Macedonian authorities have launched the process of renaming the country despite a disastrous turnout in the referendum
At an extraordinary meeting, the Government of Macedonia adopted a proposal for constitutional changes to change the name of the country to North Macedonia, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
This was reported by the local publication Balkan Insight.
“The government has proposed four amendments to the Constitution to parliament,” government spokesman Mile Bosnjakovski said.
The first change consists of adding the adjective “Northern” to the name of the country. The second change concerns the preamble of the Constitution with a more detailed rationale for Macedonian statehood. The third and fourth amendments concern Macedonia's relations with neighboring countries and the diaspora.
On Tuesday, the Macedonian Parliament is due to accept the proposal for consideration and draw up a schedule for its passage in the session hall. To adopt constitutional changes, a two-thirds vote of deputies is required. However, the main opposition force VMRO-DPMNE said it would not vote for the changes because they were not accepted by the people.
As reported, the referendum on changing the name of Macedonia was declared invalid due to low voter turnout.
According to official data from the State Election Commission, after processing 100% of the ballots, the turnout for the referendum was 36,91%, while the law requires the participation of more than 50% of voters.
Changing the country's name to North Macedonia was supported by 91,46% of citizens who took part in the vote. However, since the survey still has only advisory status, the country's authorities intend to implement the EU-supported formula in order to open up prospects for membership in NATO and the EU.
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