Bulgarian children on Crete attend five Sunday schools

Our compatriots are still fighting for a consular post

Photo: Bulgarian Association of Crete

The Bulgarian Association of Crete has been working for nine years as a bridge between Bulgaria and the Bulgarian population on the southernmost Greek territory, sometimes replacing the most important partner - the state. One of the aims of the association is to protect the rights of Bulgarian citizens on the island, but also to preserve the traditions and customs of the diaspora.

Almost 20,000 Bulgarians live on the island of Crete. Many of these people feel the need to socialise with their compatriots, and this is what the Association has been doing through its various missions - uniting them in a community. One of its most important activities is undoubtedly the promotion of the Bulgarian language, education and culture.

"At the moment we have five Bulgarian Sunday schools - says Petar Anastasov, chairman of the association, in an interview with Radio Bulgaria. - Four of them have official names, and the fifth will be named as soon as we can organise a nice ceremony. It is no secret that it will be named after a famous Bulgarian woman, as many schools abroad are called "Vasil Levski" or "Cyril and Methodius". And the Bulgarian woman is at the centre of it all, as a mother, as a hero, as a person who has preserved our history and is still preserving it by teaching it in school, because most of the teachers today are women".

The Bulgarian Sunday schools educate around 200 children, some of whom were born in Bulgaria and moved to Crete with their parents, while others were born on the island.

"In the last two or three academic years, about 20 Bulgarian teenagers have applied to Bulgarian universities and are now studying in Varna, Plovdiv and Sofia," says the association's president. The hardships caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the economic crisis in Greece have led many people to leave Crete for central or western Europe. However, the challenges of long distances, high cost of living and low wages - due to language barriers and lack of proper documentation - forced many to return to Crete, and some to Bulgaria, within a few years. Interestingly, not all were able to adapt to their new homes and eventually returned to Crete.

According to Petar Anastasov, active Bulgarians around the world are more interested in what is happening in Bulgaria than those living in the country. He gives the example of how, dozens or even hundreds of times, he has had to follow discussions of the Parliamentary Committee on Bulgarians Abroad.

"We need to pay attention to certain things that concern us," adds the chairman of the association. "The average citizen certainly recognises the faces of politicians and political parties, but interest in elections is extremely low. In the last election, we saw the lowest voter turnout in the past five years, as people were disillusioned with everything that was happening."

What are Bulgarians on the island most concerned about?

"They are focused on what directly affects them - how to secure their health insurance, when the consul will visit, in other words, they are concerned about administrative matters," answers Petar Anastasov.

The issue of there being no consular office on Crete remains unresolved, and our compatriots continue to rely on consular days to obtain the documents they need.

At the end of our conversation, Mr Anastasov gives an example of successful cooperation with the Bulgarian state. As part of a programme run by the Ministry of Education and Science, teachers from Bulgarian schools abroad are now being trained at Sofia and Plovdiv universities in how to teach children more effectively. "We need to reach a higher level of teaching, because most of us are amateur enthusiasts who are struggling to learn the necessary things mainly through shared good experiences from colleagues,' adds Petar Anastasov.

Photos: Bulgarian Association of Crete, Facebook/ Petar Anastasov

Translated and posted in English by Elizabeth Radkova

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