[ALBSA-Info] US-EU Macedonia plan seeks state of fair play

[Gazhebo at aol.com]

US-EU Macedonia plan seeks state of fair play

By Paul Casciato

  
SKOPJE, July 8 (Reuters) - An eight-point U.S.-European Union peace plan 
presented to Macedonia's political leaders seeks to boost the representation 
of its large Albanian minority in a bid to bridge a widening ethnic divide. 

The "Draft Framework Document" presented on Saturday envisages enhanced local 
government, equitable representation for Albanians in the state institutions 
of a bilingual country and the rejection of violence, according to a copy of 
the document obtained by Reuters. 

"This framework will promote the peaceful and harmonious development of civil 
society, while respecting the ethnic identity and the interests of all 
Macedonian citizens," it said. 

The latest round of talks between the divided communities stalled three weeks 
ago and a ragged 11-day truce was torn to shreds by an assault on a village 
held by armed ethnic Albanian rebels. 

The initial points of the draft presented by U.S. envoy James Pardew and 
European Union envoy Francois Leotard focus on basic issues and ending the 
rebellion which has brought the country to the brink of civil war in less 
than five months. 

NATO and EU envoys secured separate ceasefire agreements on Thursday between 
government forces and the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA), 
which says it is fighting in the name of improved Albanian rights. 

The paper calls for a peaceful solution to assure a stable, democratic future 
for a unified country that preserves Macedonia's multi-ethnic character and 
has a constitution which meets the needs of all citizens. It also calls for 
international financial assistance for reconstruction and reform projects. 

DEAL BEFORE NATO 

A halt to hostilities, voluntary disarmament of the guerrillas and a 
political deal are essential before NATO will honour a commitment to deploy 
3,000 troops to collect weapons. 

"They (the parties) acknowledge that a decision by NATO to assist in this 
context will require the establishment of a general, unconditional and 
open-ended ceasefire, agreement on a political solution to the problems of 
this country, a clear commitment by the armed groups to voluntarily 
disarm..." 

The paper also proposed adequate financing and enhanced powers for elected 
local officials to improve public services. 

It called on the parties to revise municipal boundaries one year after a 
census completed by the end of 2001. 

It also seeks to revise local election laws and regulate employment in public 
administration in order to guarantee equitable minority representation. 

"Particular attention will be given to ensuring that police services reflect 
the composition of the population," it said. 

One-third of Constitutional Court judges should be chosen by representatives 
of Macedonia's parliament and constitutional amendments should be approved by 
representatives using a formula that ensures they have minority backing. 

Bilingual education within a uniform curriculum should be provided in 
schools, while a mix of private and state universities must decide their 
language priorities. 

Positive discrimination will be applied in state universities to reflect the 
composition of Macedonia, it said. 

Local communities should also be free to place emblems identifying the 
majority of a community next to that of Macedonia on the front of their 
municipal public buildings. 

Three annexes at the end of the document provide room for the parties to 
thrash out details of constitutional amendments, legislative changes and 
confidence-building measures.