Tag: Przhino Agreement

Dutch Ambassador Wouter Plomp yesterday also reacted to the decision of President Ivanov to grant amnesty and pardons to politicians. "Accountability is key for resolution of political conflict, for Przino and beyond. Impunity cannot be the answer. SPO needs full support. "Plomp wrote on Twitter. https://twitter.com/wouterplomp/status/719991484246794240 President Ivanov said yesterday in an address to the nation that the political crisis had been...

EU Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn this morning held an urgent meeting with the mediators of the Przhino Agreement, MEPs Richard Howitt, Ivo Vajgl and Eduard Kukan on yesterday's decision by President Gjorge Ivanov to stop the trials of political leaders. Howitt wrote on Twitter about the meeting and said in addition to the photo of the meeting,...

Today's decision of President Gjorge Ivanov to stop trials of politicians puts into question Macedonia's commitment to promoting the rule of law, said the European Commission tonight. "The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has committed itself to promoting the rule of law and fighting impunity. Against this background, today's decision by President Ivanov on the pardoning of a number of officials...

The DUI leader Ali Ahmeti, assessed that the decision of the "so-called president" Ivanov to stop court proceedings against politicians, would not solve anything. Ahmeti said Ivanov's decision was hasty and thoughtless and has requested assistance from the European Commission to find a solution to the crisis, which according to him is only getting worse. Ivanov in his address to the nation,...

The Embassy of the United States to Macedonia, expressed concern over the latest decision of President Gjorge Ivanov to stop all court procedures and cases against politicians in Macedonia. "We are seeking further detail and clarification. The president’s statement however raises serious concerns about Macedonia’s commitment to the rule of law", reads the statement from the US Embassy. Ivanov, in his speech,...

The violation of the Przhino Agreement will have serious consequences, said today MEP Richard Howitt to "Meta" who was instrumental in brokering the Przino Agreement. "Politicians in Brussels are urgently studying and consulting on all the latest developments in Skopje and can only warn of the very serious consequences if any party or individual is deemed to be responsible for breaking the...

The British Embassy in Macedonia demanded an explanation from President Ivanov regarding his decision to suspend the trials that are being conducted against politicians. "The President’s statement this afternoon needs clarification. If the decision to pardon politicians extends to investigations of the allegations contained in the wiretap recordings, then that would be a matter of considerable concern. Full investigation of...

The Government's decision to overturn the resolutions made by the Interior Minister from November 11 last year to April 7 of this year is an illegitimate procedure, outside the laws and rules of procedure of Government, said Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski in an open letter to interim Prime Minister Emil Dimitriev. Spasovski emphasized that the information on which the Government adopted...

Macedonian political leaders have a responsibility to their citizens to return the country to Euro-Atlantic path through the implementation of political agreements and priority reforms, said US Ambassador Jess Baily and EU Ambassador Aivo Orav. “The EU and U.S. have supported all parties and stakeholders in their work to create the conditions for credible elections. This includes cleaning the voters'...

Federica Mogherini, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy called on political parties in Macedonia to create conditions for credible elections. "Following the latest developments in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, in particular the preparations for the early parliamentary elections in June, I spoke this afternoon with the leader of the SDSM, Zoran...

There has been progress in the preparations for the elections, but there is still a lot of work to be done, said today spokeswoman for the European Commission, Maja Kocijancic. “We closely monitor developments in Macedonia. Regarding preparations for the elections to be held within two months, there has been progress, but more needs to be done to ensure election...

The timing of elections cannot be considered separately from the democratic quality of the electoral process, said MEP Richard Howitt for "Meta" today. MEP Richard Howitt, was one of the intermediaries in the Przino Agreement. Mr Howitt's statement comes after the dissolution of Parliament, and the opposition’s decision not to participate in elections, after stated that they do not believe there are...

At midnight today, the President of Parliament Trajko Veljannoski should be discussing the dissolution of Parliament, allowing the required 60 days before elections, as provided for by the Electoral Code. In July, the leaders of the four main political parties, all agreed at Przino, that the political opposition would return to their seats in Parliament, as one measure in solving...

Undoubtedly there should be elections in Macedonia and the State Election Commission has to prepare the electoral roll, because now they should have enough time, said European Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Johannes Hahn in Durres, Albania, where he participated in the ministerial conference for the Western Balkans. The Commissioner said that if the problems of the voters...

German Ambassador to Macedonia, Christine Althauzer said that quality of the elections is more important than the election date. She said in an interview to "Radio Free Europe" (RSU) that she believes the time until the elections is short and that there are still a lot of work has to be done. "The quality of elections is crucial point, it...

Belgian expert Peter Vanhoutte, who facilitated the negotiations of the Przino Agreement and those in the working groups, today left for Brussels. His contract as an independent expert ends on March 27, but he announced that he would be returning to Macedonia on April 4 and said he would continue to work and help the country move forward. As for...

Today, Belgian facilitator Peter Vanhoutte will be awarded the Belgian decoration of “Officer in the Order of the Crown” by the Ambassador of Belgium, Anick Van Calster. The ceremony will be held tonight at 18.30 at the hotel "Arka". Mr Vanhoutte, the facilitator in Macedonia who participated in the negotiations on Black Monday and the crisis on 24th of December 2012, and...

Without a cleansed electoral roll, balanced media reporting and without the separation of the state and the party, it is uncertain whether early parliamentary elections on June 5 will be held and now nobody can know. This was stated by the German Ambassador, Christine Althauser at a debate organized by the NGO "Civil" on "Pluralism and the political crisis",...

Now only the President can decide whether he will strengthen or weaken democracy, said EU Ambassador Aivo Orav, regarding the Constitutional Court to repeal the amendments to the Amnesty Law adopted in 2009, which will allow the President to pardoned people convicted of electoral fraud. “We have criticized your country many times for not having an independent judiciary and rule...

Today or the latest tomorrow, we can start cross-checking the Voters' List, said interim Prime Minister Emil Dimitriev after his meeting with members of the SEC. He said that the members of the SEC assured him that today the valorisation of the databases ends, and in a day or two they will start to purge the list, and it will be...