Капка Касабова: Мисията ми като писател е да лекувам

Граничната зона между България и Гърция (източник: Nedret Benzet)

За границите и мостовете в Югоизточна Европа, за природните и човешките съкровища, които чакат да бъдат открити: интервю с Капка Касабова, автор на “Граница”

Смаранда Шкиопу, Владимир Митев

Капка Касабова с лекота преминава от поезия към художествена и нехудожествена литература, но може би е най-известна с писането си, което съчетава пътеписи с местни и лични истории. Родом от София, България, Касабова емигрира със семейството си в Нова Зеландия в края на 80-те години на миналия век и след като завършва университет, се установява в Шотландия. Избирайки професия, доскоро запазена за мъжете – писането на пътеписи – Капка Касабова се нарежда сред други жени автори, които са насочили вниманието си към Югоизточна Европа, като Мери Едит Дърам и Ребека Уест. За разлика от тях обаче балканският й произход се отразява на разбирането й за противоречията в региона.

През 2017 г. тя публикува книгата “Граница – пътуване до края на Европа”, номинирана и награждавана в цяла Европа. Касабова се отправя на пътешествие по границата между България, Гърция и Турция, където документира настоящето и миналото на градовете и селата в този югоизточен край на бившата Желязна завеса. Преди разпадането на СССР много хора губят живота си, опитвайки се да стигнат до отдавна мечтания Запад. Сега част от тази граница е границата между Европейския съюз и Турция, още една разделителна линия между хората с паспорти, които им дават право да пътуват, и бежанците, които търсят по-добър свят. 

През декември 2021 г. румънското издание на книгата е публикувано от издателство Pandora M Publishing в колекцията Anansi, преведена от английски като Frontiera от Она Франц. 

От двете страни на днешните граници писателката среща овчари, бивши граничари, търговци, фермери, бежанци и дори трафиканти на хора. Те говорят за изгубени животи, но също и за символичното насилие на физическите граници и тяхното въздействие върху поколенията. 

Най-новата ѝ книга, публикувана в Обединеното кралство през 2019 г., е “Към езерото”, в която Касабова обикаля Преспанското езеро, разделено между Албания, Република Северна Македония и Гърция, за да открие родното място на баба си по майчина линия, но и за да научи историите на хората от Балканите.

Разговаряхме с писателката Капка Касабова в началото на март 2022 г., когато войната в съседна Украйна течеше от вече почти две седмици. Говорихме за границите, Балканите, войната, но и за нещата, които ни обединяват в този край на света. Тези неща ни напомнят, че да продължаваме да сме солидарни е отговорност на всички нас.

Тази статия бе публикувана от румънския културен сайт Scena9 на 8 април 2022 г.

Kapka Kassabova: Misiunea mea ca scriitor este aceea de a vindeca

Granița între Bulgaria și Grecia (sursă: Nedret Benzet)

Despre granițele și punțile de legătură în Europa de Sud-Est, despre tezaurele naturale și omenești care așteaptă sa fie descoperite: un interviu cu Kapka Kassabova, autoarea cărții Frontiera

Smaranda Șchiopu & Vladimir Mitev

Kapka Kassabova trece cu ușurință de la poezie la ficțiune și non-ficțiune, dar este probabil cel mai bine cunoscută pentru scrisul ei, care îmbină jurnalul de călătorie cu istoria locală și mai ales cea personală. Originară din Sofia, Bulgaria, Kassabova a emigrat împreună cu familia în Noua Zeelandă la sfârșitul anilor 1980 și, după ce a absolvit facultatea, s-a stabilit în Scoția. Alegând o ocupație până nu de mult rezervată bărbaților – călătorul scriitor -, Kapka Kassabova poate sta alături de celelalte autoare ce și-au îndreptat pașii către Europa de Sud-Est, precum Mary Edith Durham sau Rebecca West. Spre deosebire de ele, însă, originile sale balcanice se traduc în înțelegerea cu care poate privi contradicțiile acestei zone.

În 2017, publică cartea Border — A Journey To The Edge of Europe, nominalizată și premiată în toată Europa. Kassabova pornește într-o călătorie de-a lungul graniței dintre Bulgaria, Grecia și Turcia, unde documentează prezentul și trecutul orașelor și satelor din acest capăt sud-estic al fostei Cortine de Fier. Înainte de prăbușirea URSS, mulți și-au pierdut viața încercând să ajungă în Vestul mult visat. Acum, o parte a acestei granițe este frontiera dintre Uniunea Europeană și Turcia, o altă linie de separare între cei cu pașapoarte ce conferă libertate de călătorie și refugiații care caută o lume mai bună. 

