Push to Form Macedonian Unity Government Stalls Again Posted May 9, 2001
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010509/wl/macedonia_dc.html
Wednesday May 9 1:00 PM ET
Push to Form Macedonian Unity Government Stalls Again
By Anatoly Verbin
SKOPJE, Macedonia (Reuters) - Internationally backed efforts to rapidly form an emergency national unity government in Macedonia failed to clear the last hurdle Wednesday when an ethnic Albanian party said it needed more time to decide.
A broad coalition encompassing the main political parties is regarded as a potentially powerful tool in countering an ethnic Albanian insurgency that, if underlying Albanian minority grievances are not addressed soon, could mushroom into civil war.
The coalition was initially expected to have been in place Tuesday.
``We are waiting today for a confirmation of our demands which have to be guaranteed by international institutions and Macedonian authorities,'' said Aziz Pollozhani, vice-president of the Party of Democratic Prosperity (PDP), the biggest ethnic Albanian opposition party.
``A decision will be taken tomorrow,'' he told Reuters. PDP demands included a cease-fire in the Macedonian army's bombardment of rebel bastions in the northeastern Kumanovo area.
Other demands were withdrawal of all military units, he said, in an apparent reference both to the army and the rebels, and step-by-step movement by police into the conflict zone under the monitoring of international organizations.
Some Villagers Won'T Leave
The West has expressed profound concern that the insurgency could push Macedonia over the brink into disaster, destabilizing the Balkans less than two years after the end of the Kosovo war.
Reuters reporters in the Kumanovo area, 20 miles northeast of the capital Skopje, said only a few shells hit the village of Slupcane, a suspected rebel stronghold, in the morning.
The shelling intensified in the afternoon and occasional explosions came from further away, in the direction of the border with Yugoslavia's Kosovo province and southern Serbia.
There were no attacks on the neighboring village of Vakcince, which has been pounded since last Thursday by tanks, helicopters and long-range artillery.
The government resumed its appeals for civilians to leave, either toward Kosovo or deeper inside Macedonia. Skopje has repeatedly accused the rebels of using the villagers as human shields, a charge they deny.
Up to now, 7,600 ethnic Albanians have fled to Kosovo, the UNHCR refugee agency said, while about 500 others -- mostly Slavs or Romas (Gypsies) -- had moved farther inside Macedonia.
Amanda Williamson, spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, said about 1,000 people from villages in the area but not directly affected by the fighting have come to the town of Kumanovo. Most were Slav Macedonians.
``We are extremely concerned that people are staying in the villages ... We've never had such a situation,'' she said.
Truce Terms Disputed
Earlier Wednesday, a government source said a quiet deal was being negotiated with the PDP under which the army would stop shelling rebel positions and give the ``National Liberation Army'' fighters 72 hours to leave villages occupied last week.
Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski's security adviser, Nikola Dimitrov, told Reuters there could be no unilateral cease-fire in the operation against ``terrorists.
``If the PDP's cease-fire condition envisages a stop in defending the country, it would be unacceptable. If by cease-fire they mean giving access to international humanitarian agencies like the Red Cross or UNHCR, then we will agree.''
The rebels may use the same tactics as in March when, after heavy fighting in the northwestern Tetovo area, they retreated, only to strike in the northeast five weeks later.
The planned coalition would create an administration with a clear two-thirds majority in parliament, giving it unchallenged power to enact new laws and make constitutional changes to deliver the promise of equal rights for ethnic Albanians, who have complained of job, education and language discrimination.
Announcement of the coalition had been expected Tuesday after the two main Slav parties, the ruling VMRO-DPMNE and the opposition Socialists, reached agreement.
The rebels, who say they are fighting for better rights for the Albanian minority -- about one third of the population, contended that there could be no unity government without them.
``Any government that is created with the cooperation of the European Union (news - web sites), without the inclusion of the NLA, would only continue bloodshed,'' an NLA commander was quoted as saying by Zeri newspaper in Kosovo.
HRW: Letter to NLA Political Spokesman Ali Ahmeti Posted May 9, 2001
http://www.hrw.org/press/2001/05/macedonia_ltr3.htm
Letter to NLA Political Spokesman Ali Ahmeti
May 4, 2001
Mr. Ali Ahmeti
Political Spokesman for the National Liberation Army (NLA)
Dear Mr. Ahmeti,
Human Rights Watch is a privately funded international non-governmental organization dedicated to documenting human rights abuses throughout the world. In the past ten years, we have committed substantial time and effort to investigating violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the former Yugoslavia. We have documented violations of international humanitarian law by all sides of the armed conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo, and the NATO war with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Reports of the renewed conflict in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia between security forces and armed groups of ethnic Albanians raise concerns relating to adherence to international humanitarian law. As in all other conflicts in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, our principal concern is that all parties involved respect civilian immunity and ensure the protection of civilians.
Human Rights Watch wants to express its concern that the groups organized under the name of National Liberation Army (NLA) take all measures to comply with basic principles of international humanitarian law applicable to situations of internal armed conflict, and enshrined in Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. This provision protects those who do not take an active part in hostilities from the most serious violations, including acts of murder, torture and cruel treatment, the taking of hostages, outrages upon personal dignity, and the passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgement pronounced by a regularly constituted court.
With regard to the renewed fighting, the NLA leadership should refrain from any attacks against civilians, attacks and reprisals against civilian objects, as well as threats of violence the primary purpose of which is to spread terror among the civilian population.
We also call on the NLA leadership to ensure that the civilian population of the affected areas enjoys as much protection as possible against dangers of harm resulting from the fighting. The most fundamental principle of the laws of war requires that combatants be distinguished from noncombatants, and that military objectives be distinguished from protected property or protected places. Parties to a conflict must direct their operations only against military objectives (including combatants). Also, the use of civilians as shields for defensive positions, to hide military objectives or to screen attacks, violates the principles of the international humanitarian law.
We also note that the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) applies to serious violations of international humanitarian law committed after 1991 on the territory of the former Yugoslavia, including the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
Human Rights Watch also recognizes the obligations of the Macedonian security forces to uphold the standards of international humanitarian law and urges their adherence to these norms. Letters expressing Human Rights Watch's concerns to this effect are being sent to the president and the prime minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
We hope, Mr. Ahmeti, that you will give serious thought to the points addressed in this letter and, guided by consideration for human life and well-being, do everything in your power to ensure that the NLA respects obligations under international humanitarian law.
Respectfully,
/s/
Holly Cartner
Executive Director
Europe and Central Asia Division
cc: Mrs. Carla Del Ponte, Chief Prosecutor, ICTY
HRW: Letter to Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski Posted May 9, 2001
http://www.hrw.org/press/2001/05/macedonia_ltr1.htm
Letter to Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski
May 4, 2001
President Boris Trajkovski
11 Oktomvri b.b.
1000, Skopje
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Your Excellency,
Human Rights Watch is a privately funded international non-governmental organization dedicated to documenting human rights abuses throughout the world. In the past ten years, we have committed substantial time and effort to investigating violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the former Yugoslavia. We have documented violations of international humanitarian law by all sides of the armed conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo, and the NATO war with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Reports of the renewed conflict in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia between security forces and armed groups of ethnic Albanians raise concerns relating to adherence to international humanitarian law. As in all other conflicts on the territory of the former Yugoslavia, our principal concern is that all parties involved respect civilian immunity and ensure the protection of civilians.
Human Rights Watch wants to express its concern that Macedonian authorities take all measures to ensure that security forces comply with basic principles of international humanitarian law applicable to situations of internal armed conflict, and enshrined in Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. This provision protects those who do not take an active part in hostilities from the most serious violations, including acts of murder, torture and cruel treatment, the taking of hostages, outrages upon personal dignity, and the passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgement pronounced by a regularly constituted court.
This concern is strengthened by our findings following the March 2001 actions by the security forces against armed ethnic Albanian groups in the western part of the country. Available evidence suggests that government forces were responsible for the deliberate killing of 16-year-old Omer Shabani on April 3 in the village of Selce. We also received reports that families of ethnic Albanians arrested on suspicion of membership in the so-called National Liberation Army (NLA) were unable to obtain any information on the whereabouts of their relatives. Finally, our documentation suggests that government forces were responsible for the wanton destruction and looting of villages perceived as being pro-NLA, including the villages of Selce, Gjermo, Gajre, Drenovec, and Kolte. We urge you to make these incidents the subject of prompt, thorough, and transparent investigations.
With regard to the renewed fighting, Macedonian authorities should also prohibit all attacks against civilians, attacks and reprisals against civilian objects, as well as threats of violence the primary purpose of which is to spread terror among the civilian population. We call on the government of the FYR Macedonia to take all available measures to prevent the displacement of civilians.
We also call on the authorities to ensure that the civilian population of the affected areas enjoy maximum protection against the dangers of harm resulting from the military operations. The most fundamental principle of the laws of war requires that combatants be distinguished from noncombatants, and that military objectives be distinguished from protected property or protected places. Parties to a conflict must direct their operations only against military objectives (including combatants).
