In the endless game of Balkan ethno-political dominoes, Macedonia’s latest struggles to form a new government are being used and misused for murky political games across the region.
For almost two weeks, a group of activists has been organizing protests in Skopje that they call “For a united Macedonia” but which actually seem against a united country, as the only real aim is to prevent the main opposition Social Democrats from forming a new government together with a group of ethnic Albanian parties.
According to the demonstrators, such a government would make Albanian an official language in the country. They are apparently unaware that this right is already ensured in Macedonia’s constitution.They also claim that such a government would press charges against Serbia for genocide against Albanians in the period of 1912 to 1956, the claim as ridiculous as it sounds.
But this would not be the Balkans if these claims were not sufficient for two weeks of protests, and if other seemingly benevolent neighbours did not use this crisis for their own political purposes.
Former Bulgarian defence minister and diplomat Boyko Noev played the Macedonian card in his interview with Focus news agency on March 9, when he claimed that Macedonia was “losing its sovereignty” and added that “Bulgaria has a responsibility to the several thousand Bulgarians living in Macedonia.”
He was presumably referring to a number of Macedonians who claimed Bulgarian nationality mainly to obtain EU passports.His statement might have been motivated more by the needs of the ongoing campaign in Bulgaria for early parliamentary elections in March than by care for the wellbeing of Macedonia.
At the same time, Serbia’s Prime Minister and candidate in the April 2 presidential election, Aleksandar Vucic, used Macedonia’s example in his own election rallies.
Speaking in the eastern Serbian town of Pozarevac, he claimed that Serbian opposition parties were trying to trigger a “Macedonian scenario” and create instability in Serbia.
At the same rally, Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic went even further, claiming that “the opposition was hoping that gunshots are fired, just like in Macedonia”. Even before politicians in Bulgaria and Serbia stepped into the fray, Albania was using Macedonia’s troubles for its own political games.
The leaders of the ethnic Albanian parties that won parliamentary seats in the last election in Macedonia, in December, went to Tirana at the end of December to meet the Prime Minister, Edi Rama.The visit followed elections in which these parties registered their worst-ever results since the 2001 Ohrid Framework Agreement.
The four parties won only 20 seats, 10 going to the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, five to Besa, three to the Alliance of Albanians and two to the Democratic Party of Albanians, DPA.
In an election that saw one of the highest turnouts in years, a large chunk of Albanian voters clearly voted outside ethnic lines for the Social Democrats, SDSM, a party that was previously regarded as ethnic Macedonian.
The visit of the Macedonian Albanian parties to Tirana resulted in a so-called “platform” for all Albanian parties to unite around in protection of the interests of Albanians in Macedonia.
It was also meant to help the leaders of Macedonian Albanians reassert their leadership over the Albanian voting bloc by accentuating their connection with Tirana and Edi Rama.
But some experts say another possible motive for this visit was for the DUI – previously governing in coalition with VMRO DPMNE – to push for a platform that would be very difficult to “sell” to the Macedonian population, actually diminishing the chances for the Social Democrats to form a government.
Meanwhile, upcoming parliamentary elections in Albania are scheduled for June 18. What better boost for Rama than with a show of support for Albanians in a neighbouring country who seem attacked and discriminated against? Macedonia’s problems are even being used in other Balkan countries where there are no immediate elections.
Controversial Balkan analyst and commentator Miroslav Lazanski has also used the case of Macedonia to stir up debate across the region.
In an article published on March 6 by the Belgrade daily Politika, Lazanski offered insight into his parallel reality, in which Serbs and Macedonians are locked in a perennial struggle with Albanians over land, influence and righteousness.
In this parallel universe, “true” Macedonians, of course, are only those that are against Albanians and Muslims. The Serbs, once again, are being made scapegoats by being accused of genocide.
Besides stirring up debate in the region for the benefit of Serbia’s ruling regime, Lazanski is doing the same in neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina.
There, he has a regular stint in Bosnia’s Serb-dominated entity, Republika Srpska, on its government-controlled radio and TV broadcaster, RTRS. RTRS also frequently airs news about latest developments in Macedonia, most often citing high-ranking VMRO DPMNE officials who relish the opportunity to portray what will happen to Macedonia once they gave greater rights to these Albanians (who are Muslim, of course).
This narrative is all too familiar in the RS whose government often claims to be the victim of a Bosniak [Muslim] drive for domination.
To sum up, all of Macedonia’s neighboring countries – whether they are having elections in the next couple of months or not – are using the troubles in Macedonia to stir up old fears and divisions among their constituencies and gain votes.
It’s an old Balkan formula, but it is still working.
When politicians convince enough citizens to start thinking in terms of tribes and ethnicities, it becomes much easier to scare them into voting for them, regardless of those same politicians’ failed reforms – and regardless of the rampant corruption and devastated economies over which they have presided.
Source: Balkan Insight