[NYC-L] Carlotta Gall's article in NYT about fighting in Macedonia

[Imer Berisha]

Dear friens and compatriots,

this a the letter that I've just sent to the Editor of The NYT, regarding 
today's article of Miss.Carlota Gall

The justice is on the side of Albanians in Macedonia, therefore soon or 
latter the justice will win...keep up the good work.......
All Albanians are for the European integration and democracy and eventualy 
we will reach the EU but only as equals with others!

thanks
_________________________________________________________
To the Editor of The New York Times and Miss.Carlotta GALL

Dear sir/madam,


I read today's article in the New York Times and I was surprised to see 
still the stereotype "knowledge" of the facts expressed by your reporter:
____________________________________________
Today, for the third day, police forces fired for several hours at ethnic 
Albanian rebels taking cover in the hills above the city. The insurgents are 
trying to claim parts of Macedonia that are overwhelmingly Albanian, and the 
population is quickly dividing between Slavs and Albanians, just as in 
Kosovo.
___________________________________________

We are all familiar with the demands that NLA National Liberation Army.
They accept territorial integrity of Macedonia, its Sovereignty.

Therefore I do not really understand why your reporter still insists and 
repeats the claim that rebels "are trying to claim parts of Macedonia".

The guerillas agenda is the same as of Albanian Political Parties in 
Macedonia, that achieved nothing during endless negotiations with Macedonian 
official political structure in the last decade.

This people on the hills are fighting, among other things, for the 
University in Albanian language to be recognized. They have other demands 
that can be summarized as asking for equality within Macedonia.

Many of them are still not recognized as Macedonian citizens, because the 
law is discriminatory for Albanians.

To mae things worse Macedonian President has recently launched his official 
web site, but to no surprise, only in Macedonian and English, seems that he 
feels no need to convey his message to the Albanians in Macedonia, or does 
he think that there is no need to communicate with Ethnic Albanians who are 
citizens of Macedonia. Furthermore this another fact of inequality of 
Albanians and Albanian language in Macedonia.

They have stated they accept the Sovereignty of Macedonia and want to be a 
part of it.

Why is your reporter amputating claims to the rebels that they have not 
made?

Albanians in Macedonia comprise between 30 and 40% of the entire population 
(no precise figure is accepted by either side as there were manipulations 
reported during the census).

NLA National Liberation Army has demanded a census to be carried out
under the supervision of an international body.

All this demands are very well known to Macedonian Government but they were 
never accepted when brought forward by Albanian Political Parties.

We all need to find a way out from the war.
I just want to point to the discrimination that went on for so long in 
Macedonia as a fertile ground for unhappy people that will choose to fight 
among other things, for the right to education.

If the above mentioned problems are solved by negotiating with Albanian 
representatives, Macedonia has nothing to fear for its future. Otherwise I 
believe that ignoring the situation and pretending that everything was fine 
for last 50 years, will just draw more Albanians in Macedonia on the 
rebel(NLA) side and this could than become a real danger for all in the 
region but first for Macedonia.

One fear can prevail in Macedonian Government though, and this is the fear 
from real equality between Ethnic Albanians and Ethnic Macedonians, in 
Macedonia as a common country.

At this point I believe there is still time to find a peaceful solution to 
the problem.

The demands of the rebels are the same as demands of the entire Albanian 
people in Macedonia. Ignoring them and pursuing the current path with 
stubbornness, will bring us to the "no turn point", meaning that it will be 
much more difficult to start any kind of negotiations in few months time 
after hundreds and hundreds of people are killed, injured etc. If no 
negotiations are forthcoming, at least with the leaders of Albanian 
Political Parties in Macedonia addressing each and every problem and demand 
for equality of Albanians in Macedonia we will reach the point that this 
will no longer be possible.

On the other hand, best way to disarm the rebels is by addressing the 
problems and anxieties that Albanians have in Macedonia, that were ignored 
so fare.

Your reporter states in the same article the fact that a town with 80% of 
Albanians, Tetova, has 90% Ethnic Macedonian Slavs comprising a police 
force, meaning with only about 10% Albanians.

No comment is needed.

Therefore at the end I would urge you and your reporters to have in mind the 
facts that the rights of Albanians in Macedonia were neglected for decades 
as were neglected in Kosova and Serbia. The fact that Albanians were not 
killed in thousands and on daily bases in Macedonia does not mean that there 
were no problems.

For 10 years no solution was found, because Macedonian Government sow no 
need to improve the status of Albanians in Macedonia. While gross violations 
of human rights in Kosova were at the focus the public, Macedonian 
Government felt complacent, and did nothing to address issues properly.

Macedonian Government at least now should fight the roots of the problem
i.e. come up with the plan of measures to address the needs and demands of 
Albanians that are not from today or yesterday but have been sitting in 
Macedonian Government's office for years.


Imer Berisha
Cleveland
Ohio





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