Amid Ongoing Protests, Democratic Bulgaria Proposes "Recipe for Restart" after Early Elections

Ahead of a fifth successive evening of anti-corruption pretests expected on Monday, the non-parliamentary Democratic Bulgaria proposed a "recipe" of measures for a restart of rule of law and ideas of a radical modernization of the country, which they believe should be adopted by those who come to power after early parliamentary elections demanded by the protestors. The proposal was made public in a statement live-streamed on Facebook by Democratic Bulgaria co-leaders Hristo Ivanov and Atanas Atanassov.
 
The opposition alliance calls for a constitutional reform to ensure an independent court and an accountable prosecution service. They want legal amendments enabling each Bulgarian to approach the Constitutional Court rather than limiting this right to politicians; lustration; a reform of the Supreme Judicial Council and the prosecution service; electronic voting and mail voting to allow more Bulgarians to participate in elections; and legal revisions making it possible for 10,000 Bulgarians to propose legislative changes directly and not through the intermediation of political parties.

Ivanov said that the proposed package of changes calls for amendments to the Constitution and the election law, but a Grand National Assembly is not required and they can be made by a constitutional two-thirds majority in the next Parliament. "In the name of such a majority, we are ready to hold talks with all pro-European and legitimate formations in Bulgaria," Ivanov said, urging all pro-European parties to say how they feel about these proposals.

In their statement Monday, Ivanov and Atanassov said the Interior Minister should resign over police brutality during the protests.

Videos posted on the social media showed several instances in which police were beating up protestors. Police are probing the incidents.

At the same time, police officers have also complained of being the target of violent protestors.

Atanas Atanassov said they expect Interior Minister Mladen Marinov to hand in his resignation by 18:00 hrs on Thursday. If he refuses to do so, Democratic Bulgaria will be outside his Ministry to demand it the same day.

Democratic Bulgaria is one of the driving forces of the protests which have been going on since July 9, bringing out into the street people of various political affiliations - or none at all. People are protesting against corruption, against a prosecution service which they say picks and chooses what crimes to probe and what not, and against a government which has allowed the creation of a deep state. In the past four days of protests, people mostly chanted calls against the Prosecutor General and the Prime Minister, and for the government's resignation. President Rumen Radev called for "kicking the mafia out of the prosecution service".

On Monday, the prosecutors from prosecution services in close to 30 towns across the country issued statements that blast what they see as attempts to be used in political battles, and say that they do their work guided solely by the law. Some point out that the prosecution service belongs with the judiciary power branch and slam any attempt to remove it from there. Some wrote in their declarations that the President has no legal or moral right to call for replacement of the Prosecutor General.

Source: BTA