MAK-NEWS 03/07/95 (M.I.L.S.)

Macedonian Information Liaison Service Directory

CONTENTS

MILS NEWS

Skopje, 3 July 1995

[01] CRVENKOVSKI MEETS BULGARIAN SOCIALISTS

Macedonian Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski received last Friday Georgi Prvanov, vice-president of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, and Emil Kostadinov, member of the party's central leadership. They arrived in Skopje on an invitation of the Macedonian Socialist Party to discuss Macedonian- Bulgarian relations, which were described as very good. Both sides agreed to a need for improvement of the economic cooperation.

Crvenkovski stated readiness to meet his Bulgarian counterpart in the near future.

[02] MACEDONIA IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF ITALIAN FOREIGN POLICY

'At the current historical moment, Macedonia, along with that part of the Balkans, is a top issue in the foreign policy of Italy,' said Pierro Fasino, foreign relations secretary of the Italian Party of Democratic Left Wing, in an interview with the Skopje daily Nova Makedonija. He underlined that his party stands for intensive relations between Macedonia and Italy in all fields. The policy, he said, is accepted by all other political parties in Italy.

[03] MACEDONIA TO ATTEND 'INVESTMENT BY EUROPE'

A delegation from Macedonia, led by Minister of Development Bekhir Zhuta will attend a Paris conference entitled 'Investment by Europe', on July 6. The delegation will make contacts with European investors interested in investing in Macedonia.

[04] PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF OSCE TO HOLD CONGRESS

In Ottawa, Canada, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly will hold its 8th congress, July 4-8. A Macedonian parliamentary delegation, consisted of Pance Nasev, Ljubomir Popovski, Naser Ziberi and Jovan Pejkovski will also attend the congress.

[05] GREEK POLICY ON MACEDONIA CRITICIZED BY EVANGELOS KOFOS

A1 Television cites Evangelos Kofos, ex-member of the Greek Foreign Ministry, as criticizing Athens' official policy on Macedonia.

'In order to force away demons and protect the Greek identity, Government has renamed the traditional Macedonian issue into a Skopje issue,' he said. He added that political leaders have made themselves untouchable as time went on, so that they can blur and hide their political and mental rigidity. Kofos accuses the Greek Foreign Ministry of having built walls around itself to save the formula including a combined name for the Macedonian state. Speaking on the embargo against Macedonia, he said the Government rushed to introduce a measure that cannot possibly be implemented by anyone.

'At these decisive times, we are cowardly avoiding to make brave decisions, as we seem to believe that there are no other scientifically acceptable solutions apart from the already rotten stereotypes,' he concluded.

[06] MACEDONIA AND ROMANIA TO ESTABLISH CONSULAR RELATIONS

Delegates of the Macedonian and Romanian foreign ministries met June 29-30 in Skopje, to hold a second round of talks regarding the draft-text of a convention on consular relations between the two countries. The text was determined and will be submitted for approval to relevant government bodies.

[07] US INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATED IN SKOPJE

On the occasion of 4 July, the American Independence Day, the US Liaison Office organized a picnic last Saturday in Skopje, attended by more than 1000 guests. Chief of the Liaison Office Victor Comras read a message to US President Bill Clinton and Macedonian Government's spokesman Djuner Ismail expressed best wishes on behalf of the government.

[08] FIRST USA DC-8 LANDS IN SKOPJE

The first-ever DC-8 plane landed at the Skopje airport last week, coming in from Detroit. The plane belongs to 'Reach International Airways', a Miami air company planning several more such flights over the summer.

[09] CHILDREN REFUGEES JUBILEE MARKED IN SKOPJE

A manifestation took place in a Skopje park last Friday, to mark the seventh jubilee of the World Meeting of Children Refugees from Aegean Macedonia.

[10] RELIEVED DEFENSE MINISTRY OFFICIALS REACT

Two of the four officials of the Ministry of Defense, recently relieved of duty, publicly addressed Defense Minister Blagoj Handziski, saying that reasons stated for their replacement are not true, A1 Television and the Skopje daily Vecher report.

'I ask of you to state your facts and arguments before the public and I will present mine, which are left locked in my office,' under-secretary Aleksandar Stamenkovski says in his open letter to Handziski.

