I S S U E

10 NOVEMBER 2011

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SLOVENIAN EMBASSY SKOPJE

MONTHLY e-NEWSLETTER

In this issue State Secretary Tanja Strniša at a working meeting of AM of SEE P.1

Launch of the project “SMETS” P.2 Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Head of SiOFA P.2

Meeting with the Minister for Self-Government Nevzat Bejta P.2 Meeting with the Director of the RM Customs Administration P.3

Meeting with the President of the Nat. Council for EU Integration P.3 Meeting with Ilinka Mitreva, SDSM P.4

Farewell lunch for outgoing Austrian Ambassador Alois Kraut P.4 Meeting with the Mayor of the Municipality of Gostivar P.5

Presentation of Slovenian companies - Triglav P.6 Rebranding of SAVA Insurance P.7

AGROFOOD 2011 P.7 Donation of three ambulance vehicles for the hospital in Gostivar P.7

Meeting with the first-year students of Slovenian language P.8 8th Tree Planting Campaign P.8

Week of Modern Slovenian Film at “Cinedays” P.9 Presentation of the literary magazine OtočjeO. P.10

Independent theatre Via Negativa at the Skupi festival 2011 P.10 International children’s art exhibition “13 November” P.11

“Macedonia in the transitional tunnel” by PhD Dimitar Mirčev P.11 Skopje Liberation Day “13 November” P.12

103rd anniversary of the Albanian alphabet P.12 Ambassador Bergant congratulated Kurban Bajram P.13

Lipica Stud Farm - Slovenia P.13 Roundtable “Tourism as major impetus at entrepreneurship” P.15

I feel Christmas in Slovenia P.16 Slovenian Christmas cuisine P.18

State Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Tanja Strniša, on behalf of the Slovenian

Minister Dejan Židan and at the invitation of the Macedonian Minister of Agriculture and Water

Management Ljupčo Dimovski, attended the annual working meeting of Agriculture Ministers of South

Eastern-Europe, which took place between 10 and 13 November in Macedonia.

The aim of the meeting was to define the future direction of reforms in agriculture and rural development in

Southeast-Eastern Europe, continuation of the reform process for EU accession, intensification of regional

cooperation started up in the field of agriculture and rural development and full support to the Standing

Working Group for Regional Rural Development – SWG, as a regional initiative in the implementation of

strategic and operational plans related to regional cooperation for the next 5 years.

In addition, the meeting was also an opportunity to discuss the reforms of the Common Agriculture Policy

of the EU 2014-2020 and the utilization of IPARD as a pre-accession instrument in the field of agriculture

and rural development. Beside the Ministers of Agriculture from the SEE Countries, also representatives of

the internationally finance and donor organizations (FAO, GIZ, EAR, RCC etc.), representatives of the

European Commission, Ministry representatives on decision making and technical level dealing with

agriculture and rural development policies and officially appointed Ministry representatives in the SWG

Assembly participated at the event. On this occasion Macedonia took over the presidency of the

Permanent Working group for Regional Rural Development in South-Eastern Europe (RRD SWG) from

Croatia. The meeting was also attended by Secretary General and Head of Secretariat of the Permanent

Working Group for Regional Rural Development in South-Eastern Europe, Boban Ilić.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Tanja Strniša attended the working meeting of

Agriculture Ministers of South-Eastern Europe Skopje, 11 November 2011

++

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Ambassador Brian Bergant met with Deputy Prime

Minister and the Head of the Secretariat for the

implementation of the Ohrid Framework

Agreement Musa Xhaferi. Bergant and Xhaferi

assessed relations between the two countries as

very positive and friendly. They discussed the

current situation in Macedonia and the Western

Balkan region, the euro-atlantic integration of

Ambassador Brian Bergant met with the Minister for Local Self-Government of Macedonia Nevzat Bejta,

with whom he discussed bilateral cooperation in the field of local self-government and regional

development.

Minister Bejta thanked for support and so far shared experiences of Slovenia in the field of local self-

government and regional development. Macedonian side is very interested in the Slovenian experience

with the implementation of balanced regional development and cross-border cooperation.

Ambassador Brian Bergant met with the Minister for Local Self-Government Nevzat Bejta

Skopje, 21 November 2011

EU Affairs Launch of the project “Support of the Modernization of the Education and Training System”

Skopje, 3 November 2011

The EU-funded twinning project: Support to the Modernization of the Education and Training System was

officially launched at the EU InfoCentre in Skopje.

Modernization of vocational education and training is necessary in order to overcome the mismatch with

the labour market needs in the country, especially high unemployment rates among the secondary schools

leavers and long period of job searching. With an aim to reform the 2 and 3 year vocational education and

training system in the country according to the labour market needs, the EU-funded project “Support to the

Modernization of the Education and Training System” will focus on preparation of standards for vocational

qualifications, reform of the curricula and training of trainers of vocational training. The twinning assistance

will be provided in the form of know-how transfer through training, advice and coaching sessions, sharing

of experience, seminars, workshops and conferences in the following 20 months. The budget of the

project amounts to more than 2 million EUR (1.8 million EUR IPA funding). The project is implemented

under the IPA programme for “Human Resources Development”, managed by the Ministry of Education

and Science, in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance. The activities will be implemented in a close

partnership between the Member State institution - Institute of the Republic of Slovenia for Vocational

Education and Training and the Beneficiary Institution, Centre for Vocational Education and Training,

Skopje.

Ambassador Bergant met Deputy Prime Minister and Head of SiOFA Skopje, 29 November 2011

Macedonia and their expectations before the European Council, the names issue, as well as the global

economic and financial crisis. Xhaferi expressed satisfaction with the achieved implementation of the Ohrid

Framework Agreement in his mandate, informed about the organized events that marked the X.

Anniversary of the signing of the Ohrid Framework Agreement and presented the future plans of its further

implementation.

