The Macedonian Minority in Albania, Bulgaria and Greece

The Macedonian Minority in Albania, Bulgaria and Greece

Reports presented at the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting
Warsaw, October 5-15, 2004

The Macedonian Minority in Albania
Report by the Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada (MHRMC) &
Rainbow – Organization of the Macedonian Minority in Greece

http://www.mhrmc.ca/reports/04/osce_albania.html

Introduction:

The following interview with Edmond Temelko, president of the Macedonian organization “Prespa” in Albania, outlines the precarious position of the Macedonian minority in Albania. It appeared in the Macedonian weekly, “Makedonsko Sonce”, on June 15, 2001.

"The plight of the Macedonians in Albania is already known. Macedonians in Albania are discriminated against and the government continues to unrealistically present their numbers. Albania recognizes that on its territory live only 5,000 Macedonians. But we alone, as Macedonian organizations in Albania number 120,000 Macedonians who are members of our organizations, or if we investigate there are perhaps more then 350,000 Macedonians in Albania."

"According to the Albanian Constitution, the minorities are allowed 60% education in their mother language. But this is not happening. There are Macedonians who live in other parts of Albania who do not have the right to get an education in their own mother language, the Macedonian language. They do not have schools. But even where we have schools, there is very little. For example in the village of Pustets there is elementary education from first to fourth grade in Macedonian and one course in Albanian. What happens between fifth and eight grade? Only three courses are in Macedonian, and the history in taught only in seventh grade and only for one hour. But the worst of all is that although the kids study in Macedonian, the literature is not original. The Macedonian grammar is translated from Albanian grammar. This is one of our complaints. We demand that the children by educated with original Macedonian textbooks."

"The Albanian press has branded us a potential hotspot. After a peaceful protest, they began to treat us as terrorists, although nobody rose a gun to fight in Albania. All we did is sent a call that we are fighting for our rights through the institutions of the system. For example, we publicly proclaim that we do not like the Constitution of Albania. Why? In article 20 it is written that in Albania exist minorities whose cultural identity should be guaranteed and preserved. But which minorities are these? Let it say: Greek, Macedonian, Vlach, or Roma minority. The Albanian government is afraid of this because if this is written, i.e. if a real analysis is conducted, Albania is a multiethnic state. If you enter inner Albania, there live 40-45% of the minorities. There are Greeks, Vlachs, Macedonians, Roma. This is what the Albanian government is afraid of and this is why it conducted such census. This census was regularly conducted in only one village. It is discrimination and because of it Macedonia will have to develop a clear strategy for the plight of the Macedonians in the neighbouring countries."

Census

The four Macedonian organizations in Albania, Mir (Peace), Gora, MED (Macedonian Aegean Society) and Prespa, boycotted the 2001 census in Albania because there was no option for “Macedonian” in the census list. The Albanian government continues to minimize the actual number of Macedonians, and other minorities, in the country and in 2003, the Association of Macedonians in Albania (consisting of the four organizations) will conduct their own census of the number of Macedonians in Albania. It is estimated that this number is between 120,000 and 350,000 while the Albanian state only officially recognizes 5,000. Because of irregularities and intense minority complaints, the Council of Europe has also recommended that Albania conduct a new census.

The Use of Macedonian Names

The Albanian state pressures Macedonians to use Albanian names while forbidding the use of traditional Macedonian names. They frequently impose Albanian names on Macedonian children in their continued attempts to assimilate the Macedonian minority.

Macedonian Church in Pustets

The Macedonians in Pustets, Mala Prespa are building a Macedonian Orthodox Church and have requested that a Macedonian Orthodox priest bless the church. In September 2003, an Albanian priest tried to perform this ceremony but the local Macedonians refused. A few weeks later, the Albanian priest returned with approximately 40 police officers and forcibly entered the church. The Macedonian minority’s wishes must be respected and the Albanian state should cease its discrimination against the Macedonian minority.

Macedonian Media in Albania

Access to public media in Albania for ethnic Macedonians is almost non-existent. There has never been a Macedonian language television program in Albania and there is only one five-minute weekly Macedonian language radio program on Albanian radio. In the economically ravaged village of Pustets, Macedonians opened a private radio station in 2002. It operates from 7:00am to 8:00pm daily provided there is electricity in the area. Financial constraints have threatened the existence of the radio station since it opened.

