-speaking population, Gashi says, but actually speak an archaic version of Bulgarian, and - even more actually - Bulgarians Vlachs, Gashi says.

But Macedonians claim them also. And so do Bosniaks, and Serbs. And, then, in the old Balkan way of things...you know.

For the sake of political correctness, let’s just say that they have the potential to upset.

So, each party claims the Gorani. But we are concentrating on Macedonia and Bulgaria.

On August 14, the Democratic Movement for the Restoration of Macedonia (DOM) said that the question of the Gorani should be included in Kosovo status talks. “This issue is of interest to the Republic of Macedonia because (the Gorani speak) the Macedonian language and are of the Muslim confession,” said DOM leader Liliana Popovska. The Gorani should be guaranteed the freedom to use Macedonian in schools and mosques because that, among all else, would prevent them from being assimilated, Popovska said.

Her statement would seem to prove that, as Director of the Bulgarian National Museum of History Bozhidar Dimitrov says, Macedonians, unlike Bulgarians, have a state policy regarding minorities.

Another thing - Popovska’s statement comes eight months after the Gorani themselves demanded that they be included in status talks. That happened at an international conference of the Gorani in Skopje that Gorani people from Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia and Albania attended, according to Macedonian internet site Prespa Sky.

Apart from being included in status talks by both Serbians and Kosovars, the Gorani asked to receive the status of a Macedonian national minority with an Islamic confession; to have Macedonian passports; to have a cultural centre opened; and get a better infrastructure (more specifically, a Skopje - Dragash bus line).

But, Prespa Sky also noted, on December 26, the Gorani also asked the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) to register “yet another Bulgarian national entity” (the wording is theirs) - that of the Gorani and Muslims from the Gora region.

And also formed a Culture and Education Association Bulgarians - Muslims. The Association, according to the head of the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Kosovo Nikolai Kolev as reported by Prespa Sky, was not founded with Bulgarian participation.

Ethnic specialists consider the Gorani to be Islamized Macedonians, the publication continues.

When forming their association, the Gorani had sent a note to the Serbian state television, saying that their initiative had never had the ambition to change their age-long national identity, Prespa Sky said.

Also, they were receiving documents proving their Bulgarian descent from the Bulgarian diplomatic mission in Kosovo, but not with the intention to get a Bulgarian or any other country’s passport - because no institution in Kosovo issued passports anyway, Prespa Sky said.

Of course, the Gorani do get Bulgarian passports. “They don’t like getting Macedonian citizenship so much,” Dimitrov says.

For understandable economical EU reasons, “not to speak of this trade (in passports) going on,” a representative of a cultural institution in Sofia told The Sofia Echo, but - let’s say - for language and historical reasons too.

Unfortunately, this touches on another tricky subject - that Bulgaria has of late been issuing an inordinate number of passports. This was described in an August 13 report in the Sunday Telegraph (authored by a Skopje and a Bucharest correspondent) as “a give-away passports bonanza”

The context of the Telegraph article makes it overly important for Bulgaria. The UK is now bracing for about 40 000 to 60 000 (the optimistic version) or up to 400 000 (the pessimistic version) Romanians and Bulgarians expected to arrive in the country after January 1 2007. Some of them criminals. Both scenarios would trouble the British labour market, predictions go. British immigration authorities are reported to be now preparing regulations to temporarily ban the entrance of immigrants.

So, the Telegraph article mirrors the urge to keep hordes of Bulgarians and Romanians away from the UK. And smears Bulgaria’s image.

And what does this reporter, as a Bulgarian, do about that?

This reporter gets upset and angry and goes home. On the way home, thinks about the problem, and then asks an Albanian friend to agree to being quoted that if he was offered a job in Bulgaria, he would jump at the idea, partly because he had become, while living in Bulgaria for four years, somewhat Bulgarianised. And the Albanian friend answered: “You have fallen into the vicious trap of the cheapest form of journalism in the Balkans, the one flared with nationalistic fervour that demonises the other nationalities.”

I suppose that I did fall in the trap, somewhat. And I guess that the Balkans do suffer from their black hole nationalist traps, journalists included.

But, as head of the Macedonian Culture and Information Centre in Sofia said, stupidity affects all people, not specific ethnic groups.