Bilateral Affairs

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In 2009 Slovenia and Macedonia signed a

Memorandum of Cooperation between the

Government Office for Local Self-Government and

Regional Development of Slovenia and the Ministry of

Local Self-Government of Macedonia. On the basis of

the signed Memorandum, a two-year cooperation

program (for years 2010/2011) was successfully

implemented. Joint Slovenian-Macedonian group for

the preparation of the cooperation program 2012/2013

will meet in March 2012.

Ambassador Brian Bergant met with the President of the National Council for European integration

Radmila Šekerinska, member of the opposition party SDSM, who presented the future activities of the

Council. Ms Šekerinska informed they intend to organize a joint meeting with the Committee for European

Affairs in December and a public debate on the Annual National Programme for the implementation of the

EU Acquis.

Meeting of Ambassador Bergant with the Director of the Macedonian Customs Administration Vančo Kargov Skopje, 16 November 2011 Ambassador Brian Bergant paid a regular working visit to the

Director of the Macedonian Customs Administration Vančo

Kargov. Director Kargov presented the implementation of major

customs projects and future plans. They also discussed the

possibilities of participation of Slovenian institutions and

involvement of enterprises in projects that Customs Administration

plans to implement.

Ambassador Brian Bergant meets the President of the National Council for European Integration Radmila Šekerinska

Skopje, 30 November 2011

National Council for European Integration is preparing a work

plan for the next year. One of the planned projects is to

organize a seminar on successful planning and usage of the

European assistance from IPA funds, European Instrument

for Pre-Accession Assistance. In this regard, Ms Šekerinska

asked for the participation of Slovenian experts in order to

present their experiences and good practices. Ambassador

Bergant and Ms Šekerinska also discussed about

Macedonian expectations before the December session of

the European Council, integration of the Western Balkan

countries into the EU, the name issue, as well as global

economic and financial crisis and current internal affairs.

Last autumn Government Office for Local Self-Government and Regional Development of Slovenia

organized a conference in Skopje on "Exchange of experience in the field of regional development and EU

cohesion policy".

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Ambassador Brian Bergant met with Ilinka Mitreva Skopje, 22 November 2011

Ambassador Bergant met with the Ilinka Mitreva, former Minister

of Foreign Affairs of Macedonia. Mitreva presented the work of the

newly established Diplomatic Council of the SDSM, to which she

presides. SDSM Diplomatic Council is an advisory body which

organizes panel discussions on issues related to the

implementation of the strategic foreign policy objectives of the

country. Ambassador Bergant and Mitreva also spoke about

current foreign policy issues such as the process of resolving

Greek-Macedonian name dispute and the process of integration of

Macedonia into the Euro Atlantic structures.

Ambassador Brian Bergant in the capacity of the Dean of the

Diplomatic Corps organized a farewell lunch for outgoing

Ambassador of the Republic of Austria Alois Kraut, which was

attended by Heads of diplomatic missions and international

organizations based in Skopje.

In his address Ambassador Bergant highlighted the activities of

Ambassador Kraut which strengthened already good bilateral

relations between Austria and Macedonia and gave them a new

dimension. Among the major successes of Ambassador Kraut’s

term, he stressed the court settlement between the electricity

companies ELEM and EVN, the initiative to organize Skopje

Architecture week, which now takes place once a year as well as

numerous bilateral visits at the highest level.

Farewell lunch for outgoing Austrian Ambassador Alois Kraut Skopje, 9 November 2011

Ambassador Kraut expressed a wish that instead of buying him a farewell present, the money to be

transferred to a charity cause, to the Macedonian SOS-Children’s Village Association

(http://www.sos.org.mk/). On Monday, 21 November 2011, Ambassador Bergant handed over the donation

– cooking stove and three vacuum cleaners – to Ms Julijana Nakova Gapo, National Director of SOS-

Children’s Village Association and Ms Violeta Georgievska, Director of SOS-Children’s Village in Skopje.

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Ambassador Bergant meets Mayor of the Municipality of Gostivar and NDR President Rufi Osmani

Ambassador Brian Bergant paid a working visit to Gostivar where he had a meeting with the Mayor of the

Municipality of Gostivar and the leader of the Albanian opposition party National Democratic Rebirth (NDR)

Rufi Osmani.

Mayor Osmani initially presented the latest developments, concrete projects and progress made in

Gostivar after he won at the local election in 2009. Among other things he expressed the interest for closer

cooperation with one of the Slovenian Municipalities that was successful in using IPA funds, as well as for

experts for rural development and farm tourism. In the second part of the discussion Osmani highlighted

the priorities of his National Democratic Rebirth Party. He called for more justified distribution of the budget

funds to the local community, new foreign direct investments, additional economic measures and creation

of new jobs. When talking about foreign policy he stressed that Macedonian EU and NATO membership

are crucial for NDR, good inter-ethnic relations, relations with all neighboring countries and fast resolution

of the Greek-Macedonian name dispute.

Gostivar, 25 November 2011

Municipality of Gostivar

During his visit Ambassador and counselor for economic

affairs Jernej Tovšak visited two successful companies in

Gostivar, Vardar Dolomiti and Frigosan. The aim was to

review possibilities for closer cooperation with Slovenian

companies and assessed options for eventual common

entrance to the third markets. Both directors were invited to

join the Slovenian-Macedonian Business Club that brings

together more than 130 Slovenian and Macedonian

companies.

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Triglav Osiguruvanje – Building a safer future

Member of Triglav Group since 2007, the leader on the insurance market in Macedonia for several years

and one of the pillars and synonyms of security in Macedonia, Vardar Osiguruvanje, finished its process of

rebranding this September, becoming Triglav Osiguruvanje. A number of activities were conducted,

including visual change and compliance of all the aspects of its functioning with the Group’s high standards

of work ethics and professionalism.

Zavarovalnica Triglav, the largest and oldest insurance company in Slovenia is a brand with more than 100

years of tradition, a company which is recognizable and respectable in the business community and

among its clients. With both clients and partners, Triglav has built responsible, long-term relationships.

