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Macedonian Activists Launch Campaign to Boycott Name-Change Referendum – Reports

© AP Photo / Boris GrdanoskiProtestors shout after entering into the parliament building in Skopje, Macedonia, Thursday, April 27, 2017.
Protestors shout after entering into the parliament building in Skopje, Macedonia, Thursday, April 27, 2017. - Sputnik International
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BELGRADE (Sputnik) – Some 30 political parties and movements of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) launched a campaign aimed at boycotting the referendum on the new country’s name, the Makfax news agency reported on Monday.

Head of the United Macedonia party Yanko Bachev, who is one of the organizers of the boycott, said that the campaign was aimed at preventing Macedonians from disappearing "from the global map of nations," the Makfax reported.

An agreement on the new name for Macedonia was signed by Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov and his Greek counterpart Nikos Kotsias on June 17. The deal ended a years-long dispute between the two countries over the use of "Macedonia," which is also the name of a region in Greece.

READ MORE: Macedonian President Calls Deal With Greece on Country's Name Legal 'Suicide'

Macedonian Army honor guard officers change the national flags during a special ceremony in front of the government building in Macedonia's capital Skopje, Friday, Aug. 9, 2013 - Sputnik International
Macedonian PM Vows to Respect People’s Choice at Name-Change Referendum
In late July, the FYROM parliament endorsed the decision to hold a referendum on the country’s new constitutional name — the Republic of Northern Macedonia — on September 30. The decision was supported by 68 out of 120 lawmakers with the opposition members of parliament having abstained from the vote.

The country’s new constitutional name will open the way for Macedonia’s accession to the European Union and NATO.

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