In this respect we wish to remind Macedonian authorities that the provisions of Protocol I additional to the Geneva Conventions that prohibit indiscriminate warfare are considered to be norms of customary international law. These provisions are binding on all parties to a conflict, regardless of whether it is an international or internal armed conflict. Indiscriminate attacks are "those which are not directed against a military objective," "those which employ a method or means of combat which cannot be directed at a specific military objective," or "those which employ a method or means of combat the effects of which cannot be limited as required by the Protocol," "and consequently, in each such case, are of a nature to strike military objectives and civilians or civilian objects without distinction."
We also note that the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) applies to serious violations of international humanitarian law committed after 1991 in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, including FYR Macedonia. Human Rights Watch acknowledges the obligation of the armed Albanian groups to uphold the same standards of international humanitarian law and urges their adherence to these norms. A letter expressing Human Rights Watch's concerns to this effect is being sent to the NLA.
We hope, Mr. President, that you will give serious thought to the points addressed in this letter and, guided by consideration for human life and well-being, do everything in your power to ensure respect for Macedonia's obligations under international law.
Respectfully,
/s/
Holly Cartner
Executive Director
Europe and Central Asia Division
cc: Mrs. Carla Del Ponte, Chief Prosecutor, ICTY
HRW: Macedonia Conflict Endangers Civilians Posted May 9, 2001
http://www.hrw.org/press/2001/05/macedonia-0507.htm
Macedonia Conflict Endangers Civilians
(New York, May 7, 2001) Both the Macedonian authorities and the armed ethnic Albanians operating as a group called the National Liberation Army (NLA) must comply with basic principles of international humanitarian law applicable to internal armed conflicts, Human Rights Watch said today. Last week Macedonian troops resumed shelling Albanian rebel positions.
On Friday Human Rights Watch sent letters to Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski, Prime Minister Ljupce Georgijevski, and the NLA political spokesman Ali Ahmeti, urging that both sides to the conflict respect civilian immunity.
"The jurisdiction of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia also applies to Macedonia," said Holly Cartner, executive director of the Europe and Central Asia division of Human Rights Watch. "This should make those fighting in Macedonia think carefully about the manner in which they conduct operations in the ongoing conflict."
Human Rights Watch called on the government and armed rebel groups to refrain from attacks against civilians, attacks and reprisals against civilian objects, indiscriminate attacks, torture and cruel treatment, and the taking of hostages. Human Rights Watch also highlighted the need to prevent the displacement of civilians.
We are all Defeated! (Kim Mehmeti) Posted May 9, 2001
http://www.aimpress.org/dyn/trae/archive/data/200105/10509-011-trae-sko.htm
Copyright: All those wishing to use or publish AIM texts are welcome to do so, provided that they indicate the source and inform the AIM office in Paris which is interested to receive comments and reactions on the information it provides. AIM, 17 rue Rebeval, 75019 Paris, France, admin@aimpress.org
WED, 09 MAY 2001 22:35:44 GMT
We are all Defeated!
AIM Skopje, May 7, 2001
For a few days already, with strange trepidation and fear, I thumb through newspapers and turn on the radio and television on with anxiety. They are swarming with "heavy armament" and "hundred-percent poison" and for weeks I have the feeling that I am reading texts that appeared in former Yugoslavia before its dissolution, at the time when journalists began drawing "generalstaff maps" of hatred according to which generals waged war afterwards. For days I am tortured by a curious personal defeat, I am reminded of some of my old texts, especially of a sentence published in 1995 which said that Macedonia was repeating all the mistakes made by the other newly established states in the Balkan, but with a few-year delay proving that history was a teacher nobody had ever learned anything from. I do not know where I got the wish to quote myself when journalism is not my sphere of activity - here I am mumbling my statement made a long time ago: "Macedonia is a hostage of its double illusion: the one cherished by ethnic Macedonians that this country exists only in order to stimulate and cultivate their historic and present glory, and the illusion of the Albanians who live here that they too can be "a state creating people and an important factor in the Balkan". Between these two illusions remains the inaudible voice of other ethnic groups and the impossibility to see the reality that in the Balkan everybody has become so unimportant that in world political maps they are all marked only as "twilight zone".
For days already I neither wish to read nor to write. Something from within is telling me that everything has already been written and read. In this space words have no meaning or are valuable only when they serve as "additional charge" for missiles that are falling on dilapidated inter-ethnic bridges in this tiny multiethnic state. I am increasingly nervously going through the papers and even the articles for AIM that I need to edit. I am carefully estimating them, not for fear that I might omit something "inflammable", but because I am aware that I am actually estimating my own angle of vision of this country.
I am going through the newspapers. I have finally read something I completely agree with: an article by Mirjana Najcevska published in Lobi weekly in Albanian language in which she states a short but all-inclusive conclusion - we are all, every one of us - defeated! Yes, the shots in Macedonia mark the defeat of the politicians, the defeat of the free-thinking people who until recently went from one round-table debate to another unproductively elaborating theories hiding within the narrow-minded nationalistic ambitions, the mind is also defeated of those who have spent years speculating without saying anything, but also the intellectual political elite of the world that proclaimed Macedonia a model in the Balkan how a multiethnic state is built although it knew that it was in fact a model how elections can most successfully be fixed and politics and criminalised business inextricably interlinked.
A long time ago I started comforting myself with small things such as the sincere and objective article of Najcevska. Comforted like that I dial the phone number of my friend in the village of Vakcince near Kumanovo which is for a few days now heavily shelled by Macedonian police and army. From there members of KLA shoot at helicopters of Macedonian army. But the moment I hear his voice I remain speechless: I do not know what to ask nor how to comfort him. As if sensing my confusion, he asks: "How is my lion!?" (meaning my son). I feel strangely feeble. Faces of his young children pass through my mind. "How are your children?" I ask. "They are in the cellar..." he says curtly as if not wishing to explain anything. "Is it true that KLA is holding you hostages?" I ask. "Oh, man, that's absurd...". "At least let your children come to me", I suggest. "You know", he says, "during these Balkan wars I have realised one thing: those who are deprived of their homes, their land - they are, in a sense, dead! I have seen plenty of such homeless 'deceased Balkanese' in the capitals of the West. That is why I have decided not to leave my home!" I realise that it is of no avail to try to persuade him. I ask him whether the population is informed about the ultimatum of the Macedonian army and police that they should leave their homes. He answers affirmatively and explains that ultimatum has but one goal - to make the civilians leave their homes in order to level the villages to the ground so the inhabitants will have no place to return to. I tell him that that is impossible and not to believe such stories. And he mentions "secret plans" he has learnt about according to which Macedonian armed forces wish to create a buffer-zone at the border with Kosovo by applying the military concept of "parched land". We finish the conversation without having said good-bye, because the phone line goes dead. I call again: his mobile phone does not answer. All I can do is hope that its battery has gone dead.
My telephone is persistently ringing. A foreign journalist asks me to explain how did the possibility suddenly arise of an interethnic war breaking out in Macedonia. "What sudden deterioration of interethnic relations are you talking about?" I reply angrily. "For ten years politicians in this country are toying with ethnic emotions", I say, "for ten years in daily politics interethnic relations have been the most profitable political business in which they make or lose political points". "For ten years", I say, "local politicians have deceived the people and international public about relaxed relations but in fact had only the good cooperation between local multiethnic political profiteers in mind". "Where did this conclusion come from that multiethnic relations in Macedonia have deteriorated!? How could have anybody believed that a multiethnic state can be constructed on a single-ethnic concept?!" The collegaue on the other side is silent. As if he cannot cope with the avalanche of my questions.
The minute I put down the phone, in a daily I notice a photograph of my former dear friend, one of the best Macedonian playwrights. I start reading his column titled "Kece" (the name of the traditional white cap of the Albanians). And as I read, I feel as if I were losing my grip. Until recently he was a "reference point" for everything decent in this space. And I arrive at the conclusion that everything has gone astray. Because he too writes about Albanian women who are just "machines for giving birth to children", about Albanians who do not wear "kece" on but in their heads. I begin to laugh and I feel terrible bitterness in my mouth. I remember the first shots in Macedonia on the day when the conflicts began in Tetovo, when my daughter with tears in her eyes asked me to explain what was happening and the moment when, in order to free her from fear of ethnic Macedonians who "want to kill us", I proposed that we visit my blood-brother, ethnic Macedonian in Prilep, the author of the article "Kece".
Stunned, I throw the newspaper and turn on the radio. I am listening to a statement of one of the deputy ministers, an Albanian, who addressed his citizens in fluent Macedonian. His statement has a completely different intonation and more moderate content than the one he had given to the media in Albanian the previous day which was full of ardent words that stirred up emotions. That is the source of our misfortune - I say to myself. There is too much hypocrisy in this small country. The Albanian political elite has never told its colleagues from the Macedonian ethnic block what is the lower limit of their demands under which they would not go, and the latter have never explained their people how they imagine their joint state with all those who are living in it. All politicians in Macedonia have three "editions" of political speeches - one for "their own", one for "the other", and the third, the most important one - for Western diplomats. Indeed, for the cunning local politicians it is not as important what the citizens of Macedonia think about them - especially for as long as they can fix the elections - as it is essential for them to make an impression on the international public of "modern politicians". In this "competition" of Balkan "political schemers" and Western diplomats, the former have an unattainable advantage.
