Conclusion - Part 01

Conclusion

Whatever the rational may have been for starting the second armed struggle in Greece, later termed the “Greek Civil War”, it did not end well for the Macedonian people. Was it planned or accidental, we will never know for sure. All we know is that it ended with the annihilation of the Macedonian people and all we can do at this juncture is examine what happened and try and draw conclusions from it. Given that the Communist Party of Greece (CPG) was responsible for leading and guiding the struggle and given how its top leadership treated the Macedonian people we can safely say that it did not have their best interest at heart. The CPG was responsible for the safety and security of the Macedonian people and it let them down. In fact given how Zahariadis and his cronies tried to blame the loss of the struggle on the Macedonian fighters, is indicative of the CPG’s attitude towards the Macedonian people. The CPG was neither a good leader nor cared for the Macedonians. But this should not be a surprise to anyone anyway given how Greeks behave towards the Macedonians in general. When the CPG and its partners needed the Macedonians to spill their blood they offered them equality and rights but as soon as that need passed the offer was slowly withdrawn. The moment the Macedonian people showed unity and strength the CPG and its partners took action to dissolve it. Every time Macedonians showed strong leadership the CPG and its partners made sure that leadership was removed and the people behind it were vilified. This is how the CPG and its partners acted towards the Macedonians and this is how they will be remembered by the Macedonian people. The CPG top leadership and its partners, for unknown reasons, sold out to the Republicans and Royalists at Varkiza. Then knowing full well that it would be impossible for them to win the war, especially since the Republicans and Royalists were backed by Great Powers Britain and the USA, the Democrats gave their support to initiate a second struggle. In retrospect, intentionally or by accident, by initiating the second struggle the CPG achieved two objectives; (1) it lead the democratic movement in Greece to its destruction and (2) it cleansed Greek occupied Macedonia of its Macedonian population, which had been a Greek aim since Greece acquired Macedonian territories and people in 1912, 1913. So what exactly did the CPG and its partners achieve in Greece that can be considered positive? Absolutely nothing! The way the CPG top leadership and its partners handled the second struggle would lead one to believe that they were working for the British and Americans. The British and Americans wanted to root out the communists from Greece and the Greek Republicans and Royalists wanted to eradicate the Macedonians in

Greek occupied Macedonia. Apparently the CPG top leadership and its partners succeeded in doing both for them. In spite of all the promises made to reward them for their effort, including those for fulfilling of the Atlantic Charter, the Macedonians in Greece received nothing. Ironically, for their vast sacrifices to free Greece and make it a better place to live, the Macedonians were “reduced” in numbers like never before. Entire villages were wiped out and reduced to rubble and even those that were not bombed were robbed of their population. First it was the 28,000 refugee children ages 2 to 14, all removed from the villages supposedly for their own safety. Removed under the premise that they would be returned as soon as the war was over and the Democrats won. No mention was ever made of what would happen if the Democrats did not win. Then it was the villagers, pregnant women, the very young and the very old who fled to Albania to save themselves from the Greek bombs. But once they crossed the border they were told they were not welcome to return. And finally it was also the fighters, many of whom spilled blood to free Greece, who once they crossed the border were told they could never return. Sixty years later they are still not welcome in Greece, not them not even their children. Eradicating the Macedonian population was always Greece’s plan but no one would have guessed that it would be the communists who would succeed in doing it. I can’t say with any certainty that this was the “communist plan” but I guess in this case results speak better than words. It is usually customary for a country to account for its people, even if it considers them to be criminals, but not Greece. Greece has not published any statistics to show how many people it exiled or how many it killed during the dreaded civil war. Greece did not even have the decency to bury its dead citizens, some of whose bones to this day litter the mountainside. Most societies honour their fallen, especially those who fought for change and to better their lives and those of their countrymen, but not Greece. Thousands of Macedonian Partisans, young men and women cut down in their prime, rest in unmarked mass graves waiting to be forgotten by the passing of time. How do the Greeks honour the Macedonian fighters who gave their lives to better Greece? They honoured them by burning their villages, exiling their living relatives and by denying them their most basic human rights. There is no justice for the Macedonians in Greece, not for the dead whose bones and skulls to this day litter the countryside waiting to be buried and not for the living who were ejected from their homeland sixty years ago and are now roaming the Diaspora still unwelcome to return. As much as I want to agree with the Greeks and say the Macedonians indeed fought for an independent and united Macedonia, because that would have been my wish, the facts however tell a different story. There were no battles ever registered of Macedonians fighting against the Greeks between 1939 and 1949. Outside of a number of small armed groups instigated by the Italian and Bulgarian Fascists there were no Macedonians openly calling for an uprising against the Greeks. It has always being the wish of the Macedonian people to live free and independent but never have they ever risen against any of their occupiers be it Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, or Albania. The Macedonians in Greece would have been content, as the Macedonians in Yugoslavia were, if they were granted human and national rights and the right to form a Macedonian republic as part of a Greek federation. Unfortunately that did not happen. The Greeks did not trust the Macedonians and acted on their worst fear, the fear that they may lose their precious Macedonia which by the way they acquired by force of arms in 1912, 1913 and against the wishes of the Macedonian people. And what is wrong with wanting to be free? If the Greeks were less oppressive and a little less paranoid and gave the Macedonians a bit of freedom then perhaps there would have been less anxiety and worry about losing Macedonia.

