A new version of the 2001 conflict, written by both Macedonian and Albanian teachers, triggers controversy.
By Ivan Blazevski in Skopje (Balkan Insight, 9 Feb 06)

Macedonian and ethnic Albanian history teachers have caused uproar by working together to produce a fresh account of the 2001 conflict, which saw ethnic Albanian guerrillas in northern and western areas fighting the Macedonian police and army.
Many historians, experts and politicians have complained that it is premature and counter-productive to attempt to define such a divisive and recent episode. Instead of creating harmony between the two ethnic communities, they fear it will reignite tensions.

Understanding Current History was developed by the Centre for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution, which works within Macedonia's Institute for Sociological, Political and Juridical Research. The project has been carried out in cooperation with the Helsinki Committee.

The joint history lesson took 25 teachers from 14 Macedonian and Albanian high schools a year to assemble. It includes the Macedonian and Albanian nationalist versions of events, along with a third alternative, which aims to provide a synthesis of the two opposing interpretations.

The authors say the project is an essential effort to counter one-sided histories and to answer the legitimate questions of young people.

The six-month conflict led to the deaths of more than 100 people on both sides. It ended with the signing of a western-brokered peace accord, which resulted in constitutional amendments boosting Albanian rights.

The Albanian guerrillas of the National Liberation Army, NLA, claimed they were fighting for more rights for the Albanian minority, which makes up 25 per cent of the population.

But five years after the guns stopped firing, there has been little definitive historical analysis of what lay behind the worst trauma in Macedonia's recent history. Most Macedonians accuse the Albanian population of harbouring territorial pretensions.

To Dejan, a Macedonian high-school student in Skopje, this version of events is entirely plausible. "Albanian terrorists started a war to occupy Macedonian territory and annex it to Kosovo or Albania," he said.

Seabete, on the other hand, said fellow Albanians "fought for more rights, which the government would not grant".

Mirjana Najcevska, of the Helsinki Committee in Macedonia, said the overriding aim of the joint history was to bring people together. The project aimed to "solve the conflict issues from the recent past, which are presented to children only from one side, so they don't developing into citizens of Macedonia but into members of different ethnic communities."

Violeta Petrovska, a Macedonian professor and a manager of the project, said participating teachers used measurable, provable data whenever possible. The publication did not pretend to replace an official version of events, she went on, but was just an attempt to present hard facts. "The current worldwide trend is to present students with facts," she concluded. "Then they can reach their own conclusions."

Skender Asani, an ethnic Albanian historian who took part in the project, said this was only a beginning. "At first, the views of the Macedonian and Albanian participants were diametrically different," he recalled. "But we started out on the long road towards softening our positions in order to build a mutually acceptable and realistic picture of events."

This has not mollified the sceptics, like Blaze Ristevski, head of history at the MACEDONIAN Academy of Science and Arts. He said he rejected the whole notion of reaching a common history through compromises and agreements.

"As a scientist, I can't allow that truth can be found through this kind of 'partnership'," he said. "It just adds more petrol to the fire between the two sides."

Todor Cepreganov, director of the National History Institute, is equally critical. The use of euphemisms such as "armed conflict", instead of war, revealed a tendency to prettify history, he said. "There cannot be a radical or non-radical version. This is not history," he added.

Many others say that not enough time has elapsed to pass judgment on the fighting. Ljupco Jordanovski, speaker of the Macedonian parliament, said it was not possible to be objective about such recent events because "we were all direct or indirect participants".

Daut Dauti, an ethnic Albanian political analyst, is sceptical for the same reasons. "The conflict in terms of scientific history literally happened yesterday," he said. However, Dauti believes both communities should "keep on trying", as he put it.

Vladimir Jovanovski, of Forum magazine, agreed. "The idea of writing a single history shouldn't be rejected," he said. "But the wounds of the war are still fresh and painful."

But Petrovska said there is never "a right time" to initiate such discussions. "If we don't speak openly about these painful issues we leave a space to create ethnically coloured, opposing versions that will affect the definition of official history," she said.

Najcevska, of the Helsinki Committee, also maintained that the time was appropriate to start such projects. "Students expect answers, and with this history lesson we are offering teachers a helping hand to provide them with answers," she said.

"This may not be the best way to overcome our problems, but it is definitely an attempt," she added.

The material has already been distributed to the schools where some of the participants teach. Whether it will be used, however, is another matter. "In some schools, teachers are afraid of the parents," Najcevska admitted. "The children are not the problem."

Ivan Blazevski is a journalist with the daily newspaper Vreme and a Balkan Insight contributor. Balkan Insight is BIRN's internet publication.

Source: Balkan Investigative Reporting Network