Macedonia celebrates fifth anniversary of Framework Agreement

The fifth anniversary of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, the document that halted the armed conflict in Macedonia in 2001, was formally celebrated on Thursday (17 August) at a reception hosted by President Branko Crvenkovski.

Representatives of political parties and the diplomatic corps in the country, including US Ambassador to Macedonia Gillian Milovanovic and EU Representative Erwan Fouere, attended the ceremony at the Biljana Presidential Villa in Ohrid.

"Tough and responsible decisions had to be made in 2001," Crvenkovski told the attendees. "That was why I put my signature with clean consciousness. The thesis that the Ohrid Agreement was imposed on us from outside by the international factors is often emphasised. War can be imported to a country from outside, but not a lasting and stable peace. Peace must be the source of sincere willingness of citizens and political elites within the country."

There can be no successful economy without political stability, and no new investments and jobs in conditions of ethnic tensions and distrust, the president said. Thanking everyone who took part directly or indirectly in concluding the Framework Agreement, he highlighted the contribution of the late President Boris Trajkovski, under whose auspices the Agreement was signed.

EU security chief Javier Solana, who was involved directly in the signing, summed up the importance of the agreement.

"What began as a framework and myth has become a safe and stable dynamic process leading the country to Europe. The same spirit of compromise and political elan between the authorities in office and opposition has been enabled by the implementation of the Ohrid Agreement until today. The past five years have shown the people and their political delegates' capability to overcome divisions and work on a common European future through open political dialogue," Solana said.

The Framework Agreement ended several months of fighting in Macedonia between the government and ethnic Albanian rebels. Even though it was formally signed in Skopje on 13 August 2001, the deal is symbolically called the Ohrid Agreement because negotiations leading to it had taken place in Ohrid.

A series of constitutional and legal amendments followed. In addition, a new territorial division was instituted and the "Badenter principle" -- requiring decisions by the majority to be confirmed by the minority -- applied to some legislation.

The Ohrid Agreement package also includes a new law on the flags of communities and the principle of just representation of communities in the state administration, police and army. Two other requirements -- one on languages and the other concerning the police -- have not been implemented.

The Economic Freedom of Indices

he quality of Wall Street research has suffered grievous blows these last six years. Yet, publishers of political and economic indices largely escaped unscathed. Though their indicators often influence the pecuniary fate of developing countries, they are open to little scrutiny and criticism.

The Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal are the joint publishers of the 2002 edition of the much-vaunted "Index of Economic Freedom". The annual publication purports to measure and compare the level of economic freedoms in 155 countries.

According to its Web site, the Index takes into account these factors:

