Some Facts and Processes Related to the Turkish Population in the Razgrad District from the Late 1950s and in the 1960s and 1970s through the Documents of the Bulgarian State Security

Abstract

From the late 1950s and in the 1960s and 1970s of the XX century the Bulgarian communist party pursues a policy in Bulgaria of detachment of the Turkish population in the country from its fundamental religious and cultural environment. This article discusses some facts and processes from this policy of the Bulgarian communists in the Razgrad district. Basically, this is done through documents of the Bulgarian state security (from the Committee for Disclosing the Documents and Announcing Affiliation of Bulgarian Citizens to the State Security and Intelligence Services of the Bulgarian National Armed Forces). Documents from Bulgarian central state archives were also used. In this region among the Turks operates the Turkish intelligence services. The Turkish propaganda is very well developed here. The Bulgarian government and Turkey use the Turkish population in the Razgrad district (also in whole Bulgaria) for their own purposes. In the long run this population, not only in the Razgrad district, but also in the entire country becomes “a burning issue” in the political relation between Bulgaria and Turkey – two countries separated by the ideological conflict of the Cold War.