At the moment when Macedonia is inundated with the daily "Lepa Brena" concerts
and a dozen other musical and theatre groups from the north - at the moment when
only Yugoslavian hit tunes are heard in all clubs and the Macedonian song cannot
be heard anywhere - at a time when the 'State', in the spirit of neutrality, has
merely a 1% custom duty and carries on intricate business only with our northern
neighbour, to which we have already become an obedient country - at a moment
when Macedonia is flooded with printed matter only from a single neighbouring
country and when the whole cadre structure is the one which was loyal to
Yugoslavia - at a moment when changing the flag and constitution is only a
matter of days - at a moment when we await a new law for self-rule which will
initiate the canonisation of Macedonia - at a moment when the Vlach lobby
unmercifully privatises Macedonia's wealth, impoverishing the Macedonian people
who now don't have a voice in their own country, a group of well known
Macedonian intellectuals and politicians, portrayed as fearless and valiant men,
like Gane Todorovski, Krste Bitovski, Kole Mangov, Blazhe Ristovski, Atanas
Vangelov, Vancho Nikoleski, Yovan Pavlovski, Ivan Katarjiev, the editors of
"Nova Makedonia", "Makedonsko Vreme", "Puls" or ministers like Mr Andov, once
more, and for who knows how many times in the past, indicate that in their
judgment the most serious danger for the independence of Macedonia is, as a
foreign enemy, Bulgaria, as a domestic enemy, VMRO-DPMNE.
In connection with these issues I would like to elaborate on two points. First,
the decision of VMRO to continue the traditions of our historical VMRO and
declare our congress as the 10th. Second, Kiro Gligorov's explanation as to the
meaning of national reconciliation, which now becomes quite apparent had little
to do with national reconciliation, but was rather an exercise in defining for
us with who we could or could not have reconciliation.
From the previously named individuals I have read so many lies, misinformation,
historic untruths and political pamphlets that I have to ask myself, is it
conceivable that men in their 40's, 50's or 60's know so little of their own
history? Is it possible that they have not read a single book from the
revivalists of the 19th century or from the national heroes of the Macedonian
revolutionary struggle? While the latter regretably did not write many books,
articles and letters so that there could be no doubt as to what their beliefs
were, we the future generations must now read them with deletions or in a
Macedonistic language as practiced by the likes of Gane Todorovski. I ask the
question - is it possible the Dean of the Philological Faculty, Mr Atanas
Vangelov, has never read Miladinov or Shapkarev and understood what the authors
were saying about our historic roots? As regards knowing their own history, it
becomes self-evident that these intellectuals primarily serve their own career
path, and fall over each other to secure accolades from the authorities. Is it
that difficult to realise that the totalitarian wall surrounding Macedonia could
last several more years?
For VMRO, Bulgaria is one of the four neighbouring countries with which we must
have friendly relations. For the last five years her foreign policy has been
the only correct one towards Macedonia. She did not place any conditions nor
create difficulties in the international arena. Something more - she was the
strongest advocate for recognition of Macedonia, and President Zhelev twice
rejected the proposals of Miloshevich and Mitsotakis to effect the partition of
Macedonia as part of a new Balkan Agreement.
The decade after 1945 is a period of brutal killings without trial, cruel
suffering and torture in the prisons and unparalleled intimidation, as could
only have been devised by Tito's communist State. I am disgusted by the
barbarity and power of the post 1945 oppressors who now relax comfortably in
their villas. Some of them still continue to command at a distance and shout
"We don't want any reconciliation". As regards Mihailov and Alexandrov,
labelled murderers by our historians, I challenge them to produce a verifiable
figure for the number of people killed by the latter two, and not to just rely
on supposition. Our history also lacks other important facts. Until this very
day the total number of victims resulting from the 23 years of Serbian
occupation is unknown, as is the number killed during WWII. However you can
learn exactly how many Macedonians were lost during the Bulgarian and Albanian
occupations, as well as at the Srem Front. It is time we knew how many were
killed by the Macedonian Communist murderers, who went berserk after 1945 with
the support of their Yugoslav friends. Until this is done I am convinced that
the number killed by Mihailov and Alexandrov is at least ten times less than the
people liquidated by comrade Tito and his co-workers, Lazar Kolishevski, Vera
Atseva, Kiro Gligorov.
The Macedonian people in their long history have only twice had free expression
through referendum; in 1991 when we voted for an independent Macedonia and in
1871, when by decree of the Sultan a referendum was held whereby if the
Macedonians achieved a two-thirds majority of votes cast they were entitled to
establish and choose the Bulgarian Exarchate. What shall we do with these
people? Shall we erase them from our history and scream "no reconciliation".
Why are we ashamed to admit, and attempt to evade the fact, that what we deem
as the most positive aspect of the Macedonian revolutionary tradition grew from
the Exarchist part of the Macedonian people! I would not be revealing anything
new if I remind you of the fact that Gotse Delchev, and Dame Gruev, and Pere
Toshev, and Giorche Petrov - must I continue to mention all of them - were
Exarchist teachers in Macedonia, paid by and carrying out its educational
program. I am not revealing any secret if I say that our Ilinden heroes and the
mass of the revolutionary organisation was recruited only from the Exarchist
part of the Macedonian people.
