CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE TREATY OF BUCHAREST WAS DRAFTED - Part 07

Greeks.” (“From Geopolitics to Global Politics”, editor Jacques Levy, page 174) 17. “…he devoted his personal attention exclusively to the latter, assigning Joannina to his son-in-law, Thomas Preliubovich, in 1367, and Aetolia and Akarnania to two Albanian chiefs, belonging to the clan Boua and Liosa – a name still to be found in the plans of Attica. Thus, about 1362, all north-west Greece was Albanian…” (“The Latins in the Lavant a History of Frankish Greece (1204-1566), by William Miller M.A., 1908, page 294) 18. “Overrun by the Goths and Vandals, it became a pay, by the second half of the 8th c., to bands of Slavic invaders, who found it wasted by war and pestilence. Gradually however, these barbarians were subdued and Grecianized by the Byzantine Emperors. Nevertheless the numerous names of places, Rivers, etc., in the Morea of Slavic origin, prove how firmly they had routed themselves, and that the Moreotes are anything but pure Greeks.” (“The International Encyclopedia a Compendium of Human Knowledge”, edited by Richard Gleeson Green, 1890, page 204) 19. “…between a cheer and a whine, and presently their Imperial Majesties of Greece, cantered up the hill attended by four dignitaries, and as many equerries. The queen was dressed in a dark green riding-habit, black beaver with drooping feather, and veil. King Otho wore the Albanian costume of crimson, gold embroidered jacket and legs, white fustanela, with a richly chased saber belted over his shoulder.” (“Scampavians from Gibil Tarek to Stamboul”, by Harry Gringo, 1857) 20. “There was little interest as to the nationality of the Rayahs while Turkish rule was strong. They were nearly all Christians of the Byzantine type, those in Europe at least, and were hence regarded as one people, for oriental theocracy cannot conceive nationality apart from religion. They themselves know the difference in their origins and in such traditions as they had: some were Slavs, some Vlachs and some Albanians…; they were all non-Muslims, all Rayahs, and in a sense all Greeks.” (“Political Science Quarterly”, Columbia University, 1908, page 307) 21. “The revolution of 1821 has restored the ancient appellation ‘Elines’, but as it is used chiefly by the inhabitants of Bavarian Greece, who perhaps don’t constitute more than one fourth of the Greek nation, it may safely be said that the mass of the people still call themselves ‘Romaii’ and their language ‘Romaiki’.” (“A Romaik Grammar”, by E.A. Sophocles, 1842, page iv) 22. “From their manners, their features and their names of many of their neighbouring places, I should be tempted to regard them [Mainiotes] proceeding of Sclavonian blood: many travelers pretend,

however, to have discovered in these barbarous hordes traces of a Spartan origin.” (“Recollections of a Classical Tour through various parts of Greece, Turkey and Italy made in the years 1818 and 1819”, by Peter Edmund Laurent, 1821, page 182) 23. “The Greeks have not taken much interest in their past until Europeans became enthusiastic discoverers and diggers of their ruins. And why should they have cared? The Greeks were not Greek but rather the illiterate descendents of Slavs and Albanian fishermen who spoke a debased Greek dialect and had little interest in the broken columns and temples except as places to graze their sheep. The true philhellenists were the English – of whom Byron was the epitome – and the French, who were passionate to link themselves to the Greek ideal.” (“The Pillars of Hercules” by Paul Thereoux, page 316) 24. “…Neohellenic Enlightenment sanctioned a selective tradition, with particular emphasis upon an imaginary classical antiquity, and sought to suppress what was deemed to be a ‘non-significant tradition’, mainly the Byzantine and Ottoman legacy. Through this ideological management of the past, it achieved the displacement of a substance part of the history, memory and experience of those it sought to shape into modern Greeks.” (“Tormented by History Nationalism in Greece and Turkey”, by Umut Oskirimu and Spiros A. Sofos, page 24) 25. “There are two other difficulties involved in the history of the Turkish period. In tracing the movements of merchandise and men in the Balkan peninsula it is extremely difficult to differentiate the various races involved. Western travelers knew little, Turkish authorities cared less. Even the polyglot Vlachs themselves knew nor cared a great deal and until the rise of national conciousness at the end of the eighteenth century were probably quite happy with the label of Greek, which was good enough for outside observers.” (“The Vlachs the History of a Balkan People”, by T.J. Winnifrith, pages 124 and 125) Again, the Greek identity is not an “ethnic identity” at all but rather a “politically motivated artificial identity” created by the 19th century Philhellenes to serve some greater political purpose. We have learned that the 19th century Greeks, recent ancestors to today’s Greeks, were not “ethnic Greeks” at all. The majority belonged to the Slav, Albanian, Vlach and later Macedonian ethnic groups. In other words they became “Greek” either by force or by choice. This cannot be disputed! What can be disputed however is the ownership of a heritage that does not belong to the Modern Greeks. For example Modern Greeks cannot claim the heritage of the so-called “ancient Greeks” as their own just because they call themselves “Greeks” and learned to behave like the Ancient Greeks. This is like saying that I can claim my neighbour’s father’s house if I changed my last name to match his and pretend to be