În decembrie 2021, ediția în limba română a apărut la Editura Pandora M, în colecția Anansi, tradusă din limba engleză ca Frontiera, de către Ona Frantz. 

De fiecare parte a frontierelor actuale, scriitoarea întâlnește păstori, foști grăniceri, comercianți, agricultori, refugiați sau chiar traficanți de persoane. Vorbesc despre viețile pierdute, dar și despre violența simbolică a granițelor fizice și efectele lor peste generații. 

Cea mai recentă carte a sa publicată în Marea Britanie în 2019 este To The Lake, în care Kassabova călătorește în jurul lacului Prespa, împărțit între Albania, Republica Macedoniei de Nord și Grecia, pentru a descoperi locul de origine al bunicii sale materne, dar și pentru a afla poveștile oamenilor din Balcani.

Am stat de vorbă cu Kapka Kassabova la început de martie 2022, când războiul din Ucraina vecină începuse de aproape două săptămâni. Am vorbit despre granițe, Balcani, război, dar și lucruri care ne unesc în acest colț de lume. Mi-a amintit, și ne amintește tuturor, că a continua să fim martori și să oferim solidaritate este responsabilitatea noastră, a tuturor. 

Acest articol a fost publicat pe 8 aprilie 2022 pe Scena 9.

What does the European left do to overcome the crisis in the EU?

The European left party is looking for alternatives to the current capitalist-ridden and crisis-laden model of development of the EU (source: european-left.org)

Is it possible to reform the European Union in a left-wing spirit? What are the tasks for the anti-capitalist left for the here and now? Heinz Bierbaum, president of the European Left Party speaks to Cross-border Talks

Małgorzata Kulbaczewska-Figat

Heinz Bierbaum is a sociologist and economist and head of the International Commission of the party Die LINKE. In December 2019 he was elected new president of the Party of the European Left. He was a Secretary of the trade union IG Metall from 1980 to 1996, and his scholarly work focuses on industrial and social policy.

Bulgaria needs a real housing policy

Social inequalities in Bulgaria are at the highest levels in the EU (source: Pixabay, CC0)

A snapshot of the state of the housing problem in Bulgaria – with statistics, data on European projects, social housing, social services for the homeless and civil society organizations supporting the homeless – was made by the association “Doctors of the World” with the report “Home for Everyone: Mission (Im)Possible?”

Vladimir Mitev

This article was published on 26 March 2022 at the Bulgarian section of the site ”The Barricade”.

Bulgaria is the only country in the EU that does not have a right to housing and right to town movement. However, this does not mean that the housing problem of Bulgarians is solved. At least 2.5 million Bulgarian citizens live in poor housing conditions and overcrowding. Among them are representatives of all ethnic groups in Bulgaria: 65% of all Roma, 45% of all Turks and 30% of all Bulgarians – living in dwellings with less than 15 square meters per occupant. These are part of the data in the report “Home for everyone: mission (im)possible?”, which was presented at a press conference in BTA on Friday, March 25.

The report is a publication of the Médecins du Monde association, funded by the Fondation Abbé Pierre. It is remarkable for its in-depth factual presentation of the main ‘housing policies’ (or rather the lack of them) over the last 30 years, its knowledge of the civil society organisations dealing with housing issues and the drama of underprivileged people who have dropped out of the public race after losing their housing. 

Codru Vrabie: Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine must be supported in economic and humane terms on their path to the EU

Codru Vrabie (photo: Vlad Stanciu, Asociația INK)

Interview with the Romanian expert on good governance in the context of the three countries application for accession to the EU

Vladimir Mitev

On 9 March 2022 Cross-border Talks interviewed the Romanian expert on good governance Codru Vrabie about what is realistic to happen on the EU road of Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, when they have war or frozen conflicts in their territories, what can the eastern countries in the EU do for them and what have been the good stories for reform in change in them, especially in the Republic of Moldova.

The necessary change in Bulgaria: from static to dynamic identity?

