Along with the changes in the Electoral Code, there was again talk about Bulgarians abroad, who once again found themselves at the center of the debate. This topic is sporadically raised in the Bulgarian public conversation, especially before elections, and is almost always overgrown with clichés. The more vocal part of the parties in this conversation present Bulgarians abroad as victims who have been "expelled by the economic ruin of recent years", or as people who have escaped the hardships of Bulgarian life. They are described as weak-willed beings who have been torn away from their roots against their will, and now the Bulgarian state must do everything to prevent their Bulgarian identity from fading away.
This is what Toma Bikov writes for "Filter".
The most frequently mentioned measure to achieve this goal is to provide all the conveniences for these people to vote, as if voting is what will keep the flame of identity burning. Naturally, there are also calls to return them to their homeland, as if these people do not have the ability to make such a decision and return on their own. Against this background, the Bulgarians who have chosen to live in Bulgaria seem a little stupid and eternally indebted to their compatriots abroad, and their main task is to create conditions for their return.
These clichés are repeated not only by politicians and public figures, but have gained popularity to the point of a national myth that is believed in and whose grounds are forbidden to be discussed.
Such a conversation is difficult to have. Its mistaken foundation is built on with the characteristic Bulgarian melancholy, which is simultaneously aimed at self-pity and self-blame. There are people who dislike themselves to such an extent that they are ready to cry for themselves.
Paradoxical, but true.
If we look at the facts of life, we will see a completely different picture from the one that the national myth has built on the basis of clichés. The discrepancy between belief and reality suggests that we could hardly do anything useful for our compatriots abroad, since we are not even able to correctly define their situation.
The first main mistake is the unity of the concept of “Bulgarians abroad“. This is not a single concept, but a generalization from which nothing comes. There are Bulgarians who are a traditional diaspora, existing for more than a century, such as those in Moldova, North Macedonia, Albania or Serbia and others who were born in Bulgaria, but for one reason or another have emigrated mostly to Europe or the USA. There is also a third group, which is represented by Bulgarian emigrants in Turkey. A fourth group is increasingly noticeable, which consists of students who study in foreign countries, but have not yet decided whether to stay there or return to the country. This is a matter of personal choice. There is also a fifth group, which consists of workers who only earn money abroad, but in general their place of residence remains in Bulgaria. Summarizing all these people under the concept of “Bulgarians abroad“ is impossible.
The second mistake, which stems from the first, is that in the public conversation about voting abroad, the group of Bulgarian citizens who emigrated in the 1990s is spoken of mostly, but under their denominator all “Bulgarians abroad“ are put under their denominator.
Usually they are the “expelled“, “thrown out“ and “the fugitives“.
It is important to clarify that those expelled and those who fled the country are only two groups of emigrants - in 1989, over 300 thousand Bulgarian citizens of Turkish origin were expelled, and the fugitives are all those who managed to emigrate illegally during the socialist period. In both cases, upon leaving the country, both the Turks and the political emigrants were left without the opportunity to return until the fall of the socialist regime. Their stories have nothing to do with those who left the country for economic or other reasons after 1989.
This clarification contains the essence of the reasons for the largest wave of emigration in recent Bulgarian history, which are omitted and replaced with false statements. It shows that the only thing in common between the political emigrants who left the country before 1989 and the Bulgarian emigrants in Turkey is that they went abroad because of the results of the socialist system. The most massive wave of emigration, which was observed in the 1990s, was the result of the borders closed for 45 years, which created the illusion of an easy life in the West, as well as the two state bankruptcies of 1989 and 1997, which forced many people to seek their livelihood abroad. However, this emigration was a matter of free, mostly economic choice. If about 1 million Bulgarians then chose to live and work abroad, another nearly 7 million preferred to stay in Bulgaria. All – both those in Bulgaria and those abroad have paid the price for their choice. After 1989, no one was forced either to emigrate or to stay in the country. Therefore, this choice should be called personal. Not that it was easy or convenient for both those who left and those who remained, but it is a choice, not a compulsion.
Since 1997, thanks to market reforms and EU integration, the economic situation in Bulgaria has been improving. The proof of this is not only the registered economic growth and low unemployment, but also the fact that despite the abolition of visas, and recently also at the borders with EU countries, emigration has been steadily decreasing. There is even a tendency for some of the people who left the country to return. Moreover, recently, labor emigration to Bulgaria from other countries has been noticeable. This change in the situation is due primarily to the efforts of those Bulgarians who chose to stay in Bulgaria in the 1990s. Therefore, not only are they not indebted to the people who chose to live and apply their skills outside the country, but they should also receive the necessary respect that thanks to them Bulgaria managed to overcome the economic and social collapse it was in in 1989. Thanks to their taxes and the desire of our compatriots abroad, in recent years our country has opened Bulgarian schools in a number of countries. This is a far more important step for preserving national identity than the meaningless talk about opening and closing polling stations abroad.
If we manage to destroy the mythology surrounding “Bulgarians abroad“,
We will probably feel that both they and we, who live in Bulgaria, could have a different and better self-esteem in relation to ourselves. Self-esteem not of “escaped“, “expelled“ and “leftovers“, but of people who are able to notice and appreciate not only their shortcomings, but also their achievements. If we manage to overcome our own clichés, it may turn out that Bulgarians are neither victims of history, nor are we as weak and helpless as we feel. We may realize that each of us, in our own way and with our sacrifices and efforts, has made it so that we live better, and in this way has also helped to improve the common Bulgarian life.