my neighbour’s brother. Can I legally do that? Can I one day show up at my neighbour’s house and say “I am your brother and this house is mine”? Wouldn’t I have to prove my descent from the man I claim to be my father? Well this is exactly what the Greeks are doing! With the help of a bunch of Westerners, they usurped the Ancient Greek heritage, which does not belong to them, and now they think they are the owners of Greece. Ah, but that’s not all! Since they annexed a large chunk of Macedonian land in 1913 by war, they also usurped the Macedonian heritage, that is, until they were challenged by the real Macedonians. They usurped the Macedonian heritage the same way they usurped the Greek heritage by “pretending” to be Macedonians, descendents of the Ancient Macedonians and by pushing the real Macedonians out into extinction. How clever is that? I don’t think any Macedonian cares what the Greeks call themselves, who they are and who they “pretend” to be but they sure care when these “pretenders” try to lay claim to the Macedonian heritage especially at the expense of the real Macedonians! Sharing the ancient heritage is one thing but claiming it to be exclusively theirs, especially since it can be proven that they are imposters, is another. We are faced with two problems when dealing with this issue. First, the Modern Greeks are not Greeks at all. They call themselves Greeks not because they are Greeks but because they want to be Greeks. There are benefits to being Greek. There is a country “Greece” to call their own, which should never have been modeled against an ancient country that never existed before. The Ancient City States were never a country! Then there is that illustrious past with all its glory which should never have been “assigned” to a people who had nothing to do with it. Second, these same people were not only allowed to annex 51% of Macedonia but were given full rights to “assimilate” the Macedonian people, turning them into Greeks, and usurping the Macedonian heritage as their own. Hence the slogan “the Ancient Macedonians were Greek” therefore “the Modern Macedonians must also be Greek”. But wanting to be Greeks is not the same as “being” Greeks. Just because one “wants to be a Greek” does not mean one has the right to lay claim to the Ancient Greek heritage just as I have no right to lay claim to my neighbour’s house just because I “want” to be his brother! This leads to the very important legal question; if these people are Greek because they want to be Greek and they are Macedonian because they want to be Macedonian, then legally what right do they have to either the Ancient Greek heritage or to the Ancient Macedonian heritage? Given that we have proven that the Modern Greeks are “not Greek at all” what moral and legal right do they have to interfere in the

affairs of the Macedonian people? More importantly, as Macedonians and rightful heirs to the Macedonian heritage, why are we allowing these imposters to interfere in our affairs? Isn’t it about time to tell them to “hit the road and mind their own business”?

On the so-called “name dispute” Osiris wrote:

The only name that is logical and natural for Macedonia is Macedonia! We as people are of Macedonia, which has been called Macedonia for at least two millennia, and that is beyond dispute. All other names are politically inspired propaganda coming from our Balkan neighbours which are debatable and will never be resolved because they are based on conflicting historical myths. The fact that all our neighbours covet the remaining piece of Macedonia tells us that they all want it for themselves, and would do and say anything to get it even destroy an independent Macedonia. They incorporated it into their own nation. It seems like its 1900’s all over again; a political Balkan ground hog day. By Osiris from www.maknews.com/forum/

Essay 37 – My fascination with Greeks?

