What progress on police reform has occurred in Macedonia since independence? This analysis, published by the Austrian Ministry of Defence, argues that a period of intensive reforms is bringing progress within a longer-term programme of security sector reform (SSR). During the initial decade of independence, SSR seemed to some to represent mere security sector build-up. However, genuine, comprehensive reform has been apparent since 2001.
During the turbulent period after independence and the rise of ethnic tensions, the Macedonian police and army, with their relative autonomy, were closely involved in state-building. Military reform came at a relatively early stage, and with greater consensus, following the country’s decision to join NATO in 1993. Spill-over effects from the crisis in Kosovo led to another shift in focus, blocking substantive reform. Criminal activity, illegal arms shipments and cross-border extremism became the inevitable focus of police and security work.
Surveying the current state of police reform in Macedonia, the following findings emerge:
- The application process for EU membership has helped the wider public overcome certain psychological obstacles regarding reform. What had seemed to be a never-ending process without clear benchmarks is now appreciated as being pragmatic and goal-oriented.
- Integrated border management (IBM) is already being realised through security sector coordination, with police involvement. The government adopted its National Strategy for Integrated Border Management (NSIBM) in October 2003.
- Police reform must be considered in light of the National Security and Defence Concept (NDSC), a broad framework adopted by the government in early 2003. A related law on crisis management has helped to define relations between military and police in the event of an emergency.
- The organisational structure and capacity of the Ministry of the Interior (MoI) has come under scrutiny. The new structure recognises three levels: central, regional and local. The NDSC defines the MoI’s mandate as the implementation of internal security policy.
- Since the 2001 crisis, the politicisation of police reform and the exacerbation of ethnic tensions have eroded consensus about police capacity to work independently and professionally. A new Law on Police, still in the drafting process, is being held up by political, rather than professional, issues.
These considerations, and numerous lesser findings, from this survey of efforts at police reform in Macedonia have yielded a number of initial policy implications:
- Following its own reorganisation, the MoI is tasked with decentralising the police as much as possible, reinforcing its role as a community service. This is a significant internal security priority.
- Decentralisation may be authorised in the new draft law on police.
- The ongoing politicisation of the police, as well as other executive institutions, threatens to undermine existing professionalism and anticipated reforms.
- The EU’s new tool for assisting Macedonia’s SSR process, the Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA), is likely to strengthen and speed up reform efforts.
