A Distant #BulgarianFuture

#
BULGARIAN
PROTESTS
14 Jan 2014
www.facebook.com/vestnikprotest
Issue № 2
A Distant #BulgarianFuture
Borislav Gizdavkov
A Day in The Life: A Distant #BulgarianFuture
Photo: Justine Toms
--“Insert future here.”
It is usually the case that we Bulgarians look to the past as
a reference to our present. Many hardships have literally
erased the word future from the Bulgarian nation’s mind.
#BulgarianFuture is almost always used in a pejorative context – whether it is future demographic outlook, next decade’s projected economic growth, you name it – future in
Bulgarian means bad, negative, bleak.
Because of that, the past is always the vantage point from
which we make sense of ourselves. Why not turn our gaze
towards what lies ahead? But how do we know what it looks
like? It’s a cliche, but to a large extent, it depends on us.
Hopefully, this and a few other forthcoming posts will open
a tiny thinking space in which #BulgarianFuture does not
equate Dante’s vision of the Inferno.
► On p a g e 2
Attack on Morality
[email protected] As every morning, at 6:30 am exactly, Ivan was awoken by
the cheerful sound of his portable radio. Buried somewhere
under the pile of stuff on his nightstand, it is tuned to the
news station and squeaks like a walkie-talkie. The radio
broadcast provides the perfect background to the morning
bustle that goes on under his flat’s window. Overlooking a
quiet park and a busy boulevard, Ivan’s apartment in downtown Sofia is a microcosm that captures the vibe of the Bulgarian capital. The city of two million people is alive as never before. After the Dancing Revolution, Sofia was quickly
transformed from a commie-block jungle into a modern
urban centre that is now on a par with Europe’s capitals in
terms of living standards. It is the city of the young where
opportunities abound.
While getting up slowly, Ivan could make out that later today the city of Sofia will be hosting a conference on the EU’s
role in the world. “Delegations from all corners of the Union
are already in the city”, boasts the radio presenter, “and every one of them is praising Sofia for its cleanliness”. Ivan is
hardly interested in politics, and unmoved by the sweet talk,
goes on for a shower before leaving for work.
Ivan belongs to the new generation of Bulgarians, born and
raised in the 2000s. He, as many of his peers, has had a taste
of the last years of the transition period to democracy that
Bulgaria was bogged down into for 30 years after 1989. He
often listens to older people speaking about the tumultuous
events of that period and the economic hardships that his
parents have gone through, but has nonetheless remained
reluctant to explore the peculiarities of those experiences.
Nor does his job require him to do so – Ivan is managing
a small IT company that does business internationally and
represents the high-tech sector that pulled Bulgaria out of
the abyss some time ago.
continues on page 3...
►On p a g e 4
100 Days – 100 Gaffes
www.protestnamreja.bg
E
► On p a ge 10
Freedom of Press
and Bulgaria’s Democracy
1
ACCENT
Attack on Morality
by Bulgarian right-wing nationalist party (ATAKA)
Translation by Petko Bossakov
Photo: Vassil Garnizov
T
he dry facts that we have all heard:
during a Sofia–Varna flight, Siderov
entered into a quarrel with French diplomat Stéphanie Dumortier. When he realized that she was a foreign diplomat, he
began to insult her, calling her a “terrorist” and “colonizer”. Then at the airport
he physically attacked two men, broke a
phone belonging to one of them, and hit
a police officer in the face with a fist.
At the subsequent rally of his party in
Varna, Siderov called all the journalists who covered the event “hyenas”
and “vultures”, and ended with a threefold repetition of the mantra: “You be
damned!”. No comment.
In Sofia, at a rally in front of the courthouse, he called the people protesting
against him “cockroaches” and “moths”.
No comment.
Here is the full text of the official announcement of the French Embassy;
after that, the only one to comment
should be the Prosecution. On January 8, Attorney General Sotir Tsatsarov
ruled that there are sufficient grounds
for indictment and requested Siderov’s
immunity to be lifted. The President of
the National Assembly, Mihail Mikov, in
turn, gave him two weeks for a possible
“catharsis”. We’re waiting. There are no
foundations of democracy if such behaviour is tolerated again and gets bypassed
with helpful silence yet another time, in
an attempt to preserve power at all costs.
2
“
A French diplomat was insulted and
threatened by a Bulgarian citizen, apparently intoxicated, during the evening flight of Bulgaria Air from Sofia to
Varna, on January 6. The aforementioned Bulgarian citizen reproached
her in terms of nationality, and, citing
his status as a Member of Parliament,
requested the diplomat’s documents
for verification, obviously making no
distinction between legislative and
executive functions. The Embassy of
the French Republic expects an apology from that person, whose reprehensible behaviour is not worthy of
his capacity as an MP, and not even
worthy of any self-respecting person.
The Embassy of the French Republic
and the French Ministry of Foreign
Affairs are currently investigating the
incident in order to take appropriate
measures against this unacceptable
behaviour. We remind that under the
Vienna Convention of 18 April 1961,
the Bulgarian authorities are obliged
to take the necessary measures to prevent offences against any members of
diplomatic corps, and against their
freedom and dignity.”
(Later, the Embassy removed the two
publications in Bulgarian and French
from their website, and posted a new,
shortened version. The Ambassador explained to the Bulgarian National Television that the reason was that some of the
allegations were obvious, but unfortunately not proven at the time.)
www.protestnamreja.bg
In september, ATAKA MPs were involved in another public exposure at a
Brussels restaurant. They scandalized
the staff and the rest of the customers by
uncivilized conduct and on top of it refused to pay the bill.
The aim of ATAKA’s visit to Brussels
was to deliver a letter of protest against
an EPP member – Doris Pak – for calling ATAKA “a racist and anti-European
party”. A meeting with ATAKA, however, was refused by any members of the
ENP. Eventually the letter was delivered
to the post box of Mr. Pak by Mr. Desislav Chukolov, a MP from ATAKA.
Mr. Chukolov became a center of attention in his own right after this notorious visit. Leaving the Parliament on the
4th of October he showed the finger to
anti-government protesters. A series
of photographs clearly document him
and another MP entering into a government vehicle followed seconds later by
Mr. Chukolov’s obscene gesture through
the window of the backseat of the same
car. This sparked a storm in social media with tweets like “Chukolov greets
the sovereign”. Mr. Chukolov, who is the
deputy chairman of Ataka, refused any
comment.
Previously, during the early days of the
protests, Siderov was photographed
entering parliament wearing a gun in
a gun holster. This was following a day
of confrontations with journalists who
were raising questions to him regarding
the scandalous appointment of Delyan
Peevski as the head of the national security agency, the event that subsequently
sparked the protests.
Siderov and Chukulov’s recent behavior
is characteristic of ATAKA’s nihilistic
attitude and absolute lack of morality.
On many previous occasions, members
of the same party have been involved
in scandals and disputes that captured
the public’s attention. Nevertheless,
ATAKA’s current strategic position in
government as a key party that holds the
coalition together give this latest gaffe
greater significance.
ATAKA’s behaviour, along with the attitude of its leader, capture the state of
the Bulgarian politics at the moment. Siderov and Chukolov are the incarnation
of the phoney political system in Bulgaria. Unfortunately, at a time when politics
is built around the model of criminal
oligarchy, such behavior is all the more
natural. The members of ATAKA did
not just act on their behalf. They represented every Bulgarian at Brussels. Is
that the moral compass you would have
followed?
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ACCENT
A Distant #BulgarianFuture
Borislav Gizdavkov
E from page 1...
