FYROM Propaganda

The SMS received on the journey
to, dated 27 June 2014

For quite some time now the governments of FYROM have been making use of various forms of propaganda in order to justify their use of the name Macedonia and substantiate their attempts to fabricate a new "Macedonian" history that serves their political interests.

During the European summer of 2014, a friend of ours was travelling by bus to a destination in Central Europe from Thessaloniki. The journey involved crossing the borders of several Balkan countries, including FYROM.

Passing through the Greek village of Evzoni (Εύζωνοι), Kilkis prefecture, and arriving at the Greece-FYROM border, the following SMS from T-Mobile reached our friend's phone: 

"Welcome to Macedonia, the cradle of civilization [1]. During your stay we strongly recommend you visit the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle [2] and the Memorial House of Mother Teresa in Skopje [3], the Memorial Center of Toshe Proeski in Krushevo, the Museum on Water in Ohrid and the Ancient Observatory in Kokino."

We would like to make the following observations.

The same messages were received
on the journey from, here dated
7 July 2014

[1] What provokes firstly is not so much that the Yugoslavs refer to their country as Macedonia, but that they now consider it the cradle of civilization. This is a big call to make. According to the Oxford dictionary, cradle in this context means "A place or process in which something originates or flourishes." What could the Yugoslavs be referring to here? What could possibly have originated or flourished in their country, which was officially established only in 1991, following the breakup of Yugoslavia? Could it be democracy, theatre, or science? Philosophy, perhaps? No, these originated and flourished in ancient Greece, which many today consider to be the cradle of Western civilization. Unable to find an answer, we did a search on Google for cradles of civilization, but struggled to find anything listing "Macedonia". The only cities or countries we found other than Greece were Rome, Mesopotamia (Sumer), Egypt, and China.

[2] The Macedonian Struggle (in Greek Ο Μακεδονικός Αγώνας) was a series of escalated tensions between 1904-08 (others consider these to have begun earlier) in which two sides, Greek and Bulgarian, fought for control over the region of Macedonia. There is no doubt that Yugoslavs participated in the various battles, for many did indeed live in villages today belonging to modern-day Greece and Bulgaria, but to suggest that the Struggle was for FYROM and that their nation (which, at the time, did not even exist) and their people played a key part in the Struggle is simply unhistorical and absurd.

[3] It is true that Mother Teresa, who was canonized a saint just this year by the Roman Catholic Church, was born in Skopje. She was not, however, born to Yugoslav parents. She was Albanian, an important ethnic group today in FYROM, considering that it constitutes, believe it or not, 25% of the country's overall population (which is currently estimated at a mere 2.1 million).

These deceiving messages were received in mid-2014. Two years have passed since then, and it would be no surprise if they're still being sent out today to every person with a phone entering or, as they'd like to see it, visiting their country, the "cradle of civilization". FYROM propaganda at its finest.

The Macedonian [sic] Cultural Festival in Williamstown

The flyer for the event

The "Macedonian" Cultural Festival is back for its second year and due to be held this upcoming Sunday, 27 November, in Melbourne's seaside suburb of Williamstown. As a lot has already been said (and written) regarding this controversial festival, we only wish to make the following observations.

The use of the Vergina Sun by the Yugoslavs as their de facto national symbol is unacceptable and completely baseless from a historical perspective. This was the symbol of the ancient Macedonian kingdom, which was Hellenic, and should belong only to Greece for use. The Yugoslavs have their own flag –which is actually an altered Vergina Sun– and that is what they should be using, not the flag and symbols of another nation.

The sight of Yugoslavs dressed as what appears to be their understanding of how ancient Macedonian soldiers went to battle is, to say the least, embarrassing. In no other country of the former Yugoslavia would you see such a thing, that is Slavs trying to revive the past of someone else's ancient ancestors. Not in Serbia, not in Croatia. Not in Bosnia, not in Slovenia. Not even in the diaspora do these communities waste their time with such ridiculous displays during cultural events. When will the Yugoslavs finally realize that they've got it all wrong, and that they are in fact not the descendants of the ancient Macedonians? 

