Through the controversy in Bulgaria over support for Bokova, this essay exposes a structural problem: unlike fascism, communism has never been clearly condemned. It criticizes the closed nature of UN and UNESCO politics and the ethical collapse of intellectual elites.

Unlike fascism, communism has never been clearly condemned, and this is a serious problem.
2016-11-06
The following is a continuation of the previous chapter.
The origin of closed-door deliberations.
Evgeny Mikhailov, a Bulgarian film director, sent letters to all UN member states conveying that Bulgarian citizens were stunned by Bokova’s dishonesty, her past as a Communist Party member, her questionable management at UNESCO, and her candidacy for UN Secretary-General, that these issues had caused a major national controversy dividing the country, and that broad public support for Bokova did not exist in Bulgaria.
Bulgarian elite politicians reacted immediately to this letter.
Mikhailov was denounced as a traitor and accused of ruining Bokova’s chance to gain an international position that was said to be a source of national pride for Bulgarians.
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov sent letters to the leaders of several countries, including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, stating that the Bulgarian government would continue to support Bokova (although, for reasons unknown, the Bulgarian government later withdrew its support).
The person who actively attacked Mikhailov was the Bulgarian sociologist Andrey Raychev.
I still remember him, as I worked at the same academy as Raychev in communist Bulgaria.
He behaved like a progressive intellectual, but in reality he was close to the Zhivkov regime.
Raychev married the daughter of a high-ranking Bulgarian military officer, and even after the collapse of the communist system and the emergence of a “new” Bulgaria, he continued to enjoy the privileges of the elite class.
Sixty Bulgarian intellectuals sent an open letter to media outlets and international organizations condemning Mikhailov’s anti-Bokova actions, and Raychev’s name was included among them.
These intellectuals put forward the astonishing argument that Bokova best understood not only the complex relationships of the Balkan Peninsula but also global diplomacy, international relations, and religious conflicts, and that she was therefore the most suitable person to lead the United Nations.
In a Bulgarian television debate available online, one of my classmates from my time at Sofia University also appeared.
His name is Kalin Yanakiev, and he currently teaches theology at a university.
Like Mikhailov, he criticized Bokova’s candidacy, stating that her rise had been due to the reflected glory of her father, a former Communist Party official, and that supporting her was ethically unacceptable.
For example, would it be internationally acceptable for the daughter of a Nazi German official such as Hermann Göring to run for such a position.
Unlike fascism, communism has never been clearly condemned, and this is a serious problem.
This manuscript continues.