Carriers Await EU Decision by September 1, Protests Depend on Brussels Meeting

Western Balkan carriers will wait until September 1 for the European Union’s position on the problem they are facing. If the decision is not acceptable, they warn that they will stage protests and block border crossings.

This position emerged from today’s working group meeting, attended by representatives of the transport sector from Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Biljana Muratovska of MAKAM TRANS said that following the protest held in January, the European Union had promised to supplement its visa strategy, but according to her, that commitment is not being honored.

“And this is the strangest thing: they acknowledge that we are professionals, that we are not migrants, that we are not criminals, yet they continue to count our days. This is discrimination, because all the documents signed bilaterally with the European Union state that there should be free movement of labor and free movement of goods, while we face obstacles,” Biljana Muratovska of MAKAM TRANS stressed.

Serbia’s representative, Nexho Mandiq, said that time spent in Schengen Area countries should be calculated in hours rather than days. As stated, a stay of just 5 minutes cannot be recorded as a full day.

Mandiq added that some carriers are already avoiding trips and border crossings because they fear they could be deported or fined, Zhurnal.mk reports.