New York, 1 March 2023 (MIA) – North Macedonia’s Ambassador to the UN in New York, Ljubomir Frchkoski, said that it is important that according to the UN reports a Macedonian minority exists in Bulgaria and that the Bulgarian position regarding this issue has no impact.

According to Frchkoski, this is a matter of facts, and not political statements on whether a certain minority exists or not.

“This is a matter of facts determined with international reports. And the facts are that the UN reports note that this minority exists, as well as some of the reports from the U.S. Department of State and all of the EU reports. Then there are also the verdicts of the Court in Strasbourg,” Frchkoski told the Voice of America.

Asked on whether as a UN Ambassador he will raise an initiative to condemn Bulgaria for disrespecting the judgements of the European Court of Human Rights regarding the Macedonian minority in the country, Frchkoski said that “resolutions on minority rights have not reached the Third Committee yet, but when they do, we will have a clear position on the existence of these minorities and the respect for their rights, with a special role as a country that does so within its borders.”

“We are on the side of the countries who respect the standards, who have managed to come to unbelievable agreements concerning identity issues. From that aspect, our word holds weight and plays a very different role than those from countries that cannot solve their issues,” said Frchkoski.

In August 2022, the UN Human Rights Office told the Voice of America, that based on the report on minority rights presented by a UN expert in front of the UN Human Rights Council in July 2011, the Bulgarian Government should protect the freedom of expression and association of the members of the Macedonian minority.

The report noted that the Bulgarian Government “denies the existence of a Macedonian ethnic minority,” claiming that the members of this community are actually ethnic Bulgarians. It also stated that the Macedonian language is not recognized in the country, and that the Macedonians are not represented in the National Council for Cooperation on Ethnic and Integration Issues.

The UN Human Rights Office said that as a signatory state of numerous agreements on human rights that protect minority rights such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, Bulgaria is obliged to respect the obligations stemming from them.

On the other hand, at the end of January, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg said that in 2022 it had reached 27 verdicts on Bulgaria, 25 of which determined a violation of human rights. ad/nn/

Photo: VOA