INTERNATIONAL POLICY ANALYSIS The Radical Right in Macedonia ZDRAVKO SAVESKI & ARTAN SADIKU December 2012 n In the specific case of the Republic of Macedonia, two forms of nationalism and ultra-nationalism coexist: the ethnic Macedonian and the ethnic Albanian one. There are strong ties between the discourses of the extreme right of both sides and the two biggest moderate right-wing parties VMRO-DPMNE (ethnically Macedonian) and DPA (belonging to the Albanian side). n Radical-right ideas, commitments, theses and values, which in other countries are mostly on the margins of public space or completely excluded from it, are part of the conventional media and public space in Macedonia. n While the ethnic Macedonian right-wing extremism contains the revision of borders with neighbouring Greece and Bulgaria as well as an opposition to EU and NATO, both seen as supporters of Greece in the question of the »name issue« of the coun- try, Albanian extremists either push for a more federalized Macedonia or even the unification of all Albanians in only one state. So, the crucial Ohrid Framework Agree- ment of 2001 which ended the armed conflict between the National Liberation Army (NLA) of ethnic Albanians and the Macedonian armed forces, is consequently questioned from opposite sides. ZDRAVKO SAVESKI & ARTAN SADIKU | THE RADICAL RIGHT IN MACEDONIA Contents 1. Radical Right-Wing Actors in Macedonia . 1 1.1 Ultranationalist Ethnic Macedonian Political Parties and Organisations . 1 1.2 Ties With Mainstream Macedonian Nationalism . .4 1.3 Ultranationalist Ethnic Albanian Political Parties and Organisations . .5 1.4 Mainstream Albanian Nationalism. 6 1.5 Religious Fundamentalism. 6 1.6 Neo-Nazism . 7 2. Counterstrategies and Recommendations . .8 References . 11 ZDRAVKO SAVESKI & ARTAN SADIKU | THE RADICAL RIGHT IN MACEDONIA 1. Radical Right-Wing Besides nationalist and ultra-nationalist groups, the Actors in Macedonia study will also analyse groups and organisations whose ideas fall into the category of open neo-Nazism and The political scene in Macedonia includes several radi- religious fundamentalism/radicalism. These are either cal right-wing political groups. This study will treat only closed shop groups (in the case of the neo-Nazis) quite those holders of radical right-wing ideas who are cur- unknown to the public, whose activities rarely appear rently active. The first part of the analysis will focus on in media, or else very informal and unstructured groups nationalism and ultra-nationalism, two forms of which (in the case of religious fundamentalists/radicals) that at coexist in Macedonia: a Macedonian and an Albanian times and in certain situations have the opportunity to one, while no significant nationalist project can be mobilise wider support in their areas of influence. Re- identified in the country’s other ethnic communities. ligious fundamentalism is present only in the Muslim Radical right-wing ideas, goals, theses and values, community. In the Christian community a rise in religi- which in other countries generally occupy a marginal osity can be observed, but it is rather traditional and not place in the public sphere or are excluded from it alto- of a fundamentalist type. The neo-Nazis have so far not gether, have an alarmingly high profile in the main- organised themselves in a political party, but operate in stream media and public sphere in Macedonia. Strongly several groups, more or less related to each other. Neo- nationalist positions are, for example, espoused by the Nazism in the Republic of Macedonia is only present in biggest moderate right-wing parties – the ethnic Mac- the Slavic Macedonian ethnic community. edonian VMRO-DPMNE and the ethnic Albanian DPA as well as sometimes in the language and practice of the VMRO-People’s Party, the party »United for Mac- 1.1 Ultranationalist Ethnic Macedonian edonia« and the »Dostoinstvo« party. Parties, organisa- Political Parties and Organisations tions and groups that we might classify as ultranational- ist are generally smaller political entities that advocate The most influential currently active ultranationalist eth- more intense and more violent forms of nationalism, al- nic Macedonian political parties and organisations are though these often collaborate or form coalitions with – as already mentioned – TMORO-VEP, TMRO, People’s the major parties of the moderate right. On the Mace- Movement for Macedonia and the World Macedonian donian side the ultranationalist parties include TMORO- Congress. VEP 1, TMRO 2, the People’s Movement of Macedonia (NDM) and the VMRO-Democratic Party 3 alongside the a) TMORO-VEP formed as a party before the 2006 par- probably most prominent World Macedonian Congress liamentary elections. Its president is Strasho Angelovski, (a far-right international lobbying organisation that the erstwhile long-time president of the now defunct seeks to represent Macedonians all over the world). On MAAK-Conservative Party, an ultranationalist party with the Albanian side a number