Event Reports

Political Parties and their responsibility for Europe – Germany and Macedonia

On the occasion of the visit of the members of the German Bundestag Kolbow (SPD) & Lämmel (CDU), the KAS organised together with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation a high-level panel-discussion.Germany & Macedonia nurse close economic, cultural & political relations. The visit of two German MPs confirms the interest of the political parties in Germany for further improvement of bilateral relations & fostering a political dialogue between the two countries, but also among the political parties. This is a prerequisite for building an open democratic culture & movinbg closer to European values.

VI International Macedonian-Greek Student Conference

Identifying common Balkan concerns in an era of global crisis

Despite the political deadlock on the name row between Macedonia and Greece, students & professors from both countries joined together with their colleagues from several Universities in Macedonia to work & exchange views on common Balkan concerns - from political difficulties to the economic crisis. The 20th anniversary years of the fall of the Berlin wall served as a perfect example for what lessons the leaders of both countries should keep in mind, as the European idea continues to evolve: mutual respect & open minds, as Vice-Primeminister Bocevski declared at the start of the event.

20 Years after the fall of the Berlin wall and 18 years of independence of Macedonia

Challenges in Contemporary Foreign Policy

At the panel-discussion achievements and challenges in the foreign policy of the decision-makers in Germany, Macedonia and USA during the past two decades and after the end of the Cold War were analysed. Additionally, the experts present discussed current policy issues in the context of global security threats and EU- and NATO-expansion. The current Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Macedonia, previous Foreign Ministers, ambassadors and experts from Macedonia and abroad were invited to exchange experiences and present their views on the topic.

20 Jahre Mauerfall:Vergangenheitsaufarbeitung und Lustration in Deutschland und auf dem Balkan

Aus Anlass des 20. Jahrestages des Mauerfalls hat die KAS-Skopje vom 26. bis 30. April 2009 in Cadenabbia mazedonische Parlamentsabgeordnete & Experten eingeladen, um zusammen mit Bundestagsabgeordneten & Fachleuten aus Deutschland über aktuelle Herausforderungen bei der Vergangenheitsbewältigung auf dem Balkan zu diskutieren.

“Market economies under pressure – Is there light at the end of the tunnel?”

Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in cooperation with the European Business Association of Macedonia

Elections and Governance

Implementing Democracy in Macedonia and in Europe

Rundtischgespräch

60 Jahre deutsches Grundgesetz

Verfassungen in Westeuropa und auf dem Balkan als Grundstein für Demokratie und Rechtsstaat

Anläßlich des 60-jährigen Jubiläums der Bundesrepublik Deutschland und des deutschen Grundgesetzes hat die Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Zusammenarbeit mit der Staatlichen Universität Tetovo als Gastgeber einen Workshop organisiert, an dem 80 Studenten der Politik- und Rechtswissenschaften der staatlichen und privaten Universitäten aus Tetovo und Skopje teilgenommen haben.

VII. Politische Akademie

Konservative Werte und Demokratie auf lokaler Ebene

Mazedonische Kommunalpolitiker tauschten eine Woche lang Erfahrungen mit deutschen, holländischen und serbischen Experten aus und diskutierten aktuelle Herausforderungen im Rahmen des Reformprozesses und der aktuelln Wirtschaftskrise.

Dialogue of Religions – Dialogue of Ethnicities

“Trust” and “dialogue” are the key terms that the religious communities in the Balkans have to build on in order to strengthen their role in society. All efforts have to be made in order to build trust through dialogue among the religious communities, but also between the religious institutions and the state and society. This was the outcome of a two-day event organized by the KAS on 18-19 September in Skopje, which was attended by the Heads of the Orthodox, Islamic, Catholic, Evangelical-Methodist and the representative of the Jewish religious communities in Macedonia and representatives of the Catholic and Islamic religious communities and the new Head of the Inter-Religious Institute in Bosnia-Hercegovina, as well as by Baba Edmond Brahimaj of the Headquarters of the Bektashian community and Bishop Homeyer of Hildesheim. It was the first of its kind in such a high-ranking and international format, which led to a lively and constructive exchange of experiences in inter-religious dialogue in Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia-Hercegovina and Germany, and a sharing of “lessons learnt”. At the end of the discussion it was noted that inter-religious dialogue in the Balkans has made significant progress and can pose as a model for the communication between different religious communities in other European countries as well.

International Conference on Protecting Human and Minority Rights in Europe held

Konrad Adenauer Stiftung organized an International conference “Protecting Human Rights and Minority Rights in Europe” on 10 September 2008 in Skopje. The exchange of ideas and different experiences from the point of view of the Ombudsman institutions from Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro Serbia, Croatia, Romania, as well from the representavive of the German Bundestag brought the role and challenges of these human rights „defenders“ nearer to the public. During the discussion, the participants presented the best practice models of protecting human rights and the rights of the national minorities by explaining the mandate, functions and powers of Ombudsman institutions, the status of minorities in the context of international standards and EU-integration and the experiences and challenges in the defence of human rights from the cooperation with the police and armed forces. The Vice-Prime Minister for implementation of the Framework agreement, Mr. Abdilakim Ademi and the deputy minister for Labour and Social Policy in the Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Spiro Ristovski elaborated the importance of protecting the human and minority rights as one the main responsibilities for a democratic and stable society. As an outcome of the conference several problems and challenges were identified by the participants: the integration of the Roma minorities in society, the need of a stronger parliament as a natural “ally” of the Ombudsman, better effort at preventing human rights violation through comprehensive training and education programs for state officials, police, but also for children and vulnerable groups, as well as the strengthening of the Ombudsman institutions themselves in the face of state authorities. The protection of the human and minority rights is a two-sided process, since the protected people learn how to trust the institutions, respect diversity and the State guarantees the safety of every citizen.