[11] DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF TURKS CELEBRATE FIFTH ANNIVERSARY

Two days ago, the Democratic Party of Turks in Macedonia organized a celebration at the Theater of National Minority, to mark the fifth anniversary of the party. The present were addressed by the party leader Erdogan Sarac. The party, he said, has been and remains open to a constructive cooperation with all political factors in the country, in order to stabilize the political and economic situation in Macedonia, this being the sole precondition for its inclusion into the European integration processes.

[12] SOCIALISTS HOLD SECOND CONGRESS

The Socialist Party of Macedonia held its second congress last Saturday in Skopje, in the attendance of representatives of socialist parties from Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Italy, Germany and Spain. The present were addresses by the party president Kiro Popovski, who emphasized that no radical changes in the party's program and goals are to be expected from the congress.

Popovski said the party will insist on criteria for mutual relations between the partners in the Alliance for Macedonia coalition in order to strengthen the Alliance. Socialist party members, he added are increasingly dissatisfied with the superior attitude and behavior of one coalition member towards the other two.

'It is very disturbing and unacceptable to hear certain members of the coalition parties point out their own results in the second parliamentary elections, as if forgetting they did not run on their own and that the majority of votes were won thanks to the coalition's platform and the one of Mr. Kiro Gligorov,' Popovski underlined.

The congress re-elected Kiro Popovski a party president, appointing Filipovski and Trpevski vice-presidents. Party delegates also adopted a report on the work of the party between the two congresses.

Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski attended the congress as a SDSM leader, but no Liberal Party officials appeared. The Socialist Party delegates of Shtip were denied attendance on grounds of their fractionating ideas. In a sign of protest, the latter demonstrated in front of the congress hall.

[13] ROUND TABLE ON SOCIALIST AND DEMOCRATIC LEFT WING VISIONS

The Socialist Party of Macedonia yesterday organized a round table on the topic 'Thoughts and Visions of Socialists and Democratic Left Wing on a New, United Europe'. The debate was attended by socialist and left-wing parties from Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Italy and Germany. The renowned Croatian professor Dr. Stipe Suvar gave an introductory speech, to present the historical development Pand fall of Communism. Bureaucratic Socialism in Europe did die, he said, but the new struggle is aimed at securing a leading role for democratic Socialism. The death of Socialism, Suvar said, does not mean that Capitalism and Liberalism have won. The main task of the new left wing movement is to develop a new ecological industry and energy- producing technology on the European continent, as well as to introduce a shorter working week and other benefits for the European citizen.

Participants in the debate agreed that the real-Socialism failed because it never found a solution to the main problem, i.e., motivation of the worker. Saying they are against the former model of Socialism, the participants said a new left wing consisted of people with new visions is appearing in Europe at the threshold of the 21st century.

These people, it was said, stand for a more humane society, a united Europe, advanced ecology and social justice and security for all. It was also stressed that those former Yugoslav republics in which the left wing won power, have succeeded to stay out of armed conflicts and tragic consequences. All left-oriented forces ought to struggle for a Balkans consisted of independent, equal and economically linked states.

MILS SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT:

[14] MACEDONIA IS A REALITY

(Nova Makedonija, 2 July 1995)

Svetozar Vukmanovic Tempo belongs to the generation of old and famous revolutionaries, recently known for a categorical refusal to accept the definite disintegration of the former Yugoslavia and firm belief that this is all due to 'appearance of the new fascism and the irrational and illegal activity of the leaders of the former Yugoslav republics.' Having still fresh memories of his party and military activity during the Second World War - especially on the territory of Macedonia - comrade Tempo (he refuses to be referred to as 'mister') is still a target of many curious journalists who dig in the Macedonian history for this or that reason.

Tempo was recently interviewed by Yonis Tsoulidis, a publicist of Thessaloniki, Greece. Tsoulidis recently stated for the Belgrade daily Politika that he had talked with Tempo as with a 'person who had a significant role in the resistance movement during the War,' on many issues 'in which the former Yugoslavia had been involved and on which the Greek people is awaiting an answer.' Tempo kindly received Tsoulidis at his home in Rezhevici (somewhere in between Budva and Petrovec, on the coast of Montenegro) and laughingly asked not to be interviewed in the context of his previous talks with Tsoulidis with whom he talked although knowing that he is a member of New Democracy and has viewpoints differing by large from his own beliefs.

