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Macedonia: On the Road to Brussels

Author(s): / Language(s): English

In June 2005, the Project on Ethnic Relations (PER) and the Embassy of Switzerland in Macedonia organized the fifth roundtable in the so-called “Mavrovo Process” series. These roundtables are an occasion for members of the Macedonian governing coalition (the Together for Macedonia coalition headed by the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) and the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI)), the parliamentary opposition and representatives of the international community to assess the implementation of the Ohrid Framework Agreement (OFA) and evaluate the coalition’s progress. The discussions also provide a forum for honest and open communication—off the record—among all parliamentary parties. The Mavrovo roundtables are always important events in Macedonian politics. They provide a forum wherein difficult and sometimes contentious issues of Macedonia’s daily politics can be discussed in a neutral space, free of everyday political pressures. In fact, coffee breaks, lunches and dinners between the sessions often turn out to be just as important as the plenary sessions themselves, as these provide chances for the participants to continue their discussions and build the trust necessary for reaching compromises. The Mavrovo series has also become a major channel for the political parties of Macedonia’s smaller ethnic communities. They use this unique opportunity to present their case to the other coalition members and to receive a sympathetic hearing.

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The Balkans and the EU: Challenges on the Road to Accession

Author(s): Livia Plaks / Language(s): English

On November 19, 2005, the Project on Ethnic Relations, in cooperation with the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, organized an international roundtable discussion under the title "The Balkans and the EU: Challenges on the Road to Accession." The purpose of the roundtable was to provide a venue for frank dialogue among countries of the region and European institutions on the next wave of EU en-largement, how to make EU accession a reality, and the regional implications of future European inte-gration. The discussion also focused on the issue of Kosovo, and how the province's future status will impact the EU integration process for the region as a whole and for Serbia and Montenegro in particu-lar. The roundtable, which was held in Bucharest, brought together senior political leaders and gov-ernment officials from Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro including Kosovo, and Slovakia, as well as representatives of the Council of Europe, the European Union, and the United Nations. While all participants in the roundtable were in agreement that European integration should be their states' eventual goal, sharp differences in opinion were ex-pressed over the question of Kosovo. Kosovo Albanian leaders continued to insist that independence is the optimal solution both for Kosovo and for the region. Serbs rejected the possibility of an inde-pendent Kosovo and argued that such a step would set a dangerous precedent. Representatives of EU institutions avoided involvement in this debate but stressed that the countries of the Western Balkans still have much work to do, and many outstanding problems to resolve, before EU membership will be a reality for them. The Bucharest roundtable was unusual as a neutral, off-the-record setting for open discussions of often sensitive issues. This report documents those discussions.

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Macedonia’s Euro-Atlantic Integration: Advancing Common Interests

Author(s): Livia Plaks / Language(s): English

The seventh Mavrovo roundtable of leaders of Macedonia’s parliamentary parties revealed deep fissures between the leading political parties in the government and those in the opposition, as well as within some of the opposition parties. Tensions between the two major ethnic Albanian parties, and between the leading Albanian opposition party and the government, were evident in a series of events that occurred in the weeks immediately preceding the meeting. They were reflected in the decision by a key Albanian opposition leader not to participate in this Mavrovo meeting. The internal divisions within each of the Albanian parties were evident in the discussions. Reconciliation between the government and the main Albanian opposition party was hampered by disputes between them over issues of local governance, establishment of the parliamentary committee on communities, adoption of the police law, and implementation of the language provisions of the Ohrid Framework Agreement (OFA), and by the suggestion that the leading party of government was intent on “splitting” the Albanian opposition rather than working with it. Senior members of the government at Mavrovo made it clear that the government has accepted responsibility for continuing the policies of the previous government with respect to EU accession, and is intent on adhering to EU standards. But, at the same time, the government showed its impatience with the delays inherent in democratic processes, and pressed for changes in parliamentary procedures designed, according to them, to energize the parliamentary process, or as the opposition sees it, to reduce opportunities for debate and disagreement. Participating MPs who are not members of the three major ruling coalition parties all criticized the government’s proposals for limiting parliamentary debate, and called for dialogue between government and opposition to be carried out within state institutions, including the parliament. Representatives of the main opposition parties expressed deep skepticism about the government’s calls for dialogue and professed their unwillingness to enter meaningful dialogue at this stage on any issues other than those required by the EU accession process. Internal differences among opposition leaders, evident in their statements at Mavrovo, complicated the task of shaping any process of consultation or dialogue with a strong potential to achieve consensus.

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