Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Vol. 28, No. 1, April 2008
The Torbeshes of Macedonia: Religious and National Identity Questions of Macedonian-Speaking Muslims
ALI DIKICI
Abstract Torbesh is the name given to the Macedonian-speaking Muslim minority commu- nity living in the Republic of Macedonia. The name is a colloquial term and means “the bag carriers”. There are some prevailing discussions on whether Torbeshes are descendants of Christian Slavs who converted to Islam during the Ottoman period or if they are of Turkish origin. During the Ottoman rule, not language, but reli- gion, motivated social groups and political allegiancies and was used in the desig- nation of identity. After the disintegration of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, this situation reemerged and religion played an important role during the ethnic conflicts in the Balkans. Although religion and religion-based tradition appeared to be decisive ethnicity components for many other Muslim minorities in the Balkans, the Torbeshes of Macedonia have not developed their collective iden- tity solely on religious grounds. The ethnic identity question of the Torbesh commu- nity is still under dispute although a majority declare themselves as Turks. A minor Torbesh group, for whom language is a much more important identity criterion, feels much closer to the orthodox Macedonians. Some of the Torbeshes declare themselves as Muslim Albanians for pragmatic or ideological reasons. Therefore, Torbeshes have neither a firm Macedonian national affiliation nor a separate Torbeshidentity.
Introduction The Balkan region is situated at the crossroads of various cultures, religions and civiliza- tions. It is one of the most complicated regions in the world from the ethnic, religious and language points of view. Tribes passing through or settling in the Balkans were not only affected by the local culture but also influenced it. So, new entities were created from the new tribes combined with the original ones. Many states emerged comprising various heterogeneous ethnic and religious minorities which are presently hostile to each other. Thus, in the Balkans, as a result of encounters between various religions, new cul- tural and national groups emerged, such as the Christian Orthodox Turks (Gagauzes), Bulgarian-speaking Pomaks, Serb–Croat-speaking Bosnians and Macedonian-speaking Torbeshes.1 Macedonia, in which a considerable amount of migration movements and wars have taken place throughout the centuries, was settled as early as prehistoric times and so had a very complicated and fragile ethnic structure. A small Muslim minority group called Torbeshes, which is hardly mentioned within this context, shall be studied in this article. Although most of the Torbeshes are not able to speak Turkish, they claim to be Turks and this seems to be a subject that deserves examination in detail. However, this is a difficult subject to study since there is limited research and little written on Torbeshes. Most of the data on Torbeshes is derived from other general
ISSN 1360-2004 print/ISSN 1469-9591 online/08/010027-17 # 2008 Institute of Muslim Minority Affairs DOI: 10.1080/13602000802011044 28 Ali Dikici sources about ethnicity in the southeastern Balkans. There are only a few serious inde- pendent studies on them yet there are deep differences between the scholars’ works. The main factors obscuring the research in this field are: political speculations; the reality and complexity of the problems; complex ethnic structures; and reality merged with myth. Political leaders and the state officials in the Balkans interpret subjects according to their own political interests. Thus the quality of scholarly reports diminishes and subjective speculations increase. An attempt will be made in this article to clarify the confusion.
The Torbesh Identity The Torbeshes are generally defined as a Muslim ethnic group in the Balkans, mostly speaking the Macedonian language. The Torbeshes have a twofold identity problem. It is possible to define them by two elements: the Macedonian language and Islam. While Macedonian historians underline the language factor and refer to the Torbeshes’ original Christian identity, Turkish researchers focus on Islam as their religion, disre- garding the language and cultural dimension. Most Torbeshes define themselves as Turks and have a close affinity to Turks. They live predominantly in the western and southern parts of Macedonia and in Kosovo, with limited numbers in Greece, Albania and Turkey. The largest concentration of them is in the western part of Macedonia, in the town of Debar and its surrounding villages, and in the Reka2 region between Mavrovo (the state border with Albania), Debar and Kichevo. Eighty percent of the population in this region is comprised of Torbeshes.3 The two large towns in the region where Torbeshes are the majority are Rostushe4 and Centar Zhupa.5 There are smaller concentrations of Torbeshes in other parts of the country, such as Skopje, Struga, Kichevo, Yelovyane, Struga, Berovo, Urvich and Kolichani. Torbeshes often live in underdeveloped, neglected, and isolated areas, e.g. the muni- cipalities of Debar and Kichevo, where there is no absolute ethnic majority. These people are well known as owners of restaurants, candy makers, fresco painters, wood carvers and mosaic makers. In the past few decades large numbers of them have emigrated to Italy and other Western European countries due to unemployment. Not all but most of the surnames of the Torbesh end with Slavonic (-ov/-ski) suffixes. Torbesh in the Turkish language (Torbes¸) refers to people with deference, who are loyal and do not cause problems. This view is also supported by the historical attitude of the Torbesh people who never caused any conflict with the Ottoman administration and accepted remaining secondary and supportive under all circumstances.6 The Torbeshes are distinguished by their remarkable adaptation capability, just like the Pomaks. Since the name Torbesh is an informal and pejorative name, at least half of all Torbeshes, if not more, refuse to be called Torbesh.7 Some scholars say that the Gorans of Kosovo and the Torbeshes of Macedonia are closely related to the Pomaks of Greece and Bulgaria,8 and that the Torbesh community is a subgroup of the Muslim Pomak ethnicity in Bulgaria,9 and so the Pomaks are called Torbeshes in Macedonia and Gorans in Kosovo and Albania.10 The language of the Tor- beshes is a different dialect of the Pomak language and it has lost its original form due to the long term influence of the Macedonian language. Sometimes Torbeshes are called “Mijaks, Nashinci”,11 or “Poturs, Kurkis”12 as well. However, “Pomaks, Torbeshes and Gorans see themselves as different from each other. This difference even can be observed among the Torbeshes and Gorans living together. While Gorans see themselves The Torbeshes of Macedonia 29 with a higher status than other Torbesh, Torbeshes are not inclined to differ themselves from Gorans.”13 Gorans share many common customs with Torbeshes but they do not intermarry with them.14 However, neither previous Western nor Ottoman writings used the term Torbeshes. In the Ottoman millet system, all of the citizens derived their identity either as being Muslim or as non-Muslim and there were no other subdivisions based on specific nationalities.15 The Sublime Porte recognized only religious communities, which were protected by the sultan and granted a degree of self-administration under the millet system. The Ottoman official records did not divide the Muslims according to their ethnic or linguistic affilia- tions.16 Therefore, it is quite difficult to determine the real number of different ethnic groups that comprised the Islamic community in the Ottoman period.17 The Serbian nationalist geographer Jovan Cvijic´ was the first to treat Torbeshes as distinct from the other Bulgarian-speaking Pomaks in 1913.18
