Quake jolts Debar

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3 degrees on the Richter scale jolted the western part of Macedonia on Friday morning. According to Seismology Observatory at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, the quake's epicenter was 110 kilometers off Skopje, near Debar. Local residents in Debar and Struga said they felt the tremor.

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138th Anniversary of Goce Delcev's birth observed

The 138th anniversary from the birth Macedonian revolutionary Goce Delcev was marked Thursday with a service held by Macedonian Orthodox Church clergymen at Delcev's grave in church "St.Spas".
Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, accompanied by Minister of Interior Gordana Jankuloska and Economy Minister Fatmir Besimi, laid flowers at Delcev's tomb, along with delegations from the President's Cabinet, Parliament, Defense Ministry, political parties, municipalities, institutions and associations.
Professor Natasa Kotlar delivered an oration on the ideologist of Macedonian revolutionary struggle by the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century.
"Delcev is a revolutionary of the Balkans, organizer, man of ideas, agitator, voivode. He is a representative of the Macedonian national intelligence and avant-garde, whose main task was a moral and political revolution in the concrete time of history", said Kotlar. Flowers will also be laid at Delcev's monument in the City Park, whereas poetry reading dedicated to Delcev will be held in publishing house "Feniks", in the framework of the Festival of Tea and Reading.
The anniversary observance is organized by international event "Goce Days", funded by the culture and defense ministries.
Goce Delcev, a visionary who saw the world as a field for cultural competition among nations a century ago, was born in Kukus in 1872. He was educated at the Thessaloniki high school and the Sofia Military Academy. Delcev worked as teacher in Stip, and as member of the secret Macedonian revolutionary organization was active in the establishment of its network. He was killed by the Turkish army in village Banica on May 4, 1903.

Dutch Ambassador: Macedonia in NATO this year

Dutch ambassador Simone Filipini said that Macedonia would not have to wait long to enter NATO and that this would probably happen already this year. "Everybody in NATO hopes that Macedonia will become a full member already this year," said the ambassador at the lecture Contribution of the Republic of Macedonia to Global Safety and Stability, which was held at Military Academy in Skopje.
Filipini added that NATO was not only a military, but also a civil and political organisation and that the public must be made aware of this fact. She expressed hope that Macedonia would soon solve the name dispute with Greece and that bilateral relations between the two countries would become more stable.

First 500 Pensioners to get Free Spa Treatment

The first group of about 500 pensioners out of the projected 10,000 in 2010 will leave for spa treatment in four centers throughout Macedonia on February 6, said Minister of Labor and Social Policy Xhelal Bajrami after Monday's signing of agreements with spa managers.
The agreements encompass free use of spa services in Debar, Katlanovo, Negorski and Banja Bansko. Pensioners will have three meals a day and regular medical care during the seven-day spa treatment. According to Minister Bajrami, the project will be implemented throughout 2010, thus reaching the number of 10,000 pensioners, with the total cost at approximately Denar 90 million (EUR 1,5 million).
Spa managers expressed their satisfaction from the Government's move, claiming it would help them develop the sector, resulting in better conditions for spa treatment.
The criteria for use of the spa treatment include pension amount, length of pension use, as well as need for assistance from third persons.