The Macedonians would not have a reason to want to separate. Unfortunately with time the “Greek shackle” has only tightened. What did the second armed struggle mean for the Macedonian people? Outside of losing most of the Macedonian civilian population to exile, more than 13,000 Macedonian fighters lost their lives and thousands more were executed by the military courts in Enidzhe-Vardar, Lerin, Ber, Kozheni and Solun. Thousands more were maimed in the government sponsored torture rooms and jails in Edi-Kule, in Solun, in Corfu, Ajstrati, Gavdos, Folegandros and other places. Hundreds more contracted tuberculosis and died in the Makronisos and Gjura concentration camps. Many more went mad from physical and physiological torture and those who did survive were further humiliated by being forced to take a “pledge of loyalty”. This is what the Macedonians gained by helping Greece free itself from its occupiers. Those 45,000 or so civilian Macedonians who fled Greece to only save themselves from the Greek bombs are now permanent refuges and political emigrants. The properties and homes which they owned for centuries were confiscated and given to “Greeks with proven national feelings”. And after all which has happened and is happening to this day, Greece still calls itself a democracy! All that the Macedonian people wanted since 1913, since they found themselves under Greek control, was to be recognized as equal citizens of the country to which they paid their taxes and served as soldiers. What danger will Greece face if it recognizes its minorities and awards them their ethnic and national rights as prescribed by international law? What danger will Greece face if the Macedonians are allowed to speak their mother tongue without fear of repercussion, to have their own Macedonian schools, churches and cultural organizations? Absolutely none! In fact quite the opposite may happen. By recognizing its ethnic minorities Greece will surely receive their sympathies and support. Its recognition will reassure the minorities that they are valuable citizens and that their sacrifices were not in vain and Greece will finally earn the right to call itself a democracy. Before closing this story there are a few remaining questions that need to be asked. Did the West, particularly the USA, Canada and Australia, participate in the removal of communists from Greece after the Greek Civil War? It is well known that many “known communists” were expelled from the USA and Canada during the 1950’s. I have also been informed that at the same time supposed communists from Greece, who wanted to immigrate to Canada, the USA and Australia, were allowed to leave Greece and were given sealed files to take with them. These sealed files were to be presented to the various customs officials where these people landed. It is alleged that the files contained personal information on these individuals, parts of which alleged them to be communists. After landing in the destination country many of these individuals were required to report to their local police stations and those who inquired why were told because Greece had classified them as communists. Some of these so-called communists however were not communists at all but simply Macedonians. So the questions that need to be asked here are (1) “Did Greece continue to exile Macedonians from Greece under the pretence that they were communists?” And (2) “Were the USA, Canada and Australia aware that these Macedonians were not communists at all and were exiled simply because they felt Macedonian?”

