Arch. Hristo Genchev, on the eve of his 90th birthday, to “Trud news”: I am optimistic about the future of Bulgaria, even too optimistic

On Sunday, the doyen of Bulgarian architects Hristo Genchev will celebrate his 90th birthday. On the occasion of this anniversary, the collection with the strange title “A Hundred Articles and Similar Topics” was published, which contains articles, comments and interviews of Arch. Genchev since the 90s of the 20th century, when he was the author of numerous publications on geopolitical and cultural-political issues, as well as 9 independent books. We talk with him in the following way – I remind him of what he wrote then and what he thinks now on this topic. Of course, we also touch on topics of the present.

– In one place in the collection of your articles, you say “I allowed myself to be an independent politician, an independent intellectual, and this is a magnificent state that causes negative emotions in people who are used to marching under orders.” But you were tempted in 1992 and were a candidate for Dimitar Popov’s vice president?
– Well, some gentlemen came to me and said to me, “Mr. Genchev, you speak well, but the time has come for you to take responsibility. And then I agreed, but that was the only case. However, to be truly independent is a magnificent state, to be able to ironize, to observe. But we must treat people who are greater specialists than us with respect, because the state needs a good administration. In this administration, people grow up and we must be fair to those who grow up not driven by careerism but by a sense of responsibility. I even changed my attitude towards my colleagues, whom I considered careerists for a long time. Because in the end, we need a person who will lead the country wisely, and this is done by administrative ascent, not by sticking to a party. There should be in the state not mediocre people, but independent people, but also prone to generally useful opportunism.

– In 1999, you asked the question – who rules us – statesmen or tricksters? And your answer today, 25 years later, is…
– I can’t say they are tricksters. And it shouldn’t. Maybe they are opportunists, there are statesmen among them. I, for example, greatly appreciate Tsar Simeon. He was independent and in critical situations could help the country. Unfortunately, he served only one term.

– In your opinion, can a Bulgarian politician be independent?
– You can. But he must be financially secure and have an environment and environment that support him. However, Bulgarian politicians are not wealthy enough. But I don’t want to give an assessment to the politicians who have lined up at the head of the state in the last 34 years.

– But according to you, a top-class politician is Dr. Petar Dertliev – a smart, magnificent orator and a convinced Bulgarian…
– And most importantly, he was not vindictive. Being a vindictive politician is a terrible thing. A politician must seek a compromise, seek unity.

– What do you think, did Bulgaria have an alternative path after the change in 1989?
– Big and powerful countries in the world can look for an alternative – Brazil, China… Bulgaria cannot look for such an alternative. And it is not necessary. Because we compare ourselves with countries that are in the same situation as us – for example Croatia, Slovakia. And they are not looking for the alternative. They are looking for a system that has the positive qualities – it unites them in a powerful bundle (Kubrat’s example!). This system is run by the European Union.

– At the dawn of democracy, you claimed that Bulgaria could protect its interests against the will of the great powers?
– Let’s assume that the great powers are two, or one and a half – America and Russia. Bulgaria joined the EU – these are relatively weak countries, but they are the color of civilization. We notice differences between the US and the EU in the evaluations of Israel and Gaza, in the evaluations of Putin – things that until ten years ago we thought were impossible, that Europe is attached to America. Look at the behavior of the French President Macron – a manifestation of independence. If we accept that these ideas are ours, then we can be independent. And we don’t necessarily need to be runners-up to Russia or America.

– I quote something else from your collection dated March 5, 1993: “We should not be afraid of the previous 45 years – they will not return. There are concerns about the looming 45 years, and that is because of the US claim that it will be the supreme moral and military arbiter of the world, including Europe.”
– Do you know Professor Altonkov? He wrote me a foreword to a book and says – why do you write so many anti-American articles? I did not write anti-, I wrote pro-Bulgarian. A president like Bush Sr. cannot go to Turkey and say that it is his second country! And to do this at a time when we are deprived of the protection of the Warsaw Pact and were not yet a member of NATO. And that’s why every Bulgarian in those years became an anti-Bushist. And now he is an anti-Putinist.

– Today, Russia also wants to be such an arbiter…
– Can not be. She doesn’t have that power and that prestige. There is no moral either – she abandoned her allies, abandoned them. And no one? pays attention. Currently, Russia is at the lowest level in its development. I’d rather have a Khrushchev’s Russia than a Putin’s.

– His war against Ukraine has been going on for 26 months now. Is there any end in sight, do you think?
– No. The West suspects that Putin is preparing for World War III. The situation with Ukraine is the same as with the German claims to the Sudetenland and Alsace, which opened Hitler’s way to World War II. If the West does not stop Putin, it must prepare for something very serious. People fight for some ideals, and Putinists – for their money, this is their new “aristocracy”.

– Over the years, you have repeatedly warned about the decaying and reproductive processes that have spread in all directions in our country, mainly among young people? Many of them left the country…
– As they leave it, so they return. My sons are back. I have 11 grandchildren.

– May you be alive and well! Let’s move a bit to the architecture. How is Sofia developing in your opinion?
– Sofia is a wonderful city, with an ideal location. It is located at the highest point of the great Constantinople-Vienna diagonal. After September 9, 1944, Sofia fell into the hands of totalitarian but Soviet-minded people. Because town planning is a totalitarian science, it limits private ownership of land. Architect Mussman had made a plan for Sofia. The South Park was Musman’s idea, he began to realize it, Tsar Boris expropriated properties, but the tariqats came after the Change and four fifths of the South Park went into private hands.