It was tough getting where he is now. Building a decent livelihood in Bulgaria at the turn of the millennium required
one to endure a Sisyphus struggle and to tacitly accept the
political status quo. More than two decades of stalled reforms, reigning corruption, and incompetent governance
by the Socialist Party produced that reality and guaranteed Bulgaria’s unenviable reputation of being “the poorest
country in the EU” for quite a while.
By European standards, Bulgaria was a failing state. It is
not the case that it lacked central government – that was in
place. Alas, only in name. A government is not legitimate
when a fraudulent camarilla is bent on protecting the interests of a few shady moguls. Such a government, made up of
former secret service agents, is by definition unable to serve
its people – a fact proven by the disastrous social experiment
of communism. Nevertheless, whether we can comprehend
the absurdity of it or not, that is exactly how Bulgaria looked
like in the beginning of the 21st century.
Defying all expectations, however, the Bulgarians changed
all that, by themselves.
Starting in the mid-2010s, the infamously passive and docile
Bulgarian nation toppled the morally bankrupt government
led by the Socialist Party. Peaceful protests and demands for
real democracy suddenly became the driving forces behind
Bulgaria’s own Velvet Revolution. That revolution became
possible and inevitable when the people got tired of living
in a state that seemed to hate its citizens. It was not the ideas
that made this a revolution – democracy is hardly a novel
concept. The true revolution happened in people’s minds.
That is what counts most.
The two indispensable ingredients for change – the ideas of
freedom and new beginning – finally ripened in the minds
of the people during that period. Ivan, then in his teens, saw
the emergence of a new Bulgaria – one that is founded on
the principles of democracy, liberty, and meritocracy.
That fundamental change stood in stark contrast to his parents’ miserable life that both celebrated Bulgaria’s liberation
from communism in 1989 and suffered the subsequent period of painfully long looting of the state’s wealth by mafia figures that somehow happened to govern the country as well.
It took time, but the Bulgarians came to realise that liberation and liberty are not the same. While liberation from the
cancer of communism provided the conditions for the establishment of true democracy, it did not lead automatically
to it. The Bulgarian nation took a good quarter of a century
to comprehend that true freedom resides and is achievable
through their active participation in public affairs and civil
control of government.
As that happened, Bulgaria made spectacular economic
progress and after a 10-year period of latency, emerged as
a successful role model for new members of the EU such
as Ukraine and Serbia. Bulgaria’s judiciary, long-branded
as ineffective and serving the interests of the local criminal
cliques, finally got off the ground by convicting corrupt gov-
[email protected] ernment officials and their affiliates from the underground
world.
Today, Ivan is reaping the benefits of these developments.
His employer was one of many high technology firms that
chose to invest in Bulgaria in the 2020s. The state’s increased
credit rating and massive inflow of foreign direct investment
made it an attractive place to work and live. Ivan appreciates
that. It is only natural that he does so – juxtaposed to the
bleak canvas of his childhood days of old marked by memories of a state that had failed its citizens, his life today appears as one that is actually worth living.
***
On his way to work, Ivan stopped at the petrol station to get
his usual morning paper. While throwing it onto the passenger seat, he glanced at the front page story which bragged
that for the first time, Bulgaria has made it to the “list of
top 20 least corrupt countries in the world”. This development, unimaginable 30 years ago, is now taken for granted
by most Bulgarians. However, it took the nation long years
of struggle, sudden enlightenment, and protracted yet persistent peaceful resistance to bring this new Bulgaria to life.
In a way, the slow transition from a nepotistic model of
bogus democracy to a state governed by the rule law was
a struggle of Bulgarians against themselves. Nonetheless,
fighting against the odds and showing that the desire for
freedom and democracy is stronger than political authority
built over a network of impudence and deceit, the Bulgarian
nation reinvented itself.
Today, Ivan and the generation that he represents are the
first to live in a Bulgaria that is yet again brand new. That
has happened on several other occasions in the history of
that long-suffering nation. After 1878, 1944 and indeed after
1989, the schema of liberation-high hopes-disappointment
was the norm. Ivan and Bulgaria of the future know better
than most that this predicament was not their fate...
...Do we?
www.protestnamreja.bg
Photo: Vassil Garnizov
3
ACCENT
100 Days – 100 Gaffes
Translation by Nikolay Nikolov (15th of September, 2013)
I
n the beginning of the protests (110 days ago)
against the current Coalition Government headed
by Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski, protesters were accused of not giving the government the
chance to prove their worth in its first 100 days. They
were accused of standing in the way of the government and the fulfillment of its pre-electoral promises
and programmes.
Yet, those 100 days are now over and out. There
is still no reason of showing them support by giving
them the benefit of the doubt. On the other hand, the
reasons for asking for this government’s resignation
are as numerous, as they days it has been in power.
And rather than decreasing, the number of mistakes
is skyrocketing: atrocious appointments, ridiculous
laws are being drafted, concealing the truth and deceiving the most vulnerable citizens with promises of
higher benefits, to name but a few...
The 100th day of the government – marked on
September 6th – was also the 128 anniversary of
Bulgaria’s Unification, as we again witnessed a direct
government attempt at separating and juxtaposing
the nation. Alas, we are wide awake and watchful.
The sheer quantity of the spectacular mistakes
committed by the government, and what is worse,
the apparent thought that no one will notice and
that citizens will remain passive, is absolutely unforgivable. The list below contains a selection of the
graves mistakes unworthy of any government seeking legitimacy and seeking to represent the people’s
voice, rather than representing the voice of a small
clique of privileged individuals. To simplify matters
for our foreign audience, here is this week’s trending
list of the Top 10 Oresharski Cabinet gaffes:
1) The scandalous appointment of Delyan Peevski as
head of DANS (The Bulgarian National Security Agency) after the law was tailored to the given needs,
leading tens of thousands to the streets. Peevski was
not even removed from the post – he decided to step
down on his own accord (We remind our readers that
Delyan Peevski is a 33-year old media mogul, with
direct connections to circles of organized crime and
former Secret Service spheres. Translator’s note)
2) The actualization of Budget 2013 was passed,
again without the necessary debate and consensus
building. A large loan was agreed to be taken out by
the government (around 6 million leva), as an attempt to revive the small and mid-sized businesses.
Once again, those in power attempted to manipulate
the most vulnerable strata in society by pledging to
spend around 40 million leva on benefits and healthcare. What remained unsaid is why the budget allocation did not account for 40% of the loan taken
out – the budget was not balanced and risks raising
the deficit level of Bulgaria in times of economic
hardship. Even after the veto enforced by President
Rossen Plevneliev, the actualization passed through
parliament anyway without any changes.
3) The announcement of Kalin Tiholov (he is connected to “Duningeit” – a scandal, which revolves around
the building of a luxurious hotel on the Bulgarian
southern-Black Sea coast, leading to a penal procedure lead against Bulgaria by the European Commission; he is also the author of the infrastructural plan
for another coastal town – Tsarevo and was involved
in the planning of building schemes in the area of
Strandja) as Minister of Investment Planning. His
subsequent removal was again a consequence of citizen action. If the appointment passes, very good – if
not, on to the next one!
4) The first thing that the newcomers in government
set themselves to doing was trying to overrule the
ban on smoking in closed public spaces using fictitious statistics about how removing the ban will in
effect serve as the life-support mechanism that Bulgarian tourism needs. This, in effect, was yet another
attempt to segregate and separate the Bulgarian
people. Unsuccessful.