Triglav stands for security. For more than a century Triglav provides for the security of its clients, thanks to

the company’s continuing financial stability. The world-known Standard & Poor’s credit rating agency

confirmed this month the "A" long-term rating and financial strength rating of Zavarovalnica Triglav and the

Triglav Group for the fourth consecutive year, which is the highest of all financial institutions in Slovenia.

But Triglav is of course much more than just an insurer. The Triglav Group is one of the leading insurance-

financial groups in South-East Europe, which focuses on insurance as its core business and complements

it with asset management and banking. The Triglav Group has exceptional performance: in 2010 the

Group posted a total of EUR 1,013.6 million in consolidated gross insurance and co-insurance premium,

while in the first half of 2011 it earned EUR 34.1 million in profit.

With over 5,000 employees, Triglav Group is present on

eight markets of South-East Europe. In the Adriatic region

(encompassing Slovenia, Serbia, Macedonia, Croatia, BiH

and Montenegro) Triglav’s combined market share is

22.6%. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited has reported

that this year the Triglav Group holds the largest share of

the Adriatic region market.

In addition, the Ljubljana Stock Exchange adopted the

decision to transfer, as of 5th of December, 2011; the

shares issued by Zavarovalnica Triglav, from the Standard

Market to the Prime Market, which ensured to the company

the one of the most visible positions among issuers on the

market of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

Director Branko Flisar

Triglav cherishes an identity that encompasses integrity in actions, internal and transparency towards the

clients and the community, availability to clients, as well as the best value on the market. Quality of

products, favourable prices, client satisfaction and provision of security are the pillars the Group relies

upon. Triglav’s exceptional comparative advantage lies in its top insurance professionals as a precondition

for top quality products and services. Triglav is excellent in after-sales services as well as in fast and fair

claims’ settlements, understanding when the clients need them the most. They understand the needs of

the broader environment and the importance of social responsibility – Triglav supports the development of

education, culture, sports and prevention activities. With their new corporate slogan “EVERYTHING WILL

BE ALL RIGHT” they are actually assuming great responsibility, fully prepared to match these words with

deeds. Thus, within the rebranding process Triglav donated means to help the reconstruction of five

kindergartens in the country - the goal being to help build a safer future for those that are our future.

Presentation of Slovenian

Companies

ZZEconomy

P . 7

Economy

Rebranding SAVA Tabak into SAVA Osiguruvanje (SAVA Insurance) Skopje, 10 November 2011 The insurance company Sava Tabak officially rebranded into SAVA Osiguruvanje (SAVA Insurance). The

solemn event was attended by numerous guests from Macedonian economic sphere. Sava Osiguruvanje

(SAVA Insurance) is the second largest insurance company in Macedonia.

The guests were addressed by Ambassador Bergant, Chief Executive Director Peter Skvarča and Sava Re

CEO Zvonko Ivanušič. Ambassador Bergant, among other things, highlighted the company's success and

financial stability of the majority owner of the insurance company, which in these turbulent times is

extremely important. He also highlighted the company's social responsibility and wished the company

Opening of the fair for agriculture, agricultural mechanization and food – AGROFOOD 2011 Skopje, 15 November 2011 Promotion of latest food products, agricultural mechanization, packaging and transportation, business

forums, workshops, debates, lectures as well as bilateral meetings are some of the activities that took

place at the 61st International Fair of Consumer Goods AGROFOOD 2011 from 15 to 19 November.

Companies from Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Serbia, Croatia, Great Britain, Slovenia, Turkey, Sweden, France,

Japan, Portugal, Poland, India, Belarus, Czech Republic, China, Taiwan and Austria presented their

products alongside Macedonian firms. A wine festival was organized for the first time at the fair, aiming to

promote wine culture in Macedonia.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management

Ljupco Dimovski opened AGROFOOD international fair and

said that agriculture is one of the most important sectors in

Macedonia and an important economic activity and that

one of the main objectives in future policy is how to

increase food self-sufficiency.

Ambassador Bergant handed the donation of three ambulance vehicles from UMC Ljubljana to the hospital in Gostivar Gostivar, 25 November 2011 Ambassador Brian Bergant visited the hospital in Gostivar and met with Director Dr. Ferid Muco and Health

Center Director Jamin Sinani. At the meeting Slovenian citizen Besnik Kadri from Gostivar, who gave the

initiative for Slovenia to donate to the hospital three used ambulance vehicles, was also present. The

second-hand ambulance vehicles come from the Rescue Station at the University Medical Centre UMC

Ljubljana, which were handed over to the hospital in early November.

Ambassador Bergant informed Director Muco that

the State Secretary of the Ministry of Health of the

Republic of Slovenia Prim.Dr. Ivan Eržen together

with the Rescue Station at the University Medical

Centre UMC Ljubljana is negotiating about donating

one more ambulance vehicle for the purposes of the

hospital in Gostivar.

Donations

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Ambassador Bergant met with the professor and first-year students of Slovenian language Skopje, 16 November 2011 At the Faculty of Philology Blaže Koneski, University of St. Cyril and Methodius - Skopje, Ambassador

Brian Bergant met with Slovenian language teacher PhD Lidija Arizankovska and first-year students of

Slovenian language. The meeting was also attended by the Dean of the Faculty of Philology PhD Maksim

Karanfilovski. Ambassador Brian Bergant highlighted the good cooperation between the Embassy and the

Department for Slovenian language and literature and pointed out this-years important events organized by

the Embassy, when we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Slovenia.

PhD Lidija Arizankovska welcomed the growing interest of Macedonian students to study Slovenian

language and said that in the academic year 2011/2012, 30 new students enrolled. She also stated that

the last student exchange from the University of Ljubljana was attended by several students and that she is

also actively working on making the new Slovenian-Macedonian dictionary. Ambassador Brian Bergant

handed over to the students the new book by Pascal Fontaine "Europe in 12 lessons" in Slovenian

language, tourist promotional materials, map of Slovenia and brochures with basic information about

Slovenia and its attractions. He also pointed out that the Embassy will do all to increase the fond of

Slovenian literature in Macedonia.

