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The good news is coffee, cigarettes and talk are cheap in Macedonia.Risto the Great
MACEDONIA:ANHEDONIA
"Holding my breath for the revolution."
Hey, I wrote a bestseller. Check it out: www.ren-shen.com -
Bulgaria PM Attends Macedonian Holocaust Memorial
Bulgaria's Prime Minister has been praised for joining the commemoration of the deportation and mass murder of Macedonia's Jewish community in 1943 – although critics said his failure to apologise for Bulgaria's role in the events was regrettable
Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov joined his Macedonian counterpart, Zoran Zaev, in Skopje on Monday to commemorate the deportation and extermination of the Jewish people from the territory of today’s Macedonia in the Nazi concentration camp of Treblinka in 1943.
It was the first time a Bulgarian Prime Minister had joined the remembrance ceremony dedicated to the 7,144 Macedonian Jews killed in the Nazi death camp.
However, Borissov fell short of delivering a hoped-for apology for the role of the then Kingdom of Bulgaria in the tragedy.
An ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, Bulgaria occupied Macedonia during the war, claiming it as Bulgarian territory.
“We grieve because we shall never forget. God bless their souls, they are forever in our memory,” Borissov, mentioning how the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and civil society in Bulgaria proper prevented the deportation of Bulgaria's own Jewish community.
He warned against any repetition of the horrors of the Holocaust, or the more recent wars in the Balkans.
Macedonian Prime Minister Zaev praised Borissov for attending the event and said that his presence, and that of other government representatives from Bosnia and Romania, was a “historic, European, act of civilization.”
“Our unity in the commemoration and condemnation of the deportation of our fellow citizens in the death camp Treblinka is more than symbolic. Today, we mark the lessons from the past so that we can light our way to our jointly chosen future," Zaev said.
"Hatred is not our choice. Accepting differences, love towards our close ones and respect towards the others, support, cooperation and friendship are the values that we embrace with our minds and hearts and keep through our deeds.”
Bulgaria prides itself on the way it stopped the deportation of more than 48,000 people of Jewish origin from the country in 1943.
What it usually neglects to add is that it did not save the lives of 11,343 Jews deported from northern Greece and the territory of the modern Republic of Macedonia, which were then under Bulgarian occupation.
However, Goran Sadikario, head of the Macedonian Holocaust Fund and Memorial Centre, told Bulgarian media agency BGNES on Sunday that he was glad the Bulgarian PM had come.
“This is a historic event and we salute Borisov’s courage to visit Macedonia at this day,” he said.
A representative of the Bulgarian Jewish community, Solomon Bali, was less complimentary. He welcomed the visit of PM Borissov as a move in the right direction, but said it did not go as far as it should have
“By not taking responsibility for the deportations that took place not only from Vardar Macedonia, but also from Pirot [in Serbia] and northern Greece, the visit amounts to nothing,” Bali, vice-president of the European branch of the global Jewish organization B'nai B'rith, told BIRN.
He added that Bulgaria ought to accept its responsibility and apologise for the persecution of Jewish people both in Bulgaria and in the territories it occupied during World War II.
Although Bulgaria did not ultimately deport its own Jewish community, the country still maintained anti-Jewish legislation and forced people into camps.
Bulgaria acknowledged the deportation of the Jews from the occupied territories in a 2013 parliamentary declaration, but had failed to deliver an apology for the role of the occupying administration, blaming it mainly on Adolf Hitler.
“We denounce this criminal act, undertaken by Hitler's command, and express our regrets for the fact that the local Bulgarian administration had not been in a position to stop this act,” the declaration said.
Bulgarian nationalists from the junior governing party, the National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria, urged Borissov on Sunday not to apologize on behalf of the country.
An apology “would entail the Bulgarian state and people taking the blame for crimes of another regime and state – Nazi Germany,” the party's declaration stated“There’s a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can’t take part, you can’t even passively take part, and you’ve got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus and you’ve got to make it stop, and you’ve got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you’re free, the machine will be prevented from working at all” - Mario SavioComment
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Macedonia Journalists Protest Against Politician's Threats
About a hundred Macedonian journalists staged a protest in front of the government building on Monday, demanding action against a politician who abused and threatened the head of Macedonia’s Journalists Association, ZNM
Journalists from almost all media outlets in Macedonia and NGO representatives protested on Monday in front of the government in Skopje, demanding tough sanctions for a politician who recently abused the head of the journalists' union, ZNM, Naser Selmani.
“We are not afraid of them!” Selmani told the protest, which was organized by the Independent Trade Union of Journalists and Media Workers, SSNM.
