Australian position on Macedonia

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  • Momce Makedonce
    Member
    • Jul 2012
    • 562

    Alannah MacTiernan statement on Australia recognising Macedonia.

    "The moral revolution - the revolution of the mind, heart and soul of an enslaved people, is our greatest task." Goce Delcev

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    • Momce Makedonce
      Member
      • Jul 2012
      • 562

      Another Australian politician voicing his opinion that Australia should recognise Macedonia. This is Craig Kelly from Liverpool in South West Sydney.

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      "The moral revolution - the revolution of the mind, heart and soul of an enslaved people, is our greatest task." Goce Delcev

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      • George S.
        Senior Member
        • Aug 2009
        • 10116

        ustralian Politician responds to Greek Lobby over Macedonian history

        ustralian Politician responds to Greek Lobby over Macedonian history
        Monday, 08 June 2015



        Australian MP Alannah MacTiernan, who is a keen promoter of the Macedonian community and the request over Australia's recognition of Macedonia's constitutional name, has responded to the criticism by Greek politicians over the interpretation of history on the Balkans.

        MacTiernan responds to the arguments of Greek politicians from her Labor Party, who insisted that the present Greeks are the only true descendants of the ancient Macedonians.

        "It is not clear the original Macedonians can be described as ‘Greek’. In classical accounts, they conquered the Greeks and unified them into the Macedonian kingdom, which was then Hellenised. Indeed, the Battle of Chaeronea where the Macedonians defeated the Greeks in 338 BC was said to mark the end of Greek history and the beginning of the Macedonian era. The cultural victory of the vanquished is not unusual – the Vikings invaded Ireland but quickly embraced Celtic culture. You may be correct that the original Macedonia occupied a small area which is now entirely within modern Greece. However, I do note the area of the Republic was conquered by Philip II about the same time he subdued the Greek states. So it has been part of Macedonia for over two thousand years. When the Romans came to ascendancy, they included the area that now forms the Republic in their province of Macedonia. Even after the Slavonic invasion, the area was still known as Macedonia in the early Middle Ages. The Byzantine Emperor Basil I was acknowledged to be a Macedonian. Macedonian nationalism was evident through the 19th century", says MacTiernan.

        She adds, "In my view, your case that the selection of the name of Macedonia for the Republic is random is not proven and that clearly the area has historic connections to an evolving political entity known as Macedonia. I would be interested to know why you would think the gene pools of the areas would line up with accidents of modern geo-political boundaries. Invading groups have always interbred with native populations. Indeed, Alexander the Great used to encourage his soldiers to do precisely that.

        Likewise, the Goths and the Slavs intermixed with Macedonians and Greeks alike. Hence, in my view, the gene pools of Greek Macedonians and those from the Republic are likely to be very similar. I do not see myself as choosing between Australian Greeks and Australian Macedonians".
        "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
        GOTSE DELCEV

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        • George S.
          Senior Member
          • Aug 2009
          • 10116

          Support for Republic of Macedonia name earns MP Alannah MacTiernan respect

          Support for Republic of Macedonia name earns MP Alannah MacTiernan respect
          By MICHELLE WEBSTER
          May 31, 2015, 9:04 p.m.

          Labor MP Alannah MacTiernan was a long way from home when she dropped into Wollongong's St Dimitrija Solunski...


          Labor MP Alannah MacTiernan was a long way from home when she dropped into Wollongong's St Dimitrija Solunski church on Sunday.

          Members of the region's Macedonian Orthodox community gave the Perth politician a warm welcome, turning out to thank her for bringing to light an issue close to their hearts.

          Earlier this year, Ms MacTiernan gave a heartfelt speech in Federal Parliament calling for recognition of the Republic of Macedonia under its constitutional name.

          In official dealings, Australia continues to use the name Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), which is also used by the United Nations.

          While Croatia, Serbia and other remnants of the old Yugoslavia bear names of their own choosing, more than two decades after declaring independence, Skopje remains locked in a dispute with Greece over the right to be known simply as "Republic of Macedonia".

          "The Yugoslav Republic was dismantled a long time ago and now I think this country should have the entitlement to be called Macedonia," Ms MacTiernan told the Mercury on Sunday.

          "They have made it very clear, and they've written it into their constitution, that they won't be seeking to expand into parts of the Greek Macedonia or Bulgarian Macedonia, they don't have an expansionist aspiration, which is very important.

          "We need to try to allow the country to settle down and, if it's possible, join the EU and put all this nonsense really aside."

          Macedonia has been plagued by violence and unrest in recent months, with many citizens frustrated at the glacial pace of development and integration with the West.

          The country's bid to join the European Union and NATO is blocked by the long-running dispute with Greece over the country's name.

          "I think these sorts of tensions don't help and I think we need to be part of trying to put Macedonia on a footing where it's not feeling as if there are parts of the world that are against them," Ms MacTiernan said.
          "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
          GOTSE DELCEV

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