"IF GOTSE DELCHEV WAS ALIVE IN 1945 HE WOULD HAVE FINISHED UP IN IDRIZOVO" LJUPCHO GEORGIEVSKI President, VMRO-DPMNE Political Party Republic of Macedonia published in the Skopje newspaper "Puls" 7 July and 14 July 1995 "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?" 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 left 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.