Slav Macedonians of the FYROM are trapped

Slav-Macedonians are trapped in the established doctrine of the pseudo-macedonism ideology.

Slav-Macedonism is the political idea prevailing in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) which utilises historical revisionism to establish links between an ethnic group that formed in the 20th century - ethnic 'Macedonians' - and historical events and figures of the 19th century and Middle Ages. For example, Bulgarian Tsar Samuil, despite the overwhelming evidence, is portrayed as a "Macedonian" king. Further attempts are made to deny the Hellenic nature of the ancient kingdom of Macedon and to seek connections between present day ethnic Macedonians and the Ancient Macedonians. Unfortunately for extremist Macedonists like Stefov, history bears witness to the fact that in the early 1940s the Bulgarian inhabitants of Vardar Macedonia were transformed into "Macedonians" for political reasons by communist dictators (Tito, Stalin, and Dimitrov) and infamous communist organizations (Comintern and the Balkan Communist Federation )[1][2].

The manufactured “Macedonism” that Nikola Gruevski tried to promote over the last couple years has turned into a diplomatic boomerang for him. His attempts to dilute, to re-shape and finally to distort the content of his dispute with Greece have all but miserably failed. The UN, the EU and even the USA have all distanced themselves from the “Macedonian minority” issue that Gruevski tried to raise, whilst the notion that the Prime Minister of the neighbouring country not only does not seek an honorable to solution to the name issue but is even prepared to sacrifice the stability of the entire Balkan region for his own political gains internally, gains credence internationally.

FYROM has opted for pseudo-macedonism propaganda over dialogue, mounting a well-prepared, calculated smear campaign against Greece, while also trying to insinuate various non-issues into the negotiations, attempting to turn the talks into a platform for grievances, demands and claims against Greece. FYROM has even tried to reopen World War II issues that European countries have put behind them for good; issues that have no place in our common journey towards ever closer union. [3]

The fYROMacedonian historiography basing her “stealing process” via the Historical revisionism. Historical revisionism is the attempt to change commonly held ideas about the past. In its legitimate form (see historical revisionism) it is the reexamination of historical facts, with an eye towards updating historical narratives with newly discovered, more accurate, or less biased information, acknowledging that history of an event, as it has been traditionally told, may not be entirely accurate. Historical revisionism can be used as a label to describe the views of self-taught historians who publish articles that deliberately misrepresent and manipulate historical evidence.

Yugoslav "Macedonia", formed in 1946, consisted of the area previously called "Southern Serbia" or Vardaska Banovina". As we know, the main characteristics of a nation are unity of country (with the meaning of common fatherland) and of political organisation, language, religion and heritage, which are joined by a common past, common consciousness - characteristics which alone are not enough or indeed necessary but which in combination create the separate identity of a nation.

fYROMacedonian historiography and the political system wanted to keep the separate political and national existence to this newly-established socialist republic. As we know, the main characteristics of a nation are unity of country (with the meaning of common fatherland) and of political organisation, language, religion and heritage, which are joined by a common past, common consciousness - characteristics which alone are not enough or indeed necessary but which in combination create the separate identity of a nation. They tried to keep these characteristics to the new "republic of Macedonia". They wanted, in other words, to fabricate a nation. By means of their studies and publications they attemped to reconstruct and re-interpret historical data in order to fulfil their objectives. Maria Nystazopoulou Pelekidou writes as about this:

• Their first aim was to cut off every link between the so-called "Macedonians" and the Bulgarians, as a well as the Serbs, and to convince the people that they belonged to a separate Slavic nation, the "Macedonian" one.
• The second aim was to eliminate Greek character of Macedonia and Macedonian history; and this would be achieved by minimizing the Greek presence in this region and misinterpreting or falsifying their role, specifically the cultural and intellectual contribution of Hellenism, the orthodox Greek clergy and Greek schools.
• The third aim was to search for, fabricate and project the historical development of the so-called "Macedonian people", so as to prove the separate national identity of the "Macedonians", as well as their cohesion and continuity from ancient times until today.
• The fourth aim was to create a Great Idea, which would bring awareness to the masses. So the historians of Skopje started declaring that Macedonia, as a whole, was a Slavic country both in its historical tradition and its ethnic composition. For this reason, it had to be united and form a unified state. [4]

Great example of the applcication of the pseudo-macedonism in the state of the FYROM is a article of the law for the Scientific –Exploring Activity that forbid the research of the Slav Macedonian ethnical and cultural identity.

Article 16
The approval (for performing public scientific work-Vasko) can be given for all areas designated as a public interest in scientific-exploring activity, with the exception of scientific research in the area of historical and cultural identity of the ‘Macedonian’ people (sic) and the nationalities which live in the ‘Republic of Macedonia’(sic), defense and security. [5]

Vasko Gligorijević a Serbian and FYROM citizen remarks that undoubtedly, such regressive, anti-scientific attitude will lead to further deterioration of the already minuscule credibility of entire culture-contemplating intelligentsia in FYROM. [6]

As long as FYROM plays at being a crusader for nationalist fantasies,that expressed from her pseudo-macedonism it will sink in the political morass. And as FYROM sinks, it will act spasmodically and rather ridiculously. This problem does not only concern Greece, against which Gruevski now makes various unfounded but dangerous claims, but Bulgaria also and the entire region. Europe and the US should not only discourage FYROM officials, but are obliged to stop these , now that it is still early.


NOTES
[1]- Palmer and King, Yugolsav Communism and the Macedonian Question, page 199.
[2]- Loring Danforth,The Macedonian Conflict, page 66.
[3]- Slav Macedonian Political Separatists, [http://modern-macedonian-history.blo...aratists.html]
[4]- Maria Nystazopoulou – Pelekidou, The "Macedonian Question", [http://www.hri.org/docs/macque/]
[5]- (Služben vesnik na RM 13/96 od 15 mart 1996 god.), (The Official magazine of FYROM 13/96 from 15th of March 1996 ye.)
[6]- Vasko Gligorijević , The pseudomacedonian ideology: It’s Narrative, [http://modern-macedonian-history.blo...arrative.html]