'I will talk to anyone,' Tempo said, 'but I will also point out to anyone that my views have not changed since the war, particularly not my views on Macedonia as presented in my memoirs. The Greek publicist kept trying to draw a statement form me that would be not true, assuring me that our talk was informal. And yet, two days afterwards, he publicized the talk. It is his own business what he chose to write; he even sent me a letter to tell me that we had agreed on many points [he laughs]. We agreed on very little, but he took out of the context only what he thought useful for him, stressing my statement on Macedonia standing as an obstacle between Yugoslavia and Greece. Indeed, I did say so, but he wrote only this one sentence or abused it to draw his own conclusions from it, trying to describe my views on Macedonia and the Macedonian people as radically changed, which is certainly not true. I will reply him in a letter to warn him that no single view of mine has changed and to insist that he publicize the entire conversation if he intends to make it public. I can tell you that this man left here almost disappointed and with unfulfilled expectations that I would go along with the ideas of his party.'

Question: In what way, then, did you say that Macedonia stands as an obstacle between Greece and Yugoslavia?

Answer: I never said that the very existence of Macedonia is an obstacle of any kind to the Greek-Yugoslav relations. He kept assuring me that Serbia and Greece have always been and still are friends, but Macedonia is currently standing in the way of their establishing even more closer relations.

That is probably how he interpreted my statement. I did agree on the friendship point, but also warned him that Macedonia is now here and is a reality, whether anyone likes it or not. He went on reminding me that Macedonia was referred to as a 'Vardar region of Serbia' during the times of the pre-war Yugoslavia, and asking me how is it possible that the region be now called Macedonia. I told him that there are two regions carrying the same name - the one in northern Greece and the newly independent state - and that the name cannot be erased, as it simply exists as such. He said that the people living along the Vardar river are not what they would like to be called, as they are Serbs. But no, I told him, they are not Serbs.

I traveled all over Macedonia even before the war, in the 30's, establishing party branches there. I came to a certain conclusion that the people there is a separate nation. It is neither a Bulgarian nor Serbian people. It has its own culture, language and tradition. Blazhe Koneski [I regret the fact that we never met in person] did a work of a genius to give this people the so much needed alphabet. I told the Greek publicist that the fact that Greece is in friendly relations with Serbia not because the Greeks love the Serbs, but because this is a way in which Greece defends itself.

Greece also feels endangered by Turkey and the Albania- Macedonia-Bulgaria-Turkey green transversal. That is why Greece is reacting as it is reacting. It has no other choice. I told him I am afraid of the new fascism of the United States of America, of Turkey and Germany, which disintegrated Yugoslavia by exactly the same border lines to which Hitler himself partitioned it back in 1941. I have written two books on this, but no one in Serbia or Montenegro seems to want to publish them, despite my written contract with the Official Gazette to be my publisher.

Question: Would you not say, though, that part of the reasons for disintegration of the former Yugoslavia also came from within the former Yugoslavia itself?

Answer: Yes. But, all referendums on independence were illegal because no general agreement of the public was reached beforehand. Had the then leaders of Yugoslavia made agreements with all republics and autonomous regions, the changes would have been legal. This was all supported by outside forces, although I am suspicious when it comes to America's interests in Macedonia, Bosnia or Poland. We will see about this. I am convinced that Stalinism definitely fell, but only from the economic point of view; Communism still lives.

Tsoulidis reminded me that I had written in my memoirs how the Macedonians in today's Macedonia and those living in northern Greece want to unite. I told him this was true and that I had observed that, if not people in Thessaloniki, then the people in Kostur, Voden and Lerin are pure Macedonians and they do want to unite with Macedonians in Macedonia. I wrote that and I stand behind this. But, let me make something clear here - we did not want to raise the question of uniting then, as peoples are mixed everywhere and no ethnically clean borders can possibly be drawn. This is not possible anywhere. We concluded that we could unite the peoples only by creating a Balkan confederation in which all nations could develop their own culture and language. It was a wartime and we wanted to establish a Balkan unity between Greeks, Macedonians, Serbs, Montenegrins, Albanians, Croats and Romanians. The intention was to create conditions for a joint struggle along the borders and to leave the borders issue for after the war. We wanted to form Macedonian partisan units in Greece in the same way that we anted to form, for instance, Albanian units in Macedonia.

