By Bruno CEKA
The Ohrid Framework Agreement (OFA), reached as a result of an armed conflict and with international mediation, was intended to serve as a foundation for the political, cultural and economic progress of Albanians, as well as a guarantee for the construction of a truly multiethnic state. Today, 25 years later, it is clear that its implementation has been partial, protracted and often conditioned by the political will of the majority.
During this period, Albanians have made occasional strides forward, but these advances have often been overshadowed by political regression and elite complacency. The Framework Agreement had a clear deadline for implementation for objective and functional reasons; its delay cannot be justified as a natural process. The Macedonian side’s constant demands for “more time” have gradually reduced the substantive weight of the MKO, while Albanians cannot and should not continue to show understanding towards the empty promises of successive governments indefinitely.
The 2024 elections and the coming to power of a government with a pronounced ethnocentric rhetoric represent a dangerous political regression. This mentality directly violates the spirit of the MKO, undermines interethnic harmony and creates a platform for destabilizing influences from abroad, especially pro-Serbian ones supported by Russian strategies in the Region. In this context, Albanians should no longer accept the role of decorative figure in governance.
For more than two decades, the state has functioned on an unequal logic, where sometimes it is declared to belong to everyone and sometimes it is treated as the property of a single ethnicity, and equality is treated as a political concession and not as a constitutional right. This approach has produced political uncertainty and social distrust. Therefore, it is time for a sincere debate on the functioning of the state and new political models that guarantee real equality, without violating the territorial integrity of the country. Macedonians and Albanians face a strategic choice today: to continue with a semi-centralist system, overloaded with identity tensions, or to build an alternative model that guarantees real equality and long-term stability.
In this spirit, the establishment of the Albanian-American Council for North Macedonia aims to build an organized and influential international voice for the protection of the rights and interests of Albanians. Through strategic engagement in the United States and cooperation with organizations influential in American policymaking, this council aims to contribute to the construction of a democratic, inclusive and sustainable North Macedonia.
Currently, the Albanian-American Council for North Macedonia is collaborating with several already consolidated and influential organizations in American policymaking for the Western Balkans, including the organization Albanians for America (AFA), and remains open to cooperation with all other organizations operating in the United States and aiming to promote the Albanian cause.
(The author is a representative of the Albanian-American Council for North Macedonia)