Skopje, 23 September 2023 (MIA) - President Stevo Pendarovski, in an interview with Voice of America, asked about the amendments to the Criminal Code which reduce the penalties for crimes of abuse of official position, said “Nikola Gruevski will not return to Macedonia with the latest amendments to the Criminal Code.”

“He has not returned, so far, and because of these changes he will not return, that is for sure,” Pendarovski said.

However, Pendarovski cannot guarantee a scenario that Gruevski would be brought to justice in case he returns to the country.

Asked what kind of message he expects from the American side after the State Department's position on the changes in the Criminal Code that corruption can undermine the aspirations of North Macedonia, Pendarovski said that this position of the US government does not come directly after the changes to the Criminal Code, but these were already known positions from European officials. He agreed that the state is not making enough efforts in reducing corruption.

When asked why he allowed the amendments to the Criminal Code, Pendarovski said, "because the content of the amendments itself does not cause corruption."

“The text of the law says that the penalties for serving in prison are minimally reduced, which means they are not abolished and there is no amnesty and second, the bases are extended and the procedure for property confiscation is facilitated,” Pendarovski said in the interview.

He considered that the main problem is in the non-implementation of the laws, their selective application or "attempts to find 'gaps' in the laws".

Photo: MIA archive