5) Energy Dependency on Russia seems a vital priority:
a. They also put the resurgence of the nuclear
power plant in Belene development plans on the
agenda with the motive that it will yield billions in
profits. We actually lose out if the power plant is
built. Moreover, the other nuclear power plant in
Kozlodui, has recorded a 5.8 million leva (4 million dollars) for the first half of 2013, when for
the same period in 2012 it registered a 90 million
leva (60 million dollars) profit. In other words, it
is unsustainable to build a second power plant in
Bulgaria.
b. The “Yuzhen Potok” (trans. Southern Path – this
is a pipe-line, which Russia is attempting to build
through Bulgarian territory) continues to raise
serious suspicion. The government is raising the
HAVE SOME SHAME,
HAVE SOME SHAME!
Those were the words of Delyan Peevski after an outburst towards former Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov. The remark was made in relation to the scandal regarding phone-tapping and survaillance pursued
by GERB while in office. Peevski became the head of the national security agency, DANS, a month later.
4
eco-barrier for this project. The entry point of it
would be one of the few remaining virgin beaches
– Pasha Dere. The gas pipeline is incredibly detremental for Bulgaria and its economy. The planned
transitional taxes, which Russia ought to pay Bulgaria in the process of the gas exploitation, are 2.5
times smaller than their market value, as held in
other Eastern and Central European countries.
6) After appearing on a morning talk show on BTV,
Prime Minister Oresharski refused to answer the
question posed by TV hosts Anna Tsolova and Viktor
Nikolaev: “Who nominated Delyan Peevski for the
position?”. Oresharski only answered that he found it
“rude” such questions were asked. Both hosts were
subsequently fired from the TV station.
7) The existence of this Cabinet is only a reality due to
the involvement of Ataka in the coalition. The Cabinet
is dependent on Volen Siderov’s vote, known for his
aggressive behaviour, far from acceptable for an MP.
He is also known to support racism and hate speech,
yet is in power with the Movement of Rights and
Freedoms – the ’arch-nemesis’ of Ataka, as declared
by Siderov. Ataka’s pre-election campaign was based
on hate-speech against Muslim and their Rights and
Freedoms Movement. The fact that both parties are
in a coalition, gladly so, with the Socialists, means
that there are other things, besides politics going on
within those parties, their platforms and ideologies.
8) Another atrocious appointment was the choice
went to Ivan Ivanov as Deputy Interior Minister. He is
connected to the criminal organization SIK (involved
in narco-trafficking, theft, racketeering, prostitution,
and black-mail). This appointment also did not hold
and Ivanov held the post for no more than a few
hours.
9) The mind-boggling deal with the pension fund
“Doverie” (trans. “Trust”) – a deal involving the
money of more than 1 million Bulgarians. The company was initially sold to an offshore account with an
unclear ownership. With brief commentary provided
by the Cabinet, the Financial Advisory Committee is
still considering this deal.
10) The unprecedented attitude of the government
and police towards the protesters:
a. Maya Manolova (deputy-Chair of Parliament)
announced that “the protests were a novel form of
a temporary occupation”.
b. Another MP called the protesters “internet idiots”.
c. After a tragic car accident, protesters were accused of blocking the street causing the ambulance to arrive late. This horrifying statement was
immediately rejected by the head of Emergency
Service, Dr. Georgi Gelev.
d. The way in which the Interior Ministry counted
the protesters each night – in those days when we
marched down Tsarigratsko Road and gathered
30,000 – their recorded showed no more than
3,000.
e. The way Oresharski refuses to communicate
with protesters and foster a dialogue.
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www.protestnamreja.bgwww.facebook.com/vestnikprotest
ACCENT
APPOINTMENTS
Photo: Julian Sobadzhiev
1. The scandalous appointment of Delyan Peevski as
head of DANS (The Bulgarian National Security Agency) after the law was tailored to the given needs,
leading tens of thousands to the streets. Peevski was
not even removed from the post – he decided to step
down on his own accord (We remind our readers that
Delyan Peevski is a 33-year old media mogul, with direct connections to circles of organized crime and former Secret Service spheres. Translator’s note.)
2. The Bulgarian Consulate representative in Frankfurt, Ivan Yordanov, was chosen as deputy justice
minister, without his knowledge.
3. The announcement of Kalin Tiholov (he is connected to “Duningeit” – a scandal, which revolves around
the building of a luxurious hotel on the Bulgarian
southern-Black Sea coast, leading to a penal procedure lead against Bulgaria by the European Commission; he is also the author of the infrastructural plan
for another coastal town – Tsarevo and was involved
in the planning of building schemes in the area of
Strandja) as Minister of Investment Planning. His
subsequent removal was again a consequence of citizen action. If the appointment passes, very good – if
not, on to the next one!
4. And the next one is Ivan Danov, who improperly received benefit payments as “unemployed” in
France. Ivan Danov got tangled in excuses regarding
this case, initially explaining he had not made use
of those funds, that they were pension funds, that
he had the right documentation, as granted by the
French Labour Service – all ridiculous and unprovable explanations.
5. The Prime Minister did not even manage to learn
the names of some of the ministers, got them mixed
up, including the above-mentioned Danov, whom he
called Dimov.
6. As Deputy Interior Minister, the choice went to Ivan
Ivanov, who is connected to the criminal organization
SIK (involved in narco-trafficking, theft, racketeering,
prostitution, and black-mail). This appointment also
did not hold and Ivanov held the post for no more
than a few hours.
7. After Ivanov, who had close ties with SIK, another
closely-knit relationship with another major criminal
group – VIS, was chosen as District Governor of Sofia. This is the Rights and Freedoms Movement (the
Party claiming to reperesent the Turkish and Roma
ethnic minorities in Bulgaria) candidate Emil Ivanov
– whose criminal file is filled with cases of battery,
deal-making and illegal auction licensing.
8. The appointment of Petko Arnaudov as Head of the
National Forestry in Tsarevo is the next case. Former
Mayor of the town, he became famous with his attempt to liquidate the National Park Strandja in order
to legalize the building of a villa-zone “Zlatna Perla”.
9. The removal of Martin Ivanov, the head of the
National Archives Agency. He himself learned about
it from the media. Martin Ivanov was swapped by
the former DANS employee Ivan Komitski, who was
a Secret Service official from the Third Independent
Department.
10. The appointment of Nikolay Popov as Deputy
Director of the “Borders” Agency. He has had his access to secret documents revoked due to informal ties
with drug smugglers.
[email protected] “The disgusting ones” -Left to right: Delyan Peevski, Sotir Tsatsarov, Sergey Stanishev, Lyutvi Mestan, Volen Siderov
11. As Youth and Sports Minister, the choice went to
Prof. Mariana Georgieva – linguist and syntax professor at the Bulgarian Institute for Language. She had
been the parliamentary liaison for the Head of the
Rights and Freedoms Movement – Liutvi Mestan. Her
competencies for the job are literally non-existent.
12. The appointment of Volen Siderov (the controversial leader of the pseudo-nationalist and pseudo-patriotic and ultra-right wing party Ataka) as the Ethics
Committee Director. No comment.
13. Boyan Chukov, close to Aleksey Petrov (who is regarded as being among the top mafia individuals and
has been tried unsuccessfully over the past 4 years),
became head of Security at the Ministry Council. This
was followed by a very stern and critical response by
the President Rossen Plevneliev – Chukov is connected to the Secret Service; his involvement in politics is
more than disturbing.
14. The choice of Ivan Velikov as District Governor of
Varna (charged but not convicted).
15. The appointment of Michail Michailov as District
Governor of Pernik – he was the former Deputy Mayor of construction, fired by Mayor Rositsa Ianakieva
because of misuse of public fund used for help following the earthquakes in 2012.
16. The appointment of Beihan Duran as District
Governor or Smolian – convicted for assault using a
knife.
17. The appointment of Unal Tasim as the fifth Deputy Energy and Economy Minister. In the last days of
parliament in 2009, he was charged with corruption.