Torbesh: The Etymological Roots The original meaning of the name “Torbesh” is obscure. There are various views on this subject and “folk” rumors are more common than written sources. There is a cynical story which states that this name comes from a Turkish word “torba” meaning “bag” implying that the Torbeshes sold their soul for a bag of wheat flour19 or sold their Chris- tian faith for a bag of “urda” (kind of a soft cheese).20 According to Hacivasilevic, the word “Torbesh” is closely related to the Persian word of “torbekes”, meaning “with a bag”. The Torbesh people generally live in the mountains; they make their living by breeding cattle and as construction workers. They always used to carry their tools in a sack with them and were referred to as a people with a bag.21 Another Persian-related explanation is that the word “Torbesh” denotes a mobile sales- man who sells halva 22 and oriental drinks. Palikuruseva brings an explanation for the term from Ottoman history suggesting that “Torba acemi” was a branch in the Ottoman army or “Torba group” was a special class in the central Ottoman adminis- tration body.23 In this sense, the name relates to the old Slavic tribe named Torbachei, and then to the special type of employees of the Turkish army and the candidates for janissaries 24 who carried bags (torbi in Macedonian, torba Oglanlari/torba Acemileri in Turkish). There is yet another opinion that the ethnic name is related to the Bogomil movement. The Bogomil missionaries (kutugeri) carried bags (torbi) with them to hold books related to their faith and to hold food. Angelov25 also says that the Torbesh people are the last descendents of the Macedonian Bogomils who converted to Islam and that the term Torbesh is an old Bogomil word. It is true that the map of the Bogomil movement and of Islamization is overlapping at the Balkans, but this is not so relevant when it comes to the ethnic name.26 According to Turkish scholar Yusuf Hamza, Torbes¸ 27 is a Turkish compound word coming from tor þ bas¸. Thus the word Torbesh comes from “torbas¸lık” meaning “a closely woven net” or from “toy” meaning “naive, immature, unripe, shy, timid and inex- perienced”; and “a” vocal in torbas¸ changed into “e” producing the term torbes¸ from torbas¸. Therefore, Yusuf Hamza refuses to agree with the idea that the term Torbeshes originates from the phenomenon of Bogomils bag carriers.28 Certain religious similarities between the Torbeshes and the Turks have often been noted by some Turkish researchers. Kalafat claims that the Torbeshes are the descen- dants of non-Muslim Turkish tribes which settled in the region and converted to 30 Ali Dikici
Islam. Kalafat points out the similarities in customs such as “putting a male baby to the bed during the wedding ceremony, the custom of melting lead and pouring it to cold water over the head of a sick person in order to break an evil spell, dressing clothes turned inside out to a woman after childbirth to protect her from genies and ghosts, and using amulets”.29 Some of the Torbeshes explain their Torbesh name as referring to their changing of their religion four to five times and/or migrating four to five times during their history, or speaking four–five different languages. That is to say, the pronunciation of four–five (do¨rt-bes¸) in Turkish evolved into Torbes¸ (Torbesh) with the passage of time. Although some people who I met in Macedonia interpret this term as “the ones who were thrown into the bag by converting to Islam”, this is looked upon as an insulting comment. There are some other comments relating the term Torbesh with the old cap called “tar”. So, the people who wear a tar have been called Tarbas¸ (head with a cap) and the term evolved into Torbesh as time passed.30 Researchers provide different interpretations for the origin of the word Torbesh but many of them relate it to the Turkish word “torba” meaning “bag”. So, “it is interesting to note that almost all different explanations of the name Pomak were related to the Bulgarian language and all different explanations of the name Torbesh were related to Turkish language”.31
The Ethnicity and Identity Questions These discussions over the word Torbesh and its other local variations also involve refer- ence to race and ethnic origins. Since the withdrawal of the Ottoman Empire from the Balkan Peninsula, the ethnic identity question of Muslim minorities remains to this day. Torbeshes have been treated as a religious minority rather than an ethnic minority from the past till the present. The main reason is that the Balkan states had a Christian majority, and the Muslim minorities were counted as Christians in the population census.32 According to non-Turkish sources, the Torbeshes were the ancient Slavic or Sla- vized inhabitants of the Balkans, and were forcibly converted to Islam during the period of Ottoman domination, which lasted until the nineteenth century.33 “This claim ignores historical evidence that the Ottomans never tried to convert non- Muslims to Islam and they did not have a policy of Islamization of non-Muslims within their territory. If they really had wanted to do so, first they would have attempted to convert their brothers, the Gagauz Turks, living in northern Bulgaria. The Christian Gagauz were Turkish, and they remained Christian Orthodox. Even today they speak Turkish and they are Orthodox. Without any oppression, they lived almost 600 years under the Ottoman rule.”34 As S. Shaw pointed out, had the Ottoman state carried out an Islamization policy, all the non-Muslim peoples of the Balkans could have been converted to Islam during the 600 years of Ottoman rule.35 Even today it is possible to see both churches and mosques together in very old villages in Macedonia. Balkan expert Eran Fraenkel states that Macedonian Muslims have never put Islam in a backward position for the sake of Macedonian identity. On the contrary, they mostly denied that they come from Slavic origin and appropriated a non-Slavic Islamic identity.36 And this is defined as a clear example of turning Ottoman heritage into Turkish influence.37 The Torbeshes of Macedonia 31
Dmitri Obolensky says that “the name torbeshi, which also served to designate the Bogomils, is still applied to the Pomaks in the Rhodopes and to the Muslims in Macedo- nia in the subdistricts of Debar, Skopje, Kichevo and Shar Mountain”.38 According to the Turkish view, Torbesh origin can be traced back to some Muslim Turkish tribes which settled in the region before the Ottoman Empire.39 Turkish researchers are inclined to link the Balkan Muslims with Kuman, Kipchak or Pechenek Turks, who came from Central Asia and then they linguistically became Slavicized.40 Hence, the Torbeshes are the descendants of Turks who came to the region before the Ottoman period and they are Macedonian-speaking Muslim Turks. Poulton gives another claim on the roots of the Torbeshes, as per the Muslim sources in the Sandzhak (Serbia), that many of the present-day Torbeshes are former Serbo– Croat-speaking migrants from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Sandzhak. According to this claim, many of them were headed for Turkey in order to take advantage of the 1950 emi- gration agreement with Turkey, but on their way, they decided to settle in Macedonia.41 However, it is a known fact that the Torbeshes had lived in Macedonia before this date, making this claim groundless.
