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Are Macedonians Bulgarian or are Bulgarians Macedonian?
by Risto Stefov
April 2005
[email protected]
The notion of superiority only breeds ignorance and a lack of compassion. During the early 19th century the word Bulgar was synonymous with the uneducated peasant. Ironically, today some Bulgarians call educated people from Macedonia, Bulgarian and those who are uneducated they call Macedonian.
It seems that the Bulgarian State, like the Greek State, is abusing history to score political points to the detriment of the Macedonian people.
While the rest of the world is moving forward loosening its grip on minority rights, Greece and Bulgaria are tightening theirs. Like the Greeks, the Bulgarians claim that "there are no Macedonians and that those claiming to be Macedonian are actually Bulgarian".
Not only is this false but according to history the opposite is true.
According to history the first Bulgars, a Turkish Tartar tribe driven out of its homeland in Asia, arrived and settled in the region north of the Danube River.
The Bulgars were a pagan people whom the Khazars, another barbarian tribe, had forced down toward the Danube delta in the latter part of the 7th century AD.
Organized under the leadership of Khan Asparuch, the Bulgars for the first time successfully crossed the Danube River in 670 AD and invaded Pravoslav (Byzantine) territory.
The Bulgar tribe, consisting of no more than 250,000 oriental nomads, conquered the lands immediately south of the Danube River and settled there among the indigenous Slavic population.
In the following year, Constantine IV, the Pravoslav Emperor, agreed to a Bulgar treaty. By virtue of this treaty the Bulgars were recognized as an independent kingdom, occupying lands south of the Danube into the Thracian plain. Soon afterwards the Bulgars established their capital at Pliska.
Initially the Bulgars spoke an Asiatic language but as a consequence of living among a Slav majority they were obliged to learn the Slav language.
Today's Bulgarians speak a Slavic language as a consequence of being assimilated by the indigenous Slavic speaking population that lived south of the Danube. "The Bulgarians had adopted Slavic language and culture. It is paradoxical that the Bulgarians, a Turkic people who adopted Slavic language and customs, took a significant role in standardizing Slavic writing." (Page 197, John Shea, Macedonia and Greece The Struggle to Define a New Balkan Nation, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 1997)
The reason the Bulgars adopted the Slavic language was due to the overwhelming numerical superiority of the Slavs, most of them being Macedonians from ancient and Roman times. The true Bulgars and their Turko-Tartar rulers were only a small minority in comparison.
By the late 8th century AD, the great majority of the Turko-Tartar invaders were assimilated amongst the vast indigenous Slav population. The Khans had disappeared and were replaced by Slav speaking rulers with Slavic names.
There are no historical accounts of the Bulgars ever conquering and occupying the entire territory of Macedonia or having killed off or displaced the indigenous Macedonian population.
There are two historical arguments which modern Bulgarians make to lay claims on Macedonian territory and on the Macedonian people;
1. The Bulgarians had a kingdom of which Macedonia was part, and
2. Macedonians speak a dialect of the Bulgarian language.
It is true, as mentioned earlier, there was a Bulgar kingdom but it never at any time extended far south to occupy all of Macedonia.
It is also true that there was a period of time during which the Romans and the Pravoslavs occupied and held geographical Macedonia, as did the Ottomans for over five hundred years. Does that make Macedonia Roman, Pravoslav, Ottoman and Bulgarian?
Additionally, the Goths, Huns, Avars, etc. also overran and held parts of Macedonia for a number of years. Should their ancestors too be making claims on Macedonia?
There are, however, stronger historical arguments which would allow Macedonians to make claims on Bulgarian territory, language and people;
1. The region called Pirin Macedonia which Bulgaria occupied in 1912 and is holding to this day belongs to Macedonia.
2. The region south of the Danube River where Bulgaria is today once belonged to Macedonia and was ruled by Macedonian kings including Philip II and Alexander III.
3. During the Roman conquests many Macedonians fled Macedonia with their families and settled in the region of present day Bulgaria.
4. As mentioned earlier, Macedonians spoke the Slavic language before the Bulgars. The Bulgars learned their oral language from the Slavs.