The bitterness in my mouth increases. I turn off the radio. I have turned the television set into a mute movable picture-book a long time ago - I turn on the sound only for children's shows. But suddenly I see the face of Prime Minister Georgievski on the screen. On the face covered with beard, it is impossible to discern any grimace. He is announcing the possibility of proclamation of the state of war in Macedonia and demands from the Albanians to finally declare "whose side they are on". I have no strength to continue to listen to his "ingenious ideas". President of Macedonia Boris Trajkovski supports his proposal. And suddenly I say to myself: the citizens who have such statesmen have no reason to worry about their future - because they have none! But I am comforted by the fact that those who seem to be concerned the most for the destiny of Macedonia at this moment are coming - Solana and Robertson!
I remain alone in the room again. The telephone rings. It has in the past days become the most terrible device I have in my home. I have received numerous messages by phone that announced my end, that I would be "definitely silenced". I press the button that will link me to the person who dialed my number I do not know where from. I am relieved when I hear the voice of an acquaintance - an ethnic Macedonia. "Be careful", he says. "There are speculations that you are on certain lists". "I have been on all the lists for a long time...", I say laughing. Then he tells me what he has learnt about various "secret" and other organisations which are formed to deal with the disobedient. In the past several days all kinds of (mis)information circle Macedonia, its skies are covered with clouds of chaotic information and there is noone who can discern speculations from the truth.
I finally manage to get on the phone a colleague from Kumanovo where the strained interethnic situation is on the verge of explosion. I ask him about the situation in his town. He says that the nights in Kumanovo are nightmarish. And in this town there are ethnic Macedonians, Albanians, Serbs, Romanies, Turks... I interrupt the conversation because my friend from the village of Vakcinci with whom I have not finished our previous conversation, calls me on the mobile phone. He wants to know whether Solana and Robertson have arrived in Skopje. I confirm and say that detonations can even be heard by phone. "For days we have been listening to nothing else but detonations and voices of starving and wounded domestic animals", he answers. "We have already disciplined the children to be quiet, because nobody hears them cry anyway", he adds ironically. After that I cannot ask him just anything. I wish him luck and tell him to take care of himself and the children. Everything becomes very distant, strange, obscure. I feel as if I am in the very womb of horror and inhumanity. I do not even notice my own "kids" who have come home from school. They are dripping wet. Heavy rain has started a long time ago.
KIM MEHMETI
(AIM)
Albanian party seeks truce as price of Macedonia coalition Posted May 8, 2001
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/010508/1/ooyk.html
Tuesday May 8, 8:10 PM
Albanian party seeks truce as price of Macedonia coalition
SKOPJE, May 8 (AFP) -
Macedonia's main ethnic Albanian opposition party said Tuesday it would only join a national unity coalition if the army halted its bombardment of villages held by ethnic Albanian guerrillas.
"We have agreed in principle to participate in a coalition, but we demand as a precondition that government forces declare an unconditional ceasefire," said Muhamed Halili, secretary general of the Party for Democratic Prosperity.
"The ceasefire must come into force today and must be unilateral, even if we do want to see the (rebel) National Liberation Army match it with their own ceasefire," he said.
Halili said talks were underway to tackle the issue.
Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski said late Monday he was close to forming a government of national unity to present a united front against the NLA guerrillas and said the finishing touches were to be added during talks Tuesday.
The government has shelved plans to declare a state of war amid protests from the European Union and the main ethnic Albanian party, the Democratic Party of Albanians, which is part of the current centre-right coalition.
The new government would draw in the PDP, which has taken a harder line on the army's anti-guerrilla offensives that the Albanians in government, as well as the main Slav Macedonian opposition group, the Social Democrat Movement of Macedonia.
Defense ministry spokesman Georgi Trendafilov said Tuesday that the army had resumed its bombardment of Vaksince, a northern village held by the guerrillas since they gunned down two soldiers there on Thursday.
The army has been pounding the area since then.
Macedonia Pounds Villages As Parties Unite Posted May 8, 2001
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010508/wl/macedonia_dc.html
Tuesday May 8 8:16 AM ET
Macedonia Pounds Villages As Parties Unite
By Anatoly Verbin
NEAR (news - web sites) VAKCINCE, Macedonia (Reuters) - Macedonian tanks, howitzers, helicopters and long-range artillery blitzed ethnic Albanian guerrilla positions Tuesday as political parties finalized details of a national unity government.
Shells, rockets and machinegun fire hit targets in the villages of Slupcane and Vakcince, sending clouds of smoke into the air. Return fire appeared to be limited.
``The military operation will continue today in Slupcane and Vakcince,'' government spokesman Antonio Milosovski said. The two villages are seen as the main rebel strongholds and have been under bombardment since Thursday.
In the early hours, after marathon talks that included the European Union (news - web sites)'s top diplomat, Javier Solana, President Boris Trajkovski and leaders of all main parties, premier Ljubco Georgievski said a coalition government was all but in place.
``The great percentage of the deal is done. I am optimistic that we will form a grand coalition tomorrow. There is some fine tuning to be done,'' he said.
Georgievski said that two main opposition parties -- the Slav-dominated Socialists and the ethnic Albanian Party for Democratic Prosperity (PDP) -- would join the government.
This would create an administration with a clear two-thirds majority in parliament, giving the coalition unchallenged power to enact new laws and make constitutional changes to deliver the promise of equal rights for ethnic Albanians.
Political sources said momentum was building for an all-encompassing coalition that would take in all 14 parties with seats in the national assembly.
Cease-Fire Rumors
The Albanian PDP spokesman Zahir Bekteshi said his grouping was insisting that military operations against the rebels must stop before it agreed to join the government.
Government officials said they had no information about rumors of an imminent cease-fire declaration.
In Western eyes, the more promising strategy is to deprive the Albanian guerrillas of all plausible political support while driving them out without inflicting major civilian casualties.
The rebels may use the tactics they used in March when, after heavy fighting in the northwesterly Tetovo area, they retreated, only to strike in the northeast five weeks later.
Georgievski said the idea of declaring a ``state of war'' was off the agenda for now because ``Macedonian security forces conducted a successful operation (on Monday).''
Solana and NATO (news - web sites) Secretary-General George Robertson had come to Macedonia to talk the government out of such an extreme move.
Solana, who spent all Monday in talks with government and party leaders, said before leaving Skopje that he believed they would ``reach some important agreements.''
Robertson said Macedonia was ``on the brink of an abyss'' and denounced the guerrillas as ``murderous thugs'' who had no mandate but were bent on destroying a small, fragile democratic state, using civilians as human shields.
Flow Of Refugees
The main battleground is 20 miles northeast of the capital Skopje, near the main Greece-to-Hungary highway. It is a 15-minute drive from the Yugoslav border, where the highway runs north along the guerrilla-held edge of Serbia's Presevo Valley.
A Reuters reporter on the Kosovo border with Macedonia, north of the embattled villages, quoted locals Tuesday as saying they had heard 2,500 ethnic Albanian civilians were waiting to get across the frontier to safety in Kosovo.
Nearly 3,000 refugees crossed into Kosovo from Macedonia on Monday in the biggest one-day exodus, raising the total over five days to 6,600, according to the UNHCR refugee agency. In March, 10,000 fled to seek shelter.
The rebels say they are fighting for the rights of Macedonia's large Albanian minority, who have complained of discrimination in jobs, education and language rights for years.
They deny holding civilians hostage.
According to the government, some 3,500 villagers are being prevented from escaping to safety. International monitors say they have seen some indications of intimidation.
Macedonian army spokesman Blagoja Markovski said 50 rebels were occupying the village of Lojane, directly on the Serbian border. Serbia denied gunmen were infiltrating over the border.
Macedonia reaches unity deal Posted May 8, 2001
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/europe/newsid_1318000/1318792.stm
Tuesday, 8 May, 2001, 13:06 GMT 14:06 UK
Macedonia reaches unity deal
A government of national unity has been formed in Macedonia, in a bid to combat the threat from ethnic Albanian rebels. Two new political parties - one of them representing ethnic Albanians - have joined the previous coalition administration.
The deal follows weeks of mounting concern that the rebels' offensive in northern Macedonia could plunge the country into full-scale war.
Political leaders agreed to the deal as soldiers launched a fresh round of shelling against ethnic Albanian rebel positions.
The focus of the unrest was again two northern villages, Slupcane and Vakcince - rebel strongholds which have been under army bombardment since last week.
In the capital, Skopje, political leaders thrashed out the shape of the national unity deal in the early hours of Tuesday, in talks attended by European Union security chief Javier Solana.
More talks were held later in the morning to "fine tune" the deal, Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski said.
Macedonia's existing coalition government - which included the ethnic Albanian DPA party - now has a second, less moderate Albanian party, the PDP.
The opposition Social Democrats have also joined the administration.
Major obstacles
With all the main parties together in one government, the main precondition for a political deal between Macedonians and Albanians have been met.
But correspondents say that major obstacles to peace remain. Albanian rebels in the north of the country have been hurt but not defeated by the army assault of the past days and the wider community - Macedonians and Albanians - must be persuaded that a new government will be effective.
Nato Secretary-General Lord Robertson had suggested on Monday that the formation of a coalition might help defeat the rebels.
Condemning ethnic Albanian rebels as "murderous thugs", Mr Robertson warned that Macedonia was on the "brink of an abyss".
