United Macedonia Diaspora

[Gocka]

Interesting, he speaks directly and concisely he was not vague at all which he usually is. He also labeled the new DM as a terrorist.

So many events in such a short time.

[Gocka]

Delete duplicate post

[Risto the Great]

Does the Macedonian Diaspora really not have a problem with any Albanian minister of Defense (much less that terrorist)?

I'm sick of seeing this constitutional name reference. The constitution has already been changed under international pressure.

[Stojacanec]

If the constitutional name was changed under duress then it is an illegal change.

I don't mind where the momentum starts from, UMD or a barbeque gathering, if there is a push to change the name in the UN the UMD have my full support.

[Risto the Great]

Originally Posted by Stojacanec

If the constitutional name was changed under duress then it is an illegal change.

If it has been rejected ever since, I would possibly agree with you. But I would say it has been embraced at almost all levels.

[Gocka]

Originally Posted by Risto the Great

If it has been rejected ever since, I would possibly agree with you. But I would say it has been embraced at almost all levels.

I would tend to agree, the UMD have not always had this stance or have flirted with not clearly saying what they stand for. Although this time it does seem he was pretty clear. You do not see his statement as a good thing or you are skeptical that it is worth anything and next week he will contradict what he said now, he being Meto?

[Vangelovski]

UMD backflips on the name negotiations (again....). Time and again the UMD has called for an end to the negotiations only to backflip to its default position of supporting them. It also continues to pretend to speak on behalf of Macedonians across the world.

While Meto claims that UMD does not support the name negotiations in this release, everything else he says is in clear support of them. He continues to use the Interim Accord in a positive light and as an argument in support of NATO and EU membership, meaning that FYROM joins, not Macedonia.

The United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD), as one of the leading voices for Macedonians worldwide, strongly rejects Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ comments that Greece is the only constructive partner towards reaching a solution on the name issue. The Greek PM further noted that the neighboring countries, Albania and Bulgaria, could attest to Greece’s supposed constructiveness. The comments by the Greek PM were made this past Tuesday at the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, D.C.

“Although UMD does not believe Macedonia should negotiate its name, Macedonia has been more than constructive in the UN-led negotiations with Greece,” said UMD President Metodija A. Koloski. “Samaras true beliefs were presented in 2008 on national Greek TV when he stated that Macedonia would eventually be divided between a greater Albania and greater Bulgaria and thus Greece should not work to resolve the name dispute it imposed on Macedonia.”

“It is not constructive to stir the pot by adding Albania and Bulgaria to Greece’s agenda to impose a new name on Macedonia,” further noted Koloski.

The Republic of Macedonia joined the UN in 1993 under the imposed name “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,” changed its flag and its Constitution in a show of good faith, and has been willing to join international organizations under the UN name. Greece, on the other hand, continues to block Macedonia’s membership into NATO and the EU, has upped the requirements that Macedonia must change its name for all uses “erga omnes,” including in its Constitution and passports, and has continuously waged a propaganda war against Macedonia and its people.

UMD strongly urges the Greek Prime Minister and his government to stop the blame game, and hiding behind the “name issue” to rally domestic public support amidst the grave economic and political crises currently present in Greece. UMD is deeply concerned regarding the rise of extremism in Greece, which has resulted in curbing people’s freedoms, including minority and religious rights and the freedom of expression of the sizable Macedonian minority in the country. Although, the Greek Prime Minister recently vowed to put an end to the Greek neo-Nazi political party Golden Dawn, yesterday’s release of three members of Parliament, charged with criminal activities, from jail shows a great deal of concern for the future stability of the country.

