Български
EnglishIvelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов) speaks with Mustafa Emin (Мустафа Емин), Seyhan (Сейхан), Sali (Сали), and Alper (Алпер) about the commemoration of the victims of the “Revival Process” („Възродителния процес“), political repression in mixed regions, and the need for unity.
Commemoration at “Turkyan Fountain” and the Crimes of the Past
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): Hello everyone. We are in the villages of Kitna (Китна) and Mogilyane (Могиляне). A little higher up is an emblematic place where, 41 years ago, a crime against humanity was committed. The state at the time decided to take away the free choice of faith, name, and self-identification from certain people. This was a huge mistake. That is why people who are Muslims – Turks and Pomaks, whose names were forcibly changed – remember. I remember that in our school names were also changed. For example, Mustafa was renamed Milen, and Ahmed became Asparuh. This was the most unpleasant thing, because if God has given us free will, who has the right to take away a person’s will to self-identify?
The memorial site is called “Turkyan Fountain” („Тюркян чешма“), named after an 18-month-old child who became a victim of repression and of the state apparatus. Instead of uplifting its population, the state broke it and made it stop believing.
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): Today is another commemorative date – December 26. This event is observed to remind us of the past and to ensure that it is never repeated. People come here to remember what they allowed and to prevent it from happening in the future. Tell us, as Muslims, what does this event mean to you?
Mustafa Emin (Мустафа Емин): This date has great significance for local people in this part of the Rhodopes (Родопите). I am from another part of the Rhodopes, from Ribnovo (Рибново). There we have our own dates, which are earlier. These are events of total violation of human rights and freedoms.
Ethnic Blackmail and the Usurpation of Rights
Mustafa Emin (Мустафа Емин): Unfortunately, the struggle for rights and freedoms was usurped by certain structures that brought neither more freedom nor more rights, but instead created a hidden ethnic division. This was “ethnic blackmail.” Certain people were stealing from the state budget while guaranteeing this blackmail and exploiting people’s lack of awareness.
It is time to remember the past but also to strive to build a quality present. The division is not ethnic, but between those who are capable and those who are not. Peevski (Пеевски) said that there should be no “second-class people” in Bulgaria, and indeed there should not be. This means that some should not be repressed because they are not from “our team.” It is time for real freedom in Bulgaria.
Seyhan (Сейхан): I am also from the Haskovo region (област Хасково). The date of December 26 is truly sacred for the Turkish ethnic community. They remember it and always will. I will pass this memory on to the young, so that in a democratic state in the 21st century this never happens again. Today we laid a wreath for little Turkyan (Тюркян) with the blessing that no one ever experiences such events again.
A Call for Unity and an End to Hatred
Sali (Сали): My name is Sali. Mr. Mihaylov and I came here to say “no” to hatred. We must unite. Our parents were subjected to enormous pressure for 35 years. They were always told: “If we go with the DPS party (ДПС), we will succeed.” It is not just the DPS party (ДПС) — we must all be together. For 35 years our ancestors, fathers, and grandfathers were under pressure. Because if they did not align with DPS (ДПС), they were not allowed anything – neither they nor their children. There were always repressions and we were not allowed to attend events if we were not from their organization.
I wish for the young people to rise up and show that we are a Bulgarian community. We were born here and we must fix our homeland, not divide it. Before, when we went to bed at night, we always thought about whether there would be repression against us. This imposed hatred must be eliminated.
The Voice of the Youth and Political Feudalism
Alper (Алпер): My name is Alper, I am 21 years old. I belong to the now-popular Generation Z. I support what my colleagues said — for years the Turkish ethnic community has been repressed not by others, but by the feudal leaders of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (Движение за права и свободи, ДПС). As a young person, my advice to my peers is: fight for your rights and stand your ground. They say there is ethnic hatred, but as a person of Turkish origin I say there is none. I have never been in a situation where I felt unwanted or repressed by Bulgarians. Repression exists on their side [DPS (ДПС)], but never from the Bulgarian ethnic community.
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): Since DPS (ДПС) was supposed to be the guarantor of the rights and freedoms of Muslims, so that this division would not exist... As a descendant of people who have lived through difficult times, I know what is not good. When I was in the army, older soldiers tried to abuse me, but when I became an older soldier myself, I never humiliated the younger ones. We have been repressed and we know how important it is to be free. Are young people from the Muslim regions of Bulgaria staying here or going abroad?
Alper (Алпер): Absolutely, most of them are abroad. People my age are leaving Bulgaria because there is no future for young people here. If DPS (ДПС) guarantees rights, yet the youth are leaving, then clearly they have no rights.
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): That is absolutely true.
Alper (Алпер): These people are afraid of intelligent and independent individuals. They want dependent people who treat the state as private property. Power is passed from father to son and grandson. Young people feel like slaves in their own country. This is the truth and the big problem.
A Future Without Corrupt Elites
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): Above, I saw an event that had been turned into a party rally, reminiscent of the Bulgarian Communist Party (БКП). Those who claim to say “no to hatred” are actually provoking it.
Alper (Алпер): Exactly they are the ones who instill this hatred and try to brainwash people into believing there is ethnic division. I would firmly say “no.” There is no such division. We are fighting against corrupt politicians who have surrounded the National Assembly (Народното събрание) and are accumulating wealth at the expense of the people.
Ivelin Mihaylov (Ивелин Михайлов): This should be a celebration of life and freedom. When someone is a victim of the opposite, they must be a symbol precisely of freedom. Together we will fight — not as ethnicities or religions, but as capable and knowledgeable people who want to change Bulgaria.
Bulgaria must belong to the young. You see the trash and the decay here – this is what remains of us. We must be ashamed and start working. We must not allow anyone to usurp the event and turn it into a rally reminiscent of the Bulgarian Communist Party (БКП), while supposedly being against that very policy. We must be a bright example for the future. I thank my friends for inviting me on this date. We continue and move forward.
The discussion emphasizes that the problems in the mixed regions are not ethnic, but political and economic, stemming from a feudal model of governance. The participants unite around the idea that Bulgaria’s future depends on the joint efforts of all citizens against corruption and party dependency.
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