The units were to have their own national marks and flags, but also the marks and flag of the state under whose command they were. The unity of the Macedonian people was understood in the context of this Balkan confederation. The idea was to establish this unity which would later on be a foundation stone of such a federation. But, the idea was never carried out since Greece was the first to cancel its participation in the joint Balkan headquarters, on a suggestion by Great Britain. Then, Bulgaria withdrew from the idea as ordered by Moscow and Tito also refused the idea, as he wanted (despite my advice not to) his headquarters to be recognized as the main Balkans ones by all other countries. That was how the idea for a Balkan headquarters and a confederation never worked.

At that time, certain Albanian partisan units in Macedonia organized a mutiny and Vera Aceva was not right to blame me of giving certain Macedonian cities over to the Albanians. I was asked by Krste Crvenkovski to come to Debar, where the Albanian partisans had taken over control. I wrote to Enver Hodza, reminding him of our agreement not to touch border lines until the war was over. I told Tsoulidis the same thing, but he said Zahariadis published that I had asked Tito to place two divisions at my disposal for conquering Thessaloniki, which of course is a sheer lie. I was even not in Macedonia when this mutiny took place and was told by Rankovic that certain brigades refused to go north towards Slovenia, but wanted to go south, towards Thessaloniki. I was ordered to go back to Macedonia, but the rebel brigade in Skopje was already disarmed, and the one in Shtip was still under control. The brigade was in fact consisted of partisans who came armed from Sofia. I told the Greek that it was only a single rebelled brigade, but he refused to believe in this. I told him he could think as he pleased, but this was the truth.

Question: Tsoulidis claims that the Macedonian nation and state were made up by the Commintern and that even Milovan Djilas confirmed this to him immediately before he died. He insists that the act of establishing Macedonia was aimed against both Greece and Yugoslavia.

Answer: Yes, during the conversation with me he also tried to change the name of Macedonia. No one has the right to change a name of a state just like that. No one has even the right to ask a state to change its name. I personally am against the idea of separating Macedonia from Yugoslavia, but Macedonia is there and exists. I categorically refused his claim that the establishment of Macedonia was aimed against Greece or any other country. Even more so because the people living there is neither Greek, nor Bulgarian, nor Serbian. I respect Djilas for what he did during the revolution, but I am afraid I deeply disagree with him if he said that Macedonia was made up by the Commintern. Macedonia could not have been made up. It was born during its struggle along with Serbian and Montenegrin partisans and Communists, although at the beginning we had no support in its western parts and we were also prevented to go there by the Bulgarian occupiers. This is why I am mostly hurt when I hear now that the greatest danger for Macedonia comes from the north.

Tsoutsoulidis also asked me about the Macedonian flag. I said this was all unnecessary digging into the Middle Ages, just like the Serbs unnecessarily call on to the Middle Age kingdom of Dushan or any other Tsars, when nations even did not exist then. Whether someone recognizes it or not, Macedonia and the Macedonian nation do exist. Even if someone did want to invent it during the war or afterwards, they could not, because the Macedonians existed even before the war, but has gained an international affirmation only recently.

Question: What do you think of Greece's policy on and behavior towards Macedonia?

Answer: We have had problems with Greece even during the war and this can be seen in our documents. I have written this in my memoirs. Greece refused to admit that there are Macedonians on its territory. Even the Communist Party of Greece initially refused to recognize the Macedonian nation, but at the end of the war they officially recognized the existence of Macedonians in Greece. This was included in our agreement on cooperation. It precisely said that it acknowledges the national rights of ethnic Macedonians in Greece as equal to those of all other Greek citizens. Over the war years, the Greek Communists refused to grant the Macedonians their right to self-determination and spoke only of minority rights; we opposed this as we with the idea to form a Balkan confederation in which there would only be nations and no minorities. Borders and minorities were to be dealt away with. After all, this was the ingenious idea of Goce Delcev, who realized this much earlier than us. Greece has no right to insist upon a change of the name and will have to recognize the Macedonian nation, sooner or later.

(end)

mils-news 3 June '95