Macedonia peace talks protest

The marchers came from the scene of some of the heaviest fighting

SKOPJE, Macedonia -- Hundreds of angry Macedonians have marched through Macedonia's capital to protest against concessions expected to be given to ethnic Albanians in peace talks.

Demonstrators marched past local NATO, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and European Union offices chanting, "This is Macedonia," "Macedonia for Macedonians," "No changes to our constitution," and "We want our homes back."

Peace talks continued on Monday for an eighth straight day between the feuding parties representing majority Macedonians and ethnic Albanians who are pressing for broader rights and more political influence in the former Yugoslav republic.

Protest organiser Tomislav Stojanovski told The Associated Press the demonstrators were demanding meetings with U.S. envoy James Pardew and his EU counterpart, Francois Leotard, who helped draft the peace plan.

"We want to tell the people who dictate terms of peace that we need protection from those who started the war," Stojanovski said.

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Macedonia's crisis began when ethnic Albanian extremists began a rebellion in February, saying they were fighting for broader rights. Dozens have died in the clashes and diplomats have warned that the situation could still deteriorate into civil war.

The protests come a day after a senior representative of the large ethnic Albanian minority, Menduh Thaci, said Macedonia was close to a peace deal.

"We have resolved many issues and we are on a good path to finish the job," he said.

The peace deal would sanction the use of Albanian as an official language and provide for state-funded higher education in Albanian, AP reported.

It would introduce quotas for proportional representation in the army, courts and other bodies and give ethnic Albanians a degree of self-rule by granting local governments broader authority.

Earlier this month, NATO and the EU mediated a cease-fire, and Pardew and Leotard began talks with Macedonian politicians to try to forge a peace agreement.

Ethnic Albanians make up between one quarter and one-third of the population in the Balkan nation of two million.

Monday's protesters came mostly from the northwestern city of Tetovo, where ethnic Albanians form a local majority and support the rebels who still control a string of villages near Macedonia's second-largest city, AP reported.

Ethnic Albanian rebels who have been battling government troops for months are not involved in the talks. But if their political leaders back a deal, it could lead to the next critical step, rebels agreeing to disarm under supervision of some 3,000 NATO peacekeepers.