5. Also as mentioned earlier, the Bulgarians received the written form of their language from the Macedonians.
[Was it not the Macedonians brothers Kiril and Metodi from Solun, (whom the Greeks claim to be Greek and the Bulgarians claim to be Bulgarian), who gave the Bulgars the Macedonian alphabet and taught them how to read and write?]
On the question of territory;
Only the Macedonians have a legitimate claim on Pirin Macedonia since that region was always part of geographical Macedonia and historically Macedonians occupied it and still occupy it to this day.
On the question of language;
Macedonians spoke the Slavic language centuries before the arrival of the Bulgars and if anything, it is the Bulgarians who speak a dialect of the Macedonian language.
On the question of nationality;
If the modern Bulgarians were the true ancestors of the Khans, then they would bear Asiatic features like slanted eyes and wide cheekbones. Undoubtedly they would also speak an Asiatic language and would exhibit Asiatic customs and mannerisms.
Unfortunately very little or none of those features are present in modern Bulgarians. In fact, modern Bulgarians share more characteristics with the Macedonians than they do with the original Asiatic Turko-Tartar predecessors from whom they claim their ancestry.
This should not be a surprise since the vast majority of the Bulgarian population is not at all related to the original Bulgars.
How then can the Macedonians be Bulgarians since the vast majority of Bulgarians themselves are not true descendants of the original Bulgars?
Could it be that modern Bulgarians are more Macedonian than they care to admit? (more on this later)
The real Bulgarian issues with Macedonia and the Macedonian people unfortunately have little to do with race relations and more to do with politics and the Bulgarian obsession with possessing Macedonia.
There are many Bulgarians who to this day are obsessed with the San Stefano myth of a Greater Bulgaria.
"The Bulgarians want 'greatness' and that comes with a large country as opposed to having a complex or feeling 'less worth', which is typical of a small country. They are obsessed with history and delusions. Their national ideology is projected to the maximum when all of Macedonia as a territory, culture and history is included. The acknowledgment of the Macedonian identity will without a doubt bring psychological cataclysms to Bulgaria. Look at the fanatic fight they wage against us based on ideological and psychological factors, none of which are practical today. Today the politics for taking over Macedonia and creating a 'Greater Bulgaria' are invalid. The unification of Europe has made such aspirations an absurdity. However, emotion in Bulgaria is still stronger than reason.
Acknowledging that a Macedonian nation, language and such exist is the same as Bulgaria acknowledging that a large part of their own ideology is a lie. We have Macedonians living here who, as Bulgarians, have earned great privileges and high status in the government and private sector. Their influence is huge and our existence threatens them and alleges that they are our expatriates, Macedonians, not true Bulgarians. That affects not only their peace of mind but also to some degree their attained status. Even if we don't have any intentions or allegations with respect to the rights of every man, they still can not come to grips with our national divide. This is a problem not only for ordinary people but also for politicians of Macedonian decent.
The belief that Macedonians are Bulgarians has become dogmatic and anything else would be interpreted as slanderous. Without any doubt politicians do know that Macedonians exist in Bulgaria. However if they admit to it publicly they will be labeled traitors and will bid their political or social status goodbye, so they choose to be silent and take the easy way out. As a result, all political entities have become slaves to the lies of their predecessors. Others, with a bit more conscience, earn easy points by acting patriotic towards the Macedonians. In any event the Bulgarian political hierarchy is unable to free itself from the jaws of their own delusion. They need help from the outside. In that respect we find ourselves to be the only realists and true patriots in this country because we are not only fighting for ourselves but also to free them from their terrible tyranny and political catastrophes.
When one can't look the truth in the eye, the only option left is to negate it. Bulgarians negate the existence of Macedonians because they fear the truth will bring them unexpected results. Bulgaria needs to face the truth and acknowledge that we exist. Bulgaria will have to change its laws and live up to its obligations with regard to international documents it has signed in upholding human rights." (Page 8 and 9 interview with Stojko Stojkov, OMO Pirin Political Party, Canadian Macedonian News, December 2004) Stojko Stojkov is a Bulgarian citizen of Macedonian descent, born and raised in Bulgaria. He is currently co-president of the five member executive OMO Pirin Political party inside Bulgaria.
