Krastyo Hadzhiivanov
Krastyo Hadzhiivanov (December 25, 1929 – June 27, 1952) was a Bulgarian poet and resistance fighter.
Early life
Hadzhiivanov was born in Kapatovo, in the Petrich district of Bulgaria. He began composing poetry when he was six years old.
During World War II, at age of 14, he joined the resistance against the Nazis. Hadzhiivanov was involved in smuggling weapons to guerrillas who had been abandoned at the Metaxas Line in Greek Macedonia, a task which involved navigating a dangerous route through mine fields and around Nazi check points. Meanwhile, the young teenager recited poetry at meetings with villagers all over the Serres region.
After Bulgaria's successful coup on 9 September 1944, the new communist government offered to send Hadzhiivanov to study literature in Moscow. He refused, with the words, “Moscow is too close to Siberia” (referring to Joseph Stalin’s Gulags). Romantic and idealist, he reflected his beliefs in poetry.
Local communist authorities perceived Hadzhiivanov as a threat, and he was persecuted for his democratic and humanistic beliefs. He was mistreated during his studies at secondary school. Later was sent to the uranium mines at Seslavci village, where he was mistreated and beaten. During a strike in the mine, a friend of his was brutally killed.
Hadzhiivanov succeeded in escaping from the mines and fled to the Pirin Mountains, aiming to illegally cross the “Iron Curtain” and escape to Greece. He was killed in an ambush at the border on June 27, 1952, at the age of 22. Bulgarian State Security, at the time, stated that he was presumed to be a Greek diversionist. His body was thrown in the swamps around the Struma River.
Legacy
Krastyo’s poetry was written before 1950 and hidden by his friends from communist State Security services, later his poetry is sent abroad, where it was published. There had been opened a small memorial at the place of Krastyo’s death in 1999 under auspices of Bulgarian vice-president Mr. Todor Kavaldzhiev. There took place a celebration of the 70th jubilee of the poet. For the 80th jubilee in 2009 there has been established an Initiative Committee under chairmanship of Mr. Evtim Evtimov – a Bulgarian poet and country fellow of Krastyo.
