Friday, 18 February 2011
14TH MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE ON RELATIONS AMONG THE COMMUNITIES
Today the Committee on Relations among the Communities held its 14th Meeting. The only item on the agenda was the incident at the Kale Fortress in Skopje and its effect on the inter-ethnic and inter-religious relations in the Republic of Macedonia.
Besides the Chairperson of the Committee Mr. Xhevad Ademi and the members of the Committee, the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia Mr. Trajko Veljanoski, the Minister of Internal Affairs Ms. Gordana Jankulovska, the Ombudsman Mr. Ixhet Memeti, the Chairperson of the Committee for relations among the Religious Communities and Religious Groups Ms. Valentina Božinovska, representatives of the Delegation European Union to the Republic of Macedonia, representatives of the OSCE Mission in Skopje, representatives of the Embassy of the USA in Skopje, representatives of the NATO Liaison Office in Skopje, as well as other Members of Parliament attended the Meeting.
Based on the debate, the Committee on Relations among the Communities adopted the following:
C O N C L U S I O N S
1. The Committee on Relations among the Communities expresses its deep concern about the incident at the Kale Fortress in Skopje that resulted in increased tensions among the ethnic communities in the Republic of Macedonia. The members of the Committee on Relations among the Communities, having in mind their constitutional and legal competences, their rights and obligations, emphasize the importance of further development and promotion of the multi-ethnic and inter-confessional understanding among the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia.
2. The members of the Committee on Relations among the Communities condemn this incident and call on demonstration of high level of responsibility, restraint, reason, further subsiding of the passions, and peaceful protection of the multi-ethnic respect.
3. The members of the Committee on Relations among the Communities are convinced that the institutions of the system have the capacity to resolve this sensitive issue, with the aim of insuring the stability and democratic future of the Republic of Macedonia.
4. The Committee points out that the cultural heritage of the Kale Fortress in Skopje that originates from various periods, and because of that it is an expression of the different civilizational values, is a common cultural heritage that belongs to all the communities and to all the citizens of our common state, and represents a symbol of unity and not a symbol of divisions.
5. The Committee is convinced that all the issues regarding the construction taking place on the Kale Fortress in Skopje and the other sensitive issues of this type have to be resolved only in coordination, with open political dialogue of everyone involved within the institutions of the system, with public debates and mutual respect of the values of all the ethnic communities in the Republic of Macedonia.
6. The members of the Committee on Relations among the Communities consider that the promotion of the culture and cultural heritage of all the ethnic communities should continue to be developed jointly, because the multi-cultural and multi-confessional character of the society is an important pillar of the democratic environment and of the stability in the Republic of Macedonia.
7. The Committee is convinced that this type of sensitive issues will not be used by any of the political parties, NGOs or citizens for other political goals.
8. The members of the Committee on Relations among the Communities urge all the political parties, the bodies of the state administration, the media, the religious communities, the Non-Governmental sector and the citizens to address the situation in a peaceful manner and in the spirit of reconciliation, as well as to refrain from any activity that might increase the tensions; and to approach all the issues related to the multi-ethnic and multi-confessional relations in the Republic of Macedonia in a sensible manner and with high level of responsibility.
9. These Conclusions shall be forwarded to the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, the Ombudsman, the representatives of the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Macedonia, the representatives of the OSCE Mission in Skopje, the representatives of the Embassy of the United States of America in Skopje, the NATO Liaison Office in Skopje, the Committee for Relations with the Religious Communities and Religious Groups, the Agency for Implementation of the Rights of the Communities.