A few days before Easter, the Macedonian constitutional court cancelled a law enacted by the VMRO-DPMNE led government introducing optional religious education in public schools. This act marked the beginning of the fiercest dispute between the executive and highest judiciary institution

The Bull, the Beggar, the Bimbo....These are only some of the sculptures the Macedonian government has been installing in the centre of Skopje as part of its recently launched architectural renewal spree.The process has not left anyone dispassionate, stirring political controversy over the city's urbanistic development

Di fronte al terremoto in Abruzzo, i Balcani si riscoprono vicini all'Italia. Le storie delle vittime e dei sopravvissuti, le dichiarazioni di solidarietà e le offerte di sostegno viste attraverso i media della regione

Gjorgji Ivanov has won the presidential elections with about 63 percent of the votes. The most important thing for the country, as is widely agreed, was the fact that the election was free and fair

Bombers crossed the sky by night and thousands of desperate people gathered at the borders by day. In Macedonia, at the time of the conflict in Kosovo, the smell of war was in the air. Back then, for most people in the country, it was as close as they had ever been to war in their lives

On 22 March, Macedonian citizens will go to the polls to elect a new president and new local governments. If Macedonia runs a good election, it might hope to get a date to start accession talks with the EU, perhaps by the end of 2009. But if the election doesn't go well, Macedonia can forget about it

Just before the start of the electoral campaign, Macedonian prime minister Gruevski announced a massive plan to invest in infrastructures. Little resources, though, seems to have been allocated to revive the "European Corridor 8", meant to link the Adriatic to the Black Sea

Macedonians have become bitter with each other. Over themselves. Over who they are. Over whether they are Slav or ancient Macedonians. Op-eds and commentaries have overwhelmed the press; the blogosphere has overheated. It all started because of a monument

As presidential elections approach, Macedonians have become embroiled in a heated debate over who they are. The "identity issue" will clearly be a thorny one in the upcoming campaign. And while VMRO revives the myth of Alexander the Great, many Macedonians are still perfectly comfortable with their Slavic roots

Macedonia caught the fever again. Merely six months after the early national vote of June 2008, the country braces itself again for elections. The presidential and local vote will both be held on 22 March. For the past weeks, the country's biggest political issue concerns the possible candidates for future head of state

In Albanian communities accross Macedonia, it is easy to find monuments dedicated to the National Liberation Army. But the opening of a new museum dedicated to the NLA in Skopje stirred much controversy

When Facebook caught on to a Serb ultra-nationalists forum called "Noz, zica, Srebrenica", or "Knife, Wire, Srebrenica", using the social networking site to glorify one of the bloodiest massacres in Europe since World War II and promote hatred against Muslims, it was promptly shut down. But on the Internet, where does the hate speech end?

In Macedonia, economic crisis has spurred a new trend: treasure hunters are increasingly scouring the furthest reaches of the country in pursuit of Ottoman gold, Roman antiquities and other treasures. Whether basing their searches on actual history or dubious legend, hunters are going to great lengths to cash in on the proverbial jackpot...often illegally.

As the paths of wolves increasingly overlap with those of humans, creating tension for shepherds, farmers and drivers, Macedonia has once again legalized killing of the animals after a year-long ban on wolf hunting

The government of Skopje is trying hard to pay respect to diversity. Some analysts argue that, despite a difficult start, Macedonia remains the only viable example of successful ethnic co-existence in the Balkans. This may also be an exaggerated statement, but it is worth thinking about it

Skopje filed a petition against Greece at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on grounds of violation of the 1995 interim accord between the two countries. Skopje asks the ICJ to order Athens to refrain from further obstructing Macedonia's integration in international organizations

The European Commission reports on acceding countries published last week did not bring any big surprises in Macedonia. The major news was already known - the country was not granted a date to start negotiations with Brussels

US presidential election: overall, the impression is that the Balkans does not have a special preference for either of the candidates although it aligns with the wide-European sentiment which prefers Obama

In his column in the daily newspaper "Dnevnik", Professor Frckoski, a former Minister of Interior, revealed information concerning the attempted assassination of the first Macedonian president Kiro Gligorov on October 3 1995. The text raised ghosts from the past and stirred political tension in Macedonia

After the big vote in the UN General Assembly, the Macedonian Government recognized Kosovo. Despite the bitter reactions of Belgrade, Skopje thinks its decision will strengthen peace and stability in the region