Macedonia Referendum Campaign Picks Up Pace

Although the campaign for the referendum on Macedonia's 'name' deal with Greece officially kicks off 20 days before the vote on September 30, the battle to sway public opinion has already picked up pace, mainly on social media.

The propaganda campaigns so far have mainly been waged by the Social Democrat-led government which sees the 'name' deal as a historic opportunity for the country to unblock its EU and NATO accession bids, and those who propose a boycott, deeming the agreement with Greece to change the country's name treasonous.

The latest addition to the pro-deal campaign was a promotional video posted on the Twitter and Facebook page of Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, which put forward the message that "Macedonia will become part of united Europe" and ended with the slogan: "It is time for a decision! We are moving forward, into NATO and into the EU."

Со договорот ја минуваме најтешката пречка за членството во ЕУ. Нема веќе блокади - добивме датум за почеток на преговори и покана за членство во НАТО. Македонија ќе биде дел од обединета Европа - засекогаш!

Прочитај го договорот: https://t.co/WVnxX7wASG#МКвоЕУ #МКвоНАТО pic.twitter.com/SuBjIm75OE

— Зоран Заев (@Zoran_Zaev) August 11, 2018

The government on its website has already published the text of the deal with Greece, along with a separate page of 'facts' on the agreement, containing the main bullet points that address many popular fears and misconceptions about it.

One of the bullet points states that "with article 7 of the agreement, Macedonian identity is protected".

The prime minister and other government officials and supporters have been urging people to thoroughly inspect the text of the deal, using the Twitter...