– What would you say about the destruction of the mausoleum of Georgi Dimitrov and the monument to the Soviet army?
– The mausoleum should not have been destroyed, it is Bulgarian architecture and should not have been destroyed. It’s like killing a defenseless child! Now what? There is one parking lot at this location. The mausoleum was a great building, inside it was built with gabbro stone, which is no longer available in Bulgaria. It was like a treasure trove. When I was president of the Union of Architects, we held a competition for the fate of the mausoleum and most of the projects were for its preservation. But one Sofianski came, pushed him and made a career that way. Scandalous! And the monument to the Soviet army had to be removed. It is in such a place that it shapes our thinking every day. When I pass there with my guests from abroad, I have to explain what this monument is and why it is in this place. And they grab each other’s heads. If he was somewhere out of the way like the one in Lozenets, for example, no one would pay attention to him. But it is deliberately placed in a place where it forms a way of thinking on a daily basis.

– What do you think is the most beautiful building in Sofia, architect Genchev?
– The building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Architect ? is Georgi Ovcharov – the creator of the mausoleum. It was built during the time of the mayor Ivan Ivanov, a great person.

– His monument is ready, but permission is not given to place it…
– Yes, because someone complained that Ivan Ivanov was a fascist. These people are terrible, they are trying to create an inferiority complex in our country. Ivan Ivanov solved all of Sofia’s problems. I remember how in 1946 the water fountains in the city opened, it was a great happiness. Until then, there was no water in the parks and gardens. Ivan Ivanov solved this problem. During his time, the building of the Ministry of the Interior and the BNB was built. In general, the image of Sofia was created between 1930 and 1940, when the mayors were General Vladimir Vazov and Engineer Ivan Ivanov.

– Let’s also talk about Macedonia – a topic on which you have written a lot. There are elections there and 99 percent of the campaigns are anti-Bulgarian. They beat people with Bulgarian self-awareness, close their clubs. Did Bulgaria make a mistake by lifting the embargo on the start of negotiations for Macedonia’s membership in the European Union?
– In my opinion, this is a death convulsion of the anti-Bulgarian parties there. You can’t act like this. People in Macedonia are not stupid, they see everything. Not to mention my wife, who is of Macedonian descent! If they had remained silent, Westerners would have accepted this as some Bulgarian oddity. But by observing the manifestations there, they realize this stupidity. They do not allow it to be written in the constitution that the Bulgarians are a state-created people. So Serbs, Albanians, Bosniaks and even Egyptians can, but Bulgarians – not. What is this fear? And people ask themselves…

– You write that a government is totalitarian when it hides its intentions and decisions, when it refuses dialogue with the public, when it deliberately lies and misleads its people, when it ironizes intellectuals and relies on foul-mouthed and beating lumpen…
– This applied to the entire cohort of so-called democrats. Therefore, Russia will never recover its prestige. She was particularly active in this process, which she presented as democracy, but it turned out to be a distribution of money and wealth.

– Do you still think that in times like ours, no one should rule for a second term, because it serves to cover up the sins of the first?
– Yes. We have no lasting tradition of statesmanship in this regard. In the first term, new people come with new ideas, that’s good. But with the second one, they are already scheming and cunning.

– What is your opinion about the management of the GERB-PPDB assembly until recently?
– I don’t know how PPDB came to power, I have the feeling that the machines were used there. Because some random people cannot come to power. And GERB are serious, back when they were founded, people asked me what this abbreviation means, and it stands for Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria. The idea is good, and Boyko Borisov is an interesting person. It seems to me that he is still a pillar of the state.

– Are you optimistic about the future of Bulgaria, architect Genchev?
– Yes, even too much of an optimist. Think about how we went through the changes and what happened in Yugoslavia? Srebrenica – several thousand people with a bullet in the back of the head. What happened in Romania? The execution of Ceausescu was such an ugly story! There were a hundred attacks a year in Turkey! And the Albanian civil war, which was ended by the joint Greek-Italian occupation of Albania itself. I had an Albanian friend, I complained to him about our stories, and he told me – you have very wise statesmen, they are not like ours. We start fighting over the smallest thing. Compared to our neighbors, our statesmen have shown wise behavior. As well as the Bulgarian people. Have you ever seen anyone resort to fighting, let alone killing for political reasons? They fight for a woman, for property, but not for politics. There is one political murder in Bulgaria – of Andrei Lukanov, but the Russians killed him. He was their man.

Our guest
Art. n.s. I degree, Doctor of Arch. Hristo Genchev was born on April 28, 1934 in Gabrovo. He graduated in architecture from the Engineering and Construction Institute (now the University of Architecture, Construction and Geodesy). He developed a wide range of activities as an architect, urban planner, teacher, researcher, scientist and publicist. He was the chairman of the Union of Architects in Bulgaria in 1990-1992. Candidate for Vice President of Bulgaria (in a team with Dimitar Popov) – 1992. Author of numerous publications on geopolitical and cultural-political problems, as well as 9 independent books. His wife Elena Petrova-Gencheva is also an architect. He has two sons – twins, an architect and a doctor.