The Macedonian Government had been considering declaring a state of war, which would give it broad powers and loosen restraints on the army.
But Mr Georgievski, announcing the national unity government breakthrough, said the plans were off the agenda for now.
The conflict has sent thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees fleeing across the border into Kosovo.
Nearly 3,000 crossed the border on Monday alone, in the biggest one-day exodus in five days of fighting, the United Nations refugee agency said.
PREVENT CONFLICT IN MACEDONIA FROM ESCALATING INTO A DANGEROUS CIVIL WAR Posted May 8, 2001
THE KOSOVA HELSINKI COMMITTEE
P R I S H T I N A
PREVENT CONFLICT IN MACEDONIA FROM ESCALATING INTO A DANGEROUS CIVIL WAR
Urgent and Vigorous Euro-American Engagement Needed for Political
Resolution of the Conflict
Prishtina, May 7, 2001. The Kosova Helsinki Committee (KHC) expresses its deepest concern and strong condemnation of the dramatic escalation of violence and conflict taking place these days in Macedonia with the offensive of state security forces. This violence is resulting in innocent civilians being killed and wounded, in considerable destruction and in increasing numbers of people being displaced from the crisis areas. Consequentially grave violations of human rights and freedoms are being caused as well as a dangerous straining of the inter-ethnic relations in Macedonia.
The escalation of violence endangers seriously the prospects for peaceful resolution of the essential political issues at contest in Macedonia. The resolution of these issues should provide equal rights for all citizens of the country irrespective of their ethnic, racial or religious or other affiliation. On the contrary, the developments could lead towards a thorough destabilization of the country and the region as a whole, with potentially grave consequences for the peaceful future of the people in Macedonia and the region.
It seems rather clear that the efforts of the official Skopje for the resolution of the contested political issues have not proven successful so far. Instead they seem to have aggravated further the already grave situation. A potential declaration of the state of war by the Skopje authorities in particular would comprise another step towards further deterioration of the situation. In such a case the state of war would practically be directed against the very citizens of Macedonia and could cause irreparable damages and divisions to the inter-ethnic relations in the country. This would in turn inevitably lead to further escalation of conflict and violence in the country and would practically render impossible a peaceful and political resolution of the critical issues facing Macedonia today. In this context it is important to emphasize the necessity of full observation and respect of the international humanitarian law during the on-going conflict as well as prevention of disproportional use of force and targeting of civilian objectives.
Therefore the KHC appeals urgently for a vigorous, direct and immediate engagement of the US and the EU for mediation of the conflict that would contribute to its just and stable political resolution. Only such an engagement could prevent further escalation of the conflict into a dangerous ethnically-based civil war in Macedonia, violation of human rights and freedoms and a repeated destabilization of the entire region. That would in addition open the prospects for cooperation, development and Europian integration in the country and the entire region.
Dr.Gazmend Pula, Executive director
_________________________________________
Joachim Frank, Project Coordinator
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
Wickenburggasse 14/7
A-1080 Vienna
Tel. +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 22
Fax: +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 50
Web: http://www.ihf-hr.org
In Rebel-Held Towns, Civilians Stay Put As Shells Rain Down Army Restrained by Residents' Refusal to Leave Posted May 8, 2001
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64024-2001May8.html
In Rebel-Held Towns, Civilians Stay Put As Shells Rain Down Army Restrained by Residents' Refusal to Leave
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, May 9, 2001; Page A24
SLUPCANE, Macedonia, May 8 -- The 24 women and 16 children huddling in a basement here flinched in unison this afternoon as shells fired by government forces came whistling overhead every 20 minutes or so and landed with a thud at the periphery of their heavily damaged town.
They have not seen daylight since last Wednesday. The air in their basement is stale, and the ethnic Albanian occupants mostly sit still in the soft glow of two oil lamps. The stocks of food they collected before going into hiding have already run low; most of the children have colds, but they have no medicine. Qezibane Sadiku said her three children now eat only yogurt and milk.
The government and International Red Cross have offered safe passage out, yet the women and children don't leave. Theirs is a collective act of defiance, determination or terror that has enormously frustrated the Macedonian government and astounded the few foreign aid workers who have visited this town since the army began an offensive against ethnic Albanian rebels in this region last week.
More than 1,000 civilians remain in this town and surrounding ones for reasons that are not clear. By some accounts, they fear mistreatment by the army if they cross into government-controlled territory. According to the Macedonian government, guerrillas who control their towns have ordered them to stay put. But some may remain out of resolve to press for the Albanians' political goals, including better jobs, more political power and more schooling in their own language.
For whatever reason, they are functioning as human shields in a combat zone. Their continued presence means the army cannot pursue the all-out war and ground assault it says is necessary to defeat the rebels and stamp out a new full-scale ethnic conflict in the Balkans.
It also means that mass civilian deaths, avoided in the two months of sporadic fighting that has shaken Macedonia, could be just one shell away, since the roofs of some houses are already gone and only one or two concrete floors now protect those sheltered in the basements.
Francois Stamm, head of the Macedonian office of the International Committee of the Red Cross and a Balkans veteran, said he had never seen a situation in which so many civilians turned down a chance for safety. "It's a very, very sad and tragic situation," said Stamm, who has visited the villages. During the siege of Sarajevo and other towns in neighboring Bosnia in the early 1990s, people were not allowed an escape.
In brief interviews in the basement here, several women voiced support for the rebellion. But with armed fighters standing over them, it was not possible to know if they genuinely felt that way. Stamm said he believes that support for the insurrection, fear of the government and perhaps influence from the guerrillas may all play roles.
The government is launching its offensive as politicians in the capital strive to form a "unity government" that would bring all major Albanian political parties into the country's ruling coalition in an effort to shut off support for the rebels in places like this. The political dynamics would change instantly in the face of mass civilian casualties.
The government claims its offensive has pushed most of the rebels into NATO-occupied Kosovo and other parts of Serbia. But a drive along hilly roads showed rebels in control of a long swath of Macedonian territory northwest of the city of Kumanovo, encompassing a string of Albanian-majority villages 20 miles long.
They include Otla, Lipkovo, Lojane, Orizare, Vaksince and Slupcane. The army knows this, and these villages -- with a combined population of 26,000 before the insurrection -- have been its principal artillery targets.
A seventh village, Matejce, this afternoon had rebels at one edge and Macedonian troops -- plus an armored personnel carrier equipped with a cannon -- at the other. The rebels raced two cars and a truck filled with food partway through the village today before the vehicles were shot up and abandoned.
The rebels say they are members of an oppressed minority seeking better rights and conditions in Macedonia; the government contends they are criminals and separatists, mostly from outside Macedonia, who are trying to carve off part of the country.
The shelling continued this evening, although the government has promised another in a series of cease-fires Wednesday morning to allow more civilians to flee.
Chances are, they won't. Today, the government invited civilians in the neighboring town of Vaksince to flee during an arranged cease-fire, and they did not.
Stamm brought medical supplies and surgeons to Slupcane on Thursday night and Saturday morning. On Sunday morning, during another cease-fire, his team undertook a quick but incomplete survey of the civilian population and was surprised to find at least 1,100 people sheltered in the town, the hardest hit by the offensive so far.
The mayor of one of the six besieged towns said today that 15 people had died so far; the Red Cross said it has documented only two fatalities, both men older than 50.
Given the degree of physical destruction here, it seems nothing short of remarkable that so few have perished. Three-quarters of the structures appear to have sustained damage, ranging from broken windows to shattered stone walls and burned or collapsed roofs. Electrical wires dangle in the street, dead cows and horses are upended in gullies and shoes are piled up outside doorways.
The radio of a car parked in a narrow alley littered with bricks was tuned loudly to Albanian folk music. There was no electricity or water, but mobile telephone service still worked.
Rebels were everywhere. They had set up roadblocks all along the paved road leading to Slupcane through a handful of other towns. Sandbagged positions manned by fighters wearing military uniforms and flak jackets were common. The rebels' equipment included night-vision binoculars, well-maintained pistols and automatic rifles, including some with sniper scopes.
Perhaps 150 were in plain sight in the villages, and rebels claimed many more were hidden in bunkers dug into green hills to the north. They looked and acted as if they had seen military action before, although most were dressed in the distinctive camouflage outfits of Macedonian army draftees and reservists.
Apart from Matejce, none of the towns has experienced ground fighting. Instead, the Macedonian army has lined up tanks and artillery more than three miles away along an old two-lane highway between Kumanovo and the capital, Skopje, and lobbed in shells. At times, helicopters have joined with volleys of rockets.
Each time a shell landed at Slupcane this afternoon, one of the rebels answered with a single rifle shot. It seemed without purpose other than as a Balkan demonstration of inat, a mixture of defiance and stubbornness.
It is clear from the damage here that the Macedonians' aim is indiscriminate; none of the damaged structures seemed more or less likely to be used as rebel outposts. The rebels themselves strolled through the towns seemingly without regard for wherever fate might bring a shell to Earth.
At one house with its roof already blasted away, three rebels were operating a noisy generator to power a cutting tool and repair an unspecified weapons part on the front stoop, as casually as if they were weekend tinkerers.