Macedonian human rights organizations have published various Macedonian language newspapers over the past decade only to see them fold due to financial difficulties. The only one still in existence is a quarterly newspaper published by the Prespa organization.

Arrest of Macedonian Activists and Students

Albanian authorities have intimidated, threatened and pressured ethnic Macedonians to stop their activism and promotion of Macedonian human rights. In August 1995, upon returning to Albania, six ethnic Macedonian students who studied in Skopje, the Republic of Macedonia, were arrested by Albanian secret police. The names are as follows: Hamlet Shebroja, Sokol Cvarku, Sabri Hodja, Balbona Musliu, Blerin (last name unknown), and Evis Halili. The students were interrogated and the secret police demanded to know the reasons why they studied in the Republic of Macedonia, who “convinced” them to go there and study in the Macedonian language, what connections they have with Macedonian leaders in Albania and in particular the president of MIR, Kimet Fetahu, and whether they have contact with Macedonian secret police. They tried to pressure them to become Albanian informants.

In a sweep later the same year, leading Macedonian human rights activists Kimet Fetahu, Spase Masenkovski and Eftim Mitrevski were arrested and interrogated. They were also threatened and pressured to stop their activism. Another Macedonian activist, Vita Koja, was warned by her relatives about the impending police action, went into hiding, and avoided arrest.

Expulsion from Work

In April 1995, all Macedonians were expelled from the police force and armed forces. Not a single ethnic Macedonian is employed by the police or army to this day. Macedonians have been fired from other jobs simply based on their activism and promotion of human rights for the Macedonian minority in Albania.

The Macedonian Minority in Bulgaria
Report by the Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada (MHRMC) &
Rainbow – Organization of the Macedonian Minority in Greece

http://www.mhrmc.ca/reports/04/osce_bulgaria.html

Introduction:

The Bulgarian government has and continues to place unlawful restrictions on a number of fundamental rights of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria. Whether it be through outright discrimination, the uneven application of laws which on their surface do not seem to discriminate against the Macedonian minority, or through unlawful conduct of officials, the effect is the same: Macedonians in Bulgaria who choose to openly identify as Macedonians repeatedly suffer abuses of their human rights.

One positive development occurred in 2001 with the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Boris Stankov and the United Macedonian Organization (OMO Ilinden) vs. Bulgaria on Oct.2, 2001. ECHR ruled that there had been a violation of Article 11 (freedom of assembly and association) of the European Convention on Human Rights. OMO Ilinden was founded in 1990 to unite Macedonians in Bulgaria on a regional and cultural basis and to achieve recognition of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria. In 1991 the association was refused registration as the courts ruled that its aims were directed against the unity of the nation, that it advocated ethnic hatred and was dangerous for the territorial integrity of Bulgaria. (ECHR Press Release – Oct.2, 2001)

It was hoped that the ruling in favour of OMO Ilinden would pave the way for immediate registration of the organization and a positive effect on human rights developments in Bulgaria in the future. However, OMO Ilinden has still not been registered. The two Macedonian political parties, OMO Pirin and OMO Ilinden PIRIN (the latter was de-registered in 2000 and has initiated a European Court case against Bulgaria), and Sonce, the organization of Islamic Macedonians, have also not been registered. Following are some of the outrageous reasons used by the Sofia court to refuse OMO Pirin’s application for registration on 12 December 2002:

1. The name PIRIN may be confused with the mountain by the same name
2. The Macedonian sun on OMO Pirin’s flag is the same as the flag of the Republic of Macedonia (this despite the fact that the Republic of Macedonia changed its flag in 1995)
3. The organization wants to change the ethnic consciousness of the Bulgarian population by making them Macedonians
4. The Constitution of OMO Pirin did not cover all aspects of the organizational structure of the organization such as elections, delegates, etc. (in fact, the Constitution was written by a lawyer)

Despite the European Court’s ruling, it is apparent that the Bulgarian government has no intention of registering any Macedonian organization.

The Bulgarian government still refuses to grant its sizeable Macedonian minority the human rights that are protected by international treaties to which Bulgaria is a signatory. In what seemed to be a positive step, Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saksoburgotski stated on April 8, 2003:

“Bulgaria acknowledges the minorities in the country. In 2001 a few thousand citizens declared themselves as Bulgarians with Macedonian origin, and three thousand citizens stated that the Macedonian language is their mother language. These numbers show the fact that we have a very good understanding of that issue."

