History of Kumanovo

Modern history

It developed economically in the late 19th century (agriculture, handcrafts and trade). Still, industrial development occurred only at the end of the Second World War. The rapid economic, administrative and cultural expansion of Kumanovo began in 1945. Today, it is a modern city with approximately 100,000 inhabitants. It was also the site of the June 9, 1999 Agreement signed between FR Yugoslav Generals and the NATO Generals about bringing in a NATO peacekeeping contingent in Kosovo called, the Kosovo Force, or KFOR.

2001 Albanian Insurgency and Inter-community relations

The Albanin insurgency in Macedonia first started in the mountains outskirts of Tetovo and then spread in May 2001 to the region of Kumanovo mostly to the north. The armed conflict in Kumanovo mainly resulted with a divide of the educational system according to the language of the studies. All the students following classes in Albanian left the schools and demanded new schools to be opened for them. Following this process there is a visible separation in the town affecting the inter-community relations The Law on Local Self-Government, Article 44 (Sl.besnik br.5/2002), envisages the establishment of the Commission for Inter-community Relations (CICR). CICR is a consultative body in the Council of the Municipality of Kumanovo and is formed by 12 representatives from the following ethnic groups: Macedonian, Albanian, Roma, Serbian, Turkish and Vlach. Commission for