“The government has a duty to supress bullies,” Selmani said, adding that after fall last year of the government led by the right-wing VMRO DPMNE party, “journalists will not allow another new regime” – this time led by the main ruling Social Democrats.
The controversy began last week when Bekir Asani, a senior official from the ethnic Albanian junior ruling party, the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, caused an incident as the police attempted to remove his illegally parked car in Skopje.
As tow truck workers tried to pick up his vehicle, Asani verbally abused a female police officer.
After some media reported that he physically attacked her, the police officer denied this. She later told the Police Minister, Oliver Spasovski, that she was only verbaly attacked and that she had hurt herself by bumping by mistake into the tow truck.
Commenting on the incident, Selmani had written on Facebook that the rule of law “had succumbed to a bully” – expressing the widespread suspicion about the police officer's story, and that she might have been forced to downplay the attack against her.
After his post, Selmani received a threatening message on Facebook from Asani’s brother, which many have claimed originated from Asani himself.
The case was reported to the police but Selmani did not share the content of the message in public. Soon afterwards, in an interview for the news portal Maktel, Selmani himself called the head of the ZNM “a bastard”.
“I am not afraid of the bullies from the DUI and of those who silently sit in the same government with them. There should be a difference between those who are with them [the bullies] and those who are against them,” Selmani said.
The head of the SSNM, Tamara Chausidis, demanded action from the authorities. “Asani has a track record of violent action, so, we demand police protection for Selmani,” she said.
Unlike other journalistic protests in the past decade, several representatives of the government were present at this rally.
Government spokesperson Mile Bosnjakovski, Petrit Saracini, the spokesperson for the Culture Ministry, as well as the minister without portfolio in charge for communications and transparency, Robert Popovski, all three former journalists, attended.
Poposki said the government had zero tolerance for those who threaten violence.
“But the government is not the only institution that should do its job. The case is now at the Prosecutor’s Office; I call on you, if you are facing pressures, to inform us right away,” Popovski said, urging the prosecution to speedily process this case.
The protesters said they were not entirely satisfied with this answer, insisting that the government sanction attacks and threats more, and release fewer press statements“There’s a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can’t take part, you can’t even passively take part, and you’ve got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus and you’ve got to make it stop, and you’ve got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you’re free, the machine will be prevented from working at all” - Mario SavioComment
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The irony. I hope my prediction comes true that Zaev will soon be forced out of power.
But I'm not betting on it.Comment
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Zaev position/policies could become untenable if enough pressure can be applied but it is the citizens that need to be turning the screws...you can't come to power on a platform of anti-corruption and transparency issues and then give the country more of the same...the people need to make a stand against such blatant and endemic abuses of power...Originally posted by vicsinad View Post
Another achilles heal for Zaev is him trying to be all things to all people, not only in Macedonia but in dealings with the greeks and bulgarians, serbia and kosovo...he's promised the shiptari the language law that he's having some difficulty in delivering as well as the obvious concessions he's making to the greeks and bulgars, then there's the constant support of kosovo over serbian interests...this is a pyrotechnic bonanza for the media and concerned citizenry to exploit...in the right hands this sort of political fiasco would have brought down the Zaev government in its infancy...Comment
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No no no noooo as once mentioned by the famous Rugby League commentator Gus Gould during a live coverage.
As long as the west backs Zaev he shall remain in power at any cost. If anyone is observing the current fiasco around the elevation of Albanian language on the entire territory and the lack of discussion and bypassing of any ammendments would indeed acknowledge the level of insanity that prevails.
There is nothing democratic about the current government nor is there any intention to follow any democratic paths or system.
Fascism prevails in FYROM. People are being thrown in jails, media silenced, backroom deals are being made without public knowledge all in the name of NATO, gay Albania and maoism aka sds.Comment
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I have faith in people power to overcome any tyrant and their foreign backers...the problem in Macedonia is widespread apathy and blind, unquestioning party loyalties.Originally posted by Pelagonija View PostComment
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A squabble between Gruevski and Xhaferi in parliament today over the Law of Languages.
Funny how they got along just fine when they were both in the same government and Xhaferi was Albanianizing the army as Minister of DefenceComment
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I'm sure they have a deep and fond relationship.Risto the Great
MACEDONIA:ANHEDONIA
"Holding my breath for the revolution."
Hey, I wrote a bestseller. Check it out: www.ren-shen.comComment
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Whilst Gruos presence may dilute or undermine any legitimate resistance, let's not lose focus on what is truly a national tragedy today.