The Basis of Torbesh Identity The sense of national identity among the Torbeshes finds its greatest support in Islam. They are one of the most devout Muslim communities in the Balkans.42 National obscur- ity and “deliberate isolation”43 pushed them to identify themselves closely with Islam. “Their beliefs and principles encircle their life and protect them from all different aspects. Their national identity was constructed on religion and it is a sort of religion based nationalism.”44 Torbeshes identify their origins or identity as being Turkish and their religion as being Islam. Torbesh and Muslim are equivalent terms in their consciousness. Islam is a nationality as well as a religion in their minds. Sometimes they describe themselves as “Muslim Turk”, and exceptionally few would use the description “Muslim Albanian”. The interesting point is that they search for an identity derived from the Muslim nations and stay away from non-Muslims. However, almost a century has passed since the withdrawal of the Ottomans from the Balkans and during this time the Torbeshes have been pressured and intimidated by the authorities concerning their nationality. During the Communist regime they did not have an opportunity to define their identi- ties. The Serbianization–Bulgarization and Serbianization–Macedonization policies, that were applied successively, caused deep damages to the cultural identity of the Tor- beshes.45 “Torbeshes were kept away from the Turkish-speaking minorities. This caused some social and cultural deficiencies due to low level of communication, marriage relation, biological and cultural integration.”46 Nevertheless, the Torbeshes have begun to think that they are subjected to this open propaganda and these policies since they are “really Turks”. Thus, “this played an invisible role in developing Turkish identity among them”.47 Consequently, it is not surprising to hear them say that they are Turkish or Macedonian or Albanian. Spiridon Gopcˇevic´, on his trip to Ohrid in 1880, says that most of these people ident- ified themselves as Turkish even though they could not speak Turkish. He said that reli- gion formed their national identity. However, he still claimed that they were “Islamized Serbians”.48 32 Ali Dikici
Demographic Structure of the Torbesh Population In the sources of nineteenth century writings, the Pomaks of Bulgaria and the Torbeshes of Macedonia are defined as “Pomaks” without any distinction. In June 1878, Bulgarians gave British Ambassador A. Henry Layard a statistical report which included the size of the population of the Manastır, Goce Delcev (Nevrokop), Debar, Koprulu (Veles) and Thessalonika districts, and even of some villages.49 The Czech historian Konstantin Jirecˇek estimated at the turn of the nineteenth century that Torbesh and Pomaks were no less than half a million, even if Turkish sources reduce this number to 200,000.50 Some other sources (Limanovski,51 Atanas Benderev52) gave various figures for the Torbesh population in different regions of the Balkans during the second half of the nineteenth century. Estimates of the Torbesh population in Macedonia vary since these mixed figures include many other Muslim minorities making the estimation of the real population of the Torbeshes unpredictable. The population of the Torbeshes in the past varies according to the years and the sources. The population of Torbeshes in Macedonia was estimated at approximately 144,051 in 1889,53 and 150,000 in 1915.54 During those years, due to lack of a distinct separation between the Pomak and Torbesh minorities, it is very possible that both ethnicities were counted/estimated together as one. It should be noted that between 1877 and 1912 in the Balkans, as in all other Muslim populations, the size of the Torbesh population changed several times. During the Ottoman–Russian War of 1877–1878, almost all the Pomak people fled from the Danube region to Macedonia and they merged with the Torbeshes. Due to the oppressive policy of the Bulgarian government, they both migrated to Turkey soon thereafter. Par- ticularly during and after the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, many Torbeshes migrated to Turkey. In the period following the wars, there was a huge migration of the Torbesh popu- lation towards Turkey. Especially the migration between the years 1952 to 1967 had a crucial impact on the population of Torbeshes as well as that of other Muslim minorities. This migration continued during the remainder of the twentieth century with a lesser intensity. During this migration wave, the Turkish government accepted the immigrants according to criteria as to “who has Turkish origin as well as the ones who are loyal to Turkish culture”,55 thus rendering the estimation of their exact numbers almost imposs- ible. So, the largest number of them in diaspora is in Turkey and they can be found in different cities including Istanbul, Izmir, Bursa, Manisa56 as well as in some towns like Akhisar, etc. Apart from mobility and migration, another important cause for the varying estimates of the Torbesh population is in the diverse interpretations of Torbesh identity. As mentioned earlier, many Balkan nations claim that Torbeshes belong to their nationality and some Torbeshes declare themselves with different identities. During the censuses of 1919 and 1921 in Macedonia, the Torbeshes were recorded as being either Turkish or Albanian. Their population was estimated at approximately 27,000 before the Second World War.57 In the following censuses Torbeshes were not counted in a different category but registered as “Muslims”. However, even these figures do not reflect the real population of the Torbeshes. Table 1 shows the figures and percentages for declared nationality in all post-World War II censuses (except 2002) conducted in the Republic of Macedonia. It is suggested that the figure in 1981 (39,513) includes many who previously ident- ified themselves as Turks.58 As a result of this “ethnic instability” of the Torbeshes, some- times in the censuses there are more “Turks”, sometimes more “Albanians” and sometimes more “Muslims”/“Bosniacs”, etc.59 TABLE 1. Population composition of the Republic of Macedonia by year, nationality, number, and percent
1948 1953 1961 1971 1981 1991 1994 Declared nation 1948–1994 (Narodnost) Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number %
Macedonians 789,548 68.5 860,699 66.0 1,000,854 71.2 1,142,375 69.3 1,279,323 67.0 1,328,187 65.3 1,288,330 66.5 Albanians 197,389 17.1 162,524 12.4 183,108 13.0 279,871 17.0 377,208 19.8 441,987 21.7 442,914 22.9 Turks 95,940 8.3 203,938 15.6 131,481 9.4 108,552 6.6 86,591 4.5 77,080 3.8 77,252 4.0 Romas 19,500 1.7 20,462 1.6 20,606 1.5 24,505 1.5 43,125 2.3 52,103 2.6 43,732 2.3 Vlahs 9511 0.8 8668 0.6 8046 0.6 7190 0.6 6384 0.3 7764 0.4 8467 0.4 Serbs 29,721 2.6 35,112 2.7 42,728 3 46,465 2.8 44,468 2.3 42,775 2.1 39,260 2.0 (Macedonian) Muslims 1560 0.1 1591 0.1 3002 0.2 1248 0.1 39,513 2.1 31,356 1.5 15,315 0.8 Bulgarians 889 0.1 920 0.1 3087 0.2 3334 0.2 1980 0.1 1370 0.0 1547 0.1 Greeks – – 848 0.1 836 0.1 536 0.0 707 0.1 474 0.0 349 0.0 Egyptians – ––––––––– 3307 0.2 3169 0.2 Bosniacs – ––––––––––– 7244 0.4 h obse fMacedonia of Torbeshes The Yugoslavs – – – – 1260 0.1 3652 0.2 14,225 0.7 15,703 0.8 595 0.0 Other 8928 0.8 9752 0.8 10,995 0.7 29,580 1.7 15,612 0.8 31,858 1.6 8703 0.4 Total 1,152,986 100.0 1,304,514 100.0 1,406,003 100.0 1,647,308 100.0 1,909,136 100.0 2,033,964 100.0 1,936,877 100.0
Torbeshes. Source: Victor A. Friedman, “Observing the Observers: Language, Ethnicity, and Power in the 1994 Macedonian Census and Beyond. Toward Comprehensive Peace”, in Southeastern Europe: Conflict Prevention in the South Balkans, ed. Barnett Rubin, New York: The Council on Foreign Relations and Twentieth Century Fund, 1996. Avail- able online at:
According to the 2002 census, the total population and ethnic composition of Mace- donia are as shown in Table 2. The complete absence of Torbeshes from these figures is explained by their being counted as Macedonians on the basis of language, since Macedonian Slavic ethnologists do not consider them to be a separate ethnic group from the Christian Macedonian Slavs, but instead a religious minority within the Slav ethnic community. So, here, the third largest Muslim minority is not the Roma community but the Torbesh population. It should be noted that all the numbers given here about the Torbesh population are only estimates. The exact number of Macedonian Muslims is not easy to establish as there are contradictory estimations such as: 35,000 to 100,000,60 or 40,000,61 or 70,000 to 80,000,62 or 100,000,63 or 30,000 to 40,000,64 more than 150,00065 and 200,000.66 It is claimed that the Torbeshes identified themselves without exception as Turkish until the time the Ottomans left the region as a result of the First Balkan War in 1912. During the Balkan Wars and later during World War II, the Torbeshes were exposed to the “forcible assimilation” policies of Bulgar authorities.67 When the Republic of Macedonia was established in 1946, the ruling Communists encouraged the Torbeshes to adopt an ethnic Macedonian identity, which Macedonian Christians were also com- pelled to accept. Macedonian nationalist administrators were uneasy with the Torbesh attitude of defining themselves as Muslim and especially as Turkish. They were system- atically forced to convert to Christianity and to accept Macedonian identity. Communist leaders used various methods like oppression, intimidation and propaganda by historical materials to convince the Torbeshes to accept a “Macedonian identity”. For instance, in the post-Communist era when thousands of workers were being dismissed because of the economic crisis, the Macedonian authorities required a signed document from the Torbeshes who were reapplying for employment, stating that their identity is Muslim and nothing else. In 1970, the Association of the Macedonian Muslims was established with the agree- ment and support of the authorities, probably as a means of keeping Macedonian Muslim aspirations in control.68 They held their first meeting in 1970 at the monastery of Saint John Bigorski in Western Macedonia. The motto of the Center is reminiscent of the Greek policy concerning the Pomaks: “Torbesh are local people, i.e., Macedonians; but the Ottomans converted them forcefully”.69 However, the Association initially had only 50 members and did not represent all Torbeshes. Its chairman, Nijazi Limanovski, worked hard to persuade the Torbeshes