UMD took note of the EU foreign policy chief’s comments earlier this week in Washington, D.C. calling on leaders in the Balkans to look at the bigger picture for the future of the region. Given the importance of stability in the region and the NATO and EU enlargement processes, the Greek Prime Minister should meet with the Macedonian Prime Minister, something that the Macedonian Prime Minister has been requesting for a long time now, in order to resolve their differences. UMD urges the U.S. Administration to disregard the Greek Prime Minister’s comments, and lead the way to pave the path for Macedonia to be invited to join NATO at the NATO Summit in the United Kingdom in 2014.

http://umdiaspora.org/index.php/en/f...s-on-macedonia

[MKPrilep]

Makedonskiot Jazik e vo teška i zagrozena sostoJba vo GrciJa

Makedonskiot Jazik e rečisi izumren meǵu pomladite generacii, a postarite generacii koi govorat na makedonski so svoite semeJstva, izbegnuvaat da go koristat Jazikot vo Javnost, izJavila EvgeniJa Naculidu, aktivistka za pravata na Makedoncite vo GrciJa i tamošen pretstavnik na Obedinetata makedonska diJaspora. Na seminarot na Mrežata za promoviranje na Jazična raznovidnost vo Dablin, Naculidu predupredila deka GrciJa Ja zabranuva upotreba na makedonskiot Jazik vo oficiJalni celi. „Makedonskiot Jazik nikogaš ne se upotrebuva vo formalen govor, vo prodavnica, ili vo državnite institucii, pa duri i koga govornikot znae deka liceto na koe toJ/taa mu se obraḱa, isto taka govori makedonski", izavila Naculidu i poračala deka OMD ḱe bara od grčkata vlada da stori poveḱe za začuvuvanjeto na makedonskiot Jazik, a kako početen čekor da donese zakon za zaštita na regionalni Jazici i Jazicite na malcinstvata.

http://grid.mk/read/news/506117198/5...ojba-vo-grcija

[julie]

could be backflipping UMD in support of this article http://www.24vesti.mk/ahmeti-bara-in...za-predvremeni

[lavce pelagonski]

Interview with Meto Koloski President of the United Macedonian Diaspora

1) Have you been a member of the Macedonian Patriotic Organization (MPO), if yes, for how many years?

No, I have never been a member of this organization.

2) When did you become an activist of the Macedonian Community in the USA?

I am not sure how early in life I could call myself an activist, as I think involvement in the Macedonian community was embedded within my entire family from an early stage of arriving in the U.S. My uncle was the founder and president of the Macedonian Society of New York City in the 60s, which included members such as George Atanasoski, Jordan Atanasoski, and others still active today. They also worked together to realize the opening of Sts. Kiril and Metodij Macedonian Orthodox Church in New Jersey, and NYC’s first and only church, St. Clement of Ohrid in Queens. The plans for the New Jersey church were drafted at my aunt’s house, and her husband became the vice president of the church committee. My father later served as a secretary of the church committee, and my mother on the women’s auxiliary. In addition, my father was a founding member of the Macedonian Human Rights Movement of New Jersey, which is still active today.
The first memory I have of being active for the community is participating in the protests that supported Macedonia’s name before the United Nations and the White House in the early 90s. My father and his friends were active in organizing these protests, as well as the Macedonian parade on 5th Avenue in NYC in 1994-5. There was a lot of excitement in those days, and, as a child, I was thrilled to be part of it all.
Although this is my first memory of mobilizing for a Macedonian cause, I would say I began habitual activism when I received my first computer at the age of 12. I began working on Macedonian chat rooms on both AOL and MIRC to connect Macedonians, and subscribed to various mailing lists, and participated actively in them. Later on, with many of the young Macedonian-Americans and Canadian-Macedonians I met, we formed the Macedonian Orthodox Youth Association of North America (MOYANA), to serve as a unitary body for young Macedonians in North America who are of Macedonian Orthodox heritage.
On August 2, 2000, Ilinden, my father passed away from cancer. His memory and his pride in my being involved in Macedonian causes is why I am so active today. I am carrying on his work that he could not finish.
MOYANA helped organize the 2001 anti-Albanian terrorist protests in front of the United Nations and White House, and assisted with promoting and getting the word out about the protests that were planned to take place in front of the State Department. As the New Jersey/NYC coordinator for MOYANA, and as an active member of my church community, I was heavily involved in helping to raise over $50,000 for the children and families of those killed in the 2001 conflict in Macedonia. In addition, with a team of individuals, which included the likes of Filip Stojanovski (GlobalVoices), and Darko Angelov (current Macedonian Ambassador to Hungary), we circulated accurate and timely information about the 2001 conflict through the website RealityMacedonia.com.mk and through its mailing list RMDigest. I was also very involved with writing articles for Maknews.com.