However, several instances of tampering by Bulgarian authorities occurred during the last census. These will be outlined later in this report. The claims of only a few thousand Macedonians is well below the estimates by Macedonian human rights activists which place the number from several hundred thousand to over one million. Furthermore, Macedonians did not declare themselves as “Bulgarians with Macedonian origin”, but simply as ethnic Macedonians.

Despite Mr. Saksoburgotski’s claim that the Bulgarian government has a “good understanding” of the Macedonian minority issue, human rights violations against Macedonians were prevalent.

As regards freedom of expression and the media, and freedom of association and peaceful assembly, the Macedonian minority has recently suffered the following human rights violations at the hands of Bulgarian authorities.

Freedom of Expression and the Media:

Blagoevgrad - Vartolomey Night

On Sunday, September 12, 2004, OMO Pirin intended to commemorate Vartolomey Night (massacre of Macedonians in Bulgaria in 1924). They had informed the local authorities that the event would take place at the Gotse Dlechev monument in the centre of the city of Blagoevgrad.

Approximately 80 members arrived at the Gotse Delchev monument intending to lay wreaths and flowers but they were surrounded by members of the Bulgarian nationalistic party VMRO and were prevented from reaching the monument. The Bulgarian police, who were present during the incident, refused to intervene. Similar incidents, sometimes with more severe consequences, occur every time a Macedonian organization intends to hold an event in Bulgaria. The following is another example:

On Thursday, September 12, 2002 at approximately 3:00pm, OMO Ilinden intended to commemorate Vartolomey Night (massacre of Macedonians in Bulgaria in 1924). About 45 members and sympathizers gathered in front of the US University in Blagoevgrad and marched to the Gotse Delchev monument in Macedonia Square. They intended to place flowers, a wreath, and a banner that contained the text “OMO Ilinden – Stop the Assimilation: We want Macedonian language and culture, human rights, and the right to work!”

Upon reaching the monument, about 25 civilians (all members of the Bulgarian nationalistic political party VMRO) attacked the OMO Ilinden members and beat several of them with sticks. They demanded that OMO Ilinden give up the banner, wreath and two Macedonian flags. The VMRO members took the banner and one flag before the local police, which were already present, separated the two groups.

OMO Ilinden were successful in placing the wreath and flowers at the back of the monument (VMRO members were blocking the front) and Jordan Konstantinov, past-president of OMO Ilinden, gave a speech. At the end of the ceremony, VMRO members again assaulted the Macedonians and the police eventually stopped them.

The next day, the Bulgarian newspaper, Trud, slandered the Macedonian activists claiming that they attacked the VMRO members. They also claimed that the OMO Ilinden members were “drunk” and that they “cursed Bulgaria, VMRO and the journalists that were present during the ceremony.”

As reported by the BBC, a roundtable was held after September 12 because, according to Bulgarian authorities, “The illegal organization OMO Ilinden held an anti-Bulgarian event in Blagoevgrad”. Bulgarian parliamentarians from Blagoevgrad, as well as representatives of political parties, the state and local institutions demanded the passing of a law for the fight against anti-Bulgarian activity in that region, and in the territory of the country as a whole.

According to the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA), the ceremony of September 12 brought about social protests and tension and was condemned by all political parties. The following quotations were made by Bulgarian members of parliament:

· Stanimir Ilchev – MP of the National Movement Simeon II – “Bulgaria should go to the European court to prevent events like Sept. 12.”

· Rositsa Totkova – MP United Democratic Forces – gathering of OMO Ilinden was “without the respect of the feelings of others and an open threatening act”

· Aleksandar Abadjiev – MP Left Coalition of Bulgaria – “It’s paramount to prepare the mayors and representatives of local administration how to react to these types of events according to the law and constitution.”