Ever since 1878 and the San Stefano myth of a Greater Bulgaria, the Bulgarian State has been obsessed with possessing Macedonia at any cost.
Over the last century Bulgaria has done everything in its power to possess Macedonia.
During the late 19th and early 20th century it established the Exarchist Church inside Macedonia in an attempt to turn Macedonians into Bulgarians.
During the 1903 Macedonian uprising against the Ottomans it interfered in Macedonia's internal affairs in an attempt to turn the tide in its favour.
During the first Balkan war in 1912 it invaded Macedonia under the guise of liberation and along with its allies, occupied it. In 1913 it started the second Balkan war in an attempt to gain more of Macedonia's territory.
During the Great War (WWI) it joined the Central powers (Austria-Hungary and Germany) because they offered Bulgaria a larger portion of Macedonia than the Central powers (France, Britain and Russia).
During the Second World War (WWII) it joined the Axis powers (Germany, Italy and Japan) again because they offered Bulgaria a larger piece of the Macedonian pie than did the Allies (USA, Britain, China, the Soviet Union, etc.).
To quote the Bulgarian War Minister General Nikolaev, "We care little about the British, Germans, French, Russians, Italians, Austrians or Hungarians; our only thought is Macedonia. Whichever of the two groups of Powers will enable us to conquer it will have our alliance!" (Page 154, Radin, IMRO and the Macedonian Question)
To this day the Bulgarian State refuses to recognize the Macedonian language and nationality and punishes those who feel Macedonian. Bulgaria refuses to accept the reality that Macedonia is not Bulgarian.
Since the cold war Bulgaria has implemented a number of policies to entice Macedonians to declare themselves Bulgarian. Among the enticements included are free or inexpensive university education for students of Macedonian origin and Bulgarian citizenships for Macedonians. These perks, however, are not without strings attached. To qualify, Macedonians are required to sign papers declaring themselves Bulgarian.
Those Macedonian students who accept the Bulgarian offer do not do it because they want to be Bulgarians, they do it because they want to get an education. Students who want a university education and can't afford it or do not have the qualifications to attend university at home will jump at the chance to better themselves. What most don't realize, however, is that Bulgaria does not do this for nothing and eventually they will have to pay back, sometimes in undesirable ways.
More recently Bulgaria is offering Macedonians from the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgarian citizenship. Those too come with a price. To qualify Macedonians must declare themselves Bulgarians. Again, Macedonians do this NOT because they want to be Bulgarians but as a means of obtaining a European Union passport so that they can shop and vacation in European Union countries
I don't blame the innocent people for desiring to better themselves but I do blame the Bulgarian State for its deviousness and underhandedness.
Here is an instance where a devout Macedonian turned into a Bulgarian agent (with Bulgarian help no doubt);
"At the end of January of this year, on the weekly show "Every Sunday", "Vcjaka Nedelja" - which airs every Sunday at 5:30pm on Bulgarian National Television - the topic of debate was whether or not the Macedonian language should be used in schools and on TV within the Republic of Bulgaria.
Though it was obvious that the underlying arguments put forth by the show's host, Kevork Kevorkian, promoted the usual Bulgarian nationalist hard-line: that Macedonians do not exist and that their language is a dialect of Bulgarian, the show was particularly bad in this instance because of its inability to present the other side of the argument, namely to allow members of the sizable Macedonian minority in Bulgaria as well as Macedonian activists in Bulgaria to voice their opinion.
Instead, the program showcased a fervent, anti-Macedonian, Greek nationalist named Christopher Tzavela, who ranted about how Macedonians do not exist and how their language should never be allowed on television and in schools."
(Taken from the March 13th, 2005 Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada Press Release entitled "MHRMC Condemns Defamation of Ethnic Macedonians on Bulgarian National Television").
Who is Christopher Tzavela and why is he taking a hard stand against the Macedonian people?
Christopher Tzavela is a Macedonian from Rula, Lerinsko (Lerin Region). I know of Mr. Tzavela from his work as a volunteer in the United Macedonian Organization of Canada. For several years during the late 1950's and early 1960's he was part of the United Macedonian Executive Committee in charge of public relations. I also know that he was involved in publishing the United Macedonian "Macedonian Life" magazine.