From last year's festival

What is the Macedonia Issue?

The Macedonia issue is more than just a fight over a name. It's about identity and everything that constitutes this: culture, language, history.

It's a complicated matter and has in the past involved more than two parties.

Greeks and their northern neighbours have been involved in it from the very beginning, but so too have Bulgarians and, to a lesser, now almost non-existent extent, Albanians and Serbs.

For the record, this blogspot will focus primarily on the dispute between Greece and FYROM, Greeks and Yugoslavs.

Let's now (briefly) take a look at where both sides stand.

As far as Greece is concerned, Macedonia is a region today divided between itself (roughly 52%), FYROM (45%), and Bulgaria (3%).

It is where an ancient Greek kingdom was established and Hellenic (= Greek) civilization flourished under the leadership of historical figures such as Alexander the Great and his father, King Philip II.

The Greeks hold that the Macedonians were indeed Hellenes because:

• They had the same names as the rest of the Greeks (more on this in a future post)
• They spoke the same language as the rest of the Greeks
• They had the same religion (twelve gods of Olympus) as the rest of the Greeks
• They had the same architecture as the rest of the Greeks
• They had the same customs and traditions as the rest of the Greeks (including participating in the Olympic Games).

As a result, Greece sees the use of the name Macedonia for its neighbour to the north as an attempt to change history and distort the facts, whereby a modern Slavic nation is trying to present itself to the world as the continuation of an ancient Greek kingdom with which, in reality, it has no association whatsoever.

"Greater" Macedonia

Furthermore, Greece believes that allowing the Yugoslavs to use the name Macedonia for their country will lead to eventual irredentist claims on the remaining two parts of the region, particularly Greek Macedonia (that 52%) and its capital, Thessaloniki.

Indeed, such claims are already being made, maybe not on an official level, but certainly informally among Yugoslavs, especially those residing in the diaspora.

Despite these claims though, the Yugoslavs, it would appear, are not united on their position regarding what they represent exactly.

Many consider themselves the direct descendants of the ancient Macedonians who, in their eyes, were always Slavs, while others argue that the ancient Macedonians were not Greeks but Illyrians, Thracians, or some combination of the two, and it is with these people that their Slavic ancestors interbred upon entering the Balkans around the 6th century AD, and into their society that they assimilated, creating over time the modern-day "Macedonian" nation.

In any case, FYROM has been employing various methods over the years –most notably during now former prime minister Nikola Gruevski's time in office (2006-16)– to legitimize its use of the name and justify its case for international recognition.

Simply put, the Yugoslavs consider the Greek argument nonsense and view historical figures like Alexander the Great, amongst others, as their own.

A New Beginning

Welcome to our blogspot.

Melbourne Macedonian is a team of young Greek men and women passionate about the Macedonia issue.

This is an issue close to our hearts and about more than just a name. It's about history and culture, it's about identity.

And it's becoming more topical than ever as new provocations arise and the world becomes more globalized.

Based in Australia's second largest city, we seek to give a Greek perspective on all matters relating to the issue, whether they be old or new, originating from the region of Macedonia or somewhere else.

Our position is simple: The people of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) have no claim, cultural or historical, on the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia, its former inhabitants, its language, its name.

This applies as well to all irredentist claims today coming from members of the FYROM community, primarily in the diaspora, on the modern, northern Greek region of Macedonia and its capital city, Thessaloniki.

Our ultimate goal, therefore, is to educate people on the issue, especially young people of Greek descent, those second- and third-generation Greeks living in countries like Australia, Canada, and the U.S., so that they too may one day be able to stand up and defend the history of their homeland properly –with facts–, should the need arise.

Posts will be in English and made, where possible, at least once a week.

Melbourne Macedonian is independent and not affiliated with any existing Greek-Macedonian organizations or bodies, whether they be based in Greece or the diaspora.

If you'd like to get in touch with us, give some feedback (positive or negative), or even ask a question, please email melbourne.macedonian@gmail.com.

A new post will follow soon.

Yarra River, Melbourne