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American Morning

Slavic Macedonians and Ethnic Albanians in Village of Glogi Live in Peace

Aired September 03, 2001 - 11:35   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: In trying to move beyond their country's bloody past, the leaders of Macedonia could learn some lessons from one small town in northern Macedonia. While fighting raged across the Balkan nation, Slavic Macedonians and ethnic Albanians in the village of Glogi lived in peace.

CNN's Alessio Vinci has their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Deep inside ethnic Albanian- controlled territory in Northern Macedonia lies the village of Glogi.

In all, 1,600 people live here, two-third ethnic Albanians, the rest Slavic Macedonias.

The village of Glogi has managed to live together throughout the six months of conflict, mainly because, they says, the Macedonian minority living here chose not to take up arms against the Albanian rebels.

"There was no provocation," he says.

The shops are intact and the village did not suffer any damage from the war.

Musa (ph) the barber says, he serves Albanians and Macedonians alike.

In fact, residents of Glogi are proud of their reputation of tolerance. At this outdoor cafe, a Macedonian teacher is sitting together with an Albanian farmer and two unarmed farmers, an unusual scene in this part of this Macedonia. They argue about education, employment, and of course, the war. The farmer says, his sister was killed by Macedonian forces in another village.

ZEQIR MURTEZI, ALBANIAN FARMER (through translator): Realistically, I should take revenge against him. But we have no disputes in this village between us. It is all a political matter.

VINCI: The concept of trust is rare in the Balkans, yet in this discussion, it came up a few times. MLADEN STEFANO'VSKI, MACEDONIAN TEACHER: We trust each other, and even if somebody had guns, we believe that there would be no conflict among us. The number of extremists will diminish.

VINCI (on camera): But Glogi remains a small isolated example. In other village around it, like this one, less than a mile await, some residents chose the guns to resolve their differences.

(voice-over): The result: Most Macedonians have fled the village of Tearce. Their neighborhood now, a virtual ghost town. Some of the abandoned homes, looted and burned. NATO soldiers are here disarm rebels and rebuild the trust between the two sides. A political process is also under way to give the ethnic Albanians more rights. Some Macedonian hardliners are using the issue of displaced people to derail the peace process.

But in Tearce, residents appear willing to give it another try.

FARUK ABEDINI, TEARCE COUNCILMAN: We must come together, you know. No other possibility, you know. Maybe come -- I can make up -- to everybody to come back into the houses, you know, and continue to leave, you know, like before.

VINCI: Alessio Vinci, Glogi, Macedonia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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