18. The appointment of Georgi Dimitrov as Permanent Interior Ministry Secretary – he is also a former
Secret Service member, with the code name “ANTON”,
and later also in the First Central Committee – codename “BOIL”.
19. Biurchan Abazov is once again Deputy Commerce
Minister. In 2004, when he first assumed the position, he sold physical and juridical entities 974 acres
in the Stranja park at around 75-100 Euros per acre.
20. The appointment of Eva Zhecheva az Head of the
Government Agency for the Protection of Children in
the place of Kalin Kamenov. She held the post until
2002, when she was forced to resign because of financial deals she had made.
www.protestnamreja.bg
21. The return of Dr. Margarita Dzhurelova as Director at St. Ivan Rilski Children’s Home. She had been
penalized several times for breach of conduct and for
crimes against children, which had happened while
she was in charge. After the last incident in 2011, she
was forced into retirement. As she heads the Home
today, she is 68 years old and apparently lacking any
sense of moral fibre.
22. The appointment of Vania Stefanova as DeputyHead of DANS – she is a prosecutor, who was given
the task of investigating frauds with EU funds and
the case of the fake bulletins from the last election
– the investigation led to nowhere.
23. The new Head of the Agency for Road Infrastructure, Stefan Chaikov, who is still on the Board
of Directors and CEO of several holdings (7 firms for
construction and road repair) in firms specializing
in road repair; this is in direct contradiction with the
law aimed at overcoming and surpassing any form of
conflict of interests.
24. The appointment of Georgi Hristozov as member
of the Bulgarian Energy Holding Council – he has
been convicted with revoked access to classified information.
25. The appointment of Mukadec Nalbant as Deputy
Education and Science Minister. He claimed some
time ago that Vassil Levski (one of the most beloved
Bulgarian fighters for liberation against the Ottoman
Empire).
26. The appointment of Daniela Bobeva as VicePrime Minister in the Oresharski Cabinet. Mrs.
Bobeva has been associated with Vassil Bojkov-The
Skull (a known mafia boss) as member of the Council
of Directors of his firm “Motostroy” Ltd.
27. The appointment of Branimir Botev as head of the
Tourism Agency. He is in a conflict of interests and is
involved in several suspicious activities via his factory
in the village of Bania, where he is in charge of the
land, which has been returned to former king Simeon
Sakskoburggotski.
28. Svetoslav Lazarov is Chief Secretary of the Interior
Ministry. He is the son-in-law of former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov’s deputy- Kamen Petkov – who
owns a security agency, leading to a direct conflict
of interests.
E continues on page 6...
5
ACCENT
38. The appointment of Tsvetlin Yovchev as Interior
Minister. When he announced he would resign and
leave his post as the President’s Chief of Staff, the
media cited the following announcement: “I have
personal projects, which I cannot intertwine with
my work for the President. They are still in their early
stages and I would not like to share any further information. I can only say, that they are not related to
politics”. If the appointment of Interior Minister is not
political, then what is?
Photo: Fani Mihailova
Key government figures booed during the opening
of the new academic year at the University of National and World Economy.
Left to right: Peter Chobanov, Minister of Finance;
Stati Statev, University Rector (previously Communist Secret Service agent) and Plamen Oresharski,
Prime Minister.
29. The changes within the Agency for governmental
financial inspection, connected to check and findings revolving the potential construction of a nuclear
power plant in Belene and other energy resource
facilities.
30. Chavdar Georgiev was elected Deputy Environment and Waters Minister. Due to the development
plant near Tsarevo, there is a penal procedure upheld
against Bulgaria at the moment.
31. Yordan Gramov was elected Deputy Interior Minister – a prosecutor, who had overseen many checks
of that same Ministry.
32. Ivan Aiolov became Deputy Energy Minister. He
is also the head of an energy firm owned by Bogomil
Manchev, who is the main proponent for the development of the project in Belene.
33. Rumiana Todorova, the sibling of the member of
the European Parliament – Iliana Iotova, has been
placed as head of the National Healthcare budgeting
office; in an interview, she said that it was her role
that influenced her sister’s position.
34. The new head of DANS (the National Security
Agency), Vladimir Pisanchev, is involved in the “Gallery” legal case and subsequently left the agency –
he has now come back on a white horse.
35. The management of “Information Services”,
which counts the bulletins after elections, has undergone a complete overhaul. Among the new appointees is the Former Interior Minster Rumen Petkov.
36. Mario Primdjanov is elected for a second time as
head of the “National Sport Center”, which governs
the most important sports facilities, excluding one
sports hall in Sofia – “Universiada”, which was sold
to companies connected to Delyan Peevski, during
Primdjanov’s last term.
37. With pre-set changes in the national lottery legal
set-up opened up new opportunities for changes in
the governing body and the mandate of the last director was immediately terminated.
6
39. The removal of the director of the National Stadium “Vassil Levski” Anton Popov after a 29 year term.
This is one among many abrupt removals which lack
motive and rationale. Several days prior to his removal, at Roger Waters’“The Wall” concert held at the Stadium, a large sign reading RESIGNATION appeared on
the stage. Roger Waters extended his support for the
protesters and spoke against the governmental terrorism, which began on September 9th, 1945. Surely,
this is no coincidence.
GOVERNMENTAL “IDEAS”
40. The first thing that the newcomers in government set themselves to doing was trying to overrule
the ban on smoking in closed public spaces using fictitious statistics about how removing the ban will in
effect serve as the life-support mechanism that Bulgarian tourism needs. This, in effect, was yet another
attempt to segregate and separate the Bulgarian
people. Unsuccessful.
41. They also put the resurgence of the nuclear power
plant in Belene development plans on the agenda
with the motive that it will yield billions in profits.
We actually lose out if the power plant is built. Moreover, the other nuclear power plant in Kozlodui, has
recorded a 5.8 million leva (4 million dollars) for the
first half of 2013, when for the same period in 2012 it
registered a 90 million leva (60 million dollars) profit.
In other words, it is unsustainable to build a second
power plant in Bulgaria.
42. The Oresharski Cabinet created the Ministry of Investment Development, a consequence of the splitting up of the Ministry for Regional Development
and Public Works. We all remain unsure as to what
the new Ministry’s mandate actually is and how its
existence is legitimated.
43. The conjoining of GDBOP (The Chief Directorate
for the Fight against Organized Crime) and DANS,
and the subsequent changes in the legal framework
of DANS, with which a far-too dominant structure of
force is being created, is a process which was quickly
passed through, without the necessary dialogue and
legitimation process ever occurring.
44. The actualization of Budget 2013 was passed,
again without the necessary debate and consensus
building. A large loan was agreed to be taken out by
the government (around 6 million leva), as an attempt to revive the small and mid-sized businesses.
Once again, those in power attempted to manipulate
the most vulnerable strata in society by pledging to
spend around 40 million leva on benefits and healthcare. What remained unsaid is why the budget allocation did not account for 40% of the loan taken
out – the budget was not balanced and risks raising
the deficit level of Bulgaria in times of economic
hardship. Even after the veto enforced by President
Rossen Plevneliev, the actualization passed through
parliament anyway without any changes.
45. Having just entered their new jobs within the
Ministry of Education and Science, ’experts’ decided
to drop Bulgarian literary classics such as ’Tiutiun’
[Tobacco] by Dimitar Dimov, and ’Maice Si’ [You,
The Mother] by Hristo Botev. After increasing anger
by citizens, Minister Klisarova declared she had no
knowledge of this and the literary works were retained in the syllabus.
