Address by Vlado BUCHKOVSKI
Prime Minister of "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia"
on the occasion of the second part of the 2006 Ordinary Session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly
(Strasbourg, 10-13 April 2006)
Mr. President of the Parliamentary Assembly René van der Linden
Mr. Secretary General Terry Davis,
Distinguished Members of Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
First of all allow me to thank you for the invitation to address the Council of Europe, the generator of European democracy. I have to admit that it gives me a great pleasure to have the opportunity to express my opinion on European efforts and perspectives of the Republic of Macedonia, as well as the entire Balkan region.
Let me extend the gratitude of my government and the Macedonian people to all members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and to its President, Mr. René van der Linden as well as to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Mr. Terry Davis, for the continuing support.
Today, the Balkans is entering the stage of its redefinition mainly with the on-going talks about the future status of Kosovo, forthcoming referendum in Montenegro and the constitutional redefining of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Under such circumstances it is very important to be reasonable and constructive. In this respect, my Government has always been convinced that regardless the future status, only full implementation of all standards in Kosovo regarding the democracy, human rights and rule of law will provide a solid base for political stabilisation and lasting peace in the whole region.
The Republic of Macedonia is helping the process in accordance with its capabilities. With its policy Macedonia is an example for good neighbourly relations. Macedonia is a successful model of multiethnic and multicultural society. We believe that our model of the Framework Agreement can be implemented in other countries in the region.
Within relatively short period of time the Republic of Macedonia has adopted all regulations deriving from the Ohrid Framework Agreement, including the decentralisation, use of ethnic symbols, opening of a new University in Tetovo for the representatives of the Albanian ethnic community, equitable representation of the ethnic communities in the state institutions, use of the languages of the minority ethnic communities, etc. Today we have satisfying results in the sphere of decentralisation, which has been recognised by international institutions.
Republic of Macedonia is in a very important stage of its development. Acquiring EU candidate-country status represents a strong signal not just for the Republic of Macedonia but also for the entire Balkan region. Profound reforms in all spheres of the society - politics, judiciary, administration and business - are the major issues where we exercise even greater efficiency and dynamics. For this purpose we have even amended the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia.
All our efforts in the previous period were aimed towards meeting the obligations that emerged from different stages of our integration in the European Union. We have adopted a lot of reform laws and the fundamental alterations have been made for their effective implementation.
Republic of Macedonia is facing another test. We are to conduct parliamentary elections that are decisive to a large extent for our future. We have adopted the new Electoral Code according to the European recommendations and we hope that it will contribute a lot to fair and democratic elections. All demands of the opposition are implemented in the Electoral Code. We have decided that the president of the Electoral Committee to be proposed by the opposition.
This leaves no doubt that we want fair and democratic elections. But fair and democratic elections also mean accepting the results emerging from the will of the citizens.
Regarding the regional cooperation the Republic of Macedonia deserves to be considered a leader in regional cooperation. We attach great importance to it and regard the regional cooperation as an essential precondition for joint progress. We have recently joined CEFTA, and the further liberalisation of the trade in the region will follow by creating free trade zone, which is a strong impulse for fast development. We strongly support this process and we estimate that it is a catalyst for development and Europeization.
In the economy we have made successful reforms towards enhancing the business climate. The status of EU candidate-country has started to give results. Foreign companies' interest for investing in Macedonia is growing continuously. All of this gives us the right to hope that this year will be the key year for enhancing the economy, for new employments, and better standard of living. Here I would like to mention just few things that the Government of the Republic of Macedonia has done to make Macedonia desirable business destination. We have adopted new legislation, we have implemented one-stop-shop registration system, we have launched the reform of the Real-estate Register, and we have amended many other laws. All these reforms are very unpopular for the forthcoming elections, but are very important for the future generations.
Ladies and Gentleman,
The membership of the Republic of Macedonia in the Council of Europe on 9th of November 1995 was the first corner stone of the realization of the European aspirations of the Republic of Macedonia. When we became a member of the Council of Europe we agreed to respect the basic principles of the Council of Europe-democracy, human rights and rule of law as common values.
For a long period the culture of cooperation, solidarity and reaching consensus on important political issues among the member countries of this organisation have been the critical driving forces for the development of Europe in political, economic and cultural terms.
At the Warsaw Summit, the Council of Europe set up several priorities. One of them has been the cooperation between the Council of Europe and the European Union. At the current Session of the Parliamentary Assembly one of the main topics are the relations between Council of Europe and European Union and in this regard Mr. Juncker, Mr. Schüssel Mr. Popescu-Tăriceanu and the President of the European Commission, Mr. Barroso addressed this distinguished forum.
