In a shocking display of ultra-nationalism, demonstrators from diaspora communities of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia burned piles of Greek flags during a demonstration in Melbourne on Sunday.
Thousands turned out for the rally outside Victoria’s State Parliament building, carrying bright red banners and flags and chanting messages that their name and heritage were not up for negotiation.
In a shocking and ugly display of ultra-nationalism and hatred, a pile of Greek flags were burned. A photo of a young boy looking on has gone viral.
“Hatred is taught at an early age,” Maria Stathopoulou commented on Facebook as she shared the photo.
But Greeks retaliated in the days after the ugly display perpetrated by the FYROM demonstrators, vandalizing a church that is part of the self-styled “Macedonian Orthodox” community with the words “Fuck Skopje” and “Ellas Macedonia” written in Greek.
A youth soccer club was also vandalized with the words “death to you all” and other graffiti.
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