46. The proposition that the large supermarket
chains ought not work on weekends, as a means of
increasing the profit made by smaller neighbourhood shops. Again, the effect of this will immediately
disadvantage those with a lower income. Once again
it turned out that the authors of this proposal had not
foreseen these consequence and it was subsequently
withdrawn.
47. The attempts made by Michail Michov (the Parliament Chair) to close NCIOM (The National Centre for
the Study of Public Opinion) under the pretext that
there is no need for it. It seems that data is only required from supportive (of the government and the
Socialist Party) agencies.
48. The decrease by 5% of the cost of electricity bills.
The main issue at hand is that this reduction is not
made by optimizations in the production of electricity – it is made by an increase in the national debt.
49. The promises regarding increasing benefit payments – sounds promising, if there were any money
in the budget to be allocated for such vast spendings.
50. The blocking of all online gambling sites – without the proper procedural registration – is just another pretext for the creation of a monopoly for the
companies owned by the above-mentioned Vassil
Bozhkov-Cherepa.
51. The mind-boggling deal with the pension fund
“Doverie” (trans. “Trust”) – a deal involving the
money of more than 1 million Bulgarians. The company was initially sold to an offshore account with an
unclear ownership. With brief commentary provided
by the Cabinet, the Financial Advisory Committee is
still considering this deal.
52. The case with the privatisation of the Bulgarian
National Bank printing-house. The stated facts do
not favour privatisation, but the involvement of this
printing-house in a joint venture. The bad thing is
that this decision is once again involved with a lack
of transparency. So far, there are no answers to the
increasing amount of questions: Will the publishinghouse company continue to function, or will it be
entirely transferred to a new formation? Which of the
companies will provide the services required by the
Bulgarian National Bank? The commentary provided
by Vice Prime-Minister Daniela Bobeva was: “In September, the BNB Director, Ivan Iskrov, will explain the
whole situation. Nonetheless, this concerns classified
information, so do not expect any publicity on this
issue”. This does not fall in line with the basic democratic necessity of full transparency and institutional
legitimacy.
53. The unaccounted for and suspicious reform
within the security sector, through which the Interior
Minister becomes in charge of the Ministry, DANS,
and the newly created Governmental Agency “Technical Operations”.
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ACCENT
54. The “Yuzhen Potok” (trans. Southern Path – this
is a pipe-line, which Russia is attempting to build
through Bulgarian territory) continues to raise serious suspicion. The government is raising the ecobarrier for this project. The entry point of it would
be one of the few remaining virgin beaches – Pasha
Dere. The gas pipeline is incredibly detremental for
Bulgaria and its economy. The planned transitional
taxes, which Russia ought to pay Bulgaria in the
process of the gas exploitation, are 2.5 times smaller
than their market value, as held in other Eastern and
Central European countries.
55. The decreasing in the funding provided by the European Union after the failed talks with the current
government. The highway “Hemus” and the railway
line Sofia-Varna remain unfinanced and unfinished.
56. The institutional silence about the gradual pollution of the Black Sea. Even though this was discovered as early as August 26th, one week was not sufficient for samples to be taken and results analyzed.
Only on September 1st was there an attempt at extracting palm oil samples.
57. In order to justify, to a certain degree, the large
loan taken for the budget, Prime Minister Oresharski
announced that the amount of the unreturned VAT
for the first half of 2013 will be 315 million leva. Either the VAT had doubled in a couple of days, or these
are fictitious numbers being thrown around in the
public sphere. A few days earlier, Finance Minister
Petur Chobanov declared the same figure as 315 million leva.
58. The government of Plamen Oresharski took
power with a small budget deficit. After the second
term in office, the deficit is already at minus 168,2
million leva. The fiscal reserve decreased, as of the
end of July, by 150 million leva compared to the last
month. The income into the reserve at the end of July
were 16 606,9 million leva. In other words, the size
of the deficit is clearly due to large overspending and
not enough funds.
59. Before the elections, the socialists continuously
claimed they would open up 250,000 new jobs. Today, having surpassed the 100 day mark, there are
no statistics that even one new workplace has been
created by the government. The claim still remains in
the pre-election “priorities”.
for the dozen casualties that night.
63. The current blockade around Parliament. In effect, the center of Sofia is fully barricaded. This
violates the right of every citizen to move freely. By
law, the barricades can be no further than 20 meters
from the building at hand, and the perimetre can be
extended only after a one-off permission from the
Municipality in Sofia. There is no such permission.
64. The police cordon preventing the protests from
circling the Parliament, even during the month of
August, when most of the protesters were on vacation.
65. The distasteful and unpleasant, in which citizens
were forced against each other during the August
16th special Parliamentary meeting on overruling
the Presidential veto. Bulgarians brought to Sofia
with buses from remote areas stood behind the barricades to “protect” the government. Against them
were other citizens, fighting for the restoration of
normalcy, prosperity, and democracy. Who do you
think the real representatives of the Bulgarian people
are?
66. Tsvetlin Yovchev’s meeting with protesters – allegedly open to all, yet in fact including a list with
all atendants.
67. After the car crash involving a taxi on Tsarigrasko
Road, in which a young lady and a child passed away
and several others were injured, the government
came out with a statement blaming the protests for
the late ambulance response. Meanwhile, this horrifying statement was immediately rejected by the
head of Emergency Service, Dr. Georgi Gelev.
68. Maya Manolova (deputy-Chair of Parliament)
announced that “the protests were a novel form of a
temporary occupation”.
69. Hristo Monov’s announcement that the protesters were “internet idiots”.
70. The way in which the Interior Ministry counted
the protesters each night – in those days when we
marched down Tsarigratsko Road and gathered
30,000 – their recorded showed no more than 3,000.
71. Venelin Radkov’s removal from his post as Director of the National Forestry “Kosti” after 14 years. The
official reason for his dismissal was “the incompletion of the financial plan for the first half of 2013”.
72. The massive clean-out in the Ministry of the
Economy – all Directors of Regional Structures were
fired, without prior notices or explanations.
73. The buses coming from the Southwestern city
Blagoevgrad wishing to join the protests in Sofia
were turned back by the police.
74. The leader of Ataka Volen Siderov walks around
armed amidst Sofia’s center and in Parliament,
abuses journalists and police-officers, threatens with
arrests.
75. The process of staged debates regarding the
changes to be made in the Electoral Code Law in
Maya Manolova’s Committee.
76. The Interior Ministry officially admits that police
officers have no right to refuse to identify and legitimate themselves upon questioning from citizens.
77. In a response to a question posed on BTV (a
national television program) “Who put Peevski
forward?”, Oresharski answered: “You want me to
tell a lie”. On the other hand, Maya Manolova, in an
interview with TV host Georgi Koritarov firmly declined to comment on the Peevski case, saying that
she thought it had been discussed thoroughly, and
criticised the host for living in the past and for asking
irrelevant questions.
78. The photos, which the Interior Ministry claimed
it had of the protesters building barricades on July
23rd, and the calls that all involved should come in
for questioning.
INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
79. In our society, the most die-hard supporters of
the Oresharski Cabinet are rapper Misho Shamara
(Misho “The Slap”) and Bisser Milanov, a.k.a. The
Stain. In 2012, a case was being held against Misho
Shamara for profanity with the Bulgarian flag, while
Bisser Milanov has an even larger criminal background – theft, hooliganism, escape from prison, etc.
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60. It is a public secret that there is an ongoing trial
against Bulgaria for its failed TV digitalization attempt. We will be the ones paying for this. After an
aggressive 2-month ad campaign, the process was
delayed due to an incapacity to install all the decoders.
61. Oresharski admitted in an interview that he has
not achieved anything in his first 100 days in his fight
with economic monopolies.
