Spot the difference (except that Tito is dead and Brian is alive… and the obvious age difference):
May 5, 2008 Leave a comment
Spot the difference (except that Tito is dead and Brian is alive… and the obvious age difference):
Electoral Baptisms
May 2, 2008 Leave a comment
From the chronicles of historicals events: During the elections for the Serbian parliament in 1907 a group of citzens for Cacak organizes as part of the electoral campaign the Baptism of Roma on the city cattle market…
oops I meant 2008.
From B92: Grupa građana Za Čačak u okviru predizborne kampanje organizovala je krštenje Roma na prostoru gradske stočne pijace
UNMIKs political correctness
May 1, 2008 Leave a comment
Vetevendosije! published in their recent newsletter this wonderful exercise in political correctness… maybe it’s time for a regional international talk spell check (when typing FYROM, it automatically adds a footnote stating “Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.” replacing Bosnian with BHS…)
“UNMIK has sent a circular to its staff with the new terminology that they should use. The language to be used clearly indicates UNMIK’s position of hovering indecisively somewhere between Prishtina and Belgrade.”
1) The Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG) will now be called Kosova’s institutions or Kosova’s authorities but the use of the term ‘of the Republic of Kosova’ is prohibited.
2) Instead of the word ‘Serbia proper’, only the names of local towns will be used. If the term ‘Serbia’ is used, then a footnote must explain the views of both sides.
3) The term ‘Declaration of Independence’ must not be written with capital letters – because this would give it meaning.
4) The word ‘border’ (which is the standard term indicating an international state border) will still not be used to describe the northern border between Kosova and Serbia. Previously it was called an ‘Administrative boundary line.’ Now it will be called a ‘boundary line’ written in small case letters.
5) Even institutions previously called ‘UNMIK customs’ or UNMIK Railways will not be called Kosova customs, but just ‘customs’.
6) The ‘North’ of Kosova, will now be called ‘northern Kosovo’, and the ‘North’ of Mitrovica will now be called ‘northern Mitrovica’ – The first term is geographic. The second appears to have administrative and political connotations.
7) The process of ‘transition’ of the competences of UNMIK to the PISG and the ICO/EULEX will now be called ‘reconfiguration’ – This indicates merely a change in the structure and organization of the institutions and not the transition of powers from one institution to another. It means that UNMIK is never leaving.
Boring Balkans
April 3, 2008 Leave a comment
So Olli Rehn noted today that he wants the Western Balkans to be “normal, prosperous and boring”. The last time somebody promised something similar, it was Vojislav Kostunica, promising a “normal, boring country”. I guess this is one election promise he did not live up to. So, Olli Rehn, be warned… maybe a compromise could be found, the Western Balkans slightly more boring and the EU slightly less boring
Hillary’s Dangerous Encounter with Bosnia
March 22, 2008 Leave a comment
Hilary Clinton discovered in retrospect, how dangerous it was going to Bosnia in 1996… sounds like in five years, she will also remember that she fought of Radovan Karadzic single-handedly after the landing and chased after a horde of assorted war criminals. Describing Bosnia in March 1996 as a war-zone is surely a bit silly (esp. if you are an American). I’d say visiting the US embassy in Belgrade today might be more risky…
British Academy Project on Bosnia
March 18, 2008 Leave a comment
As part of the British Academy Project which I am working on with Gulnur Aybet and Neven Andjelic, we just launched the project website: http://integratingbosnia.org.uk/.
The Fall of a Government
March 18, 2008 Leave a comment
The fall of a government…
The recent government crisis in Macedonia runs the risk of breaking with the tradition of Albanian party inclusion in goverment since 1990. The technical government in office since the government crisis triggered by the DPA leaving the governing coalition does not include Albanians, as the party refused to rejoin the government, even if only temporary. This reflects a general crisis in the Macedonian-Albanian political relations. Gruevski’s pledge to ignore ethnic politics when coming to office with the VMRO in 2006 has less meant tackling the other challenges Macedonia is facing, but rather ignoring the concerns of the Albanian community and engaging in constant campaigning, which has given him an edge over his main opponent, the SDSM, but alienated him from his coalition partner. New elections run the risk that his party might gain a strong position to form government, but will not facilitate compromise seeking with Albanian political parties. The failure of DPA to deliver during its time in government means that DUI will remain and probably strengthen its role as the strongest party among the Albanian community, resulting in a more difficult coalition forming process than after the last elections in 2006.
Thus, there are serious government and political crises in Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo and now Macedonia.
How to make a threat…
March 15, 2008 Leave a comment
How to make a threat…
Confronted with pressure from some EU states to handle banking secrecy more restrictively, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, said “I look forward to many years of fascinating, fundamental, discussion.” Now here’s a way to make a threat. Velja, Kostunica and co., take note.
Confronted with pressure from some EU states to handle banking secrecy more restrictively, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, said “I look forward to many years of fascinating, fundamental, discussion.” Now here’s a way to make a threat. Velja, Kostunica and co., take note.
Monte-Mobile
March 14, 2008 Leave a comment
Headline of the day: Montenegro mobile penetration reaches 175.6 percent. I am not sure how mobile penetration can be more than a 100 percent, but I am not surprised that Montenegro succeeded. I guess everybody has a mobile and three quarters of a second one…
Names for Macedonia
February 26, 2008 4 Comments
According to Kathimerini, Matthew Nimetz has come up with five(!) new suggestions for the name of Macedonia:
Democratic Republic of Macedonia (like Democratic Republic of Congo or German Democratic Republic, generally reserved for, ehm, less democratic state)
Constitutional Republic of Macedonia (as opposed to the unconstitutional of Macedonia?)
Independent Republic of Macedonia (here’s a compromise for Kosovo, it just calls itself ‘independent’ with quotation marks and Serbia pretends to accept it, or maybe the official name of Kosovo could become “Lazna Republika Kosova”)
Republic of Upper Macedonia (like Upper Volta, aka Burkina Faso)
I think generally republics should be required to add meaningful adjectives to their names:
“Smallish Republic of Montenegro” (SROCG)
“Kinda Democratic Republic of Serbia” (KDROS)
“Democratic Federal and Sometimes Confederal Republic of Three Equal Constituent People and Nobody Else of Bosnia and Herzegovina” (DFSCRTECPNEBH)
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Florian Bieber 
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