Thousands of people have marched through Skopje – rallying against a proposed compromise with Bulgaria that would allow North Macedonia to begin European Union membership talks.
North Macedonia has been a candidate for EU membership for 17 years. It has already changed its name to appease Greece, but is now being blocked by Bulgaria.
Last month, France drafted a proposal to amend North Macedonia’s constitution to recognise a Bulgarian minority in the country.
Al Jazeera’s Jillian Wolf reports.
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22 Comments
Greek culture appropriation 🤡
🤦🤡🤡🤡
Your History? We created your country.
Aren't bulgarians the majority in macadonia.
I don't know why I'm watching this but i will say it in "macedonian" Не знам защо го гледам това
Brainwash delusions i see there.
and stolen ancient Greek history….
О, неразумний юроде, поради що се срамиш да се наречеш българин?
Macedonian nationalists are the worst racists against Bulgarians. They call us Tatars – so i guess that would make them Tatar too! 🖕
Most Bulgarian folk songs are sung in Pirin Macedonian.
МАКЕДОНЦИ НЯМА ,ВСИЧКИ СА БЪЛГАРИ
By watching ths video I actually understood that we have to deal with a nation under fallacy. The people of this nation have actually convinced themselves that the Bulgarian language they speak is Macedonian. They have also convinced themselves that the Bulgarian language they speak (now converted to Macedonian), is also the language which was spoken by ancient Macedons, regardless of the fact that they came to area nine centuries after Alexander's death. The funy thing is that the language that they have, was formed by two Greek monks (Cyril and Methodious) at 8th century AD, 1100 years after Alexander's great death. And the most hilarious part… the university that they have is dedicated to them… Seriously bro… are you f…g kiding me?
I was recently reading the history of my hometown Bitola and found some very interesting information.
First founded by Philip ll and named Heraclea. Via Ignacia, has a road that leads to it, although a dead end.
Slavs came, took over. They were made Christian by Byzantine.
Ottomans came, colonised the Balkans. These places were multiethnic. There were Vlaschs, Albanians, Bulgars, Serbs, Greeks, Turks etc
Everyone's fighting the oppression anyway they can. Trains made to go from Bitola to Thessaloniki in 1894. Everyone could study anywhere. The Macedonian founding fathers, although Bulgarian wanted to point out a difference in language and culture, between Skopje/Ohrid and Sofia. They were called traitors.
After the Turks, Macedonia was subject to Serbinasation, Hellenisation, and/or being told it was no different from Bulgarian. No one would let these people say what they were, there had to be an influence, how else would you take over a territory without a war.. hence the Greek exodus of Aegean Macedonians.
A Macedonian Bulgarian prime minister wanted for both to join Yugoslavia. He got screwed by the Serbs, Croats, Slovenians into giving the territory to them, thus it becoming Yugoslavia. Bulgars lost, Serbs won.
In 1945, clinging to the idea of a few before them, including one Greek politician, Macedonians say, we are different, nothing like you Serbs, Bulgars or Greeks, we are unique.
Honestly, being treated so badly, no wonder some Macedonians cling to the 'unique' idea, because the mix of influence has truly made us so in some aspects, especially the music.
We are the same, Orthodox people from the Balkans, yet have some differences. Being born in Australia I see Serbs, Bulgars and Greeks as our closest brothers, having the same religion as us.
Too bad theres no word for "politeness" in any of our languages, and thats why theres no sitting on the same table, even though we all drink Rakija…
Masos need to admit they have nothing to do with Alexander the great (as too do the Greeks, because come on, descendents from 2100 years ago, please), and Bulgars have to admit that we indeed are different, now. We were brothers, but were treated as something else, thus becoming it. Let us come to conclusions ourselves, because the stubborness runs deep.
Macedonian ethnicity was made up by the Yugoslav goverment.
Macedonians!
So, they are basically protesting for the right to be discriminate against Bulgarians and engage in hate speech against them… Is this for real? We want to bring this into the EU?
As to the guy who says that there is no democracy in North Macedonia, one of the basic concepts of democracy is the protection of the rights of minorities, so making the proposed concessions would be a step towards democracy.
Bulgaria will give you an identity because right now you have none
@1:45 "Our Government agreed we 'started' to be macedonians since 1945, what about our grandfathers". Having looked at ethnic maps drawn up by French and Austrians of the Balkans of 1900s and during the Balkan Wars, show the majority of people in macedonia identified as Bulgarians. I guess your grandfathers identified as Bulgarians, and since 1945 due to Yugoslav persecutions of the Bulgarians, the population was forced to identify as "ethnic Macedonians". Googling the Bulgarian/ Macedonian patriots fighting to free Macedonia such as Hristo Tatarchev, Petar Poparsov, Dame Gruev etc all studied in Bulgarian schools, not Greek, not Serbian, not Macedonian. Possibly as they identified as Bulgarian. All of their names end in "ov", "ev" like most Bulgarian surnames end today, and since 1945 in North Macedonia the surnames changed to end in "ski", just like in this interview. Why? Possibly the population was forced to stop being Bulgarian.
There has never been such thing as a macedonian nation (lol). this "macedonian nationality" narrative is the result of 20-century Yugoslav (Serbian) propaganda to block Bulgarian aspirations over Skopje and its Bulgarian population. These West Bulgarians from the Vardar region, can write as many comments as they want on the Internet (We are Macedonians), but to no avail. They will never convince anyone. They are just a Bulgarian population, left outside the Bulgarian nation state. Being more powerful and richer, Bulgaria should use its leverage, in order to incorporate this landlocked country into its territory. That Balkan micro-state has no prospects.
Macedonia always Greece! Never Popinski! These people in North Macedonia are Bulgarians!
These idiots think Goran is Macedonian name lol
I live in Toronto, and was surprised that the oldest 3 Bulgarian churches are actually, established by Macedonians😮😮😮. So in 1910 the church here is Macedono-Bulgarian. So what identity are these guys talking about.