Mr. Tzavela was also involved in the planning stages of building St. Clement of Ohrid, the first Macedonian Orthodox Church in Canada.
In fact, as I recall, Mr. Tzavela was such a devout Macedonian activist that he was invited to be a special guest in the 1963 Canadian delegation to Skopje.
When the delegation completed its tour, Mr. Tzavela remained behind to further his education at the University of Skopje.
After the earthquake he returned to Canada and then left for Bulgaria permanently.
Since then, I am told, he became an historian, writer, ethnographer and TV producer.
Now I have learned that Mr. Tzavela has become an "anti-Macedonian Greek nationalist".
It is unclear, at least to me, why Mr. Tzavela left the Republic of Macedonia. Some say he became disgruntled with the authorities when they did not offer him a ministerial position in the Macedonian Government, but only he knows the truth.
Why did a devoted Macedonian activist turn into a Bulgarian propagandist? Was it the lure of Bulgarian enticement? We will never know for sure.
The Macedonian minority in Bulgaria
In my estimation, Bulgaria has the largest Macedonian minority in the world. It is estimated that approximately two million Macedonians live in Bulgaria today.
Many Macedonians have made Bulgaria their home since the Ottoman days.
Macedonians left by the thousands during and after the 1903 Ilinden uprising and made Bulgaria their home.
Thousands left during the Ottoman occupation as pechalbari (migrant workers) and made Bulgaria their home.
Those thousands of Macedonians who were forced out of their homes in 1912, because they refused to become Greek (after Greece occupied Aegean Macedonian), went to Bulgaria and made Bulgaria their home.
Many prominent people, including high ranking politicians, living in Sofia today are Macedonians. Most of them are from Aegean Macedonia.
Approximately four times more Macedonians immigrated to Bulgaria in the last century than Turkish Tartars did in the last millennium. Clearly shouldn't that make Bulgaria more Macedonian than Bulgarian?
It is time for Bulgaria to give up its aspirations for Macedonia and join the democratic world by granting its citizens (of Macedonian descent) minority status with full rights and privileges.
by Risto Stefov
April 2005
[email protected]
The notion of superiority only breeds ignorance and a lack of compassion. During the early 19th century the word Bulgar was synonymous with the uneducated peasant. Ironically, today some Bulgarians call educated people from Macedonia, Bulgarian and those who are uneducated they call Macedonian.
It seems that the Bulgarian State, like the Greek State, is abusing history to score political points to the detriment of the Macedonian people.
While the rest of the world is moving forward loosening its grip on minority rights, Greece and Bulgaria are tightening theirs. Like the Greeks, the Bulgarians claim that "there are no Macedonians and that those claiming to be Macedonian are actually Bulgarian".
Not only is this false but according to history the opposite is true.
According to history the first Bulgars, a Turkish Tartar tribe driven out of its homeland in Asia, arrived and settled in the region north of the Danube River.
The Bulgars were a pagan people whom the Khazars, another barbarian tribe, had forced down toward the Danube delta in the latter part of the 7th century AD.
Organized under the leadership of Khan Asparuch, the Bulgars for the first time successfully crossed the Danube River in 670 AD and invaded Pravoslav (Byzantine) territory.
The Bulgar tribe, consisting of no more than 250,000 oriental nomads, conquered the lands immediately south of the Danube River and settled there among the indigenous Slavic population.
In the following year, Constantine IV, the Pravoslav Emperor, agreed to a Bulgar treaty. By virtue of this treaty the Bulgars were recognized as an independent kingdom, occupying lands south of the Danube into the Thracian plain. Soon afterwards the Bulgars established their capital at Pliska.
Initially the Bulgars spoke an Asiatic language but as a consequence of living among a Slav majority they were obliged to learn the Slav language.
Today's Bulgarians speak a Slavic language as a consequence of being assimilated by the indigenous Slavic speaking population that lived south of the Danube. "The Bulgarians had adopted Slavic language and culture. It is paradoxical that the Bulgarians, a Turkic people who adopted Slavic language and customs, took a significant role in standardizing Slavic writing." (Page 197, John Shea, Macedonia and Greece The Struggle to Define a New Balkan Nation, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 1997)
The reason the Bulgars adopted the Slavic language was due to the overwhelming numerical superiority of the Slavs, most of them being Macedonians from ancient and Roman times. The true Bulgars and their Turko-Tartar rulers were only a small minority in comparison.
