The United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD) has said it strongly condemns the actions of Vasilis Giannakis, the Mayor of Florina, Greece, and local municipal authorities who intervened on December 22, 2025, to halt a public musical performance solely because it was sung in the Macedonian language.
“During a holiday celebration in Florina (Lerin), the invited band Banda Entopica began performing the traditional song Eleno Kerko with Macedonian lyrics. Shortly after the song began, representatives of the local authorities ordered the performance to stop, reportedly on the grounds that the lyrics were in a ‘forbidden language’. Despite objections from attendees present at the event, the performance was curtailed”, it says.
SYRIZA and Greek MP Peti Perka, too, have criticized the Mayor.