3) Who did you consult to establish a new Macedonian organisation when there are well established and why you did not join them?

The question you are asking poses another question, who needs to be consulted if any Macedonian wants to start a new organization, any type of organization, that would promote Macedonia, our culture, our heritage, language, and work on behalf of our people to introduce these things to the rest of the world and preserve them for generations to come? I would hope that you would agree with me that the answer to this is no one. I am not aware of any governing body that needs to be consulted and whose approval is needed for any Macedonian to start a new organization. In fact, as far as I am concerned, I hope that Macedonians start many new organizations around the world because that would mean that more work would be done on behalf of Macedonia, which in turn will greatly benefit our people.
The idea of UMD was born a year or two before the organization was founded. When I moved to Washington, D.C. in 2003, I sought out young Macedonian students studying at American University (AU), George Washington University, and Georgetown University. While studying at AU, I met several Macedonian students, which interned at influential think tanks, like the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. In 2003, Macedonia and the Balkans were fully on the agenda of Washington, particularly post-Kosovo Crisis, Bosnia, and the new U.S.-Adriatic Charter. There were also many young and educated Macedonians around the world with which we had been in regular contact sharing ideas and ways we could help Macedonia. My friends and I realized there was no voice for Macedonians in Washington, D.C. to educate the public on the truth about Macedonia. Furthermore, we realized that in order for us to be effective, and the voice of the Macedonian people to be heard loud and clear around the world, an organization with global reach is needed, a global Macedonian organization. There was an event at the AU Law School about Albanians in the Balkans, and the Albanian Ambassador at the time in D.C. openly stated that 50% of Macedonia’s population was Albanian. My article for Maknews.com disputing the comments made by the Albanian Ambassador got me in a lot of trouble to the point of getting a phone call from a former Clinton advisor directly threatening that I will never make it in Washington, D.C. The Albanian Ambassador also yelled at me in public at the Woodrow Wilson Center, accusing me of spreading lies. I heard what I heard and stand by that. Funny enough, the Albanian Ambassador was recalled due to some corruption scandal a year or so later.
We saw a void in Washington, D.C. and filled it by forming the Macedonian Association of Students and Young Professionals, which later grew into a global organization, the United Macedonian Diaspora. In 2004, I went to Macedonia, and was a witness to the debate of decentralization, and partook in the famous protest in the square before Parliament – it was truly an eye opening moment. That year, we were part of a campaign for the U.S. Embassy to not be built on the Skopje Kale, because of the historical significance of the area. I got my Congressman involved, and he lodged a complaint with the State Department. We received a call from the State Department for a meeting on October 28, 2004 (4 of us went, including Vladimir Atseff, a former Vice President of the MPO (a true and patriotic Macedonian who resigned from MPO because it started to become too Bulgarian), Steve Gligorov, a co-founder of UMD, and Zoya Naskova, who was VP of the Macedonian American Friendship Association). During the meeting, we discussed the Kale issue, but also urged the U.S. to recognize Macedonia by its constitutional name. Little did we know a week later, the U.S. would recognize Macedonia on November 4, 2004. I do not want to claim this meeting was the reason behind the decision, but every single time any Macedonian-American urges for recognition it helps the united efforts, which is why I urge more Macedonians to become active and get involved.

4) We know that The Macedonian organisations are struggling for money, how did you get the financial support for lobbying and your salary?