Ilija Dimovski – Gotse (1909-1961) - Aspiring for a Free and United Macedonia

Ilija Dimovski – Gotse after World War II, took the name Gotse Delchev, a well known revolutionary who fought for the freedom of Macedonia, a name well connected with the evolutionary process in the struggle for freedom for the people of Aegean (Greek occupied) Macedonia. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was one of the most distinguished leaders of the Macedonian National Movement to emerge from the Aegean (Greek occupied) part of Macedonia, not only during the war period from 1939 to 1949 but also during the remainder of his life. He was a true Macedonian patriot who remained committed to the ideals and aspirations of his people who had a long desire to see a free and independent Macedonia. His name is enshrined in the annals of Macedonian history and has become synonymous with bravery in the struggle for freedom for the Macedonian people. According to a high ranking Greek Partisan who was attending a Greek Communist Party meeting in October 1944, Ilija Dimovski - Gotse made the following statement: “My sole purpose in life is to fight for the freedom of Aegean Macedonia and to see all of Macedonia united and free. I will fight all who stand in my way, including the Greek Communist Party and Stalin himself if I have to”. Ilija was seriously committed to the Macedonian cause and truly upheld Gotse Delchev’s ideals, which he had learned from his father. Ilija was one of the first Macedonians to take up arms against the fascists during which time he chose the alias “Gotse”. Since then at home and abroad, by friend and by foe he became forever known as Ilija Dimovski – Gotse. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was born in the village Statitsa, Kostur Region, in the year 1909. He came from a revolutionary family. His father Stevo was actively involved in previous conflicts including the 1903 Ilinden Uprising. He is credited for participating in the assassination of Pavlos Melas, a well known notorious Greek armed bandit. Melas was killed in Statitsa, in Stevo’s native village, on October 14th, 1904. In 1913, to escape persecution from the Greeks, Stevo and his family left their beloved Macedonia and immigrated to America where they remained until 1918. With the money he earned in America, upon his return home Stevo purchased a house and opened a bakery in Lerin which became a place of employment for his young son Ilija. Soon after returning home from America Stevo again became involved in the struggle for the freedom of Macedonia, this time against a new oppressor and in more drastic circumstances. Between the two World Wars the Dimovski family became involved in the workers movements organized by the democrats, as did numerous other Macedonian families in Aegean Macedonia. Because of his activities in 1925, Stevo was accused of participating in the bombing of the “Dietnes” hotel in Lerin and was imprisoned by the Greek government. The following year, in 1926, young Ilija was also accused of committing acts against the state and he too was imprisoned. In 1928 when he was of military age, because of his progressive ideals and activities, he was enlisted by the Communist Party of Greece. Unfortunately again because of his noteworthy political activities, in 1932 he was charged with the famous antidemocratic law of being “Idionimos” (a communist without calling it such) and was imprisoned on the desolate Aistrati island concentration camp. After he was freed from prison Ilija joined the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – United (IMRO-U) and continued his political activities. With the arrival of the General Yannis Metaxas Monarcho-Fascist dictatorship on August 4, 1936 in Greece, Ilija was again persecuted by the Greek authorities. To avoid another jail sentence Ilija fled to Serres where he took on a job as labourer. Unfortunately the authorities again caught up with him and captured and jailed him on the island of Folerandros where he remained until 1938. In 1939 he was again captured and jailed. When Italy declared war on Greece on October 28, 1940, Ilija, because of his political affiliations, was sent to fight on the frontlines against the Italians.

