“The Macedonian population was subjected to massive violence, looting and persecution, while the organized settlement of Albanians and the Albanianization of the occupied lands, the organization of Albanians and the Albanianization were implemented.”
This is only part of the text in the history book for the eighth grade taught by primary school students in North Macedonia. The teachers say that the history books are full of distortions and untruths about Albanians.
“They are offended, but I don’t explain to the students those parts that are offensive. They are newcomers, they are not autochthonous”, says Jenuz Ibrahimi, a teacher at the “Abdyl Frashëri” school.
Even the school director has received information that there are distortions of historical facts in some books.
“I have information from the relevant teachers that there are exceptional omissions and errors. There are also topics that should not be included in the text”, says Ajdin Saliu, the director of the “Abdyl Frashëri” school.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Minister of Education, Lulzim Aliu, says that he trusts the professionalism of the authors of the book.
“I believe in the professionalism of these commissions because they are professors who know the field. Most are reluctant to sit down and prepare a text such that they collect the lectures and lessons they give and draft a text. They find the easiest way is for someone to do the work and they sit on the sidelines to complain or accuse,” he says.
Even history professor Naser Miftari, who teaches at Zef Lush Marsku High School, says that there are distortions.
“When we take the textbooks starting from the oldest historical period, we see distortions there. Until the most recent history where some moments are really false, completely distorted, completely false”, says Miftari.
The Minister of Education informs that she has withdrawn a book that has elements of ethnic discrimination. Meanwhile, for years, academics and professors have been reacting to the distortions in books, especially in history and geography books.