First and foremost, I want to make it clear that the United Macedonian Diaspora does not lobby. UMD is an international educational advocacy, social action, and community improvement type of organization. UMD’s financial support derives from its donors, members, and various events we hold throughout the year. UMD’s budget goes towards paying of full-time and part-time staff, office rent and expenses, internship stipends, various programming and charitable and educational initiatives. From 2008 to 2011, UMD received a $50,000 a year matching grant from the Turkish Coalition of America, only if we raised $50,000, which we were able to do. The Chairman of TCA is of part Macedonian heritage, and we are most grateful for his past assistance. In conclusion, I want to add that the UMD is also one of those organizations that are struggling for money. We try to do as much as we can and stretch every dollar to the maximum, but there is only so much anyone can do. Funding for our operations is a constant struggle that we have managed to overcome thus far, and will most likely remain to be a struggle for the foreseeable future.

5) In Australia we have organisations like the UMD that were formed after the second World War which have successfully represented the Macedonian Community. Why has the UMD interfered and why did you proclaim the UMD as the highest body of the Macedonian Community? We have information that you represent the Macedonian Community of Australia only with two member (Ordan Andreevski and Dame Krcovski) who mislead the entire Macedonian community and the Macedonians worldwide announcing that the Republic of Macedonia will be recognised under its constitutional name.

First and foremost, I want to commend all of the Macedonian organizations in Australia for all of their hard work and dedication to the Macedonian cause throughout the years, and to wish them best of luck and even more success in the future. Secondly, I would like to say that “interfering” is an inappropriate word to describe the efforts of UMD worldwide, and to add that neither I or anyone from the UMD leadership has ever “proclaimed the UMD as the highest body of the Macedonian Community”. Our motto has always been to do work and let the others do the talking. UMD, as an organization, has always tried to stay very close to its membership and to be present anywhere in the world where we have members. UMD has always had a membership base in Australia, from the very beginning, and has conducted many successful initiatives, including the publishing of a report on the Macedonian Diaspora in cooperation with six Australian educational institutions. Ordan Andreevski is the Director of UMD Australia. UMD Australia has two members on the Board of UMD Global, and has its own officers in Australia, throughout the country, including WA, NSW, VIC, and ACT. UMD Australia is its own entity and decisions made on Australia are made by UMD Australia officers.
I can tell you with certainty that nobody from UMD Australia, or UMD Global, in fact, had ever stated that Australia will recognize Macedonia by its constitutional name at the UMD Sydney Gala, but rather that UMD Australia hopes that the Australian policy will change as soon as possible. In fact, everything that we have done in Australia throughout the years, including the Gala, has been with one goal in mine, to help change that policy. Unfortunately, one of the Macedonian media outlets sensationalized, as most of the times they do, the UMD Sydney Gala and put the title of their story “Australia will recognize Macedonia by its constitutional name at the UMD Sydney Gala.” I was in Macedonia at this time, and during the press conference about the 4th UMD Global Conference, which occurred the day before the UMD Sydney Gala, I clearly stated that these are speculations from other sources and the media, and are not claims by the UMD. This was indeed a mistake, but not one that was caused by the UMD, and this is why we believe that Macedonia needs professional media.

6) Why did you extended UMD in Aegean Macedonia where there is a well established registered Macedonian political Party "Vinozito"?

Vinozito is a recipient of the UMD Human Rights Award for working to give the voiceless Macedonians in Greece a voice. UMD respects the human rights activities of Vinozito, as we do for all human rights advocates worldwide. UMD, however, is not a political party, and cannot fund the activities of any political party. Many have asked me this question, and I have had to be very clear. UMD is registered as a 501 (c)(3) non-profit in the U.S., a non-profit in Australia, and as a charitable organization in Canada. The rules and regulations for non-profits are very strict and we must abide by them.
UMD has a representative based in Aegean Macedonia and handles all of Greece. Eugenia Natsoulidou is a very hardworking individual, and I have been in meetings with her with policymakers in Washington, D.C., Brussels, and Skopje and I am impressed with her level of professionalism and communication skills. She has spoken publicly at events on extremism in Greece in Washington, D.C. and Ottawa and has left the audiences in awe. There is a lot of work to be done to ensure Macedonians have equal civil rights in Greece, and having UMD present will only help our global efforts. Eugenia runs the Educative and Cultural Movement of Edessa (Voden), which is a non-profit organization working to promote the Macedonian language in Greece, by organizing language classes, translating books from Macedonian into Greek, and Greek into Macedonian, and a lot into English as well. She manages an Internet radio, as well as an information blog, BelamorskaMakedonija, and a monthly newspaper. The organization is a member of the Network for Promoting Linguistic Diversity in Europe, and Eugenia has spoken at their conferences in Brussels and Corsica to educate them that in Greece there is no respect for linguistic diversity. The more individuals and Macedonian organizations that are active in Aegean Macedonia the better for our people there.

