Polyparty-ism - Search for Common Ground

The internally desplaced
Everyone hopes for the best
Emil Zafirovski
"Be patient, let the winter
go by and we will
repair your ruined
homes," is what the
internally displaced
Macedonians are being
advised to do by the
Ministry of Labor and
Social Affairs and by
the internationals in
charge of the reconstruction
of the damaged
homes
According to the last re-registration
of internally displaced persons
(IDPs), carried out by the
International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC) one month ago,
there are about 8,000 IDPs in the
country, with a tendency for this
number to decrease.
Earlier, the number of temporarily
displaced citizens was
about 13,400.
We are talking about inhabitants
of the former crisis regions in
Tetovo, Skopje and Kumanovo ,
who were forced to leave their
dwellings.
Most of them are accommodated
at their relatives' and friends'
homes throughout the country, and
around 2,500 are sheltered in collective
centers.
Suzana Paunovska, coordinator
of the International Committee of
the Red Cross, explains that the
number of IDPs will decrease consistently
due to the fact that conditions
for their return are being
improved daily:
"The number is expected to
decrease as the weeks go by.
Building reconstruction is ongoing
and as the homes are being reconstructed,
new conditions will be
created for the IDPs to go back to
their villages. We have already
concluded that many citizens have
returned home, though they have
continued to receive benefits as if
they were still IDPs. This is not
correct from the donators standpoint,
because they are only interested
in helping the persons who
really need their help," adds
Paunovska.
In her opinion, the
International Committee of the
Red Cross expects that help will
continue to be distributed to the
IDPs until springtime.
The re-registration was carried
out at the request of the European
Union, which is the main donator,
with the suspicion that many IDPs
are abusing their status in order to
get free food and other help.
Most of the displaced
Macedonians claim that they can't
return to their villages because they
feel unsafe there. Some of them, on
the other hand, claim that the main
reason for their status is the severely
demolished houses. Fear of the
Albanian population is mostly
present among the displaced
Macedonians from Arachinovo and
Kumanovo regions. They refuse to
go back and demand that the state
provide them with new temporary
dwellings.
"There is no way we are going
back. There is no life left for us in
our birthplace-Arachinovo. We
can't live with the people who have
chased us off our homes using
threats, insults and guns pointed at
us. They are talking about cohabitation
with the same people who
robbed our houses and are still
doing that. They rob, demolish and
blow up our houses. One
Macedonian who decided to go
back after the war was killed by a
bomb set in his house.
It is a lie if someone thinks that
the Macedonians from Arachinovo
can go back," says B.J., a displaced
person from Arachinovo.
The IDPs from Arachinovo
gathered around the association
Zora ("Dawn"), demanding that the
government provide them with
new dwellings. Jana Petrushevska,
the president of Zora, says that the
status of the Macedonians from
this village must be solved.
"We can't go on like this. The
government has to help us, enable
us to resolve our living conditions.
I wonder how long they are going
to keep us in the shelters. Two
years have gone by, and nothing
has been done so that we can go
home. Our houses have not been
repaired, nor it is safer. I'm telling
you sincerely. There are constant
provocations and threats aimed at
the Macedonians. Should we go
back and risk our lives just to support
the lies? We won't give up on
the plan to receive temporary
homes, because for now we don't
see any other way out," says
105
A new beginning, November 2002