Corruption in the judiciary, customs service, and government bureaucracy; Non-tariff barriers to trade, such as import bans and quotas as well as strict labeling and licensing requirements; The fiscal burden of government, which encompasses income tax rates, corporate tax rates, and government expenditures as a percent of output; The rule of law, efficiency within the judiciary, and the ability to enforce contracts; Regulatory burdens on business, including health, safety, and environmental regulation; Restrictions on banks regarding financial services, such as selling securities and insurance; Labor market regulations, such as established work weeks and mandatory separation pay; and Black market activities, including smuggling, piracy of intellectual property rights, and the underground provision of labor and other services. The Heritage Foundation's boasts of using the "most recent data" available on September 2001. I downloaded the chapter about Macedonia and studied it at length, starting with the most basic, numerical, "facts". I then compared them to figures released by the Macedonian Bureau of Statistics, the IMF, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the United Nations Development agency, and the European Investment Bank. Macedonia's GDP is $3.4 billion and not $2.7 billion as the report states. Macedonia's GDP exceeded $3 billion in the last 4 years. Nor has GDP grown by 2.7 percent last year or the year before. In 2001, it has actually declined by 4.3 percent and is likely to decline again or rise a little this year. As a result, GDP per capita is wrongly computed. The trade deficit is not $300 million - but double that. It has been above $500 for the last few years. Net foreign direct investment has been closer to $100 million for two years now - rather than the paltry $29 million the report misreports. The report makes "rice" one of Macedonia's "major" agricultural products. It is, actually, first on its list. Alas, little rice is grown in Macedonia nowadays, though it did use to be a weighty European rice grower decades ago. Nor does the country produce noticeable quantities of citrus, or grains, as the report would have us believe. The authoritative-sounding introduction to the chapter informs us that Macedonia maintains a budget surplus "from the sale of state-owned telecommunications". In its decade of existence, Macedonia enjoyed a budget surplus only in 2000 and it had nothing to do with the sale of its telecom to the German-Hungarian MATAV. The proceeds of this privatization were kept in a separate bank account. Only a small part was used for budgetary and balance of payment purposes. The outgoing prime minister would be pleasantly astounded to learn that he "privatized approximately 90 percent of (the country's) state-owned firms". These were actually privatized by the opposition when it was in power until 1998. It is true that major assets, such as Macedonia's refinery and its leading bank, were privatized in the last 4 years. It is also true that the bulk of state-owned loss making enterprises were either sold or shut. But these constitute less than 15 percent of the number of companies the state owned in 1992. The fiscal burden of Macedonia is 34 percent of GDP - not 23 percent as is the impression that section provides. It has surpassed 30 percent of GDP long ago. Moreover, in the sub-chapter titled "Fiscal Burden of the Government" the authors contend that "government expenditures equaled 23.3 percent of GDP". A mere three lines later fiscal rectitude sets in and "the government consumes 19 percent of GDP". Which is it? The "monetary policy" segment is a misleading one-liner: "Between 1993 and 2000, Macedonia's weighted annual average rate of inflation was 7.15 percent." The term "weighted annual average rate of inflation" is not explained anywhere in the tome. Whatever it is, this average masks the hyperinflation of Macedonia's first half decade and the near deflation of the last few years. The straight average in this period was 56 percent, not 7 percent. The report says that "the country's political instability has had a debilitating effect on foreign investment". It sounds logical but does not stand up to scrutiny. Investment flows actually increased in the conflict year as bargain hunters from Greece, Slovenia, Germany, and other countries converged on Macedonia. And so it continues. Macedonia is a tiny and unimportant country. Clearly, scarce research resources are better allocated to Russia or Indonesia. But many of the erroneous data quoted in the report would have required a single surfing session to amend. Sloppy editing, internal contradictions, and outdated information regarding one country, regardless of how inconsequential it is, render the entire opus suspicious. Unfortunately, indices such as these affect both portfolio and direct investment flows, the country's rating, its image in the international media, and the government's standing domestically. The golden rule with such a responsibility is "handle with care". Regrettably, few do.

Vreme: Two Mobile Operators in Macedonia Could Go Out of Service for Unpaid Electricity

Skopje. Two mobile operators Mobimak and Cosmofon, the Ministry of Interior, as well as the National and the local TV stations could be deprived of signal if the electricity of the state Macedonian Radio Broadcasting is cut, Macedonian newspaper Vreme reports today.
The director of Macedonian broadcasting Ljupco Mancevski claims that the firm has been put to finished fact and cannot arrange its financial obligations for electricity spent. According to him it was possible the electricity of all 145 places to be cut off and that is where the devices for broadcasting of the programs are kept since the debts of ESM Distribution now amount to EUR 420,000.

Macedonia claim first win of Euro 2008 qualifying

TALLINN, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Macedonia claimed the first points of the 2008 European Championship qualifying campaign on Wednesday when Goce Sedloski's late goal earned them an impressive 1-0 away win over Estonia in Group E.

Sedloski got the only goal in the 73rd minute when found space in the home defence to shoot past Mart Poom.

It was a deserved lead for the visitors who applied pressure from the start with some fast, free-flowing football, while errant finishing from Estonia spoiled their hopes of equalising.

England, Croatia, Russia, Israel and Andorra complete the group.

Bulgaria denies wholesale passport issue

SOFIA, Bulgaria (UPI) -- Bulgaria has denied British allegations it is giving Bulgarian passports to foreigners to grant them free access to the EU labor market.

Bulgaria and Romania plan to join the European Union in January and many citizens of the former communist countries have applied to get Bulgarian passports, the SNA Sofia news agency reported Wednesday.

With Bulgarian travel documents, the citizens of Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine could freely travel to Britain to get a better job.

