Macedonian delegation is not going to Prohor Pcinjski
Macedonia will not send a state delegation to the monastery Prohor Pcinjski for honoring Ilinden, amid Belgrade's stalled response on the Macedonian Foreign Ministry's request, urging the state community of Serbia and Montenegro to enable dignified marking of the Day of the Macedonian Statehood.
"This is not to say that Macedonia gives up, nor will ever, the honoring of ASNOM in St. Prohor Pcinjski... On the contrary, by this act, the state is protecting the dignity of this glorious point in our history", said on Thursday the spokesman of the Macedonian Government Saso Colakovski, explaining that the decision was made at the yesterday's session of the government.
"The greatness of the date 2 August, and the act of establishment of the Macedonian statehood on Ilinden cannot be misused by whoever's daily politics interpretations", said Colakovski, hinting that the latest events in relations between the Macedonian and the Serbian Orthodox Church are reflecting on the relations between the two countries.
The relations between Macedonia and SCG have chilled following the Serbian Orthodox Church's appointment of Zoran Vraniskovski as its exarch in Macedonia.
Vraniskovski, who was sentenced to 18 months in jail last year for "inciting national, racial and religious hatred and schism" was taken in the Skopje's prison Idrizovo on Tuesday, for serving the sentence.
Previously, official Belgrade used sharp tone in urging the Macedonian authorities to work out suspension of the sentence execution. Serbian State and Church authorities accused Macedonia for "breaching of the basic human rights and freedoms, and the right to religious freedom".
The Serbian Orthodox Church refuses to recognize the autocephaly of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, and ever since the break-up of the former SFRY, official Skopje has been facing obstructions by the Serbian Church for marking 2 August in the monastery Prohor Pcinjski, which is situated on the Serbian territory.
"The Government believes that it will be able to lay flowers at the location where the Assembly of ASNOM was held 60 years ago, when the European spirit prevails in Serbia", said the government's spokesman Colakovski. |