A lot of you have written to me over the last six months asking “what is my fascination with the ‘Greeks’, why do I write ‘denigrating’ things about them and am I jealous of them or something?” Let’s say that I know more about the “real” Modern Greeks than the average person and I can tell you that if writing about them is “denigrating” then so be it! As far as being jealous, how can one be jealous of a “fictitious” identity such as the Modern Greek one? Being fascinated with the Greeks? Is that a “Greek wish” to have “outsiders” even your opponents, be fascinated with your “fictitiousness”? “It was never my intention to delve into the modern history of Greece, but the Greeks kept on and on with their bull-crap about who I am and who I have the right to be so I felt it was time to discover who these fanatics were, and lo and behold I found they were not who they pretended to be, but I still don’t care, I am happy for them to claim they are Greek all I expect in return is they afford me and my people the same rights they claim for themselves.” (Osiris from http://www.maknews.com/forum) What can I say; Osiris beat me to the punch! He expressed exactly how I feel! There is no fascination, only the necessity to fight back and defend our Macedonian identity the only way Greeks can understand; by attacking theirs! Greeks, your identity is not as solid as you think; it is not a solid sphere made of stainless steel as you portray it to be; your identity is more like a fruit, a polished “dark-red” apple with an amazing tantalizing shiny red skin and all rotten inside. When you bite into it you think you are going to get a sweet juicy alluring apple-taste but instead you get a brown rot filled with bitterness! No thank you. I’d rather be “real” and take my chances at being who I am; Macedonian, no matter how difficult it has proven to be! Here is another excerpt from yet another “Westerner” and “impartial” observer on the formation of your “artificial” Greek identity; “Within the context of romanticism, the term ‘Philhellenism’ refers generally to a love of Greece, foundational to which were the beliefs that Greece had a direct cultural link to Western Civilization as a whole, and that, concomitantly, the ‘modern Greeks’ (that is the Greeks of the Ottoman and modern periods) were the direct descendents, biologically and culturally, of the ancient Greeks. In its most specific sense, philhellenism refers to the nineteenth-century historical phenomenon of western Europeans (largely British, French and

German) rallying behind the Greek struggle of independence from Ottoman rule (1821-30). The link between philhellenic sentiment and the Greek War of Independence was evident in the numerous cases of western Europeans contributing money, materials, and in some cases manpower to the Greek effort. In the specifically Romantic context, it was evident in the turn-of-the century efflorescence, of paintings, works of literature, and musical compositions with a central Hellenic theme. A famous visual instance of this Romanticist artistic fascination with Greece is the frontispiece to Marie Gabriel, Comte de Choiseul-Goufier’s 1782 voyage Pittoresque de la Grece, an engraving entitled ‘Greece in chains’, in which Greece, allegedly as a beautiful but manacled woman, reclines upon a tomb in a cemetery dotted with monuments to such great men of antiquity as Lycurgus, Miltiades, and Themistocles. The image captures perfectly the Romantic vision of Greece as noble but faded, glorious yet much reduced, enslaved but poised to be free once more. Also quintessential of Romantic Philhellenism is the explicit link the image draws between the modern Greeks of the late Ottoman period and the Hellenic greats of antiquity. In the years just prior to and during the Greek War of Independence, countless such images were in wide circulation in Western Europe – the most famous perhaps, being, those of Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863), the consummate representative of French Romantic philhellenism. This cultural trend worked hand in hand with the political development in the Ottoman Empire to fuel growing interests within Europe for Greece and the modern Greeks. While the travel accounts penned by ‘grand tourists’ were hugely popular, the apparent military and economic decline of the Ottoman Empire commanded huge attention, particularly in Britain, which felt that British imperial fortunes were tied to the political status quo. While the Congress of Vienna (1814-15), which concluded the Napoleonic Wars, emphasized the need to keep the Ottoman Empire intact, growing numbers of Philhellenes felt that the special cultural link between Greece and the West demanded intervention on behalf of the Greeks under Ottoman rule. In this debate, philhellenic position would ultimately dominate, with Britain ending up a major backer of the Greek struggle and the subsequently formed Greek state. The wide circulation of a number of Western works which had as their central theme the exoticisms and depravities of the Ottomans (and the plight of the noble Greeks who suffered beneath their rule) furthered the scope of philhellenism, to the extent that general sentiment in Europe gradually overcame the initial political position of