Bulgarian urban landscae from the times of transition (source: YouTube)

Bulgaria’s foreign and domestic policies are a mystery to many Bulgarians themselves. This paper develops a hypothesis and an “optimistic theory” for empowering the common man in the country so that he could become the engine of modernisation in the country and the region. This is done through a method called the ‘bridge of friendship’. It sounds ridiculous. And strange. But it works.

Vladimir Mitev

This article was published at the blog “The Bridge of Friendship” on 6 February 2022.

In the English-language world, the story from Panchatantra about the elephant and the blind wise men is popular. Each of them touched a certain part of his body and proclaimed that part to be the whole being. 

The political events after Boyko Borissov’s fall from power are supposedly unfolding before the eyes of all Bulgarians. Yet, in my opinion, the media does not provide a deep and true understanding of the elephant of Bulgarian reality. The TV channels comment on various topics: the change of leadership at Bulgargas (the gas distribution company), the Bulgarian state doing something in and with North Macedonia, bickering over the judiciary, oligarchs fighting over politics and justice, etc. Yet the feeling is that at best the voices we hear are articulating their perspective on the elephant in question. We have to create the whole picture ourselves and update it constantly as we go along the course of events – if we have the time and willpower to read the media of the various political, business and government institutions while we work out our paycheck, take care of our loved ones and recover from the stress that the corona crisis contributes to.

This text will probably also, at best, cover one part of the elephant in the room. Still, I think it may be useful as an attempt to make sense of Bulgarian reality in the post-Borisov era, of Bulgarian state and political power in the face of the ongoing redefinition of the West, perhaps even of Bulgarian identity, which is often mysterious to our close or more distant interlocutors and partners from other countries. And to ourselves.

In my opinion, there is a need for attempts to make sense of these phenomena, even if the attempts prove unsuccessful or partially successful, because our nation is undeservedly struggling, experiencing severe social problems, and the disconnect between elites and people is preventing it from modernizing and becoming part of the world.

Bulgaria entered in 2022 with considerable social problems

A view from a contemporary Bulgarian city (source: Pixabay, CC0)

In an interview for the Danish organization Democracy in Europe Vladimir Mitev tells about the social price of Bulgarian contemporary capitalism

On 12 January 2022 The Bridge of Friendship’s founder Vladimir Mitev participated in an online event of the Danish organization Democracy in Europe, which deals with political education. He was asked to give in advance an interview about the social situation and problems in Bulgaria. The interview’s transcript and video is published below. 

Labor unionism in Poland, Romania and Bulgaria: revival or stagnation?

A protest of the workers in the public transport in Bucharest, 19.01.2022 (source: YouTube)

A discussion about recent the recent labor protests, attitudes towards workers’ fight, the role of a young generation of employees and the level of people empowerment in the three countries of Central and Southeastern Europe

The Cross-border Talks

Following a rise in strikes and grassroots labor activism in Poland, Cross-border Talks made a discussion about the current state of affairs there, in Romania and Bulgaria. Malgorzata Kulbaczewska presented the case of “hope” – sharing analysis about labor unionism in Poland and video footage from a 24 January 2022 protest in the plant for electric buses Solaris. Radu Stochita – the youngest communicator of the labor union movement in Romania, spoke about the attitudes in Romania towards strikes. Both Malgorzata and Radu seemed to be hopeful about a new generation of activism. Vladimir Mitev shared his views on the difficulties before labor unions in Bulgaria and explained why in his view change from below is difficult in his home country and if change is to happen, it will probably be imposed from above.

Gospodinov or the Art of Balkan Melancholy

Aurelian Giugăl (source: YouTube)

A review of the novel The Physics of Sorrow, published in 2021 in Romanian in translation by Catalina Puiu

Aurelian Giugăl

In the third month of autumn, sometime in November 2021, quotes from Georgi Gospodinov’s The Physics of Sorrow appeared in Romanian online social media? (Facebook). A literary critic (or something like that) expressed thoughts about the writer’s puberty and the somewhat intimate relationship between adolescent events and political ones (it so happens that right after the author’s first kiss with a girl Brezhnev died). Another quotation, taken from the novel by a university professor, refers to the year 1952, when, at some anniversary of the University of Frankfurt, Horkheimer appears not only aged but in a frivolous mood, with some carnival objects (what would Adorno say about such allegorical frivolity?).