Exposing the Maknews.com administrator's 'historic' photo

I was banned from the maknews.com forums because I started a thread regarding a picture that the maknews.com forum administrator posted. He claimed that the picture was of an "ethnic Macedonian" armed unit that included his great grand father. The administrator, who posts using the pseudonym Maknews, claimed that the armed unit, or 'cheta', was involved in the Ilinden uprising against the Ottoman Turks in 1903. In the thread I challenged the administrator's claim that the picture was of an 'ethnic Macedonian' military unit.

This was the picture that he posted with the allegation that his great grandfather was one of the individuals in the unit:



Knowing that there was no formal 'ethnic Macedonian' army during this period I was highly skeptical of the claim that the band was an 'ethnic Macedonian' unit because several individuals were wearing formal military uniforms. Also the picture looked like it was taken during the WWI era and not during the turn of the 19th century. After researching the subject and the uniforms for several days I found some astounding evidence that could not be ignored. The formal military uniforms worn by the individuals matched those of contemporary Serbian military personel. The resemblance was uncanny.

The administrator of the maknews.com forums has made it a priority to advise some forum members of their 'true ethnic background' hence I thought I would challenge his version of his ancestry to see if he could tolerate the reciprocal treatment. My post had several implications: If he was a 'pure' ethnic Macedonian coming from a lineage of 'ethnic Macedonian' , as he has proudly implied on numerous occasions, why was one of his recent ancestors fighting on the side of the Serbs? Was he a Serb perhaps? Was he a Serbian sympathiser who had no sense of a 'Macedonian' identity as the maknews administrator does? I suppose it was easier to ban me than to face these questions in a public forum!

The following is a copy of my post on maknews that led to my account being suspended and to me being banned from the maknews.com forums.

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There are volumes of texts regarding early 20th century Balkan military uniforms, weapons, and insignia. Lets examine those of the early 20th century Serbian army.

The Serbian army, circa 1900 to WWI, was well known for the head gear worn by all levels of personel rank in addition to the weapons the general infantry carried.

The head gear worn by the general infantry was known as the Sajkaca. The Sajkaca became a powerful symbol in contemporary Serbian culture and was worn by military personel and civilians. Up to this day the Sajkaca is a traditional Serbian hat worn by both young and old.

This is what a typical member of the Serbian infantry looked like during the early 20th century. Notice the distinctive Sajkaca and notice the foot wear.:



Another distinctive trait of the contemporary Serbian Army was their widespread use of Mauser type rifles produced in Germany. The Serbs even modified and designed their own custom Mausers. Their use of the Mauser is described by James M.B Lyon in his journal article "A Peasant Mob: The Serbian Army on the Eve of the Great War" (The Journal of Military History, Vol 61, No 3 (July 1997) pp. 481-502)

Here is an example of a Mauser type rifle:



Contemporary Officer uniforms used by the Serbian Army also had distinctive traits. One of the traits was their head gear which included a mid sized cylindrical cap with a visor.
Here is an example of a Serbian officer in a picture taken during the early 20th century in Belgrade. Notice the distinctive cap with visor:



At the turn of last century the tensions in the Balkans resulted in scuffles and squirmishes that involved both civilian and Military personel to form armed bands. This is an example of a Serbian led band circa early 20th century. Notice the Mauser rifles. Notice the Sajkaca. Notice how the officer is wearing a serbian Cap with Visor just as the officer is wearing above.



The sophisticated reader at this point would have recognized that the last image was posted by none other than Mr. Maknews who advised it was an 'ethnic Macedonian' band that included his great grand father.

Compare the soldier in Mr. Maknews' photo with the Serbian infantryman from above:



Compare the Officer in a formal military uniform in Mr. Maknews' photo with the Serbian officer from above. Notice the cylindrical cap with visor!:



Compare the rifles in Mr. Maknews' photo with the Mauser type rifle that the Serbian army was known to use:



Perhaps Mr. Maknews can explain why these civilians were led by Serbian Army personel. If there was no formal 'ethnic Macedonian' army at the time why are the officers wearing formal uniforms?

Is it not amusing that Mr. Maknews lectures everyone on their 'true identity' when his great grandfather was 'running with the Serbs'? Was he a Serboman?