But as long as we can blame others it's ok, let's justify laws that are undermining our nation, laws that have no benefits commercially, laws implemented without debate or discussion, laws brought in forcefully, laws that legalise the decline of our nation, laws to keep sds solely in powers and laws that make Albanian official in places like gevgelliija.
Remember when DUI fillibustered the proposed law for pensions for veterans of 2001?Comment
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It will be interesting to hear Xhaferi conducting parliamentary business in Albanian from now on...I'm sure he will make a point of using Albanian and reinforcing the new law...Originally posted by Niko777 View PostA squabble between Gruevski and Xhaferi in parliament today over the Law of Languages.
Funny how they got along just fine when they were both in the same government and Xhaferi was Albanianizing the army as Minister of Defence
What a disgraceful turn of events put in motion by pathetic Macedonian politicians (from both major parties) and a population with their heads buried in their arses...Macedonia is disappearing before our very eyes.Comment
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Labor apologises for 'highly offensive' Greek-Macedonian mix-up in Batman campaign
Bill Shorten and Labor candidate for Batman Ged Kearney have apologised over a mistake on a campaign flyer.
Find the GREEK responsible for this and sack him instantly.Labor leader Bill Shorten and the party's candidate for the Batman by-election Ged Kearney have apologised after a campaign flyer used Greek text under the subheading 'Macedonian' - an error which angered some in Austalia's Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia community.
The flyer printed policy information in several languages including Arabic, Italian, Vietnamese and Greek. But the Greek language was also used in the Macedonian section instead of the Macedonian language.
In an email to SBS News, a joint statement from Mr Shorten and Ms Kearney said they "sincerely apologise for this error and the upset it has caused".
"A production error was made during the printing of a flyer that the campaign distributed this week, which saw a translated message in the Greek language placed beneath the headline 'Macedonian'.
"Clearly the translated message should have been in the Macedonian language ... We were not aware of it until the flyer was distributed.
"We appreciate the important contribution that the Macedonian community has made in Melbourne and in the electorate of Batman.
"If Ged is elected ... she looks forward to working with all local communities to strengthen the diversity and multicultural vibrancy of the Batman community."
The by-election takes place on Saturday.
'Highly offensive'
Campaign staff said an apology would be distributed to Batman's Macedonian community. But the error has already provoked anger among some.
The World Macedonian Congress Australia issued a public letter on Tuesday expressing "dismay" at the mistake.
"It is highly offensive and discriminatory to impose a Greek translation on the flyer, considering Macedonian is an internationally recognised language, that there are registered Australian Macedonian NAATI certified translators for the Macedonian language in Australia," the non-profit organisation said.
"The flyer has upset Macedonian émigrés, who do not read, speak or write in the Greek language and this is a provocation by the Australian Labor Party, highly discriminatory against a sizeable Australian minority."
Name dispute
Macedonia and Greece are currently locked in a bitter dispute over the former’s use of the name Macedonia, a dispute reignited after the break up of Yugoslavia. Thousands of protesters gathered in Melbourne and Sydney this month to rally for the country's right to keep its name.
Greece opposes the use of the name Macedonia, insisting it belongs to a region of Greece and nowhere else.
Labor's Ms Kearney and the Greens' Alex Bhathal are frontrunners the Batman by-election. The Liberal and Nationals parties did not field a contender in the Melbourne seat.
Ms Kearney has been president of The Australian Council of Trade Unions since 2010 and previously worked as a nurse.Risto the Great
MACEDONIA:ANHEDONIA
"Holding my breath for the revolution."
Hey, I wrote a bestseller. Check it out: www.ren-shen.comComment
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Again Ivanov hasn't ratified the new legislation. I have always felt it will be in his hands. I wonder what happens next. I hope for mad riots across Macedonia. But we would need Macedonians for that.Risto the Great
MACEDONIA:ANHEDONIA
"Holding my breath for the revolution."
Hey, I wrote a bestseller. Check it out: www.ren-shen.comComment
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Chaos, absolute chaos.
If it is possible to sleep while upstanding, the Macedonian parliamentarians have proved it can be done.
Why do Macedonian MP's vote in the majority for wider use of the Albanian Language?
They only have themselves to blame.
We are a laughing stock.Comment
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They should not only apologise to the Macedonian community, they should apologise to all in the electorate of Batman for misguiding them.Originally posted by Risto the Great View PostBill Shorten and Labor candidate for Batman Ged Kearney have apologised over a mistake on a campaign flyer.
Find the GREEK responsible for this and sack him instantly.
They have upset Macedonians but misguided others as well.
There should be a formal public apology.Comment
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