CHRONICLES (FROM OUR HISTORIOGRAPHY)

CHRONICLES (FROM OUR HISTORIOGRAPHY)

THE TIME FOR WAITING AND WISHING IS STRONGER THAN CIRCUMSTANCES

In the second decade of October 1944 the Lerin - Kostur battalion separated from ELAS and crossed over into Yugoslavia (Republic of Macedonia), where it was organized into a brigade and placed in the Yugoslav army under the auspices of the Republic of Macedonia’s NOV and PO.

This is what the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia were told about that:

The Macedonian Communists who left the CPG, EAM and ELAS were strongly condemned by the CPG but welcomed and accepted by the CPM/CPY. In Bitola, under CPM/CPY guidance and assistance the POLITICAL COMMITTEE OF AEGEAN (Greek occupied) MACEDONIA was constituted, which consisted of Macedonians from Greek occupied Macedonia but was chaired by a representative from the Republic of Macedonia’s CPM Central Committee. The Aegean Brigade was created in Free Bitola on November 18, 1944, and consisted of fighters from the Macedonian battalions and from newly arrived refugees who fled Greek occupied Macedonia.

What does all this tell us? It tells us that once again we were divided and controlled by entities that had little to no vested interests in our cause.

Also, among other things, it reminds us of old hatreds and disagreements. Unfortunately every history of every people has its own doctrine except for ours which seems to repeat with tragedies; challenges on the roadmap of our future.

The Republic of Macedonia’s position on: “WHY NOT TO SOLUN?”

“...The Republic of Macedonia’s political and military leadership had already realistically assessed, maintained and controlled the

situation during the January events, not allowing the emotions of common sense to prevail, and thus prohibiting the newly formed and fragile Republic of Macedonia from becoming entangled in a new war against the allies who fought in the anti-Hitler coalition during World War II.”

DIPLOMATIC PRESSURE

On December 9, 1944, MacLean, head of the British Mission in Belgrade, visited Josip Broz Tito and voiced England’s concerns regarding the Aegean Brigade. He told Tito that forming the Aegean Brigade constituted territorial claims on Greek and Bulgarian territories and warned him not to interfere in Greek affairs, that is, in the clashes between ELAS and British forces in Athens, which began on December 3, 1944.

Tito reassured MacLean that Yugoslavia had no pretensions on Greek (occupied) Macedonia and that the Aegean Brigade would not be sent to Greece. On December 22, 1944, Tito ordered the Aegean Brigade not to go to Greek occupied Macedonia and join ELAS and for Yugoslavia not to provide the promised aid. He said he was doing this because of Stalin’s directive to the CPG leadership to cease the armed struggle and work out a peaceful solution to the conflict with England.

Then, by a strictly confidential special order No. 236 issued by Marshal Tito, the “Aegean Brigade” was disbanded on April 2, 1945.

But this is not what our historians have told us. Our mainstream history claims that: “Not a month after the formation of the Aegean Brigade in Bitola, the CPG and ELAS demanded that it be disbanded and its fighters join the ELAS units. There is no mention of any other events or agreements taking place or Tito’s involvement in this. (See; Dr. Risto Kiriazovski’s article “Chronicles of the struggle in Aegean Macedonia: Ilia Dimovski-Gotse).

DEVELOPMENT OF EVENTS IN 1945 AND THE CREATION OF NOF

On April 23, 1945, the day NOF was created, the Macedonian people were once again thrown into chaotic uncertainty, a big breakthrough in the unknown. April 23, 1945, was the dawn of a new and painful destiny for the Macedonian people. Ironically no one asked the people what they wanted…

A very important question needs to be asked at this point:

Did we alone bring this fateful fate onto the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia by the very act of forming NOF, AFZH and NOMS after World War II ended? Did we not know that the well-known contradictory communist party (Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Greece) policies and practices in pursuit of the Macedonian national question would ideologically engage us in this so-called “Greek Civil War” with the intent of activating the “Macedonian syndrome” and leading us to fight one another: Macedonian versus Macedonian? Why did we follow this ideological path put before us to lead us to confusion and disorganization?

Why did we do this knowing that there was:

a) A Macedonian movement with a Bulgarian ethnic-historical tendency; b) A Macedonian national movement with a Macedonian national ethnic-historical tendency, and now, after World War II ended, there was c) A Macedonian movement with a pro Yugoslav historical tendency.