TABLE 2. Ethnic composition of Macedonia, 2002
Population Percent
Macedonian 1,297,981 64.18 Albanian 509,083 25.17 Turk 77,959 3.85 Roma 53,879 2.66 Serb 35,939 1.78 Bosniac 17,018 0.84 Vlach 9695 0.48 Other 20,929 1.04 Total 2,022,547 100.00 The Torbeshes of Macedonia 35 to accept that they are Macedonian Muslims and have nothing to do with the Turks. He also tried to minimize the importance of religious differences between Islam and Chris- tian orthodoxy, and to find common community affiliation between the Torbeshes and Macedonians. Limanovski voiced the position of the Macedonian government that the Muslim Macedonians should take part in the construction of the Macedonian nation.70 According to him “during the Ottoman time, in some cases Islamized Chris- tians remained bi-confessional for as long as around a century. In public, the converts declared themselves as ‘Muslims’, while at home they used their Christian names, and even let the Orthodox Christian clerics baptize their children. In other cases, it was only the head of the family who converted to Islam in order to relieve his family from the taxes, while the rest remained Christian in faith.”71 However, Limanovski was not supported by the majority of Torbeshes and he could not go out without police protection since once the Torbeshes had even beaten him for being a traitor. The Association actively continued to encourage Macedonian Muslim identification with Macedonian language and ethnicity. A 1979 meeting marked the establishment of the organization of the so-called manifestations of scientific and cultural activities of the Macedonian Muslims. The period between 1979 and 1984 was very intensive in this respect. Fourteen meetings on cultural, scientific and folklore topics were held during this period. They were attended by the Communist authorities or were organized in cooperation with their respective institutions.72
State Disintegration and Ethnic Identity The emergence of the Balkan Muslim populations as autonomous political actors is indeed one of the major changes of the 1990s and it goes hand in hand with the politi- cization of their ethnic identity. The collapse of the Communist regime allowed the Torbeshes to express their ethnic identities and enjoy religious freedom. Nevertheless, complex historical tradition and recent political input into the debate over the identity of the Torbeshes have contributed to the complicated character of the discussion on the issue of Torbesh identity. In this sense, the process of politicization of ethnic identity has influenced not only a large part of the information on the Tor- beshes, but also their precise self-identification. Only the identification with a recognized national identity allows these populations to attain some political visibility, and then to mobilize internal or external political resources. But, the Torbeshes follow three different identity strategies.73 The first one aims at merging into a larger Muslim group which already enjoys an institutional recognition: many Macedonian Torbeshes declare them- selves as “Turks” or “Albanians”. Some pious Torbeshes tended to merge with the Muslim Turks while others unite with the Albanian minority. However, “the Macedo- nian state does its best to prevent them from joining the ranks of the Albanians or the Turks”.74 On the contrary, the second strategy consists of declaring oneself as a “Muslim Mace- donian” to take advantage of belonging to the Macedonian majority. Of course, these identity choices are encouraged by the authorities, and civil servants with such identities are promoted easily. Some Turkish ethnologists reacted by asserting that the Torbeshes are in fact Slavicized Turks rather than Islamicized Slavs. “In regard to this important issue there are different opinions that prove that the dividing line between ethnic and religious community is not clear. According to the Turkish NGOs ADEKSAM and Millenium, ethnic Turks face a threat to gradually assimilate, especially in the region where ethnic Turks live and speak Macedonian language. The country confirms their 36 Ali Dikici assimilation by defining them as Macedonian Muslims, even though they declare themselves as ethnic Turks.”75 Finally, a third strategy tries to shape a distinctive Torbesh identity and insists on its recognition as such. This strategy implies a discovery of the tradition, and presently the Pomaks and Torbeshes often refer to specific pre-Ottoman Turkish or Arab origins.76 Many Muslim Macedonians have repeatedly identified themselves with fellow Muslims. During the conflict in 2001, this complex social pattern was reduced to a confrontation between two major nationalities—Macedonians and Albanians—and small ethnic groups were forced to affiliate with one or the other. The Serbs and Vlachs, both Orthodox, naturally identified with the Macedonians, but the Torbeshes were in a more complicated situation.77 They faltered between “a natural solidarity [sic.] with Albanians”; “being loyal to Macedonia”; and “being impartial”. As Macedonian speakers, they were rejected by Albanian nationalists, but Macedonian nationalism violently opposed any Islamic group. For instance, the demonstrators that were angry with the Albanians destroyed the mosques mainly frequented by the Torbeshes and Turks in Prilep, and burned down houses and shops owned by the Torbeshes in Bitola. Therefore, the Torbeshes, along with the other ethnic minorities, are very worried about “stability and security” in the regions they live in.78 This is a very complicated situation in which the Torbeshes have played an important role. Briefly, while many of them already describe themselves as Turkish, a limited number of them declare their nationality as Albanian or Macedonian Muslim or as Muslim only. This is the result of the assimilation policies which have dominated them for a century, as well as of the process of politicization of ethnic identity. The fear of assimilation into the Albanian Muslim community has been a significant factor in Macedonian Muslim politics, amplified by the tendency of some Torbeshes to vote for Albanian candidates. In 1990, the chairman of the Macedonian Muslims Association, Riza Memedovski, sent an open letter to the Chairman of the Party for Democratic Prosperity (PDP), dominated by ethnic Albanians. In this letter he accused the party of using religion to promote the Albanization of the Macedonian Muslims and using it for the “quiet assimilation” of the Torbeshes and the “Kosovi- zation” and “Albanization” of Western Macedonia.79 The Association also claimed that since the Second World War other Muslim groups, most notably the Albanians, had assimilated more than 70,000 Macedonian Muslims.80 Likewise, in early 1993 the presidium of the Association issued a statement alleging that the Democratic Party of the Turks (TDP) stood behind the “pan-Turkish” ideas. The Torbeshes also complained about the domination of Albanians in the Macedonian Islamic Union, the religious organization of all Muslim minorities in Macedonia. A con- troversy broke out in 1995 when the Albanian-dominated Meshihat or Council of the Islamic Community in Macedonia declared that Albanian was the official language of Muslims in Macedonia. The decision prompted protests from the leaders of the Macedonian Muslim Association.81 This “Albanization” of the Islamic religious insti- tutions led to some (unsuccessful) attempts to create religious institutions specific to the Slavic- or Turkish-speaking populations.82 In 1996, Nijazi Limanovski said that the Macedonian Muslims are subjected to processes of ethnic denationalization by the TDP and that the political parties of the Albanian ethnicity and also the TDP had been conducting the “ottomanisation and assimilation” of Macedonian citizens of Islamic faith—which can best be seen through the educational system.83 The Torbeshes of Macedonia 37
While the Torbeshes try to establish their own political party, they mostly vote for the Albanian and Turkish political parties.84 They complain that the Macedonian politicians are interested in their problems only during the election period. These people feel that they have been manipulated by all parties. Although they are present in all political parties it is hard to find Torbeshes serving in the executive bodies. While the Macedonian governments are fully supportive of those who declare themselves as Macedonian Muslims, no Torbesh has had a chance to enjoy the benefits of his/her engagement in a political party.
