As the then head of state, I had no information from any service about the announcement of planned entry of the crowd into the Parliament’s building on April 27, 2017, former President Gjorge Ivanov said Thursday while testifying during today’s trial against the organizers of the violent storming in the Parliament.
Ivanov denied categorically as the former president of having any info about attempts of preventing the peaceful handover of power on April 27, 2017.
Asked about the information provided for the proclamation of martial law on April 27, 2017, Ivanov said that everything related to martial law came from a text published in a weekly newspaper, a few days earlier.
“Speculations and nebulous statements were presented that that were later on cited and commented. As a state, we have strictly defined mechanisms for preventing the abuse of martial law. It is a school example of psychological warfare, for someone to take action and blame the president and the army,” Ivanov said.
In regard to his position towards citizens movement “For a Common Macedonia”, he said that he has publicly supported the movement several times.
“The movement “For a Common Macedonia” emerged in response to the so-called Tirana platform and the statements that Macedonia as a state should not exist. Hundreds of initiatives and requests from citizens and members of “For a Common Macedonia” were forward to the office of the President,” Ivanov said.
In respond to the question whether his advisor Sinisha Aleksovski informed him about his activities, Ivanov told that Aleksovski provided him with oral and written briefings about everything.
Several witnesses have been summoned to testify at today’s trail including Biljana Brishkovska Boshkovski and Cvetan Tripunovski.
Judge Ilija Trpkov presides over the trial, while the prosecution is represented by Vilma Ruskovska.
The defendants in the case include former Parliament Speaker Trajko Veljanoski, ex-transport minister Mile Janakievski, ex-education minister Spiro Ristovski, as well as former Administration for Security and Counterintelligence director Vladimir Atanasovski.
They are charged with terrorist endangerment of the constitutional order and security.
According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the defendants organized, funded, and involved patriotic associations in protests to prevent the transfer of power to the newly formed parliamentary majority; reduced the number of police officers securing the protests and Parliament; removed obstacles to allowing the crowd to enter Parliament, and hired people to commit violence and prevent the new Parliament Speaker from being appointed.