PROVOCATIONS,
RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, AND LIES
62. The provocation with the “white bus” (a bus was
used to evacuate MPs from Parliament in the night
of the protests. The bus was surrounded by protesters and its windows were shattered from the inside
– by the MPs themselves. The protesters were subsequently accused of vandalism and violence) on July
23, the 40th day of the protests. Police brutality extended to people peacefully holding their hands up
in a sign of passivity. No one has taken responsibility
[email protected] Photo: Justine Tomes
www.protestnamreja.bg
7
ACCENT
80. The Prime Minister communicates primarily
through press releases. Rarely does he give live statements to the media. As a whole, he seems to prefer
hiding behind his PR team.
81. “If the government resigns, the power can be
usurped by even greedier oligarchs” – a statement
made by Ianaki Stoilov (Socialist MP), in which he
compares the levels of greed between the government and levels of organized crime.
82. The silent refusal of Plamen Oresharski to step up
to a debate on national television after an invitation
by protesters.
83. Eva Zheleva came out with a statement, as head
of the State Agency for Child Protection, with which
she pleaded to parents to “carefully assess whether
it is suitable for their children to accompany them
to the protests, as there is a risk of escalation in such
cases of mass turnouts”.
84. The speech made by Finance Minister Petur Chobanov that the government does not provoke the
protesters and is not aware of why there are protests
in the first place.
8. Minister Vigenin’s announcement that “with protesters, we shall find no common ground, as long as
they wish for our resignation and for new elections”.
The same individual accused the BTV for using archival footage in order to make the protest look larger
than in is; he was later proven wrong by competent
bodies within the media.
86. After Oresharski’s interview in the morning show
at BTV, hosts Anna Tsolova and Viktor Nikolaev were
immediately fired for asking provocative questions.
87. Plamen Oresharski: “I have no plan”. No comment.
88. ’Spontaneous’ counter-protests (people protesting in favour of the government) carry identical
banners and posters, which they clearly wrote, yet
cannot clearly read.
89. Michail Michov’s announcement as to what the
media ought to be covering – yet another sly attempt
at interfering with the basic freedom of speech.
Photo: Sava Chapanov
8
INTERNATIONAL
ЕMBARRASSMENTS
90. The European Commissioner for Regional Development, Johannes Hahn, demanded an apology
from our Transport Minister, Danail Papazov, after he
claimed that his Deputy, Petur Kirov, was put forward
by Mr. Kahn.
91. The Cabinet’s reaction after the announcement
made by the French and German Ambassadors, who
called on the government to listen to the protesters’
demands. Instead, the government seemingly got
offended and demanded no further foreign intervention in matters of domestic politics. Meanwhile,
Tatiana Burudzhieva wanted the two Ambassadors
removed.
92. Vigenin forbade the Bulgarian Ambassadors to
use social media.
93. In her visit in Bulgaria, European Commissioner
Viviane Redding met with President Rossen Plevneliev but did not meet with Prime Minister Oresharski,
showing no support for his Cabinet.
94. With the decision of the Foreign Affairs Minister
– Vigenin, the French Ambassador Phillip Otie is the
first ambassador, who did not receive the traditional
medal for all members of the mandate – “Stara
Planina” for his service to Bulgaria. Those granted it
are now seemingly reduced to those in favour of the
government in power.
95. Diplomatic relations of Bulgaria and Macedonia
are running thin after a meeting between Prime
Minster Oresharski and Macedonian Prime Minister
Nikola Gruevski.
MANIPULATIONS
AND FALSEHOODS
96. The existence of this Cabinet is only a reality due
to the involvement of Ataka in the coalition. The
Cabinet is dependent on Volen Siderov’s vote, known
for his aggressive behaviour, far from acceptable for
an MP. He is also known to support racism and hate
speech, yet is in power with the Movement of Rights
and Freedoms – the ’arch-nemesis’ of Ataka, as de-
clared by Siderov.
97. In Emil Ivanov’s place comes Aleksandur Metodiev – commonly known as Uncle Sali – a man with
a dubious reputation, connected with vote rigging,
unclean deals, etc.
98. After two months of “tireless” work for the betterment of the Bulgarian nation, the Cabinet voted
itself a one month holiday period.
99. The manipulative actions undertaken in the town
of Devin and in Chepelare, where a petition in favour
of the government was being prepared. In Devin the
people had thought they were signing a petition for
the opening of a new hospital, while in Chepelare –
cheaper energy bills.
100. MP’s attempts to avoid declaring individuals
close to them – wifes, parents, siblings, etc. – in their
conflict of interests documentation.
101. SERGEY STANISHEV (former Prime-Minster and
Leader of the Socialist Party) is the only MP without a
handed in conflict of interests declaration.
102. The Movement of Rights and Freedoms MP,
Pamadan Atalai, forgot a suitcase with 102 000 leva
at a gas station. Police attempted to cover up the
case.
103. Gaffe by the Ministry of Interior and the Prosecutor’s Office is going to lead to a failure in the
case against the so-called new gang of murders.
Surprisingly, Valentin Yanev – Valio the Wrestler, for
whom the General Secretary for the Interior Ministry
claimed he had evidence that Yanev had committed
murder, turned out to be un-punishable and could
not even be brought in for questioning.
ALPHA RESEARCH POLL
Despite the dismissal of Delyan
Peevski as Head of DANS, the clientelistic system of government continues to create massive civil critique.
7.5% of citizens over 18 think that
in the period of “high governmental
positions, the most competent and
loyal individuals were chosen”, and
around 84% would disagree. Even
less, around 5%, agree that the “procedures, in which individuals are appointed and put forward to high posts,
are transparent and fair. 82% (including 70% of supporters of the Socialist party and 58% of supporters of the
Movement of Rights and Freedoms)
do not agree that the current government is lead in its action by those principles of transparency and honesty.
The support for the Cabinet and the
Prime Minister remains at the same
level with which it started – 23% and
29%. What is dramatic however – and
has almost doubled – is the rise in the
negative assessment of their activity.
If, at the beginning of June, around
half of the Bulgarian population
lacked a particular opinion on the job
performed by the government, then at
the end of August, those with a negative outlook have risen from 28% to
47%, and towards the Prime Minister
from 25% to 44%
www.protestnamreja.bgwww.facebook.com/vestnikprotest
Lachezar Kossev:
INTERVIEW
ACCENT
WE, THE AWAKENED CIVIL SOCIETY, ARE THE ONLY CHANCE FOR A CHANGE
Lachezar Kossev – you will see him every evening on the square. One of the first administrators of
ДАНСwithme, one of the communicators of the Protest Network. A musician; father of four; a dreamer.
# What is the protest to you? Why have you been on the street already for
three months?
This protest is one tiny seed, a grain , which brings about a Rennaisance. It’s not that
we just need it: this is simply our fight for survival. We can only survive if we’re a
society of awakened people defending our interests. The naive faith that someone
else will do it for us is very harmful.
The world is quite cruel. Let me give a simple example :The jump in property prices,
which led to the current world economic crisis. What happened? The prices rose year
after year not because there was a real reason for that, but because there were people who took advantage along the chain. The constructors had an advantage to sell
at high prices, the brokers would therefore take advantage – their commission will
be higher too, the bank will take advantage – will give higher credit and eventually
the state would get a higher tax on the sale. At the bottom of it all is the buyer, who
pays. This scenario is everywhere: in the price of electricity, the price of tomatoes...
