United Macedonian Diaspora Publication Volume 10 • Summer/Fall Double Edition 2011 • www.umdiaspora.org UMD GLOBAL CONFERENCE 2011 REMEMBERING THE OHRID FRAMEWORK COERCION BEST PROMOTER OF MACEDONIA AWARD GREEK ORTHODOX BISHOP Celebrating 20 Years of THREATENS To DESTROY MACEDONIAN RADIO STATION Macedonian IndependenceSUMMER/FALL 2011 1 DO YOU HAVE A PASSION... FOR MACEDONIA? DO YOU HAVE SPECIAL KNOWLED...GE, UNIQUE EXPERIENCE TO SHARE? DO YOU LOVE TO WRITE, TAKE PHOTOS? IF YOU ANSWERED YES ... ... then consider submitting your original writing and photos for publication in UMD Voice Magazine! Apply at: [email protected] or call: +1 (800) 863-9583 x1, or +1 (202) 756-2244 ADVERTISING RATES Back Cover (full) - $1000 Inside cover (full) - $750 Any inside full page - $600 1/2 page (vert/horiz) - $400 1/4 page (vert/horiz) - $250 Please contact us for special pricing deals. We are happy to arrange an affordable advertising package for your needs: United Macedonian Diaspora 1101 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, 6th Floor Washington, D.C. 20004 (202) 756-2244 • [email protected] All advertising is subject to approval by UMD Voice’s editorial staff, which reserves the right to refuse or cancel any advertisement at any time. IN THIS ISSUE 4 Letter from the President 5 Editorial: Remembering The Ohrid Framework Coercion 7 Letters To The Editor 8 Anita Talevski: Macedonian “Iron Woman” 11 Product Profile: Macedonia’s First Cognac 12 H.M. Arndt, Macedonian Consul in Germany’s Rhineland United Macedonian Diaspora 1101 Pennsylvania Ave NW, 6th Floor 13 May 1st Party in Cegan, Aegean Macedonia: A Traditon Is Born Washington, D.C. 20004 Phone: (202) 756-2244 14 Tribute to Macedonian Film in Valencia, Spain Fax: (202) 756-7323 [email protected] 14 Jankov: Political Cartoon [email protected] 15 Preston F.C.: Debt Relief Fund http://www.umdiaspora.org 16 Ancient Macedonia, and Today’s Republic of Macedonia Australia Office: PO Box 2153 18 The Macedonian-Roman Wars, Part III: (178-168 BCE) Hawthorn, VIC 3122 Australia Phone: 0438 385 466 21 In The Theater of The World: Alexander of Macedon, in first person [email protected] 22 New On The Web: Macedonian Music Canada Office: 23 Poetry: We Love You Macedonia, In All Your Colors 3555 St. Clair Avenue East, Toronto, ON M1K 1L6, Canada 24 The Vatican’s 16th Century Manuscript with Macedonian Lexicon Phone: 1-800-UMD-9583 [email protected] 26 Exploring the Beauty of Macedonia’s Highlands God, and the Macedonian in us Editor: Mark Branov 27 [email protected] 28 Toronto Fundraiser: The Educational and Cultural Movement of Voden Contributors: Martin Anastasovski; Victor 29 Neither On The Ground Nor In The Sky Bivell; Zoran Dabik; Aleksandar Donski; Carlos Flores-Juberias; Victor Friedman; 30 Spotlight: ‘Best Promoter of Macedonia’ Award Cermony Tiho Georgiev; Ivona Georgievska; Petar Jankov; Tomislav Jovanovski; Dame 32 Report from Egej - ‘Choose Your Reality’ Krcoski; Emilija Kukubajska; Marija-Emilija 34 UMD Outraged with Greek Metropolitan’s Incitement of Violence Kukubajska; Pande Manojlov; Gorgi Marko- ski; Sally McNamara; Jason Miko; Marjana 35 Ambassador Dabik: Macedonia and Media Freedom Miladinovska; Bobby Mircevski; Valentina Miskovska; Aleks Mitreski; Vera Najdovska; 36 Interview with Letka Dimovska Polizova Eugenia Natsoulidou; Kiril Nestorovski; Goce Peroski; Stan Pigon; Vlatko Sekulos- 38 Amnesty International: Time to Deliver Justice to the Victims of War ki; Gjoko Sikoski; Daniela Stojanova; Elena Crimes Stojanova; Maria Stoyanchev; C. Benjamin The Macedonian Economy, an Opportunity for Growth Tracy; Vodenka 38 39 Miko: Moral Lepers and Moral Heros Layout and Design Cindy Armstrong 40 3rd Annual UMD Global Coference in Washington, D.C. - A Huge Success! Any opinions or views expressed in articles or other pieces appearing in UMD Voice 45 “Macedonian Companions”: A Global Program to Support the Macedo- are those of the author alone and are not nian Cause necessarily those of UMD; the appearance of any such opinions or views in UMD UMD Global Confernce Key Speeches: Voice is not and should not be considered 46 Victor Bivell 49 Sally McNamara to be an endorsement by or approval of the 50 Victor Friedman 51 Aleks Mitreski same by UMD. SUMMER/fall 2011 3 LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT this to the entire class. I protested: “Alexan- this was the highlight of the entire event. der the Great was not Greek, he was Mace- I know there was opposition, and I know donian!” The teacher brought me outside of not everyone will like everything the gov- the classroom, for what I thought would be ernment in Macedonia does, but to me, this a scolding. But, instead, the teacher said to was a moment to be proud of. I encountered me: “Metodija, I know, but that is what the some very positive comments among the book says and I have to teach it this way.” people around me, including: “Skopje finally