What happened: Supporters of FC Shkupi-1927, assaulted players of FC Vardar (youth). The incident
occurred after the football game when the supports jumped over the safety fence and assaulted the
players while they were leaving the stadium.
Date, time and location of the incident: April 15th, 18:00 hrs, Chair Stadium, Skopje.
Source of information: The electronic media Makfax.
Victim(s) involved: Unknown number of players of FC Vardar (youth).
Type of the crime(s): Violence (Art.386 CCRM).
Perpetrator(s): Unknown number of supporters of FC Shkupi.
Brief description of incident with bias indicators: In this incident that occurred during a sports
match, the bias motive is the ethnic origin, citizenship or language, and the bias indicators are:
1. Difference in ethnic background – the supporters of FC Shkupi are Albanians, while the players of FC
Vardar are predominately Macedonians;
2. Timing – the incident occurred after a football match between clubs with supporters / fans from
different ethnic background, after a change in minority presence in the area (Albanian supporters in
neighbourhood populated predominately by Macedonians;
3. Nature of violence – the incident was carried out in public;
4. Lack of other motives.
Status of the case: Misdemeanor charges submitted.
Response of local authorities: Answering upon a Request for information of public character, the
Ministry of Interior Affairs (MOI) answered that they have submitted misdemeanour charges against
two suspects, and against the legal entity responsible for safety during the game.
Impact on the victim(s) and the community: This incident puts into question the ethnic coexistence
between the two major communities in the country and the safety of people present at sports
matches.