With the capitulation of Greece in April 1941, Ilija returned to Lerin where he again continued his revolutionary activities. He made connections with the old democrats who had returned from the Greek prison camps and from the frontlines and again began to organize new political organizations and resistance movements. He also became involved in procuring and amassing arms, ammunition and other war materials including those the Greek military left behind on the Italian front in Albania. He formed a saboteur group called “Tsrna Raka” (“Black Arm”) in order to carry out acts of sabotage against the new occupiers (Germans, Italians and Bulgarians). In the opinion of some functionaries from the Communist Party of Greece, Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, during the first year of the German-Italian occupation, was responsible and was to be blamed for the confusion regarding the Macedonian national question. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse however was more concerned with the new division of Macedonia between Germany, Bulgaria and Italy which represented yet another misfortune for the Macedonian people. Macedonia’s new partition into three parts brought on by the three occupiers now represented yet another obstacle to Macedonia’s reunifying struggle. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was determined to fight to free and unite Macedonia. In 1941 a Partisan functionary for the Lerin and wider region named Stratos Kentros, among other things said: “The Slavo-Macedonians do not recognize any party or national organization outside of the Greek Communist Party. There is some confusion however between the Slavo-Macedonian leaders including Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, as to how Macedonia was to be re-united especially Greek-Macedonia with the other Macedonia which was occupied by Bulgaria. After the reunification they will definitely ask for independence for the entire Macedonia. We worked tirelessly to first bring agreement between the Slavo-Macedonian leaders, and after that we worked on the common people. To do this successfully we brought Lazo Trpovski, a functionary of the Macedonian bureau of the Communist Party of Greece, to help us. Lazo Trpovski was in charge and oversaw our party organizations.” Similar statements about Macedonian efforts to reunite Macedonia and Ilija Dimovski – Gotse’s involvement can also be found in other Greek Communist Party documents. In 1941 a bid was made by the Bulgarian People’s Communist Party to take over the Macedonian party organization in the Vardar part of Macedonia. The same bid was also made in Aegean (Greek occupied) Macedonia in 1941 when Hristo Kalajdzhiev arrived in Lerin and made contact with Ilija Dimovski – Gotse. Aware of the latest Bulgarian communist tactics Ilija Dimovski – Gotse intervened and strongly objected to the takeover rendering Kalajdzhiev’s mission unsuccessful. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse had already made contact with the Peoples’ Liberation Organization in the Vardar side of Macedonia and was already working with them. Early in 1941 Ilija Dimovski – Gotse illegally crossed the border to Bitola and established links with the Bitola Region Party Organization. Then in late 1941 early 1942 an illegal courier service was established between Bitola and Lerin. According to unconfirmed sources, Ilija Dimovski – Gotse organized and participated in various meetings with Kuzman Josifovski – Pitu, Steve Naumov, Orde Chopela and others. During one of these meetings, which took place in the village Oshchima in the summer of 1944, representatives of the Vardar Macedonian Organization asked if they could have their Partisan Units stay in the Vicho-Gramos region if necessary, but the traitor Nikos Puptis, of the regional committee of the Communist Party of Greece for Kostur Region, said no, explaining that “such an act would expose the people in the region to reprisals from the occupier.” Ilija Dimovski – Gotse received much praise from the fighters of Bitola Region for the care he showed towards them. With the break in the conflict during the month of April, 1942 more and more fighters began to join the ranks of the Partisans which lead to the formation of the “Pelister” detachment on May 3rd, 1942.

