I couldn’t believe the images of violence and chaos in Washington I was seeing. Much like, on April 27, 2017, I couldn’t believe this was happening in our highest legislative house, Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska wrote in a social media post on Thursday.

“We have seen how democracy can be seriously threatened when political power is in the hands of people who value their positions more than their country and who incite division, hatred, and violence just so they could hang onto power,” Minister Sekerinska posted on Facebook.

When this happened in our country, according to her, it was a shock. When it happens “in an old democracy after hundreds of peaceful transitions of power, it’s a warning.”

Enemies of democracy incite hatred based on lies and manipulation, Sekerinska explained, saying they should not be underestimated. “This is a lesson for the entire world,” she added.

Drawing a parallel between the US Capitol storming on Wednesday and the Macedonian Parliament storming of April 27, 2017, Sekerinska said the US police never allowed any Congress member to be attacked or injured and that the majority of Republicans in the US clearly opposed the violence.

“Vice President Pence, despite the enormous pressure by Trump, remained firm and a few hours later ensured the transition of power. He did not flee, he did not delay, he did not ask for ridiculous ‘guarantees.’ He upheld the will of the people.

“And not only that,” Sekerinska highlighted. “Despite his loyalty to his party and Trump, he clearly said at the end, ‘To those who wreaked havoc in our Capitol today, you did not win. Violence never wins, freedom wins and this is still the people’s house. And as we reconvene in this chamber, the world will again witness the resilience and strength of our democracy.’”

American democracy survived, she said, just like Macedonian democracy survived almost four years ago.

“We should be proud we survived and recovered from the trauma,” she added.

“Some people, however, should still be ashamed for turning a blind eye even to such violence and for not having the decency to condemn it or distance themselves from it to this very day.”

“America has just reminded us of this,” Sekerinska said.