The Minister of Digital Transformation, Stefan Andonovski, today led the government delegation to the celebration of 2 August– Ilinden in Smilevo, Demir Hisar.
The government delegation included the Deputy Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning, Ane Lashkoska, and the Deputy Minister of Public Administration, Laze Jakimoski. The delegation laid fresh flowers in front of the memorials at several locations in Smilevo, paying tribute to the Ilinden heroes and to all generations who fought for a free, independent, and dignified Macedonia.
In his address, Andonovski emphasized that Ilinden is not just a date that belongs to the past, but a value system and a lasting obligation for every Macedonian generation.
“There are dates that we remember and there are dates that shape us as a people. Ilinden is exactly such a day. Not because it belongs only to the past, but because each generation rediscovers its meaning. Ilinden is a value system: defiance, freedom and future,” Andonovski urged.
He emphasized that it is no coincidence that it is in Smilevo that we return to Ilinden every year, because here history is not only written in books, but is embedded in the place, in the people and in the memory that is passed down from generation to generation.
“History is not created solely by victories. It is also created by people who had the courage to stand up when it was most difficult. The Ilinden Uprising did not immediately bring freedom. But it succeeded in achieving something far greater – to forge a nation that would never again reconcile with oppression," highlighted the minister.
Referring to the historical continuity of the Macedonian struggle, Andonovski pointed out that after the Ilinden uprising, new generations emerged, followed by ASNOM and an independent Macedonia, each carrying the same hope and the same flame – for Macedonia to be free, stronger, and more dignified than it had been found.
"That is why Ilinden is not just a memory. It is a milestone by which we measure how we behave when times get tough. And that is precisely why we are here today. Let us respectfully recall 1903 and, more importantly, let us deeply bow to the people who showed what disobedience means.
The Ilinden fighters did not leave us a free state, but they left us a direction towards it. They did not leave us a ready-made future. They left us an obligation to create it. That is the essential difference. History is not something that is inherited, but something that each generation deserves again," said Andonovski.
According to him, the challenges of today's generation are different. They are not led by mountains, but by classrooms, laboratories, institutions and companies, as in any attempt to build a country in which young people will want to stay, trust will be earned, and labor will be worth more than privilege.
"Today, here in Smilevo, not only one generation bows before another. One generation takes on an obligation before the next, to preserve Macedonia, to develop it and to make it stronger than it inherited. That is the greatest respect we can pay to the Ilinden people. Not only to remember them, but to be worthy of them," said Andonovski.
At the end of his address, the minister emphasized that the motto of this year's commemoration is not only a message about the past, but also an obligation to the present.
"Defiance – to not give up. Freedom – to cherish it. Future – to build it. May Ilinden be eternal. May our defiance be everlasting. May our freedom endure forever. And may the future we build together be worthy. May Macedonia be eternal," concluded Andonovski.