On a separate meeting with Dean Karanfilovski they agreed that the ambassador will hold a lecture on

"Slovenia in the EU, experiences and the benefits of membership" for all the students at the Faculty, as he

had for the first-year students of Slovenian language. The Dean also repeated his wish for exchange of

lecturers for Slovenian and Macedonian language between the Faculty of Philology in Skopje and the

Faculty of Philosophy in Ljubljana. This would, in his opinion, contribute to even greater cooperation and

strengthening of the relations between the two faculties, which last year celebrated the 50th anniversary of

studying of the Macedonian and Slovenian language, and to greater interest and acknowledgement of

Macedonian and Slovenian studies.

Under the motto »We are planting today –Writing and Sending a Letter of Peace«, 5.7 million seedings

were planted within autumn campaign »Tree Day – Plant Your future«, held throughout Macedonia on 23

November 2011. The eighth such campaign included planting near populated places, natural and artificial

lakes, and national parks, regional and local roads. The main event of the campaign was »Letter of Love,

Respect and Friendship – Plant Peace, Friendship and Love« and citizens were able to sign in support of

the letter, whereas the signatures are to be forwarded to the United Nations and the European

Commission following the campaign. "The letter is a call for mass unity, planting the future for ourselves

and the world. The letter is a strong message that we will not allow for our name to be taken away and

would not allow such injustice to be brought upon anyone", said the campaign organizers. Campaign chief

Kristina Nikolovska said that planting aimed at sending a universal message of peace, friendship, good

neighborly relations, humanity.

Education

Campaign for Tree Planting carried out successfully for the 8th time Skopje, 23 November 2011

Green Diplomacy

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Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and Agriculture Minister Ljupco Dimovski marked the start of the campaign

by planting trees in Skopje downtown on 20 November, followed by the diplomatic corps and heads of

religious communities in Macedonia on 21 November, as well as President Gjorge Ivanov on 22

November.

On 21 November Ambassador Brian Bergant attended the symbolic beginning of the campaign, when

ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives accredited in the Republic of Macedonia, planted trees

in the middle of Vodno. Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Teuta Arifi and Minister for Foreign

Affairs Nikola Poposki were also present.

The 8 "Tree Day" campaign is held in the spirit of global event "International Year of Forests 2011",

declared by the United Nations. Thirty-eight million seedlings have been planted in the course of the past

seven campaigns since 2008.

Slovenian Films in Focus of the Film Festival “Cinedays” in Skopje Skopje, 10 - 20 November 2011 The 10th Cinedays film festival in Skopje that lasted between 10 and 20 November put a special focus on

Slovenia’s film production with a number of Slovenian films in the festival programme and with a special

retrospective of Slovenian films over the past 20 years and also with an exhibition of film posters.

“Izlet” (Trip) by Nejc Gazvoda and “Oča” (Dad) by Vlado Škafar competed at the festival. “Izlet” competed

for the best film, best director and best script, while “Oča” competed for best Balkan film.

“Stanje šoka” (The State of Shock), a new film by Andrej Košak, was screened in the programme segment

dedicated to Europe and Macedonia. “Circus Columbia” by Bosnian Danis Tanović, which is partly

produced by Slovenia, has made it into the programme segment of gala premieres that featured films by

acclaimed directors like Nanni Moretti, Lars Von Trier and Aki Kaurismaki. The festival showed a selection

of music documentaries which also featured “Kuzle” (Bitches), a film about a legendary punk band directed

by Matjaž Mrak and Robert Šabec.

Culture

The screening of the film “Slovenka“ (Slovenian Girl), written and directed by

Damjan Kozole, on 9 November opened the Week of Modern Slovenian Film,

held in the framework of international film festival Cinedays. Director Damjan

Kozole came in Skopje in that end. The Retrospective of Modern Slovenian

film featured seven Slovenian films from the past 20 years, among them

blockbuster “Petelinji zajtrk” (Rooster’s Breakfast) by Marko Naberšnik.

The Macedonian Cinematheque published a brochure to accompany the

retrospective. The prologue is dedicated to cooperation between Slovenian

and Macedonia film makers, which has its roots in 1955, when Slovenia’s

director France Štiglič was hired to direct Macedonia’s second feature film

“Volčja noč” (Night of Woolf).

This was the first

retrospective of Slovenian film in Macedonia

since Slovenia’s Independence.

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On 7 November 2011 at the premises of the Writer’s Association of Macedonia a presentation of the sixth

number of the literary magazine OtočjeO. was held. The magazine was prepared and published in

collaboration between Cultural and art association Otočje from Slovenia and Writer’s Association of

Macedonia. This number was dedicated to Macedonia and Macedonian contemporary literature. 40

Macedonian writers and 15 artists took part in preparation of the magazine where they were presented with

their essays, short fiction, novels, poetry, drama and illustrations. In addition to the Macedonian writers

also 10 Slovenian writers and short novelists featured in this issue of the magazine.

The magazine was presented by chief editor of the magazine Mare Cestnik, translator Sonja Dolžan and

by the well known Macedonian writer, poet, reviewer and literary theorist PhD Venko Andonovski.

The guests were also addressed by Ambassador Brian Bergant, who highlighted that the ties between

Slovenia and Macedonia are sincere in all fields of cooperation. He said that we are witnessing the fact

that the Slovenian artists share the wish that is constantly growing, to introduce their work and art to their

Macedonian colleagues and audience.

Performance of the independent theatre Via Negativa from Ljubljana at the 5th International Theatre Festival Skupifestival 2011

On 8 November Cultural and art association Otočje

presented their work also to the students of the Slovenian

language at the Faculty of Philology Blaže Koneski,

University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Skopje.

The visit of the Association Otočje in Skopje finished with a

literary evening held on 9 November at the premises of the

Slovenian Association France Prešeren.

