Political Discontent Among Albanians in Macedonia

[vicsinad]

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/tensions-loom-over-macedonia-s-election-campaign-11-15-2016

An incident at the weekend when Ali Ahmeti, the head of the junior ruling Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, narrowly escaped an attack by an angry mob in the town of Kumanovo could be the beginning of an outburst of discontent among voters, observers suggested.

“It is clear that there is great dissatisfaction smouldering among the people and they express it at times in a very tense way,” political analyst and former MP Ismet Ramadani told BIRN.
“Similar things [like the Kumanovo incident] may happen in some other place,” Ramadani warned.

On Sunday in Kumanovo, protesters blocked Ahmeti’s path and threw stones at his motorcade, breaking a car window. Ahmeti, who was heading for a local party meeting, had to be rescued by the police.
In a press statement on Monday, the DUI said that Sunday’s incident was politically motivated by their opponents in the ethnic Albanian political bloc.

“We express regret for the shameful misuse of people’s pain by some new political groups who want to get affirmation through desperate moves,” the DUI said.

The people who attacked Ahmeti were mainly former sympathisers of his DUI party who were relatives and supporters of Xhemail Rexhepi, aka Commander Shqiponja, who was killed in July last year. They insisted that Ahmeti was persona non grata in Kumanovo.

People close to the party at that time saw the murder of Rexhepi, who was a candidate for the head of the party's local branch, as a sign of a deep rift within the DUI’s local branches, not only in Kumanovo.
Bajram Limani, at the time acting head of the DUI in Kumanovo, surrendered after saying that he and his supporters acted in self-defence and had been attacked by Rexhepi's group in his office.
For some observers, the incident in Kumanovo on Sunday hinted at an atmosphere of rage and dissatisfaction that will affect the forthcoming pre-term general elections.

Police said that they were “aware of the heightened political tensions due to the forthcoming elections” and warned all political players against violence.

The elections follow the eruption of political crisis that centres on opposition claims that the DUI’s partner, the main ruling VMRO DPMNE party, was behind the illegal wiretapping of about 20,000 people, which it denies.

“The crisis did not get its true catharsis despite the many protests by Macedonians and Albanians, but caused an implosion of dissatisfaction which is smouldering among the citizens, due to various unsolved problems… which culminated after the [revelation of the] wiretaps,” a former DUI member was quoted as telling Deutsche Welle on Monday on condition of anonymity.

“The [wiretapped] recordings were ignored and met with contempt and impudence by the establishment, which made the revolt [among the people] grow to a proportion that nobody can now predict,” the source said.

DUI leader Ali Ahmeti has not been in Kumanovo since May last year, when a two-day shootout between the police and a group of ethnic Albanian gunmen left eight officers and 14 gunmen dead.
Although the DUI and VMRO DPMNE denied any involvement in the shootout, many people, including the opposition, suspected that it was set up by the ruling parties in order to divert attention from the political crisis and the protests that followed, which seriously rocked the government.

[Philosopher]

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/arti...ign-11-15-2016

An incident at the weekend when Ali Ahmeti, the head of the junior ruling Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, narrowly escaped an attack by an angry mob in the town of Kumanovo could be the beginning of an outburst of discontent among voters, observers suggested.

“It is clear that there is great dissatisfaction smouldering among the people and they express it at times in a very tense way,” political analyst and former MP Ismet Ramadani told BIRN.
“Similar things [like the Kumanovo incident] may happen in some other place,” Ramadani warned.

On Sunday in Kumanovo, protesters blocked Ahmeti’s path and threw stones at his motorcade, breaking a car window. Ahmeti, who was heading for a local party meeting, had to be rescued by the police.
In a press statement on Monday, the DUI said that Sunday’s incident was politically motivated by their opponents in the ethnic Albanian political bloc.

“We express regret for the shameful misuse of people’s pain by some new political groups who want to get affirmation through desperate moves,” the DUI said.

The people who attacked Ahmeti were mainly former sympathisers of his DUI party who were relatives and supporters of Xhemail Rexhepi, aka Commander Shqiponja, who was killed in July last year. They insisted that Ahmeti was persona non grata in Kumanovo.

People close to the party at that time saw the murder of Rexhepi, who was a candidate for the head of the party's local branch, as a sign of a deep rift within the DUI’s local branches, not only in Kumanovo.
Bajram Limani, at the time acting head of the DUI in Kumanovo, surrendered after saying that he and his supporters acted in self-defence and had been attacked by Rexhepi's group in his office.
For some observers, the incident in Kumanovo on Sunday hinted at an atmosphere of rage and dissatisfaction that will affect the forthcoming pre-term general elections.

Police said that they were “aware of the heightened political tensions due to the forthcoming elections” and warned all political players against violence.

The elections follow the eruption of political crisis that centres on opposition claims that the DUI’s partner, the main ruling VMRO DPMNE party, was behind the illegal wiretapping of about 20,000 people, which it denies.