In September of

the same year an even larger number of fighters and activists from Bitola were given orders to cross the border into Lerin and become involved in the conflict. During their stay in Lerin they were well looked after by Macedonian patriots and by Iljia Dimovski – Gotse who was responsible for their security and for their provisions and other needs. Here is what Gavro Panovski had to say in his texts: “…the detachment ‘Yane Sandanski’ in the first days of December 1942 crossed over the border and held out for several days in the village Opsirino, Lerin Region. Our fighters were welcomed by the local community and by Ilija Dimovski – Gotse. The local people were all followers and supporters of our movement…” Besides fighting against the Fascist occupier, the fighters from Aegean (Greek occupied) Macedonia were leading an exhausting fight against the armed counter-bands (local bands organized and armed by the Italians), particularly in the Lerin and Kostur Regions, which were eventually disarmed with help from the Macedonian fighters from Vardar Macedonia. On account of Ilija Domovski – Gotse’s participation and contribution in the National Struggle for Liberation in Vardar Macedonia, he earned a Partisan honourable mention in 1941. After long indecision, the Communist Party of Greece, during the Second World Conference held in December 1942, finally decided to lead a massive armed struggle against the occupier. Based on that decision, in early 1943 a number of Partisans were deployed in groups in Lerin Region, among whom was Ilija Dimovski – Gotse. According to one source on February 28th, according to another on March 1st, 1943, the Partisan detachment “Vicho”, lead by Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, was formed in the village Lagen. A few days later Bitola Partisans from Vardar Macedonia also joined the Vicho detachment. Among those included were the brothers Anesti and Gavro Panovski, Trajche Gruevski and Kole Stefanovski. The Vicho detachment represented a practical expression of the brotherly cooperation between the freedom movements in Aegean and Vardar Macedonia, a detachment formed by Macedonians from two regions. Here is what Lazo Hadzhi Popovski had to say: “During the winter of 1942 when a number of Macedonians from Vardar Macedonia, belonging to the ‘Pelister’, ‘Dame Gruev’ and ‘Yane Sandanski’ detachments, illegally crossed the border into Aegean Macedonia and spent the winter there, a connection (a brainchild of the Lerin Region Organization, B.M.) was made between these people and the Greek party which resulted in cooperation and joint operations. This was of great political and military importance and resulted in the formation of the first Partisan detachment in the Lerin Region in the spring of 1943 with Ilija Dimovski – Gotse as its commanding officer.” In mid-1943, the Bitola-Prespa detachment “Yane Sandanski” which, by orders from general headquarters of the Peoples’ Liberation Front in Vardar Macedonia was sent to Lerin Region, near Lerin, to form close ties with “Vicho”, the Lerin Partisan detachment. During one of the leadership meetings between the two detachments the following items were discussed: 1. The detachments will remain separated and will be lead by their own commanders unless emergency defensive action is required in which case the detachments will be coordinated by central command. 2. The detachments will strive to gain the trust of the Macedonian population in Greece and elicit its support to fight against the Italian and German occupiers. 3. The detachments will declare war against the Greek and Bulgarian propaganda in the territory of Lerin and Kostur Regions. 4. The detachments will be responsible for disarming the counter-bands organized by the Italians. 5. The detachments will be responsible for leading a propaganda campaign designed to bring the Macedonian and Greek people closer together and to further isolate them from the Fascist Greek and Bulgarian propaganda. 6. All communications between the detachments and the local people should be done in the Macedonian language because the people in the Lerin and Kostur Regions are predominantly Macedonian.

7. How the Macedonian question is answered (with emphasis) will depend on the Macedonian people alone. The drawing of borders will be determined later. The most important actions to be taken today will be jointly waging a war against a common enemy. The Macedonian Partisans will be fighting to free Macedonia and the Greek Partisans will be fighting to free Greece in a united effort. Together we can defeat the enemy.