Presentation of the literary magazine Otoč jeO. Skopje, 7 November 2011

Skopje, 6 November 2011

The International Theatre Festival (ITF) “SkupiFestival“ was established in the N.I. Albanian Theatre –

Skopje, in November 2007. The Festival has a competition character among the play writer, the actor, the

director and all important elements that the theatre brings along. ITF “SkupiFestival“, through its theatre

performances, reflects the cultural inheritance of Macedonia, which is increasingly renewed among

generations. Also, as an International Festival, has the spirit of cultural race among nations in the area of

theatre activity, as an important segment of each developed culture of today. Since its very first edition, the

Festival has been convincingly heading as a moving force of the inherited and economic flows, but also as

a representative of the top cultural events.

On 6 November the independent theatre from Ljubljana, Via

Negativa, in the framework of the International Theatre Festival

SkupiFestival 2011, at the stage of the Macedonian National

Theatre, performed the play entitled Stegni se! (Drop dead!).

In addition to Via Negativa Theatre, also theatres from Kosovo,

Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, Italy, France and Poland

took part at the this years edition of the Festival.

Culture

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International children’s art exhibition “13 November” held in Skopje

Skopje, 18 November 2011

On 18 November traditional International children's art exhibition »13 November« was held at the premises

of Children's art Centre that operates in the frame of Children's Library »Drugarče« in the Cinematheque of

Macedonia. The exhibition commemorates the Liberation of the city of Skopje in 1944.

At the Cinema hall of the Cinematheque of Macedonia

the organizers handed the awards for best art

drawings. This year children aged between 4 and 18

years participated with almost 3000 art works. Special

commission selected 350 works of various artistic

techniques and styles among submitted works. The

children that participated came from Germany, Serbia,

Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina,

Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Turkey, Macedonia and

Slovenia.

Six pupils of primary school Tone Čufar from Ljubljana were among the children who received two first, two

second and two third prizes. City of Skopje was the main patron of the event. The main purpose of the

annual exhibition is to promote the development of creative abilities of children and young people.

Presentation of the book “Macedonia in the transitional tunnel” by PhD Dimitar Mirčev

Skopje, 18 November 2011

On 18 November at the premises of the Macedonian Opera and Ballet, PhD Dimitar Mirčev, Columnist of

the daily newspaper Dnevnik, promoted his book entitled “Macedonia in the transitional tunnel”. Honorary

speakers at the event were PhD Srgjan Kerim and the Ambassador Brian Bergant.

Amassador Bergant pointed out that PhD

Dimitar Mirčev is undoubtedly one of the most

important political and social thinkers of the

first 20 years of the independent Macedonian

state. During this period, PhD Mirčev created

significant number of works from the field of

socio-political order, science and education.

His work is recognized and appreciated both

in Macedonia and abroad.

Since PhD Mirčev was appointed as a first Macedonian Ambassador to the Republic of Slovenia, he

represents one of the main links between the two countries. For this reason, PhD Mirčev this autumn was

awarded by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia Samuel Žbogar for special merits in

promoting of Slovenian culture, language and international reputation of Slovenia after the collapse of

former Yugoslavia.

The presentation was attended by representatives of Macedonian Government, Parliament, academicians,

and representatives of diplomatic corp, journalist and many other guests.

Culture

Ambassador Brian Bergant together with other state and diplomatic delegations on Sunday 13 November

laid flowers on the monument of Skopje Liberators, Partisan Cemetery and General Mihajlo Apostolski

monument, to commemorate the 67th anniversary of the liberation of Skopje at the end of the Second

World War.

Many cultural, humanitarian and sports events marked the Liberation Day - 13 November - of Macedonia's

capital – Skopje. On the occasion, the “13 November”' award was presented at the cinema 'Frosina' to this

year laureates: PhD Nikita Sekutovski, Prof. Ljubinka Bosotova - education; Bojku Fejzi and Dimitar

Maševski - art; Boris Pop Gjorčev - journalism; Boško Zaborski - sports; Aleksandar Janevski -

humanitarian activities; Mičo Popovski - business; the Center for Environmental Reaserch and Information

'Eco-Svest'; as well as students - Ivan Antovski, Taško Smilevski and Aleksandar Stepanovski.

Earlier that day, Skopje Mayor Koce Trajanovski met with a group of veterans, who fought for Skopje

liberation in 1944.

Skopje observes its Liberation Day “13 November” Skopje, 13 November 2011

Ambassador Brian Bergant visited the Institute for Cultural and Spiritual Inheritance of Albanians in Macedonia

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Skopje, 22 November 2011

The program also included a Red Cross blood

donation campaign and several sports events.

Skopje was liberated on 13 November 1944 by

Yugoslav Partisan units of the Macedonian

National Liberation Army. Soon after that, Skopje

became the capital of the newly established

People's Republic of Macedonia within the

Yugoslavia.

On 22 November Ambassador Brian Bergant, on the day when Albanians celebrated the 103rd

anniversary of the unification of Albanian alphabet, visited the Institute for Cultural and Spiritual inheritance

of Albanians in Macedonia. He met with the Director PhD. Shefqet Zekolli and his colleagues. He used the

opportunity to congratulate their anniversary. PhD. Zekolli called for cooperation with the Slovenian

Institute for Cultural History ZRC SAZU and Institute of Contemporary history. He suggested meetings

between historians, the establishment of working groups and the organization of lectures on Albanian

issues in Slovenia after the events in the early nineties. PhD. Zekolli also expressed his wish for new

translations on specialized literature from Slovenian to Albanian language and vice versa.

On the same day Ambassador Bergant attended a solemn

academy for the 103rd Anniversary of the unification of the

Albanian alphabet hosted by Deputy Prime Minister and

Head of the Secretariat for the implementation of the Ohrid

Framework Agreement, Musa Xhaferi. The event was

organized in cooperation with the Association of the

Albanian historians in Macedonia.