“The crisis did not get its true catharsis despite the many protests by Macedonians and Albanians, but caused an implosion of dissatisfaction which is smouldering among the citizens, due to various unsolved problems… which culminated after the [revelation of the] wiretaps,” a former DUI member was quoted as telling Deutsche Welle on Monday on condition of anonymity.

“The [wiretapped] recordings were ignored and met with contempt and impudence by the establishment, which made the revolt [among the people] grow to a proportion that nobody can now predict,” the source said.

DUI leader Ali Ahmeti has not been in Kumanovo since May last year, when a two-day shootout between the police and a group of ethnic Albanian gunmen left eight officers and 14 gunmen dead.
Although the DUI and VMRO DPMNE denied any involvement in the shootout, many people, including the opposition, suspected that it was set up by the ruling parties in order to divert attention from the political crisis and the protests that followed, which seriously rocked the government.

Vic, to pick your mind a bit, are you for the political aspirations of Albanians? What do you think the Macedonian government should or should not when it comes to Albanian Macedonian citizens?

[vicsinad]

That's a very general question to which I could give a very vague answer. For example, I don't think all Albanians have the same political aspirations. Do you mean Albanians that want independence from Macedonia? Can you be more specific?

[Risto the Great]

Vic, to pick your mind a bit, are you for the political aspirations of Albanians? What do you think the Macedonian government should or should not when it comes to Albanian Macedonian citizens?

The Macedonian government is effectively an Albanian government. If you asked about the Macedonian people, the question would be more reasonable.

[Philosopher]

That's a very general question to which I could give a very vague answer. For example, I don't think all Albanians have the same political aspirations. Do you mean Albanians that want independence from Macedonia? Can you be more specific?

Fair enough. To be more specific, I mean Albanian aspirations in the context of autonomy or secession from the Republic of Macedonia?

What I am trying to get at is do you believe there is a place for a government to be protective of its ethnic identity, culture, language, and borders? Or should government not be involved in these matters?

If census data numbers are accurate, Albanians in Macedonia reproduce more than ethnic Macedonians. In a free and open society, a time will probably come when a minority may become a majority, and may in fact endeavor to secede or declare autonomy in certain ethnic enclaves or may in fact want its language to be officially recognized, or may in fact demand equal or at least guaranteed representation in government.

What are your thoughts on these matters in general?

[vicsinad]

I think a system that focuses on individual rights is better than one that focuses on community rights. Which is obviously a problem in the Balkans where the countries are (legitimately or not) paranoid and insecure about their borders / territories and identity. Thus, the idea of community rights tends to predominate the Balkans.

Re: the Albanian secession issue. First, I see two options to peace in the Balkans: a) complete open borders, or b) maintaining the current borders with no exceptions. Theoretically, the whole point of borders is for security and to protect the interests, rights and freedoms of those living within the borders. However, in practice, it has sometimes been used to emphasize the rights of one ethno-national community over others, or for individuals in power to enhance their personal interests. On the other hand, Yugoslavia was an offshoot concept of open borders that didn't work well in the end because of the way it was governed and the marginalization and fear that was in place.

To answer your question: no, I wouldn't want Albanians to secede from Macedonia, because of a) what it could mean for the Macedonian culture and identity, and b) what it could potentially mean for peace and stability in the region given the current environment on the ground. Would the Albanians have the right to secede? Coming from the perspective on self-determination, yes: no different than Macedonians in Greece should have the right to secede. Adding the concept of historical justice, as others on the forum have previously mentioned -- or just justice in general -- then it gets more complicated and muddy's the whole concept of secession.

I think open borders could solve many of these problems; it may actually end up promoting and strengthening our current notions of culture in a way that is more purer than we have now (eg. museums to preserve culture versus actually practicing culture). Perhaps people would feel less threatened by other groups. If you look at the US, Canada and Australia, a lot of the traditional cultures based on ethnicity and religion are fading away, but other subcultures are taking their place (from hippies to hipsters to whatever). Is this a bad or good thing? I don't know. Is it preventable in a society that emphasizes individual rights over community rights? Probably not.

Then again, it's all about how the transition happens. Where is the power concentrated? Are people still ignorant and apathetic? Are there groups still trying to subvert and dominate other groups? Perhaps national borders are the best way of dealing with the Balkans and the world --regarding both culture and security -- for now until the peoples and countries can become genuine friends and genuinely trust each other. My inkling, however, is it doesn't work and I'd be more likely to support a world with no national borders and more local self control. But I know I'm in the minority on this issue and it's a theoretical mess in itself.

As a side note, we've all seen how individuals can grasp onto ideas (religion, ethnicity, culture, ideological) and amass a group of blind, ignorant and loyal followers and the danger that poses. So perhaps the best way to protect a community from another community is to not focus on community rights and interests but individual rights and interests.