European governments regarding the Greek War of Independence. Lord Byron, Francois August Rene de Chateaubriand and Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe are the best known creators of such works, but a veritable plethora of lesser-known, musical, literary and artistic figures followed the themes popularized by them. Philhellenism is properly understood as a reflection not of any reality concerning Greece and the Greeks, but rather as the manifestation of a purely European, and not entirely magnanimous, impulse. That is to say, the passionate response with which the Greek War of Independence was met in the West was less a reflection of European love of the modern Greeks than of European love of the idea that Western Civilization as a whole could be traced back to Pericles-era Athens.” (“Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era 1760 – 1850”, edited by Christopher John Murray, Volume 2 L-Z index, page 872). It is not common to create “ethnic identities” for “political reasons” in order to have a modern civilization mimicking a dead and long gone culture. Ethnic identities are living and vibrant entities that grow and evolve over time and are naturally bound together without “politically motivated” pressures. One cannot create an instant “ethnic identity” just as one cannot create an instant family by putting a bunch of strangers together and calling them grandparents, parents and children. A fake “ethnic identity” is like a fake family which has no real relationships, no real family tree and no real history. It’s made up, like the Brady Bunch on television, to serve a specific purpose! But behind the scenes each individual person belongs to a “real” family, has a “real” mother and father and a “real” family tree and history. Sort of like the various ethnic groups, the Slavs, Albanians, Macedonians, Asia Minor Christian Turks and other ethnicities constituting the fictional “Greek” family. If there was a purpose for Europeans to “feel Greek” at one time, as per the quote above, that “feeling” is no longer there so then I ask you, “What is the purpose of Greece today?” Does it serve as a “model of Civilization for the New Europe?” Or is Greece a “remnant” of something “old and embracing” whose time has long passed and should have, like the dinosaurs, died a long time ago? The world is evolving like it should and in more cases than not, taking steps forward, but not Greece. The more Greece moves forward the more it falls behind. Greeks, the need to pretend to be “ethnically homogeneous” is no longer there. There is no need to pretend to be superior, arrogant, or “better” than your neighbour. Frankly nobody cares about your obsessions. Like all things in life, everything has its time and the time

for “pretending” is over. It’s time to face reality and take your place with the rest of the world! You realize that your “fake” identity would have never been revealed had you done the right thing and accepted the Macedonian identity for what it is. Through the stubbornness of your political leaders you not only “wiped out” the image of your “Greek-ness” that you spent two centuries building but you have revealed to the world your true “racist” selves which you had managed to hide for over two centuries now. But, this is only the beginning, next will come the “revelation” of the atrocities that you have committed against the Macedonian and other people who lived and died in agony in Greece since those lands became a country for the first time in 1829. After all that is revealed, how many people in the world do you think will see Greece as the “cradle of democracy” or as the birthplace of the “European Civilization” as opposed to “the cradle of oppression and racism”? Greece was built as a country and the modern Greeks were paraded as “the cradle of European Civilization” for a single purpose; to show the world that “Western Europe” was not only “civilized” but far superior to the rest. Europeans found a model in the “Ancient City States” that not only “explained” their “imperialistic war like behaviour” but venerated it and made it “okay” to “enslave” people and “colonize” their lands. Politically Greece, the way it is today, is an “ancient relic” whose time has expired and belongs in a museum together with “Mussolini’s Italy and Hitler’s Germany”! But it is never too late to “evolve” peacefully and bring positive change with “amends” to past mistakes!

And now I leave you with this;

Dear All,

I am drawing on my 'Macedonian experience' here to guide both my aim to end the “Name” negotiations between Greece and Macedonia immediately, and to bring to light a movement for change in Macedonia, and elsewhere. There are issues of human rights at stake, our Macedonian nationality happens to be at stake, and issues of power at play. It is a simple point, but one that needs to be made. The fact is that as Macedonians we are a legal entity, we have our Republic of Macedonia, and we are certainly legitimate. We are recognized by over 125 countries, and with time that number will rise. Our institutions will in time receive the due recognition they deserve, and have coming to

