2/2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................................ 1 1. The Political Situation............................................................................................................................ .. 2 2. State and Development of the Party System in Bulgaria......................................................................... .. 5 2.1. Processes within the Governing Coalition ............................................................................................. 5 2.1.1. Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) ............................................................................................................ 5 2.1.2. NMSP (National Movement for Stability and Progress) ....................................................................... 6 2.1.3. Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) ........................................................................................ 7 2.2 Processes within the Right-wing Political Environment ........................................................................... 8 2.2.1. Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) ..................................................................................................... 8 2.2.2. Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) ................................................................................................. 9 2.2.3. Bulgarian New Democracy (BND) .................................................................................................... 10 2.2.4. Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (The GERB Party) .................................................... 10 2.2.5. The Ataka Party .............................................................................................................................. 11 3. PUBLIC OPINION .................................................................................................................................. 12 4. Trends and Prospects ......................................................................................................................... ... 13 2/2008 . The Political Situation eral Vanyo Tanov, when he was summoned to a hearing before the Parliamentary Committee for The political situation over the past quarter was Internal Order and Security. In his conversation dominated by the massive corruption row, which with the members of this committee Tanov dis- shook the country and made public the ties exist- closed the fact that the Minister of Interior, Rou- ing between some high ranking civil servants from men Petkov, had held unauthorized appointments the Ministry of Interior with organized crime. This with representatives of organized crime. This fact row was widely covered by the mass media and emerged during a surveillance operation carried reverberated not only in this country but in the out by the task force for combating organized international public opinion as well, enhancing crime in connection with two men belonging to Bulgaria’s unfavorable foreign political image. the criminal circles. All this brought to the fore the need for The Minister of Interior, Roumen Petkov, urgent reforms, which can help find adequate confirmed that he took part in such an organized mechanisms aimed at solving the massive prob- encounter, but added that it was part of a special lems this country faces in its endeavors to combat task, which his Ministry had to accomplish, and organized crime and corruption. Such urgency is that an officer from the secret services was pres- also prompted by the fact that the row has taken ent at this pre-arranged encounter. The special- place in a period of strict monitoring by the Eu- ists in this area, however, categorically claim that ropean Commission concerning the measures the the Minister is not entitled to deal with matters country has to implement for the solution of the of such nature and - according to the legislation adverse consequences, which the highly sensitive - such engagements can be arranged only by rep- subject matter of organized crime and corruption resentatives of the professional leadership of the has made imperative both in the country and the Ministry of Interior. EU on the whole. Despite these disclosures, Prime Minis- The row at the Ministry of Interior burst ter Stanishev defended Roumen Petkov and even out when the DSB MP, Reserve General Atanas gave him the assignment to carry out a thorough Atanassov, who was Chief of Intelligence at the inspection of the functioning of the Ministry of In- time of Ivan Kostov’s government (1997 – 2001), terior. President Parvanov also gave his support to submitted to the Prosecutor’s Office a compact the Minister of Interior by expressing the opinion disk with material recorded by means of special that it was Roumen Petkov who could carry out intelligence devices, which he claims to have been the needed reforms at the Ministry of Interior. This sent to him by an anonymous person. The record- statement brought about a tempestuous reaction ings make it clear that high-ranking officials of the on the part of the opposition, which declared that Chief Directorate for Combating Organized Crime this was inadmissible and that Petkov should hand protect representatives of such organized crime. in his resignation right away. As a result, the Deputy Chief of the Directorate Petkov did not resign: he started instead for Combating Organized Crime was arrested, be- extensive inspections at the Ministry he headed, cause his telephone conversations implicate him and in response the opposition tabled a yet anoth- in demanding and receiving bribes. Following an er non-confidence vote to the Cabinet on account inspection made by the Prosecutor’s Office, the of the activity of the Ministry of Interior and its former Chief Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, failure to combat organized crime and corruption. General Illia Illiev, was also arrested for illegitimate Unlike the previous non-confidence votes, howev- use of special intelligence devices. er, this one was truly dramatic and showed the ex- The row reached its climax with the rev- istence of serious differences within the governing elations made by the former Director of the Chief tri-partite coalition. This became particularly obvi- Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, Gen- ous during the debates and the voting procedure 2/2008 itself, when the NMSP MPs abstained from voting In the course of the row, the name of an and the Cabinet survived only thanks to the votes undercover agent of the secret services was re- of the BSP and MRF. vealed and this is the reason why an investigation The parliamentary faction of NMSP ex- is being currently held as to who has made this un- pressed particularly strong criticism with respect authorized disclosure. The misgivings are that the to the Minister of Interior, Roumen Petkov. In the guilty person was the Minister of Interior, Roumen opinion of the NMSP MPs, he already had to have Petkov himself, and that he had done so before handed in his resignation. In this way the NMSP handing in his resignation. The Prosecutor’s Office stance was a clear signal to Prime Minister Stan- demanded that the ex-Minister be stripped of his ishev indicating the urgent need for replacing his parliamentary immunity so that an investigation Minister of the Interior. For his part, Stanishev ex- to this effect could properly be carried out. Pet- pressed his own criticism for the behavior of his kov waived his immunity himself and said that he coalition partner, NMSP, and the MRF also has- did not commit the alleged crime he was charged tened to do the same. with. The results from the prosecutor’s investiga- The Prime Minister also said that the row re- tion are expected to be announced shortly. vealed the existence of serious problems in the func- The resignation of the Minister of Interior, tioning of and interaction between the individual Roumen Petkov, and the situation of a growing units and sectors of the Ministry of Interior, but the public negativism with respect to the government Cabinet and the governing tri-partite majority had gave sufficient reasons to Prime Minister Stanishev the political will to start reforming this system. In his to carry out personal re-shuffles in the Cabinet, opinion, the row was prompted mainly by the circles which had been long due and expected for more which aim at the political destabilization of the coun- than a couple of months. Petkov’s replacement at try, thus intending to provoke an early general elec- the post of a new Minister of Interior was Mikhail tion and facilitate GERB’s and Boiko Borissov’s ascent Mickov, Chairman of the parliamentary faction of to power and the governance of the country. Coalition for Bulgaria. Re-shuffles took place at the The right wing opposition accused the Ministry of Health, where Minister Radoslav Gai- government of close relations with organized crime darsky was replaced by the former mayor of the in Bulgaria, adding that corruption had become a town of Stara Zagora, Evgenii Zhelev; at the Min- customary practice of political behavior on the part istry of Defense, where Nickolay Tzonev replaced of the governing tri-partite coalition. This was a cat- Vesselin Bliznakov from NMSP, and at the Ministry egorical proof for the existence of a statehood crisis of Agriculture, where Valeri Tzvetanov replaced in the country. The opposition was also unanimous Nihat Kabil from the MRF. A new Deputy Prime that