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I had high hopes for the Pirin Macedonians back in the early 90's. There was a moment in time there that looked like something was finally happening and a Macedonian awakening beginning to stir in Pirin. At the time, the Egejci seemed to be a real disappointment. You couldn't hear a peep out of them. It was the Pirinci who were leading the charge for Macedonian Human Rights and it all seemed so promising, seeing thousands of them gathering at Rozhen Monastery and claiming their rightful Macedonian identity in the face of Bulgarian repressive measures against them.
The 2011 Bulgarian Census counted only 1,654 ethnic Macedonians in the whole of Bulgaria and stressed that at least 1000 of them were also citizens of the Republic of Macedonia. That leaves only about 600 - 700 Bulgarian natives with a Macedonian ethnic consciousness.
To be honest, I don't know what to make of the Pirinci these days. We all know about Bulgarian manipulations - that's a given. But it also seems as though the fire has burned itself out and they've simply capitulated into becoming loyal Bulgarians. I really hope I'm wrong and that this ain't so. But you have to wonder what happened to the passion that was on display at the Rozhen monastery back in 1990, on the anniversary of Yane Sandanski's death, when an estimated crowd of 10,000+ gathered to show Bulgaria and Bulgarians that they are Macedonians and only Macedonians.
It is believed that the above estimate could well have doubled if not for the intervention by Bulgarian police who prevented close to half of them from attending that day through various means. Reports from the time claim that chartered buses from all over Pirin were cancelled at the last minute; other buses that were already on their way and jam packed were stopped and prevented from proceeding further; private cars were stopped and ordered not to continue on to Rozhen; even trekkers, some of which had abandoned their cars as a result of police, and made their way up the mountain to the monastery were stopped and, in many instances, beaten with police batons in a desperate bid to prevent them from arriving en-masse to the Rozhen monastery and demonstrating an open display of Macedonian identity in Bulgaria.
The YouTube video below is a little grainy and of poor quality but you can get a feel for the massive crowd that did eventually make it to Rozhen that day in 1990. Is anyone else besides me wondering what happened to this people? Have they simply given up the fight or have they been convinced otherwise? It's a real puzzle.
The 2011 Bulgarian Census counted only 1,654 ethnic Macedonians in the whole of Bulgaria and stressed that at least 1000 of them were also citizens of the Republic of Macedonia. That leaves only about 600 - 700 Bulgarian natives with a Macedonian ethnic consciousness.
To be honest, I don't know what to make of the Pirinci these days. We all know about Bulgarian manipulations - that's a given. But it also seems as though the fire has burned itself out and they've simply capitulated into becoming loyal Bulgarians. I really hope I'm wrong and that this ain't so. But you have to wonder what happened to the passion that was on display at the Rozhen monastery back in 1990, on the anniversary of Yane Sandanski's death, when an estimated crowd of 10,000+ gathered to show Bulgaria and Bulgarians that they are Macedonians and only Macedonians.
It is believed that the above estimate could well have doubled if not for the intervention by Bulgarian police who prevented close to half of them from attending that day through various means. Reports from the time claim that chartered buses from all over Pirin were cancelled at the last minute; other buses that were already on their way and jam packed were stopped and prevented from proceeding further; private cars were stopped and ordered not to continue on to Rozhen; even trekkers, some of which had abandoned their cars as a result of police, and made their way up the mountain to the monastery were stopped and, in many instances, beaten with police batons in a desperate bid to prevent them from arriving en-masse to the Rozhen monastery and demonstrating an open display of Macedonian identity in Bulgaria.
The YouTube video below is a little grainy and of poor quality but you can get a feel for the massive crowd that did eventually make it to Rozhen that day in 1990. Is anyone else besides me wondering what happened to this people? Have they simply given up the fight or have they been convinced otherwise? It's a real puzzle.
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