Civil activists are not optimistic that North Macedonia and Albania will fulfill UNESCO’s recommendations by February 1 and that they will be implemented in practice, so that the region around Lake Ohrid does not end up on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
This is the deadline that UNESCO gave both countries in July of this year, which is seen as the last chance for both countries.
“So far, the state has not shown a serious intention to make changes in accordance with UNESCO recommendations, especially when it comes to the unplanned and aggressive urbanization of Ohrid. Therefore, I do not believe in such promises, but let’s see what will happen. I think that the state can show an intention for changes tomorrow. We as citizens will feel this. There is no need to wait until February 1. We as citizens do not expect this to happen in two days, but a sincere intention will be recognized immediately,” said Dragana Karoshva – Initiative “Goodbye Bukovë”.
UNESCO is aware that not all problems can be solved in 7 months, but at least steps can be taken to stop problematic urban plans that are contrary to recommendations, says ecologist Konstantin Zdraveski.
“If the institutions remain inert and do not undertake even a little of what has been said, the Ohrid region will certainly be placed on the UNESCO List of World Heritage in Danger, which will have repercussions in the future, while future generations will reproach us for not having undertaken more. UNESCO is not an enemy of economic development, on the contrary, UNESCO is an organization that we voluntarily joined in the 80s and it is our responsibility to follow UNESCO’s rules and principles, just as many other countries do. If we do not want this, then we should say so openly,” said Konstantin Zdraveski – activist.
Activists believe that the first step should be to take urgent measures with “zero” tolerance towards unauthorized construction and to put an end to massive and uncontrolled urbanization in Ohrid and Struga, as well as measures to reduce pollution. /Alsat.mk