November 8 is a reminder of the pain from the past for the Bulgarians in Serbia

In times of war, torn families, broken homes and an uncertain future, today we look back to the past to remember. Exactly 104 years ago, after the end of the First World War, under the Neuilly Peace Treaty of 1919, Bulgaria lost without a fight 1,545 sq. km of its lands.

Between November 6 and 8, 1920, Serbian troops occupied Caribrod (Tsaribrod), Bosilegrad and Strumica regions. 25 villages and part of the lands of the Bulgarian towns of Trun and Kula were cut off by the so-called "black border" and remained within the boundaries of today's Serbia. Houses, yards, fields, springs, wells, cemeteries, churches, roads, families are literally separated. 64,509 human destinies were broken.

The days of the Serbian invasion, without the final decision of the international commission defining a military strategic border with Bulgaria, were not chosen by chance. They coincided with the defeat of Serbia at Slivnica in 1885 in the Serbo-Bulgarian War, in which the Bulgarian captains defeated the Serbian generals. In memory of the events of a century ago, November 8 has been declared the Day of the Western Bulgarian Outlands.

Today in Serbia, 12,918 people identify themselves as Bulgarians - according to the data from the census conducted in 2022. For years, Radio Bulgaria has been writing about the life and struggle of our compatriots in these places to openly defend their national identity. ‎

A long way has been covered, but also many difficulties rule the everyday lives of the people there. One thing is certain - the Bulgarian spirit is alive. Bulgarian folk music sounds in the hearts of Bulgarians from the Western outlands and speaks their language even today. We were convinced of this just a few days ago, when the Caribrod Folk Orchestra from Caribrod (Tsaribrod, Dimitrovgrad) performed its first concert in Sofia at the invitation of our media in the First Studio of the BNR.

The orchestra is made up of amateurs who have devoted their spare time to old urban and folk music from Bulgaria and Serbia with a single desire - "to preserve the traditional melody of the center of the Balkans". And for more than ten years they have been successfully fulfilling their mission. ‎

"Alexander Vasov and I have been very close friends all our lives, and when we decided to form the orchestra, our idea was to preserve and protect the values, traditions and culture of the Bulgarian minority. And to play old folk songs that almost no one performs anymore," Dragolyub Peychev, guitarist in the orchestra and sound engineer at the Caribrod Radio and Television Center, explains especially for Radio Bulgaria. ‎

"The western outlands are a bit in decline but the moment we start playing, our national spirit calls and it's an incredible inspiration for us. This center of the Balkans is a source of many musical ideas, rhythms, songs and everyone wants to use a little of it. And we feel proud that we are from this center, from this treasure of Bulgarian folk tradition, and we try to present our music everywhere," adds Alexander Vasov, who plays the kaval and tambourine. known in Serbia as Bisernitsa. He is also the voice of the Caribrod Orchestra. And during working hours he is a veterinarian and the owner of an animal farm. ‎

For years, the musicians have participated in the programs of the public Serbian Radio and Television (RTS) and are frequent guests at events dedicated to minority culture, where they present the traditions of Bulgarians from Serbia. In 2019, they also recorded their first album "Mila Sestro, Stara Planino" at the Bulgarian National Radio with producer Vanya Moneva. Alexander Vasov says that in the album they have preserved several pearls of the Balkan tradition for the future generations. He defines as wealth the possibility to touch the folk creativity of different Balkan countries, but categorically refuses to call himself a member of a minority in Serbia.

"I don't like to call myself a minority, because I don't feel any separation from my nation. The fact that we are on the other side of the border does not mean that the connection is broken. We are a small part, a little in a foreign court, of one national corps - the Bulgarian one," he admits. ‎

That is why the date November 8 carries with it the pain of the past, which still lives today in the Western outlands.

"For me, it means a sad memory of a separation", Dragolyub continues. "When the border is drawn, families, houses, even yards are divided. No one wanted it, but that's how it happened. That's why they call us a minority today, and I want to say that I don't feel like a minority. I'm Bulgarian. Whether I live next to the border or behind it is another matter. This day should be respected and never forgotten. Let people remember what it was and have a self-awareness, have their self-esteem and keep the Bulgarian spirit within themselves."‎

Defending Bulgarian self-awareness in the Western outlands continues to be a difficult task against the background of the ever-increasing depopulation of the two Bulgarian centers there - Bosilegrad and Caribrod. Because of a lack of secure livelihood, our compatriots leave this region in search of a better future. Every day, nearly 1,000 people travel to Sofia, Kostinbrod, Godech, Dragoman and other cities and villages in Bulgaria for work, and the young leave, Dragolyub tells us. And ‎it's more and more difficult for hope to find its way into his thoughts.‎

‎"This is perhaps the fate of the small settlements next to the border. I don't believe that the situation will improve, even though I want it to. But what is important is that almost all young people from our city, after finishing school, continue their education in Sofia. Here they find work, here they create families, and only we who are over 45-50 years old remain in Caribrod, and I don't know how the situation will develop."‎

With optimism, Alexander Vasov hopes that in the foreseeable future, relief will be introduced when crossing the border for Bulgarians from the border regions and thus communication between us will be facilitated. He hopes that the relationship between Caribrod and Bulgaria will be strengthened. And until the politics yield results, music remains the easiest language for both Serbs and Bulgarians to understand. "It connects, enriches and brings together the Balkan peoples," he tells us. And with their next album, the Caribrod Folk Orchestra will fight the perception that Balkan music is sad. ‎

"Our people, when they are sad, when they are heavy, sing cheerfully to drive away the dark thoughts. So we also have a desire and a plan to make an album with humorous songs from the shoppe folklore region."

Thus, with a Bulgarian melody and a smile, Dragolyub Peychev, Shpira Trichkov, Darko Petrov, Ivan Kirov and Alexander Vasov protect the Bulgarian self-awareness across the border.

Photos: Radio Vidin, Archive, BNR, BGNES

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Marking the Day of Bulgaria's Western Outlands with the musicians of Caribrod Folk Orchestra

November 8 is a reminder of the pain from the past for the Bulgarians in Serbia

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