According to historic sources, both the Vrhovists and Centralists ignored any
language question, and simply accepted the beliefs of the Macedonian revivalist
leaders. Thus if we must apportion "guilt" because some of them spoke in
"Bulgarian" or wrote in "Bulgarian", the "guilt" should be undoubtedly assigned
to those figures for who today we make no "comments", but simply recognise them
as the most sacred, outstanding characters of Macedonian history.
And when we examine their works closely, reading them without the deletions and additions, or even just glancing
at their major works, we uncover an important truth,
namely that Parteni Zografsky, Kiril Peichinovich, Teodosig Sinaitsky, the
Miladinov Brothers, Grigor Prlichev, Kuzman Shapkarev, Marko Tsepenkov and many
more, whenever they wrote for their mother tongue or about the revision of this
language, they only declared for a Bulgarian language. And so again we return
to Mihailov and Alexandrov. Why do we "accuse" them of things of which they are
not guilty?
INSTEAD, IS IT NOT "SCANDALOUS" FOR MACEDONIAN HISTORY THAT THE TWO
GREAT AWAKENERS, THE MILADINOV BROTHERS, PROCLAIMED THEMSELVES EVERYWHERE AS
BULGARIANS AND THEIR LANGUAGE AS BULGARIAN?
Gotse Delchev, undoubtedly the greatest and most prominent son of the Macedonian
Liberation struggle, within his plans reasons, as a final solution, the concept
of an autonomous Macedonia. The idea for an independent Macedonian state and
its adherence within the framework of the historic VMRO appears in the time of
Todor Alexandrov and is confirmed by Vancho Mihailov. I'll mention only a few
facts from the life of Gotse: All his education is entrusted to the Bulgarian
Exarchy by his parents. After he completes primary school his father sends him
to the Bulgarian "Salonica Men's Gymnasium" and thereafter he travels to
Bulgaria to become a Bulgarian military officer; discontinuing his studies he
returns to Macedonia as a Bulgarian Exarchist teacher, a role, where amongst
other duties, he teaches the Bulgarian language to his pupils as their mother
tongue. In 1893 or 1894 he joins an organisation called the "Bulgarian-
Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Committee" and in a short time becomes one
of its main leaders. Later he is assigned to act as the foreign VMRO
representative stationed in Sofia, where he regularly attends the Supreme
Committee (Vrhovists) meetings, and together with Giorche Petrov organises Boris
Sarafov's election as its president. Assuredly, if Gotse Delchev was still
alive in 1945 when the Serbo-communists let Macedonia in Yugoslavia, he would
have found himself in "Idrizovo".
The brutal campaign being waged against VMRO-DPMNE, aimed at diverting attention
from the total cultural, then political assimilation by the Serbian side, as
well as the cruel exploitation of the Macedonian people, establishes a new
tragic scenario in our land which compels me to describe so frankly the
Macedonian position, and to elaborate on some truth and lies, with which we
should familiarise ourselves as quickly as possible, if we are to progress.
Otherwise we are destined to sink further into the quicksand, in which we are
already up to our necks. Every vacillation causes us to sink deeper and deeper
into this quagmire.
I'll give you an example. Recently in Sofia, due to an American initiative, the
anniversary was celebrated of the "Carnegie Report's" publication, a document
describing the conduct of the Balkan Wars. Many historians, intellectuals and
politicians from all over the globe participated in this event which was chaired
by the American State department official Zbeignev Bzhezhinsky. The Macedonian
bureaucratic intelligentsia however declared the event a new conspiracy against
Macedonia. But what does this report actually contain? Prepared in 1914 by ten
or so prominent historians and politicians from Europe and America in the
immediate aftermath of the two Balkan Wars it only depicts the evidence
accumulated by the International Commission detailing all the atrocities
committed against the Macedonian people during the Balkan Wars. This is an
important document which we should make available, free of charge, to all
European countries and to every important politician. However the quicksand in
which we continue to sink, causes us to criticise, and even burn this document,
thereby rejecting it and thereby destroying the only internationally
acknowledged document concerning the Balkan Wars and the partition of Macedonia.
Why I ask? Why do we flee from that which we should confront? Just because the
International Commission in its report only speaks of Macedonian-Bulgarians in
Macedonia? It is fortunate that neither the Alexandrovists or Mihailovists were
prominent in 1914, otherwise it is certain we would have accused them of bribing
the International observers.
Finally, as regards national reconciliation, I must once again advance the
position that in Macedonia national reconciliation between the present living
and the past dead is more than essential. National reconciliation within any
country arises from circumstances where there existed prior fighting and
bloodshed between two factions. There is no national reconciliation necessary
in the absence of killing. Importantly we need this if we hope to support the
concept of an independent Macedonia, Macedonian Nation, and Macedonian Church.
This is absolutely what we have to do if we posses the courage to unflinchingly
face some undeniable historic truths without seeking to assign "guilt" to just
two or three historic personalities so that we may manufacture a false ideology.
This is the only way we can escape from the 'dead-end street' in which we
currently find ourselves.