Protesting miners remain on the blocked Trakia highway, demand guarantees for their jobs

An arrest has been made at the protest of the energy workers and miners, who blocked the Trakia highway for another day. Around 11 o'clock, a group of disaffected people tried to block the bypass road, which is currently taking traffic from the highway near the village of Rakitnitsa in Stara Zagora. The protesters did not obey the police order to clear the roadway, as a result of which one person was detained, the director of the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - Stara Zagora, commissioner Lazar Hristov, confirmed for BNR.

At the moment, the traffic there has been restored and is regulated by the police. Due to the increased traffic, queues of cars form, but the road is passable. The Trakia highway and the cloverleaf near Stara Zagora remain blocked from Chirpan to Nova Zagora, as well as the Haskovo - Stara Zagora road.

There is no change in the position of the protesters. They will continue to defend their demands for clear guarantees for their jobs and the withdrawal and renegotiation with Brussels of the Territorial Plans for a just transition. This is how Biser Binev, chairman of the trade union organization of CL "Podkrepa" in the mines, commented on the Roadmap for climate neutrality of Bulgaria adopted by the parliament late last night, according to which the production of electricity from coal in Bulgaria will continue until the end of 2038.

"Even in this road map with the changes they made and voted on last night in the National Assembly - it is written there that 2026 available coal capacities, after renegotiation of the decision of the National Assembly from January 12, 2023. These are very long processes and I repeat again - it is desirable. Because whether the European Commission will renegotiate this 40% with our country, no one can guarantee as of today," said Binev.

At the blockade of the Trakia highway, as the day progresses, the protesters are joined by more and more of their colleagues and other citizens who support the demands.

"It is high time for the whole of Bulgaria to understand that the people of the country elect a parliament that takes care of their interests".

"In order to have Bulgaria for our children, I brought my 10-year-old boy. He wants to see what a protest is - is there such an injustice and that he knows what to do in time".

"We are holding the front like this for the sixth day in a row," said some of the protesters

Several key road arteries in the Starozagorski region are closed and motorists have to choose detours.