The Memorandum of Understanding between the Council of Europe and the European Union ought to be a platform for future cooperation between the two organisations and contribution to their partnership.
The Council of Europe as a genuine pan European organization creates the possibility to enhance the political dialogue between the European Union member countries and the countries that are preparing for membership such as the Republic of Macedonia.
Distinguished Parliamentarians,
The Council of Europe as the oldest intergovernmental organisation in Europe, which promotes the principles of fundamental values, has a vital role towards the challenges of the 21-century such as terrorism, crime, corruption, trafficking in human beings, xenophobia, intolerance, poverty, etc.
The European Court of Human Rights is one of the special features of the Council of Europe. The right to individual application, enabling any individual to lodge an application against any state for violation of individual rights is an essential accomplishment of the Council of Europe. The Republic of Macedonia supports the ongoing reforms of the Court and we are looking forward to the Report of the Wise Persons concerning this issue. I would like to point out that the Republic of Macedonia was among the first countries that ratified the Protocol 14.
Ladies and gentlemen,
J would like to thank Romania for its Chairmanship of the Council of Europe and its contribution in the implementation of the Action Plan of the 2005 Warsaw Summit. We highly appreciate all the activities undertaken in the field of the European Convention of Human Rights and improving its effectiveness, protections of the rights of the persons belonging to the national minorities, social cohesion and cooperation with European Institutions and International organisations.
Also, J would like to welcome the forthcoming Chairmanship of the Russian Federation with the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. We do believe that it will be an added value of the implementation of the main principles of the Council of Europe.
Dear Friends,
European future of the citizens living in the geographical territory of Europe is not just their natural right but also an imperative of the modern relations. The European idea has made radical switch in the awaRenéss of the Balkan people, people that today prefer cooperation and joining together of the countries in the region. Today, more than ever, the common Balkan people are interested in economic development, perspective and global progress both of the region and of Europe in general. Today, the citizens are even more convinced that joint cooperation and integration are incomparable advantage compared to the old political disputes and wars. In the Balkans, too, the European affiliation and integration are remarkable stimuli not just for regional peace and security but also for the general development of the South-Eastern Europe and Europe as a whole. It will be very good to continue to move forward in this direction. It is very important that the politicians in the region with sincere European orientation receive stronger support. Otherwise, the old-fashioned politicians that usually offer nothing useful but manipulation with ethnical issues in their countries would be favoured.
Our efforts towards accession in the EU as priority objective are based on the logical conclusion that Europe equally belongs to all its citizens and nations. On the other hand, each problem in every part of Europe is at the same time problem for the EU. European estimations are that it is necessary for the Balkans to import stability in order to disable export of instability from the region. Security of the entire Balkans in all analyses is regarded as crucial for security and progress of the Europe in general.
Despite numerous objective problems, the Republic of Macedonia is seriously moving towards reaching the standards for becoming EU member-state. Today, the Republic of Macedonia is a good example for stability and ethnic tolerance in the region. In the sphere of interethnic relations we have achieved great results within a very short period of time with very fast resolving the problems. For less than five years we have doubled the participation percentage of other ethnic communities in the public administration. What other countries took decades to implement, Macedonia has done just in few years time. Launching the talks for full EU membership of the Republic of Macedonia will probably have additional positive impact not just for our country but also for the region in general.
We have been working very intensely on the approximation process of domestic judiciary with the European. We are making efforts to implement the obligation for compatibility control of the whole new judiciary with the asquis. Yet, we are taking into consideration the realities and resources that should present base and guarantees for their realisation. We are achieving good satisfying results in the sphere of accepting the values of the Council of Europe, such as democracy, human rights, rule of law, respecting and enhancing cultural values, etc. We respect the highest standards in the sphere of the protection of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities and decentralisation from the Council of Europe Conventions. Just to illustrate: Macedonia is the only country with Roma municipality and with Roma language as official language.
It is clear that the Republic of Macedonia is still searching for more efficient dynamics for faster economic growth, more efficient functioning of the state institutions and for more efficient way to tackle organised crime and corruption. Nevertheless, the EU also needs more flexible approach to the countries that show commitment to the reforms. It should not be done just for the interests of these countries, but for the interests of the EU, also. Because of such reality, it is inevitable to redirect more intensively the political energy of the Balkans towards greater support from the EU member-states and EU institutions in general. In addition, there is a general political consensus in the country about strategic development issues. It is logical that in this context Republic of Macedonia is prepared for even more dynamic plan from the European Union for finishing the process of the reforms.
Thank you.