Ohrid once again stands before something that had been looming over it for years, and nobody wanted to say out loud: a draft decision by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee proposing that the Ohrid Region be inscribed on the World Heritage List in Danger. Not a warning, but a document. And a document that says, in short, that the promises of protection were not kept.

What followed was entirely predictable - a political shouting match in which each side pins the blame on the other, while the lake keeps getting more polluted in the meantime.

The opposition: zero progress

SDSM claims the draft decision is an official confirmation of institutional failure. According to them, over the past period illegal buildings were not removed, the demolition of unlawful platforms along the beaches was halted, disputed detailed urban plans were not suspended, and infrastructure projects are being pushed through without the mandatory environmental impact assessment. They point in particular to the „Gorica 3” site, where, they say, a massive hotel complex is being built in breach of the Management Plan.

The Municipality: you did this

The Municipality of Ohrid rejects the accusations and fires back that it was precisely the policies from the time SDSM was in power that led to the current state. They list measures on the ground - a treatment plant in Trpejca, new sewage infrastructure, limits on carrying through new urban plans - and insist that Ohrid's status is defended with actions, not party press releases. They even throw in a call for a televised debate.

The question nobody is asking

While the two sides trade accusations, the party United Macedonia raises a question that goes beyond the daily bickering: it demands the opening of proceedings to confiscate the disputed hotel complex linked to Saša Mijalkov, which civic organisations have for years claimed was built outside the legal rules. The state, they say, must show that there are no untouchable individuals.

And here is the heart of the whole story. UNESCO doesn't care who was mayor in which year. The Committee sees illegal construction, a usurped shoreline and a polluted lake - and someone has to answer for it, regardless of party colour. The government has asked for a six-year deadline to meet the remarks. The question is whether those six years will be spent working on the ground, or on another six years of trading blame while Ohrid gets stamped „in Danger”.