Martin Valkov (MON Fellow, Oct ’22 – Jul ’23) will talk about the progress of his research at CAS:

Beyond Totalitarianism: Mass Internment, Concentration Camps And Forced Labor In Bulgaria In The 20th Century

on 6 April 2023 (Thursday) at 16:30h.

Moderated by Petar Dobrev.

Abstract:

The project is designed as a longue durée study of extralegal detention in one country asking broader questions about the repressive potential of the modern state. It will provide, for the first time, a thorough account of civilian internment, concentration camps, and forced labor in Bulgaria during the 20th century. The research aims to challenge the basic assumptions of Bulgarian historiography about the nature of these repressive practices and institutions as unique to only totalitarian dictatorships by offering a different perspective on their origins, development, and history in Bulgarian context. Informed by the recent global turn in the study of concentration camps the project will integrate the Bulgarian case into the wider European and global perspective.