of smaller ultranationalist a similar orientation active in the 1990s. The first part parties emerged between 2001 and 2012; however, of the party’s name refers to the historical Macedonian apart from the Democratic Union of Albanians, none national liberation organisation – TMORO, and the sec- of them managed to survive in the political arena. The ond part explicitly refers to the parts of the wider geo- only other Albanian ultranationalist organisation worth graphical region called Macedonia, which the party, like mentioning is Illyricum Libertas from Tetovo, which is other nationalists, considers to be ethnic Macedonian more active and prominent in its extreme views. The territories. TMORO-VEP claims to be a right-wing party same goes for the football ultras group called Ballista with a national orientation, and its stated programmatic from Tetovo. goals are »forming a natural Macedonian state on its entire territory« as well as the revision of the borders between the Republic of Macedonia, which it consid- 1. Fatherland Macedonian Organisation of Radical Renewal – Vardar- Aegean-Pirin-Prespa. ers to be an artificial entity, and »subjugated parts of 2. Permanent Macedonian Radical Unification. the Macedonian state« that now belong to Bulgaria and 3. The case of the VMRO-Democratic Party shows how difficult it is to Greece. More specifically, the party stands for the re- make a theoretical distinction between »normal« nationalism and ultra- vision of the Bucharest Peace Treaty of 1913, which nationalism. This party can be classified as both a nationalist and an ul- tranationalist one. ended the Second Balkan War, and the unification of 1 ZDRAVKO SAVESKI & ARTAN SADIKU | THE RADICAL RIGHT IN MACEDONIA »Greater« Macedonia. In addition, the party is commit- to criticism. For example, when in 2011 the European ted to restoring the status of the Republic of Macedonia Commission progress report on Macedonia left out the as a national state of the ethnic Macedonian people, term »Macedonian«, TMRO called for the immediate sus- which means opposing the Ohrid Framework Agree- pension of negotiations with the EU. Typically for Mac- ment of 2001 which ended the armed conflict between edonian ultranationalists, TMRO advocates the revision the National Liberation Army (NLA) of ethnic Albanians of the above-mentioned Bucharest Treaty (in September and the Macedonian security forces, as well as the con- 2002 the party appealed to all signatories of the Treaty of stitutional changes that it introduced. Bucharest to revise it) and the return of 750,000 refugees and their progeny to Aegean Macedonia who were ex- TMORO-VEP ran for election three times as an inde- pelled to Bulgaria by Greek forces in 1913. TMRO in this pendent party. The first time, at the 2006 parliamentary case typically operates with surprisingly different figures elections, when it won only 744 votes (0.08 per cent); from the generally accepted ones, claiming that today the second time, at the 2008 parliamentary elections, there are some 750,000 Macedonians in Albania (as op- when it increased this to 4,319 votes (0.44 per cent), posed to only 300,000 Albanians in Macedonia), while and at the 2009 local elections when it scored its great- in the Aegean part of Macedonia (i. e., in the southern est success. On this occasion, the party formed a coali- part of what they view as ethnic Macedonia, which today tion with the VMRO-Democratic Party. The coalition lists belongs to Greece) they claim there are 1.2 million Mac- for seats on the local council won 15,147 votes,4 which edonians. On one occasion, party president Shehtanski translated into twelve seats for the coalition. Most of the praised the idea advanced by Ljubco Georgievski (Mace- votes were won in the cities of Prilep (2,322 votes or 5.9 donian Prime Minister from 1998 to 2002) that Mace- per cent), Kisela Voda (1,488 votes or 5.6 per cent) and donia and Albania should exchange territory and that Kumanovo (1,373 votes or 3.0 per cent). At the parlia- the two states should consider redrawing their border. mentary elections in 2011 TMORO-VEP even ran as part Noting that, owing to its »hostile« surroundings, Mace- of the winning coalition led by VMRO-DPMNE, which donia was more comparable with Israel than with, say, shows how close the relationship is between main- Norway and expressing concerns over the military un- stream conservatism and nationalism in Macedonia. preparedness of Macedonian youth, TMRO called for the introduction of compulsory military service of at least six b) TMRO is the second ultranationalist party whose ac- months for both men and women up to 27 years of age. ronym also refers to the historical Macedonian national liberation organisation – TMORO. It was established in TMRO ran for the first time at the 2005 local elections. 2002 and its principal objectives are to get the »Mac- It won 1,372 votes and one seat on the council (in the edonian issue« onto the agenda in the Balkans and to municipality of Kisela Voda).