Everywhere the ordinary person who pays the bill is left isolated and unprotected. If
they don’t fight for their interests, no one will do it for them. They just don’t benefit
from helping them. Same is in politics. With very few exceptions, the parties don’t
want to have bright members. They need sheep to follow and obey, whom they can
easily steal from. Bulgaria’s specific is that mafia parasites are so widespread, hungry to suck the blood of others, that they literally are suffocating/killing us. We, the
awakened civil society, are the only chance to change how things are now.
# What would you tell those sceptical of the Protest Network(PN) ?
Being sceptical is the Bulgarian National sport. When we’re not sceptics, we’re exalted and awfully naive. I don’t expect massive trust towards the Protest Network.
From the very start we’re an object of distrust; of open or below-the-belt attacks;
where our words are deliberately changed and lies distributed about our goals. And
those are: the PN to serve the protesters to lead the government to resign as quickly
as possible and to help us – the citizens – to start perceiving ourselves as a main
contributor in Bulgarian political life.
Like sovereigns, with their mechanisms to keep the political parties responsible for
their actions every single day, and not only at times of elections. The Protest Network
is not a political party, it will always be in opposition. If you’re honest, stand behind
something real, and if you are true to this thing for long enough time, it will always
achieve it’s goal. And nothing would stop it. That’s why I am not afraid of the temporary difficulties, of unavoidable mistakes or the “damage” along the way. Time will
show clearly whom is whom and what they’re fighting for.
# It seems like the events from September 4th repelled a part of the protesters. There are upset people from both sides: GERB supporters and
those who are against it. What’s your opinion?
There are two main groups in the protest: protesters not identifying themselves with
any political party, and supporters of the two right parties, GERB and the Reformatory Block. At the moment our common goal is clear – the resignation of the current
mafia government. Those two groups should put aside their differences as much as
possible, because the mafia at the top will hurt both of them equally. It will also hurt
those who are supporting it at the moment. Because the credits taken, the stolen
money, which will be delivered to some party funds and so called company loops,
will have to be returned eventually by all of us. Even by those policemen, who are
now guarding this government at the high price of immense pressure. On September
4th, the opposition parties officially supported the protest for first time.
In the Protest Network, our principles clearly state that we cannot afford to support political parties’ initiatives. If citizens who support various parties declare their
support for the PN, this support will only be accepted as a non-party, with no other
symbols but the Bulgarian flag, with no attempts that the protest be diverted from
its purely civil nature.
I think that the parties in opposition understand pretty well that they cannot “ride”
the protest. Every attempt to do that can only split the people and eliminate the
protest. Being a partisan protester myself I cannot say that I easily accept parties’
presence at the protest whatsoever. But let’s be realistic. We’ve been marching along
the streets of the yellow cobbles for three months now – partisans and opposition
supporters. The fact that a supporter of GERB is walking next to me in no way makes
me obliged to vote for them at the elections. The fact that I have some criticism [email protected] Photo: Tihomira Metodieva
wards the Reformatory Block does not necessarily mean that their supporters should
think of me as an enemy.
# We often hear that it is not constructive to only insist for resignation, and
the PN and the protest as a whole don’t have a vision on the consequences
after a resignation. Is that true actually?
The problem of all problems is as follows: the Bulgarian political environment is
flooded with a sense of impunity. With no strong civil participation and protest, the
parties know that they have 4 years guaranteed to do whatever they want, while
we’re asleep or are quietly whining in front of our TV sets, but effectively doing nothing.
This government is conceived in the most blatantly dirty way than all previous transition governments. It demonstrates its dependencies every day taking scandalous
decisions against the societal interests. In other countries the punishment for this
is political death. Their resignation. When a criminal is punished for their crime this
has a double effect. The first is for the criminal themselves, “here, you got what you
deserved”. The second one might be even more important. It is for the other criminals
or those who are tempted to commit such crimes. This criminal was punished. If you
do the same, you’ll be punished too. A deterrent. If we, the citizens, stand with this
clear message to the politicians, this will entirely change the situation. There’s an expression in football: the team plays as much as the other team allows them to. They
have had the chance to play their ball while we, the citizens were sitting in the stalls
and waiting for them to score. Well, this is not happening any longer and that’s why,
all of us, immediately went to the yellow cobbles and square! OSTAVKA!!! It’s about
time we turn our national sport from scepticism to an awoken and active democracy.
# What do you wish for Bulgaria?
Pure and Sacred Republic. This was the dream of our Apostle, (the national hero Vassil
Levski who is revered by Bulgarians). Before the protest I have only imagined what
I would feel like should Levski show up in front of me, alive and real. How ashamed
I would be that people like him gave their lives for Bulgaria and for us, and we are
living in our own separate worlds being indifferent to what is happening around us.
It would seem as if they shed their blood in vain. Now, participation in the protest
is giving us dignity and hope. I imagine I can meet him now, kiss his hand and say:
“Apostle, we are walking proudly and believe that we can. Your Pure and Sacred
Republic is our dream, our goal.” I wish that Bulgaria “belongs” to Levski and not to
Peevski.
www.protestnamreja.bg
9
ACCENT
Freedom of Press and Bulgaria’s Democracy
Nikolay Nikolov (9th of September, 2013)
B
ulgaria is a country which somewhat defies the common
Eastern European, post-socialist path to democratization. In many ways, there is no visible progress towards the
consolidation of the democratic regime and in 2013, it lags
significantly behind the benchmark set by its neighbouring
countries. Today, the country is marked by anti-government
protests, which have continued on a daily basis for the last 113
days. People have consistently requested the resignation of the
current Socialist-led government, which clearly serves the interests of former communists and current business elites. The
coalition Cabinet is completely unaccountable to the people it
claims to represent. To a large extent, Bulgaria’s political system
remains a facade democracy, where a mixture between members of the old regime and newly formed oligarchies seemingly
dominate the distribution of resources and the official political
discourses.
Bulgaria, despite being a member of the European Union
since 2007, seems closer to Russia than, for example to Slovakia, when one assesses its democratic building progress in
2013. Let’s take one vital institution to the democratic process
– freedom of the press: according to the 2013 Press Freedom
Index of the Journalists Without Borders foundation, Bulgaria
has fallen to number 87 (out of 179 countries in total) from
34th in 2003. This makes it the second-lowest ranked country
in South East and Central Europe after Albania. The Association of European Journalists has gone further in suggesting
that in Bulgaria, every 3rd journalist is forced into a process
of self-censorship. Slovakia, on the other hand, is ranked 23rd
this year, having fallen from the number 1 spot in 2004. And
then there is Russia, which has hovered around the rank of
148th over the last ten years.
And that is, unfortunately, of no surprise to most of us: we
are all aware of the level of censorship in Russia, making the
country the most dangerous place in Europe for journalists. In
Putin’s last 12 years of government, tens of journalists (including Anna Politkovskaya) have been brutally murdered for attempting to oppose and challenge the official media discourse.
In Russia, there is no attempt to hide the erosive effect on the
potential development of democracy – Russia today remains
a highly autocratic and repressive regime, controlled and perpetuated largely by the figure of Vladimir Putin.
Now let’s compare that to the situation in Bulgaria. Many
years ago now, I remember vividly one of the first direct confrontations between the media and the political elite. Journalist
Ivo Indzhev was immediately fired from his popular TV show
’Bullseye’ aired on the Bulgarian BTV in 2006, after he posed
questions regarding the alleged ownership of a luxury duplex
apartment offered as a gift to former President Georgi Parvanov. Since that incident, the Press Freedom Index has been on
the decline in Bulgaria. Today, however, the situation has deteriorated to unprecedented levels.