The great political oversight that took place before our eyes in 1945 - 1949, was in fact, the most tragic even in our history. It was a time in which not only world history but also our own Macedonian history would hardly notice our misery and misfortune.

I have been looking at this whole issue, the creation of NOF and all the suffering that came from it, for many years and wondered why

could we not foresee the outcome of what we were doing? I kept asking myself:

First, how did we portray our problems to the world, specifically to the Great Powers? How did we present our Macedonian options, role and vision in the Greek Civil War?

Second, how did we Macedonians look at our problems ourselves, and how well were we convinced that we were doing the right thing all throughout the Greek Civil War?

Did we know and perhaps respect the Leninist thesis that the Communist movement views the national question as tactically and fundamentally in the interests that always correspond to the state interests of the dominant nation, in our case the Greek state? The question then arises: In either case, why did we allow NOF, AFZH and NOMS to lead us by the nose and sell us on the idea that we were struggling for something completely different… and eventually to our national defeat?

Third, given that our struggle and the heavy price we paid was a very important event in our history, why was it not treated as part of our integral Macedonian history? Why was it treated separately as “Aegean history”, and as such could not be allowed to be part of our Macedonian national history?

Up until 1945, the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia had a strong spiritual and national unity. They, particularly the older generation, shared the same spirit and nurtured their Macedonian national identity. As a survival strategy they had embraced their Macedonian culture, identity and community. This is how NOF was able to find fertile ground and become the dominant master over the masses in propagating the policy dictated to them by the CPM/CPY.

NOF was under CPM/CPY control from April 23, 1945, when NOF was created, until November 21, 1946 when the so-called “Brotherhood and Unity” idea came into existence, that is, when the CPM/CPY surrendered NOF to the CPG. After that NOF remained under CPG control until the end of the Greek Civil War and beyond.

So, the question that comes to mind is: “Who were our allies during the course of the Greek Civil War?” And the answer is “NO ONE!” Not even the CPM since it too was subordinate to the CPY. In other words, the Macedonian people were used and suffered immensely and spilled rivers of blood for someone else’s interests.

Now let us examine some of the facts:

It would appear that no Macedonian national strategy was created in Skopje on April 23, 1945 when NOF, the National Liberation Front for Greek occupied Macedonia, was created, that was outside and independent of the CPG or any other political entity in Greece that was acting for or led by the CPM/CPY. NOF’s program for over a year was to fight for national rights and for the right to self-determination. In order to achieve that strategic goal NOF was required to begin an armed struggle. On April 28, 1945, NOF began to form Macedonian partisan units. (See: Kiriazovski, 1995/202). In other words, NOF was sent to Greece by the Yugoslav government to start a war…

So the question that comes to mind is: “How was NOF expected to accomplish this?” It is more than clear that most of the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia at the time did not have the same expectations or goals and demands as NOF. This was quickly confirmed by the fact that the people were not willing to start a new war. In other words, NOF failed in its initial attempts because it failed to properly assess the people’s strength, much less their strategic interests and plans. Unfortunately none of this was made clear by the NOF, CPM and CPY strategists.

But a more important question is: “Would NOF have been able to achieve self-determination in Greek occupied Macedonia given that over 600,000 colonists and settlers had been deposited there since 1924 who did not agree with NOF’s goals and objectives and given that the Macedonian population at the time was a minority? The answer is NO!

Let us have a look at the demographic numbers:

Greeks Macedonians Karamanli Armenians Hebrews Vlachs Roma Others

Total

711,428 50.36% 240,000 17% 210,000 14.87% 80,000 5.66% 68,206 4.83% 44,414 3.14% 25,302 1.79% 33,127 2.35%

1.412.477 100%

The diverse refugee population from the Caucasus is also included within the Greek population. The Greek population by origin and language is actually less than 50% of the total population living in Greek occupied Macedonia. (See Stoian Kiselinovski 2000 / 48.)