them. It is simply a matter of time. Both this government and UMD in Washington have over reached. The value and weight they place on "membership" is not justified. A far more sensible look at the situation suggests that the Macedonian economy and nationality can gain as much, and far more, by pursuing bilateral relations. Good economic relations will have positive political outcomes for the Macedonian Republic, but the shortsightedness of the government suggests it has panicked, or failed to consider alternative workable strategies with real long term benefits. The current line of thinking that we cannot claim to be complete as a legal and legitimate nationality, until we have attained EU and/or NATO membership, is also a dangerous, and irresponsible train of thought. It needs to be justified, or put to rest immediately, both in the government, and at the lunatic fringe of the Diaspora. What recent experience demonstrates is that we can have most of the benefits offered by these organizations, and 'not' be an official member of them, or irresponsibly risk our Macedonian nationality to get there. I believe the time has come for another change in our approach to the "problem". The fact is that the Macedonians do not pose a military threat to Greece, and they do not pose an economic threat to Greece. The "threat" if one is to be identified here, is perhaps political, or ideological. It is worth recalling another fact. The Macedonians respect and recognize unreservedly the sovereignty of the Greek State, and its right to self determination. Is it too much to ask the Greeks to in turn do the same? What can we glean from this fact about the nature of the current "dispute"? The "problem" if we need to identify one (and I believe we do), is an issue internal to Greece. The long standing issues Greece has with its landscape, is the issue. It is simply exporting its policies that have subjugated various communities in Greece, for 150 years over the border. But this is not intended to be a backward looking historical exercise. My point is this. For there to be peace Greece must change, not the Macedonians. There is another key point to be made here. For Greece to change, the EU must change. That is unlikely to happen in the short term. This last point raises the question of who or what are we up against here - Greece, or the EU, or both? There is the "system" of negation to consider here. My advice would be that it is not "smart" to engage an entire system at one point on the surface of it, believing that one can change the whole system, beneath and behind it. The political will and the power, the amount of resources Greece has mobilized to turn our "non-existence" into a metaphoric and transformative reality is vast,

and old. It is a system rooted in the policies and practice of Europe, against the Macedonians going back a hundred years. Consider for example, the recent statement by an EU official, who referred to us as "Northern Macedonia". We cannot, and should not try to take on these old social structures. As long as Greece stays the way it is, we will always have problems. It would be far more sensible and logical to bring the faults of Greece to the attention of the EU (and highlight the faults of the EU in that way). But for that to happen, we need to be principled. We need to ask that our sovereignty and our rights, be respected. I want to add another aspect in this survey for political change. Macedonian democracy respects the cultural rights of its various communities. Greece does not. The attitude in Macedonia is that these communities enrich its society, rather than threaten it. In Greece, everyone and everything is a threat. Now, given this fact - why does the EU insist on "blocking" Macedonia? If we were to measure the quality of a State by how it treats its minorities, and based EU membership on those criteria, Macedonia would be at the top of the list. The point to be made here is that the EU is not a functional organization. Its uneven-handedness, and even ridicule of Macedonia and its institutions, is about favoring Greece - not about diligence or compliance. Shouldn't there be a protocol in the EU that states that members, whose human rights practices are not up to standard, have their privileges 'suspended'? There are many possibilities we could pursue here. The EU, and the UN, have both taken positions that are contrary to their Charters, and have shown to favor aggressive, irrational member states, over obedient, compliant ones. Why would we want to be a 'member' in principle - of that? As Macedonians, we are ideological outlaws, in a very small circle of nations. There is the rest of the world at our fingertips. We have our nation now, and we have our nationality. Are we going to let all that generations of Macedonians have accomplished, and sacrificed, end in a terrible disaster? Why are we putting our nationality at risk? There are native movements all over the world who would love to be in our position, and defend their nationality with all of their might and power. I can think of the Palestinians, for starters. Why risk it? We have seen that individuals are willing to do that. I would call them reckless, and more dangerous than anything an enemy has been able to throw at us. The only people who can take our nationality away from us, are the Macedonians (and if it comes to a second referendum, the Albanians I am certain, will have the final say in the matter). This last event is completely lost on people, but it will eventuate.

Will our fight for a Macedonian nationality end in a historical scenario where we no longer have one? We must rethink whether "membership" is justified and right for us, when clearly we can enjoy many of the benefits of being an EU member, without actually having to negotiate our nationality and put all at risk, to get there. By Paul from http://www.maknews.com/forum.

Essay 38 – Who writes my books?

