Government Forgets Promises of March 2014

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev's Social Democratic League, until it was in opposition two and a half years ago, one of the key promises was to examine or remove many monuments set up by the VMRO DPMNE government, former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski's nationalist right-wing party.

After coming to power, the Government has formed a commission to review this project, which has cost hundreds of millions of euros, but according to the commission's leaders, so far none of the recommendations envisioning the destruction of construction where irregularities have been listed has been implemented.

“We have handed over revelations with all evidence for violating legal procedures. For the most problematic memorials we've asked for their demonstration, but unfortunately, nothing has been taken up so far, and that's unfortunate because it shows that we're still trapped, not by those who raised them, but by our inability to get rid of”.

“The citizens want one day when they get up, to see the space-deposited, cleared of fascist monuments, and until we do that, we have done nothing”, says Miroslav Gerchev, architect, chairman of the commission for assessment of the “project. Skopje 2014”

The government has said that this case “has not been left in oblivion, but that after the Commission's work is completed and the delivery of all elaborites, the executive will engage all organs to act on instructions.

“is a sensitive process and should be analysed by relevant institutions”, they have stated by the Government.

But some of the experts contacted by Radio Free Europe say that the Government, with its non-intervention of any action, “is giving life to this controversial” project, which, according to Professor of History Vehbi Xhemaili, a recognition of political issues, is serving as an instrument to preserve popularity, as has the previous Government.

This new government, although promised a lot, again continues with the old avaz. The pre-election promises are not holding them, procrastinating their jobs, and this is seen with the monuments of the 2014 Skopje project, with which it came to power. But now it's going on with the politics of the Old Government, wanting to retain its authority, saying some may be worthless, but some have to be preserved, so it doesn't even break the”, says Xhemailil.

He points out that many of the monuments set up bring nothing good to the country after creating division not only within the state but also abroad, as there are some who are opposed by neighbouring states, such as the occasion with Alexander the Great, which Greeks consider their own or that of the Goce Dellcev that Bulgarians also say is their own.

I think that some monuments historically do not have their place, they damage their coexistence, but also their civilization in Skopje and beyond, because most do not have autochthonic origin, but are imported by neighbouring states. I think it would be good for this new policy to decide once and for all for these monuments to be removed because they have no place in the middle of Skopje”, says historian Xhemaili.

Citations and many other baroque constructions within “Skopje 2014” was designed in 2006, but construction continued after 2014, with the establishment of more than 100 monuments and various statues cost about half a billion euros.

Albanian parties, meanwhile, have failed to prevent this project, but neither to include the Albanian element within the framework of this project. Instead, they have consistently accused each other of which of which has helped or been unable to prevent its establishment of a highly criticised project in opinion.