Macedonian opposition boycotts parliament over court delay

SKOPJE, Macedonia – Macedonia’s main opposition party, the Social Democrats, say they will not attend parliamentary sessions until a high court rules on the constitutionality of legislation allowing an investigation into a wiretapping scandal.

The law was approved last year with support from the governing conservatives and the opposition. It creates a special prosecutor’s office to investigate the scandal, which sparked a deep political crisis.

The office was formed last September, but a member of the public challenged the law before the constitutional court eight months ago.

Opposition leader Zoran Zaev said Thursday it is “unacceptable” for the court to take so long to rule on the matter.

The political crisis stemmed from opposition allegations that the conservatives illegally wire-tapped 20,000 people, including police, judges, journalists and foreign diplomats.