Skopje, 12 July 2022 (MIA) - Minister of Interior Oliver Spasovski ahead of the protest against the French proposal scheduled for Tuesday called to the citizens and political parties that want to exercise their right to protest, to do so in a peaceful manner. “I would like to make an appeal to you, the citizens, but also to the political parties that that want to exercise their right to protest, to do so in a peaceful manner. And since the rule of law and democracy are interlinked, I would like to remind you once again that every public gathering (protest), according to the law, must be properly reported. At the same time, except for the notice on the blockades on July 8, which was submitted as an act to the Ministry of Internal Affairs on the same day, although according to the law on public gatherings it should be submitted no later than 48 hours before the start of the event, none of the protests in the past few days were properly announced and registered, but were organised via social media, initiated and led by several political parties,” Spasovski wrote on Facebook. Spasovski said that the absence of an organizer, cannot be an alibi for the violence against the state's vital facilities and against the police officers who perform official actions to protect the safety of the citizens and the institutions of the system, just as even an unannounced protest cannot to cannot be a cover for not taking responsibility for these violent protests in which 54 police officers were injured and 23 people were detained. “As a country, we are proud of the civilizational benefits of protest, and it is exactly peaceful protests that are an essential part of a democracy. I urge you to protest peacefully as part of dialogue. The Ministry of the Interior continues to protect the constitutional rights and to ensure the security of all citizens,” Spasovski wrote on Facebook.