site.btaBulgaria Must Measure Itself Against Levski’s Deeds, Not His Words, ARF MP Haytov Says

In a declaration delivered on behalf of the parliamentary group of the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms, MP Yavor Haytov said from the parliamentary rostrum on Wednesday that the day marked 153 years since the snowy February day of 1873, when on the outskirts of Sofia, amid the shouts of a crowd gathered by the local authorities, the native of Karlovo, Vasil Ivanov Kunchev – Levski – was hanged.

He said that Bulgarians bow their heads today before this “only son of Bulgaria” and recall Levski’s words that if he were to win, he would win for the whole people, and if he were to lose, he would lose only himself. According to Haytov, the anniversary of the hanging of the Apostle of Bulgarian freedom was not only a moment of remembrance but also a moment of self-examination. Society, he argued, was still searching for Levski to remind it that deeds were needed rather than words. In his view, Bulgarians were recklessly gambling with the future of a nation now numbering fewer than seven million people and needed to act with maturity. He asked where the love for one’s kin had gone and whether reconciliation and a shared contribution to Bulgaria’s common good would finally become possible.

Haytov recalled Levski’s words from his notebook that the goal in Bulgaria was brotherhood with everyone, regardless of faith or nationality, and that a hand was extended to anyone willing to shed blood together for human life and freedom. He questioned how this testament was being read today and what meaning society drew from it. He wondered whether Bulgarians should continue to follow foreign advice and whether this was truly what Levski had dreamed of. Citing Levski’s own belief, Haytov stressed that everything depended on the nation’s united strength and that even the strongest forces could not prevail against such unity.

He added that Levski had envisioned Bulgaria as equal among the other European nations, but that before reaching such a position, the Apostle had made it clear that the country had to be led by worthy people along the path of prosperity. Haytov pointed out that history rarely granted individuals the right to judge their own nations, and that Levski was undoubtedly among those few chosen figures.

Turning to the present, Haytov said the situation in Bulgaria was dynamic, with elections and changes ahead. He emphasized that the country’s future depended on the decisions made by those in the parliamentary hall, especially now that Bulgaria was a full member of the most sought-after international alliances. He therefore called on his colleagues, in carrying the bright memory of Levski in their hearts, to prove themselves worthy Bulgarians.

Haytov concluded by paying tribute to Levski.