Husamedin Halici, the ethnic Albanian mayor of Lipkovo, said in an interview in Kumanovo that he has not visited the town for two days. But he said that so far, "I have no information that the [rebels] were affected by the offensive, only that the villages were ruined."
Will the Republic of Macedonia Declare War Against Its Own Citizens? Posted May 6, 2001
Will the Republic of Macedonia Declare War Against Its Own Citizens?
IHF Fact-finding Mission Found Large-Scale Arbitrary Arrests and a Huge and Increasing Potential for Conflict
Vienna, 6 May 2001. The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) is deeply concerned about the potential for escalating violence in Macedonia, in particular by Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski's statement that the government may ask parliament to declare a state of war. Any declaration of a state of emergency must be strictly limited by the exigencies of the situation, in order to conform to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights; any state of emergency should therefore be limited geographically and in duration.
The IHF is also emphasizing the importance of conformity with international humanitarian law standards both by the Macedonian security forces, military and police, and the armed Albanian groups. Those principles include the prohibition against indiscriminate attacks on civilians; the requirement for humane treatment of detainees and wounded combatants; and the obligation to protect civilians from displacement.
"The Macedonian authorities must observe humanitarian law norms or their actions will lead to more alienation, more ethnic division, more violence, and more potential for regional destabilization," stated Aaron Rhodes, IHF Director, on behalf of the Federation's Executive Committee. "We believe the government should minimize violent responses and support a broad-based social dialogue with the assistance of the OSCE and other international organizations."
An IHF fact-finding mission including members of the Helsinki Committees from Macedonia, Norway and Serbia took place on 23-26 April, interviewing ethnic Albanians in a number of villages. In the village of Poroj, over 30 persons had been arbitrarily arrested and heavily mistreated by police during detention, resulting in the hospitalization of six persons.
Citizens of the Albanian community expressed their increasing frustration about what they considered the inability of ethnic Macedonian politicians to understand their claims, and their deep fear of the security forces and the police. On the other hand members of the Macedonian community also expressed anxiety about the growing violence in the country, including the recent murders of members of Macedonian security forces. The IHF team found deep pessimism on all sides about the willingness of the other side to agree to common solutions, and an increasing willingness to use violence. The Macedonian Helsinki Committee is reporting that para-military groups composed of ethnic Macedonians are forming rapidly. The Committee has documented a dramatic intensification of hate speech between the two ethnic communities in the media.
In this context the notion of a "state of war" is not helpful. The IHF calls for an end to violence by all parties and for a serious effort to address the causes of the conflict, in particular the government's failure to guarantee basic human and minority rights. Violating laws of war and suspending human rights now, in a military over-reaction, would destroy the ability of the citizens of Macedonia to work out their common problems.
For further information: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, Aaron Rhodes, Executive Director, Tel. +43-676-312 23 48
__________________________________________
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
Wickenburggasse 14/7
A-1080 Vienna
Tel. +43-1-408 88 22
Fax: +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 50
Web: http://www.ihf-hr.org
EU frowns on possible Macedonia war declaration Posted May 6, 2001
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/010506/1/ojk1.html
Sunday May 6, 11:31 PM
EU frowns on possible Macedonia war declaration
NYKOEPING, Sweden, May 6 (AFP) -
The European Union frowned Sunday on a possible state-of-war declaration in Macedonia that risks derailing all the work it has done to keep the Balkan state from going up in flames.
"We all condemn the terrorists acts by the Albanian extremists," said Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh after hosting an informal weekend meeting with her EU counterparts.
Sweden currently holds the rotating EU presidency.
"But we also urge the government (in Skopje) not to fall into the trap of taking drastic actions because of these provocations, because that is exactly what the extremists would like to see," she said.
EU foreign policy high representative Javier Solana was taking that message Sunday straight to Macedonia's leaders, flying immediately to Skopje from this picturesque town on Sweden's southern Baltic coast.
"Rather than talking about a state of war, what we have to do, among all of us, is to make efforts to declare a state of peace," said Solana, who was to meet up in Skopje with NATO Secretary General George Robertson.
But he questioned whether a declaration of a state of war -- which would give the Macedonian army a freer hand in its campaign against the National Liberation Army (NLA) -- will actually come to be.
"I think it's more of a statement than a reality," he said, arguing that it would be "very difficult" to get the two-thirds vote in parliament required for such a declaration.
Late on Saturday, Macedonia's Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski, who is also defense minister, said his government was considering declaring a state of war -- after a week of violence that left 10 security officers dead, saw the southern city of Bitola rocked by ethnic rioting, and ended with the bombardment of northern villages.
On Sunday, government artillery pounded rebel-held villages west of Kumanovo city for a fourth day, shortly after the expiry of a daily government deadline for villagers to clear out of the area close to the Kosovo border.
Since the NLA insurgency flared up in March, the European Union has led exhaustive international efforts to isolate the NLA, which operates close to the border with UN-administered Kosovo.
At the same time, it has pressed Skopje to show restraint, and fostered a political dialogue to address the long-standing grievances of Macedonia's large ethnic Albanian minority, such as more political and cultural rights.
Last month the EU signed a stabilization and association agreement with Macedonia, a preliminary step on the long road to EU membership and the first pact of its kind with a former Yugoslav republic.
The western Balkans was one of the topics raised during this weekend's foreign ministers' meeting, which deliberately avoided reaching decisions in order to encourage free discussion on major issues.
EU External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten said discussions with Croatia for a stabilization and association agreement should wind up next week, "which should lead to us being able to initial an agreement with them shortly afterwards."
Next in line for negotiations to start is Albania, while preliminary discussions with Bosnia-Hercegovina are "making progress," said Patten, who is to travel next week to Skopje, Tirana and Sarajevo with Lindh.
"Of course there will always be setbacks," the Swedish foreign minister said, "but we can see, at least, positive developments on the ground in almost all the countries" in the region.
Fighting spreads as Macedonia prepares for war Posted May 6, 2001
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/010506/1/ojse.html
Monday May 7, 1:37 AM
Fighting spreads as Macedonia prepares for war
SLUPCANE, Macedonia, May 6 (AFP) -
Macedonia teetered on the brink of all-out war Sunday, as ethnic Albanian guerrillas opened a second front near the northwest town of Tetovo and the government mulled a formal declaration of a state of war.
As fighting flared along the northern border with UN-run Kosovo, the European Union urged Skopje not to take the drastic step of declaring war on the guerrillas, warning such a move could tip the fragile country into meltdown.
The guerrillas of the self-proclaimed National Liberation Army (NLA), whose 113 Brigade has been under heavy artillery fire in villages it seized near the northern city of Kumanovo on Thursday, launched a second offensive near Tetovo, scene of violent clashes in the last bout of fighting in March.
Interior ministry spokesman Stevo Pendarovksi said the rebels had opened fire on police checkpoints in two villages in the mountains above mainly Albanian Tetovo.
President Boris Trajkovski said in a statement he was starting consultations with political parties and the army on declaring a state of war to deal with the crisis.
A government spokesman said he hoped parliament would agree to the measure, despite EU warnings that it would play directly into the hands of the rebels.
"We all condemn the terrorist acts by the Albanian extremists," said Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh after an an informal meeting with her EU counterparts.
"But we also urge the government (in Skopje) not to fall into the trap of taking drastic actions because of these provocations, because that is exactly what the extremists would like to see," she said.
EU foreign policy high representative Javier Solana took that message Sunday straight to Macedonia's leaders, flying immediately to Skopje where he arrived hours later.
"Rather than talking about a state of war, what we have to do, among all of us, is to make efforts to declare a state of peace," said Solana, who was to meet up in Skopje with NATO Secretary General George Robertson.
Solana said he doubted the government would win the two-third majority in parliament needed to declare a state of war.
Meanwhile the army kept up its bombardment of rebel-held villages near Kumanovo, where its says the guerrillas are keeping thousands of civilians as a human shield.
The NLA has dismissed the claims and remained defiant that the constant pummelling would not drive them out.
A rebel leader said at least five civilians had been killed by shellfire.
In neighbouring Kosovo, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that more than 2,500 ethnic Albanians had left Macedonia for the neighbouring UN-run province since Thursday.
Around 900 arrived from Brodec, one of the villages near Tetovo that the Macedonian government said had been atacked by the guerrillas.
UNHCR spokeswoman Astrid Van Genderen Stort said some of the villagers reported masked Macedonian soldiers had entered Brodec and told the villagers to leave. Eight Macedonian commandos were killed in the area last week.
At least 600 of those who crossed at the Djeneral Jankovic border point were from the Kumanovo combat zone, she said.
More than 8,000 Macedonian Albanians are still in Kosovo after the last outbreak of fighting in March.
Prime Minikster Ljubco Georgievski said Saturday the government was considering declaring war after a week of violence that left 10 security officers dead, saw the southern city of Bitola rocked by ethnic rioting and ended with the army bombardment of the rebel-occupied northern villages.
Foreign Minister Srdjan Kerim called on the West to do more to support Skopje, saying any show of tolerance toward the violence would "set a dangerous precedent for the security of Macedonia and of the whole region."
The battle broke out on Thursday when the guerrillas shot dead two soldiers in Vaksince, near Kumanovo, and seized several villages.
On the political front, Trajkovski said Saturday he wanted to "step up dialogue" between his country's various communities, and notably to improve the lot of minorities.