Wednesday, Bulgaria`s Justice Ministry dismissed as 'malicious' a report by the Sunday Telegraph claiming Bulgaria was giving away passports to non-EU foreigners hoping to find jobs in Britain.

Deputy Justice Minister Ana Karaivanova said the screening procedure for granting Bulgarian citizenship strictly adhered to the constitution and law.

British media say up to 140,000 Romanians and Bulgarians could arrive in Britain in the first year after the next EU enlargement, the SNA said.

Macedonia Facing Price Shock Because of Electricity Price Rise

Skopje. The increase of the electricity price in Macedonia with almost 15% will most probably cause a price shock in the spheres that are dependent on electric power, Macedonian TV station Kanal 5 informs.
The Regulatory Energy Commission will have to decide today or tomorrow on the new electricity price.
The rise of the electricity price was expected after MEPSO (Macedonian Electricity Transmission System Operator) requested the Commission to allow a 12% rise in the price of electricity and the Austrian owners of ESM-Distribucija – with 14,8%.

Estonia 0 FYR Macedonia 1

FYR Macedonia got their Euro 2008 qualification campaign off to a great start by clinching a 1-0 win over Estonia in Tallinn.

The visitors were the most threatening time throughout and deservedly took the three points thanks to a second-half strike from Goce Sedloski.

Macedonia looked the better side from the outside with Igor Jancevski having the first shot of the game after three minutes, which he put over the crossbar from 12 yards.

Further efforts from Goran Pandev and a miss-hit volley from Jancevski settled the away side as they took control against an Estonia side clearly missing star striker Andres Oper.

Goran Maznov then saw his 25-yard drive parried by Estonia goalkeeper Mart Poom after 15 minutes, before Estonia managed a response with Kristen Viikmae's effort caught by Macedonia keeper Jane Nikoloski.

Jancevski continued to look lively, although Poom had the measure of his long-range efforts.

Estonia managed a flurry of their own just before the interval but Ragnar Klavan's eventual effort was blocked in the area.

Macedonia came out for the second half with the same attacking mentality, Ilco Naumoski forcing a corner from which Jancevski fired wide.

Maznov sent another attempt past the post two minutes later as the away team's dominance began to show.

Poom coped well under the Macedonian pressure but he could do little about Sedloski's drive on 70 minutes, the defender's low right-footed drive beating him from 12 yards.

Jancevski again troubled Poom from distance in the closing stages but in the end his team's single goal proved to be enough to get their Group E campaign off to a flyer.

Nikola Gruevski: Constitution Does Not Oblige Me to Include DUI in the Government

Skopje. "There is no requirement specified in the Constitution of Macedonia, or any other law, that could oblige me to make a coalition with the Democratic Union for Integration /DUI/", Nikola Gruevski the new Macedonian mandate bearer and leader of VMRO-DPMNE, which won the recent general elections in the country, Nikola Gruevski commented in an interview with the Macedonian TV channel A1.

He said that after the victory of his party at the Parliamentary elections in Macedonia the process of cabinet formation was in accordance to the Constitution of Macedonia.

"Zito-Bitola" cut off power - the city facing a bread crisis

The largest manufacturer of bread and baked goods in the region, "Zito Bitola" (ZB), is cut off electricity for several hours already due to unpaid debt towards Electric Power Company of Macedonia (ESM), reports Makfax's correspondent.

As reported, Bitola is facing a bread crisis.

Teams of ESM Distribution this morning fully cut off power in the management building and in production plants, and the ten ZB stores around the city are also disconnected from the electricity grid.

Neither the manager Petar Iliev, nor ESM disclose the amount of the plant's debt, so it remains uncertain for how long ZB will be left disconnected and whether Bitola and the region will face shortage of bread and baked goods.

"The citizens will not be left without bread; we are preparing a strategy on how to supply the city. From our side, all efforts are made to pay off the debt and to receive electricity", said ZB manager Iliev.

Today's disconnection is a repetition of the scene from one month ago, when ZB got disconnected for the first time, for the same reasons.

The disconnection off power of ZB is just a continuation of the campaign started by ESM Distribution throughout most of Macedonia since 7 August, starting with disconnection of state institutions, including some ministries, the General Staff, the largest Army barracks "Ilinden" and many public enterprises, but also schools and cultural institutions like drama and movie theatres.

