Skopje, 18 December 2021 (MIA) – The year 2021 was generally stable in terms of security across the whole country without any serious security incidents being reported and fewer crimes were also reported in 2021 compared to last year, Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski has said. Speaking in an interview with MIA, when asked about accountability following the deadly tragedies in the Tetovo modular hospital and the bus accident in Bulgaria, Spasovski stressed that people will be held accountable for the two cases, even though Bulgaria has been probing the bus accident. The Interior Ministry next year, he says, will continue to be committed to fighting crime and corruption, migration, terrorism and cybercrime, as well as to curbing drug trafficking within the country and intercepting international transport. Read the full interview below: Mr. Minister, I’d like to start the interview by asking you about this past year. The Interior Ministry (MoI) faced many challenges all the while registering many achievements. What marked 2021 in terms of the activities of the ministry you are managing? Good day. Thank you for the opportunity to do this interview by the end of the year. The Interior Ministry’s functioning is understandably always facing serious security-related challenges. However, 2021 across the entire territory of the country was in general a stable year in terms of security, which is very important from the Ministry’s point of view. Regarding crime, I can say that 2021 is ending with fewer crimes recorded compared to 2020. This year, around 20,000 offences were reported, of those 12,500 were processed, and nearly 15,000 perpetrators were reported, which constitutes 61-percent efficiency. Police busted seven organized criminal groups, including five for illegal drug trafficking and one for migrant smuggling and illegal tree cutting each. Also, more corruption cases have been discovered, an increase by 58.3% percent compared to the same period last year. Intensive measures and activities have been taken to curb illegal drug trafficking. Around 16 international marijuana and hashish transports were intercepted and five criminal groups were busted. The Ministry registered serious achievement in preventing illegal trade of weapons. An increase in offences, about by 23.4 percent, was registered during this period and weapons, ammunition and pyrotechnics have been seized. A total of 153 crimes were discovered and 161 perpetrators are being prosecuted. Nearly 13,000 pieces of ammunition have been seized, as well as close to 300 pieces of weapons and pyrotechnics, etc. I must also mention the crackdown of a 10-member poly-criminal organized group smuggling both drugs and weapons. I must note we have recorded notable and important results. To reduce crime and improve the efficiency of the Macedonian police is a success, which should further motivate. Speaking of security, recently there have been fake bomb threats and fake terrorism attack threats. Will someone be held accountable for making these fake threats especially after one of them fully blocked downtown Skopje? That’s right, these fake threats caused the citizens to feel insecure and to be afraid and also the services, namely the Interior Ministry and the National Security Agency, had to engage their resources to the fullest. Three people were taken into custody as regards one of the cases after posting on TikTok that a bomb had been planted in one of the shopping malls in Skopje. Also, a person was arrested for making a fake bomb threat during the visit of a top official from Brussels. And, three people have been called for questioning in connection to the allegedly planted bomb at the Macedonian National Theater. These cases had been closed and the police sent documents to the prosecution. If crime had been committed, someone will be definitely held accountable because no one should play with security as it causes serious challenges. What is important for the Ministry in these cases? Quick mobilization of all services, because it shows how much the Interior Ministry and other agencies are prepared to handle these cases. The colleagues at the Interior Ministry, the department for organized crime, the sector for cybercrime and forensics, the anti-terrorism unit, and the National Security Agency – they all in a very short time took measures demonstrating their high-level preparedness to respond to any security threat at any time. You’ve already mentioned police crackdowns on several organized criminal groups for drug trafficking. Recently there was such operation, yesterday as well as the day before. The public gets the impression that drug trafficking is commonplace in the country. Interior Ministry’s daily bulletins always inform how many people have been arrested for drugs, including marijuana. Is North Macedonia a target, a transit zone or perhaps the final destination for major drug trafficking businesses?  Let’s answer the final question first. If the country is located in a key geostrategic position, it’s normal such security challenges to be increased. On one hand, North Macedonia is proud to be is this geostrategic location, but on the other hand, we have to be aware that it comes with risks. When it comes to drug trafficking, arms trafficking, transnational crime, migration, etc, neither North Macedonia nor the countries in the region can be bypassed. I’ll structure the question differently. Has efficiency in busting drug trafficking, migrant smuggling and the channels of the organized criminal groups been increased? The Ministry has been positioned well at a strategic level involving organized crime and drug trafficking, which is why operations to seize drugs are reported during attempts to have it transported via international channels in the region or beyond. The agencies are well prepared, which is why we are