Seeking Identity through Education It is noteworthy that although they cannot speak Turkish and their mother tongue is Macedonian, the Torbeshes claim that their ancestors came from Konya before the Ottoman period. They explain this contradiction as “our schools were closed down after the Ottomans withdrew, and 600 of us who resisted this policy were killed. There- fore, we began to speak Macedonian to avoid oppression and to find employment.”85 Actually, following the establishment of the state of Yugoslavia, “Torbeshes had to live in isolated regions and their children have never been allowed to have education in Turkish. They had to have education in Serbian, Bulgarian and Macedonian.”86 In the beginning of the 1990s Torbeshes demanded that their children be schooled in Turkish instead of Macedonian. The TDP, which has great support among the Torbesh, backed them in their efforts. Through the Kichevo branch of the TDP, the Torbeshes voiced their demand loudly. At the first gathering in Kichevo it is reported that the con- gress hall that seats 600 was full. However, the Macedonian government turned down the request, declared that they were Muslim Macedonians and deemed them as Muslims of Macedonian origin.87 The state authorities also suggested three hours a week of a course on Turkish as an elective. The Torbesh minority has severely reacted against this offer, because the allotted time is insufficient to learn Turkish. However, the Torbeshes have struggled hard to have public or private school instruc- tion in the Turkish language and submitted a petition signed by 262 parents stating: “I, (undersigned), who live at (the address), voluntarily declare that I demand my child (the name) to learn Turkish together with classes in Macedonian”.88 On 1 October 1991, in Zhupa, a group of activists from the TDP along with local parents opened two private primary schools with instruction in the Turkish language, after their requests had been denied. According to the school organizers, the classes were financed privately; had properly trained teachers and followed the curriculum of the Ministry of Education. In January 1993 the government sent the police to the private schools in Zhupa to prevent the educational instruction from being in Turkish, implying that it was not the mother tongue of the Torbesh children.89 The Ministry of Education declared the two private schools illegal and ordered that they be closed. Auth- orities asserted that, while there certainly are ethnic Turks in the area, many of them are Macedonian Muslims who have been persuaded to declare themselves as ethnic Turks. The government explained this phenomenon as the result of the propaganda from the TDP and of the poor Torbesh population’s economic interest in studying Turkish in order to trade with Turkey or to emigrate and work there.90 The people in Zhupa claimed that they were definitely Turkish, although many spoke the Macedonian language with one another.91 In spring 1995, the police came to Zhupa and tore down the two private schools. Many people were threatened with losing their jobs if they sent their children to the 38 Ali Dikici schools.92 Finally, on 2 September 1996 some 60 Torbesh parents started a hunger strike in Zhupa. A partial solution came on the 25th day of the strike. A total of 171 students from Zhupa were allowed to register temporarily at a Turkish school in Kocacik village 9 kilometers away. However, after a month police prevented the children from attending this school also. The TDP gave full support to the parents. The leader of the TDP, Erdog˘an Sarac¸, complained about the attitude of the Macedonian government and explained the cause of this attitude as a “concern of population”. He stated that if these people were given the right to a Turkish education, then their Turkish identity would be accepted and 4% of Orthodox Macedonians would be deducted from the census figures.93 This question was left hanging in the air for a long time. The Macedonian Helsinki Committee received 43 individual letters demanding Turkish education in Zhupa in 1997. Finally, in 1999 the Ministry of Education gave permission for opening official Turkish-language classes in Zhupa. Nowadays, many Torbesh villages have been striving for Turkish education in their primary schools.
