Krasimir Yankov, district chairman of the Bulgarian Socialist Party – Varna and organizational secretary of the party’s National Council, in an interview with FOCUS – Varna Radio about a documentary showing election frauds in Bulgaria in 2011, which the Bulgarian Socialist Party screened in Strasbourg, and about the amendments to the Forestry Act


FOCUS: Mr. Yankov, there are comments that the presentation of a film about election frauds in Bulgaria does not work for the country’s image, but on the contrary. The film was presented by Party of European Socialists President Sergey Stanishev and MEP Ivaylo Kalfin in Strasbourg before top journalists and MEPs from different political parties. What is your opinion?
Krasimir Yankov: What image? In the latest elections the Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria discredited Bulgarians’ most precious right – to elect freely their governing politicians. This is already known across Europe, but Europe did not find it out from this film. There should not be such disgraceful behavior in an EU member state. I also witness gross violations of the election process as a member of the election center of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) in the 2011 election – pressure, dismissals of people who work with and support the BSP, threats. Is this the way to win elections in Bulgaria? Now the BSP faces the most important goal – to prevent the disgrace that occurred in the latest elections. The BSP will respect all efforts to ensure a transparent and fair election process. This is part of the plan we have worked out and this film with which we have to inform the EU and leading institutions that this has happened and seek all ways and methods to prevent it in the future. Each citizen has the right to vote freely.

FOCUS: What is your opinion about the recent events in Bulgaria – the amendments to the Forestry Act and environmentalists’ protests?
Krasimir Yankov: This is the most recent disgraceful behavior of the government, of Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria. This is a lobbying law which favors a few oligarchs at the expense of all Bulgarian citizens. And in the next moment you send police, elite police units, against a protest of young people who want their country to be green and clean. This is typical of the government’s police style. Some supportive media remained silent about the stormy protests in downtown Sofia, perhaps they did not want to spoil the mood of the prime minister who had birthday. But we should be grateful to the technological development, and the social groups, Internet and forums reacted and the society got familiar. What has happened is demonstrative and we all can see what country Bulgaria is turning into. Is this the country we want to live in? We are all aware of the huge gap between the government and people and this government is detrimental to Bulgaria. The only possible alternative to the government is the BSP, which has made a commitment to the people. What we, as a party, can do is to support the fair demands of public groups and citizens in Bulgaria. We oppose the use of force in peaceful protests. How have these young people provoked this treatment of the people? The gap the government is putting between it and the Bulgarian citizens is already insurmountable and in the next elections the Bulgarian citizens will topple the government.
Mariyana VALENTINOVA