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Source: http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2013,1054.html
10
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ACCENT
Last month, morning show hosts Anna Tsolova and Viktor
Nikolaev were immediately suspended after interviewing Prime
Minister Plamen Oresharski and pressing the question of who
had appointed Delyan Peevski as head of the National Security
Agency (DANS) – that crucial appointment, which sparked
the #ДАНСwithme protest movement in June. Subsequently,
other Bulgarian journalists found themselves suspended without formal notification or explanation. For instance, Channel 3
host Lilly Marinkova was also taken off air after also asking the
now famous and omnipresent, “Who?” question.
Furthermore, the Bulgarian correspondents to Deutsche
Welle, Ivan Bedrov and Emi Baruh, had their contracts interrupted (but since have been reinstated as a consequence of
popular pressures and inquiries of intent) because their recent
work focused on the parcelization of Bulgarian national capital, the true oligarchs and beneficiaries of the current political
system.
On September 16th, the car of Genka Shikerova, a respected
journalist in Bulgaria, was set on fire. This sets a new precedent
in the country where it may no longer be just their job that
journalist ought to worry about. The case remains under investigation.
This is a simple diagnosis of the deeply damaged Bulgarian
media plurality. What is even worse is that the media in Bulgaria lacks transparency and the entire “media ownership in
Bulgaria is like a Matryoshka doll: there is always one figure
behind the other,” according to Orlin Spassov at Sofia University, quoted in The Economist (April 23, 2013).
It is clear now that Delyan Peevski’s New Bulgarian Media
Group owns an enormous chunk of newspapers, magazines,
websites, and TV and Radio stations (See table below). It has
also become known, as reported by Ivan Bedrov, that this media groups is tightly connected to the Corporate Commercial
Bank (CCB) (owned by Tsvetan Vassilev), which is its major
financier. This is the bank used to finance major public projects
in energy, transport and defense sectors.
In a word, there is a triangle of vested interests lying between
the media empire of Peevski, Vassilev’s bank and the current
Cabinet. In effect, a large number of Bulgarian media outlets,
including the country’s highest-circulating newspaper, Telegraph, and TV7 (which has one of the biggest TV budgets) are
far from independent and do not even try to hide the fact that
they are a part of a dense web of conjoining business oligarchs
and political parties.
It is no wonder then that the German Ambassador to Bulgaria, Matthias Höpfner, has recently stated in an interview that
WEBSITES
www.blitz.bg
www.vsekiden.bg
www.3bay.bg
www.bnews.bg
www.monitor.bg
www.inews.bg
www.econ.bg
www.sporta.bg
www.get.bg
NEWSPAPERS
Weekend (Уикенд)
Show (Шоу)
Vseki Den (Всеки Ден)
Telegraph (Телеграф)
Monitor (Монитор)
Politika (Политика)
Novinar (Новинар)
Utro – Ruse (Утро)
Maritsa – Plovdiv (Марица)
Struma – Blagoevgrad (Струма)
Photo: Tihomira Metodieva
this concentration of the media in the hands of the oligarchy
poses one of the biggest problems to democracy in Bulgaria.
“Media are vital for modern democracy”, says Ambassador
Höpfner. “Today, we speak more often about media democracy. If the presentation of the political processes through media
functions well, then even the political system which depends
on oligarchy could start functioning in a democratic manner.
On the other hand, the weakness of the media hampers the
democratic processes in a certain society and then we speak of
a façade democracy.”
He however sees hope in the situation, and so do I, in what is
often called the revival of the civil society through the protest
movement in Bulgaria. It is a sign of the growing embedding
of the European values protected and pursued by the European
Union, which are closely linked to the existence of a free and
independent media. And Höpfner is correct in saying that the
protests were stimulated by a joint push for transparency, justice, and democratic accountability. #ДАНСwithme became
the first word of a new language facilitated for and by the people and against the growing entrenchment of their freedom by
the political elites.
The situation in Bulgaria right now represents a deep clash
of cultures, where we are now positioned somewhere between
Slovakia and Russia. It is our identity and our freedom, which
are at stake in this fight for the truth. Yet I strongly believe in
the long-term impact of the protests and can see the slow erosion of this backward and repressive system in the years to
come. The protests have made the crucial first step in challenging the control of what is true and are slowly deconstructing
the oligarchic spiral. It is simply a matter of time.
MAGAZINES
Autobild
Hello!
Weekend za Zhenata
Biograph
+ at least 4 more owned by
the New Bulgarian Media Group
TV STATIONS
TV7
News7
The Voice
RADIO STATIONS
Magic FM
Vitosha
Vesselina
The Voice
* This list was compiled from Internet articles and public corporate registers;
* Delyan Peevski is a stake-holder with a varying stake in the given corporation, though often his stake-holdings are sole-ownerships.
[email protected] www.protestnamreja.bg
11
ACCENT
A Holiday Message From
The Early Rising Students
Translation by Petko Bossakov
Hello. How are you?
Thank you for being there. For us it is
very important.
Remember how a while ago we occupied the largest auditorium at the
University?
That’s when the freeing of usurped
Bulgaria began.
That’s when we built an independent
territory at the university, and hence
an independent territory within ourselves.
In our actions we were looking for
opportunity and hope not only for
our country, but for humanity.
And your expectations made us responsible. They required us to say
something more than “Resign!”. So
it’s our turn, the turn of our generation... to speak... to request... to demonstrate.
These are the children of the transition. We saw a lot.
They taught us with examples from
the street and the media. The examples imposed on us were mobsters
and their mistresses, dodgers and
criminals. Regarding us, they were
saying that we had failed. That we
had no common ideals, no cause.
That we are hyper-individualists;
that we have atomized and isolated
ourselves; that we did not know how
to perceive others. The talk about us,
in most cases, was negative.
But we do not delude ourselves, because we know that everyone was
right about some things.
However, our lives are changing too.
The occupation creates a community.
We insist on humanity, solidarity, re-
Photo: Yanne Golev
Happy New Year 2014; let’s make it a great one.
sponsibility and morality. We do not
want lies, unscrupulousness, corruption, irresponsibility, lack of transparency, mean words, empty talk, no
response or reaction.
It cannot be so. For all of us. This
has to stop.
The University auditorium is speaking to everyone. The battle has been
waged for centuries and will go on.
Good and evil – that’s all. The able
ones, the thinking ones... against the
agitators, adventurers, mercenaries,
the absurd ones.
The People against the Mafia.
On Christmas Day we say to you that
the chance of winning is not small.
We win on the inside, every day that
we think about it. Every day in which
we’re together, in which we love each
other, in which we support each other and think a little more positively.
Not only on Christmas. But on every... single... day... of our lives.
We took up the baton. Because... our
time is now. Maybe it was too soon.
But we know that change requires
time and participation. We have no
vain illusions. We believe in ourselves, we believe in you. We have a
lot of courage and a lot of patience.
And we will not surrender, and we
will not stop, and we will hold on,
and we will fight, and... that’s it.
Our reason is because we insist on
the present. Because we all want a
future in Bulgaria. Together.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New
Year! May it be a Great one.
The English version of “Bulgarian Protests” is presented and published by the volunteer work of:
Nikolay Nikolov
Petko Bossakov
Elena Hambardzhieva
Borislav Gizdavkov
Polikseniya Angelova
Elena Bozhinova
Ivan Topalov
Svetozara Davidkova
This newspaper, as well as its Bulgarian version, depend entirely on its readers for extending its reach and
increasing its numbers. It is financed entirely through charity and the funding is transparently accounted
for and described regularly on the website of the Protest Network. We wish for this paper to reach as many
interested people as possible and we hope that you will find time to both read and pass it along. Print and
share; send it in its digital form. We thank you sincerely for your support and time. For any further information
contact us at: [email protected]
12
www.protestnamreja.bg
www.facebook.com/vestnikprotest