The nationally infamous apartment block number 20 in the town of Yambol, Bulgaria, had been inhabited by Roma families for more than 15 years. They had been destroying it systematically by breaking the concrete panels, disassembling the elevators and extracting the electric wires from the walls in order to obtain and sell the structure steel and other metals, lighting fires inside, even breeding horses, pigs and chicken on the landings. In the beginning of 2010 the city mayor, referring to an expert committee’s reports, issued an order for the inhabitants to leave the dangerous building by September. On the 15th of September the last families were forced to leave the building by the police and gendarmery. Some individuals continued destroying the building till its final sealing later that day. About 20 families, who didn’t have legal ownership of their apartments and so didn’t get compensations or could not find a room for rent, were constrained to bring all their belongings on the near lawn and start building cabins where they lived through the winter.
Denislav Stoychev, 21. The main topics in his work are the life in the countryside, small towns and closed communities, Bulgarian youth in all aspects, as well as cultural events and more. This is his only story on gypsies and he has the intention to continue working on it thru 2013, tracking and documenting the lives of the expelled/evacuated people from block 20, that is now just an empty area in the outskirts of the town.
He has been awarded in several contests on a national level: BG Press Photo 2013 First place in the category for young photojournalists, Photoacademica 2012 First place in Reportage category, BG Press Photo (BG stands for Bulgaria) 2011 First place in the category for young photojournalists, first places at national youth photography contests in 2010 and 2011. Has worked for “Trud” national paper media for some months both as a writer and photographer in 2012 and has been contributing to local media since 2008.
Currently living in Sofia he is a full-time journalism student at Sofia University.