Benefiting from the “Rule of Law” Since achieving independence in 1991, Macedonia has avoided the kind of ethnic and religious conflicts that had engulfed other Balkan states for decades. However, Macedonian authorities were not able to fully benefit from this opportunity. Early in 2001, the clashes between Albanian militants and Macedonian security forces near the Kosova border started another ethnic conflict in Macedonia. However, inter- national organizations did not allow the bloodshed of Bosnia and Kosova to be repeated in Macedonia and stopped the conflict before it became widespread. The conflict was resolved quickly and a road map was created to re-establish the rule of law in the crisis regions. At the same time constitutional, legal and administrative changes that would strengthen multi-ethnicity and democracy were mandated. The fundamental principles of all of these activities constitute an increase in the represen- tation of members of minority communities in Macedonia into public administration, the military and the police. Due to heavy international pressure, the EU integration period and implementation of the Ohrid Framework agreement, some incremental improvements in the situation have been observed in recent years. The proportion of Muslim minorities employed in the state administration has increased; many have joined the police force94 and the army. However, this still does not reflect the composition and distribution of the population of the country. For instance, in Zhupa a very small number of the 30 policemen are Torbesh. From the first clashes, the international community sought only to achieve a political dialogue between the Macedonians and the Albanians, ignoring the Turks, Roma, Serbs, Vlachs and Torbeshes. The Torbeshes want to enjoy their constitutional rights such as Turkish education for their children. While it is now theoretically possible, the Macedonian authorities continue to refuse to recognize an independent ethnic Torbesh identity and so bureaucratic obstacles persist. In spite of all the systematic pressures, the Torbeshes keep their distance and try to avoid involvement in any sort of governmental business or meeting with officials in the government. They prefer to live within their own community. They are uneasy at being called Torbesh and consider this as degrading. However, it seems that one day, if they feel really secure, they would want to be called “Turk”. The Torbeshes of Macedonia 39
Conclusion The historical origin of Torbeshes is still a mystery. Therefore, it is much better to deal with how they define themselves now rather than speculate on who they were in the past, and their descendants could make the final decision on their national and ethnic identity depending on their social, political and economic situation at the time. It is a reality that the Torbeshes have suffered greatly from conflicts and wars both past and present. They are always the forgotten victims, crushed between the rival national- isms of major ethnic groups. They do not have a kin-state which defends their interna- tionally guaranteed rights. So, they are looking for help from the international community. The Macedonian authorities have been concerned about the penetration of Albanian and Turkish nationalism into this community. Some Torbeshes look to integrate with their linguistic brethren, while many others want their Turkish identity to be accepted. If the political situation gets any worse, smaller communities like the Torbeshes will not only be forced to choose sides, but they will also have to give up much of their separate identities.95
NOTES 1. O¨ mer Turan, “Pomaks, Their Past and Present”, Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Vol. 19, No. 1, April 1999, pp. 69–83. 2. The region takes its name from the Radika river (reka is the Macedonian word for river). 3. “Project of Women’s Organization “Radika”, in Debar Area—Reka Women Embroider Scarves for Americans”, Dnevnik (Diary), 19 Febuary 2003. 4. There are 10,718 inhabitants in Rostushe, which is the largest municipality in the region. See Infor- mation and Communications Technology Assistance for Macedonian Municipalities, Municipality of Ros- tushe, available online at: ,http://www.undp.org.mk/itc-ros/op_ros_ang.htm.. 5. There are 6229 inhabitants in the municipality of Zhupa. See Zˇ upa Municipality webpage, available online at: ,http://www.centarjupa.gov.mk/demografi.htm.. 6. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 70. 7. What is more interesting is that many Torbeshes that I met expressed that they do not enjoy the term Torbesh since they take it as an insult. The name is somewhat pejorative and derogatory sounding “vagrant, miserable, dishevelled and uncivil”. Some of them stated that the reason for their discontent is that the Torbesh and Pomak terms had been given by their Christian neighbors to degrade the Slavs who converted to Islam. Oppression and the intimidation under the former Republic of Yugoslavia also contribute to the formation of a “sense of shame” vis-a`-vis their Torbesh identity. However, the term “Muslim Macedonians” is used by Macedonian authorities and scholars to engage the Tor- beshes in their republic in the process of Macedonian nation building. Therefore, I will employ the term Torbesh to refer to the “Macedonian-speaking Muslim Community” instead of the questionable “Macedonian Muslim” (Makedonski Muslimani) or “Muslim Macedonian” (Muslimanski Makedoni). However, the Macedonian Muslim term will be quoted as the source originally implied. Similarly another pejorative term used for Torbeshes is poturi/poturlu. “It was generally used to refer to Islami- cized or Turkicized Bosnian Slavs of a rather rustic and provincial kind, who may have retained some Christian practices.” See Noel Malcolm, Bosnia: A Short History, 2nd edn., London: Macmillan, 1996, pp. 59–60. 8. Jean-Arnault De´rens, “Winners and Losers among the Minority Groups in Former Yugoslavia: For- gotten Peoples of the Balkans”, Le Monde Diplomatique, August 2003, available online at: ,http:// mondediplo.com/2003/08/04Derens.;Hu¨seyin Memis¸og˘lu, “Pomaklar (Pomaks)”, in Balkanlar El Kitabı (Balkans Handbook), eds. Osman Karatay and Bilgehan A. Go¨kdag˘, Vol. II, C¸ orum- Ankara: KaraM&Vadi Publishing, 2007, pp. 523–535. 9. See also Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 69. 10. Hugh Poulton, “Non-Albanian Muslim Minorities in Macedonia”, in The New Macedonian Question, ed. James Pettifer, London: Macmillan Press, 1999, pp. 107–126. For instance, N. Skiryabin uses the term Pomak for the people in Debar and Radika valley which are Torbesh regions. Quoted by Gligor 40 Ali Dikici