He said he had proposed to a meeting of community political leaders an "adequate representation for minorities within the administration".
Thursday' offensive came a day after Trajkovski met with US President George W. Bush in Washington, winning pledges of wide-ranging support, as well as urging to maintain a political dialogue.
Georgievski said talks would be held next week with Belgrade to consider "joint operations" to combat ethnic Albanian extremist groups who also operate in southern Serbia, just a few kilomtres from the Kumanovo region conflict.
Villagers Refuse Offer Of Red Cross To Leave Slupcan (update) Posted May 6, 2001
KosovaLive 5 May 2001
http://kosovalive.com/english/latest.htm
Villagers Refuse Offer Of Red Cross To Leave Slupcan (update)
May 5, 2001
SLUPCAN/PRISHTINA (KosovaLive) - The team of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that offered to evacuate the wounded villagers in Slupcan Saturday, returned barehanded after the Albanian villagers refused to leave their village.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross refused to comment on details of their visit to Slupcan. "We were there only for a half-hour visit. We visited the wounded and left some aid for the ambulance of the village," a spokesman of the Red Cross in Macedonia said. She said that she is not authorized to describe the humanitarian situation in the village, which was mostly assaulted by the shelling in the zone.
However, Likova's prefect said via telephone that 10 villagers were killed and tens of others were wounded in the shelling. Around 100 to 200 houses were damaged and destroyed. The shelling began again after noon Saturday by helicopters and tanks positioned in the zone.
"The population in the villages of Likova are stuck in their homes and even though horrified, they still remain there. A delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross has managed to get to this zone to take the residents to Kumanova, but the villagers refused to leave their homes," said Hysamedin Halili, president of the Likova
municipality, the villages of which municipality are being destroyed by the shelling. According to Halili, the need for food is increasing.
Halili told KosovaLive that he was skeptic in achieving an agreement. "You cannot reach an agreement with fire from helicopters and tanks," he said. Nevertheless, he said he was in continuous contact with the Albanian leaders in Macedonia in order to overcome the situation.
A commander of the National Liberation Army (NLA) in the zone said via telephone that the situation in Slupcan is unbearable for the civil population. However, according to him, NLA soldiers are present in the area to support and assist the Albanian population there. (la)
GREATER ALBANIA - A FADING DREAM Posted May 6, 2001
part of IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, NO. 243, May 3, 2001
GREATER ALBANIA - A FADING DREAM
Many Albanians, it seems, are not motivated by the idea of a Greater Albania.
By Tim Judah in London
I went to hunt for Greater Albania. While I searched, I talked to soldiers from three Albanian armies - guerrilla groups fighting in Serbia's Presevo valley and Macedonia and the Red and Black Army from Kosovo.
Not many foreigners have heard of the Red and Black Army, but arguably they are Kosovo's best advert for freedom - a happy army without guns. On 28 March, their faces daubed in traditional war paint, its flag-waving forces marched down Tirana's Zog Boulevard just like a real conquering army.
Ironic in a sense, as it was King Zog who, after being helped to power by the Yugoslav government in 1924, turned on Kosovar guerrillas in Albania and suppressed them.
So, was I witnessing Kosovo's revenge? Were the Kosovars conquering Albania? No, of course not. All I was seeing was a glimpse of Albanians leading a normal life. The Red and Black Army are football fans from Pristina. They had come to Tirana to watch England play Albania.
Of course Albanians have had a bad press these last two years. And, at least for some of them, not without good reason. Continuing murders of Kosovo Serbs, the activities of the UCPMB guerrillas in the Presevo valley and the NLA in Macedonia, have given those who oppose Kosovo's independence all the ammunition they could possibly want.
Last month, the editorial pages of western papers were full of doom-laden predictions about the new challenge facing the West - that is to say the challenge of an aggressive and emerging Greater Albania.
So, who better to quiz on the subject than the Red and Black Army? As we talked missiles flew overhead. We sheltered in their coach while Tirana's youths pelted England fans who were fleeing for the safety of their hotels. "We came because we don't have a team to support because we are not independent," explained Ilir. "FIFA (football's governing body) won't recognise our team from Kosova."
The point, according to Ilir, was that while Albania's Albanians were "brothers", he'd rather be supporting Kosovo, the real home team, since "Kosova is our country". In other words, Albania was not.
This may seem self-evident to many Albanians - the exception being those who genuinely do believe in a Greater Albania. However, the fact of the matter is that creating a Greater Albania, comprising Albania itself, Kosovo, the Presevo valley, western Macedonia and parts of Montenegro, is simply not an idea that motivates a great many Albanians.
Remzi Lani, the director of the Albanian Media Institute, told me, "If I said there were no people who dreamed of a Greater Albania I would be wrong. But it is not a popular idea. If the Security Council or an international conference offered us a Greater Albania we would not refuse it, but on the other hand we would not fight for it either."
This is a sentiment widely echoed in Albania and indeed amongst Albanians, with of course a few notable exceptions such Arben Imami, Albania's Justice Minister. (See IWPR Crisis Report No 239, 20 April 2000.)
Following the government collapse and the ensuing chaos of 1997, most Albanian Albanians are simply keen that the country's current seven per cent annual rate of growth be kept up. They know that any attempt to seek territorial aggrandisement would simply condemn them to a future of endless conflict and poverty.
By contrast, some Albanians, believing that Kosovo will soon be independent and that sooner or later the Albanian birthrate in Macedonia will make them the biggest single nationality, think there is no reason to do anything and that somehow a Greater Albania will emerge, whatever happens.
In fact, it is far from clear that this is the case. Most likely Kosovo will be independent but there seems little prospect that this will happen in the foreseeable future. Besides, an independent Kosovo may well find that, even if it wanted to, it could not join with Albania because the price of independence was, amongst other things, a treaty forbidding any such thing. There are precedents for this. On regaining their independence, the Austrians undertook in the Austrian State Treaty of May 1955 not to enter into any future union with Germany.
The fact is, however, that just as the idea of a Greater Albania is not popular in Albania, it is not popular in Kosovo either. During the Kosovo war, 445,000 Kosovo Albanians took refuge in Albania, a country that many had once idealised as the motherland. They were sorely disappointed, horrified by its poverty, corruption and crime.
For this reason, many Kosovo Albanians, a large number of whom have worked in countries such as Germany, Switzerland and Austria, foresee the future relationship of the various parts of the Albanian nation in similar terms to those of the two German-speaking countries plus the German- speaking part of Switzerland.
It is noticeable that not a single mainstream party, either in Kosovo, Albania or Macedonia is publicly in favour of a Greater Albania, or for that matter even a Greater Kosovo.
So, if this is the case, what are the guerrillas of the UCPMB and the NLA fighting for? In the case of the former, Pleurat Sejdiu, Kosovo's co-minister of health says, "It is an open secret that they are fighting for the land to be part of Kosovo in the future."
But Sejdiu, the former KLA spokesman in London, also suggests that as they launched the campaign in the Presevo valley, the guerrillas also had in mind an eventual trade off with the Serbs. That is to say an exchange of land involving Albanian areas in southern Serbia for solidly ethnic Serbian areas in northern Kosovo.
The NLA story appears to be different. Men like Sejdiu belonged to the Popular Movement for Kosovo, LPK, a tiny party which was instrumental in setting up the KLA. Many LPK people, including Fazli Veliu, its former leader were, however, not Kosovars but Macedonian Albanians.
With the end of the Kosovo war, some of the Macedonian Albanians opted to follow a political career in Kosovo. Some did not. They include Ali Ahmeti, the political leader of the NLA who is also Fazli Veliu's nephew.
This group found themselves amongst the losers of Kosovo politics and unable to return home. For a long time they agitated to begin a conflict in Macedonia but were restrained by their Kosovar colleagues who believed that any attempt to open a Macedonian front would be disastrous.
The Kosovars were right. The Macedonian Albanians whose political roots lay with the LPK did start a conflict and the result has been a severe blow to Kosovo's hopes for early independence.
The NLA also discovered that, unlike the KLA, they were not so popular amongst Macedonian Albanians, who, while sympathising with their stated aim of equality within Macedonia, were far from euphoric about their emergence.
Of course, while it is true that Greater Albania is not an idea which inspires the majority of Albanians, a resurgence of conflict in Macedonia could arguably radicalise an already battered people.
However, as there is no will in the international community to change borders, or even give Kosovo its independence for that matter, there is obviously no prospect for a real Greater Albania. Still, pessimists argue that what we could see is the emergence of a Greater Albanian "anti-state", that is to say a chaotic area controlled by mafiosi and armed men of one sort or another in all the regions where Albanians live.
This is a legitimate fear, and for that reason the international community must continue to work to help the Balkan countries help themselves and become integrated into the rest of Europe. That is of course a cliché, but I for one cannot see any alternative.
Tim Judah is the author of Kosovo: War and Revenge published by Yale University Press.
West urges Macedonia to hold fire on state of war Posted May 6, 2001
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/010506/3/ok12.html
Monday May 7, 3:28 AM
West urges Macedonia to hold fire on state of war
By Kole Casule
SKOPJE (Reuters) - Macedonian troops pounded ethnic Albanian rebels with heavy artillery on Sunday as EU security chief Javier Solana arrived in Skopje to support the government but talk it out of declaring a state of war.