At the Bitola Congress (»Congress Manastirit«), held from 14 to 22 November 1908, the participants

decided that for the Albanian language Latin letters will be used. The modern Albanian alphabet since than

has 26 letters, 7 vowels and 29 consonants.

National Celebrations

P . 1 3

Tourism

Ambassador Brian Bergant congratulated Kurban Bajram to the Head of the Islamic religious community

The Lipica Stud Farm is the cradle of all Lipizzaner horses in the world. Nowadays it is one of the most

beautiful cultural and historical monuments of the Republic of Slovenia, its rich history reaching back to the

year of 1580. It has been boasting of the tradition of breeding and selecting pure-breed horses. In the

1960’s the Lipica Stud Farm established the Classic Riding School which still participates in worldwide

equestrian events. It successfully combines the rich natural and cultural heritage of the unique karst setting

with modern tourist offer.

Skopje, 4 November 2011 Ambassador Brian Bergant visited the Head of the Islamic

Religious Community in Macedonia Reis ul Ulema Hadzi

Rexhepi Suleiman Efendi and wished him and all the faithful

Muslims, a nice celebration of the second biggest Muslim

holiday of Kurban Bajram. They also talked about the

importance of cooperation between religious communities in

Macedonia, especially on developing and maintaining inter-

religious dialogue and mutual understanding.

Lipica

By the 16th century, when the Habsburgs ruled both Spain and Austria, a

powerful but agile horse was desired both for military uses and for use in

the fashionable and rapidly growing riding schools for the nobility of

central Europe. Therefore, in 1562, the Habsburg Emperor Maximillian

II brought the Spanish Andalusian horse to Austria and founded the court

stud at Kladrub. In 1580, his brother, Archduke Charles II, established a

similar stud at Lipizza (now Lipica), located in Slovenia, from which the

breed obtained its name.

Spanish, Barb, and Arabian stock were crossed at Karst (Kras), and succeeding generations were crossed

with the now-extinct Neapolitan breed from Italy and other Baroque horses of Spanish descent obtained

from Germany and Denmark. While breeding stock was exchanged between the two studs, Kladrub

specialized in producing heavy carriage horses, while riding and light carriage horses came from the

Lipizza stud. Beginning in 1920, the Piber Federal Stud, near Graz, Austria, became the main stud for the

horses used in Vienna. Breeding became very selective, only allowing stallions that had proved

themselves at the Riding School to stand at stud, and only breeding mares that had passed rigorous

performance testing.

The Lipizzan or Lipizzaner is a breed of horse closely associated with

the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria, where the finest representatives

demonstrate the haute école or "high school" movements of classical dressage,

including the highly controlled, stylized jumps and other movements known as

the "airs above the ground." The Lipizzan breed dates back to the 16th century,

when it was developed with the support of the Habsburg nobility. The breed

takes its name from one of the earliest stud farms established, located near

the Kras village of Lipica in Slovenia.

The ancestors of the Lipizzan can be traced to approximately A.D. 800. The earliest predecessors of the

Lipizzan originated in the 7th century when Barb horses were brought into Spain by the Moors and crossed

on native Spanish stock. The result was the Andalusian horse and other Iberian horse breeds.

The Lipizzan breed suffered a setback to its population when a viral epidemic hit the Piber Stud in 1983.

Forty horses and eight percent of the expected foal crop were lost. Since then, the population at the stud

has increased, with 100 mares at the stud as of 1994 and a foal crop of 56 born in 1993. In 1994, the

pregnancy return increased from 27% to 82% as the result of a new veterinary center. Today, though

found in many nations throughout Europe and North America, the breed is relatively rare, with only about

3,000 horses registered worldwide. The number of foals born each year is small, and breeders take

extreme care to preserve the purity of the breed. Educational programs have been developed in order to

promote the breed and foster adherence to traditional breeding objectives. The Lipizzan today competes

successfully in dressage and driving, as well as retaining their classic position at the Spanish Riding

School.

P . 1 4

The modern breed

Because of the status of Lipizzans as the only breed of horse developed in Slovenia, via the Lipica stud,

Lipizzans are recognized in Slovenia as a national animal. For example, a pair of Lipizzans is featured on

the 20-cent Slovenian euro coins. Mounted regiments of Carabinieri police in Italy also employ the Lipizzan

as one of their mounts. Lipica is a village in the Municipality of Sežana in the Littoral region of Slovenia,

close to the border with Italy. It’s is one of the main tourist centers of the Slovenia's Karst region and the

origin of the Lipizzaner horses. The Lipica stud farm was established in 1580 by Charles II, Archduke of

Inner Austria. Today the stud farm is fully functional and breeds the finest horses for haute-école riding.

The stud farm now also includes a hotel and leisure complex, a modern adjunct to a historical setting. The

name is derived from the Slovenian word lipa 'linden tree', which is common in the area. The staff at the

Lipica stud farm plants a new linden tree for every foal born, with the local epithet 'Lipa, Lipica, Lipizzana'.

The history of Lipica is closely connected with the history of the Habsburg monarchy. At the time when

Archduke Charles was thinking about establishing a new stud farm, the Spanish horse was considered the

ideal horse breed. Since the soil and climate in the Kras region is similar to that of Spain, Lipica was

chosen as the perfect spot for the new farm. The first horses were bought in 1581 from Spain (24

broodmares and 6 stallions). The Lipizzaner breed as we know today was fully developed in the time

of Maria Theresa of Austria, whose husband was greatly interested in horse-breeding. From the 14th

century up to 1947, Lipica was part of the municipality of Trieste. In 1947, it was annexed to Socialist

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and included into the Socialist Republic of Slovenia. At that time, the farm

had only 11 horses; all others were confiscated by the Germans during World War II. In the 1960s, Lipica

was opened to tourists and new development began. In 1996, Lipica became a public institution that is

owned by the Republic of Slovenia and has made significant progress since then. Queen Elizabeth

II visited Lipica and its stud farm on 22 October 2008 and was presented with a Lipizzaner horse as a gift

from the Slovenian people.