All detachment meetings held with the people in the Lerin and Kostur Region villages were conducted in both Macedonian and Greek. As planned the meetings served as platforms for gathering and informing the people on current politics and the war situation. As a result of these activities more and more armed Macedonians (armed by the occupier) surrendered their arms and joined the ranks of the Partisans. On May 22nd, 1943 in the village Prekopana, Lerin Region, the “Gotse Delchev” detachment was formed by combining fighters from the “Dame Gruev” detachment and from the newly recruited fighters. The formation of the “Gotse Delchev” detachment was welcomed by Naum Shupurkovski - Leon, the political commissar of the Lerin Region Partisan detachment “Vicho”. In his speech he emphasized the importance of the help offered by the Partisans from Vardar Macedonia against the disarming of the counter-bands in Lerin and Kostur Regions. On July 1st, 1943 the detachment “Dame Gruev” broke away from the detachments “Vicho” and “Gotse Delchev” and crossed over the border into Vardar Prespa. The “Vicho” and “Gotse Delchev” detachments, commanded by Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, continued with their mission in disarming the counter-bands with much success. Without resistance the counter-bands surrendered their arms and joined on mass the Partisans and the peoples’ freedom movement. Around July 18th and 19th, 1943, after a twenty day mission in the Lerin and Kostur Regions, the “Gotse Delchev” detachment also crossed over into Vardar Macedonia. The military and material aid provided by the Macedonian Partisans and the common military actions between Aegean and Vardar detachments, in spite of all Greek Communist Party obstacles, were of great importance in the awakening of the freedom movement in Aegean Macedonia. Here is what Andreas Dzimas, member of the Central Committee of the Greek Communist Party and commissar of the main headquarters of the Greek National Liberation Army of Greece, had to say: “Under great pressure from the mass movement in Aegean Macedonia the politburo and the Central Committee of the Greek Communist Party agreed to suspend the Lebanon Agreement and immediately began to orientate themselves towards Yugoslavia’s People’s Liberation Army. …one of the contributing factors that drew the Macedonians in the war against the occupiers, besides the connections they had with the Greek democratic movement, was the strong influence of the Macedonian Partisans of Yugoslav Macedonia. Their presence in Lerin, Kostur and Voden regions broke the last vestiges of the counter-bands and stirred the Macedonian peoples’ spirits into action against the occupiers…” On July 20th, 1944 a conference was held in the village Belkamen, Lerin Region which was attended by the Partisans active on Vicho and Western Kajmakchalan. One of the resolutions reached was the re-organization of the Partisan forces into three detachments. The first lead by Aetos was assigned to operate in Vicho, the second lead by Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was assigned to Bigla – Koreshtata and the third was ordered to go to Western Kajmakchalan. In August 1943 Hristo Kolentsev was appointed detachment commissar for Vicho, replacing Commissar Naum Shupurkovski – Leon who left for a new assignment. In September 1943, with orders from the 28th regiment of the National Liberation Army of Greece (NLAG), Ilija Dimovski – Gotse’s detachment was transferred to Gramos where it remained until December of the same year when it was again ordered to return to Vicho to help put down enemy activities in that region. In the beginning of April 1944, during the course of operation against the Germans in the territory of Vicho, Ilija Dimovski – Gotse’s detachment was dispatched to Gramos. In May 1944 a large group of Macedonian fighters and activists, lead by Naum Pejov, separated themselves from NLAG in a symbolic protest against the Macedonian Peoples’ Liberation Front reforms imposed by the Greek leadership.

Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was suspended from duty because he was in support of the separation. On August 2nd, 1944 in the village Pozdivishcha, Kostur Region, the Lerin-Kostur Macedonian Battalion was formed. This was due to the persistent demands from the Macedonian people in Aegean Macedonia to have their own army and their need to have more involvement in NLAG matters. There were many preliminary and significant conditions imposed on the formation of the Battalion but they did not last long. It was common knowledge that the Greek resistance leadership signed an agreement on May 20th, 1944 in Lebanon to form a coalition government with other civilian parties from Greece which was unwelcome news to the Macedonian resistance movement prompting a revolt. The agreement was viewed with suspicion. Much of its content was insulting and demeaning to the Macedonian people. The agreement called for the disarmament of the Macedonians which (by the Macedonian people) was interpreted as a means to destroy the Macedonian People’s Liberation Front and its armed wing the Macedonian Liberation Army in Lerin and Kostur. The situation in Kostur Region became even more electrified by the attitude of Andonis Andonopoulos – Periklis, secretary of the regional committee of the Communist Party of Greece, during a party meeting in the village Dmbeni when he said: “The Macedonians as a minority will live in socialism, in northern Greece”. In other words, he was promoting the status quo under a Socialist system unacceptable to the Macedonians. A Macedonian present at that meeting challenged the secretary and said: “We Macedonians want our national freedom and we can get it without quarrel, force or war from Berlin…” To counter the repressive measures taken by the Communist Party of Greece to suffocate the Macedonian resistance, Macedonians, as a symbol of protest separated themselves from the ranks of NLAG and left for Karaorman where they joined the ranks of the Peoples’ Liberation Army in Vardar Macedonia. This Macedonian mistrust against the Greek Communist Party manifested itself in significantly lowering the induction of Macedonian volunteers in the ranks of NLAG and Greek political organizations. It also prompted many Macedonians already serving to desert. Ilija Dimovski –