Just as I was about to end this book and go on to something new, there was something else that drew me back. This is the third time I ran into this so I figured it was time I dealt with it. There are some rumours out there circulating that I don’t write my own books. The reasoning behind it is “how can one person write so many book in such a short time?” So far I have completed twenty-two books in total. Twelve published, three translated from Macedonian to English one on its way being published in Macedonia. I am currently working on finishing another translation. One book I co-authored with Dr. Michael Seraphinoff and another with Dr. Shkokliev and Mr. Katin. One was translated from English to Macedonian and a thousand copies were donated to the Macedonian cause. One was specifically written for non-Macedonians and one thousand copies were donated to politicians throughout the world. Two were donated to a Literary Association in Australia and they in turn published and printed one thousand copies of each for educational purposes. One, a forty page pamphlet, was also written for the Macedonian cause and one thousand copies were printed to be given away, it too was currently translated from English to Macedonian. I not only write these books but I also published most of them myself. So the question was “how can one person write so many books in a span of less than ten years?” But that’s not all! In addition to writing books I also write occasional articles for a couple of newspapers, one in Toronto and another in Australia, I translate articles and entire books from Macedonian to English and I publish a monthly e-magazine called the “Macedonian Digest”. On top of that I also write weekly articles for the “American Chronicle”. But how can I do all this, after all I am a “Slav” and “incapable of amounting to anything?” So my Greek friends tell me! Oh, they also say I do it for “the money!!!” So the geniuses gathering in the donut shops, with nothing better to do, “figure” it must be “someone else” who writes my articles and books. But the question is who? I don’t know who started these rumours but I first heard of them from a Macedonian, the kind that hangs around “donut shops”. You know who you are! The first time I ran into this rumour was about a year ago. I heard it from a person I have known to be Macedonian but I was not quite sure which way he leaned deep in his heart, Macedonian or Grkoman? His

question, which he asked me on two separate occasions, was; “Who writes your books? Come on tell me, who writes your books?” In both instances I was caught by surprise and did not even comprehend its implication. Come on, what kind of a question is that? The second time, a statement was made to my face by a known Grkoman, whom I have known for years. He said “You are ‘Slavs’ and have nothing to do with the Macedonians and as ‘Slavs’ are incapable of comprehending the complexities of academics. Show me a ‘Slav’ who is capable of writing books?” Ironically he said this in full view of all my books displayed in front of him. Again I ignored his comment because I knew where it was coming from. My only concern for him was that he was about to be lynched by a number of Macedonians who overheard him. When asked to explain himself he started babbling Greek propaganda. The third time I heard the rumour was from a “reliable Macedonian” who hangs around a certain group of Macedonians at a certain “donut shop”. I know these people and they know me so I find it surprising that they would be circulating such rumours. The person who told me about this would not disclose any details as to who said what mainly because these guys are his friends and he did not want to embarrass them by naming them. But I know who they are and after this they too will know that I know! Because they know that I work alone, these “clever geniuses” also know that Risto Stefov is the genuine article and not a composite made up of multiple writers. So their conclusion was that “my wife must be writing my books for me!” No disrespect to my wife but upon hearing this I laughed m.a. off. Guys my wife is a nurse, a graduate of the University of Toronto Faculty Of Nursing, not a graduate from the Faculty of “Macedonian History!” You all know my wife is also Canadian, a Westerner, who had never heard of Macedonia before she met me. How does that make her an accomplished historian or even a mediocre historian? And where do you “geniuses” place me in the “scheme of things”? Am I in this just for the glory of putting my name on the books and articles while my wife slaves away, day and night, writing books and articles for me? She doesn’t speak Macedonian so how do you geniuses explain the Macedonian to English translations? Have any of you ever translated an entire book? It’s not that easy! When I told my wife about this I figured she would be happy to be placed so high on a pedestal. To my surprise however she was not happy at all. In fact she pointed out and rightly so, that “we are our own

worst enemies!” “Instead of encouraging and praising such accomplishments we find ways to destroy them.” I know you didn’t start these rumours (at least I hope you didn’t) but why do you have the need to propagate them? And not just rumours about me but about many things Macedonian? How can we expect to move forward or surface above our own crapulence, if we can’t even get our act together? Why do we continue “business as usual” without comprehending the damage we are doing to our cause? Do you think spreading “unfounded” rumours and “unsubstantiated” allegations will make you “more patriotic” Macedonians? How does “denigrating” Macedonians “help” the Macedonian cause? I have seen so many young Macedonian patriots “quit” fighting for the Macedonian cause simply because of stupid things like this! As for me, I choose to work alone, voluntarily and without compensation. I am not a composite and I do write my own articles and books. If you don’t believe me you can believe what you like. I have made many personal sacrifices to do this and expect nothing in return, no praise and no recognition. And thank God for that because so far I have received very little. But on the contrary I have received much abuse and not just from the Greeks, but also from Macedonians, even from some who beat their chests and call themselves “patriots”. But I have to admit I am not alone in this endeavour, there are many Macedonians out there, to whom I am thankful, who help me with my research and send me source materials for my books and articles. They encourage me to continue to write and in return I will not disappoint them. I will not allow this “small-mindedness” to stop me from what I am doing! In fact the more abuse I receive the more I am encouraged to write. It reminds me why I am doing it! The only reward I want is to see Macedonians proudly proclaim who they truly are, Macedonians, without shame, fear and without having to cringe and feel awkward when they are asked “what ethnicity are you?” Especially by Greeks! It was difficult for me to write this essay, since I have sworn not to take up “words” against fellow Macedonians, but I felt it was necessary to write it because there is a need to look at ourselves and our attitudes towards one another! If we can’t manage to pull together because of our “low opinions” of ourselves how then can we expect to escape from the clutches of our oppressors? If we can’t recognize when we are lead by our noses and made to “unjustly criticize” one another how then can we speak with a single voice and justly struggle to free ourselves from our enemies? Every Macedonian must learn and understand that our enemies, particularly the Greeks, work on many levels. Lies and rumours are not