Census

Other than the Turkish and Roma minority groups, the 2001 census in Bulgaria did not provide other minorities the opportunity to declare their ethnic identity. The state refuses to recognize its sizeable Macedonian minority and uses the census to promote its official stance that this group is ethnically Bulgarian. Various radio and TV stations promoted the notion that Bulgaria is largely a homogenous country and that people should identify themselves as Bulgarian. OMO Ilinden PIRIN was unable to counter this view because their access to the media was denied on several occasions. Instead, they printed roughly 80,000 flyers that were distributed throughout the region of Pirin Macedonia stating that the people have every right to declare themselves as ethnic Macedonians and should not fear persecution. Several Bulgarian lawyers were consulted and even though they said that the flyers were legal, the police and Bulgarian media started a campaign to frighten the population by claiming that the leaders of OMO Ilinden PIRIN would be charged and jailed. The following people were called in to the local police station and questioned, intimidated and had charges laid against them: Ivan Singartiski, Ivan Gargavelov, Kostadin Frangov, Krsto Mangusev, Petar Ivanov, Slave Milkov, Angel Radonov, Vladimir Kocarov and others. The Bulgarian police claimed that they were being charged because it was against Bulgarian law to distribute flyers “anonymously”. However, the flyers clearly displayed that they were written and distributed by OMO Ilinden PIRIN.

Rozhen Monastery

On April 22, 2001, members and supporters of OMO Ilinden gathered at the Rozhen Monastery in the city of Sandanski to commemorate the anniversary of the death of the Macedonian hero Yane Sandanski. The next day several newspapers (“Trud”, “24 Chasa” and others) published slanderous articles misinforming the public about the events of the gathering. They claimed that members of the group were shouting “Death to Bulgarians” and “We want to see all Bulgarians dead”. (Trud, April 23) They urged authorities to take action against members of the organization. They also claim that members of OMO Ilinden are “scoundrels with limited intellect”. (Trud, April 23)

Several instances of freedom of association violations occurred during this gathering (more information in the section titled Freedom of Association and the Right of Peaceful Assembly)

Macedonian Newspaper - Narodna Volya

The only Macedonian newspaper in Bulgaria, Narodna Volya, is published in Blagoevgrad, in both the Bulgarian and Macedonian languages. No newspapers were confiscated in 2001 by the Bulgarian authorities (as had occurred in previous years), however, no subscribers in the Republic of Macedonia had received their copies since August 2001. The Editor-in-Chief, Georgi Hristov, suspected that the problem lay with the Bulgarian postal system so he brought some newspapers across the border into the city of Delchevo, the Republic of Macedonia in January 2002 and mailed them from there. All subscribers received their newspapers within days. Mr. Hristov subsequently filed complaints with the post office and police in Blagoevgrad but has yet to receive a response.

Freedom of Association and the Right of Peaceful Assembly:

Sandanski – April 2003

On April 21, 2003, members of several Macedonian organizations in Bulgaria mutually commemorated the anniversary of the murder of Macedonian revolutionary Jane Sandanski. In a welcome change, the police did not interfere but there were reports that the event was videotaped by the police in an attempt to intimidate the participants as they had done in the past.

Petrich – July 2002

On Saturday, July 27, 2002 OMO Ilinden members and supporters gathered at King Samuel’s fortress near the town of Petrich in order to commemorate the 99th anniversary of the Ilinden uprising (Macedonian uprising against the Ottoman Empire in 1903).

Approximately 1,500 people attended the ceremony, which included speeches and Macedonian music and dances. While the ceremony was taking place, plainclothes police officers videotaped the OMO Ilinden members and supporters in an effort to intimidate them. The following day, journalists with pictures of the event visited the individual participants and asked them why they would attend “such an anti-Bulgarian event.”

Macedonians in Bulgaria continuously face discrimination and intimidation when asserting their ethnic Macedonian identity. As a country that is hoping to enter the European Union, Bulgaria must respect its minorities’ human rights and put an end to such violations.

Macedonian Theatre Group’s Visit to Bulgaria

The following is a quote by Tihomir Stojanovski, Art Director of the Macedonian theatre group “Skrb I Uteha” at the Third Macedonian World Human Rights Conference on September 20, 2003.

“Our second visit to Bulgaria happened in April 2002, and at that time we felt that the resistance towards the Macedonian culture was still present. The Macedonians in the village of Koprivgan were intimidated and we played in front of an empty hall. In the village of Elesnica, the head of the village locked the hall and ran away. In the village of Razlog people waited for us in order to beat us?! We played in villages where the Macedonians were not afraid to take us: the villages of Kremen, Mosomishte, Leski and Sandanski. On our way back to Macedonia, we were held up at the border crossing of Novo Selo/Strumica for seven hours, we were treated like criminals; two journalists and our manager were questioned in the classic Bulgarian police fashion. Our manager was told: “you could have come back with holes in yours heads” and “we let you in once, what are you looking for in Bulgaria for the second time?”

