“If You Don't Vote VMRO You're Not Macedonian”
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“If you don’t vote VMRO you’re not Macedonian” A study of Macedonian identity and national discourse in Skopje. Morten Dehli Andreassen Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of Master of Arts Degree Department of Social Anthropology, University of Bergen June 2011 1 Frontpage pictures is from the Macedonia Square. They are all taken the same day. Before, and under a political rally for the Government party VMRO-DPMNE. 2 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................... 5 Map of Macedonia .......................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 1 .................................................................................................................................... 8 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ Research Question ......................................................................................................................... 9 Theoretical Framework...........................................................................................................................................11 Ethnicity, Groups and Boundaries .............................................................................................. 11 Three Interconnecting Levels ..................................................................................................... 14 Nationalism and Identities .......................................................................................................... 16 History and Identity ..................................................................................................................... 18 Stereotypes ................................................................................................................................... 18 Ethnographic Context .................................................................................................................. 19 Identity Discourse ........................................................................................................................ 23 Political Landscape ...................................................................................................................... 27 Methodological Considerations and Analytical focus .................................................................................29 Informal Interviews and Participatory Observation ................................................................. 30 Analysis ......................................................................................................................................... 31 Interpretations and Confidentiality ........................................................................................... 33 Chapter Overview ......................................................................................................................................................33 Chapter 2 .................................................................................................................................. 36 History and Myths ....................................................................................................................... The struggle for a national identity ........................................................................................... Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 36 Lived Experience as History ........................................................................................................ 37 Historical Symbols as Political Discourse .................................................................................. 40 History as Genealogy ................................................................................................................... 42 “Legacy as Continuity” vs. “Legacy as Perception” .................................................................... 44 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 50 Chapter 3 .................................................................................................................................. 53 Who Are The Ethnic Macedonians? ............................................................................................ Ethnic Identity and Ethnographic Context ................................................................................ 55 3 Nationalism .................................................................................................................................. 57 Identity and Groupness – “Our” Others ...................................................................................... 59 National Identity and “Self” ......................................................................................................... 62 The Spatial Dimension ................................................................................................................. 64 Temporal Dimension ................................................................................................................... 65 Symbolic Dimension .................................................................................................................... 67 Everyday Dimension .................................................................................................................... 68 Otherness Within as Constraining Factors ................................................................................ 69 Concluding Remarks .................................................................................................................... 74 Chapter 4 .................................................................................................................................. 77 “If You Don’t Vote VMRO You’re Not Macedonian” .................................................................... Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 77 Three Interpenetrating Levels .................................................................................................... 78 Ethnicity as a Political Factor ...................................................................................................... 79 VMRO-DPMNE, Political Affiliation and National Discourse .................................................... 79 Lived Experience and Ethnic Relations ...................................................................................... 83 Patrons or Ethnic Entrepreneurs ............................................................................................... 85 National Discourse and the International Community ............................................................. 88 The Church of St. Constantine and St. Elena .............................................................................. 89 Information Control ..................................................................................................................... 92 The Struga School ........................................................................................................................ 94 Concluding Remarks .................................................................................................................... 97 References ..............................................................................................................................104 Internet articles: ........................................................................................................................ 107 4 Acknowledgements This thesis is a product of the master’s programme in Social Anthropology at the University of Bergen. It has been possible to finish the thesis thanks to the student-fellowship grants I received from the Norwegian Institute for Foreign Affairs. First and foremost I want to thank my informants in Skopje. Without your welcoming and friendly nature this thesis would not have been possible. This thesis is dedicated to all of you. I wish to thank both of my supervisors on this thesis Anh Nga Longva and Tone Bringa. Anh Nga, thank you for stepping in and giving me some good starting advises in the absence of Tone. Tone, thank you for sticking with me all this time even though this thesis have taken longer than both you and I had hoped and anticipated. I especially thank you for hanging in there the last weeks, and for not losing faith in me. (at least you never showed it). To Haakon Vinje, your countless hours of reading, and editing my English language in this thesis have been highly appreciated. Without your good comments and grammatical insight this thesis would have been much harder to complete. To the Norwegian Embassy in Skopje who helped me when I needed it. A special thanks to Ambassador Carl S. Wibye for insightful comments and discussions. I want to give special thanks to my family for always supporting me in everything I chose to do, and last but not least to Marianne. Thank you for your patience the countless hours I have spent in the addict writing this thesis. Thank you for always being there and for believing in me. 5 6 Map of Macedonia Map of Macedonia