50,000 Greeks Rally Over Macedonia Name Row
THESSALONIKI, GREECE (AFP) -- More than 50,000 protesters massed in the streets of northern Greece's biggest city, Thessaloniki, on Sunday, police said, in a long-running row between Athens and Skopje over the use of the name Macedonia.
Athens argues that the name Macedonia suggests that Skopje has territorial claims to the northern Greek region of the same name, of which Thessaloniki is the capital.
The region was the center of Alexander's ancient kingdom, a source of Greek pride.
Hardline clerics, far-right leaders and Greek diaspora groups had called for rallies, with the turnout exceeding media estimates of 30,000.
Gathered around the statue of Alexander in Thessaloniki were members of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party and local clergy.
Representatives from the main opposition party, New Democracy, were also present despite a tacit order from its liberal-minded leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis to boycott the protests.
Cretans in traditional costumes who travelled from the southern island with their horses, as well as people from northern Greece wearing costumes from the Macedonian wars era a century ago, crowded at the White Tower on the Thessaloniki waterfront from early in the morning.
Greece and Macedonia returned to the United Nations last week hoping to reach a compromise that could end the 27-year dispute over the former Yugoslav republic's name.
Greece's objections to the use of the name Macedonia since the Balkan country's independence in 1991 have hampered the tiny nation's bid to join the European Union and NATO.
"We demand that the term Macedonia isn't included in the name which they will agree on. This is not negotiable," said Mr Leonardou, a 59-year-old writer from Thessaloniki, warning that if the Greek government does otherwise, "There will be an answer from the Greek people".
The UN negotiator Matthew Nimetz - a 24-year veteran on the issue - said last week that he was "very hopeful" that a solution was within reach.
Despite the nationalist fervor that is also being fed by Golden Dawn, Greeks appear to be less militant on the issue than in the past.
In 1992, more than one million people – 10% of the population - joined a rally in Thessaloniki to proclaim that "Macedonia is Greek".
Athens argues that the name Macedonia suggests that Skopje has territorial claims to the northern Greek region of the same name, of which Thessaloniki is the capital.
The region was the center of Alexander's ancient kingdom, a source of Greek pride.
Hardline clerics, far-right leaders and Greek diaspora groups had called for rallies, with the turnout exceeding media estimates of 30,000.
Gathered around the statue of Alexander in Thessaloniki were members of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party and local clergy.
Representatives from the main opposition party, New Democracy, were also present despite a tacit order from its liberal-minded leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis to boycott the protests.
Cretans in traditional costumes who travelled from the southern island with their horses, as well as people from northern Greece wearing costumes from the Macedonian wars era a century ago, crowded at the White Tower on the Thessaloniki waterfront from early in the morning.
Greece and Macedonia returned to the United Nations last week hoping to reach a compromise that could end the 27-year dispute over the former Yugoslav republic's name.
Greece's objections to the use of the name Macedonia since the Balkan country's independence in 1991 have hampered the tiny nation's bid to join the European Union and NATO.
"We demand that the term Macedonia isn't included in the name which they will agree on. This is not negotiable," said Mr Leonardou, a 59-year-old writer from Thessaloniki, warning that if the Greek government does otherwise, "There will be an answer from the Greek people".
The UN negotiator Matthew Nimetz - a 24-year veteran on the issue - said last week that he was "very hopeful" that a solution was within reach.
Despite the nationalist fervor that is also being fed by Golden Dawn, Greeks appear to be less militant on the issue than in the past.
In 1992, more than one million people – 10% of the population - joined a rally in Thessaloniki to proclaim that "Macedonia is Greek".