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We present with abbreviations the joint article by the two Macedonian historians and members of the Bulgarian-Macedonian Joint Commission, which was to clarify the controversial historical problems between the two countries.
History, and more specifically its perception, undoubtedly has a great influence on the lives of people in Macedonian and Bulgarian society. Anything related to different interpretations of the past elicits emotional reactions between political elites and the public. For almost 70 years, the rhetoric has been the same. Bulgarians say “Macedonians falsify history” or “Macedonians do not admit to stealing Bulgarian history” or “Macedonians are Bulgarians”. To which the Macedonians respond: “the Bulgarians steal the history of Macedonia” or “the Bulgarians are fascists” or “we have nothing to do with this Tatar people”.
“For seven decades, we have not been able to build a modern infrastructure connection and increase cooperation in culture and student exchange, but we are strong enough to demonstrate things that happened 100, 200 or a thousand years ago and capture that past, without understand that it is shared and does not belong only to one or the other nation. In fact, there is no past in this world that is not shared. This absurd problem shows once again that our vision of history takes into account the present and not the past. “.
Regardless of the coronavirus pandemic, historical themes and the work of the bilateral Historical Commission remain relevant, the authors write. Based on political statements and reactions to the start of EU accession talks with northern Macedonia, the two commissioners find that such politicization hampers the work of this bilateral body. And they recall that during the pre-election period in northern Macedonia, they themselves refrained from making statements for fear that they might be abused.
Bulgaria’s accusations
“We also believe that such statements carry the risk of broadcasting the debate in the media. And an unprofessional debate will certainly not help build trust and overcome the historical-political dispute. (…) As of December 2019, Some Commissioners on the Bulgarian side, the Bulgarian government and some Bulgarian politicians with a frankly revisionist attitude towards history accuse us that the Macedonians have unilaterally terminated the commission and politicized their work. the framework for launching accession negotiations with northern Macedonia in the EU. “
The authors write that collective accusations are being made as “Macedonians falsify history” and believe that the purpose of these accusations is for the Bulgarian side to emerge as the “winner” in the dispute.
Is there really “general history“?
“Victoria: this means imposing the thesis that the geographical region of Macedonia is historically Bulgarian and that Macedonians are Bulgarians who became Macedonians due to the actions of the” bad “Communists in 1944.
The historical irony is compounded by the fact that Macedonia’s vision, currently imposed on European Bulgaria, is in fact strongly influenced by the Communists, led by Todor Jivkov and his successors. This selective and politicized understanding of Macedonians and Macedonians explains Bulgaria’s insistence on adopting the “common history”, which started in the 9th century and continued until 1944. The term “common history” is based on the belief that it is a unique history and, at the same time, stagnant. only one nation, the Bulgarian, of which the Macedonians are an integral part. Such a statement is difficult to find in any contemporary theory of ethnic or national identity. “
The authors further maintain in their article that Skopje has unilaterally terminated the work of the Commission. According to them, the commissioners of northern Macedonia suggested that they not hold their elections until the elections in their country, but rather continue their activities by exchanging views. The idea was to avoid formal Commission meetings, which attract a lot of public attention and could be misused for electoral purposes. They regret that the Bulgarian side rejected this idea, which could help the Commission to continue its work even in the current context of a pandemic.
It’s time to stopmutual accusations
“Therefore, to achieve the common goal and resolve the dispute, it is necessary to change the approach and stop the charges against the other party. No dispute in Europe and in the world has been overcome by the triumph of one party over the other.” . (…) Bulgarian historians and politicians may think that they will achieve a “victory” in the dispute with the Macedonians, but this will certainly not make Macedonians Bulgarians. On the contrary, it will generate even more division and mistrust between the two peoples. 30 years after the fall of socialism, Macedonian and Bulgarian Russia’s historical sciences are still highly ideologized and politicized, and the interpretation of the past is quite selective, and historians choose those sources and those periods of the past that serve political ends in instead of science. It would not be fair to say that certain events and personalities in Macedonian historiography are highly politicized and viewed unilaterally. But the same should be said of Bulgarian historiography. “
The authors recall that the Joint Historical Commission was created only to overcome this inertia. They recall that, according to politicians, the bilateral agreement with Bulgaria was signed in the name of the region’s European future.
“In such a case, let’s really show that we are doing it in the name of the European future and in a European way. But even if the European context was not there, the dispute still has to be resolved.” The two authors write at the end of their article on Deutsche Welle.
* Historian Dragi Georgiev is the co-chair of the Commission for Historical and Educational Affairs between the Republic of Northern Macedonia and Bulgaria. Historian Peter Todorov is a member of the same committee.
The text has been published. HERE
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