Boris
Trajovski was only 43 years old when he was elected President of Macedonia in
November 1999.
He
was tragically killed in a plane crash on 26th February this year,
on his way to an international conference in Bosnia-Herzegovina, depriving his
country of a far-sighted, open- minded leader, keen to steer Macedonia towards
the European Union, and what he believed to be the road to lasting peace and
stability. President Trajkovski advocated an open and multi-ethnic society,
embodying the notions of stability and inclusion in the volatile Balkans
region.
President
Trajkovski was at his country’s helm at a turbulent time for the region; a time
when peace seemed elusive. Against the odds, he succeeded in reaching out to
Macedonian society by focusing on the greater long-term good for most people
rather than on immediate gains for the few. He concentrated on making his
country one in which all its citizens would feel they belonged.
During
the Kosovo crisis in 1999, he insisted that only a peaceful solution based on a
multi-ethnic democratic state could work. And when an armed conflict erupted
between Albanian insurgents and Macedonian state security forces in early 2001,
President Trajkovski’s moderate approach played an important part in preventing
the six-month-long standoff from escalating further. Eventually, the EU and US
brokered the Ohrid Framework Accord, which saw the Albanian insurgents
relinquish their armed struggle in exchange for numerous constitutional
concessions. Despite criticism from nationalists, changes to the constitution
and other mandated legislative and social policies have been ratified by the
Macedonian Parliament. Only days before his death, President Trajkovski signed
Macedonia’s formal application to join the EU. He also envisaged Macedonia
becoming a part of the North Atlantic Alliance, NATO.
LB 20/08/2004