Todorovski, “Verskiot Faktor Kako Islamiziranite Makedonci” (The Factor of Religion on the National Identity of Islamicized Macedonians), in Istorija Folklor i Etnologija na Islamiziranite Make- donci (History, Folklore and Ethnology of Islamicized Macedonians), Skopje: Scientific-Cultural Activities of Islamicized Macedonians in Macedonia, 1987, p. 70. 11. Aneta Svetieva, “Politicisation of the Ethnic Identity of the Torbesh (the Nashinci)”, available online at: ,http://www.iea.pmf.ukim.edu.mk/EAZ/EAZ_03/EAZ_2004_PDF/EAZ_ 2003_Ponizeni_Balkan_Ang.pdf.. 12. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 69; Kemal Go¨zler, “Osmanlı Tahrir Defterlerine Go¨re Lofc¸a Pomak Ko¨ylerinin I˙lk Mu¨slu¨man Sakinleri: 1479–1579” (Pomak Villages of Lofc¸a in 15th and 16th Centu- ries According to Ottoman Tahrir Defters: 1479–1579), available online at: ,http://www.anayasa. gen.tr/pomteb.htm#_ftnref5.. 13. Erhan Tu¨rbedar, “Balkanlar’da Mu¨slu¨man Topluluklar ve Tu¨rkiye” (Muslim Communities in Balkans and Turkey), available online at:
30. It is known that the Torbesh name appears also as denoting territory of origin such as the village of Torbach in Golo Brdo—the part which is in Albania. 31. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 70. 32. Tu¨rbedar, “Balkanlar’da Mu¨slu¨man Topluluklar ve Tu¨rkiye”, op. cit. 33. Milivoj Pavlovic, Skopski Torbesi-Najstrarije Pleme na Balkanskom Poluostrvu (The Oldest Skopje Tor- beshes Who Come from Serbian Origin in the Balkan Peninsula), Skopje: Juzna Srbija, 1939; Vera Mutafchieva and Antonina Zhelyazkova, Tu rc ij a (Turkey), Sofia: Open Society Publishing House, 1994, p. 10; Center for Documentation and Information on Minorities in Europe—Southeast Europe (CEDIME-SE), “Minorities in Southeast Europe: Muslims of Macedonia”, updated August 2000, available online at: ,http://www.greekhelsinki.gr/english/reports/CEDIME-Reports- Minorities-in-Macedonia.html.. 34. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., pp. 70–71. 35. Stanford J. Shaw, “Osmanlı I˙mparatorlug˘u’nda Azınlıklar Sorunu” (The Problem of Minorities in the Ottoman Empire), in Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e Tu¨rkiye Ansiklopedisi (Encyclopedia of Turkey from Tanzimat to the Republic), Vol. V, I˙stanbul: I˙letis¸im Publishing, 1986, pp. 1002–1006. 36. Eran Fraenkel, “Turning a Donkey into a Horse: Paradox and Conflict in the Identity of Macedonci Muslimani”, Balkan Forum, Vol. 3, No. 4, 1995, pp. 153–163. 37. Maria Todorova, “The Ottoman Legacy in the Balkans”, in The Balkans: A Mirror of the New Inter- national Order, eds. Gu¨nay Go¨ksu O¨ zdog˘an and Kemal Saybas¸ılı, I˙stanbul: Eren Publications, 1995, p. 72. 38. Dmitri Obolensky, The Bogomils: A Study in Balkan Neo-Manichaeism, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1948, p. 167. 39. Hamzaog˘lu, Balkan Tu¨rklu¨g˘u¨, op. cit., p. 454; Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 71. 40. Hu¨seyin Memis¸og˘lu, Pomak Tu¨rklerinin Tarihi Gec¸mis¸inden Sayfalar (Pages of History of Pomak Turks), Ankara: S¸afak Publishing, 1991, pp. 11–12; Asen Balıkc¸ı, “Pomak Identity: National Pre- scriptions and Native Assumptions”, Ethnologia Balkanica,Mu¨nchen: Waxmann Verlag, No. 03, 1999, pp. 51–57. The name of some locations such as Kumanova in Macedonia is given as the proof of this opinion. 41. Hugh Poulton, “Changing Notions of National Identity among Muslims in Thrace and Macedonia: Turks, Pomaks and Roma”, in Muslim Identity and the Balkan State, eds Hugh Poulton and Suha Taji- Farouki, London: C. Hurst, 1997, p. 93. 42. In a search on “tendencies rejecting the behaviors against the religion and moral values”, Torbeshes and Pomaks have the highest and most severe reaction ratio in comparison to other Muslim minorities in the Balkans. See Musa Musai, “Balkan Mu¨slu¨manlarında Din-Kimlik Bu¨tu¨nles¸mesi” (Religion- Identity Integration of Balkan Muslims), Hikmet, No. 6, Gostivar: ADEKSAM, 2005, pp. 7–25. Relative to the others, Torbeshes displayed the highest desire (68.8%) to live in a country having full freedom of religion and conscience, and this is directly related to their definition of identity on the basis of religion. See ibid., p. 23. 43. Halim C¸ avus¸og˘lu, “Yugoslavya-Makedonya’dan Tu¨rkiye’ye 1952–67 ‘Kitlesel’ Go¨c¸u¨ ve Bursa’daki Go¨c¸men Kesimi” (The “Mass” Migration in 1952–67 from Yugoslavia–Macedonia to Turkey and the Part of Immigrants in Bursa), Karadeniz Aras¸tırmaları (Black Sea Studies), Vol. 3, No. 10, 2006, pp. 107–147. 44. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 75. 45. C¸ avus¸og˘lu, “Yugoslavya-Makedonya’dan Tu¨rkiye’ye”, op. cit., p. 120. 46. Ibid., p. 120. 47. Dıs¸is¸leri Bakanlıg˘ı (The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey), “No: 183, 843/412/3186, 6 Temmuz 1963, Belgrad Bu¨yu¨kelc¸ilig˘i’nden Dıs¸is¸leri Bakanlıg˘ı’na” (From Turkish Embassy in Belgrade to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey), Dıs¸Tu¨rkler (Belgeler)—Turks in Abroad (Documents), Ankara: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, 1969, pp. 642, 649–650. 48. Spiridon Gopcˇevic´, Stara Srbija i Makedonija (Old Serbia and Macedonia), Belgrade: Ilije M. Kolarca, 1890, p. 58. 49. Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 72. 50. Mario Apostolov, “The Pomaks: A Religious Minority in The Balkans”, Nationalities Papers, Vol. 24, No. 4, 1996, pp. 727–742. Also available online at: Columbia International Affairs Online, ,http:// www.ciaonet.org/conf/iec03/iec03_14-96.html#txt7.. 51. Nijazi Limanovski, Islamizacijata i etnicˇkite promeni vo Makedonija, Makedonci Muslimani (Macedo- nian Muslims, Ethnic Changes and Islamization in Macedonia), Skopje: Makedonska Kniga, 1984, p. 54. 42 Ali Dikici
52. Atanas Benderev, VoenajaGeografija i Statistika Makedoniji (The Military Geography and Statistics in Macedonia), St. Petersburg, 1890, p. 592, quoted by Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 83. Benderev gives the figures of “Islamicized Macedons” living in the towns which are found within Macedonia today: in Dojran, 2763; in Strumitsa, 11,823; in Tikvesh, 47,938; in the district of Skopje, 20,870; in Kuma- novo, 800; in Radovish, 5387; and in Kochani, 7930. In the district of Manastir their number was 35,423; in Prilepe, 8000; in Resen and Prespa, 4000; and in Debre-i Zire, 6000. Although other Muslim minorities like Pomaks are included in these figures, they reflect mostly the population of the Torbeshes. 53. Stefan M. Verkovic, Topograficesko-Ethnograficeskij ocerk Makedonii (Ethnography and Topography of Macedonia), St. Petersburg: Voennaja tip, 1889, p. 238. According to Verkovic, the Muslim Mace- donians in selected towns in present-day Macedonia number as follows: in Koprulu, 4646; in Strumica, 7497; in Ohrid, 1523; in Kichevo, 5690; in Resen, 2806; in Monastir, 5177; in Prilep, 4695; in Debar, 8046; in Tikvesh, 15,685; in Tetovo, 8149; in Skopje, 5509; in Shtip, 3468, and in Kochana, 3790, etc. 54. Jordan Nikolov Ivanov, Bulgarite vi Makedonija (Bulgars in Macedonia), Sofia, 1915, quoted by Turan, “Pomaks”, op. cit., p. 73. 55. Dıs¸is¸leri Bakanlıg˘ı (The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey), “No: 183, 843/412/3186, 6 Temmuz 1963, Belgrad Bu¨yu¨kelc¸ilig˘i’nden Dıs¸is¸leri Bakanlıg˘ı’na”, op. cit., p. 645. 56. For a thesis regarding their lifestyle and customs in Turkey, see Metin Demir, “Manisa’da Yas¸ayan Torbes¸ler’in Du¨g˘u¨n Adet ve Gelenekleri” (Wedding Ceremonies and Customs of Torbeshes Living in Manisa), unpublished Master thesis, Turkish Folk Science Department, Hacettepe University, Ankara, 1990. 57. Ivo Banac, The National Question in Yugoslavia: Origins, History, Politics, New York: Cornell University Press, 1989, p. 50. 