40,000 Macedonians demand government resignation

More than forty-thousand people have demonstrated in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, demanding the resignation of the government and early elections.

Addressing the rally, which was organised by eight opposition parties, the Social Democrat leader, Branko Crvenkovski, accused the government of mismanaging the country's economy.

He said the only way to avoid disaster was to hold new elections.

The opposition says the government's credibility is being eroded by corruption and rising unemployment.

The opposition parties say they intend to continue their protests over the coming weeks. The Social Democrats were in power until elections in 998, which they lost to a coalition of centre-right parties.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service