witnesses to these operations to seize drugs. It is no coincidence, because the agencies are organized. One of the strategic commitments of the Ministry and its leadership is to focus on cracking down drug trafficking, arms trafficking, migration, etc. You didn’t answer whether Macedonia is the target or transit destination of drug trafficking businesses the police have busted? By saying that international transport channels have been cracked down, it means that drugs are transited across North Macedonia. We are a small country and we are trying daily to bust channels not only in the country, but also international transportation. It’s not a matter of one of the two options for drug trafficking, we are seriously committed to fighting against trafficking of narcotics in the country and busting international transportation. Minister, the so called Doppelganger affairs took place this past year. 215 fake Macedonian passports were issued to persons wanted by the Interpol, criminals in Europe. Eleven people, including nine MoI officials, were convicted. We still don’t know whether top officials had been involved in any way. Back then, you said that a fake passport cost somewhere between 5,000 and 20,000 euros. Where did the money end? I’d rather call it action than affair. It is one of the actions of the Interior Ministry confirming there is zero tolerance to corruption. This is the prime example of how the Interior Ministry is fighting against corruption within the institution, too. It was a serious crime that had been detected, it was investigated before people, the organizers, were arrested. Eight MoI employees and another one from a different institution had organized as a group to issue passports. The action was launched when it was all over. Also, interest have been intertwined because there was an attempt to leak information about the action early by certain structures from opposition parties. It’s a good thing that the whole team assigned on the case was efficient and quick. I said back then that the investigation was expanded and that everyone, not matter the rank at the Ministry or the position they are holding in the country, will be held accountable if proven guilty. This is why some details are still not revealed to the public by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. It’s important that the criminal structure was discovered, and people have been already convicted. The passports are invalid according to an established procedure. We demonstrated a strong response in tackling such corruption-riddled activities. The issue of the migrant crisis is inevitable. It has become a constant in the region, as well as on the Macedonian borders. Smuggling is also becoming a business and part of organized crime. What is your take on this type of crime in the country and in the region, because it is evident that this doesn’t bypass us and our borders as a route? Of course, when it comes to organized crime activities, the strategic position also has a great impact. Macedonia was practically the gateway for the Western Balkan route in the part of the migrant crisis, 2015 was a year in which an enormous number of migrants transited through the territory of North Macedonia. By the end of January 2016, more than 1,100,000 migrants had entered which refers to the seriousness of this crisis that does not only exists in our country, but it is a European and global crisis. Now at this moment I can underline that that the good positioning of the country, the good positioning of the Ministry of Interior together with the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia, the good positioning of the southern border together with the joint actions we carry out with the countries in the region and the European Union, with participation of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia since 2015 to the present, has shown that really that strong capacity to deal with the migrant crisis is yielding results. The number of attempted illegal border crossings have been reduced by 36.5% in 2021, over 90% of the attempted illegal border crossings attempts are on the southern border, although we have attempted migrant crossings from the northern border, who want to transit through the country, to return to Greece and take another route, aimed at reaching their intended destination in one of the Western European countries. What about people who are engaged in smuggling of migrants? Some 17,000 illegal attempts to enter the country have been denied, but there were migrant smuggling groups engaged in smuggling of migrants. In the past few days, we have already had two groups or two actions in which migrant smuggling was detected. In one action, there was a police officer who helped them... Yes, in one of those groups in which several people were arrested, was a police officer who was arrested for whom we have serious suspicions that he has been involved in organization of migrant smuggling. It shows once again that tackling migrant smuggling is absolutely transparent and non-selective. So, this cannot be about actions against certain persons, but against all those involved in such actions, whether they are police officers. Thus, in the past period there were also several tragedies and our memories are still fresh of the fire in Tetovo's modular COVID-19 hospital, and the citizens did not see the authorities take any responsibility. Our last memory is in Bulgaria. The investigation was led by the Bulgarian authorities and of course you are informed about their steps. They announced that the investigation will be completed before Christmas. The issue of responsibility is constantly raised here. Is there lack of responsibility in the Macedonian society and how do you think that could change further in the foreseeable future, however there should responsibility for such accidents, tragedies, for everyone