CIVIL – Center for Freedom strongly condemns hate speech and the calls for lynching and extreme political violence that are openly manifested on the streets throughout Macedonia.

Banners that imply death threats for Zoran Zaev and Radmila Sekerinska, which appeared at the protests organized by the initiative “For a Joint Macedonia” on May 8, are just another indication in the long series of evidence about the motives, messages and aims of the protests. These messages have been present from the very beginning and are at the base of this initiative, for which it is well known that it has been initiated, organized and sponsored by VMRO-DPMNE.

Following the numerous messages and slogans which, with insulting names towards the Albanians, call for gas chambers, hatchets and similar, in the new slogans we see another outpouring of ultimate hatred and threat to life. That is the view of the organizers that is being manifested continuously. That hatred and violence are also part of the planned bloody attack on the Parliament of Republic of Macedonia on Black Thursday (April 27).

At the same time, the public can witness that the most responsible competent institutions, the police and Public Prosecution, are obviously trying to relativize hate speech, the obvious plan for violent scenarios and the brutality that followed afterwards. By this, these institutions are becoming enablers and accomplices to this criminal, fascistic clique that is trying to do everything, even to push the country into an abyss, just so it defends one group of people who are under serious investigations and accusations of the SPO.

CIVIL’s position is that these are obvious examples of serious crimes and of endangering the order and security of the country. There is not a single statement or slogan that can be used as an excuse or for diverting the attention, it just cannot go by, because it is more than obvious what is happening and who is behind this violent and criminal initiative.

The Public Prosecution and the police were supposed take measures against the death threats long time ago, as well as to sanction them according to the law. We do not seek any revenge, we just demand for the system to function, while all those who do not implement the law are actually violating the law by not implementing it.