Gotse at that time was in Gramos, suspended from duty and very much disappointed in what was happening. In Greece, particularly in Aegean Macedonia, a mass movement was forming in protest against the Lebanon Agreement. Under pressure from the people, the central committee and leadership of the Greek Communist Party took measures to defuse the situation by canceling the agreement and re-orienting itself towards the Macedonian Liberation Army in Yugoslavia. Opting out of the Lebanon agreement was an indication that the Greek Communist leadership was ready to accept revolutionary ideals and tactics in dealing with the enemy. In this endeavour the Greek party leadership turned its attention to forming a meaningful and trusting relationship with the Macedonians. This however was done in order to engage the Macedonians in the Greek struggle and to fulfill Greek demands. As a result of the new relationship between NLAG and the National Liberation Army of Macedonia, among other things, the Kostur Region Battalion at Karaorman was ordered to return to Kostur and continue its activities in its mobilization of new recruits from the ranks of the Macedonians and to form new Macedonian detachments, battalions and brigades commanded by Macedonians under the leadership of NLAG. As was decided and agreed upon, the all Macedonian Kostur Region Battalion in the last ten days of July returned to Korestata and on August 2nd, 1944 it arrived at the village Pozdivishcha where its formation was formalized. The task of forming the Macedonian unit and commanding nine NLAG divisions was entrusted to Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, who at that time was in Gramos fighting the largest German offensive against NLAG in northern Pindos in 1944. On August 2nd, 1944 Ilija Dimovski – Gotse along with 30 Macedonian fighters arrived in Pozdivishcha and took command of the battalion as ordered. Afraid that the Macedonian Liberation Movement would develop its own capabilities, and perhaps slip out of its control, the Greek Communist Party leadership decided to prevent it by applying rigorous measures. August 2nd, the day of the Ilinden Uprising, a significant day for the Macedonian people, was chosen to announce the creation of a Macedonian unit, an all Macedonian unit with all Macedonian national characteristics. On the occasion of the anniversary of the Ilinden Uprising, a meeting was held on August 2nd in the village Pozdivishcha where according to the agenda discussions between the National Liberation Army of Greece’s representative Renos Mihaleas and the representative of Vardar Macedonia Petre Bogdanov – Kochko took place. Among the many who attended and who spoke was Naum Pejov, the representative of Karaorman who the