After a small break, ESM Distribution, which few months ago was acquired by Austrian Company EVN AG, continued the campaign on Tuesday, when it attempted to cut off electricity in the building of Macedonian Supreme Court, but the court's security prevented the team from entering.

Media report that power was cut off in courts in Kratovo, Veles, Kumanovo and Prilep, and building of three smaller municipalities - Delcevo, Kamenica and Rosoman - were disconnected off the grid.

At the same time, street lighting is shut off in many municipalities, and streets in Skopje's center and main boulevards could also remain unilluminated, because, according to unofficial information, the city has electricity debt of around 1,5 million Euro.

The disconnections by ESM Distribution come in a moment when the Regulatory Commission is reviewing and is expected to announce on Wednesday or Thursday the decision whether to approve raise of electricity price for 15 per cent, but also in a moment when the debt of ESM Distribution towards MEPSO, and thus indirectly to ELEM, has reached 30 million Euro.

MEPSO is the principal transmission operator, while ELEM is the principal producer of electricity in Macedonia. ESM Distribution, MEPSO and ELEM originated from the former public enterprise ESM, which was transformed by the government of Vlado Buckovski and divided into three companies, immediately before the sale of Distribution to the Austrian company at the beginning of this year.

Resignation of Ohrid Summer Festival's president confirmed

The president of Executive Board of the Ohrid Summer festival confirmed today that he had resigned, and the Festival director blamed the Ministry of Culture for the financial problems, reported Makfax's correspondent.

The Festival is not indebted; someone wants intentionally to tarnish its renown, said director Jovan Strezovski on the press conference in Ohrid.

"I resigned from the position of President of Executive Board of the Ohrid Summer Festival on 10 August from personal reasons, which I don't want to comment", said on the same press conference academician Risto Avramovski.

He will explicate his reasons to the Minister of culture, and maybe even come out in public, one day after the end of the Festival.

However, Avramovski said that there are other motives as well, because, as he said, "resignation is not given lightly".

"I consider I gave my best and I assessed it is time for me to retire" said Avramovski, adding that it is impossible to overcome some things that politics often does.

Avramovski and Strezovski admit that in their past cooperation, which they assess as successful, there were some misunderstandings, even quarrels, that they both deem normal and that problems were solved in the interest of undisturbed organization of the Festival.

According to Strezovski, the Festival will end with minimal debts or break even, and the financial problems, as he said, were imposed by the Ministry of Culture, which, according to Strezovski had not fulfilled its obligations towards the Debar-Kicevo eparchy for the use of cathedral church "St. Sofia" and towards the organizer of the "Leb i Sol" concert, "Avalon" production.

Hand: new government to implement Ohrid Agreement

nternational community expects from the new Macedonian government to continue thorough implementation of the Framework Agreement and to resume the Euro-Atlantic integration process.

Robert Hand, a senior staff advisor at the US Helsinki Commission, said this in an interview with Radio Voice of America.

Hand dismissed the allegations, suggesting that the exemption of the party which won majority of ethnic Albanian votes at general elections, might jeopardize these processes.

"The key factor is the degree of preparedness of the new government to continue the integration process and to fulfill the criteria. The international community made clear that it wants to see full implementation of the Ohrid Agreement", Hand said.

According to him, there is nothing disputable in the selection of the coalition allies made by the election-winning VMRO DPMNE.

"The party that was asked to form the government needs to provide a majority to work with while governing the country. Of course, all parties are entitled to raise arguments over their inclusion in the ruling power, nonetheless, the party that holds the mandate should form the governing coalition", Hand said.

He expressed hopes that the roadblocks set by DUI-PDP coalition, expressing protest against their omission from the new government, will remain calm and won't get out of control.

"The parties have to act reasonably, despite having different stances over certain issues. I am getting worried when I hear about attempts to revamp the situation from 2001. I think that everybody in Macedonia should come forward and state clearly that there is no looking back, only straight ahead", Hand said.

According to him, the Ohrid Agreement might serve as a model for solving the Kosovo issue, especially in the part of the minority protection, and some segments of the Agreement might be applied to achieve the goal of bringing closer the ethnic communities in the province.