I will never forget her words: “That is what looks like a European city.” the book says.” Why is there such a relative- Macedonia is all we have; we must pro- ly limited amount of books in English record- tect it, build it, make it prosperous, make it ing the truth about Macedonia? The answer successful, and make it a role model for the is simple: the Greek state has invested mil- entire region. UMD is ready and willing to lions of euros on Hellenic Studies endow- help Macedonia and the Macedonian people ment programs at the world’s universities, to worldwide to ensure this. Together, we are pay scholars to “absorb” Macedonian history stronger. into Greek history, just like the Greek state The 3rd Annual UMD Global Conference absorbed Aegean Macedonia in 1913. I wish this past June set the tone for the 20th An- the Macedonian state would spend just 2% niversary of Macedonia’s independence cel- of what they spent on “Skopje 2014” to es- ebrations worldwide. UMD has been at the tablish Macedonian Studies endowment pro- forefront of the Macedonian cause outside grams at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Oxford of Macedonia since it was founded in 2004, Dear friends, and Cambridge, to counter the revisionist and UMD will continue to serve as a voice Greek historians, and to let the truth about for Macedonians in Washington, D.C., Can- I was seven years old when Macedonia Macedonia be shown to the world, based on berra, Ottawa, and Brussels. declared its independence on September facts and evidence. As we mark the 20th Anniversary of Mace- 8th, 1991, and my parents could not have I recently returned from a twelve-day trip donia’s independence, I encourage you been prouder. With my maternal grandpar- to Macedonia, including visits with the Pres- to give your moral and financial support to ents living upstairs, I had always enjoyed ident and Prime Minister. September 8th ar- UMD’s efforts. Please consider becoming a double shot of Macedonian pride every rived, and I had no idea what to expect! I a member today, or donating $20 a month, day: stories, traditions, customs, language, had read about the controversy over “Sko- or joining the Macedonian Companions pro- and history. pje 2014,” and especially its cost. Indeed, gram, at a tax-deductible $1,000 a year for I think I was eight or nine when I got my all of Skopje is under construction. Then, I 3 years. Without your support, we could not first library card at Garfield Public Library. crossed the Stone Bridge and, as I walked continue our important work. I only encountered one book about Mace- up, I saw the enormous statue of Alexander All of us at UMD are very excited about this donia, entitled: “Macedonia: 4,000 Years of the Great on his horse Bucephalus. Though issue of UMD Voice; the content is amazing, Greek History” donated to the library by the I still had some reservations about the proj- and Mark Branov and his team have done a “Pan-Macedonian Association.” I read the ect overall, it made me feel proud to see fantastic job! UMD Voice is the only fully bi- book from cover-to-cover, and I was furi- this statue. I especially wished my late fa- lingual English/Macedonian publication, and ous at its claims that the Macedonians were ther Alexander Koloski had lived to see it, our last issue was downloaded over 40,000 Greek. I used to learn Macedonian history and to see twenty years of Macedonian in- times! from my father every Friday, which is when dependence. he went to the Macedonian store down the I walked a few blocks to the main square, Please enjoy reading UMD Voice magazine. street, to buy the weekly magazine Make- and started to notice how the entire square Mark and his team have much in store for donsko Sonce, and he would read it aloud was filling up. There must have been 250,000 you. to my sister and me. We had always known people, if not more - the largest celebration that Philip II and Alexander the Great were in the history of Macedonia! Speech after Sincerely yours, Macedonian, and since two of my uncles are speech, song after song, I thoroughly en- historians and professors, I definitely got my joyed it all. fair share of history lessons. After the Prime Minister spoke, the Alex- Later, in the seventh grade, we began ander the Great fountain was officially re- studying ancient history at school. Along vealed. The light show was spectacular! Ev- came the page where it said Alexander the ery single person in the square had their cell Metodija A. Koloski Great was Greek, and my teacher repeated phones up, to record the fountain. To me, President 4 SUMMER/fall 2011 EDITORIAL Remembering The Ohrid Framework Coercion By Mark Branov Founded in 2004, United Macedonian Diaspora conditioned motor coaches into that town, (UMD) is the leading international non-govern- to quietly escort them to safety, with their mental organization addressing the interests weapons as carry-on luggage.