site.btaVMRO Protest Briefly Blocks Traffic at Checkpoint on Bulgaria-North Macedonia Border
Traffic on both sides of the Zlatarevo-Novo Selo checkpoint at Bulgaria's border with the Republic of North Macedonia was blocked for nearly an hour by protesters from the VMRO party on Thursday.
Organized by chapters of VMRO in Blagoevgrad (Southwestern Bulgaria), the protesters spoke out in defence of activist Ljupcho Georgievski and against the violation of the rights of Bulgarians in North Macedonia.
On June 12, Georgievski, chairman of the now-dissolved Ivan Mihailov Cultural Club in Bitola (North Macedonia) received a 12-month suspended sentence with a two-year probation period from the Basic Court in Bitola. He was convicted of inciting xenophobia, racism and ethnic hatred after publishing quotes by the historical figure Ivan Mihailov on the club's Facebook page.
VMRO leader Krasimir Karakachanov warned that the party's next protest will close all three border crossings with North Macedonia.
"Now we are holding a warning protest, but tomorrow we will close all three crossings, and then one day we will officially close the border of the country that is causing the problem," Karakachanov told journalists.
He said the world is burning, and with the policy pursued by Skopje, a conflict is also burning in the Balkans. There is no room for compromise, added the VMRO leader.
/DD/
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