its own area of competence. First and foremost, these are great tragedies that happened to our country, our nation. Tragedies that cause really many negative emotions in every citizen no matter who he is and in what position, etc. and it is important to have responsibility, to have criminal responsibility for everyone no matter of person’s hieratical position, for every crime, and it is not just about such tragedies. However, these are the most sensitive ones. Very sensitive because the number of victims is needed large. The Ministry of Interior undertakes all the activities that were needed in conducting the investigations. The investigations are conducted by the Public Prosecutor's Office and we submit the necessary documents, materials, analyzes, etc. on the basis of all requests. and I expect that responsibility will be taken for both cases, regardless of the fact that the investigation into the bus accident is being conducted in neighboring Bulgaria. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Government of Bulgaria and the investigative bodies who did their best together with the support of my colleagues of the Ministry of Interior of North Macedonia, the Public Prosecutor's Office, etc. to get results in the investigation. I have already announced that that investigation should be extended to the Public Prosecutor's Office in North Macedonia and we are doing it together in order for that system of investigations and of responsibility to be confirmed. When we talk about the responsibility in the country in general, it is an issue on which we need to make the most important reform of all reforms. Any legislative reform, change of laws, bylaws, passing rules, etc. it is nothing compared to the reform of the mind. This is the most important thing for the Macedonian society, how much we will change the mind, how much we will change the behavior. It all depends on that. Responsibilities also depend on it, commitment to work depends on it, the way of managing people depends on it, the behavior of the citizens depends on it. It is all related to the change of consciousness, to the change of thinking and it is not a process that ends from today to tomorrow. And that process is not a process in which North Macedonia has not progressed. When we look back on the years 2000, 1990, you will see how advanced North Macedonia is in that area, however, whether we need to do more, it is very important for the country through the opening of EU accession negotiations to incorporate those values in the society, because the EU accession negotiations will not be an abstract phenomenon, something that will happen to us or we will only find out that they are negotiations. We will find out through the process of building a certain system in the functioning institutions and that is what all citizens want. How the Ministry is tackling corruption within its own ranks? If we want public trust, we have to start from our own ranks and create mechanism to reduce corruption to the minimum, as well as illegal conduct, misuse of powers. Since 2017 we have been conducting a series of reforms processes to eliminate any possibility for misuse. Reform of communication interception, reform of the security sector is the first and most crucial step taken so as to prevent human liberties and rights from being abused. We know what we had to deal with in this regard. Secondly, it was very important to strengthen the integrity of police officers and we did it by strengthening the integrity of the service dealing with internal control and unprofessional standards. Which is why a lot was invested into the department for internal control and professional standards to act in a transparent manner, to open cases to investigate police officers, and to file charges. If you compared with what had happened until 2017, the number of disciplinary measures has been increased multifold. Also, we introduced a new mechanism for external control of police officers. A police ombudsman has been set up as part of the Ombudsman’s Office, a civil council, etc. Is it functioning? The civil council didn’t even function for a while as far as I remember… It didn’t because of certain issues in Parliament regarding the adoption of decisions. It is something other institutions should complete. The Interior Ministry did its part of the job. Furthermore, we worked on fixing the shortcomings pointed out by GRECO involving mainly police officers’ integrity. A special department has been set up as part of the prosecution for organized crime and corruption to investigate exceeding of police powers. All of this demonstrates how many steps and reforms have been implemented to eliminate corruption within our own ranks, to strengthen police integrity, because it is vital everywhere, especially in huge institutions with a lot of employees having important powers. What about the vetting process? Changes to the law are in the works regarding asset declaration by every police officer based on an analysis made with the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption. As part of the vetting process, the Security and Counterintelligence Administration had successfully undergone it, there are other procedures we’re working on together with the OSCE, which doesn’t only include vetting. We’re also working on professionalization of disciplinary procedures, ways to be promoted, etc. They are in the final stages. What about the Interior Ministry’s priorities for next year? Many of the things we had done recently and throughout the year, to improve the working conditions of police officers, buy equipment, renovate police stations, create better working conditions, and also to protect the rights of the citizens, have also aimed at strengthening the capacity and integrity of the Macedonian police. It is also a priority in the future. In 2022, we will keep on focusing