Reuters reporters near the villages of Vakcince and Slupcane, some 40 km (25 miles) northeast of the capital Skopje, said shells were hitting the two hamlets nearly every minute at one stage in the afternoon.
Artillery explosions were still audible in the distance when Solana landed at Skopje airport in the evening -- just as they were when he arrived six weeks on a previous crisis mission.
Reporters in the northwestern city of Tetovo, the eye of the storm back in March, also heard detonations apparently coming from mountain villages close to the Kosovo border.
An Interior Ministry source said no security forces had opened fire there and accused guerrillas of trying to provoke the army. The government has been saying since Saturday night that it expected new guerrilla action in the Tetovo area.
A team of the International Committee of the Red Cross, allowed to deliver humanitarian aid to Vakcince and Slupcane, expressed serious concern over "hundreds of civilians" hiding in the basements and described their situation as "precarious".
WAR POWERS WOULD BE EXTENSIVE
Amid renewed fears for the Balkans' fragile stability, the government said late on Saturday it would launch consultations on whether to declare a state of war, which would give wide-ranging powers to the security forces and the president.
The government said a decision by parliament could be taken on Tuesday and stressed that it was Macedonia's right.
"Macedonia is a sovereign state and we will decide ourselves if and when we will declare a state of war, but we will bear in mind suggestions made by Western countries," government spokesman Antonio Milosovski told a news conference.
European Union foreign ministers meeting in Sweden said they were opposed to such a move.
"Rather than talk about a state of war, we should discuss a state of peace," Solana said before flying to Macedonia.
Landing at Skopje, he repeated that "we would like as much as possible that the country continues in peace" but acknowledged it was "going through a difficult moment".
This would be overcome, with European support, he said.
Solana went immediately into crisis talks over dinner with Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski and President Boris Trajkovski. NATO Secretary General George Robertson was expected to join them on Monday.
He and Solana were scheduled to meet leaders of the main political parties and hold further top-level talks.
Speaking for the EU, Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh said: "We strongly condemn the terrorist acts of the Albanian extremists...We also urged the Macedonian government not to fall into the trap of provocations, which is what they are."
REBEL FORCES SAID TO THIN OUT
Macedonian political leaders on Saturday managed to convene talks on the rights and the role of the ethnic Albanian minority that makes up a third of the population, resuming a dialogue suspended after 10 soldiers and policemen were killed in ambushes in the last week, triggering anti-Albanian riots.
Government shelling of guerrilla positions in the northeast of the former Yugoslav republic has so far failed to dislodge the rebels, although some appear to have retreated.
The fighting has revived fears of a widening conflict that major powers hoped had been stifled last month when a government offensive drove back guerrilla forces from hills above Tetovo.
"The Macedonians are trying to use the same tactics as in Tetovo," said a senior Western diplomat in Skopje. "They are amassing superiority and then going in fairly heavily.
"This should not be too difficult, considering that some of the rebels appear to have already left the area. There are less fighters there than several days before".
According to the constitution, a state of war gives wide powers to the security forces but requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority. As Slav parties already have this, approval would seem to be assured.
It also allows government to pass decisions without waiting for parliamentary consent and gives the president wider powers to hire and fire top officials including ministers.
According to the law, the army is allowed to operate inside the country only in a narrow stretch along the border.
"They want to legalise what is already happening, to allow the army to operate in towns and villages on a legal basis," the Western diplomat said. "But when governments have to resort to such things, it is not a good indicator."
Red Cross says hundreds trapped in Macedonia fighting Posted May 6, 2001
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/010506/3/ok1l.html
Monday May 7, 3:45 AM
Red Cross says hundreds trapped in Macedonia fighting
NEAR VAKCINCE, Macedonia (Reuters) - Hundreds of scared and exhausted civilians hid in basements in the villages of Slupcane and Vakcince on Sunday while Macedonian troops poured heavy artillery fire on the hamlets.
The villages, where many houses are in ruins or riddled with shrapnel, are strongholds of ethnic Albanian rebels who occupied them last week.
Reuters reporters near the villages some 40 km (25 miles) northeast of the capital Skopje said that after a short lull, shells were hitting the two hamlets nearly every minute at one stage in the afternoon.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, the only humanitarian organisation to visit the villages, said so far its teams had seen only two civilians dead.
The rebels say seven civilians have been killed.
Annick Bouvier, spokeswoman for the ICRC in Skopje, said that when its team arrived to Slupcane on Thursday to evacuate two wounded civilians on the first day of the fighting, it was too late and they were already dead.
On Sunday, the ICRC visited both villages during an agreed halt in the fighting and expressed profound concern.
It said in a statement that of the hundreds still there only 13 had agreed to leave, including two pregnant women and two children. Others remained, despite the "precarious situation".
"They are exhausted, worried and their hygienic situation is very precarious," the ICRC said.
Bouvier said some were reluctant to leave for fear of being separated from their families. Ethnic Albanians have strong clan traditions.
"We cannot exclude some intimidation," Bouvier said.
Defence Ministry spokesman Georgi Trendafilov said rebels used civilians as human shields, not an unusual tactic in guerrilla wars.
Each day since Thursday, the government has given a deadline for civilians to leave and a convoy was sitting on a road leading from Vakcince to take possible refugees to the town of Kumanovo.
Those who did not leave by paved roads or who tried to move towards Kosovo would be legitimate targets, Skopje says.
There has been no apparent reaction.
Last week Carlo Ungaro, ambassador of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, cited three possible reasons -- unwillingness to become a refugee, possible intimidation by the rebels, or sympathy for them, particularly among younger people.
KUMANOVO BRACES FOR WAR (By Nexhat Aqifi from Kumanovo) Posted May 6, 2001
part of IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, NO. 244, May 6, 2001
KUMANOVO BRACES FOR WAR
The streets of this ethnically mixed have gone silent, and some Albanian families have fled, as gun-ships fly nearby and the population watches the conflict edge closer.
By Nexhat Aqifi from Kumanovo
With the sound of helicopter gun ships overhead, and explosions in the nearby rebel-held villages of Vaksince and Slupcane, the town of Kumanovo is surprisingly quiet.
To residents of this northern Macedonian town, with a population of 90,000 including Macedonians, Albanians, Serbs, Vlahs and Roma, and a history of both co-existence and tension, conflict in Macedonia has begun in earnest. So they have deserted the streets.
"The war," Selver Halimi said, explaining to his 10-year-old son why he had to stay at home, "has started."
As shelling several kilometres west by the Macedonian Army continued for a third day, schools are closed, few shops are functioning, and the town football cancelled its matches because it cannot gather its players: most of them live in the conflict area. A curfew, from 10:00 PM to 5:00 AM has been imposed.
Latif's coffee shop, the local favourite, is one of the few shops that have remained open, though there are not many customers. Everyone has the same question on their lips, "When will this stop?"
The viewpoints between the two main communities are sharply divided.
One Macedonian man firmly backs the military. "Our army is protecting the country from the terrorists," he said.
Albanians are more circumspect, not openly criticising the Albanians rebels in the National Liberation Army (NLA) but expressing grave concern over the military actions of the army.
"I can't believe this is happening," said Ilijaz Abazi. "Civilians are being targeted by rockets and helicopters while villages are raised to the ground."
Before launching its offence two days ago in response to the recent killing and kidnapping by Albanian rebels of several members of the security forces, Macedonian authorities called on all civilians in the villages of Slupcane and Vaksince to evacuate.
Slupcane, where the shelling has been most intense, is home - besides NLA fighters - to around 5,000 civilians. In Vaksince there are around 2000 civilians.
Except for a small number of women and children who went towards the Kosovo and Serbia borders, most residents appeared to stay in their villages. Residents of Lojane, Lipkovo, Hotla and other villages have also failed to respond to calls to evacuate. But facing a fresh ultimate by the authorities, this morning, May 6, around 50 villagers from Slupcane agreed to leave.
The Macedonian Army claims the villagers are being used by the NLA as "human shields" to deter attacks. While enjoying international support, the Macedonian Army has been bluntly cautioned by Brussels and Washington to avoid civilian casualties.
But according to information reaching Kumanovo from the surrounding area, Albanian villagers deny that rebels are holding them. Many villagers appear to have gathered in large groups, with as many as 100-200 per house taking cover in basements. "It is not true that Albanian guerrillas are using women and
children as hostages," Ljumnuse Avdilji said in a telephone conversation from Vaksince. "We are not terrorists and we are not attacking anyone. In fact, we are being attacked by Macedonian forces."
"It is our decision to remain here," says another Albanian woman. "We don't want to leave our houses."
Shelling resumed May 6, Saturday, following the expiration of an 11:00 AM deadline set by the Macedonian Army for the NLA to withdraw.
It is impossible to verify casualty reports, or to confirm any distinctions between civilian and guerrilla wounded. Macedonian sources deny any attacks on civilians.
But reports from a local doctor, Dr. Fatmire Hasani, suggest around a eight dead and 50 wounded, with no official information on army or military losses.
Meantime, some Albanian sources are warning that Albanian homes in the villages are being set on fire, with people inside.
"It's terrible what is going on in Slupcane," said Dr. Hasani. "Innocent people are losing their lives just because they're Albanian."
