United Macedonia Diaspora

[George S.]

In regards ton lube Boskovski there is a website & there is a wollongong group meets & collects $$$$ for BratLube.Does anyone wishes to tell them that he is a Traitor go right ahead.

[Prolet]

Risto, I fully agree with the Macedonian Cause

UMD, You guys should decide and you do need people to communicate with the people as this is a must. Im not sure if Rogi can speak on behalf of UMD however it would be better if people from UMD speak on behalf of the UMD as you can clearly see people have alot of questions to ask.

[UMDiaspora.org]

How about an ask-UMD conference call? How does that sound?

[Prolet]

UMD, Spolaj Ti

It is a good start, however i was thinking more about basic communication via this forum or the Maknews forum. I know you guys are under pressure and thats normal when you are in that position however communication is the key here, i dont mean that you should disclose any personal or private information just communicating in General.

[UMDiaspora.org]

Prolet, quite understandable. UMD has no problem communicating, however, we have operations on four continents to maintain. We only have one full-time person, and two interns, in addition to several volunteers, Board Members, etc...In addition, we are organizing a major delegation visit to several countries in Europe in the future, and to Australia. Furthermore, UMD is organizing a major conference in Toronto on June 3-5, 2010. You can imagine what is on our plate. The top priority right now is ensuring Macedonia keeps its name, you can imagine how much stress all of us are facing. UMD has held countless meetings in the last several weeks alone on this issue. This is why UMD has been pushing for more support from the wider Macedonian community-at-large.

Running UMD is like running a multi-national corporation. UMD is not a one-man show, or a bunch of friends just getting together over coffee monthly to discuss topics of interest. Not to offend anyone, as UMD started with 7 or 8 people who met at a Starbucks in Washington, D.C. UMD has grown drastically since then, and we need to be professional, patient, persistent, and diplomatic. UMD does not want to get into a "Paul" situation, where someone misunderstands UMD's mission, vision, and policies. That is why our Board member Boban Jovanovski responded the way he did to Mr. Milanko's question, which is exactly what UMD stands for. There are no misconceptions, no between the lines, nothing. Straight forward answers.

UMD will try its best to get back to questions from individuals, organizations, etc...and completely understands engaging in dialogue. We appreciate everyone's comments, suggestions, concerns, and views, and will take all of this into consideration. UMD volunteers monitor all Macedonian forums and list serves, both in the Diaspora and in Macedonia. Actually almost all of the UMD Co-Founders met through Maknews Forum, MOYANA, and RealityMacedonia Digest (the good old days when it existed).

Thank you.

If you have any questions, please e-mail info@umdiaspora.org

[Prolet]

UMD, Was that so hard to answer? I will always support any organization that is fighting for our cause and is fighting for my human rights in general. However communication is the key here and people need to be informed you need people from the UMD to communicate with the people and as you clearly pointed out many of the people even met via Forums and various websites.

In order to gain the trust of the people you need to be with them at all times, i know its hard and its not easy for anybody but stressing about something that you cannot change is pointless. You need to work on the battles that you know you can win and there are many of these important battles where we know we can win. Its not just about writing email, to me an email is much more formal a simple Private Message is good enough if its something that shouldnt be viewed by people who do not agree to our cause.

You have to understand that we are a small bunch of people and that we need to stick together through thick and thin. You dont go head first against a strong Greek Lobby, we need to work around them and look for ways where we can beat them.

[Buktop]

UMD, why was MOYANA disbanded, or was it merely absorbed into the UMD?

I was a participant in MOYANA at Sts Kiril i Metodij in Cedar Grove, NJ and I was a little disappointed when I found out it didn't exist anymore

[Prolet]

Buktop, Good to have you on board brat!!

What more do you know about Moyana??

[Pelister]

Originally Posted by Risto the Great

I received the following response today:

I am disappointed I missed Mr Koloski's call. Naturally, I hope we may meet next year.

I feel I did have specific questions that related to exactly where the UMD differs in ideology from the Macedonian Cause as defined on this forum. But it was not addressed.

I note from the highlighted text above that the UMD is willing to advance various Macedonian's causes. But am not sure what I can take from such a statement given the lack of enthusiasm to assist with the definition.

There are Macedonians who left UMD because UMD at that time wanted a name change.

There is a bigger picture here and alot of "smoke and mirrors" by UMD as it tries to meneauvre itself.

I think the glaring contradictions in their statements should serve as a warning to all of us.

[Buktop]

Originally Posted by Prolet

Buktop, Good to have you on board brat!!

What more do you know about Moyana??

Good to be here Prolet.

It's the Macedonian Orthodox Youth Association of North America, I was a member about 5-6 years ago, at the Sts Kiril i Metodij division in New Jersey, Meto organized it of course.

It ended abruptly and I never received notification of it's disbanding, I assume it was due to Meto's role in UMD, but I think it was a good initiative and I think UMD should pursue a similar option to engage the youth, if not resurrect MOYANA under the umbrella of UMD.