NLAG representative pressured to publicly admit that he was in error when he gave his support for the Macedonian separation from NLAG. According to a Greek Party document here is what was said: “Renos sought to convince Kochko and Pejov, especially Pejov, to admit to having made an error but Pejov refused and spoke against the Greek Communist party reaffirming his position for the need for self-government and the reunification of the Macedonian people.” Under this kind of pressure or for some other reason Renos replied: “You are entitled to Macedonia up to Solun. We will take the Dodecanese and Cyprus. Form you own brigade, division and your Macedonian army. Appoint Ilija Dimovski – Gotse commander of the division…” In another similar party document it says that during the gathering Lambro Pejov also spoke and was very critical of the National Liberation Front’s (NLF)-NLAG politics and asked that Lazo Damovski – Oshenski be released from prison, who at the time was locked-up by NLAG being accused for participating in the above mentioned Macedonian separation. According to statements made by Renos Mihaleos the representative of 9 NLAG divisions, it was possible to form a Macedonian brigade depending on the number of available fighters. Ilija Dimovski – Gotse, organized four Cheti (bands) from available fighters from the unit that returned from Karaorman, the fighters he acquired from Gramos, other fighters who joined the Karaorman unit after its return, and from the inflow of new recruits which would have constituted the new battalions. Unfortunately the NLAG leadership would not allow it. The unit which was proposed to be formed, owing to the number of fighters, constituted the Lerinsko-Kosturski Macedonian battalion named “Gotse” after its commander Ilija Dimovski – Gotse. Prior to the objections it was recommended that Ilija Dimovski – Gotse take command of the battalion and Hristo Kolentsev be made commissar. Afterwards everything changed. On September 10th, 1944 under orders from the NLAG regiment 28, Kozmas Spatos – Amintas, a Greek of Albanian descent, was appointed commander of the battalion, Ilija Dimovski – Gotse was reduced to captain and Hristo Kolentsev was reduced to party secretary of the battalion. Orders, commands, reports and other communications in the battalion were carried out in the Macedonian language. A few days after the Battalion’s formation, Renos Mihaleos contacted Ilija Dimovski – Gotse and informed him that an NLF non communist officer from the NLAG regiment 28 was going to be paying him a visit to do an inspection. Renos told Ilija that all communications in the battalion must be done in the Greek language. Perturbed by such a request Ilija replied: “We are not all communists here either. We are patriotic Macedonians and like you and the NLF who are fighting for your national rights, we too are fighting for ours and for our freedom.” Immediately after the “Gotse” and the “Vodenski” battalions were formed a massive number of Macedonians began to join the ranks of the Partisans. With these numbers it was possible to not only form brigades but divisions. When the Gotse battalion was formed it had 400 fighters and about a month later (September 16) it was numbering 650 and by October 10th, 1944 the number jumped to 1,500. This was unprecedented for the resistance movement in Greece especially since the Greek Communist Party entered into the unfavorable Lebanon agreement with its enemies, the Royalists and Republicans. For the sake of national unity a “right wing” government was appointed to lead Greece under the leadership of Georgios Papandreou’s “right wing” Greek government unfortunately did not recognize the existence of the Macedonian people in Greece. If a government did not recognize the existence of Macedonian people then how was it going to tolerate armed Macedonian units, Macedonian soldiers and Macedonian institutions? The Greek communist party leadership, in order to please the government, began to suppress the gains Macedonians had made and took rigorous measures to prevent the Macedonian Liberation Movement from expanding and from slipping out of its control.

One of the measures undertaken was to stop Macedonians from joining the ranks of the Partisans. In a communiqué to the Central committee of the Macedonian Bureau on September 12, 1944 the Greek Communist Party, among other things, said: “Let it be noted that our side reckons it’s time to stop recruiting fighters from the ranks of the Slavo-Macedonians”. The commissar of the Greek division of the National Liberation Army of Greece for Macedonia, Markos Vafiadis prohibited the Macedonian battalions from inducting new recruits, with aims of ultimately disbanding them. Decisions made by the Greek party leadership to stop the recruitment of Macedonian fighters into the Macedonian battalions were ignored by the Macedonian leadership. The Macedonian battalions continued to induct volunteer Macedonian recruits into their ranks even though the commissar of the Greek division of the National Liberation Army of Greece (NLAG) for Macedonia, Markos Vafiadis sent them further orders by telegraph to cease the recruitment. NLAG’s immediate placement under the command of Georgios Papandreou’s government, in accordance with the September 26, 1944 Kazerta agreement, brought into the forefront the question as to what to do with the Macedonian battalions. The rightist government as a direct commander of NLAG did not want to allow the continuation of the Macedonian units because their existence provided undeniable proof that a Macedonian population existed in Greece.