By the late 8th century AD, the great majority of the Turko-Tartar invaders were assimilated amongst the vast indigenous Slav population. The Khans had disappeared and were replaced by Slav speaking rulers with Slavic names.
There are no historical accounts of the Bulgars ever conquering and occupying the entire territory of Macedonia or having killed off or displaced the indigenous Macedonian population.
There are two historical arguments which modern Bulgarians make to lay claims on Macedonian territory and on the Macedonian people;
1. The Bulgarians had a kingdom of which Macedonia was part, and
2. Macedonians speak a dialect of the Bulgarian language.
It is true, as mentioned earlier, there was a Bulgar kingdom but it never at any time extended far south to occupy all of Macedonia.
It is also true that there was a period of time during which the Romans and the Pravoslavs occupied and held geographical Macedonia, as did the Ottomans for over five hundred years. Does that make Macedonia Roman, Pravoslav, Ottoman and Bulgarian?
Additionally, the Goths, Huns, Avars, etc. also overran and held parts of Macedonia for a number of years. Should their ancestors too be making claims on Macedonia?
There are, however, stronger historical arguments which would allow Macedonians to make claims on Bulgarian territory, language and people;
1. The region called Pirin Macedonia which Bulgaria occupied in 1912 and is holding to this day belongs to Macedonia.
2. The region south of the Danube River where Bulgaria is today once belonged to Macedonia and was ruled by Macedonian kings including Philip II and Alexander III.
3. During the Roman conquests many Macedonians fled Macedonia with their families and settled in the region of present day Bulgaria.
4. As mentioned earlier, Macedonians spoke the Slavic language before the Bulgars. The Bulgars learned their oral language from the Slavs.
5. Also as mentioned earlier, the Bulgarians received the written form of their language from the Macedonians.
[Was it not the Macedonians brothers Kiril and Metodi from Solun, (whom the Greeks claim to be Greek and the Bulgarians claim to be Bulgarian), who gave the Bulgars the Macedonian alphabet and taught them how to read and write?]
On the question of territory;
Only the Macedonians have a legitimate claim on Pirin Macedonia since that region was always part of geographical Macedonia and historically Macedonians occupied it and still occupy it to this day.
On the question of language;
Macedonians spoke the Slavic language centuries before the arrival of the Bulgars and if anything, it is the Bulgarians who speak a dialect of the Macedonian language.
On the question of nationality;
If the modern Bulgarians were the true ancestors of the Khans, then they would bear Asiatic features like slanted eyes and wide cheekbones. Undoubtedly they would also speak an Asiatic language and would exhibit Asiatic customs and mannerisms.
Unfortunately very little or none of those features are present in modern Bulgarians. In fact, modern Bulgarians share more characteristics with the Macedonians than they do with the original Asiatic Turko-Tartar predecessors from whom they claim their ancestry.
This should not be a surprise since the vast majority of the Bulgarian population is not at all related to the original Bulgars.
How then can the Macedonians be Bulgarians since the vast majority of Bulgarians themselves are not true descendants of the original Bulgars?
Could it be that modern Bulgarians are more Macedonian than they care to admit? (more on this later)
The real Bulgarian issues with Macedonia and the Macedonian people unfortunately have little to do with race relations and more to do with politics and the Bulgarian obsession with possessing Macedonia.
There are many Bulgarians who to this day are obsessed with the San Stefano myth of a Greater Bulgaria.
"The Bulgarians want 'greatness' and that comes with a large country as opposed to having a complex or feeling 'less worth', which is typical of a small country. They are obsessed with history and delusions. Their national ideology is projected to the maximum when all of Macedonia as a territory, culture and history is included. The acknowledgment of the Macedonian identity will without a doubt bring psychological cataclysms to Bulgaria. Look at the fanatic fight they wage against us based on ideological and psychological factors, none of which are practical today. Today the politics for taking over Macedonia and creating a 'Greater Bulgaria' are invalid. The unification of Europe has made such aspirations an absurdity. However, emotion in Bulgaria is still stronger than reason.