58. Poulton, “Non-Albanian Muslim Minorities”, op. cit., p. 115. 59. Baskın Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims: A Comparative Study on Greece, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Kosova”, Cahiers d’e´tudes sur la Me´diterrane´e orientale et le monde turco-iranien (Study documentation/research findings on the Oriental Mediterranean and Turkish- Iranian civilization), No. 18, Juillet–De´cembre 1994, available online at: ,http://www.ceri-science- spo.com/publica/cemoti/textes18/oran18.pdf.. 60. Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. 61. Tom Gallagher, The Balkans in the New Millennium: In the Shadow of War and Peace, London and New York: Routledge, 2005, p. 85. 62. Necati C¸ ayırlı, “Makedonya Tu¨rkleri” (Turks in Macedonia), in Tu¨rkler Ansiklopedisi (Encylopedia of Turks), Vol. 20, Ankara: Yeni Tu¨rkiye Publishing, 2002, pp. 444–454. 63. Murat Oral, Makedonya Cumhuriyeti U¨ lke Profili (The Profile of Republic of Macedonia), Skopje: The Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA), February 2005, available online at: ,http://www.tika.gov.tr/Dosyalar/Makedonya.doc.. 64. Tu¨rbedar, “Balkanlar’da Mu¨slu¨man Topluluklar ve Tu¨rkiye”, op. cit. 65. Zafirovski, “Muslims Ache”, op. cit. 66. Hamzaog˘lu, Balkan Tu¨rklu¨g˘u¨, op. cit., p. 453. 67. C¸ avus¸og˘lu, “Yugoslavya-Makedonya’dan Tu¨rkiye’ye”, op. cit., p. 121. 68. Poulton, “Changing Notions of National Identity”, op. cit., p. 94. Another author gives the full name of this association as “The Culture and Science Center of Macedonian Muslims”; see Oran, “Reli- gious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. In addition to these attempts to bring them back to the “Macedonianness”, especially in the 1970s “there were also political attempts to make the Christian Macedonians accept the Macedonian Muslims as their co-nationals. However, this process has been rather difficult. Although the two communities share the same language, Mace- donian Christians presume one cannot be ‘Macedonian’ without being Orthodox Christian. They view Orthodoxy as a necessary, if not a sufficient, component of the Macedonian cultural and com- munal identity.” See Fraenkel, “Turning a Donkey into a Horse”, op. cit., p. 154. Therefore, “the emphasis of Macedonian nationalist politicians on the connection between the Macedonian Ortho- dox Church and Macedonian nationality has further alienated some Macedonian Muslims. However, the current dispute is thus not a new one. The precipitous banning of the Muslim veil (zar and feredzˇe) in the early 1950s also created significant alienation of some Macedonian-speaking Muslims from the state and increased their sense that Macedonian identity was a Christian identity.” See Victor A. Friedman, “Language Policy and Language Behavior in Macedonia: Background and Current The Torbeshes of Macedonia 43
Events”, in Language Contact, Language Conflict, eds. Eran Fraenkel and Christina Kramer, New York: Peter Lang, 1993, pp. 73–99. 69. Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. 70. Limanovski, Islamizacijata i Etnickite Promeni vo Makedonija. Makedonci Muslimani, op. cit., p. 29. 71. Ibid., pp. 35–36. 72. These materials were given by Gligor Todorovski, Alexander Matkjovski, Nijazi Limanovski and Stojche Dojcihnovski-Rosokloja during the first scientific Muslim Macedonian Symposium held in Kichevo on 3–4 October 1981. See Center for Documentation and Information on Minorities in Europe—Southeast Europe (CEDIME-SE), “Minorities in Southeast Europe: Muslims of Macedonia”, updated August 2000, available online at: ,http://www.greekhelsinki.gr/pdf/ cedime-se-macedonia-muslims.doc.. 73. Xavier Bougarel, “Islam and Politics in the Post-Communist Balkans”, available online at: ,http:// www.ksg.harvard.edu/kokkalis/GSW1/GSW1/13%20Bougarel.pdf.. 74. Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. 75. Inma Pe´rez Rocha, “Power-sharing in the FYR of Macedonia after the Ohrid Framework Agreement and its Impact on the Turkish Community”, unpulished Master thesis, UNESCO Chair on Edu- cation for Human Rights and Peace, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, June 2003, p. 48. 76. Bougarel, “Islam and Politics in the Post-Communist Balkans”, op. cit. 77. De´rens, “Winners and Losers among the Minority Groups in Former Yugoslavia”, op. cit. 78. Musai, “Balkan Mu¨slu¨manlarında Din-Kimlik Bu¨tu¨nles¸mesi”, op. cit., p. 24. 79. Poulton, “Changing Notions of National Identity”, op. cit., pp. 94–95. 80. Ibid. 81. Duncan M. Perry, “The Republic of Macedonia: Finding its Way”, in Politics, Power and the Struggle for Democracy in South-East Europe, eds. Karen Dawisha and Bruce Parrott, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997, p. 256. This is interpreted as “a process of Albanization of the part of the population practicing Islam (through increasing the level of the Albanian language in the religious practis[sic], the religious service and the education of the preachers)”. See “Report on Minority Rights in the Republic of Macedonia”, Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in the Republic of Macedonia, Skopje, September 1999, available online at: ,http://www.minelres.lv/reports/macedonia/ macedonia_NGO.htm#return_7.. 82. Bougarel, “Islam and Politics in the Post-Communist Balkans”, op. cit. 83. “Protest against the Denationalisation of Macedonian Moslems”, The MILS News (Macedonian Information and Liaison Service), Skopje, 23 October 1996, also available online at: ,http:// www.hri.org/news/balkans/mils/1996/96-10-23.mils.html#11.. 84. Current mayors of two Torbesh towns Dzupa and Plasnitsa, Dr. Nuzi S¸ahin and Dr. Fidail Salifoski respectively, are members of TDP. Before parliamentary elections of July 2006 a new party was formed by a Torbesh businessman, Fiat Canovski, and he was elected as a parliamentarian. 85. Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. 86. C¸ avus¸og˘lu, “Yugoslavya-Makedonya’dan Tu¨rkiye’ye”, op. cit., p. 132. 87. Poulton, “Non-Albanian Muslim Minorities”, op. cit., p. 116. When I was working for the Organiz- ation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Spillover Monitor Mission to Skopje, many Torbeshes told me that they want to learn Turkish, and in the past their grandparents spoke Turkish secretly in their homes and implied that their parents were seeking to return the children to their roots. 88. Oran, “Religious and National Identity among the Balkan Muslims”, op. cit. 89. Nova Makedonija (The New Macedonia), 7–10 January 1993. 90. Mario Apostolov, “The Pomaks: A Religious Minority in the Balkans”, op. cit. 91. “A Threat to ‘Stability’, Human Rights Violations in Macedonia”, Human Rights Watch/Helsinki Human Rights Watch, available online at: ,http://hrw.org/reports/1996/Macedoni.htm.. 92. Ibid. 93. Nedim Yalc¸ın, “Tu¨rkc¸e ic¸in ac¸lık Grevi” (Hunger Strike for Turkish Language), Aksiyon, No. 97, 12 October 1996, available online at: ,http://www.aksiyon.com.tr/detay.php?id¼19215.. 94. Many Torbesh cadets enlisted themselves as Turkish with the OSCE Police Academy. 95. De´rens, “Winners and Losers among the Minority Groups in Former Yugoslavia”, op. cit.