Blagoevgrad – Gotse Delchev Commemoration

Members and supporters of OMO Ilinden PIRIN were prevented from reaching Gotse Delchev’s monument in the city of Blagoevgrad, in order to place flowers in honour of the Macedonian revolutionary’s birthday. The monument was surrounded by armed and civilian police officers who threatened and intimidated the crowd. The police claimed that they had a decree from the Public Prosecutor of Blagoevgrad that was aimed at stopping members of OMO Ilinden PIRIN from approaching the monument. The leadership of the party, in accordance with the Law on Public Information, requested a written statement from the Public Prosecutor explaining the events of Feb.2. A response is yet to be received.

Yane Sandanski Commemoration

Every year, OMO Ilinden members and supporters commemorate the anniversary of Yane Sandanski’s death at his grave near the Rozhen Monastery. On April 4, they submitted a notice to the mayor of Sandanski requesting permission to hold this gathering on April 22, 2001 at 10:30am, as required by the Law on Meetings and Manifestations. The notice also indicated several events scheduled to take place, namely: mourning rites and placing flowers on the grave; reading two essays about Yane Sandanski; and Macedonian music and dances.

The party did not receive an answer which, according to the law, means that the celebration was not prohibited. On April 22, several violations of the citizen’s rights of peaceful assembly occurred:

· Two Orthodox priests, Father Liuben Katsarski and Father Atanas Petrov, were invited to assist in the mourning rites at the grave of Yane Sandanski at 11:00am. They were, however, prohibited from doing this by the Archimandrite Jovan, the Father Superior of the Rozhen Monastery who in the past had hindered a number of events held by Macedonians at the monastery. The prohibition of the mourning rites took place in front of the police, including the Chief of Police in Sandanski, and the Archimandrite actually threatened the two priests with violence. The police did not interfere, which suggests that the conflict was coordinated in advance. After the priests had left, the several hundred citizens that had gathered were able to approach the grave, lay flowers and light candles.

· Two members of OMO Ilinden, Liliana Kirianova and Angel Trenev, attempted to lay a wreath on the grave that contained a band with the word “Ilinden.” Four policemen surrounded them and demanded that the band be removed. The two activists refused so the police forcefully removed it. Angel Trenev was then arrested and brought to the nearby village of Rozhen (1 km from the grave). He was later released and warned that he would be fined 500 leva (US$240) if he returned to the ceremony.

· Two Bulgarian flags had been placed at the grave before the arrival of the participants. The OMO Ilinden members were warned that they would be punished if they placed flowers on the flags so they had to place the flowers around the grave. Placing flags on graves is not a custom in Bulgaria and no parties or organizations do this in ceremonies of a similar nature. Furthermore, the fact that Bulgarian flags were placed at the grave of Yane Sandanski seems to be an act of deliberate provocation on the part of Bulgarian authorities, who are no doubt conscious that, in the view of most ethnic Macedonians, Sandanski was killed by Bulgarian terrorists who acted on an order of the government in 1915.

· A portrait of Yane Sandanski was to be placed on the podium along with a poster with an inscription of one of his sayings: “The slave fights for liberation and the liberated fights for improvement”. This poster, along with several other objects, were removed by a plainclothes police officer while on the grounds.

· In their attempts to inconvenience the more than 600 participants, the police cut off the electrical supply, did not allow OMO Ilinden to use their loudspeakers, refused to allow the musicians to play, cut off the water supply to the fountain near Yane Sandanski’s grave, and they prohibited anyone from selling food or drinks. Consequently, OMO Ilinden sent a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg regarding the above restrictions and the state-instigated press propaganda the following day (see Freedom of Expression and the Media: April 2001 - Rozhen Monastery). The ECHR has acknowledged receipt of the complaint.

· The presence of more than 50 police officers near the grave imposed psychological pressure on the participants. According to observers, the situation resembled a military operation against citizens who simply came to commemorate a Macedonian hero.

Blagoevgrad

On this date every year, OMO Ilinden commemorates the anniversary of the killing of the Macedonian hero Gotse Delchev in front of his monument in Blagoevgrad. On April 27, 2001 OMO Ilinden member Atanas Urdev sent a notice to the mayor of the municipality (as required by the Law on Meetings and Manifestations) notifying him of the planned event. No reply was received which indicates, by law, that the event was not prohibited.