beyond them. Those Macedonians who like to repeat what they hear must learn to “weigh the evidence” and determine if it is “for” or “against” our cause and then act on it appropriately. God gave us brains, let’s use them and not just for “parroting” everything we hear. I am sorry to have to say this but some of you gave me good reasons to speak up! It is never good to speak against Macedonians, especially about things that are not true. And it would not hurt to challenge those who do speak foul and put them in their place! Now if you wish to know what the Greeks think of me, here is an un-edited example of the type of abusive e-mails I get every day; “Comrade Risto and all your compatriots need to know and put it in their thick and stubborn heads that they are not the phony descendants of Alexander the Great because the Macedonians never produced bastard descendants with South Slavonian identity and the their fraudulent claim that they are <Macedonians> is a BIG MYTH that only an insane, paranoid and schizophrenic person would say or think. Risto, you are nothing more than a <Macedonized> South Slavonian janissary and one of the worst the world has ever seen. You are a miserable Makedoman but very hateful and hostile to the people you came from just like the Ottoman Turk janissaries were towards the people the came from. When I say you are not <Macedonian> I am not taking anything away from you or denying an identity that belongs to you or your comrades because, if there was a time that you might have called yourself a <Macedonian> you lost that right when you denied your Hellenism just like the rest of you <Macedonized> South Slavonian janissaries. You gambled and you lost. You cannot have both ways. The Macedonian name has only one meaning and does designate two people with two different ethnic origins. The Macedonian Greek people cannot be duplicated by any charlatan like yourself and the rest of your comrades. Get it through your thick skull of yours that if you think you can change reality or rather the Macedonian Greek actuality. All the lies, misleading distortions, deceptions and fraud and forgery can be only good for internal consumption or for fooling the idiots who listen to you because of ignorance, lack of education and simple lack of historical and ethnic knowledge of the Greek people and their nation.”

Nick H.

Perhaps Nick H. was looking at his own reflection in the mirror when he was writing this e-mail. The more fanatical these Greeks get the more they reveal themselves. Nick H. speaks of the “Macedonians being a big myth” when we know very well that it is the Modern Greeks who are the biggest myth. He calls the Macedonians “janissaries” when he knows that the Modern Greeks are the true janissaries, the little bullies of the Balkans! If he doesn’t then he should also know that the Modern Greeks are the true “adopted” children of Western Imperialism which makes them more janissaries than anyone else in Europe! The words in Nick H’s e-mail ring truer of the “fake” Hellenes than of any Macedonians I have ever known. “When the Macedonians became rulers of Greece, Athens had twenty-one thousand citizens, ten thousand resident aliens, and four hundred thousand slaves.” (“Race of Mongrel”, by Alfred P. Schultz, page 86) “The resident aliens were mainly Aryan-Hametic-Semetic-Egyptian-Negroid mongrels. Mongrelization was inevitable.” (“Race of Mongrel”, by Alfred P. Schultz, page 87) “The truth is that Hellenic varnish was given to the East and that Hellas became Asianized, the Greek race thoroughly mongrelized and completely destroyed. The mongrelization of Hellas put an end to the true Hellenic spirit…” (“Race of Mongrel”, by Alfred P. Schultz, page 88). “Sultan Mohammed II settled Turks in the Peloponnesus…. The ‘Greeks’ are the descendents of races so different that their crossing can never produce anything else than human mongrels.” (“Race of Mongrel”, by Alfred P. Schultz, page 92).