Acknowledging that a Macedonian nation, language and such exist is the same as Bulgaria acknowledging that a large part of their own ideology is a lie. We have Macedonians living here who, as Bulgarians, have earned great privileges and high status in the government and private sector. Their influence is huge and our existence threatens them and alleges that they are our expatriates, Macedonians, not true Bulgarians. That affects not only their peace of mind but also to some degree their attained status. Even if we don't have any intentions or allegations with respect to the rights of every man, they still can not come to grips with our national divide. This is a problem not only for ordinary people but also for politicians of Macedonian decent.
The belief that Macedonians are Bulgarians has become dogmatic and anything else would be interpreted as slanderous. Without any doubt politicians do know that Macedonians exist in Bulgaria. However if they admit to it publicly they will be labeled traitors and will bid their political or social status goodbye, so they choose to be silent and take the easy way out. As a result, all political entities have become slaves to the lies of their predecessors. Others, with a bit more conscience, earn easy points by acting patriotic towards the Macedonians. In any event the Bulgarian political hierarchy is unable to free itself from the jaws of their own delusion. They need help from the outside. In that respect we find ourselves to be the only realists and true patriots in this country because we are not only fighting for ourselves but also to free them from their terrible tyranny and political catastrophes.
When one can't look the truth in the eye, the only option left is to negate it. Bulgarians negate the existence of Macedonians because they fear the truth will bring them unexpected results. Bulgaria needs to face the truth and acknowledge that we exist. Bulgaria will have to change its laws and live up to its obligations with regard to international documents it has signed in upholding human rights." (Page 8 and 9 interview with Stojko Stojkov, OMO Pirin Political Party, Canadian Macedonian News, December 2004) Stojko Stojkov is a Bulgarian citizen of Macedonian descent, born and raised in Bulgaria. He is currently co-president of the five member executive OMO Pirin Political party inside Bulgaria.
Ever since 1878 and the San Stefano myth of a Greater Bulgaria, the Bulgarian State has been obsessed with possessing Macedonia at any cost.
Over the last century Bulgaria has done everything in its power to possess Macedonia.
During the late 19th and early 20th century it established the Exarchist Church inside Macedonia in an attempt to turn Macedonians into Bulgarians.
During the 1903 Macedonian uprising against the Ottomans it interfered in Macedonia's internal affairs in an attempt to turn the tide in its favour.
During the first Balkan war in 1912 it invaded Macedonia under the guise of liberation and along with its allies, occupied it. In 1913 it started the second Balkan war in an attempt to gain more of Macedonia's territory.
During the Great War (WWI) it joined the Central powers (Austria-Hungary and Germany) because they offered Bulgaria a larger portion of Macedonia than the Central powers (France, Britain and Russia).
During the Second World War (WWII) it joined the Axis powers (Germany, Italy and Japan) again because they offered Bulgaria a larger piece of the Macedonian pie than did the Allies (USA, Britain, China, the Soviet Union, etc.).
To quote the Bulgarian War Minister General Nikolaev, "We care little about the British, Germans, French, Russians, Italians, Austrians or Hungarians; our only thought is Macedonia. Whichever of the two groups of Powers will enable us to conquer it will have our alliance!" (Page 154, Radin, IMRO and the Macedonian Question)
To this day the Bulgarian State refuses to recognize the Macedonian language and nationality and punishes those who feel Macedonian. Bulgaria refuses to accept the reality that Macedonia is not Bulgarian.
Since the cold war Bulgaria has implemented a number of policies to entice Macedonians to declare themselves Bulgarian. Among the enticements included are free or inexpensive university education for students of Macedonian origin and Bulgarian citizenships for Macedonians. These perks, however, are not without strings attached. To qualify, Macedonians are required to sign papers declaring themselves Bulgarian.
Those Macedonian students who accept the Bulgarian offer do not do it because they want to be Bulgarians, they do it because they want to get an education. Students who want a university education and can't afford it or do not have the qualifications to attend university at home will jump at the chance to better themselves. What most don't realize, however, is that Bulgaria does not do this for nothing and eventually they will have to pay back, sometimes in undesirable ways.
