by Risto Karajkov
Twenty years after the fall of the Wall, the controversial lustration process – the epuration of those who cooperated with the police of Communist regimes – is still in deep waters. And many wonder whether rummaging archives still makes sense.
As the summer ended, the Macedonian lustration commission finally opened its doors for [...]

By Risto Karajkov
A “historic day,” the “fall of the wall,” the “end of visas” — these were some of the headlines in the Balkan media in response to the European Commission (E.C.) proposing visa liberalization for Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro. The visa-free travel could ideally be possible by the beginning of January 2010. Macedonia has [...]

By: Risto Karajkov
World Politics Review, 14 May 2009
SKOPJE, Macedonia — On May 1, the European Union celebrated the fifth anniversary of its “big bang,” the massive wave of enlargement in 2004 that saw it accept 10 new members — eight former communist countries from Eastern Europe, plus Malta and Cyprus. When Romania and Bulgaria joined [...]

by Risto Karajkov
Osservatorio sui Balcani
Mid December Facebook shut down the group “Noz, zica, Srebrenica” [Knife, Barb Wire, Srebrenica]. The forum, which got its name after a Serb nationalist slogan, glorified the bloodiest massacre in Europe after the end of World War II and promoted hatred against Muslims.
The group rallied support for the former Serb general [...]

By: Risto Karajkov
Osservatorio Balcani
18 December 2008
Earlier this year The Economist had a piece on Macedonia titled ‘A Balkan Belgium?’ The article essentially argued that similar to Belgium, Macedonia is ethnically strongly divided, and that the only thing that keeps both countries still in one piece is Europe. Could be, but where does that leave Bosnia? [...]