Lipizzaner Museum Lipikum is a centre of cultural and tourist offer of the Lipica

Stud Farm. It is designed in accordance with modern museological principles

and enables visitors to obtain desired information by themselves by means of

different interactions. The content connected in any way with the rich history of

the stud farm and the Lipizzaner is available for visitors in the museum.

P . 1 5

Ambassador Bergant addressed roundtable “Tourism as major impetus in entrepreneurship”

Skopje, 16 November 2011

Ambassador Brian Bergant was one of the panelists at the roundtable entitled "Tourism as major impetus

in entrepreneurship". The event was organized in the frame of the Global Entrepreneurship Week 2011 by

the YES Foundation and the National center for Development of Innovations and Entrepreneurship with

support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway, numerous strategic partners and sponsors. Other

panelists at the roundtable were Marjan Risteski, Mayor of Prilep, Željka Laslavić, Valmar Holets Croatia,

Miodrag Atanasievski, Macedonian Chamber of Tourism, Siniša Pekevski, manager at SI Communications

and Emilija Pajkovska, Tourist agency for alternative tourism GO Macedonia.

The main topics at the roundtable were focused on the importance of the entrepreneurship and tourism to

the development of economy, tourism as major impetus in entrepreneurship, opening of new business

opportunities and jobs, experiences in creating successful tourist destinations, current situation in

Macedonia and what Macedonia has to do to become a well-known tourist trade mark and target

destination country.

Ambassador Bergant presented the Strategy of the Slovenian tourism for 2007-2011, that is based on the

Development Plan and Policies of Slovenian Tourism and analyses of the state and actual trends in the

area of tourism in Slovenia, Europe and the world. He presented also some highlights from the Analysis of

tourist traffic and program measures and policies in Slovenia for 2012. Among top orientations for the next

year he mentioned importance of bringing new flight connections to Ljubljana airport, more intensive and

coordinated use of the trademark I feel Slovenia, promotion of web tourist marketing and other innovative

marketing approaches, promotion of the development and marketing of the green sustainable tourism. He

described Slovenia as a very safe, green and clean tourist place in the heart of Europe that had developed

SPA and wellness tourism in the last years, as well as its farm tourism, wine routes, ski resorts, city and

congress tourism, hiking and sea tourism. At the end he pointed out that the World Economic Forum,

Competitiveness Index for 2011 placed Slovenia among 139 countries on 33 place.

Global Entrepreneurship Week (14-20 November

2011) is a celebration of entrepreneurship, which

aims to unleash young people's enterprising ideas

and address some of society's biggest issues, from

poverty reduction through to climate change. More

than 70 countries are currently signed up to run their

very own versions of Enterprise Week. This event

was held in Macedonia for the second time and

more than 30 organizations run events and activities

in order to encourage people to have ideas and

make them happen.

Around Christmas people in Slovenia would also burn bonfires outside, using fire to help the sun start

rising again, while inside the homesteads they would burn a tree stump, which was given numerous names

locally that relate to Christmas, including badnik, badnjak, božič, božičnik and also čok, zglavnik and čuja.

This Yule log was selected earlier in the autumn. Often it was two meters long and weighed more than a

hundredweight, so it was dragged to the house, if at all possible, by a team of white oxen. it was hauled

into the house with chains, or rolled to the hearth on boards or poles. It was absolutely forbidden to touch

it with your hands, for it was supposedly a sacred, living being. The tree stump, which the master of the

house procured, was lit in the fireplace on Christmas Eve, thereby according to the old beliefs helping the

weakened sun and giving warmth and light to the souls of the returning departed; it supposedly

represented a veneration of the deity of the domestic hearth. The stump had to smolder slowly until the

New Year or until the Feast of the magi, and in the meantime it was doused with wine and given gifts of

food. This ancient custom of burning was still going up until the First World War, or rather while people still

had open fires; celebrating around a winter bonfire has Indo-European roots. Predictions and prophecies

were made from the sparks, smoke and flame.

I FEEL CHRISTMAS IN SLOVENIA

P . 1 6

Lighting bonfires and burning the Yule log

In Slovenia the most typical outward signs of Christmas Eve and Christmas are: venerating greenery, fire

and water, which is not just therapeutic and cleansing, but on Christmas Eve it also changes into silver and

gold decorations, cribs, fasting, baking special Christmas dishes and pastries, blessing houses, communal

prayers of the rosary and singing Christmas carols, wandering carol-singers, midnight mass, and the

celebratory Christmas lunch for which the whole family gathers around a specially laid table, since

Christmas is the most popular family holiday.

In the Ptuj area, on Christmas Eve they peel off 12 layers of onion and set them in sequence, like the

months of the year. A little salt is shaken on each piece of peel. Depending on whether the piece of peel is

wet or dry the next year, they can judge which will be the rainy and dry months. In Gorenjska, on

Christmas Eve girls would go and stare at a stream to see the image of their future bridegroom in the

water. The light that burns in a house during midnight mass cannot be put out otherwise someone will die.

Christmas customs in Slovenia

“The Christmas period in

Slovenia, with its exceptionally rich symbolism,

is not just sacred but

magical.”

Tradition

P . 1 8

An important part of the preparations for Christmas is decorating the house and work buildings with

greenery: pinewood, oak branches, juniper, ivy, holly, mistletoe, evergreens, moss and so forth, as well as

other decorations that have deep symbolic significance. The traditional Christmas decoration for the

obligatory holy shrine in rural houses was (and is) made of evergreen plants and paper flowers. It had a

variety of names: Betlehem, paradiž (paradise), nebo, jeruzalem, hojkica (fir). Hung from the ceiling were

pine branches with candles or illuminated balls, upside down spruce trees, beautifully carved doves

representing the holy Spirit, “chandeliers” with bouquets of artificial flowers and waxed paper and so forth.