Essay 39 – Ilinden 1903

Before the formation of the independent and sovereign state the Republic of Macedonia in 1991, before the formation of the Peoples’ Republic of Macedonia in the Yugoslav Federation of Republics in 1945 and even before Macedonia’s partition by Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria in 1913, the Macedonian people came together and rose in 1903 against their oppressors the Ottoman Empire in a bid to free themselves and create a united, free and independent Macedonian state. Termed by some as the greatest rebellion in Europe since the French Revolution, the people of Macedonia violently rose on Ilinden, August 2nd, 1903 and rebelled against the Ottoman Empire. It was a grass roots revolution like no other involving ordinary people from ordinary villages but with extraordinary courage. Their desire was to live free in their own independent state. Unfortunately it was not to be but only because of circumstances beyond their control. Today is August 2nd, 2009, the 106th anniversary of that famous Ilinden Uprising and to celebrate it I would like to dedicate the following essay entitled “The Course of the Ilinden Uprising” written by Dr. Krste Bitovski and edited by Risto Stefov; After visiting several of the regions in the Bitola Revolutionary District and finding out more about the situation and the preparations for the popular uprising, the General Staff, towards the end of July 1903, decided to meet near the village Smilevo for the purpose of drafting and distributing a proclamation announcing the start of the Uprising. In part the proclamation said: “Death is a thousand times better than a life of misery. The day has been decided when the people from all of Macedonia and Odrin must come together with guns in hand to meet the enemy. That day is Ilinden, August 2nd, 1903. Down with tyranny! Long live the people, long live freedom!” The day of the uprising remained an absolute secret from the Ottoman authorities. Not a single copy of the proclamation, which couriers carried to the leaders of the six boroughs in the Bitola Revolutionary District, fell into the hands of the authorities. The enemy was caught by surprise, and this was of enormous significance for the initial success of the Uprising. On August 1st the General Staff sent their final instructions to all the leaders which stated that the uprising was to begin on the evening of August 2nd during the Sv. Ilija (St. Elias) or Ilinden festival – which is why it was called the “Ilinden Uprising”. It had been made clear that battles would have to be fought partisan style using terrorist and anarchist tactics, which meant in practice forming small military detachments to go into simultaneous action in all parts of the District. It

was also recommended that the insurgents not engage in long battles with all their forces concentrated, in order to avoid offering the Ottoman troops the chance to do major damage. The longer the uprising lasted the greater the chances were – in the General Staff's opinion – that there would be European powers military intervention. The rebel detachments were instructed to only attack the small Ottoman garrisons stationed in the Christian villages and also to surprise government posts, border towers and similar buildings, but the Ottoman women and children were not to be touched. The proclamation also stated in part that: "We are taking up arms against tyranny and inhumanity and we are fighting in the name of liberty and freedom. Those who suffer in the dark empire of the Sultan are our brothers. Today all Christian people and Ottoman peasants are unjustly treated and made to suffer. We have a common enemy and that is the Ottoman government…" The representative body of the Organization in Sofia also took part and informed the world public that the uprising had begun through a declaration issued by the Central Committee of the Internal Organization. A justification for the Uprising was also given explaining that the Christian population had no choice but to rise up against the Sultan’s tyrannical power. The Uprising in the Bitola Revolutionary District began on August 2nd, 1903 as was planned. The Borough of Bitola, the largest borough of the District, was divided into the following Regions: Krushevo, Gjavato, the Bitola plain, Demirhisar, Resen and Prespa (Lower Prespa). The battle for the liberation of Krushevo and the declaration of the Krushevo Republic were the most glorious events in the history of the Ilinden Uprising. The Gjavato Region covered the area between the villages Capari, Gjavato, Smilevo and the Bigla Mountain; the centre for this Region was the village Smilevo. The start of the uprising was in fact proclaimed in Smilevo in the presence of the General Staff. On the night of August 2nd, 1903 two hundred rebels attacked a garrison of eighty Ottoman soldiers, while in other parts the rebels burned all the houses of the Ottoman Beys, cut the telephone lines and destroyed the bridges on the road between Bitola and Resen. In the Bufkol Region, which was closest to Bitola, the rebels set fire to haystacks to let the people of Bitola know that the Uprising had begun. The Demirhisar Region was one of the best organized and provided nearly a thousand armed insurgents. These insurgents attacked the Ottoman garrisons in a number of villages and one of the most famous battles fought was that in the village Karbunitsa, near Kichevo. After