The question is:

a). Given that the population living in Greek occupied time was a lot more than 50% non-Macedonian, shouldn’t NOF have at least made inquiries if these people wanted an independent Macedonia? The least NOF could have done was ask these colonists and settlers if they wanted to live in some kind of Balkan federation. Did we make enemies of them by not consulting with them or, given how the Greek government was treating the democratic people, did the Macedonian communist leaders assume they were actually doing them a humanitarian favour?

b) Did NOF not know that those colonists were already at the forefront of the Left forces in Greece including in EAM and the CPG? These people were assumed to be Greeks and were not included in the EAM and CPG programs as minorities. Did NOF not know that Zahariadis, Partzalidis, Iozinidis, Vafiadis and others were colonists and would not support self-determination for the Macedonians? How could they? They were occupying Macedonian homes and lands which the Greek government gave them for free. What would have happened to them if Macedonia became

independent or in a Slavic federation? NOF never made that clear to anyone.

c). It is obvious that NOF was only a pawn in this game first manipulated by the CPY and later by the CPG. It was never an important political entity or factor in the anti-fascist struggle or in the direction the Greek Civil War took. Sadly our Macedonian mainstream history disagrees and insists that NOF was indeed a factor. If that was so then why was NOF never allowed to command its own forces? Why was NOF persecuted every time it demanded national rights for the Macedonian people? Why were the NOF leaders slandered and anathemized as traitors, autonomists, separatists, etc?

Now let us expose the biggest manipulation of all perpetrated by the CPY and CPG leaderships:

During a meeting that took place on April 2, 1946, in Belgrade, Tito and Zahariadis, without the presence of any Macedonian, decided the following:

1. Place NOF under CPG control. In other words Tito and Zahariadis, without consulting with any Macedonian decided to place the Macedonian People’s Liberation Movement for Greek occupied Macedonia led by NOF under Greek communist control. NOF, which to that day was led by the CPY-CPM, was to be placed under CPG leadership and NOF was to change its program goals to: “NOF will fight in alliance with the Greek people to save the Macedonian people from physical extermination...” And how was NOF expected to do that under CPG control!? This was what the NOF leadership was told!

This is the truth. These actions were part of the foreign strategy to get rid of the Macedonians from Greek occupied Macedonia. By manipulating NOF, the foreign strategists and architects of the Greek Civil War accomplished their goal. And because NOF was involved the Greek state had no choice but to take legal measures to protect itself. The measures included unprecedented terror and persecution, military operations, jailing, torture, exile in the Greek islands, etc. The Macedonian people were forced to flee their homes

and seek shelter in Yugoslavia in order to save themselves from the terror the Greek government security forces had unleashed on them.

2. The CPY and CPG had an agreement which allowed the CPG to recruit from the pool of Macedonian refugees who had fled to Yugoslavia. Because their families were still living in Greek occupied Macedonia these refugees were coerced into joining DAG as fighters. The people who had managed to escape the terror were brought back and mobilized to face more terror.

3. The agreement that the CPY and CPG made to place the Macedonian people under CPG control had fatal consequences – we went from slavery to disaster. What is strange and interesting about this is that NOF became miraculously louder with its slogans calling for total mobilization of Macedonians. It called on the Macedonian people and proclaimed the CPG was the only saviour and benevolent entity capable of resolving the Macedonian question in Greece and this was the advice given to it by the CPM/CPY. (See: Lazar Kolishevski’s Directives and Recommendations in Dr. Risto Kiriazovski’s book 1995/29.)

When NOF, AFZH and NOMS were created on April 23, 1945, on the premises of the CPM Central Committee, and given life by Macedonians from Greek occupied Macedonia who had earlier fled their homes, the plan the foreign architects had in mind for the Macedonian people was put into action – to pursue foreign interests. Certainly this was unknown to the NOF, AFZH and NOMS leaders. The only thing they knew was that they had the support and protection of the CPM/CPY.

Was this a miscalculation, a misunderstanding or pure manipulation? Today we know that it was pure manipulation which caused the Macedonian people to bring disaster on themselves. They blindly followed a maze created for them by the CPY and CPG which cost the Macedonian people dearly. And now, today, there are people who still blindly defend NOF’s actions. It is understandable that it was difficult to get out of the maze because the manipulations and strategies were so well crafted by the CPG and the CPY that even those who were labeled “hard nationalists” could not see them. They too had succumbed to the daily aggressive propaganda.

But based on the outcome of events for NOF this was a struggle in chaos! And in chaos whoever is powerful is righteous. So justice is not in righteousness but in power. This has been the case with NOF!

In other words what really happened is that the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia gave up their freedom because they were seduced by NOF’s offer to liberate them and for that we had to put our trust in foreigners to lead us, but only for a certain period of time. (See: “DOCUMENTS - On the Struggle of the Macedonian People for Independence and the formation of a Nation-State” Volume II.)