Back in 2017, migrants were not just a humanitarian issue in North Macedonia. The topic was also turned into a piece of raw political theatre.

At the time, the country was still recuperating from the aftermath of the 2015-2016 European migrant crisis, which saw it become one of the main transit routes into Europe. In this tense atmosphere, the then main opposition party, VMRO DPMNE, seized on rumours and fears to accuse the then Social Democrat-led government of agreeing to secretly settle thousands of migrants from the Middle East on Macedonian soil.

These claims, reported by BIRN at the time, framed a debate that was as much about political power as about migration policy.

VMRO DPMNE collected signatures from the public and demanded the holding of municipal referendums on the matter. The government dismissed the claims as unfounded and irresponsible fear-mongering, saying it would be nonsensical to hold referenda on a non-existent issue.

As of today, no camps or settlements full of Middle Eastern migrants have materialized. Data from 2017 onwards show that while the country has remained part of the so-called Western Balkan migration route, overall illegal migrant flows have fallen drastically since the peak years of 2015 and 2016 and continue to decline.