Essay for the Contemporary Patriots in Macedonia in 2016

This note about the patriots in Macedonia in 2016 is referring to the political(miss)use of this term in contemporary situation marked by the protests that beganon 12.04.2016. Two groups of Macedonian citizens protest thorough the streets in Macedonia– one group protests “against the regime” of the government, and the other groupprotests for “defending Macedonia” and the current government. The two groups, amongother things disagree on the question of what the term patriotism represents to them andit seems that it is about completely different concepts on the relation of the individual towardsone’s own state and the relation of the “people” towards the state (and vice versa).The second conception about patriotism is especially interesting and is regularly used bythe “Civil Movement for Defense of Macedonia” and their rhetoric is very much alikethe one that has been used in 19 centuries in the phases of nation building particularly inSoutheast Europe. In that sense what is interesting is how this 19 century concept is stillso popular in Macedonia in the 21 century

Political science · Balkans: History, Politics, Society · Contemporary and Historical Greek Studies · Regional Development and Management Studies