on completing reform processes within the Ministry to be in accordance with the standards and European values. Our goal next year, in 2022, is to achieve better results, which in fact was the goal in 2021. Wrapping up 2020 as the year with the best results produced in the past 30 years in the Ministry, it has motivated my colleagues to make results in 2021, too. We will make a summary of this year at the end of the year. We will release details, information and facts about the overall functioning of the Interior Ministry, which should be the motivation for 2022. Regarding the 2022 budget, we made sure there is 5-percent increase in pay for all employees according to the deal we made with the Macedonian Police Trade Union. Financing has been also provided for bonuses for 2021, which are to be paid in 2022. Also, we have to continue to reconstruct and overhaul facilities. It is our priority to fully reconstruct the Training Center after many years. The Administration Department in Skopje will be also fully reconstructed and also a police station in Aerodrom will be built. There is something new about the construction. So far, we’ve been gathering data, documents and the procedure to pick contractors is about to be completed. In 2022 we will definitely have a new building of the police station in Aerodrom, which is necessary not only for the MoI but also for the citizens. Also, the new building of the Forensic Department will be completely finished. It has been delayed for a long time now. No, it hasn’t. It is in line with the deadlines. It is a huge building, a big investments funded by IPA funds, new methods are applied to create conditions to set up a so called national forensics center. Equipment, furniture is being procured as well as everything else needed. Another priority is automated identification of fingerprint and palm print, which is to launch in 2022. Given the wildfires that affected parts of the country, in 2022 financing is provided to modernize and upgrade one of the aircrafts of the Interior Ministry to be operational. These are our plans for 2022 and there will be continuation of the strategic priorities in the fight against crime and corruption, migration, terrorism, cybercrime all the while road safety also being one of the priorities. These strategic priorities have to further motivate all of the employees of the Interior Ministry. Minister, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) elected a new leader. What are your expectations from the new leader and the party? Do you think the SDSM leader should also be the Prime Minister or the two posts should be separated? I’m pleased that the democratic processes we introduced in the party are also beneficial for the democracy in the country and have proven as very adequate. SDSM held its second direct party elections with several candidates vying for the top post and with the members given the opportunity to vote for a leader. The president we elected, Mr. Dimitar Kovachevski, had a program with three key party principles. Unity in the party is first and foremost, followed by state policies based on the principles of Social Democrats and of course, a fair chance for everyone to improve the state in the country with their professionalism. I expect the principles to be effective through the working policies of the president and the new leadership. I expect SDSM to become stronger and more united, which requires a new approach to lead the party. I can say president Zoran Zaev had done a good job running the party, he had also done a lot for the country. Very brave and visionary decisions had been made and it is an honor to have been one of the top officials and associates of president Zoran Zaev. However, I trust the new president Kovachevski, a lot when he’ll be making decision about who will be in the new party bodies and about the priorities. As to whether the same person should be the party leader and prime minister, I believe that yes, it should be the same person. The leader of the party has utmost responsibility when making decisions and the best way to make decisions is to be based on the same values of both the party and the government. It’s no easy task, it’s huge responsibility, but they have to be visionaries. Party leaders are expected to be visionaries, to be brave and make decisions in the best interest of the country and the citizens. Thus, I think that the same persons should serve as both party leader and prime minister. Do you see yourself in the new government holding the same post, minister of interior affairs? Of perhaps, do you have other ambitions if the two posts, prime minister and party leader, are separated? It’s important now to leave the new president to form the party’s leadership, because it is the basis for decision-making. When the process of forming new government is launched, the party bodies should chose a prime minister-designate, the President should give them a mandate before all deadlines are activated. I already said that the principles of the new president are unity of the party, creation of Social Democratic-based policies, and giving everyone the chance to be included in future structures, be it in the party or the government, etc. It is up to the president and the party’s central board to make the final decision about who will join the new government. What I think it is only important to me is how we position ourselves as a party and how we will act as someone in charge of leading the country. I also think it is very important that we respect fully the decisions made and help as much as possible within the party and in the government. We all need to leave personal interests behind, because general, state interests are crucial. https://youtu.be/Xq7MuzJPp04 Cvetanka Minovska Translated by Bisera Altiparmakova and Silvana Kochovska Photos by Frosina Naskovikj Video by Asllan Vishko