Albanians Declare ‘Republic’ in Macedonia

The event was held in Skopje

A few dozen ethnic Albanians gathered in Skopje on Thursday in Skopje to hear a former politician, Nevzat Halili, read out a declaration of an “independent republic”.

Although the event appeared marginal, it caused a stir in the media and among politicians.

“The declaration of independence is the first step towards full equality of Albanians in Macedonia who have lived here for ages but are still considered a minority,” Halili said.

Halili insisted that the new self-styled entity, the Republic of Ilirida, which according to the map takes almost half of Macedonia’s territory, would be a “factor of stability in the Balkans”.

The goal was to reorganize Macedonia into a confederacy between Albanians and Macedonians that would be called Ilirida-Macedonia, or Ilirida-FYROM, he explained.

The name “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonian”, or FYROM, the UN provisional reference for Macedonia designated under Greek pressure in the 1990s, is seen as derogatory by many ethnic Macedonians.

Halili said he was going to demand a meeting with the Prime Minister, Nikola Gruevski, and the speaker of parliament, Trajko Veljanoski, “to urgently call for a referendum on the internal territorial division of Macedonia.

Halili says that the goal was Macedonia’s peaceful reorganization into a confederacy and the demilitarization of the entire territory of Macedonia. “Macedonians who live on the territory of Ilirida can rest assured that no harm will come to them,” he added.

In the 1990s, Halili headed the then leading ethnic Albanian party in Macedonia, the now defunct Party for Democratic Prosperity, PDP. He was the central figure behind an illegal referendum that Albanians held in 1992, demanding political and territorial autonomy.

At the time, the organizers claimed that 99.9 per cent of the country’s Albanians for the declaration of Ilirida.

In 1993, Halili was tried in a high-profile case for “paramilitary” secessionism after the police discovered weapons stashed allegedly for the defence of a self-proclaimed Ilirida state. Although Halili was not jailed, he soon disappeared from the political scene.

Political analyst Saso Klekovski deemed the event marginal but also advised caution.

A map of Macedonia showing the envisaged territory of Ilirida

“Similar ideas for ‘great’ ethnic states exist among all Balkan peoples but do not have support in mainstream politics,” he said. “I don’t think any of the main parties in Macedonia supports the formation of new state entities and confederacies,” Klekovski added.

However, “the moves of these marginalized groups or parties should be followed carefully, to see whether they are getting wider public support,” he continued.

During the ceremony on Thursday Halili insisted that his idea had already won support from two MPs from the junior ruling party, the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI.

While the DUI officially issued no reaction, the two DUI legislators, Tahir Hani and Abedin Zimberi, who were mentioned by Halili, were quick to deny it.

The main opposition Social Democrats, SDSM accused the government of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski of creating an atmosphere in which radical movements could re-emerge.

This is a result of “[government] policies that lead to divisions, ethnic tensions, the party-ization of state institutions, delays in Euro-Atlantic integration, impoverishment of the population and a lack of perspective,” the SDSM wrote.

Gruevski’s ruling VMRO DPMNE party condemned “a bad attempt ay self-promotion that damages mutual respect and understanding among the citizens. These attempts must be condemned by all”.

In 2001, armed conflict erupted between ethnic Albanian rebels and the security forces that ended with the signing of the Ohrid peace accord.

The accord granted greater rights to the Albanians who make one quarter of the country’s population.

However, Halili says the 2001 agreement did not create equality for Albanians, and they remain marginalized in their own country.