While ethnic Macedonian public sector employees who don’t speak Albanian are looking into the prospect of facing demotion or even financial fines for not using the Albanian language, Deputy Prime Minister Bujar Osmani will not face any penalty for refusing to use the Macedonian language during a recent press conference.

Osmani addressed the Albanian press in his native language, prompting a comical scene when Government Secretary General Dragi Raskovski was left stumped when asked by the press if he understands what is going on at the joint press conference.

Today, Government spokesman Mile Bosnjakovski informed that Osmani will not face a fine for not using the Macedonian language when asked to.

The Government doesn’t operate on the principle of fines, we work in the spirit of cooperation, friendship and understanding, said Bosnjakovski.

And yet the law on the use of the Albanian language specifically provides fines for public sector employees who fail to use the Albanian language when asked to do so. Osmani himself promoted the law and the fines clause which can amount to five average salaries for the employee and up to 5.000 EUR for the public institution which doesn’t use the Albanian language. Contrary to the Constitution, the law is being applied on the entire territory of Macedonia, including municipalities with little to no ethnic Albanians, where Macedonian employees have never had reason to learn Albanian.