As tens of thousands of Macedonians gathered in the streets of Skopje tonight, Human Rights Watch warned that the threat of ethnic violence in the country was rising sharply.
A pamphlet being circulated in the vicinity of Skopje by a group calling itself Macedonia Paramilitary 2000 has warned that ethnic Albanians must leave Macedonia by tonight, or be killed and have their homes and shops burned.
"This pamphlet is exactly the kind of thing that could lead to widespread ethnic violence," said Holly Cartner, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia division. "The government and international community have to stop it now."
MACEDONIA PARAMILITARY 2000 ORDER:
We order all Shiptars [derogatory term for ethnic Albanians-tr.] who have objects for sale-shopkeepers here and around the Kwantaskhi bazaar-to leave within three days, and for those Shiptars from Aracinovo, the deadline is 24 hours. After this deadline, all the shops will be burned, and if someone tries to protect [them], the same will be killed without warning.
We inform Shiptars of the Macedonian republic that for every killed police officer or soldier 100 Shiptars who do not have citizenship or who took citizenship after 1994 will be killed. For every police officer or soldier disabled, 50 Shiptars will be killed. For every wounded police officer or soldier wounded, 10 Shiptars will be killed, no matter what gender or age.
We inform Shiptars who do not have citizenship or got it after 1994 to leave Macedonia before June 25 this year, at midnight. After this deadline, we will start with the cleansing--"The Longest Night" courtesy of Macedonia Paramilitary 2000.
We order every Macedonian, Turk, Roma, Turbesh, Bosniak and others not to shop in Albanian stores while the war is on, because with such actions they directly support the Shiptar terrorist narco-gangsters. Otherwise all the shops of those who trade with Shiptars will be burned down.
We order to everyone to stick this pamphlet on their shops to allow for mass information. Those dwellings who receive this pamphlet and who do not show it in a visible place will be potential targets, no matter to whom they belong.
The pamphlet was stamped with a purple rubber stamp with the image of a lion and M P 2000 written around the seal.