7) Have you taken into consideration the role of the World Macedonian Congress and Todor Petrov?

I am not sure what exactly you mean by this question, but yes we are aware of the World Macedonian Congress, and we try to stay informed about their activities as we do with all Macedonian organizations. UMD considers the work of all of the Macedonian organizations around the world as important. UMD is its own organization with a clear defined mission statement and objectives, and with programs to support those objectives and produce measureable results.

8) Who is supporting the UMD's Seminar in Macedonia which cost more than 450 000 dollars?

If you mean the 4th UMD Global Conference, which was held in Macedonia this summer marking the 100th Anniversary of the Treaty of Bucharest and the cultural tours throughout Macedonia, Mala Prespa, and Aegean Macedonia then that figure is grossly inflated? The cost of the entire conference was approximately $55,000-$60,000. Conference registrations, Gala ticket purchases, and sponsorships covered a great portion of the cost. It is estimated that the attendees of the UMD GC2013 coming from 26 countries enriched the local Macedonian economy in upwards of $350,000.

9) Why has the UMD handed out awards recognising individuals like Bob Karr, Kiro Gligorov, Philip Reeker and many others who have been detrimental to the Macedonian cause?

UMD bestows awards on individuals to recognize them for the efforts and work they have done or are doing to promote Macedonia and its interests. We realize that not everyone will be happy with every single award, but rather than looking at any UMD award as a singular recognition, we encourage the public to view the UMD Awards as a collective tool used by the UMD to recognize individuals for promoting Macedonia and its interests, and to encourage them to do even more of that in the future. UMD’s Board of Directors receives nominations for Awards and then vote on whom to give out Awards to. The UMD Board selects which programs and projects to spend time and resources on, and as a non-voting Board member and President of the organization, it is my responsibility to facilitate communication and implementation of these programs and projects.

10) The UMD has state many times that Macedonia should enter NATO and the EU, under which name does the UMD want Macedonia to enter under, FYROM or Republic of Macedonia.

The UMD has state many times that Macedonia should enter NATO and the EU, under which name does the UMD want Macedonia to enter under, FYROM or Republic of Macedonia.
The official and rightful name of course, the Republic of Macedonia. There is no other name. FYROM is offensive and derogatory, and we make sure that everyone that we talk to knows that.

11) What is the UMD's stance on the government flag of Macedonia which to the Macedonian Diaspora is a sign of Macedonia's capitulation to Greece and is directly linked to the name issue. Do you think that this flag represents the Macedonian people over the 16 ray Macedonian sun which has been used by our people for centuries and can be seen all over Macedonian and in our Churches ?

Before I answer your question, I want to add that UMD’s own logo is a variation of the 16-ray Star of Kutlesh, a modern version of it designed by a third generation Canadian-Macedonian woman. The big rays represent adults; the small rays youth, all dancing the Macedonian oro planting the seeds for the future.
UMD uses both the Star of Kutlesh and the official flag of the Republic of Macedonia at various events. Many Macedonian churches display both flags, especially in the presence of government officials from Macedonia. We believe that the 16-ray Star of Kutlesh represents the spiritual connection and the bond that all Macedonians around the world share. The official flag of the Republic of Macedonia, designed by a Macedonian, has been the flag for the Republic of Macedonia since 1995. Many Macedonians wish we were not forced to change the flag, because the new flag implies loses and not victory. Reality today is that 2.1 million people living in Macedonia do use the 8-ray flag as their official flag.