Six years ago the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana was admitted into the family of representatives of European nationalities and became a full member of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN).

A great contribution to our membership in FUEN is Macedonian Human Rights Movement International from Canada with President Bill Nicholov who helps the Macedonian Association “Ilinden” -Tirana pay the annual membership fee and be an equal member of FUEN, for which we express our gratitude.

The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana became a full member of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) at the FUEN congress on April 15 2015 in Komotini, Greece, organized by the Federation of Turks of Western Thrace in Europe, the Association of Minority Graduate Students of Western Thrace and the Friendship, Equality and Peace Party. Since then, the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana has made major contributions in documenting and overcoming a large number of issues of interest to Macedonians in Albania. We continuously work to protect the ethnic, linguistic and cultural identity and the national traditions of Macedonians in Albania.

Additionally, the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana has participated in all FUEN congresses since 2015. We were present and worked actively at the Wroclaw, Poland congress on May 21 2016, at the congress held in Cluj-Napoca in Romania on May 20 2017, at the congress in Leeuwarden in the Netherlands on June 23 2018 and at the latest congress on June 15 2019 in Bratislava, Slovakia. At all these events, the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana presented resolutions with the aim and intent of improving the life of Macedonians in Albania and all were adopted by the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN). They were forwarded to international institutions that deal with minority issues as well as to the state institutions in Albania.

The extent to which these resolutions contribute to the improvement of Macedonians in Albania will be the next step we take at the upcoming FUEN congress. As a full member of FUEN and part of the Working Group on Slavic Minorities in Europe, the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana has actively raised the issue of the Macedonians in Albania at the international stage.

The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana would like to extend its sincere gratitude to all members of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) for their cooperation and the understanding they have shown us in the protection of the Macedonian minority in Albania. We also send our sincerecongratulationsto the members, associates and supporters of the Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana on the sixth anniversary of our membership in the premier minority rights organization in Europe, with the desire to continue working persistently to protect the needs and interests of Macedonians in Albania. May the anniversaries grow as our friendship with all nations and minorities in the world grows.