Around 20 Albanian policemen are reported to have left the Macedonian police and given their weapons and uniforms to the NLA.
Sources close to the rebels, boasting of sophisticated military equipment, have told local media that they have successfully fought off Macedonian military attacks. They claim to have shot three helicopters and captured two tanks. Macedonian official sources deny any losses.
All this creates tensions in Kumanovo.
The population is a potentially volatile mixture of Serbs, ethnic Macedonians and Albanians. Locals fear that if the conflict spreads to the town the situation could explode into ethnic blood-letting.
Inter-ethnic relations have always been Kumanovo's biggest challenge. The town has always been tense, with Serbs and ethnic Macedonians often in conflict with Albanians. The opening shots of the Second World War in Macedonia were fired in the town.
"Kumanovo could turn into a second Vukovar," said one ethnic Macedonian.
As yet, there are still no incidents amongst inhabitants of the city. Local politicians and the police appealed to locals not to respond to any provocation.
The mayor of Kumanovo, Slobodan Kovacevski, called on Macedonians and Serbs not to destroy Albanian shops and houses, as in Bitola following the funeral of four soldiers killed by NLA.
Kovacevski also appealed to the Albanians to spurn the NLA and join the Macedonian Army to defend their country from the guerrilla attacks.
Husamedin Halili, the mayor of Lipkovo, appealed to the Macedonian Army to stop bombarding the Albanian villages.
The question is how influential any local political figures can be in such circumstances. Kumanovo residents think that the situation is already out of control.
Last night, rumours spread throughout the Albanian community that ethnic Macedonians and Serbs were preparing to destroy Albanian houses. This morning, hundreds of Albanians families left Kumanovo for Skopje.
"We are waiting in our houses to see what will happen next," said one worried Albanian. "It is better to stay inside then to go out. It might be risky".
A forty-year old Serb agreed. "I am afraid that my children might become victims of this madness", he said.
Nexhat Aqifi is a journalist in Kumanovo.
PETITION TO THE MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF EU Posted May 6, 2001
PETITION TO THE MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF EU
May 5th, 2001
We, members of ethnic Albanian communities in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe, numbering over 360.000 souls, as well as our native friends and family members in countries of EU
· Concerned by the prolongued inter-ethnic violence which endangers long-lasting peace and stability in Balkans;
· Concerned by the deadlock in the process towards the final status of Kosova, which has left the transitory Kosovar society whith no overall political and economic institutions of its own, but with unhealed scares from a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing and a raging unemployment rate of 70 procent;
· Worried by a number of statements from high-ranking officials of EU, which may be interpreted as if promoting military solutions to polical, economic and cultural problems caused by unconcealed discrimination against ethnic Albanian population in the countries of Serbia-Montenegro, respectively F.Y.R.O.M.;
· Worried about the fate of 250 ethnic Albanian hostages inprisoned by the Milosevic regime, who, due to the lack of political good-will of the present president of Serbia-Montenegro, Mr. Vojislav Kostunica, are still being kept in Serbian prisons; call upon You, foreign ministers of EU, to take coragous stance in order to promote peace and stability in the region, by ensuring that the EU:
With regards to Kosova
1. Demands from authorities of Serbia-Montenegro that they deliver all those charged of war crimes and/or crimes against humanity to the ITCY in Hague;
2. Allotes additional economic and personal resources to the ICTY in Hague, so that it may be able to continue their work in revealing war crimes and/or crimes against humanity in Kosova and elsewhere in the Balkans;
3. Demands from authorities of Serbia-Montenegro, as well as from UNMIK in Kosova, to investigate, arrest and try those suspected in inspiring and/or executing war crimes and/or crimes against humanity in Kosova and elsewhere in the Balkans;
4. Re-confirms the promisse given in February-March 1998 to the joint ethnic Albanian peace-delegation in Rambouillet, France, that the final statuse of Kosova shall be resolved, after a period of transition, by taking into primary account the free will of the people of Kosova, i.e. by employing a general referendum on the matter;
5. Re-confirms the right of the Kosovar population to self-rule by own laws during the period of transition, thus their right to interprete the law through the institution of the High Court;
6. Re-confirms the right of the Kosovar population to their own political insitutions, thus their right to vote for a general assembley aswell as for a president;
7. Affirms the irreplacable role of the KPS and the KPC in securing peace, law and order and stability for all ethnic groups in Kosova;
8. Declares that the Republic of Serbia should be obliged to contribute in the rebuiling of the destroyed economy in Kosova, as means of securing paths towards future reconciliation and long-lasting peace between the two neighbouring Serb and Albanian nations;
9. Initiates the process of economic transition in Kosova, by providing prerequisites and the resources needed for a swift and thorough process of privatisation in the local industries
With regards to F.Y.R.O.M. and the Presheva valley
1. Demands that the federal goverment of Serbia-Montenegro and the government of the Republic of Serbia, respectively the government of F.Y.R.O.M., denouce all use of brute force and employ in substantial peace negotiations with due ethnic Albanian representatives;
2. Demands that the federal goverment of Serbia-Montenegro and the government of the Republic of Serbia, respectively the government of F.Y.R.O.M., initiate a process of equal national representation in political institutions, as well as within army, state security and police, especially in areas where ethnic Albanian comprise significant numbers;
3. Demands that the federal goverment of Serbia-Montenegro and the government of the Republic of Serbia, respectively the government of F.Y.R.O.M., employ European and international standards towards the rights of the Albanian population for education in their language, including the university education; in the case of F.Y.R.O.M., the government should recognize the legitimity of the University of Tetova and diplomas of the ethnic Albanian graduates from the UT, as well as diplomas from high schools and universities in Albania and Kosova;
4. Demands that the federal goverment of Serbia-Montenegro and the government of the Republic of Serbia, respectively the government of F.Y.R.O.M., employ European and international standards towards the rights of the Albanian population to exercise their economic rights;
5. Demands from the government of F.Y.R.O.M. that it immediatly initiates legal changes in the constitution of the country, in order to ensure equality in law of the ethnic Albanian and Slavic groups;
6. Demands from the government of F.Y.R.O.M. that it immediatly initiates the process of repatriation of 40.000 refugees, mostly ethnic Albanian, who left their homes to escape the military escalation, especially with regards to some 8.000 refugees who, according to UNHCR, still live in Kosova;
7. Demands from the government of F.Y.R.O.M. that it immediatly and unconditionally stops the torture and the harassment of some 400 inprisoned ethnic Albanian citizens, many of whome minors and elders, who are currently being interrogated as suspects for participating in UÇK;
8. Affirms it’s support for the ICTY in Hague and asks local authorities in Serbia-Montenegro, respectvely in F.Y.R.O.M., to investigate possible war crimes / crimes against humanity commited during the fighting in the valley of Presheva, respectively in F.Y.R.O.M.
With regards to the 250 ethnic Albanian hostages still kept in Serbian prisons
1. Demands the immediate and unconditioned release of 250 ethnic Albanian civilian hostages, who were unlowfuly inprisoned during the era of Slobodan Milosevic and who are still being kept in Serbian prisons, due mostly to the lack of political good-will the the present federal president of Serbia-Montenegro, Mr. Vojislav Kostunica;
2. Conditions further aid towards political and economic integration of Serbia-Montenegro with the international community, with as stated above
On the behalf of ethnic Albanian communities in Sweden and their friends:
Hajdin Abazi, writer & poet
Member of the Swedish Association of Writters
Anders Wessman, Chairman
The Federation of Friendship Sweden – Kosov@
Idriz Zogaj, Member
The Federation of Friendship Sweden – Kosov@
Ullmar Qvick, Chairman
The Swedish-Albanian Society
Shqiptar Oseku, Member
The Swedish-Albanian Society
Safete Beqiri, Chairwoman
The Union of the Albanian Students in Sweden
Naim Sadiku, Chairman
The Union of the Albanian Clubbs in Sweden
Nyköping
May 5, 2001
"The coexistence in Macedonia" Posted May 6, 2001
"The coexistence in Macedonia"
[Independent report via e-mail]
May 6th, 2001
SHKUP/SKOPJE - Last night, 05.05.2001, around 21.30 two young boys, one Albanian (N) and the other Macedonian (Ph) in their early 20's were severely beaten and badly injured by the Macedonian police because they were driving around their neighborhood in Skopje in a Volkswagen old timer.
The Albanian boy has suffered bad injuries in his face, as a result of a stroke with a machine-gun butt, while the Macedonian one on his back during 4 hours police "treatment" at a police station in the district of Butel in Skopje.
The justification of this police action was that they were driving the car whose color was matching with that of the vehicle that attacked the Albanian Embassy in Skopje. Also, they have told their parents that these boys, after stopping the car, have tried to attack the policemen who were at least twice more than them in a police van.
It should be noted that the father of the Albanian boy is a very respected person not only in his neighborhood but in the entire wider community, and he is committed to ask for the responsibility of the policemen who have done this, to the highest national and international bodies. He is also known as a philanthropist who has always insisted for multiethnic co-existence, as the example of friendship between his sons clearly shows.
This is another example of policies of double standard by the Macedonian authorities and especially the police/security forces who covertly call for the peaceful solution of the problems and coexistence between Macedonians and Albanians, while systematicaly acting in the other direction.