Washington, D.C. – The United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD) would like to draw attention to International Human Rights Day (10th December) as an important event for everyone to take note of and make a stand against the many human rights violations across the world. For Macedonians, this is especially significant.
Macedonians in Southeast Europe find themselves, in a situation where they are living in countries such as Greece and Bulgaria, one a member of the European Union and the other an acceding member, continuing to struggle for their most basic and fundamental human rights. Although Albania and Serbia have made some progress in this regard, both have a long road ahead before Macedonians, and others, are able to truly feel free.
Both Greece and Bulgaria continue to deny the very existence of Macedonians living within their borders. Macedonians in both countries are regularly harassed and intimidated in an effort to deny their fundamental freedoms, particularly the freedom to self-identify as one wishes.
The past few months in particular have seen a David and Goliath style struggle for the rights of the Macedonians living in Bulgaria, of which the UMD was proud to be a part of. In particular, UMD would like to pay its gratitude to the European Free Alliance and other members of the European Parliament for its unwavering support of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria.
The United Macedonian Diaspora encourages all Macedonians to continue to engage in their centuries’ long struggle for their fundamental rights. The UMD encourages all Macedonians to be active in their communities, promote the Macedonian cause and not shy away from expressing their concerns for the fate of the many Macedonians in Greece and Bulgaria that do not enjoy the freedoms that the rest of us enjoy in the Republic of Macedonia and across the world.
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Founded in 2004, United Macedonian Diaspora is an international membership organization based in Washington, D.C. addressing the interests and needs of Macedonians and Macedonian communities throughout the world.
For more information about United Macedonian Diaspora the public is invited to contact the D.C. office at (202) 294-3400, or e-mail at info@umdiaspora.org
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