Demographic Change in North Macedonia as Political Issue

Abstract

North Macedonia is a multiethnic country and represents a real mosaic of different cultures. This ethnic and cultural diversity will make this small country in the middle of Europe even more beautiful if no demographic battle takes place. Once part of the Yugoslav federation, the Macedonian population had the privilege of being called on behalf of the state, and other ethnic communities remained equal only in the communist documents of the regime, while in practice feeling deeply discriminated against. Now that the state is independent and sovereign, also the Constitution and other legal acts have incorporated the package of laws deriving from the Ohrid Framework Agreement, according to which Albanians are a constitutional category based on the percentage, respectively that over 20% in the state level, as these causes permanent tension in daily politics. As population censuses have been politicized and doubts about the ethnic structure of the state are growing, this study has considered recent demographic changes in the country in order to shed some light on this vague issue.