Undecorated little spruce trees were placed on fences, land boundaries and in gardens. Christmas trees

came here from the German-speaking lands, and first appeared in Ljubljana in 1845. it took a decade for

them to move wholesale from the cities to the countryside, but nowadays we see them everywhere,

decorated with electric fairy lights. In the Primorska region they are called brin, or juniper. Christmas

nativity scenes are also very popular in Slovenia. They have been attested to at least since 1644 among

the Ljubljana Jesuits, spreading from the cities to the countryside. The 19th century saw some special

developments. There are many types of them, and they are made of a wide variety of materials. Over the

last two decades they have experienced a new upsurge everywhere in the country. They have also

spawned widespread interest in novel approaches. Recent decades have also seen live nativity scenes in

Slovenia, presented by people in Biblical costumes and with real live animals. They are organized in

various Slovenian locations, and the world-famous postojna cave is regarded as staging the most attractive

one each year, making it a major tourist attraction.

The Slovenian Christmas table is a singular kind of sacrificial altar, a very old ritual, full of concern for the

year to come and for the family, and full of memories of those departed. At the same time it involves

wishes for prosperity in the New Year. The majority of ritual Christmas breads – in the countryside they

usually bake three made of wheat, rye and buckwheat, and now also maize flour, and there can be five

different breads or just one – are named after the napkin used to cover them and the table on which they

are placed: poprtnik, poprtnjak, postovjek, mižnik, prten kruh, stolnik, and in view of its magical powers,

also božičnik (Christmas bread), močen kruh (strong bread), župnik (parish priest) and more. These

frequently beautifully decorated loaves are of pagan origin, and they must stay on the table for 14 days, in

other words for all “three christmases”. The bread is shared with all the people around the home and all

their animals, even the dog and cat, while the chickens get the crumbs. In the Dolenjska region, for

instance, anyone who tries Christmas bread from nine houses gains exceptional power. In some places

three loaves can also represent the three Kings. Outdoor merriment at this time is also provided by the

previously mentioned carol-singers, who appear for Christmas, New Year, and the Feast of the magi and

at other times. They got their name from the Roman Kalendae Januarie, and acquired a new repertoire

with Christianity. These ritually wandering carol-singers bring to houses a blessing for the New Year,

health and good fortune for people and animals. The carol-singers would also wander around cities during

Christmas, and were very popular in Ljubljana. A few years ago the custom of carol-singing, especially

“three Kings” carol-singers in the Ljubljana suburbs, enjoyed a revival. Associated with the carol-singers

are the kolednice, the carols. Slovenians know an extraordinary number of carols. Another common

practice used to be božičnice, public dramatic performances of Christmas plays with holy themes. So the

Christmas period in Slovenia, with its exceptionally rich symbolism, is not just sacred but magical.

P . 1 7

Famous Christmas breads

Christmas decorations

For its size, Slovenia has an exceptional diversity of geography, climate and culture. If we just dwell for a

moment on the culture, it should be pointed out that Slovenia is characterized by four main cultural regions,

these being the Pannonia, central Slovenian, alpine and Mediterranean areas. This is of course entirely

reflected in Slovenia’s cuisine, including holiday fare. For this reason there are a great many Christmas

dishes in Slovenia, and this article could not cover them all. These dishes differ from each other not just in

terms of region, but also in historical period, a variety of influences and also in whether they pertain to the

urban bourgeoisie or rural folk. As far as Christmas dishes and drinks are concerned, the rural circles are

especially traditional, archaic and in many respects ritualized. The old “order” was well-established and

pretty simple. For this festival it was obligatory to partake of dishes that included honey, poppy seeds,

dried fruit, millet, walnuts, hazelnuts and beans. These dishes were also strongly linked to veneration of

the departed, who at this important time of year came to “visit” their kin; the memory of this is still alive in

Slovenia. There are also a number of special pre-Christmas fasting dishes, but that is something for

another time.

Ancient ritual and traditional food

P . 1 8

The ritual dishes include numerous special kinds of bread, cakes, pies, strudels and most particularly,

potica roll cakes. This is an original Slovenian culinary specialty, known throughout Slovenia in various

names and versions (povitica, optica, gubana, gubanca, gobana, pogača), and featuring a wide variety of

fillings. Even back in the 19th century we “exported” it to neighboring countries, and today it is known

almost throughout the world. It was first mentioned in 1575. To begin with it was an upper class food, but

later spread to the peasant class, too. Originally potica was a ritual Christmas dish, but for a long time it

has also been an obligatory Easter blessing food. Traditionally there are around 60 types of potica, but

today there is something like 120 recipes for it. In Koroška (Carinthia), on both the Austrian and Slovenian

sides of the border, the ancient ritual dishes are the kolacija with dried fruit and beans, in memory of the

meagre supper had by Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem, and krapci, bread rolls stuffed with dried pears and

hemp seed. Krapci come in a wide variety among the Slovenians. They are similar to dumplings (when not

fried) and are of noodle, risen or potato dough with various fillings involving cottage cheese, cream and

other ingredients. Of course a very common Slovenian Christmas food is pork: grilled and boiled sausages

(such as the world-famous and protected kranjska klobasa), liver sausage, blood sausage, and a similar

Primorska product, mulce, with sweet stuffing, raisins and unusual spices and so forth. This is

accompanied by pickled cabbage or pickled turnip that has been pickled in various ways (in Primorska, for

instance, in grape skins) and also prepared in various ways.

Slovenian Christmas cuisine

Gastronomy

Embassy of the

Republic of Slovenia Vodnjanska No. 42 1000 Skopje Republic of Macedonia vsk@gov.si www.skopje.embassy.si Follow us on Facebook: Slovenian Embassy Skopje

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Skopje, November 2011

The monthly e-newsletter Bridges is produced by the Embassy of Slovenia in Skopje and is available on http://skopje.veleposlanistvo.si. You are most welcome to send us your comments or request for a subscription on: vsk@gov.si. Editor: Mario Stanković Co-Editor: Andreja Iljaž

Upcoming Events

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