Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

What is the opinion on the contribution of the international community and the national NGOs in the humanitarian aid in the crisis?

• Boge Chadinovski, counselor and manager of the Department for handicapped, refugees, displaced people and humanitarian aid, Ministry of labor and social policy: The international community and the domestic NGOs respond to a great part of the humanitarian needs. The domestic NGOs made contribution especially with the aid in the regions of crises and they aided in the moments when the needs were big and the possibilities for access were small or with high risk. They also contributed in better realizing and quick solving of the problems on the ground. As in the two previous crises (Bosnian and Kosovo), the problems were most often in late aid, which resulted in nervousness and tension among the displaced people.

• Abdurauf Prusi, president of El hilal: The contribution of the domestic and foreign NGOs was, generally speaking, positive. There were some omissions during the aid distribution in the regions of crises, in relation to the question of equality in aid, for instance some regions got more or less aid. The aid distribution by some foreign NGOs also was of a political character. For example, the aid wasn’t distributed according to the number of internally displaced people, but to comprise all the nationalities. In that division, the displaced people of Macedonian nationality were privileged, both the ones who were accommodated in collective centers and the ones in host families.

• Pavle Todorovski, Tearce: Everyone is aware that the aid from the international community is of an immense value, because in the most difficult moments they meet the needs of the population left at the mercy of the lurch.

• Bajram Sulejmani, president of Natira, Lipkovo: They were the ones who, with their activities during the war conflict and crises, contributed to stop a real human humanitarian catastrophe which threatened to the people who didn’t leave their homes. We especially appreciate the NGO sector in Macedonia, which aided according to their material possibilities, but with pure heart and soul, regardless of the ethnical group or religion. The humanitarian aid from the international community and the domestic NGOs again confirmed to be correctors of the deliberate mistakes of the politics and the politicians.

NGO contribution evaluation

Katerina Blazevska, editor, Dnevnik

The Ngo role in promoting the non-violence and multicultural cooperation can be of great importance especially in this very sensitive period in political and security plan. The NGOs could be proud of all the things they have done so far in the direction of distillation and encouraging the civic principles of the society. However, nowadays, their role in the country is subject to many controversies. It results from the destabilized security condition in which many NGOs, that is, their sponsors, have been perceived as continuation of the “evil international community intentions”. The focus through which the NGO work has been observed can reduce the effects of their work to a great extent and contribute to a quiet marginalizing of their activities.

Slobodan Kovacevski, Mayor of Kumanovo

The NGO sector in the country, as well as in Kumanovo municipality, especially in the last few years, passes through a process of an unseen expansion. A more developed NGO sector results in more democratic processes and protection of many people’s interests.

In the year of crisis, 2001, as well as this year, the NGOs in the Kumanovo municipality have been extremely active and we as a municipality, and I as a Mayor, have realized close contacts and cooperation with the NGOs on many projects. I would emphasize those of special social and present importance. There were activities for affirming the need for peace and stability in the country (the Kumanovo - Lipkovo region of crisis), then the activities for spreading the confidence towards the international factor and NATO (Ohrid Agreement 2001), NGO humanitarian activities concerning the displaced people in Kumanovo and in Lipkovo municipality in the time of drinking water crisis in Kumanovo.

Vladimir Milcin, Executive manager, Foundation Open Society Institute Macedonia

The NGO sector in our country is disunited and uncoordinated. The authorities in Macedonia have always ignored the NGO sector. The political parties have strengthened their monopoly in the society. The international community has not built a strategy for strengthening the civic sector in Macedonia. The explanations concerning the weaknesses and the slow NGO reactions in the time of crisis should be searched in the above mentioned diagnosis, even when it comes to NGOs, which have previously done a lot for promoting the non-violence and the multicultural cooperation development. However, what I call “the archipelagos of the open society” has quickly overcome the spasm and began to raise its voice. First it was against the war, and finally in support of the Ohrid Agreement, regardless of the fact that the Framework Agreement was an agreement of the most powerful political elite.

Ibrahim Mehmeti, Search for Common Ground

In spite of the fact that the NGOs in Macedonia have a huge space for work and for promoting the values that they stand for, not much is happening. During the last year, Macedonia was facing great violence, military, during the conflict, or family, where victims were young children, or violence where actors were groups of young people from different ethnic communities. Many organizations that support non-violence exist, however we have seen no concrete action.

The NGOs have even less expressed themselves in terms of promoting the multicultural cooperation. That cooperation is hardly evident in the organizations themselves that reflects the general image and practice in the country.

A special moment in the NGO inertia is the underestimating media, that is public attitude towards the NGO importance. That could be best seen during the last year’s conflict and at the moments of signing the Ohrid Agreement. The media were not interested in promoting Ngo views, due to the old practice which does not change, but it is even more important that the NGOs themselves got involved in the ethnic divisions, thus not being able to offer themselves as an objective third side in the political agreements. This image is repeating in all other occasions in which the NGOs might have a more active role.

Muhamed Toci, HDZR Mesechina

In the NGO role in the time of crises, a level of well-organized strategy could be felt, the reason being that during the Kosovo crisis and even the crisis in the Certain regions in the Republic of Macedonia, NGOs have played their part by establishing coordination on local and national level involving some of the government/state ministries.

Many NGOs of different ethnic belonging took place in this coordination. Those are organizations that work and are concerned indeed about their goals, and the development and promotion of peace in such extreme circumstances.
In such circumstances, the NGOs could do nothing but: to stay still and follow the situation without taking up any activities; follow the events and activate itself when it is possible to contribute; join a certain organization which shares their vision, with experiences in the field of interest; to take up activities and to carry the responsibility on individual level.

I think the above-mentioned prove that the NGOs in Macedonia had their share in the realization of some parts of the Ohrid Agreement. It remains for the politicians to implement it as a whole.

The attitudes concerning the Ohrid Agreement move into three directions:
1. It is accepted and completely understood;
2. It is accepted applying force (in order to stop the war) and it is not clearly understood;
3. It is not accepted because of the period of its adoption (shooting, prisoners, blackmails, etc).