On May 4, at 5:00pm, a group of OMO Ilinden members brought a wreath and flowers to the monument of Gotse Delchev on Macedonia Square in Blagoevgrad. The wreath had a band with an inscription “98 years since the killing of Gotse Delchev – OMO Ilinden” Eight police officers stopped the group about ten metres from the monument and ordered them to remove the band. The police claimed that the District Prosecutor, Snezhana Katsarska, had given them orders to do this but failed to produce a warrant when asked. Furthermore, the activists said that they would not continue with the commemoration if it indeed was prohibited but they wanted to see the warrant (which was never produced). At this point 7-8 people who claimed to be ordinary civilians approached (all of whom were known to local members of OMO Ilinden as law enforcement officers). Among them was the Chief of the Regional Security Service in Blagoevgrad, Mr. Aliosha Kaptchin. OMO Ilinden decided to leave and they went in the direction of the church “St. Bogoroditsa” which is about 1km from Macedonia Square. The “civilians” followed them and tried to provoke an incident by insulting them. Two of them jumped on Mr. Kiril Tilev and tried to take his camera under the pretense that he took pictures of the police officers.

The OMO Ilinden members decided to hold their commemoration in the churchyard of “St. Bogoroditsa”, where there is a monument of several members of Gotse Delchev’s family. They read a short essay and laid the wreath and flowers there. The plainclothes police officers were waiting for them outside the church door and followed them after they left, again provoking and threatening them with the use of physical force. One of the members was told that he would be beaten up again as many of the OMO Ilinden members were at the Rozhen Monastery in 1992. The OMO Ilinden members asked two people to monitor whether the flowers and wreath would remain at the church. The next day they were told that three people took the flowers and wreath and confiscated them.

Macedonian/Bulgarian border

On May 4, 2001, about 70 members and sympathizers of OMO Ilinden PIRIN from the Gotse Delchev and Razlog areas went to Skopje, the Republic of Macedonia to place flowers at the grave of Gotse Delchev in the church grounds of “St. Spas”. At the Zlatarevo border crossing on the way back, the Bulgarian authorities detained their buses for four hours. During that time, the members were intimidated and harassed by the police sent from Blagoevgrad under the leadership of the Chief of Police, Mr. Kaptchin. Only after the leaders of the group threatened that they would return to the Republic of Macedonia and publicize the incident were they allowed entry into Bulgaria.

The same day at 5:00pm, OMO Ilinden PIRIN had announced a flower laying ceremony to be held at Gotse Delchev’s monument in the city of Gotse Delchev. The police were guarding the monument the whole day so that the Macedonians could not honour the revolutionary. The Chief of Police, Mr. Kalinkov, claimed that he had a decree from the Public Prosecutor banning them from the monument. The leadership of the party, following the Law on Public Information, requested a copy of the decree from the Public Prosecutor. Nothing was ever received.

Petrich

On July 29, 2001, OMO Ilinden applied for permission from the city of Petrich to celebrate the Ilinden uprising of August 2, 1903 and to commemorate the blinding of King Samuel’s 14,000 Macedonian soldiers by the Byzantine King Vasilious II in 914AD. The mayor of Petrich did not respond which means, under Bulgarian law, that the event was not prohibited.

While the activists were travelling towards Samuel’s fortress, uniformed police officers stopped them at the village of Strumeshnitsa and forced the people to retreat. The activists and other Macedonians went back to Petrich and tried to place flowers at the monument of Anton Panov, who along with Nikola Vaptsarov was executed by the Bulgarian police in 1942. Uniformed police officers again tried to prevent them from reaching the monument but a few people succeeded in placing flowers at the foot of the monument. Afterwards, the activists and supporters went to OMO Ilinden’s office and continued the ceremony with speeches and music.

While the activists were approaching the fortress, gathering at the monument in Petrich, and conducting the ceremony at the office, plainclothes police officers used video cameras to identify and intimidate the activists and their supporters.

Conclusion:

Macedonians in Bulgaria continuously face discrimination and intimidation when asserting their ethnic Macedonian identity. As a country that is preparing to enter the European Union, Bulgaria must respect its minorities’ human rights and put an end to its state-endorsed acts of oppression.