More recently Bulgaria is offering Macedonians from the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgarian citizenship. Those too come with a price. To qualify Macedonians must declare themselves Bulgarians. Again, Macedonians do this NOT because they want to be Bulgarians but as a means of obtaining a European Union passport so that they can shop and vacation in European Union countries
I don't blame the innocent people for desiring to better themselves but I do blame the Bulgarian State for its deviousness and underhandedness.
Here is an instance where a devout Macedonian turned into a Bulgarian agent (with Bulgarian help no doubt);
"At the end of January of this year, on the weekly show "Every Sunday", "Vcjaka Nedelja" - which airs every Sunday at 5:30pm on Bulgarian National Television - the topic of debate was whether or not the Macedonian language should be used in schools and on TV within the Republic of Bulgaria.
Though it was obvious that the underlying arguments put forth by the show's host, Kevork Kevorkian, promoted the usual Bulgarian nationalist hard-line: that Macedonians do not exist and that their language is a dialect of Bulgarian, the show was particularly bad in this instance because of its inability to present the other side of the argument, namely to allow members of the sizable Macedonian minority in Bulgaria as well as Macedonian activists in Bulgaria to voice their opinion.
Instead, the program showcased a fervent, anti-Macedonian, Greek nationalist named Christopher Tzavela, who ranted about how Macedonians do not exist and how their language should never be allowed on television and in schools."
(Taken from the March 13th, 2005 Macedonian Human Rights Movement of Canada Press Release entitled "MHRMC Condemns Defamation of Ethnic Macedonians on Bulgarian National Television").
Who is Christopher Tzavela and why is he taking a hard stand against the Macedonian people?
Christopher Tzavela is a Macedonian from Rula, Lerinsko (Lerin Region). I know of Mr. Tzavela from his work as a volunteer in the United Macedonian Organization of Canada. For several years during the late 1950's and early 1960's he was part of the United Macedonian Executive Committee in charge of public relations. I also know that he was involved in publishing the United Macedonian "Macedonian Life" magazine.
Mr. Tzavela was also involved in the planning stages of building St. Clement of Ohrid, the first Macedonian Orthodox Church in Canada.
In fact, as I recall, Mr. Tzavela was such a devout Macedonian activist that he was invited to be a special guest in the 1963 Canadian delegation to Skopje.
When the delegation completed its tour, Mr. Tzavela remained behind to further his education at the University of Skopje.
After the earthquake he returned to Canada and then left for Bulgaria permanently.
Since then, I am told, he became an historian, writer, ethnographer and TV producer.
Now I have learned that Mr. Tzavela has become an "anti-Macedonian Greek nationalist".
It is unclear, at least to me, why Mr. Tzavela left the Republic of Macedonia. Some say he became disgruntled with the authorities when they did not offer him a ministerial position in the Macedonian Government, but only he knows the truth.
Why did a devoted Macedonian activist turn into a Bulgarian propagandist? Was it the lure of Bulgarian enticement? We will never know for sure.
The Macedonian minority in Bulgaria
In my estimation, Bulgaria has the largest Macedonian minority in the world. It is estimated that approximately two million Macedonians live in Bulgaria today.
Many Macedonians have made Bulgaria their home since the Ottoman days.
Macedonians left by the thousands during and after the 1903 Ilinden uprising and made Bulgaria their home.
Thousands left during the Ottoman occupation as pechalbari (migrant workers) and made Bulgaria their home.
Those thousands of Macedonians who were forced out of their homes in 1912, because they refused to become Greek (after Greece occupied Aegean Macedonian), went to Bulgaria and made Bulgaria their home.
Many prominent people, including high ranking politicians, living in Sofia today are Macedonians. Most of them are from Aegean Macedonia.
Approximately four times more Macedonians immigrated to Bulgaria in the last century than Turkish Tartars did in the last millennium. Clearly shouldn't that make Bulgaria more Macedonian than Bulgarian?
It is time for Bulgaria to give up its aspirations for Macedonia and join the democratic world by granting its citizens (of Macedonian descent) minority status with full rights and privileges.
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