Balgarianovinite.com Talks on the April Uprising revive the memory of the martyrs for Bulgaria’s freedom, Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev said on Thursday. He was speaking at the opening of a conference dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the 1876 April Uprising at the Historical Museum in Panagyurishte, Central Bulgaria.
The conference is part of events marking the anniversary and is the final one in a series of discussions through which BTA has encouraged dialogue on the occasion of 150 years since the uprising.
The conferences were held in the agency’s press clubs in the centres of the four revolutionary districts of the uprising – Veliko Tarnovo, Sliven, Vratsa and Panagyurishte, as well as in Ruse and Giurgiu. The moderator and host of all events was journalist and Panorama talk-show presenter on the Bulgarian National Television, Boyko Vassilev, while St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia Rector Prof. Georgi Valchev took part in all discussions.
“In these talks we discussed many important lessons from the April Uprising, useful for our present, but the most important is the consensus we reached – that we must see the big goals before the difficult steps needed to achieve them,” Valchev said. He noted that wherever the uprising appeared unsuccessful, the discussions concluded that it led to its great success – the freedom of Bulgaria. According to him, the reminder that a failure can actually be a success is especially relevant around Easter, as the crucifixion of Jesus Christ becomes, in fact, salvation for humanity. Media can amplify the impact of an event so strongly that it changes public opinion and helps save an entire nation, as happened after the April Uprising across Europe, Valchev stressed.
Valchev noted that the discussions are planned to continue in the agency’s press clubs abroad, in Bucharest, Belgrade and Odesa.
He read excerpts from Zahari Stoyanov’s Notes on the Bulgarian Uprisings, from which, he said, valuable recommendations for leaders can be drawn. Among them are that a leader must be active, must not be tempted by personal future gain, and must protect followers from despair so as not to leave them disoriented. Other lessons, according to Valchev, include that different levels of leadership are needed, that leaders should be chosen according to their knowledge, and that a leader is not above the people.
“As early as December, we began with a discussion at the BTA National Press Club in Ruse to mark the 1875 decision of the Giurgiu Revolutionary Committee to launch the uprising,” Valchev recalled. Before that, flowers were laid in Giurgiu at memorial plaques marking the places where the committee had met and where Hristo Botev’s detachment boarded the Radetzky ship. Tribute was also paid at the Pantheon of National Revival Heroes in Ruse, where 453 people are commemorated, participants in the April Uprising, Botev’s detachment and the volunteers.
In January, the first discussion in a revolutionary district centre was held in Vratsa, where Hristo Botev was also honoured, as he joined the uprising at its end with his detachment, Valchev said.
Before the discussion on February 18 in Sliven, flowers were laid at the monument of Vasil Levski in the city, and after it at the monument to Stoil Voyvoda in his native village in Nova Zagora Municipality, which bears his name.
In Koprivshtitsa on April 20, the day of the first shot of the uprising, BTA presented the April issue of LIK magazine dedicated to the April Uprising, together with a publication on the topic by the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS).
Valchev announced that, prompted by these discussions, the 2026 Meeting of Bulgarian Media, organized by BTA, will be dedicated to the topic “Media and Leaders”. It will be held in Hungary and will mark 1,080 years since the dormition of St. John of Rila and 10 years since October 19 was declared the Day of Bulgarian-Hungarian Friendship. Talks on April Uprising Revive Memory of Freedom Martyrs, Says BTA Director General 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-04-30 15:37:36 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law