Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana is against the opening of centers for migrants in the Municipality of Pustec, Prespa area
The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana urgently requests from the Government the withdrawal of the decision to open three reception centers for migrants in the territory of the Municipality of Pustec, in the Prespa area, respectively in the village of Zrnosko, in the sports fields in Pustec and in the village of Dolna Gorica.
This decision stems from the normative act “On the Approval of the National Emergency Plan for Mixed Migration Flows 2026–2028”, published in the Official Gazette, according to which, in case of crisis, for the management of migratory flows, the establishment of 20 reception centers for migrants in the territory of the Republic of Albania is foreseen over the next two years.
These centers are planned for migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Gaza, who use the Republic of Albania as a transit country to the European Union.
The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana fully supports the request of the Alliance of Macedonians for European Integration (AMIE) to stop the opening of three reception centers for migrants on the territory of the Municipality of Pustec.
The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana condemns the fact that this decision was taken without any public consultation with the Macedonian community in the Municipality of Pustec, without dialogue with local stakeholders, which seriously violates the principles of local self-government, transparency and participatory democracy.
We emphasize that the construction of the reception centers is located on the shore of Lake Prespa, while the entire territory of the Municipality of Pustec is part of the Prespa National Park, a protected area of particular ecological, cultural and tourist importance. Furthermore, the Municipality of Pustec has been declared a tourist area, while the village of Zrnosko has been included by the Albanian government itself in the program of 100 tourist villages.
Macedonians in Prespa do not require reception centers for migrants, but concrete investments in infrastructure, tourism, agriculture and sustainable development, in order for the Prespa area to become a real tourist destination and to stop the process of depopulation of the area.
The Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana requests from the Government the immediate removal of the Municipality of Pustec from the map foreseen for the establishment of reception centers for migrants, the planning and implementation of concrete investments in infrastructure and local development, taking into account the fact that the Prespa area has been neglected for the last 35 years.
The decision is a direct violation of Article 16 of Law No. 96/2017 “On the Protection of National Minorities in the Republic of Albania”, which strictly prohibits the taking of state measures that change or aim to change the demographic composition of local self-government units inhabited by National Minorities.
The establishment of reception centers for migrants in a municipality with an indigenous Macedonian population is a demographic intervention with long-term consequences, which seriously threatens the survival, identity and sustainability of the community, and at the same time will have a negative impact on the development of tourism in the Prespa area.
Macedonian Association “Ilinden”-Tirana
President Nikolla Gjurgjaj